I, The Absolute

A couple on campus had a baby boy today. A couple of students got married during the year. A few students got engaged. One girl is getting married on the next day of graduation.

Some students are headed to Australia to take up jobs. One to Bosnia. One more to Mexico. A few rejected offers to go to Poland and the Netherlands / Serbia. Some are headed to Dubai and many more to London, New York and Texas.

A few couples met up at ISB and in all likelihood will get married in a few years. Some couples met and later figured out that they are not made for each other.

Some married students have had their share of trouble with not being able to give enough time for spouse and kid. Some celebrated their first anniversary with grandeur.

Some students are very happy because they have been able to get their dream jobs. Some are happy because they have been able to make career shifts. Some still happy because they got good salary hikes. Some students who never ever dreamt of private equity jobs gotten in there. Some like me, with neither good academic credentials nor good case interview preparation got into consulting. Some companies came from nowhere and make fantastic offers. Some companies which were expected to do offer good roles on campus disappointed students.

Some of the students are unhappy because they were not able to do any of the above. But they will move on.

Some people have always stood amongst top 10 in their entire education. They came to ISB to realize that there are much smarter people. Some people maintained low profile all the while and got themselves into dean’s list and some of the got very good jobs, to the surprise of the rest. Some people who were reckoned as studs were not able to make it to either dean’s list or to any great job.

People came here and developed interest in things such as quizzing. I developed liking for squash and will try my best to continue playing that sport. A few have developed liking for volley ball. a few more for table tennis. many of us have had a great time watching DVDs. I have really loved some of the movies and have learnt a lot from a couple of them.

The point is – ISB is many things to many people.

The experience provides ample opportunities to explore things we have never done before, never thought of, never wanted to do; to meet people of types we would have never seen or met before; to undergo the rigor we would have never endured; to face uncertainty and tension we would have perhaps never seen before.

For those who want to come with an open mind to unlearn more than to learn, ISB really means many things, all at one time.

PS:

We are just a month away from moving out of this place. The sadness caused by this is juxtaposed by the excitement that the new opportunites the world outside and the new career have to offer.

Have spent some time trying to put my interview prep and some learnings through a questionnaire prepared by CAS. The CAS team had also set up a video recording to narrate my experiences. Found quite odd talking straight into a video camera. I dont think people who have been following my blog regularly will find anything new in either the questionnaire or the video recording.