How I made it to MDI

Manish Sharma, Management Development Institute (MDI) Gurgaon - PGP-IM batch of 2012, spells out his reason for getting into a B-school and tells you how to prepare for it, in this interaction with Suman Priya Mendonca.

Academic/professional background…
I completed my engineering from MIT Manipal in Computer Science in 2007, and subsequently worked as a computer science engineer for three years with Philips Electronics India Ltd. Nuclear Imaging (in the field of medicine) was the field of my work. Here, I found a new method of medical imaging and got a patent for that as well.
I was sure of doing an MBA while pursuing my graduation. But I wanted to get some work experience. I worked with Philips for three years before joining MBA. It was specially to gauge whether or not I have the ability and skills to manage things and especially what is needed to pursue a management course.

CAT experience…
My first brush with CAT was in 2008, but managed only a 95 percentile. Besides, I had only applied to the IIMs and hence could not get through. In the following year that is in 2009, I got a 99.58 percentile. This time I applied for other colleges as well.

Reason for choosing MDI…
I chose MDI because it has a very good brand image and also offered good courses. I took up a PGP International Management as my programme of choice. As per the course, I get to learn for one year at MDI, Gurgaon and the next academic year in ESCP (École Supérieure de Commerce de Paris) Paris. The selling point is the global exposure that I would get out of this programme. Studying abroad is an expensive matter but with this programme I get to fulfill that aspect of my aspiration as well. I get to study in an international campus and get a management degree from a renowned Indian institute in just Rs 13 lakh, which is certainly an attractive aspect.

GD experience…
This year MDI had placed 96 percentile as the cut off. The GD I attended had 9 members in a group. And we were given the topic “FDI in Retail Marketing in India”. As it was a current topic, the discussion was good and I could contribute well as I knew the topic well.
Reading newspapers and getting updated about the current affairs is the best way to prepare for the GD. In one of IIM selection processes, I had the GD topic 'historical reason behind celebrating Kumbh Mela' and it so happened that Kumbh mela was an important event at that time and also a local attraction of that place.
So, while preparing for a GD/essay, one should be aware of the various attractions/local festivals/events of importance based on the place where one goes. Nowadays, most of the management institutes use topics related to current affairs.

PI experience…
In the Personal Interview, I had to face a panel of two who were the Institute’s faculty members. As I had work experience, they asked me questions about the company I had worked with, my role in the organisation, professional interest, hobbies and of course, they evaluated my GD performance.

After MBA…
I was interested to be in the management domain even from my college days. First of all I would like to know about the management industry very well. When I first joined MDI, I was keen about a career in the finance sector. But now I have decided I do not want three years of my work experience to go in vain. So, I look forward to a career in Consulting.