XLRI… the Top View

Here’s the link… XLRI, Jamshedpur

I have not visited the campus as yet but Google does allow me to have a top view of XLRI

Questions about XLRI GMP clarified

A promise is a promise and as promised earlier in one of my blog posts, I will share all the information about XLRI’s GMP and play my role in creating awareness about this program.
I spoke to one of the current student (referred to as CS further in my post) at XLRI’s GMP and this is the gist of information that I could collect…

Placements 2008

Placement process is driven mainly by the students and there is minimum participation from the college. CS was of the opinion that stats like average salary, companies visiting, etc. do not matter as the target company and salary have been a function of the person’s pre-GMP profile. The students placement committee contacts the companies directly and tries to get them for the placement week. The list of companies to be contacted is prepared after consultation with the class.

A detailed placement report would be released later in the next month which should contain details. But one thing can certainly be revealed… The average salary of the batch is higher than last year

Updates - Read press release about placements

Initial fees that we have to deposit to secure a place in GMP class and the deadline for the same. And in anycase was it refundable (partly)?
Deadline for deposit is April 26th.

Updates – 25K would be deducted if the student changes his plans after depositing the first installment but before May 20th…

Student Loan and issues. Maximum amt SBI ( xlri branch ) can offer without collateral.
Last year the bank had offered the complete loan amount at an attractive rate of interest (read 1% lower than existing market rate) without any collateral. The SBI bank manager is quite helpful in resolving the queries for XLRI ppl.

Updates – Special offers this year: SBI @ 10.75, Canara bank @ 10.25

Is admission deferral possible due to a valid reason ?
No idea.. need to confirm from adcom

Details about family accommodation availability ? Are fooding expenses are also covered?
Yes, family accommodation is available and last year there were no extra charges for family accommodation.
Food expenses were included in the fees last year but this may not be included this year as per CS.

Updates – Additional cost of around 70K in case of family quarter

Do the students have to pay for the foreign module ( air tickets + food + local transport ) seperately ?
The international exposure module is something like an international exchange program.
Air tickets are included in the fees.
Food and local transport need to be borne by the student himself.

Approximate personal expenses
The expenditure during the program depends on the lifestyle of the student and there have been a few students who have a monthly expenditure of INR 500

Updates – Food expenses are extra this year… INR 500/month does not seem possible unless a student plans to go on a strictly liquid (water..even cheaper) diet

I hope the above information is useful for everyone.

Disclaimer: The above information is gathered from a current student at the school. I cannot guarantee the authenticity of this information and will not be responsible for any misrepresentation of the facts.

XLRI GMP Results are out… I am IN

Hey Guys

The XLRI results are out.. A good day for me

Here’s the official results link http://61.95.148.2/results08/index.html

and I have been selected for XLRI’s one year GMP program.

All the best to all who are here to check their results…

Darden.. Not Offered… So be it

So another DING without any pomp or show… No Interview… No shortlists… the decision has changed to “Not Offered” with some wishes for my future.

Thanks Darden adcom… May your wishes help

McCombs.. Ding it is!

So the wait for McCombs is over… Not as I wanted it to

Still nothing from McCombs…

Why is the adcom taking so long to send me my admission decision???
I paid my $125 application fee in time.. I submitted my application well before the R2 deadline… I was also interviewed in early February!

The Rumor market is full of reasons for the delay. One goes to say that all IT Indian Male applicants are kept waiting as they have far exceeded the expected applicant pool. Another one simply puts the blame on the slow/lazy admission committee members… I came across a post from a current student who says that McCombs has been traditionally known for its late acceptances. He himself received an admit mail about 2 months after he had finished his interviews!

How about transferring the blame to our dear friend and neighbor country. As they always do in politics Isme videshi takato ka hath hai .

Whatever be the reason, the delay is frustrating!

Oh God… I ask for patience and courage to face all uncertainties of life. Amen!

Check…Check… 1 2 3… Status check

I got a mail from McCombs yesterday thanking for my patience and asking me to wait for some more time… I hope the wait is fruitful. 5 weeks after my interview, I am still waiting!

About the others, I have emailed some supplementary material to Emory. They had given me an option to either stay on the waitlist and get some feedback or send additional material that supplements my application. I chose the later … My interviewer was a bit concerned about the lack of visibility for my community initiatives. Frankly speaking, I have never undertaken these initiatives for certificate sake…

Anyway…I added a short note (~ 1 page) about my involvement in extra curricular activities and community services. Plus an additional recommendation from an institution head. I also included a one pager about the recent changes in my work profile. I hope all this boosts my admit chances!

Darden is still silent about my status and so is Mays (TAMU). When will they wake up…. With the decision dates approaching fast, I am getting a bit apprehensive about the decisions. XLRI results would be declared in early April…

All in all, the waiting game continues and hope is the clear winner!

Interview with current McCombs student

Hello

Here’s an interesting interview of an international student at McCombs school of business at University of Texas (Austin).

Student - Tatsuya Ishihara

Interviewer – Adam Markus

Link - http://adam-markus.blogspot.com

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XLRI GMP – MY interview experience

Location – XIMR Campus, Mumbai
Date – 1st March 2008
Interviewers – Panel of 3 Professors

How was it? I don’t feel too confident… Or probably I was expecting a lot out of it and it turned out to be a damp squib… I don’t know what to expect… but yes I will eagerly wait for the results … probably early next month

For all those applicants who are waiting for their interviews, there’s only one advice I can give you… just be prepared to talk about yourself. It could be about your experience in the industry or some processes that you could improve… or even about your personal preferences in a presented case (as in my interview).

I was questioned about ethics versus business gains … my opinion in a hypothetical situation and my reasons for my views. Some questions also revolved around the things that I do when I am free

It was a QUESTION-ANSWER interview unlike the interactive/informal discussion type thats usual for US/UK MBA admissions. During an answer, I was interrupted by one of the interviewer and told that I better keep my answer relevant to the question I did unsuccessfully attempt to explain him the relevance of my answer but… I don’t think he was open to understand my viewpoint

On hindsight I feel, I was a bit aggressive during the interview… but with Marketing as one of my target MBA specializations (Yes! I also let the interviewers know about my plans), I feel I should be aggressive in selling myself.

I am glad its over for now… It must be really difficult for the admissions committee to choose the class with just a 20 min interaction with the student (and obviously a one page resume!)… All said, I hope they select me. I am very keen on XL. Good ROI coupled with a US slowdown strongly favor an Indian MBA…

By the way, I had spoken to an alumnus of the GMP a couple of days back and he told me that the school is planning to increase the batch size to 120 this year… Something to cheer about!