CAT 2012@Top 5 MBA Admission Advices offered by Directors of 10 B-schools

June 18, 2012 - PRLog -- With the aim to provide the MBA aspirants right information and guidance to select the right B-School and take admission into it, MBAUniverse.com hosted Directors Live Chat with the Directors of 10 B-schools across India which are ranked among the top 50 in the past two weeks.

Majority of the queries were asked regarding MBA admission process, eligibility and selection criteria, placement, fees, faculty and infrastructure of the B-School and criteria to choose the right B-School and programs.

In this article of MBAUniverse.com, we will identify and highlight the top five advices of the Directors Live Chat and present the core advice they have offered you.

Choosing B-School – On choosing the right B-School, the Directors mentioned certain factors which you must keep in your mind while selecting your B-School. Among the several factors, the quality of faculty and industry linkage should be given the highest preference. Dr. Alok Saklani, Director, Apeejay School of Management, New Delhi said, “You should look for value addition from a B-School during your PGDM or MBA. To obtain this, what is most important is faculty (qualifications, corporate exposure, research orientation & publication record, etc), industry linkage, legacy & philosophy of the group behind the institute, infrastructure. Placements happen as a by-product of the value addition gained.” Some other criteria mentioned by Dr. Rattan Sharma, Director, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s Usha & Lakshmi Mittal Institute of Management, New Delhi include reputation of the Institute, alumni feedback, placement opportunities, location etc.

Qualities that count – According to Dr. J D Singh, the qualities that count for an MBA aspirant to get selected in a B-School are as follows:

•    An open mind and a positive aptitude and hunger to learn & grow
•    Have initiative & leadership traits and be a team worker
•    Self-learner to learn beyond class beyond campus in the real practicing world
•    Fun loving and committed to make a great career.

Choosing the specialization – Though you have to choose your specialization in the second year, but having a clear idea on the criteria to choose your B-School surely helps. Dr. Renu Luthra, Director, Galgotias Business School, Greater Noida states, “Your decision should be based on your interest and ability areas. There might be opportunities in a particular specialization, but it is equally necessary for you to be comfortable in that area. Hence, your interest and caliber in a particular specialization is very important.”

Specialized MBA vs. Regular MBA – Another confusion which the student faces while taking the admission is regarding whether to go for a specialized MBA program or a regular MBA program. According to the Directors, it should depend on your interest and aim in life. Dr. Brahm Prakash Pethiya, Director, IFIM Business School, Bangalore mentions, “Going for specialized MBA or general MBA depends upon the interest of the student. The General MBA gives you an opportunity to work in number of functional areas, but you become the generalist rather than specialist. In case of MBA with specialized functional area will make you expert in that area. So going for general or specialized totally depends upon your interest. However, both programs have enormous potential for growth.”

Education & Work experience – Some myths that exist in the minds of the MBA aspirants have been busted by the Directors during the Expert Chat.  Two such myths are, students pursuing engineering in graduation and students with work experience have better chance of getting through a good B-School. Though it is true that most of the students of a B-School belong to engineering background, but MBA is a holistic science where student from any graduation background can pursue.

As far as work experience is concerned, the B-schools do give preference to the candidates with work experience, but freshers also get their due chance.

Talking about the preference given to students at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s Usha & Lakshmi Mittal Institute of Management, Director Dr. Rattan Sharma says, “We prefer students with work experience and sound academic background. However, quite a few students are freshers. If your score and background is good, you will have a good chance to get selected.”