First Year at BIMTECH
Aakansha Singhal
PGDM (Batch 2020-22)
Strategy Intern, Ernst & Young (EY)
12th February 2020 – It was a Wednesday – the very middle of the work week. I used to work at the Noida office of KPMG back then. It was one of those moments when I was having some mid-week crisis and suddenly my phone buzzed with a Gmail notification.
It was an admission offer from BIMTECH to join their PGDM programme in the academic session 2020-22. I was grinning from ear to ear and immediately called my parents to inform about the same. I knew people who had studied at BIMTECH earlier and I reached out to them to gather all the relevant information. This helped me in taking the final decision and I submitted the first instalment to secure my admission.
I was very excited to start my B-School journey but the excitement was cut short due to the pandemic.
Everything became so eccentric and uncertain. I had a lot of questions regarding the joining date, course and the placements as everything around was getting impacted. The admission department and relevant college authorities were kind enough to entertain the concerns. In further communications, it was informed that the institute had planned to adjust its teaching methods and had planned to carry out the teaching in the online mode until the COVID scenario got better.
I was scared that I might miss out on the real B-School experience by attending it online and thought of withdrawing my admission. But, my family convinced me to not do the same. Long story short, I’m so thankful to them for guiding me and not letting me take the wrong decision as my first year at BIMTECH has only opened horizons for me to discover new opportunities in every field even in these unprecedented times.
Finding motivation and structure can be challenging at the best of times, but this is especially true when staring at the same four walls all the time during the lockdown. But, I’m so elated that there was not even a single day when I faced this challenge. The courses and study plans at BIMTECH were structured much better than I expected them to be in an online teaching situation. I never really felt a difference between the online and offline structures. This was also because the professors adapted to the online mode very quickly. They taught in a very organised manner and shared all the relevant study material time-to-time.
Apart from studying in classes, I also connected with my peers over Zoom to complete various groups projects. I would assess this experience as extremely helpful, in terms of having an idea of how to organize my work with people who are not physically close to me.
There were ample opportunities provided by the college in terms of seeking industry knowledge and having interactive learning. The college conducted various webinars, CXO talk series and panel discussions by inviting industry leaders and specialists to share their knowledge and experience which helped me understand the theoretical concepts taught in the classes in a better manner.
The clubs and conduits of the college have also been very active even in the online mode. In the very beginning, these student bodies conducted ice-breaking sessions and interviews which created a bridge of communication between the seniors and juniors. Throughout the year, these bodies also conducted various events which created vivacious learning opportunities for the new students. This created a platform where students could showcase their talents and skills
In January 2021, the COVID situation got a little better and the students were called to the campus for attending the classes in the blended mode. The institute prepared itself by taking all the safety measures and the students were provided with a safe environment to stay in. I grew more as a professional while attending offline classes and conducting physical events. The experience and the learnings I have had at BIMTECH is something I’m going to value all my life.
Centre for Corporate Relations (CCR) at BIMTECH also plays a vital role in shaping the career of the students. First year students were provided with numerous opportunities for live projects and internships in leading companies of various sectors. This helped me in getting a great role as a Strategy Intern with the leading consulting firm – Ernst & Young (EY).
To sum it up, pursuing my management diploma from BIMTECH has helped me in innumerable ways. Being a class representative is helping me hone my leadership skills, whereas contributing as a core member in the Cultural Conduit is helping me build team collaboration and creative skills. I have definitely grown as a professional over here as the overall experience has helped me develop analytical skills like data-driven business intelligence and grasp key management learnings like strategic thinking and people skills. I’m very curious to see how the second year will unfold for me and what all more learning opportunities I can grab.
