IMS held its annual National Achiever’s Workshop in six cities across India on February 8 and 9. More than _750+_ students attended the workshop, where the students are prepared for the group discussion, essay writing and personal interview rounds at top business schools in the country.
The two-day residential programme has been designed by IMS to be one of the most rigorous, and boasts of a high success rate. Students attending the programme had received GD/Essay/PI calls from the IIMs and a few other select top B-schools, which include XLRI, FMS, IIFT, IRMA, SP JAIN, IIT-SoMs (B/D/Kh), NITIE and TISS.
Over the two days, students were given extensive training and guidance in cracking the final selection rounds. The agenda included everything from goal setting, discussing fundamentals of essay writing, simulated group discussions both abstract and real (including common mistakes made in GDs), through to advice on filling interview forms and simulated personal interviews with extensive feedback.
The student response to the workshop was extremely positive. “It was very helpful. It concentrated on each and every student of IMS, which I liked the most,” said Swaraj Wase (calls from IIMs). However, all students agreed that attending the workshop had helped them identify their gaps in preparation successfully. Amartya Banerjee (calls from IIM Shillong & IIFT) found it to “an eye opener”, while Palash Shinge (calls from IIMs) said that it “helped me figure out my drawbacks and analyse myself.”
The workshop’s agenda was topped off by power sessions on how to market oneself in an interview, current affairs, business economics and leadership, and experiences shared by the alumni of top business schools. This too found appreciation among the students. Ameya Choudhari (call from S.P.Jain) said, “I loved the economy sessions, and the ‘marketing yourself’ session was also very good. I gained a lot of insight from the session.”
The members of the interview and group discussion panels were handpicked after a thorough screening process, and the students showed their appreciation for the quality of the faculty. An exuberant Baiji Joshi (calls from IIMs & XLRI) said, “Extremely helpful if one is seriously preparing for GD-Essay-PI. Excellent faculty, very helpful, brilliant hospitality!” According to Gaurav Kumar (calls from IIM S & XLRI), “The event was really well managed and all the power sessions were really effective and useful. The teachers were excellent and really motivational. The course was effective and to the point, and the GD-PI feedback was really useful. Living arrangements were good and food decent.”
The workshop is conducted by IMS every year for students who receive GD- Essay-PI calls from top business schools in India, in order to help them convert their call into an admission.