IIM Calcutta PGPEX IV : Admission process and beyond

Hello Everyone, Its that time of the year again when people start gearing up for the rigorous admission process to the prestigious 1-year programs at various top b-schools in India. I would like to welcome you all to this new forum and hope that…

Hello Everyone,
Its that time of the year again when people start gearing up for the rigorous admission process to the prestigious 1-year programs at various top b-schools in India. I would like to welcome you all to this new forum and hope that the forum proves to be a good companion for your journey. I, alongwith some of my friends, would be glad to be of any assistance on the subject.
BTW, the much awaited placement performance have been made available now. You can access it here.
http://coolavenues.com/placements/2009/04/06/average-salary-holds-up-but-highest-domestic-salary-drops-steeply-for-iim-cs-pgpex-students/
One important point to note here would be that inspite of the global recession, IIMC has still managed to give a 100% placement to PGPEX II batch. That is a tribute to all the hard work done by the Institute in the past few months and also the merits of having a relatively small batch for the program.
We are also maintaining a group blog at the following location IIMC-PGPEX 09-10 collaborative Blog. Here, you can take a peek at our campus lives and all the fun and grind we go through. All the very best to all of you.
-Rk

Hi,

Thank you ver much for starting this thread.
Could you please throiw some light on the average work-ex of the current batch

Cheers!!
Sunil

Hello Everyone,
Its that time of the year again when people start gearing up for the rigorous admission process to the prestigious 1-year programs at various top b-schools in India. I would like to welcome you all to this new forum and hope that the forum proves to be a good companion for your journey. I, alongwith some of my friends, would be glad to be of any assistance on the subject.
BTW, the much awaited placement performance have been made available now. You can access it here.
http://coolavenues.com/placements/2009/04/06/average-salary-holds-up-but-highest-domestic-salary-drops-steeply-for-iim-cs-pgpex-students/
One important point to note here would be that inspite of the global recession, IIMC has still managed to give a 100% placement to PGPEX II batch. That is a tribute to all the hard work done by the Institute in the past few months and also the merits of having a relatively small batch for the program.
We are also maintaining a group blog at the following location IIMC-PGPEX 09-10 collaborative Blog. Here, you can take a peek at our campus lives and all the fun and grind we go through. All the very best to all of you.
-Rk

Hi RK,
Could you share some more ifnormation on how things look right now as far as the applicant number goes, and also on what kinda work-exp candidates are you looking for in the next processing..??..

Also could you throw some light on importance of the following as far as the applications for 4th course are concerned;
1) GMAT Score
2) Inetrnational Experience of the candidate
3) The present employer/industry of the candidate

thanks in advance!!

Hi,
Thanks for starting this thread. Need some clarifications:
1. What is the avg experience of the batch? I will be 4 yrs and 10 months experienced (IT) as on Mar 2010 with GMAT score of 720 and more than a year international exp. Academic record is good. Is it ok to apply?
2. What is the male/female ratio?
Cheers

Hi Sunil,
The avg work experience of our batch is between 9 and 10 years. And the range is from 5.5 years to 18+ years

-Rk

Hi Varun,
On applicant number, I am not sure right now but typically if you follow the threads from past few years, there have been discrete jumps in the no. of applicants to these 1 year courses in India. This also has to do with the level of awareness that is spreading across.
I would say, the GMAT score is one of the important factors but not the only one. Basically, its your overall profile. And truly I mean it. I have seen people with less than 700 getting through and also people with 750+ still waiting to get in. International experience, i would say is important and stop at that. :-)
About your industry, the only thing I would tell you here is that you need to know it really well. Primarily because your interview would, to a large extent, revolve around that.
-Rk

Hi hpetoget,
I dont think you are eligible for the course yet because of your no. of years of experience. But please check on the PGPEX site once the application forms are rolled out.
Regarding the female-male ratio, it is 7% of the class.
-Rk

Hi Varun,
On applicant number, I am not sure right now but typically if you follow the threads from past few years, there have been discrete jumps in the no. of applicants to these 1 year courses in India. This also has to do with the level of awareness that is spreading across.
I would say, the GMAT score is one of the important factors but not the only one. Basically, its your overall profile. And truly I mean it. I have seen people with less than 700 getting through and also people with 750+ still waiting to get in. International experience, i would say is important and stop at that. :-)
About your industry, the only thing I would tell you here is that you need to know it really well. Primarily because your interview would, to a large extent, revolve around that.
-Rk


Thanks Rk... that looks really good information to me :)

One more question... how does this 1 yr MBA course look for a candidate like me who wants to try career switch..??.. I have around 5yrs of experience in IT insdustry, including around 2.5 yrs in the US. My domain has primarily been banking and financial markets.. Do you think this profile fits anywhere in the list of perspective students for next batch?? :

Appreciate you time and inputs!!

Hi Varun,
With a good profile, what I meant was
1) your potential to become leaders of tomorrow,
2) the evidence of you being a self-starter
3) the ability to learn as much from the program as contribute towards its learning.

All these factors will be judged during your application process and interviews, IMO. About career switches after this program, I would say if you can bring out a strong case of your interest and your motivation to do a switch, it will be well-received. But typically, it should be a really strong case. Hope that clarifies.

-Rk

Rk,
When glancing through a candidate's profile, what does the selection committee look for.. quality exp or quantity exp..??.. Also they must have some criterion to begin with, some datum that would be set for all the selection group members, to look for in a profile. Could you share some more information on the same?

Varun,
First of all I would like to emphasize that the views are my own and in no way reflect the opinion of IIMC Admission Committee.
Now, for the first answer, the obvious answer is that the Adcom looks for quality. That is why the range varies from 5.5 years to 18+ years. As far as I know, all these Adcoms have some pre-defined parameters on which they assess each of the candidates. This list of parameters is derived from their vast experience in the field. So you should show some indicators of these in your profile. These qualities can range from your leadership potential to demonstrated analytical abilities. And plus you should be clear on what you want to do in your career and how would this program help you achieve that.
-Rk

Hi guys,

I am planning to apply this year. Can anyone go through my profile and advice me if I have a good chance or not.

I am IIT Kanpur BTECH passout and have around 7 years experience which includes 2 years in europe(Germany)(worked for Largest steel industry in their simulation software department- Started as an Asscociate and then individually handled the work including interaction with client, requirement analysis and was involved in all Tech discussions with client). Worked for 2.5 years in India in IT industry with all CMM level 5 companies and held positions of Tech Lead and Project Lead.Frequently visited US during this 2.5 years on B1 visa to client locations for requirement discussions. Currently working in US since last 2 years as Tech Lead as a full time employee of a major US wireless company.

GMAT- 730

I have worked in my 7 year career in Europe, India and currently in US.
Right now I am aiming at 1 year Executive MBA program from top Indian Bschools like IIMs or ISB.
My main reason to do an executive MBA is to move up the ladder and would like to view things from a business perspective. Till Now I have been working mainly on Technical aspects of a product( which includes leading a team ) but now I would like to look at that product from a business perspective.
It will be great if you can spend a few minutes and weigh my chances.

Thanks,
Sumit Jain

Hey guys- what happened why no activity on this thread?

Varun,
First of all I would like to emphasize that the views are my own and in no way reflect the opinion of IIMC Admission Committee.
Now, for the first answer, the obvious answer is that the Adcom looks for quality. That is why the range varies from 5.5 years to 18+ years. As far as I know, all these Adcoms have some pre-defined parameters on which they assess each of the candidates. This list of parameters is derived from their vast experience in the field. So you should show some indicators of these in your profile. These qualities can range from your leadership potential to demonstrated analytical abilities. And plus you should be clear on what you want to do in your career and how would this program help you achieve that.
-Rk


Rk,
what I was essentially trying to figure out was, how much does the quality of experience matter to the adcom..??.. I mean what would be the kind of emphasis on quality/quantity ratio of an applicant, if at all... since a person with 5years exp cannot even compete with 18+ years expereinced person in lots of areas (as pointes out as range in your previous post)..

Also.. how much the extra curriculars matter..??.. does a profile with significant lateral contributions towards his/her organization and scoiety matter to adcom or are they focussing more on "masters of the field(s)" kind a profile(s)..??.. and if they do consider extra curriculars, then wat kind of extra curriculars are we talking about..??..

It would be great if you could throw some light on above mentioned 2 point. 😃
Hi guys,

I am planning to apply this year. Can anyone go through my profile and advice me if I have a good chance or not.

I am IIT Kanpur BTECH passout and have around 7 years experience which includes 2 years in europe(Germany)(worked for Largest steel industry in their simulation software department- Started as an Asscociate and then individually handled the work including interaction with client, requirement analysis and was involved in all Tech discussions with client). Worked for 2.5 years in India in IT industry with all CMM level 5 companies and held positions of Tech Lead and Project Lead.Frequently visited US during this 2.5 years on B1 visa to client locations for requirement discussions. Currently working in US since last 2 years as Tech Lead as a full time employee of a major US wireless company.

GMAT- 730

I have worked in my 7 year career in Europe, India and currently in US.
Right now I am aiming at 1 year Executive MBA program from top Indian Bschools like IIMs or ISB.
My main reason to do an executive MBA is to move up the ladder and would like to view things from a business perspective. Till Now I have been working mainly on Technical aspects of a product( which includes leading a team ) but now I would like to look at that product from a business perspective.
It will be great if you can spend a few minutes and weigh my chances.

Thanks,
Sumit Jain


Sumit

Your profile is good. The fact that you are from IIT Kanpur would definitely weigh in on your application. Also you have diverse multi cultural work experience which would play out in your favor. Your GMAT score is decent. Just work had on the essays. With the competition getting tougher each year you have to put your best foot forward. We have one batchmate of ours from IIT Kanpur. If you want I can hook u up with him.

---Surjendu
Rk,
what I was essentially trying to figure out was, how much does the quality of experience matter to the adcom..??.. I mean what would be the kind of emphasis on quality/quantity ratio of an applicant, if at all... since a person with 5years exp cannot even compete with 18+ years expereinced person in lots of areas (as pointes out as range in your previous post)..

Also.. how much the extra curriculars matter..??.. does a profile with significant lateral contributions towards his/her organization and scoiety matter to adcom or are they focussing more on "masters of the field(s)" kind a profile(s)..??.. and if they do consider extra curriculars, then wat kind of extra curriculars are we talking about..??..

It would be great if you could throw some light on above mentioned 2 point. :)


Hi Varun,

1. The quantity of the experience is not that important what is important is what quality of experience you have. We have many guys who have experience ranging from 6-8 years. That said, I will also like to add that,since the course has a average experience in the range of 8-10 years. One has to show good quality experience if one is at the lower end of spectrum in terms of experience

2. What matters at the end is your overall profile. Its the whole package that matters so its very difficult to quantify on each area objectively. You should strive to figure out what makes your profile stand out. e.g if you have exceptional EC, it will help you tide over a average GMAT score. similarly, if you have a exceptional GMAT score, average EC will work. That is one exceptionally good area in your application will help you in coming over deficiency in others.So work over your complete profile GMAT,EC,Interview,Application,Recommendation etc rather than individual components.

--Saurabh

Thanks surjendu.
That will be really very nice on your part if you can help me to be in contact with your IITK batchmate.
Thanks a lot.

Hi,
Guys I am a current IIM C PGPEX student. Prior to joining IIMC I was working in process automation and steel industry for about 7 years.
I am a IIT Kgp Grad in Electrical.
I will be available here to help you with your Question's about PGPEX.

Saurav

Saurav, Surjendu,
Thanks for helping out on this forum. I am applying to PGPEX this summer. My profile: BTech from IITM, Ph.D. in Chem Engg in US, 5 years R&D; in US, 5 publications and 2 patents. 730 in GMAT. Extra-curricular is very good. I am looking at management consulting roles post PGPEX, preferably in the energy sector. How will adcom look at my profile?

Have people from the previous batches of PGPEX joined companies in the energy sector? What is the composition of this years batch? Do most people in the current batch have a software background like the previous batches?

RS