From India to Octopus' Garden

A creative puppetry assignment seemed childish at first to this international student, but it proved to be an enlightening experience

by Vivek Bhatnagar

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• An Officer and a B-School Student

Vivek Bhatnagar
Babson
MBA Class of 2008

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So it's that time of the year when those of you interested in applying to B-school must be working furiously trying to put together your application package. Early birds have already applied, some may still be grappling with questions wondering where to start, while most are somewhere in between. Ideally, you should have put your GMAT behind you—but those of you who have had an unforeseen "disaster" the first time may be scheduling a retake, throwing all your plans out of gear.

Don't sweat! Applying to a B-school—as I came to realize—is a great roller-coaster ride. The sooner one learns to relax and flow along with it, the sooner one can begin to enjoy it, and thereby, do better justice to it. Otherwise it can prove to be stressful. I once came across someone who mentioned he didn't apply to Stanford because he couldn't figure out what mattered most to him! (For those of you who aren't aware, this was one of only two questions a Stanford MBA applicant had to answer.)

My research into which B-schools to apply to suggested, amongst others, the following key factors to look out for. In no particular order:

(1) Class size—big vs. small.

(2) Specialization—finance, general management, entrepreneurship, etc.

(3) Teaching method—case-based, lectures, fieldwork, or a combination.

(4) Location and setting—urban or rural; with campus or without.

(5) The first-year curriculum—core vs. electives.

(6) Type of companies recruiting its graduates—are they the ones I would want to work with?

(7) Average age and work experience. and of course:

(8) The average GMAT score.

Picture That

But before that I also listed the core values that were important to a school. The first page of a B-school's prospective students' Web site, or the introduction to the MBA section, or the dean's welcome note takes special pains to articulate what they're looking for in their ideal candidate.

To start with, I made a comparison table listing all these attributes. Accordingly, I ensured that I structured my application portfolio in order to address individual aspects specific and important to the particular school I was applying to.

I also wrote to and requested the printed versions of MBA brochures from all the schools I was even remotely interested in. Besides being informative, they have a high motivational value. When I was tired from spending long hours preparing for my GMAT or writing my essays, and needed a break, I would flip through the brochures.

Seeing those lovely campus pictures, I would imagine myself being there. It had a positive effect on my psyche, helping me to ride over those low moments, which all of us encounter from time to time, especially when the journey is long and winding.

Answered Prayers

Incidentally, as I reflect, I realize that the toughest part in getting admitted to a U.S. B-school was not the application process—the GMAT, the essays, the recommendations, or the interview. These were relatively easy.

The toughest part was in making the decision that I wanted an international education from a reputed world-class B-school. For a lot of us international candidates, the thought of an educational expense well over $100,000 is itself enough to make us simply discount this possibility.

And in this, both the world at large and the individual are the losers. God only knows how many brilliant people will never get to realize their potential just because they were afraid to explore beyond their self-imposed limitations.

When I made this decision, I had no clue where the money would come from. In fact, a lot of my friends discouraged me from going ahead because they felt, given my obligations, it was impractical on my part to even have such "grand" plans. But I had this faith in myself that once I had an admit, the question of money would somehow be answered.