They say change is the only way of life. Perhaps this is the directive which has been guiding my life in the recent years. My Journey to pursue MBA from a premier Institute in India started 4 years back in the final year of my graduation institute. The journey has been a bitter-sweet experience as it spawned across 4 years. I struggled with demanding work pressure from workplace and juggled it with preparation for MBA entrances. This process has had it virtues in the form of lot of invaluable experiences. Come SNAP 2014, my life was about to be turned in a new and exciting direction.
I appeared for SNAP 2014 conducted by Symbiosis International University in the month of December 2014 for admission to one of their most prestigious institutes in the Country: SIBM Pune, founded in 1978 by the exemplary vision of Sir S.B. Mujumdar. It ranks among the top 15 Best B-Schools in the Country with alumni in top positions across the corporate world. The exam went lucidly well in accordance with my preparation and I eagerly awaited the results. In January 2015, the results came and I was shortlisted for GE-WAT/PI process by SIBM Pune for the month of Feb 2015. I can never forget the morning I drove into the Lavale Campus of SIBM Pune. It is another charming world of its own. The breathtaking 300 acre campus set on atop of the hill, lush green with manicured gardens and trees and photographic scenery totally bowled me and left me awestruck. The ART team, one of constituent student councils-the pride of SIBM Pune, facilitated the process fluently and ensured convenience and support to the students present. I had one of the best experiences of GE-WAT/PI process.
Come May 2015, I was shortlisted to join SIBM Pune. I was selected from among the 60,000 brilliant applicants across the country. I could remember my first reaction to the result was to quote Ellis Boyd Redding from the iconic movie ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ –“I find I’m so excited I can barely sit still or hold a thought in my head. I think it is the excitement only a free man can feel, a free man at the start of a long journey whose conclusion is uncertain”. I joined the campus on 2nd June 2015a amidst heavy rains. The monsoons have made this place even merrier. There was one week pre-induction program for the new joinees. It started with address of directors and VC. The address of President Sir S.B. Mujumdar was very inspiring with his guidance of holistic approach to MBA program. Mr Prakash Iyer of ‘The Habit of Winning’ fame was the chief guest for the induction program and his experiences of his MBA days were really motivating. I spent the initial days interacting with my batch mates and was glad to see that students from different parts of the country and even from outside India formed a good proportion. This will greatly facilitate cross cultural interaction which is in itself a great learning experience. On exploring the campus, I found best in class infrastructure with respect to academic block, large convention center, huge well-equipped library and a well maintained football ground, sports complex equipped with basketball court, swimming pool, facilities for playing snooker, table tennis, carom, badminton and squash for leisure activities and also a well-equipped gymnasium. The campus has been designed to be self-sustaining in itself. The classes started on a good note and we were exposed to some of the best faculty members. The philosophy of academic rigor with equal emphasis on extra-curricular strives to bring out the best among the candidates.
As like the sporting grounds, the post dinner time becomes a hotbed for networking among peers and with seniors near the hostels. This provides a unique opportunity to know the family members of Symbiosis. It is a great fortune to be among the most motivated candidates with varied background and rich experiences across the country. The interaction keeps my motivated and sets higher standards to evolve into a dynamic personality inculcating both academic discipline and extra-academic activities. I intend to make the most of the time here and learn as much as possible and collaborate with fellow candidates on numerous occasion of competitions, events etc. All the above factors make joining SIBM as the right and best decision. Last but not the least, I would like to recall Allama Iqbal for his wise couplet-
“Khudi ko kar buland itna ke har taqder se pehle;
Khuda bande se khud pooche bata teri raza kya hai.”
(Elevate yourself so high that even God, before issuing every decree of destiny, should ask you: Tell me, what is your intent?)

–Faraz Siddiqui, First Year Student @ SIBM Pune