Page 116 - 5-Year-Book

Rajat Bhatia

PGP 2020-22

My journey with IIMV started with a surprise in the form of an admission letter, which I just received a day before my
Barclays appointment letter. I got placed in Barclays from VIT University, Vellore and I attempted CAT 2019 without
any preparation. I attempted it just for the experience and to get a gist of the exam, but I did not know that life had
other plans for me. After struggling a lot with the decision, I finally decided to decline my job offer and go for an MBA.

Since the day one, with the con-week and all, I understood that it’s not going to be an easy journey at all due to all the
tasks we got and the “sacrosanct” deadlines. In a way, I enjoyed everything that kept me occupied. It was a whole new
experience for me as well as my fellow mates to start the first semester in an online mode. Zoom calls replaced the
physical meetings, webinars replaced the seminars, and the WhatsApp group chats became the substitute for hanging
out with friends. Gradually, as time passed by, these unusual things seemed like the “new normal”.

I was never good at this “online bonding” thing, so, this transition came as a big challenge to me. Many-a-times, I tried
participating in the group chats but, I never could, because I never had it in me, and this quality was hard for me to
develop. I could argue all night with my friends face-to-face but the same thing on WhatsApp seemed impossible. Since
“change is the only constant in life”, I am still trying to adapt to this change and figure everything out. Our seniors try
their level best that we do not miss out on anything and I really appreciate their efforts. I have heard a lot about the
IIMV campus and to be honest, it was one of the major driving forces for me to reject my job offer. I hope that
everything soon becomes normal and I get to visit the campus very soon to experience the “IIM life”.

Nikhil Khare

PGP 2020-22
Last two months were great. IIMV gave me this opportunity to learn managerial skills and I am very thankful for that.
Online education is going well, but every student wants to go to Vizag and have the experience of campus life. I am
looking forward to it.

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