How I spent my years at NMIMS

It wasn't all rosy, but I'd say it was a pretty good experience at NMIMS. After all, it helped me get a good job, which was the main reason why I chose to come here. I'm indebted to the faculty, and my friends for all the support. It was a little hectic, of course, but that's part of a college experience. Still, it could've been a little more chill, and campus regulations could've been a little relaxed.

The curriculum is well thought out. There are so many different subjects that cover different areas. I had a certain aim, a vision, of what I wanted to do once I had my MBA degree in hand. So I went ahead and chose subjects that felt important to me. The internship was super-helpful, as it gave me some experience. Exams were a little different in format than what I was used to from my undergraduate days, but it was good and challenging. It was a little bit hectic, of course, with all the competition and the pressure to excel.

Internships and placements are very good in the college. ICICI, JP Morgan, Bank of America and Goldman Sachs are just a few of the companies who visit the campus each for placement. My internship was very helpful for me, as it gave some corporate experience that was useful when I was applying for jobs later. There was also a stipend with the internships which was certainly a useful perk to have.

There are a lot of different campuses under NMIMS, and each campus has its own fests. I remember going to a few of them, most notably the cultural fest Vaayu. There are more specific fests, like one for sports, and another for business acumen. These are all pan-India fests, with participation from all over the country. Of course, not every fest is as big, but there is definitely participation from outside the college.

The fee structure is no doubt a little expensive compared to a few other MBA-awarding Institutes, but I weighed that against the placement statistics when I decided to come here. The two-year course cost just under 20 lakh rupees, which is a significant amount.

The college provided scholarships for economically weaker students. I did not qualify for that, but I did take a loan to complete my degree. Some banks and financial institutions have special provisions for NMIMS students taking loans, and I utilised that feature.

There's a lot of different clubs and activities. Some are completely extra-curricular, such as sports, or cultural activities like dance/drama, while some are more like supplements to what we learn, like Finance or Marketing clubs. Frequent workshops were held as well, and I was part of the Social enterprise cell that organised workshops, lectures, seminar, conferences and trainings.The gender ratio is better than most colleges. The number of female students is about half that of the male students. There isn't much visible discrimination, although campus rules are fairly strict.

I didn't opt for hostel facilities, as they are very costly. Instead, I took up accommodation in an apartment near the campus, which I shared with three of my batchmates. The sharing reduces the cost, compared to the amount that I'd have to pay for my own room in hostels. I hadn't heard much good about the hostel facilities from my seniors, either, so I decided to skip it. Sharing a room with our peers was helpful in terms of academics and ofcourse, the environment there is very good.

Of course, NMIMS has a vast alumni network and some of them are very prominent faces. They provided some inspiration to me, but they weren't particularly helpful in any other way. I never met any of the more famous pass-outs, but I did get a lot of help from some of the alumni. Some of the alumni were my college seniors so that was a positive thing, of course, but they weren't the only ones who helped. Their advice helped negotiate a few jittery days in the Institute!

I gave the NMAT exam, and got shortlisted. I went to their campus in Mumbai for the Case Discussion (CD) and Personal Interview (PI) processes. After that, they looked at all the academic and professional details, and I got in. I had pretty good NMAT scores, and I also worked in a company after my graduation for a couple of years, so I was pretty confident about getting in! It's all about getting the answers right in the interview.I had heard about NMIMS from a few seniors of my college that had taken admission there after graduation, and I heard fairly positive reviews from them. I looked online, reading accounts of former students and looking at some statistics, and it all helped me decide on making this college my destination. The location played a big part too! Mumbai is a great location, with different corporate sectors all around, and generally a good place to live too.

The faculty were very nice. They're all highly qualified individuals in their respective subjects, and their teaching methodology was different. They actually tried to make us understand the subject matter, rather than highlight how to obtain marks in the examinations. It was a very real-world feel and I am certainly grateful to them. I could understand from the way they described the topics that they had the ability to back up their qualifications.