Current IMBA student Deep Mehta gives some insights into his IE experience. Check out his other posts here!
Without a doubt the number one reason why people pursue an MBA is to bolster their professional career. Some perceive it as a ticket to a high paying job, some are tired of the same old routine and some don’t know what they want from their professional lives and try to discover their true professional calling. All the reasons are one hundred percent valid.
Most of the subjects taught during the MBA ameliorate everyone’s business acumen and certainly augment their prospective careers. Yes, for someone like me with zero finance and accounting knowledge I can now confidently say I understand at least the basics. But is the knowledge the only thing that we can take from IE? And, is a “better career” the only thing we want? I reckon not.
For almost six months now I have been surrounded by 400 top professionals from across 70+ countries. Being immersed in an intensive program like this has certainly made me a better business professional, but is this only thing I am taking back? No!!
When you are made to work in a forced (willingly for some and unwilling for some) environment of multicultural teams, your learning goes beyond the “text book”. The typical conversations during the day would be about the volcano peak you can climb in Nicaragua, to the presidency elections in Venezuela, to the poverty crisis in Africa. Is this important? According to me this is more important than learning from a “text book” whose knowledge might become redundant within a few years due to advancements in technology and business. But these discussions not only make you a wiser person, help you to get a broader perspective of things in life, and – for those who think “classes” are the only thing that matter – it makes you a well-rounded global business leader.
So I submit to you a humble argument that the MBA experience is not just grades and careers. According to me, it’s the friends you make for a lifetime, it’s about the friends who you will call at 4AM and they will do anything in their reach to help you, it’s about the friends you will call to map your travel plan when you visit one of the 70 countries, and most importantly it’s about being a part of THE BIG IE FAMILY FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFETIME.
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