November 28, 2018. Everything about the day was ordinary. Nobody at my home was consciously aware of the fact that my results were going to be published that day.
Well, except for me. I was eagerly looking forward to this day because after the exhausting admission season, I just really wanted to get it over with. To my great relief, the results were just as I wanted them to be. I got into the best business school in Bangladesh. My family was really happy for me and I thought that I had passed the difficult part of the journey. I was really optimistic about this new chapter of life and I was confident that my undergrad life was going to be fun, interesting, full of opportunities and new experiences. Even though I was not fully wrong, I had very little idea about the gravity of the life-altering journey that was waiting for me.
The beginning of this journey was quite euphoric. I made new friends, had fun with them outside of campus, and made memories. Things were going great until the midterms arrived. Suddenly, it hit me; I am not very good at accounting. Well, not just that. Even after studying, I did pretty badly in accounting. I didn’t realize that shifting from science to business would affect my grades this much. I guess it was the first obstacle that I had to overcome in my undergrad life. After a while, I realized that I wasn’t the only one going through this. A lot of other people from my batch were struggling. However, I am grateful to my friends. Personally, I feel that I was blessed with some really good friends who always had my back and helped me overcome my academic and emotional struggles.
Things became kind of stable at the end of the freshmen year. I was actually looking forward to the next semester.
However, the universe had different plans and the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
Uncertainty, isolation, and despair were all that the world knew back then. After about a month of lockdown, the online classes began. While it was convenient for a lot of people, I wasn’t a big fan of online classes. In the beginning, it was really difficult for me to pay attention during classes. Like all changes, I adjusted and after a while, online classes became the new normal. About 2 years of my undergrad life was spent behind screens and praying that the internet connection is stable. I don’t know about everyone else but for me, it was very upsetting. However, I am grateful that I got to attend my senior year offline. It is really great to be back on campus and interact with peers and teachers in person.
I only have a few more days left in my last semester. The thought makes me both excited and anxious. On the one hand, I won’t have to deal with coursework anymore. On the other hand, the uncertainty of future employment opportunities and responsibilities makes me worried. Although part-time jobs and internships gave me an idea about work life, it doesn’t necessarily provide the full picture of the next chapter of life. Naturally, this makes me wonder how much I got out of these experiences. I’m sure I’m not the only one to feel all this and naturally, you worry whether your undergrad life has properly prepared you for work or not. This is where your seniors come in.
When I first got into IBA, I heard that IBA was best because of its people. Now I fully understand why.
IBA alumni are the absolute best and they always look out for you. After reaching out to some of the recent graduates of our University, I got a detailed picture of the next chapter of life.
According to Anindita Atoshi from BBA 26th, who is currently working in Unilever as a MT,
Work-life at MNCs is quite structured. Maintaining work-life balance at MNCs can be hectic at times. However, if you manage your time well you will be able to maintain the balance. Fortunately, the back-to-back hectic midterms, presentations, and finals, and the surprise quizzes at IBA prepare you for dealing with the work-life pressure. In addition to that, the different group works that we used to do for courses prepared me to get the work done in different team settings within deadlines. IBA has taught me how to survive in challenging environments, do better and have fun at the same time. I will always be grateful for that.
Apart from that, there are some essential things that I had to learn on my own. For example, I had to learn about the dos and don’ts of applying for specific jobs by talking to seniors and attending workshops and programs dedicated to that. So, even though IBA equips us with the most essential skills, there are some additional skills that you will have to acquire on your own to do better.
Now to understand the extent to which IBA can prepare entrepreneurs, I talked to another 26th. Eqra Md Resalat Ohee happens to be an entrepreneur who has worked in 3 startups. Currently, he is the founder and CEO of a startup known as Amigo. The startup provides easy access and secure part-time/gig job placement for the unemployed population with traceable employment history.
According to him:
IBA equips us with some very important skills required for leadership positions. Through group work, you learn how to lead a team and get the work done within time. The presentations that we used to have for every course prepare you to effectively pitch your ideas to clients. The learnings from a few courses are very insightful and directly applicable in real life.
Having said that, he also added that he had to develop the networking skills required for entrepreneurship on his own. From his freshmen year, he talked to a lot of people, reached out to IBA alumni, and said ‘yes’ to a lot of opportunities and that is how he found his partners to start his own business.
He also mentioned that you will have to be proactive if you want to pursue entrepreneurship since it requires being connected with people that can add value to your venture.
After talking to the recent graduates, I got a lot of my questions answered and got a good idea about what is waiting ahead of us. Now I am genuinely excited to see how life unfolds itself in the next few months.
