So you are done with the core terms, and probably have gone in and bid for your subjects like you wanted to. Some got it, some didn't. Most of all, people who wanted to go in for exchange programmes, they find themselves disappointed - some more because they didn't get the desired institute, others less because now they have to think of funding the stay & accommodation in a foreign country. And the remaining find themselves wondering, which major to choose, whether it will make a difference, what if I don't get the subject of the famed prof. etc. Well thinking back on it, it seems they were all trivial. You probably won't make the correct choice of all the subjects, or get allocated all of them. And more commonly than not, you end up not attending lectures of subjects you weren't able to pick up, even if they didn't clash with your schedule. And there's nothing bad about it, we are there to learn management right? Time most of all.
Now in my opinion, for recruiters, Finance, Marketing & Operations will always be the 3 core areas of MBA studies, the 4th being HR, which is not yet offered in our bouquet of majors. And these are more like affirmations for your existing work experience and an assurance that a traceable path of domain can be attached to your profile. And if your work experience is the highlight of your resume, these may as well just be ignored. So choose your major as per your interest. Don't take up subjects you don't think you will ever practice again, unless you get stuck with them. And please please, don't let your grades drop, because you ended up making a mistake with a subject beyond your grasp. Study hard, or seek help even harder, to maintain what you have achieved so far, if not grow it. Also probably the best time to party, since the rigor is still to come, and half of the deed is done. And there is no better place I have partied at knowing almost everyone on the floor... honestly. So literally, Work Hard, Party Harder!!!
Coming to time, there's only going to be 24 hours of it everyday. So if one thing you should learn to manage within this year are those 24 hours. More than anything, you would be luckiest if you find out, what you really want to do in the most limited resource of our daily lives (with all due respect to Sir Einstein and others suggesting time is relative to frame of reference). In my experience, you better find this out in a zone where you can make some mistakes, than sulk over it when you are back in the real world, where every wrong step forward just entangles you in a web, you don't want to be in at all. Because once this ISB experience is over, the evaluation of satisfaction vs. dissatisfaction will knock on your rationale more strongly than ever.
Coming back to the switch to the next 6 months in ISB, once the core terms are over, the study groups that you have worked with (or made it a point not to work with), are disbanded, for better or for worse. So now you are off to see some fruits of your established self-image among the crowd or others affinity for you to work closer to them or a random set of team procurement and management practices. I think this is so close to what happens in a work place environment, that it might just help everyone get accustomed to the fact that Life is truly like a box of chocolates - You never know what you gonna get! But by this time, the feeling of having an assured pay check by the end of another 6 months or so, will sink so deep, that it will start freaking out people regarding what after ISB. Almost like you feel who thinks the glass is half empty or half full. And they're not wrong, in either case. But what is right is, to realize how you are going to get what you ultimately wanted from the school - return on investment.
If I haven't said this before (and even if I have), very few actually are able to switch their industries from their prior experience and fewer still prior business functions. And unless you really have a good case, you are always better off focusing on your strengths, than try and build up on your weak points for an industry you would be interested in. Talking about cases, this is the time when all the consulting aspirants should get into the full flow of case discussions, evaluations, mock sessions and even tell someone to rip your own logic, respect and temperament in mock interviews. There's a lot to revise, and still more to learn, so they are better off doing it. And the recruiters will steadily started pushing their pitches. Some of us have the gift of networking, and will probably be able to make some good connections with the representatives evaluating candidates listening in to their 'Pre-Placement Talk'. Remaining of us, might (or might not) get insights about the company or the opportunities they offer, if it hasn't been researched thoroughly online.
P.S. Cutting it short here, because want to start afresh from when the placement experience commences :D
