IIM Shillong students lend a helping hand to aspirants

It has been an uphill climb for Indian Institute of Management (IIM) aspirants who have been short-listed after scoring well in the CAT exam. However, help is at hand for these students who are now preparing for their second round of tests.

The student community of IIM Shillong has come forward to initiate a mentorship programme to reach out to the candidates and address their queries regarding the next round of admission process to the premier institute.

“We started this initiative last year and reached out to about 500 shortlisted candidates. Besides guiding the students during the course of their preparation, we will also provide them a glimpse of life at the institute,” said Harsha Jhunjhunwala, spokesperson, Public Relation Cell, IIM-S.

At least 1,158 candidates from across the country received calls from IIM-S, while around 960 were shortlisted by IIM Ahmedabad.

“The successful candidates will have to register at our institute website and then post their queries regarding the second round of selection. These queries will be answered promptly. In addition to this, they will also be updated about the recent developments in various sectors of the business world,” explained Jhunjhunwala.
Last year, of 500 short-listed candidates, nearly 80% made it into the institute.

“I had received a call from IIM-S, but I was apprehensive of joining as this was the youngest IIM of all. But through the mentorship programme and regular interaction via email and phone calls, I got tips on group discussion and personal interviews. It worked so well that I did not have any trouble making new friends after I secured a seat here,” said Pradeep MS, a first-year at IIM-S.

Siddhitha Parekh, a candidate from Mumbai who received a call from IIM-A and IIM-S said, “It is a great programme, I have just registered myself in their website. Hope I get some useful tips as I will prepare for the next round based on them. I want to know how I should prepare for the personal interview.”