The admission process at the Indo German Training Centre (IGTC), Mumbai is a time when class rooms turn into interview booths and the great house of knowledge witnesses a flood of emotions and a spark of fire in every individual present there, be applicants, senior students, management and our very energetic Director, Radhieka R Mehta. The trainee selection process at IGTC is unconventional. It has evolved over the years making it more and more efficient in terms of identifying the deserving students for with the right training partner. IGTC has an extensive support from partnering companies like A.T.E. Enterprises Pvt. Ltd., B|Braun Medical India Pvt. Ltd., Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Co. Ltd., BASF India Ltd., Bayer Group in India, Bearlocher India Additives Pvt. Ltd., Bosch Automotive Electronics India Pvt. Ltd., Bosch Limited, Brose India Automotive Systems Pvt. Ltd., Cerebrus Consultants Pvt. Ltd., Covestro India Pvt. Ltd., Cummins Limited, DBOI Global Services Pvt. Ltd., DHL Express India Pvt. Ltd., Dr. Oetker India Pvt. Ltd., Epcos India Pvt. Ltd., Extentia Information Technology Pvt. Ltd., Faurecia Automotive Seating India Pvt Ltd., FEV India Pvt. Ltd., Forbes Marshall Pvt. Ltd., GEP Consulting, Häfele India Pvt. Ltd., Hella India Lighting Ltd., Helpline Impex Pvt. Ltd., Indiva Marketing Pvt. Ltd., Kärcher Cleaning Systems Pvt. Ltd., KSB Pumps Ltd., LANXESS India Private Limited, Mercedes-Benz India Pvt. Ltd., NRB Industrial Bearings Ltd., Phoneix Mecano India Pvt. Ltd., Pune Gas, Robosoft Solution, Schaeffler Group, Schott Glass India Pvt. Ltd., Schott Kaisha Pvt. Ltd., Siemens Limited, SMS India Pvt. Ltd. and TUV India Pvt. Ltd.
The admission process for the Post Graduate Programme in Business Administration (PGPBA) Batch 2018-2020 was held over four days from 4th to 8th June 2018. Innovation and creativity was brought into the process. The prospective students were shown ted-talks and for example one was on how to draw your current state and future state on paper. Applicants watched the video and then articulated everything on a piece of paper. This was presented to the director by each individual student in the group discussion thus showing strengths, weaknesses of that individual.
After the tedious process of the online aptitude test and group interaction, the candidates come back once again for the final stage of the admission process. A feeling of nostalgia passed through us as we recollected our own individual journey to IGTC, Mumbai. But being a part of the core organizing committee, the scenario seemed equally complex and uncertain from the other end of the table as we now had new challenges to overcome.
The newly formed core team from the PGPBA Batch 2017-2019 were briefed on every bit of detail by our Director. A lot of planning and preparation was involved right from the setup to the selection of students for PGPBA Batch 2018-2020. As students we aspire to be great managers of tomorrow and hence all efforts were made to prove our self, leaving no stone unturned nor any room for loopholes. The preparations for this interview process had all of us on our toes until the very last day. Keeping our experiences from the previous year in mind we gave our inputs on making the process easy. The IGTC team took these suggestions into account and implemented it which helped evolve the process into an easier and hassle free 4 days.
Day one and two i.e. 4th and 5th June, 2018 was when all the engineering students and the third day i.e. 6th June, 2018, was when the commercial students were called in for the interview process. Each student had the opportunity to showcase their talent in front of panel members from each company. Convincing the panel members and then being taken on board as an intern in these companies, which allows admission to the course is no easy task. However our task managing 100 students also wasn’t easy, but it definitely taught us to have patience and stay calm in times of difficulty, as the students were filled with anxiety, parents with their endless concerns and the partnering companies with special requirements. Interaction with the senior most employees of the partnering training companies taught us how to maintain relations with them. At every level we were put to test on our managerial, communication and decision making skills.
Fewer companies, fewer candidates are left. On the last day i.e. 8th June, 2018 a mix of engineers and commercial students came in to give their best and join the IGTC family. As the numbers decreased, the competition increased. The applicant’s expressions grew more anxious, more curious, more puzzled and more worried faces as they waited for the companies to interview them. At the end of the day however some applicants left with happy faces, while there were some who left with the hope that there is always a next time.
The core team took care of all the activities from lining up candidates for their interviews to reducing the anxiety of applicants by sharing our experience from last year to networking with the panel members from companies to understand what they are looking for in prospective candidates. Each day was a new learning for all of us on the core team. These 4 days of interview process taught us how to take super quick decisions, how to tackle in the moment issues and help with the smooth functioning of the interviews without bottlenecks. The admission process gave us a clear image as to how as a management student, one has to manage time, manage people, take up initiative and responsibilities and help each other in the time of need. It was not only performing our duties but also encouraging the applicants to be positive and stay relaxed and delegating responsibility to our batch mates who volunteered to help on each day and managing the coordination and movement of a 100 odd students and 18 odd companies on each day taught us just that.
The major take away from the process was the knowledge and theory which we got from books, we were able to effectively apply those skills practically in the four days, right from planning the timeslots for 190 applicants appearing for the interviews from different academic backgrounds, to interacting with the panelists of various German companies and catering to their needs. Lining up the applicants and at the same time not compromising on any company’s requirements and finally at the end of the day dealing with happy faces and some disheartened ones too! We did it all!!
After all the planning, organizing and scrutinising process, our IGTC family grew with our new junior batch of 104 promising students forming PGPBA 2018-2020.
