Alumni Speak : Zarine George
The November of the year 2010 was a month of anticipation, excitement and nerves. I was to embark on journey that I had envisioned for myself for a long time— pursuing an MBA degree with one of the world’s leading business school. Little did I know that all the qualms and reservations that I hosted were going to be transformed into an experience of a lifetime, making me into a completely different person.
The SP Jain MBA is superior on many counts. First and foremost, I was overwhelmed by the friendliness of the staff and the peaceful happy atmosphere of the campus. The Singapore campus being a heritage building, is exceptionally beautiful. We were made to feel as the part of a big happy family. The course thoroughly orients us to the culture and business practices of that place, shaping us into truly global business leaders.
And then of course, the USP of the Global MBA program— the eminent faculty and the curriculum. The curriculum has been designed based on present industry needs. It was a privilege to attend lectures by eminent faculty such as Prof. Moradian, Prof. Mankad, Prof. Ramana, etc. who are experts in their fields. Their wealth of experience and knowledge has certainly enriched me a great deal. I base my consulting to this day on the practical wisdom of Prof Moradian on best practices for running a business which cuts across all industry verticals. I count their classes as sessions on precious pearls of wisdom. The group assignments were innovative and expanded our thought process and creativity besides applying the knowledge gained. The industry projects are the icing on the cake where we get an opportunity to apply the concepts learnt in the course in the real world. I was fortunate to get to do a market research project in my favourite airline domain. Designing a questionnaire and getting responses from respondents, mostly from Changi airport, was an extraordinary experience as was applying the various research methodologies we had been taught and deriving our conclusions. I felt ecstatic when my research project was published in Social Science Research Network (SSRN). I had accomplished a major feat. It feels great that my name has been connected as being the author of a research project whenever I look myself up in Google. This is a legacy I could achieve thanks to SP Jain.
The communication classes by Prof. Bhanu and others helped hone my communication and soft skills besides giving great exposure. The tips I received on creating effective presentations help me to this day as my competitive edge on my job lies in making powerful presentations. I was happy to be part of the winning team for the crisis communication contest conducted by the college.
The career services team played a major role both in helping me secure a lucrative and covetable job with Cognizant Technology Solutions and developing my career. The mock interviews and group discussions, as well as the resume writing services was an eye opener helping me gauge my strengths and areas of improvement. The career development course by Prof. Manish Agarwal exposed us to challenges in the workplace and tips to have a successful career. I keep the wisdom gained as a guide in my workplace to this day.
To sum up, my journey at SP Jain has been a true, holistic education, honing myself and my skills and bringing out the best in me, besides giving me an edge in my career. It was not merely a 1 year course; it was an investment of a lifetime and I thank the Almighty for having given me this life changing experience. My advice to future students would be, “The is an opportunity of a lifetime. Make the best of what SP Jain has to offer”.
About the Author
Zarine Susan George is a GMBA alumnus from SP Jain School of Global Management who has an ardent love for travelling and experiencing new things. With over 8 years of working experience under her belt, Zarine is a software engineer by profession who has worked in her dream country, the US for a year.
She was always a good student, winning the General Proficiency Prize at the school level multiple times. Zarine also enjoys reading and listening to music and is a voracious reader, with a fascination for English Literature and History. She is currently getting trained in Hindustani Vocals and playing the Piano.
