From A 720 GMAT Score To IMT Ghaziabad

About Sonakshi - From an Analyst at Goldman Sachs to a student at IMT

Having graduated from the Symbiosis College of Arts & Commerce, Sonakshi began working as an Analyst for one of the world’s leading investment banks - Goldman Sachs. Already on the career trajectory of a business leader and having worked with Goldman Sachs for two years, Sonakshi decided to expand her skill set and decided to pursue an MBA.

To this end, Sonakshi began preparing for GMAT - a globally recognized aptitude test that opens up opportunities for management education in India and abroad. While she had applied to institutes abroad, Sonakshi’s main focus was to apply to elite Indian colleges that offered more than mainstream academia.

Preparation Strategy For GMAT

To prepare for GMAT, Sonakshi gave herself 2 months, which she further segmented into two halves:

1st Month - Here, her primary focus was to go through study material and she took up courses on popular websites like Manhattan Preparation and e-GMAT.

She says, “People have two ways of studying: One is to go through textbooks and start memorizing things, or watching videos akin to a simulated classroom experience. I followed the latter method of preparing for the exam, while parallelly appearing for mock tests to get into the habit of giving those tests.”

2nd Month - After her preparation was complete, Sonakshi put her efforts to the test by appearing only for mock tests. She says, “I attempted quite a few GMAT mock tests. In the final mocks that I gave, I scored approximately 750-780 marks but in the exam, I ended up getting 720, which was a little unprecedented because mock test scores are generally 10-20 points above or below your final score."

Her two cents for GMAT aspirants are:

- “Stick to one source for study material when you’re preparing for an exam like GMAT. When I used to start switching between Manhattan Prep and e-GMAT, I would start getting confused. Therefore, it’s very important that you stick to one source.”

- “Just keep practising. There is nothing that is too difficult about this exam, especially for Indian students for whom the mathematics part is going to be very very easy. People find the verbal ability part a little difficult, but that can be improved upon with practice, practice and practice.”

Why IMT Ghaziabad?

With an excellent academic profile, work experience with a top i-Bank, and a stellar GMAT score, Sonakshi had a multitude of options to choose from to pursue her MBA. However, she homed on to IMT Ghaziabad for the following reasons:

- Alumni Network: IMT, established in 1980, has built a huge alumni network over the years and has a thriving association of ex-IMTians with a strong affinity for their alma mater. Access to such a vast alumni base was a major reason for selecting the institute.

- Location: Ghaziabad is a prominent city of the National Capital Region (NCR), and is one of the fastest growing cities in the world in terms of industrial development, and has seen participation from major industrial houses of the country. The city is also just a few kilometres from the national capital, New Delhi.

- Bloomberg Lab: For Sonakshi, a Finance student, one of the major attractions about IMT Ghaziabad was the state-of-the-art Bloomberg Lab, consisting of Bloomberg Terminals that enable students at IMT to monitor and analyze real-time financial market data. IMT-Ghaziabad is one of the few management institutes of the country with an active Bloomberg Lab.

- Batch Size & Faculty: “The batch size at IMT may be a negative point for a lot of people, but an MBA is all about cohort learning. The textbooks can only teach you so much, but most of it is about learning from a healthy mix of people at a business school.”

IMT Ghaziabad also has some of the most experienced faculty members, which influenced Sonakshi’s decision to join the institute. She believes that professors at IMT are a class apart, and are always available to help out students.

Life At IMT Ghaziabad

At IMT Ghaziabad, Sonakshi is part of one of the most coveted committees - The PlaceComm.

“The committee gives you a lot of responsibilities and has sharpened my learning curve because the kind of work I am doing apart from my studies is not something I would have even dreamt of before coming here.”

Sonakshi believes that, at IMT Ghaziabad, cultural learning is immense as the batch consists of students from all parts of India who bring different perspectives to the table.

“Culturally, IMT is amazing. Students form their own regional clubs and celebrate their festivals with enthusiasm in a bid to let everyone know what their states and cultures are all about. Socially and culturally, the environment at IMT is vibrant and very rich.”

So, how would Sonakshi summarise her life at IMT Ghaziabad?

“Exhilarating, action-packed and competitive. At IMT Ghaziabad, there is always a way; one need only find it.”