First of all, bear in mind that there is never a 100% certainty of getting a call from a specific interest as there are many factors that determine it.
Considering your profile that lacks work experience and has witnessed a decline in the graduation marks, I don’t consider anything below 99.9 to fetch you a call from institutes like IIM Calcutta, Lucknow, Bangalore, and Ahmedabad. All these institutes only accept the best profiles and high scores. So unless you score a perfect 100, it will be difficult to get admission here.
There is no question at all if you are optimising for salary in the short term. On average, you would earn more at IIM Ahmedabad and Bangalore than at FMS. In the long run, it will be much more dependent on you and a little bit on the profile you want to work in. However, ceteris paribus and on average IIM Ahmedabad or IIM Bangalore will earn more or as much as an FMS grad. Choose A or B if you want to maximise your placement salary.
Whether you should optimise for placement salary is a different question, and the answer depends on what you want to do with your life.
No, choosing FMS Delhi over IIMB or IIMC is definitely not a good decision as you will be missing out on so many opportunities. Some of them include
You won’t lose anything from joining IIMS over FMS.
Life at IIM Bangalore is great. The classroom sessions are one of a kind. You will get to learn from the best minds in the management sector. Peer learning opportunities are ample. IIM Bangalore follows a trimester pattern - three terms per year. The weekends usually go by in a blur preparing for quizzes and academics.
IIM Bangalore offers an enviable hostel life. Food is great. You will get to spend time with some of the sharpest minds in the country. The campus is beautiful and has excellent facilities.
In order to get admission to any school, one needs a lot of determination and consistency. IIM Bangalore is a highly reputed B school and every year thousands of students try to get into the college making the competition even more difficult. Moreover, you compete with some of the most intellectual individuals so you cannot let your guard down.
The primary requisites to get a call from IIM Bangalore are mentioned below:
If you have fulfilled all the above points, you are likely to get a call from IIM Bangalore. After shortlisting another major challenge is clearing the interview round. For this, you need to prepare well in advance. Be aware of your strengths and weaknesses. You will be interviewed about your academics, work experience, and goals. No matter how good your profile is, your performance in the interview can break or make your career.
Keep pushing yourself to perform better and make it to IIM Bangalore!
The books followed by IIMs depend upon the faculty and the specific courses being taught.
Here are the commonly recommended books for these subjects-
This list is not fixed for IIM A, B, C, or any other IIM. The professors at each IIM have their own preference list of the books and resources for their respective course.
My friend is a PGPEX alumnus and claims that the program helped him double the salary he receives from his regular MBA. The ‘X’ in the program often is a source of hesitation for many prospective students ao it’s better the programs get the hype they deserve.
As far as choosing between IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Bangalore is concerned, I would recommend you go for the latter. IIM Bangalore has a better placement scenario and also has common classes across the institute in elective terms giving you a wider peer network. IIM Ahmedabad on the other hand has a bit of a location disadvantage and the exposure offered is nothing compared to Bangalore.
Here is a comparative analysis of the placement scenario of the 3 programs namely. IIM Ahmedabad PGPX. IIM Bangalore EPGP and IIM Calcutta MBAx
Particulars |
IIM Ahmedabad |
IIM Bangalore |
IIM Calcutta |
Average CTC |
INR 38.64 LPA |
INR 30.9 LPA |
INR 28.75 LPA |
Median CTC |
INR 30 LPA |
INR 26 LPA |
|
Top Recruiter |
Accenture and Adani Digital |
Accenture, PwC |
Axis Bank, NISG, Virtusa |
To grant admission, IIMs administer the Common Admission Test, also known as the CAT.
While the CAT score is the primary criterion, IIMs also use interviews, group discussions, and written ability tests to evaluate candidates after the CAT. Aside from that, they consider the candidate's past academic record as well as work experience.
So, to gain admission to IIM Bangalore, the procedure would be as follows:
Begin preparing for the CAT.
Fill out the CAT application form in the provided window.
Attend the CAT and achieve a high percentile. (Something like 99.5 or higher)
If you are selected, you must attend their GDPI round and perform well.
If everything goes well, you will receive an admission call from IIM B.
There’s a never-ending comparison between IIM A vs IIM B vs IIM C. Naturally, there is no definite winner. The reasons why some people consider IIM Bangalore to be better are as follows.
Course Curriculum: The curriculum and pedagogy are designed in such as way that you will get all-around opportunities in each term. IIM A has a rigorous academic curriculum for the first year. You won’t get much time to explore any other activities besides academics there. While your IIM B journey will start with a war of sections, i.e. an inter-sections event with various competitions that goes on for one week.
Credit Division: IIM B has a balanced credit division, i.e. 55% in the first year and 45% in the second year. While IIM A assigns almost 67% of credits for first-year and 33% credits for second-year. So, you will get more time to bond with your classmates and seniors at IIM B. You will have the freedom to pursue your interests other than academics as well.
NSRCEL: NS Raghavan Center for Entrepreneurial Learning at IIM B is more than just an entrepreneurship center or cell. It offers one core and one elective course. The coursework includes real start-up work.
Placements: IIM A, and IIM B both have excellent placement records. But due to the process around the top 20-30% of students get multiple placement offers. While IIM B follows an algorithm that ensures that the whole batch gets a fair shot at all companies.
Students usually choose IIM B over IIM A for its more balanced course structure.
IIM Bangalore and IIM Ahmedabad are the Top Schools in the country. Both IIM Bangalore and IIM Ahmedabad are top institutions that offer World-class management education, so you can't go wrong with either choice. Determining which is better between both Institutes depends on various criteria such as your Personal Preferences, Fees, Location, Career Goals, Placement Packages and much more. Here is a brief comparison between the two.
Particulars | IIM Bangalore | IIM Ahmedabad |
---|---|---|
Established | 1973 | 1961 |
Total Fees | INR 24.50 Lakhs | INR 25 Lakhs |
Batch Size | 480 | 395 |
Ranking | 2 (NIRF) | 1 (NIRF) |
Placement | Highest Package : INR 1.15 CPA Average Package : INR 35.31 LPA | Highest Package : INR 1.15 CPA Average Package : INR 34.36 LPA |
Top Recruiters | Infosys, Jindal Shadeed, JP Morgan Chase, Goldman Sachs | Accenture, Boston Consulting Group, Consulting, TCS, Goldman Sachs, Adani |