IIML, XLRI, FMS, JBIMS – Koi kisi se kam nahin

103 Comments

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6. Sir, If we have a option between JBIMS and IIM Nagpur. Which institute according to you will be better. As despite IIM-N being a new institute, it is being mentored by IIM-A only.
   Thank you.

   • Siddhant, at present JBIMS should be preferred over IIM Nagpur because IIM Nagpur will take at least 10 years to break into top 10.

7. Sir, I have cleared the 10th and 12th boards exams with 80 ℅ in both and I am a student of commerce background and also pursuing bcom.
   I want to know that is I am eligible for all iim, and if i want to be selected in top iim what should be my strategy toward it.

   • Deependra, you can check your chances for top IIMs by using our tool IIM Profilizer . If you are aiming for top IIMs, then you should prepare well in advance for it. Get yourself enrolled for CL’s classroom program to start well in advance and to move forward towards an effective preparation plan.

8. Sir i have converted iim shillong & also jbims…am really confused between the 2…gotta reach a consensus soon….what should i do???

   • Swapnil, you should go for JBIMS.

9. HI Sir,
   I have Cleared XLRI BM and IIM L PGP.
   Acads- 88% (10th), 94%(12th), 88.2%(Grad- NIT Jamshedpur, ECE)
   Work Ex- Vertical-Telecom Work-IT 21months

   Want to pursue MBA in finance, which will be better option for me.

   • Anish, you should go for IIM L PGP.

10. Sir, please suggest if IIFT Delhi can be considered over IIM K? I am interested in finance for now but am open to other options as well. I have been advised to join IIM K over IIFT but due to location constraint I wish to join IIFT. Will I be missing on opportunities in case I choose IIFT over IIM K? Does the tag really matter that much? Also, doesn’t IIFT provide equivalent opportunities as IIM K in all domains except consulting? My profile is above 90 in 10, 12, grad; Engineer; 21 months experience in engineering and analytics in an insurance company. Kindly suggest.

    • Isha, all the above institutes are the premier B school. There’s a minute difference among all the options. If you are inclined towards finance then IIFT is an ideal choice.

11. Sir, I have converted my XLRI-HRM call and am also expecting a convert from IIM Indore (hopefully). I am not really interested in HR and want to pursue finance in future. However, I am not sure of choosing indore over xlri because of the huge brand advantage that xlri has, and also because of the batch size of indore. Will it be feasible in the long run to choose indore over xlri just because of interest in finance? I am a fresher. Your advise would really help. Thank you!

    • Sinha, if you are inclined towards the finance, then IIM Indore should be chosen. It is a well established institute and has a great brand value.

12. Hi sir,
    I am BBA final year student & preparing for CAT 2015 but i am no confiedent that i will convert it into top b school because
    My 10th % = 81 , 12th% = 74 and bba 1 & 2 yr % = 65
    I want to go into the top B school only and i am ready to do all hard work require for that but i m confused that wheather i would get call from ANY IIM’S bcoz my BBA percentage are very less and also criteria for iim a is 71 %. and
    also in great delima that As these top B schools are selecting profile students so i have no such kind of profile and no work experience so what should i do ?
    I am thinking that i will take one or two year experience after bba so that my profile would be stromg and also as i will be having experience then chances of selecting of mine would be more so i am confused what should i do should i take experience and then apply for mba or directly go into mba also one more thing my target collages are
    IIM A,B,C, XLRI, JBIMS, IIFT & FMS. and my goal is fixed that i want to go into the FINANCE field only. I am in great delima please help me out sir.

    • Paras, hope you have checked the IIM Profilizer for the list of IIMs from where you can get a call and the percentile required for the same. My feeling is that apart from IIMA and possibly B most of the other IIMs are possible for you and hence you should go all out for this year itself. Also the work experience will help you in case of IIMB only as the others do not have weight for work experience for interview short listing.
      XLRI, JBIMS, IIFT and FMS are all possible for you since they give interview calls only on the basis of CAT/XAT/IIFT score and have low/no weight for graduation marks.

      • sir, please tell me what is your take on jbims and mdi. also, please tell me about iit madras and its comparison with jbims.

        • Arushi, JBIMS and MDI are terrific institutions. I’d rate JBIMS better because of the ROI. JBIMS is better than IIT Madras.

13. Sir,
    I am a Chartered Accountant and Qualified Company Secretary (CS) practising for more than 3 years. I had 95% in both X and XII. I am looking for an MBA from IIM A/B/C. I haven’t given any CAT attempts. Hope to give it in 2016. How much should I score for getting into an IIM? Can you guide me?

    • Joyal, a general category candidate need over 99.5%ile for a call from IIM A & C. Given your work experience, good academic record and professional qualification you could get a call from IIMB at 98.5%ile.
      Please refer to IIM Profilizer for details.

14. Sir My cat14 %tile was 57.
    My profile
    10th – 81% Cbse
    12th – 63% cbse
    BE – 77.2% RGPV
    Just Graduated
    Category – NC OBC
    I am very demotivated after the cat result
    Is it possible for me to make it to IIMs this year….if I start my prep now

    • Sneha, 57%ile in CAT 2014 is a low score and if you have to do well in CAT 2015 then you should start preparing immediately. Given your CAT 2014 performance you should join a classroom program. If you are willing to put in 6-7 hours daily then a good CAT score is possible.

15. Sir,
    My profile is as follows:
    X:87.33, XII:72.66, B.E:60(Mumbai University)
    PG Diploma in IT:65.56
    Certified Ethical Hacker from EC Council
    18 months work ex from Cognizant
    Category: OBC
    What chances do I have to make it to JBIMS next year?

    • Ananya, JBIMS calls are more or less based on the score/percentile obtained.
      Thus, aim for a high percentile and you stand a good chance.

16. Sir can i join harvard business school on basis of ielts score or only gmat is required? Thanks!

    • Akash, GMAT and TOEFL are needed.

17. What’s the exact syllabus for quant section in NMAT ?

    • Prince, it is the same as that of CAT/XAT.

18. How good are the E-Cells of these colleges? Do you know of any prominent startups to have come out of them in the past couple of years? Which college does one choose who wants to look beyond securing a placement offer and instead start his own venture coming out of the school?

    • Ayan, the E-Cells of most institutes is good. Considering that entrepreneurship is one of the leading routes chosen by youngsters these days most colleges invest in their E-Cell.
      IIM Lucknow would probably be the best bet among the Institutes being spoken about here.

19. Dear gp sir,
    I am interested in mh CET and NMAT mba entrance exams. I would like to take these two entrance this year.I am doing my bba ( 5th sem. Delhi). I am kind of week in quant section that’s why I opted these very entrance.

    All I hereby asking you some preparation tips and guildline so that I can crack it.
    (The exam dates, syllabus, books,etc)

    Thanks you are doing a nice thing 🙂 🙂

    • Prince, the quant (QA) in CAT 2014 was similar to that of CET and easier than that of NMAT. This year too CAT is expected to have an easy QA and hence you should target CAT, SNAP, TISS-NET and CET. The papers that have difficult QA are XATR and NMAT.
      Since QA is your area of concern and CAT’15 is expected to be held in mid November, suggest that you join classroom program to ensure that you are well prepared for the test. Let me know the city your are from and I will connect you to a faculty with whom you could work out a preparation plan.

20. Respected Sir,
    I always thought that JBIMS was a Fin campus. Then how come the placement area of JBIMS is sales and marketing? My second question is I have converted both SPJIMR -Finance and JBIMS. Where should I go. Waiting for your propmt reply

    • Karan, JBIMS is very good for sales and marketing also.
      My preference is for JBIMS over SP Jain.

      • Thank you sir for the prompt reply!
        JBIMS it is!

        • Karan, Right decision – lower fee, greater flexibility higher brand equity and similar or better placements.

21. Hi Sir,
    My profile is
    10th 86%
    12th 72%
    Grad 71.1%
    Exp 17months in IT MNC

    Sir, i have converted IIM SHillong and MDI PGPM, which one should i opt for? My interest is in marketing. I plan to pursue executive mba from some Ivy league college sometime in future. My bias is towards MDI coz of better placement specs, location and repute. But would it impact my plans for exec mba? would IIM shil is better coz of the iim tag? Is MDI a recognisable brnad abroad? Please clarify….

    • Manak, while the two institutes are at par and you could choose either of them. Since you are more comfortable with MDI it is okay to join it. While MDI is not as recognizable as an IIM but it will not impact your plans of executive MBA.

22. Sir what about IIM K vs JBIMS? I have converted both.
    Will it’s IIM brand tag beat JBIMS in the near future?
    Also how important is infra and campus life from an mba point of view? Because JBIMS has a serious disadvantage there.
    Can you please help me decide?

    • Vineet, my preference is for JBIMS over IIMK due to it being an older institute with a better placement record. Location is also an advantage for JBIMS.

23. Sir,I have converted IIM K and IIM L.No doubt IIM L is higher up in the ranking but since I have an average profile(80+/90+/80+ in X/XII/Grad) with no extra curricular achievements I was wondering if choosing IIM K would be a wise decision as the batch size in IIM K is low 350+ vs 450+ and the chances of me getting a good job would be higher at IIM K.What are your views sir ? Sorry I had posted in the wrong page earlier.

    • Yavar, this is illogical to me. Your placement after MBA is a function of how you have performed in the program and are not based on your past academics or your extra curriculars. IIML will provide you with better opportunities and that is where you should go.

24. Dear Sir,

    I’m currently working for an American Oil and Gas company as their Area Sales Manager. I wrote CAT this year without any preparation and managed to get a percentile of 99.37. I have converted IIM K. Should I join this year or attempt CAT again. Though many have advised me on the unpredictable nature of CAT.

    My Acads are
    Xth 90.46
    Xiith 80.84
    Graduation 7.64

    (Also I had prepared for CAT 2013 and was doing decent in the mocks but CAT 2013 was a disaster and I managed to get a score of only 97.81)

    • Madhav, we had discusses this over a telecon hence not putting my point of view here. Do let me know what you finally decide.

25. Sir,
    How is general management as a career post MBA? I heard general management companies are now taking lots of MBAs from IIM-A,B,C,L, FMS,XLRI etc with extremely high salaires above 20 lakhs pa. I am doing my MBA from FMS and I have a banking background. My peers tell me that these are preferable to the conventional offers such as those of investment banking and consulting. But I am not really sure if I will really like these jobs so just wanted your views on these profiles.

    • Bandhua, general management options provide a greater diversity in work as compared to most of the other options however it also means that you should be comfortable with all areas of management. If this is so then you can consider the option of general management roles but if you in love with finance then it would be better for you to go for your area of interest.

26. Hi sir,
    my name is Naina and i had attempted cat in 2014 and I got 30 percentile inspite of my preparation of over 10 months, sir here i would also like to mention that i am a gold medalist in my undergraduation and have scored 96% in 12th and 90% in 10th(cbse), after this result I have lost my hopes on cat, but i continue to dream in studying in IIM. What do you think i should do? thank you!

    • Naina, Call me at 9811155160 on any day in the evening after 7 pm to discuss the issue.

27. Hi sir,
    I have converted the six new IIMs and IIML-ABM . Which one would you suggest I go for?

    • Priyanka, IIML does not differentiate between PGP and ABM and placements of the two are combined and hence IIML ABM should be preferred over the new IIMs. However it will not be possible to specialise in finance through ABM if that is what you desire then IIM Ranchi should be your preference.

28. Hi Sir,
    I have a convert from IIML PGP programme. I have around 4 years of work-experience in Cognizant as a technical programmer. I wish to try finance job post MBA and my only exposure to finance was in my BFS related projects in CTS. While my class 10 and 12 marks are around 90%,I have heard that people with high IT work experience find it almost impossible to switch into any other domain and summer placements pose to be a huge problem for them. Hearing this I am a bit worried about my summer placements and whether I shall fail to get ay decent finance related experience in summers which in turn would make it even more difficult to get an excellent Day-0 or Day-1 finance offer in final placements. What should I really do about this problem sir? Please advice.

    • Hi Jyotirmay,

      Considering you have 4 years of Work ex you should be targeting Lateral Placements instead of Day 0-1.
      Your summers company will not have a big say in your Lateral Placements.
      What will matter will be your previous Work ex and your performance at IIM-L. Thus, enjoy your convert and don’t fret over Summers.

29. Dear GP sir,

    I have been a regular follower of your blog and when faced with a dilemma, the first person I thought of reaching out to was you.

    I converted IIMK and was all set to join the institute. I was waitlisted for XLRI BM and the list has moved further(which was unexpected – 40+ more than last years’ movement) and I have converted the same in latest list. Should I join XLRI BM or stick with IIMK? Will there be a huge difference in learning and exposure between these schools?

    • Hi Pravin,

      Congratulations on your converts!! XLRI-BM would be my choice over IIM K.
      While what really matters is what one does in a B-school, the exposure at XLRI would be higher and placements would be on the better side as well.

30. Sir,

    We are eagerly waiting for your annual SQC yatra 😀 😀 . When is it going to be held in Delhi/NCR this year ?

    • Vaibahv, not fianlised as yet but will most probably start it early August.

31. Respected GP Sir,
    I passed out of IIM-Kozhikode in 2012 and for 3 years I have worked in RM role of an Indian bank. Initially I felt I had got a very hot job offer because of the salary and perks but now I feel my job profile is becoming stagnant. I also need to advance more in life and go for top notch roles in investment banking, equity research or treasury etc.
    I have heard of a lot of people do another MBA abroad. Could this be a good option for me too? Can I get better job opportunities abroad and possibly even settle there if I can manage to get into a good abroad B-school? Especially the top ones in US, Singapore, Hong-Kong etc? What experience do you have of these B-school careers? Kindly advise me regarding this?

    • MAnas, it is a bit early for a 2nd MBA, you can consider it after 7-8 years of work ex. Look at opportunities within your current organisation and outside to give a boost to your career.

32. Sir,
    I have converted IIML PGP and am waitlisted at FMS (WL125) & XLRI (WL135). Assuming, I convert the other two also, which one would you suggest I join. I want to pursue a career in consulting.My profile is as below:
    Xth : 94%; XIIth: 89%; BTech (BITS PILANI,PIlani Campus): 7.8 CGPA
    Would my average Btech score hurt me at L..?
    Please guide..
    Thanks in advance 🙂

    • Hi PK,

      While FMS would be the best option on the basis of ROI, your affinity towards consulting would mean that XL or IIM-L would be a better option.
      IIML PGP is a good bet and you can surely consider sticking to it. Plus, the IIM Tag is always a bonus.

33. Dear GP Sir,
    I have another important question. I have come across a bschoolcareers article which talks about NMIMS, Mumbai placements 2015. NMIMS has got placements averaging Rs. 16.5 lakhs which is at par with these top IIMs and XLRI. Also IB banks like Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan etc. have come to the campus with same top profiles of investment management, treasury etc. as in top IIMs, as per that article. So, I fail to see how studying in NMIMS would b anything lesser compared to any of these top Bschools listed above. Please help me on this.

    • What I mean is that if top recruiters like Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Barclays etc. visit NMIMS as well as the IIMs, then in what respect do IIMs and XLRI or FMS score above a campus like NMIMS?
      Is it purely on basis of the faculty or ROI? Or are there other factors involved?

      • Aditya, the salaries in the placement reports cannot be the only criteria as in my experience almost all institutes tend to exaggerate their placement figures and hence I take them with a pinch (bagful in some cases) of salt. Many companies top tend to go to these four but would not visit others or will give a lower profile/package to students from other lower ranked institutes.
        As mentioned in the post Jayein toh jayein kahaan 2015: Which Institute? my criteria for the order of preference is based on placements and ROI, I do not have the capability to evaluate the faculty or the academic strength of the institutes.
        While NMIMS is a very good institute but to my mind it is not in the same league as these four and hence let us agree to disagree. This is after all my subjective opinion.

        • Yes that is absolutely true. One fine example I heard of is in CRISIL itself this year. And that too in summer internship where students from IIML, IIMC and XLRI were given stipends of around Rs.30000 per month and the NMIMS students got just Rs. 10000 per month.

        • Sir,
          You probably did not understand my question. I did not give any conclusions of my own. I just asked you why NMIMS or Symbiosis would not be in same league as the top 10 colleges if the same companies including are visiting them? Is it because the students who get placed in these companies from the lower rung colleges get lower salaries and inferior profiles but the institutes do not reveal that in their placement reports?

          • In fact I would personally not like those colleges to be in same league as the top 10 as I am a IIML convert now. But I wanted to know the proper fact as to how it is that placement reports from these colleges look to be as shiny and promising as those of top IIMs, FMS, XLRI etc.

          • Jyotirmay, MBA institutes practice what they preach – packaging is an integral part of marketing.

          • Jyotirmay, yes you are right I looked upon your message as a conclusion.
            The package data can include all kinds of perquisites, ESOPs and variable components to make it look better.
            Reputation is an intangible factor due to which many top companies visit or do not visit a campus.

34. Sir,

    I’ve converted both TAPMI and SIMSR PGDM(IB), and I’m waitlisted for SIMSR PGDM(Core) at no. 28. Which one should I go for? I’ve also appeared for Welingkar’s selection process.

    • N K Bhatia, TAPMI is my preference among these but it has a higher fee and if funding is an issue then your next best options are SIMSR Core followed by IB.

35. Dear GP Sir,
    Which college among these is the best when it comes to Investment banking offers?
    I have 2 years work experience in SBI and wish to join an investment bank portfolio management.
    Also, why is ISB not in the list? It is supposed to be better than all of these colleges because it features in the global ranking while none of these colleges do, right?

    • Hi Aditya,

      I have basically tried to compare similar colleges here. As you rightly pointed out, ISB would be marginally better than all 4 in this list and has thus, not been included here.
      When it comes to IBD, FMS or JBIMS would be a good bet (on the basis of the companies visiting the campus).
      There are not many front-end IBD jobs on offer thus you should keep than in mind as well.

36. Sir,
    I am in a great deal of confusion and was hoping you could help me out. I am in my final year of engineering. I have been admitted to XLRI BM 2015-2017. I have also been admitted to Indian School of Business 2017-2018 through their YLP before which I will have to work for two years. So…should I join XLRI now or chuck XL and work for two years and then join ISB? Work will be two years at KPMG under Risk Advisory as Business Analyst. By choosing XLRI, I will be doing my MBA at a stretch without work ex and saving time. However, I will also be closing all my options. If I choose ISB, I will buy a couple of years to try for IIM ABC and foreign MBAs and if that fails, I have ISB as backup. I am keen on becoming a finance jock and post MBA plans may ( a big may) include entrepreneurship. Also, what is the difference in industry perception between a fresher MBA and an MBA with work ex? Kindly advise. Thank you for your time.

    • RoI is not a factor at all. I have no problems whatsoever with the fees of ISB.

      • Vikas, career growth is better after MBA and hence it is advantageous to do an MBA as early as possible, also XLRI is at par with IIM ABC and hence my suggestion is to join XLRI this year itself rather than delay your MBA. Companies do not really give a huge amount of credit for pre MBA work experience.

37. Hello sir…m also a CL student…I want to know which cllg is better between iift kolkata and iim udaipur??
    also which is better iift delhi or iim raipur??
    pls help sir..m interested in marketing.

    • Suyash, while I would normally put IIFT Kolkata in the end but since your are looking at marketing, my order of preference is IIFT Delhi, IIFT Kolkata, IIM Raipur and IIM Udaipur.

38. Sir,
    Isn’t the median salary mentioned for XLRI as 16.25 lpa for Class of 2014. It is 17 lpa for Class of 2015. Kindly re-check it as median mentioned for other institutes are for 2013-15 batch.

    Src : alumni.xlri.ac.in and several newspaper reports .

    • And thanks for this wonderful and timely post. Regards.

    • Anshul, you are right. Since all four are in the same range a +/- 50k does not really matter.

39. Hi Sir,
    I have converted my IIML PGP call and am WL 119(Gen) at FMS. I will appreciate your advice on making a choice(if I get an opportunity). Some points about me:

    1. Biggest concern to me is my profile. 10-89, 12-71, B.Tech IITR(2014)-6.653 a gap since then. Will my profile put me at a disadvantage at IIML?

    2. ROI is important to me but it is not the deciding factor. Also are there any financial aids provided by IIML apart from interest subsidy on loans? Most of the seniors aren’t responding to this query. I come in the 3-3.5 LPA family income bracket.

    3. Location doesn’t seem to matter to me.

    • Chandresh, you profile will be hurt you equally in both the campus and its impact will be felt in the Summer placements becausue these typically happen in the Aug-Oct period and the only shortlisting criteria is your past academic performance. The final placements on the other hand are a function of your performance in MBA and are not really impacted by your marks in X, XII and Graduation.
      Most of the financial support is available to minority and reserved category candidates and that too for those with income less than Rs 1.5 lakh, please refer to the Fee and Financial Aids page of IIML website. There is hardly any difference between FMS and IIML and the two will provide very similar placements, hence given your family income my suggestion is to join FMS. The IIM tag is not woth burdening yourself and your family with a big loan.

      • sir,
        mine is also a similar sort of dilemma (confused between fms and iimL). As my parental income is less than 1.5 lac. and i think i could get a scholarship through govt as i also got one during my Btech. So i want
        ask cosidering this point in mind which option should i choose.

        • Aksh, if you can get a scholarship then go to IIML else choose FMS as it is a value for money program. Hope you have checked the financial assistance link given in the answer above. Suggest you connect with IIML and confirm the amount that you would be eligible for.

40. Hi sir,
    I have one doubt. ISB Hyderabad features in FT globak list and is the only Indian B-School apart from IIM A & B. My query is, why is it kept on rank 10?

    • Durlabh, ISB is low on ROI as compared to the others in top 10.

41. SIR, I have just crept 2nd year of physics honours from st.xavier,s college,ranchi with 80%.my 10th score is 92.4%(ICSE) n my 12th score is 85%(ICSE) nd for extra curriculars ,I am a regional level athlete and a regional level basketball player and I also represented my school at district level science & child rights congress & also I represented my school at district level elocution & also I am a regular award winner in various academic & cultural departmental fests of my college. I joined CL ranchi today and I wanna know as to what should be my TARGET CAT PERCENTILE to get into IIM’s or XLRI. THANKS SIR

    • Sourish, as a general category candidate for an interview call, you should target:
      over 99.6%ile for IIM A, C and FMS
      over 99%ile for other old IIMs
      over 97%ile for the new IIMs and for XLRI

42. I agree wit you.. Its absolute details.. Thanks to share this information..

43. Sir,

    Batch size of XLRI is
    BM-180
    HRM-180

    I am current student of XLRI (2014-16), so you can trust me on this.

    • Sadashiv, yes you are right. Have corrected the batch size.

44. Hi GP Sir,
    I was a CL student for CAT 14 prep.
    I had a query regarding the Global MBA program of XLRI. I understand it is a new program and also that the fees is around 30 lakh. My doubt is whether it will enjoy the same connection with the industry and alumni base as the HR and BM courses or it will not be able to enjoy the ‘brand’ of XLRI.
    Looking forward to your inputs.

    Regards,
    Rakesh

    • Rakesh, I think it will enjoy the same connections with the Industry but will take another 3-4 years for it to get the full benefits of the XLRI brand name.

      • Sir I have around 3 years of work experience. My other options are new IIMs and IMT Ghz Marketing. Fees is not that big an issue as I believe in the brand and exposure for the long run and hence am considering XLRI global MBA. Do you think it is worth taking the leap of faith or I should try for 1 year MBA programs after 1/2 years. P.S- my long term goal is entrepreneuship.

        • Rajesh, new IIMs are very good and you should consider joining them. else go for a retake of CAT/XAT and take GMAT to target the 1 year MBA program of ISB Hyderabad and top IIMs.

45. Sir
    I will be taking CAT exam this year and since 5 months are only left I request you to guide me on how should I start revising now as I have completed all my funda books and giving tests on portal but still my score is not increasing. I am facing more problem in verbal as compared to quant.

    • Kritika, apart from regular practice you also need to revise, please refer to the post Things you must-do after every mock you take.

46. Dear Sir,
    While I’m thankful for your comprehensive analysis, I believe this post does not completely address the biggest criteria of selecting a b-school : Placements(You yourself have stated in the Jayein toh Jayein Kaha Post). I was hoping for a more domain centric insight into the placements of these institutes to arrive at a decision.

47. Sir, where would you place SPJIMR as compared to these 4 ? SP Jain is also located in Mumbai and have reported their average placements at 18.2 Lacs for 2015. Thanks !

    • Aayush, the placement figures should be taken with a pinch of salt. SP Jain is below these four institutes. Please refer to the post Jayein toh jayein kahaan 2015: Which Institute?