Excerpts from an Interview with Ojas Barve, SIES BEST STUDENT OF THE YEAR 2013
- Were you expecting to get “Best Student of the Year Award”? Why do you think you won this award?
No, not at all. This award was a real surprise to me. But yes, I consider this award as a mark of recognition about all my work and achievements till date, whether inside the four walls of the college, or outside it.
- Tell us a bit about your background.
Well, academically, I am currently a student of TYBMS, at SIES College of Arts, Science and Commerce. I am very enthusiastic about pursuing a career in education after completing my Masters, post-BMS. I used to work as ‘lecturer’ with two institutes providing parallel education to students where I taught ‘French’ to students of Class X and ‘Organisation of Commerce and Management’ to Class XII. I also got an opportunity to work as ‘Campus Representative’ at BMS.CO.IN, where later I got promoted as ‘Chief Correspondent-Social Media’. Currently, I am working on internship in my college for my college newsletter, SIES Skyline, as ‘Editor-in-Chief’.
- You always wanted to be a Professor. What inspires to choose teaching profession?
I have always believed in ‘Communication of knowledge’. This was not just when I started teaching, but also when some classmate asked any smallest of the doubt to me, I felt I should explain it in the best way that the person would make correct grasping of the same. This knowledge may not just be academic! It may be anything. It starts at a very early age, when the parents teach their child to sit erect, to walk, to speak and so on. Possessing knowledge is an easy task. But giving knowledge to others, is always difficult, and very less people are masters at it.
Plus, I belong to a family where ‘teaching’ has always been present in some or the other way. So, probably I also have the inherent ability to communicate better and ‘teach’.
- At a very young age, you have achieved a lot of things in life. Whom do you credit this success to?
There’s a lot more to achieve! I credit whatever I have achieved till date to my parents, Mrs. Amruta and Mr. Ajay Barve who instilled good values and ‘sanskaars’ in me; and my academic parents, i.e. my professors at SIES College, Prof. Archana Sanil and Prof. Anita Agrawal, along with the Head of our SIES family, Principal, Dr. Harsha Mehta, who have always been supportive in all the smallest of the things too.
- How was Ojas before BMS? And what role has BMS played to transform Ojas?
Ojas before BMS! It really makes me think how was I before joining BMS at SIES! I used to be THAT shy and very reserved student and had very few close friends.
It is all because of BMS and SIES that I have CHANGED. And yes, the CHANGE is definitely towards ‘good’. My professors, I am sure, must have witnessed the change in the Ojas who got admitted in Sem-I and the Ojas who is currently in Sem-VI.
BMS has been the key factor behind the achievements I have been able to gain. It has completely transformed my ‘attitude’ how things are to be looked at.
- What do you think are the most important factors required to lead a successful life? What is your success mantra?
“Dream, know, plan, act and maintain.” is my success mantra.
I have always given importance to ‘planning’. When someone younger to me, comes to me, and asks me about their career, I just ask them one thing “What do you see yourself doing when you complete your studies?” That’s exactly what a person must visualize! As for successful life, I would consider- Imagination, Planning, Setting up priorities, Objective-based focus on goals, Communication, Consistency and hard-work coupled with smart work.
- Since you have explored a lot of career options by doing so many internships and also add-on courses. Can you suggest the career options which other BMS students can also enroll for?
Any bachelor’s degree, in today’s world, gives a student, ‘minimum required knowledge and competency’. BMS students however, study 38 subjects in a span of over two years! This gives them the ‘minimum required knowledge and competency’ of not just one subject, but a variety of subjects together. This gives them an opportunity to know what they like. Once the student is aware what is his liking towards, he can explore the subject deeper and go for the post-graduation in that subject.
Internships and add-on courses, gives a student a practical exposure and first-hand knowledge about the subjects which a professor teaches in the classroom. This makes the student, develop an ‘image’ of the stream or career line which he might plan to take up in future. The courses may not always help in academics, but they would also help for the student to add up to their knowledge.
As for me, I have completed my Certificate in Capital Markets from Inter-connected Stock Exchange of India Ltd. and Introductory Certificate in Professional Counseling from SIES Institute of Comprehensive Education.
- I am sure working on so many areas and doing a full-time course like BMS ain’t an easy job. Can you provide some tips on Time management and Mind management.
Well, it is definitely not an easy task. But as they say ‘Necessity is the mother of invention’, to survive in today’s competitive world, you ‘need’ to make yourself competent enough to make your profile stand distinguished than others. So, work experience, traineeships, internships, add-on courses other things play an important role.
“Everyone has got time for everything, you just need to manage it” is my success mantra. It is upon you, how you set up your ‘priorities’ in life. Time management always begins with the first function of management, that is, ‘planning’. You must plan and keep record of the things which you are supposed to do. Without a proper plan, the things are going to jumble up, and your commitments are going to collapse. ‘What to do’, ‘why to do’, and ‘when to do’ are of the core importance in time management.
Whereas, ‘Mind Management’ comes hand-in-hand with time management! If the things are not properly managed, the planning is going to fail and the mind is going to suffer the pain! ‘Patience’ plays an important role in mind management. Without patience, there’s no success.
In the words of Moliere, “A wise man is superior to any insults which can be put upon him, and the best reply to unseemly behaviour is patience and moderation.”
- What are your future plans post BMS?
I have planned to take up my Masters in Management along with which I will be taking up employment as a lecturer at a coaching institute. After Masters, I would appear for UGC-NET/SET examination for professorship.
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