Interview with Shalaka Patkar, SYBMS Topper, D.G. Ruparel College

Name- SHALAKA S. PATKAR

Currently in FY/SY/TYBMS – TYBMS

Topped in which year / sem – 1^ST,2^ND,3^RD AND 4^TH sem

College –D.G.RUPAREL COLLEGE

Percentage of Marks:78% in 1^st sem, 76% in 2^nd sem, 82% in 3^rd sem and  82%in 4^th sem

First of all, A Hearty Congratulations to you on this Brilliant Success…!!

Tell us about yourself and your college:

Hi, I am SHALAKA and right now I am studying in TYBMS , D.G. RUPAREL college. I have topped all the four semesters till now. Currently I m waiting for my 5^th sem results. I have done my junior college from Ruparel itself. I am a fun loving person and I am very ambitious in nature.  Ruparel College is one of the well known colleges in Mumbai and is accredited with A grade by NAAC. It is one of the best colleges in Mumbai. It is not only best in academics but also in extracurricular activities.

How did you plan to get into BMS?

I did my junior college from commerce stream and having a commerce background, I decided to go for BMS. Other major reason that attracted me to this course is the overall development one gets after completing this course. BMS also lays the platform for MBA, rather it makes MBA, slightly an easier job.

Is the BMS syllabus just what you had expected it to be?

Truly speaking it’s a big NO. I expected the syllabus to be only theoretical or the basic one as to what is management and something related to only finance, HR and marketing. But in reality BMS syllabus includes a variety of things which a manager or an entrepreneur faces in his real life. Subjects such as strategic management, financial management, business communication are all very interesting and practical. The syllabus is rather more practical in nature.

Were you expecting to top in the exams? To whom would you credit this success to?

Yes I do expect to top in the first semester but as time passed I became pretty confident and decided to try my level best to top in all the semesters. I would like to give the credit for the same to my parents and family for being my constant support in life and to all my teachers for guiding me in the right direction.

Did you start preparing right from the first day of your BMS?

No not at all. Preparing from the first day is something that none of the student will actually do. But I started preparing when I saw the competition around me. It was my source of motivation. When I realized I have to work hard to be on the top that was the time I started preparing to be on top.

How did you allot time to different subjects?(Did you follow a self-made timetable? And how many hours did you study per day? Had you joined any coaching classes or was it just self-study?)

I don’t have any particular time table for studying. I feel studying should not be restricted to time. I study as and when I get time but I also make sure that my studies are completed on time i.e. before the exams. To keep a flow of studies, per day at least 2 hours study is sufficient and at the most it should be 5 hrs. Being a BMS student we have many projects and presentations, so it’s not possible to allocate perfect time for each subject and then to follow it but one must make sure that whatever time is allocated is utilized with full dedication to study that subject. I did not join any coaching class for last four semesters.

Did you participate in college fests or extra-curricular activities?(If yes, please mention the details) Do you think a BMS student can manage both studies and extra activities?

Yes. I recently handled our college BMS fest called “AARAMBH”. It was  a great experience handling such a big event. AARAMBH was a three day intra collegiate festival. It included 11 games such as debate, virtual stock market, ad- mad (basically the participant were given any product and were asked to market it),general quiz, spell bee, photo mania, poetry writing, brand gurus(a game based on various brands that we come across in our day to day life),strategize(how tactfully one creates his own business out of the given resources), persona check( a kind of talent hunt), and  just –a – minute( a game in which different task have to be completed in one minute i.e. a kind of time game or time management. We had renowned Marathi actress Sukanya Kulkarni as a judge for one of our event. We also had best IIT professional Siddharth Hosangadi as a guest lecturer during our festival.

Today, we often come across students committing suicide out of failure, depression or tension of exams. What do you have to say about this? Did you use any special techniques for stress management?

Yes I do use stress management technique and for me the best way to manage stress is to take out some time for self and do what one like doing. I manage my stress by listening to songs, especially soft music.

Industrial Visits – are they really informative for bms students? Which industries have you visited?

Industrial visit do add to our knowledge and it’s the practical way of understanding the working of industries. What we learn in theory can be seen there. I visited Saras milk dairy (Rajasthan), Blossoms industry (Daman), and Kerala coir industry (Kerala)

Do you think a BMS student is more flooded with assignments, projects and internal exams?

To some extent it is true but it is a kind of training for future. BMS students are called future managers so they have to manage time and then prove to be best in it.

Do you like being busy with projects, presentations, assignments and internal exams? Or you would like to be enjoying out with friends all that time instead

I like both. I can’t imagine myself enjoying all the time with my friends or be busy studying the whole time. There has to be a balance of both the things studies as well as entertainment.

What changes would you like to bring in management education in India?

Changes in management education would be like there should be a standard format for conducting internals. There should be proper weightage given to presentations, projects and assignments and this format should be same for all semesters and all for colleges.

What message would you like to give to the coming batches of BMS students?

BMS is one on the best platform to go for MBA in future. It is a challenging and enjoyable experience doing BMS. So go ahead and use your talent to its best.

What are your future plans?

I want to pursue MBA in finance.

Your Feedback for BMS.co.in?

BMS.co.in is a wonderful platform for expressing our ideas, views and experience. Thanks a lot for giving me the opportunity for the same.

Interviewed by:

Jasveen Kaur [Content Writer, BMS.co.in]