A teacher is like the artist who tries to sculpt the best of every idol. There might arise a need to bend the sculpture but in the end the idol emerges the best of every bit.
Every individual meets a mentor at every age it can be our parents, friends, peers, seniors etc. but its upto us what and how much we learn from them. We go through different states of mind in every age and the acceptance level, patience level, varies and we start looking at things from a different perspective. To handle tender teenage minds is very challenging task because they are like the hot molten wax ready to be moulded in the shape depending on the heat.
To become a teacher is like giving direction to a traveller in a dark pathway which will determine the journey ahead. Any fault can be misleading and can lead to a dead end.
My favourite faculty during my journey till date, is the one who created new dreams and also gave us the confidence that no dream is small if one has the determination to fulfil it – Prof. Mustafa Sapatwala. He is a visiting faculty at SIES College of Arts, Commerce and Science. He is a Master of Business Administration with Finance as his area of specialisation, from Coventry University (London, UK). Adding to it he has also done CIBP (Certificate in International Business Practice) course from Cambridge University (London, UK). Has worked for 11 months in Euro next Markets where job responsibilities included managing single-handedly the security lending process for clients and also preparing the Key Operating Procedures for the SSB Lending process. Apart from it he has also worked in one of the most secure areas of the bank, namely “The Vault” and learnt how to create and maintain securities of the bank for a period of 1 year in Deutsche Bank AG (London, UK). Also with 3 months teaching experience (London, UK), he believes education has no boundaries and every student should aspire big and also work to attain it.
He is also associated with other institutions like: Allana college of Architecture, Hinduja College of Commerce, Habib College of Commerce and Economics, etc.
For the course of BMS, he teaches subjects like Service Sector Management, Special Studies in Marketing, Special Studies in Finance, International Finance, Retail Management, Entrepreneurship Management. For MBA and other post-graduate programs, he also has an excellent power over subjects like- Financial Markets and Institutions, Perspective Management, Analysis of Financial Management etc.
From day one he tries to be a part of peer and brings life to every lecture. He believes in being a friend and not just train a student but also groom him in every aspect. He presents himself as a mirror to the students who not only show their current status but also what they can be tomorrow. He believes that to become big you don’t need money but just presence of mind and grab the opportunity and make the opportunity work for you.
He has a very innovative style of teaching. To make the students understand the current affairs in the business, and to make them aware of the latest happenings, he makes them read the newspapers pertaining to business. He then asks them to find out solutions to any problems which they have spotted in any report in it, to motivate the problem-solving ability of the students. He also makes the students play management games, quizzes and other such activities, to boost their team-spirit.
He follows a unique practice of recording all the presentations of the students, and gives it to all the groups, so that all the groups understand the strengths and weaknesses of each other, and thereby develop the minus points in them. Also he expects a student to understand the presentation and then perform hence he might shut the slides in the middle of the presentation and he believes a student should not fumble because technology is just a helping hand for proper conveyance of our ideas, and not the only way to present.
He has an impressive way of communication too. The way he presents himself during his lectures is just how any individual should always do while working in the corporate sector. The language he uses is simple, but displays rich treasure of vocabulary. His speech, posture and gestures are just perfect enough to attract all the attention of the students.
Corporate world is like a game of chess you have to know the game first to play it right. It is always said that, what you watch and hear is the best way you remember things, than what you read. And hence he always supports his explanations by presenting a video. This helps students to understand the concepts better and connect to the subject rather than mugging things up. This also motivates the students and gives them live examples of achievements and standards which he expects them to meet. He expects from his students because he believes that we expect from only those who have the ability to fulfil these expectations.
He has the ability to make a student feel every example he gives and visualise themselves into it. He gets a positive atmosphere which motivates a student to pull up their socks and get to work. At this age a student has a lot of distractions so he helps them to get back on track and leads them to the right one. He is ready to help and give the maximum attention to students unless the students wish. He understands that mistakes are bound to happen but correcting them, and not repeating them in future is what the aim should be.
He will be your best friend as a professor but when it comes down to results he expects nothing less than perfection. He will run a paid plagiarism test on every project prepared by spending from his own pocket, because he believes in practicing perfection. He will guide every student for any query and will go beyond his limits to give the best to every student.
He conducts the sessions that are interactive in nature. He gives a chance for the young minds to speak and go beyond the limits and make them realise their potential because unless there is no threat, laziness will take over hard work.
He not only educates us about the current market conditions in our home country but also the terms and conditions abroad. I was under his guidance for my fifth semester and we were surprised when we opened the books for the first time. Because of the practical and interactive sessions every student in the class including me knew the depth of answer with a live example. It becomes fun to learn and explore at the same time. Even during our semester exams the questions were not theoretical but practical based and we could recollect those sessions and examples which we discussed in the class and give out near-perfect solutions just like him.
He is very supportive and will want every student under his guidance to excel not only in terms of academics but also in extra-curricular activities. He sets a new standard in every lecture and supports a student to go beyond those standards. His vast knowledge is a very important asset to every student because his practical way of presenting leads a student to happily study the toughest concepts.
Every student looks up at our professor and not only tries to imitate him but also aspire to become big and make him proud.
He is truly my biggest inspiration because he is not just a visionary but also a true believer. One day I really want to reach sky high and I want him to proudly narrate my stories to another set of students being trained under his guidance.
It’s an honor to have a professor who not only believes in you but also is there to support you in hard and difficult times.
Submitted By –
Juhi Bajaj
SIES College, Sion West
3 Comments