CoolAvenues' Classics
Paradise Lost !!!

"Those also serve, who stand and wait!"

- John Milton
in Paradise Lost

Another placement season has ended and all B-schools are making rambunctious claims for 100% placements. They have to, to attract the good students. But is that the real story? Or are there skeletons in the cupboard ???

CoolAvenues decided to speak to some of the past students from IIMs who were unfortunate to get placed at the fag end of the placement process. The story tries to explore the trials and tribulations of the last few days at Campus, which must be most painful and overshadow the happy memories.

It can be a very unnerving experience, almost a psychedelic one. And it can leave a permanent scar on one's psyche. After making through to IIMs through a grueling CAT exam, students get to rub shoulders with best colleagues, are tutored by best faculty and pampered by corporate, especially during the PPTs (Pre-Placement Talks, for the uninitiated). And these "chosen few" at the IIMs dream of grand well-paying jobs with perks et al with some big MNC firm.

And suddenly the placement week starts. And if you are not in top half of the class and from a countryside town from a what's your school or Univ. name???, you can safely assume that you are not gonna be among the shortlisted ones on Day 0. And the situation gets slightly better with the later Day 1 and Day 2. And better still on Day 3 and Day 4. And suddenly you realise there are less than 20 candidates in the fray. And on Day 5, you might be a member of the special tribe of last 10 people who are "yet to be placed", whereas the leading dailies' front page on the same day carry stories of yet another "unparalleled 100% placement" at your Institute.

Suddenly your fellow students, whom you thought were there for you, are nowhere in sight. All peers who made a beeline to handle Day 1 and Day 0 companies begin churning all sorts of excuses of being busy. And the Placecom? You wonder whether it really existed? Or was that a dream? You regret why you voted for that placecom. Only a few students from placecom are there to coordinate the companies and do hardselling. And the companies also start to act haughty! Companies that are not reputed or are not favoured among campus students get a lower day ranking (day-rankings are decided by students on various parameters). Suddenly all the issues about lower-day-ranking for company and too-few-students-left-to-be-looked come out of the closet from nowhere.

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By CoolAvenues Research Team