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Varsha Agarwal is a Post Graduate Program in Management (Class of 2012) student at Great Lakes Institute of Management Chennai. A science graduate from the Bangalore University, she is a competent professional covering activities in Sales, Mentoring, Product Development and Training.

Working with people from multicultural and diversified background has helped her develop communication skills.

Varsha extended her contribution for underprivileged children who work as child labors, in the form of karma- yoga at Great Lakes Institute of Management. The karma-yogis extend help to the nearby villages by improving their self- efficacy.

Varsha has 2.75 years work experience pre-MBA.

As a part of the insider series, CoolAvenues is providing a detailed know-how about the admission at GLIM Chennai- preparations, Written Test, Group Discussions, Personal Interview and much more.

Q. Can you tell us something about yourself and your pre-MBA qualifications and work-experience?
During my under-graduation, I was a part of a 10-month internship with People First, a coaching and training company for 18-22yr olds. During this tenure, I involved myself in conducting experiential learning sessions and have delivered guest lectures on leadership, team-building et al for colleges across Bangalore. Further, I have also represented my college on the Google campus as a part of the Google campus ambassador program.

I have an experience of 33 months with a GMAT- Training institute wherein I have been involved in sales and business development. I have also started the branch of my company in Hyderabad and have led the training and sales divisions. Subsequently, having involved in product development, I have piloted the e-learning project of the company and developed an entire module for GMAT preparation.

Q. Tell us something about your life before and beyond MBA.

Before beginning with my MBA in Chennai, I had been involved with Sankalpa Development Centre, Bangalore since the past three years on a part time basis and privileged to work as a volunteer and in process I have identified children labored illegally at restaurants, factories, homes etc in the suburbs of Bangalore, India. My training expertise and passion to contribute to the society leveraged me to support the faculty team by helping them to provide education to these underprivileged children. I have extended my contribution in the form of ‘Karma Yoga’ Project (at Great Lakes Institute of management) wherein we extend help to the nearby villages by improving their self- efficacy.

As my favorite activities, I was involved into swimming and learned kungfu for a couple of months.
Beyond MBA, I engage in various activities such as B-school events and competitions, recreational sports such as basketball and football, along with exploring places around my college. Though sticking a right blend between classes and other activities gets tough, I also continue to pursue my hobby of listening to music.

Q. So when did you decide to go for MBA and what was the driving force behind to take this decision?
In December 2005, I came across an article that mentioned, “Educators in India are vexed. Reason- escalating figures of the suicide rate among adolescents due to academic pressure.” The article made me ponder over India’s education system and its developing pressure on students. I asked myself ‘Can I make a difference and transform the education system?’

My subsequent experiences- internship with People First, opportunity to deliver guest lectures at colleges, establishment of my company Csquare Learnings’ branch in Hyderabad and product development in the education industry, opened avenues for me to shape my long-term goal of transforming the education system via innovative products and services.

My long-term goal is to develop and market various modules that can be incorporated in the curriculum to mentor students pursue their dreams. At this cross roads of my career development, I needed to hone my skills in areas of Marketing, Financial Management, Strategic Management. Thus, I decided that a MBA at this phase would leverage my management skills to grow folds beyond what I can achieve in the next few years.

Q. How many years of experience do you have?

2.75 years

Q. Do you feel that your work experience has helped you in getting through the college of your choice?
Yes, my work experience has greatly helped me in getting through the college of my choice.

Q. Has it been helpful for you to understand the curriculum in a better way?
Yes, my work experience has helped me understand the curriculum in a better way by providing me a platform to understand management from various dimensions. My work experience had provided me finesse of marketing, business strategy, thereby helping me the set of courses available at Great Lakes.

Q. Will an MBA degree add on to your existing career plan or did you decide to switch/start a career in management?
I had an experience in sales and marketing and during my MBA I intend to specialize in the same function. Thus, a MBA degree will add on my existing career plan. I do not intend to make a career shift.

Q. Has your expectations being met by the curriculum or you feel it could have been better?

Yes, the curriculum has met my expectations by enabling me to understand the intricacies of management at par with learning tools that can be practiced in the corporate world. The various case studies discussed during the curriculum has helped me nurture a perspective to look at minute areas involved in a decision-making process.

Check the following Links to know more about Admission Process, GD/PI Experience and life at Great Lakes:

1- GMAT preparation tips by Great Lakes Chennai student
2- Group Discussion at Great Lakes Institute of Management
3- Personal Interview Cracking tips by Great Lakes Student
4- Life at Great Lakes Institute of Management Chennai

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