akanksha C.

Thankyou everyone!! For your warm wishes on my new role

Hopefully we will jointly keep conquering and achieving!! More to go!!!

Don’t miss out on filling these MBA admission forms for non-IIMs (If you have registered for CAT 2024, then you have automatically applied to all IIMs except Rohtak and Mumbai):
1️⃣SPJIMR
⏰22-Nov-24
🔗 https://lnkd.in/gpSph7nk

2️⃣MDI Gurgaon
⏰22-Nov-24
🔗 https://lnkd.in/g5Cn2JgU

3️⃣FMS
⏰22-Nov-24
🔗 https://lnkd.in/gpFtz5zf

4️⃣IIFT
⏰22-Nov-24
🔗 https://lnkd.in/girQXeyv

5️⃣SIBM, SCMHRD
⏰22-Nov-24
🔗 https://lnkd.in/gjdp532F

6️⃣ XLRI
⏰30-Nov-24
🔗 https://lnkd.in/gzUi5J2a

7️⃣ ISB (Round 2)
⏰08-Dec-24
🔗 https://lnkd.in/g2hameby

8️⃣ XIM Bhubaneshwar
⏰10-Dec-24
🔗 https://apply.xim.edu.in/

PS: IITs MBA admissions will open in Jan’25
For sneakpeak to my personal life, follow; https://lnkd.in/g2qajFpX


#career #interview #job #growth #mba #iima #iim #process

Top scholarships for Indian students (please add in the comments if I missed any)

1️⃣Cornell University Tata Scholarship
- For undergraduate studies at Cornell University
- March 2024
- Variable
- https://lnkd.in/gjE-CB4f

2️⃣ Aga Khan Foundation Scholarship
- Half grant Half loan supports deserving students from developing countries to study postgraduate courses at recognized universities in USA, UK, Canada, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, France, Singapore, Sweden, Netherlands, Spain, Ireland
- March 2024
- Variable
- https://lnkd.in/gQABPHNW

3️⃣Fulbright-Nehru Master’s Fellowships
- Awarded to extraordinary Indian students for MS in the US
- May 2024
- Variable
- https://lnkd.in/gUf-BQih

4️⃣Stanford Reliance Dhirubhai Fellowships
- To support those admitted to the Stanford University MBA program
- Applications open in June 2024
- Upto $150,000
- https://lnkd.in/gRA7y4Tr

5️⃣ Inlaks Scholarships
- Less than 30 years of age students who want to do postgraduate studies in sciences, humanities and fine arts
- Variable
- March 2024
- https://lnkd.in/gGh6jeJx

6️⃣Rhodes Scholarship
- Full-time students of postgraduate courses at Oxford
- October 2024
- Course fee + 1,515 GBP per month
- https://lnkd.in/gNZJSAzR

7️⃣Chevening Scholarship
- Outstanding individuals with leadership potential to pursue a master's degree in the UK
- November 2024
- 18,000 GBP
- https://lnkd.in/gqXyuBQC

8️⃣Kent State University Global Scholarship
- For students who want to study for undergraduate degrees in Kent State University
- November 2024
- Upto $15,000
- https://lnkd.in/gqVYcbZ6

9️⃣Rotary International Ambassadorial Scholarship
- To support graduate-level coursework in one of Rotary’s 6 areas of focus
- Not fixed
- $30,000
- https://lnkd.in/gBUaUvBA

🔟 Havard college financial aid program
- For grad students joining Harvard
- Feb 2024
- Need based
- https://lnkd.in/gYkyXPXY


Few other scholarships you can consider (but I personally don’t know all the details)
Yale University Scholarships USA
DAAD Scholarship Germany
MEXT Scholarship Japan
ETH Zurich Excellence Masters Scholarship
Netherlands Government Scholarships
Stanford University Scholarship
Simmons University Kotzen Scholarships UK
Imperial Collage London PhD Scholarship
Lester B. Pearson International Scholarship Program Canada
Melbourne Research Scholarship
Swiss Government Excellence Scholarship

The ones I have detailed + added are most prominent amongst my circle!
#scholarship #study #insight #guidance #career #counsil #undergrad #postgrad #finance #scholarships

With an estimated number of 1.1 to 1.5Bn users, Microsoft Excel is one of the most used and important business tools in work places around the world. It is used for:

- Collecting, Cleaning and Storing Data
- Organizing Data into Meaningful and Useful Information
- Visualizing Data by Creating Reports and Dashboards (e.g., interactive and dynamic pivot charts)
- Using Functions and Formulas to Make Calculations
- Developing Models to Monitor, Forecast and run Scenarios on Performance (e.g., VBA empowered macro programming language models)
- Administering Tasks
- Creating Document Templates
And a lotttt more


I personally use Excel actively DAILYYY even for my personal tasks e.g., travel expense keeping, schedule planning and so on… I can proudly use excel “without a mouse” interface after 7 years of using the tool rigorously.


But how to get started? Here’s a list of FREE and highly rated tutorials:
1️⃣Excel Basics Option 1: Udemy Excel for Beginners, ~9.5 hours, video, English
https://lnkd.in/gcNqAN9q
2️⃣Excel Basics Option 2: Microsoft excel training, video, English
https://lnkd.in/ggrn9DNJ
3️⃣Essentials option 1: Coursera Macquarie university excel skills for Business, 26 hours, video, English
https://lnkd.in/gbxqMN7Y
4️⃣Essentials option 2: w3school excel tutorial, 20 hours, step by step guide, English
https://lnkd.in/gdG4wmJK
5️⃣Intermediate skills: 30 MS Excel Tips to Upgrade your Excel Skill, ~2 hours, video, English
https://lnkd.in/g2iHuMBF
6️⃣Intermediate skills: Top 35 Formulas, Features and Functions in Excel, ~1 hour, video, English
https://lnkd.in/gBz5wBtU
7️⃣Intermediate skills: Pivot Tables Playground for Business Users, ~2 hours, video, English
https://lnkd.in/gNg9FARq
8️⃣Advanced: Power Query, ~2 hours, video, English
https://lnkd.in/gv8nCG9a
9️⃣Advanced, VBA and VBA+: “Excel easy” chapters, step by step guide, English
https://lnkd.in/g77uTs8B

Bonus: There are youtube channels in regional languages with detailed instructions e.g.,
1️⃣Excel Training Intellipaat, Hindi, 10 hours
https://lnkd.in/gqWMm3Bw
2️⃣MS Excel Full Course For Free with Certificate, Hindi, 10 hours
https://lnkd.in/gJxqr4-w
3️⃣Excel Tutorial for Beginners, Hindi, 2 hours
https://lnkd.in/gJxqr4-w

#career #advice #excel #ms #microsoft #tutorial #training #course #skill #development

Why did I select Consulting (MBB) over Investment Banking (JP,MS,GS)?

1️⃣Exit options (Consult>IB):
VC, PE is the ultimate exit for a lot of candidates and both (consultants, IB folks) have access to these

Consulting has more breadth of options e.g., strategic roles/ CEO office/ product mgmt. +++

2️⃣Industry flexibility (Consult>IB):
IB typically restricts you to finance sector vs. finance + tech + life sciences + automotive + retail +++ options in consulting

Not just industry but also functional flexibility is higher in consulting e.g., marketing + production + supply chain + design +++ (specially helpful if you are planning for a startup eventually)

3️⃣Team flexibility (Consult>IB):
In consulting, the seniors as well as team members change with every project (majority of them atleast) which helps learn ways of working from a lot more colleagues plus you get to select “your people” after some experimentation

4️⃣Travel (Consult>IB):
Everyone saw this coming! I personally prefer the travel life in consulting to client locations; it makes the impact really effective and also helps meet my personal life goals

5️⃣Work life balance (Consult slightly>IB):
Both professions require a lot of time and commitment but I have generally observed weekends and vacations are more protected in consulting

6️⃣Fixed and variable pay (IB>Consult):
Everyone saw this coming too! Yes, IB pays more on average but for me it was not a big consideration since consulting also pays quite well

#iim #consulting #investmentbanking #job

Stagnant Mock scores?
Here are the tips that helped me break the block!

1. How many mocks are enough?
- 30 to 35 mocks (depending on time left for CAT, suggest once or twice a week. I personally went with once a week)
- At least past 10 years CAT papers (which need to be attempted as per exam duration)

2. How to categorize questions?
Categorise questions into (taking post mock mentorship sessions with coaching institutes/ teachers are helpful especially for first 5-10 mocks)

A. Correct answers with high confidence
- Pat your back; ensure you understand the topics/ themes that fall in this category and in every mock prioritize these as number 1 questions that you will solve

B. Correct answers but you had low-medium confidence at the time of attempting
- Low hanging fruits; understand the topics and practice more sets. These topics can get you sure shots/ high returns with limited effort investment

C. Silly mistakes
- Quick wins; keep a note of the logical/ anxiously made mistakes (feels the worst hun?) and make a note of all such faults as stars in your formula/ revision books

D. Out of practice
- Missed opportunities because you were not well prepared with a specific topic/ not aware of short cuts or smart ways to solve certain types of sets. Needs focused practices and effort

E. Well left
- Always prevent double negatives! The 10-15% tough and time consuming questions that anyways should be addressed at the very end only if you still have time left

3. How to compare scores?
Remember percentile is relative. Thus, taking test/ mock series from institutes that provide inter-personal analytics is important

A. Questions that were attempted by >80% of participants but you missed
- These would by default be easy questions; understand why you skipped these?

B. Questions that were skipped by >50% of participants but you attempted
- If the response was wrong/ took you too much time, then you still need work on set/ questions selection

C. Time analysis of how much time it took other participants to solve the questions attempted by you vs time it took you
- Are you missing out because of limited knowledge of techniques/ smart ways? Youtube and coaching institude videos or reading material on those topics might help understand alternative ways of approaching the questions

D. Questions solved correctly by >80% of participants but incorrectly by you
- Are you selecting the second closest answer? Spend time on understanding ways to do quick validation of answers where possible. Also falls under “silly mistakes”

Pro tips
- Always do section wise analysis
- Identify both weak as well strength areas
- Spend atleast 2 hours analysis the mock results in initial 10 mocks
- A log with all errors/ mistakes
- At 6th mock mark start developing a strong mock strategy using above
- Career launcher, CAT KING’s, IMS according to me have the best mock series

Top 5 takeaways that I deploy in my daily work life:
1. Obligation to dissent: Have an expression at variance with those commonly or officially or hierarchically held? That’s ok!! Express it! Test it out
2. Rule of 80-20: 80% of consequences come from 20% of causes! Work smart
3. Impact oriented problem solving: Clearly defined quantitative and qualitative impact to be the key outcome corresponding to identifying and solving problems
4. Upward and downward 360 degree feedback: Outcomes to be evaluated based on Standard, refined and holistic performance management
5. Create your mentorship: Support from experienced and trusted colleagues for coaching led development


#management #consulting #development #takeaway