Interesting fact about MBA from IIMs

Summer Internship

Summer Internship is necessarily a mean to bridge the gap between B-Schools and Corporate world. It helps the students to apply concepts learnt in class to actual business situations. Internships also provide a great platform for students to network which eventually has deep impact on their future career.

Summer internship is a mandatory part of MBA programme. Usually internship is for duration of 08 to 10 months. It is of great significance as it allows students to test all that they have learnt in 1st year of MBA by associating with the industry during this period. Students' performance during the Internship programme is monitored by the Mentors (both from the Corporate and from the B-School). This eventually strengthens the bond between the Corporate and the B-School. Students are required to prepare a report on the summer assignment and present it to the organization. They are also required to share their learning with the Institute.

Internship also gives the student a better understanding in terms of specialization/ electives to be taken in the final year. Quite a few students from IIMs have commanded a stipend of over 1.5 lacs per month.

From Industry's perspective, Internship helps the Companies in assessing the potential of a student. Many a time interns bring in innovative ideas. Many a time findings/ recommendations presented at the end of the project have been implemented by the Companies.

Internship opportunities are available in Banking & Financial Services, Sales & Marketing, Operations, IT & Consulting and General Management domain.

Students are benefitted not only by the experience but also the Pre placement Offers (PPO). Key point to be noted is that quite a number of firms (usually investment banks) have stringent policy for pre-placement-offer. PPO in these Companies are offered after hiring interns and evaluating their work during the internship. These Companies, usually, do not hire from Campuses during the final placements.

Selection criteria for Summer Internships are quite stringent and are very similar to the one for getting an admission in IIMs. The only thing extra required being foundation of the field. Prospective students are shortlisted on the basis of their CV. This is followed by GD and interview. Few companies may also have a written assessment during this stage. A good CV acts as the starting point and should highlight academic achievements and extra-curricular activities. If possible also add about position of responsibilities held. Work experience, prior to joining the B-School will definitely add value. Also certifications will boost your profile significantly.

All this effort is necessary, as getting a good summer internship offer boosts your probability of getting a pre placement offer/ final placement.

Some statistics for Summer Internship at IIM Calcutta:

• For the Class of 2020, 120 Companies participated in the Summer Internship and made offers to 458 students.
• 26% of the offers were from the BFSI domain with prominent Companies like Citibank, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Barclays & Credit Swiss making offers.
• Consulting sector came up with 22% offers with Boston Consulting Group making the maximum offers. Other prominent Companies here were McKinsey and Bain & Co.
• FMCG sector included Companies like Hindustan Unilever, Procter & Gamble, ITC, Colgate Palmolive, Johnson & Johnson etc.