July 2008 Archives

So far, the people I’ve met who’ve been in INSEAD or know people who have studied there, tell me things which I can place into two different categories.

Category #1: It’s a very difficult course! You’re going to be so busy! Better do MORE pre-reading now!

This is of course scary to hear.

Category #2: Oh, you’ll have SO much fun. I’m sure you’ll do well. / I know you can handle it.

These two ‘predictions’ have been said to me many times by people who know me well, and by people who don’t know me well. I have not drawn up a table of stats to determine which statement is likely to be more valid for me. However they’re about the same in number … perhaps a bit more in Category #2 or so I’d like to hope!

I also hope that both types of comments are not mutually exclusive. Of course if you squeeze what other MBA programmes take 2 years to teach, into 10 months, we will be going at breakneck speed! I hear we have to skim to catch up with our readings, but I don’t like skimming because you may read things out of context and miss a deeper meaning. Hope I don’t have to re-LASIK my eyes after graduating from INSEAD!

However, I would like to believe that this challenge will be exhilarating. Thus I will mentally prepare myself to be stretched but in the process I will also grow.

I wish I had another 20 or 30 points of IQ so I can understand things better and faster.

I wish I could revive all the brain cells that have been dying since I was a child, so I can remember things better.

I also wish I could be super organised, punctual and attentive in class, and contribute a lot of great ideas and insights.

Looking at the calibre of the class, it will not be easy already. But I would like to see myself as an equal among great people. And that is the spirit I will adopt at school.

French class is fun when you meet interesting people.

My new classmates are 2 young men and a lady who was apparently also studying business. The lady was very fair with jet-black hair and Asian features, but had a heavy accent. I thought she was Indonesian Chinese, though her accent sounded much more exotic than that. Halfway through she told us that a certain French word was also the same/similar in Russian, so I thought wow, she knows Russian too?

Anyway … during the break I asked her which business school she was from, and she gave me a name that I never heard of before. She added that halfway through she quit because she didn’t think very much of it, and was planning to re-apply to a school that was internationally recognised.

I kept quiet about which school I was going to. Eventually she asked, and I told her. Her demeanour totally changed from serious to friendly.

“INSEAD??” She enthused. “My boyfriend was there!”

I learned he was a graduate from the class of 2006. She congratulated me a few times. It was one of the most positive reactions I’ve ever received, and from someone who was up to then a total stranger. Now I knew she had been an INSEAD partner.

Later on, during a silent moment as our teacher was writing on the whiteboard, she turned back to me.

“I can bring you costumes! You will need them!!”

I was tickled.

“Seriously! I am in Singapore for the next xxx days and I can pass some contacts to you. You definitely need costumes especially during the International Days.”

Up to then, I thought that only students of a certain country who successfully bid to have an International Week would have to wear the costumes and teach others about their culture.

But I like wearing costumes. We don’t do enough of that in staid Singapore. So I thanked her for her offer. Let’s see if she will really get me some costumes.

And along the way I learnt she wasn’t Indonesian at all. She was from Kyrgyzstan!!!

It seems that despite all the fun videos of INSEAD students on YouTube, the mood is getting a bit more sombre in our online discussion forums. The global economy isn’t doing well, and a couple of incoming students have asked our seniors how their job search is coming along.

The advice we’re given is to take our own initiative earlier on and network to boost our chances of finding a job. There are still opportunities out there, and many in the graduating class have found jobs. (No absolute numbers or percentages were given)

Another incoming student asked if the credit crunch is affecting our chances of getting finance internships, and one of our seniors replied, of course, duh. Also, don’t assume that whatever happened to our seniors must also happen to us - both positively or negatively. Things are changing fast, and to quote that great philosopher Gump, “you never know what you gonna get”.

Having known I was accepted to INSEAD since late February, my attention has been focused on getting to know my classmates, preparing for my third language test, pre-readings and wondering if the course is as tough as people say it is.

At this point, it is good to take a step back and realise that it isn’t easy getting into INSEAD in the first place.

I know of at least 3 people (1 personal friend, 2 friends of a friend) who have recently applied and not gotten in. One of them has a great career with an MNC; another has great academic credentials including a high GMAT score. Two are foreigners. At least two made it to the interview stage but didn’t get beyond that.

I am not sure for which reasons they didn’t get in. The point is not to belittle them but to appreciate that whatever we’re going through is for the privileged ‘few’ - all 300+ in my current batch who have joined our network online. INSEAD Admissions obviously has its own way of choosing candidates. The 2 interviews with our Alumni also count for something.

So even if we spend hours on homework and too little time on sleep (because of studying/partying too hard), realise that not everyone is able to do this. The next 10 months will probably be heaven and hell combined together. We shall be hell’s Angels :)

Got this video off Zanat0s’ blog. It was so funny I have to reproduce it here.

Other international week videos worth watching:

The Desi (Indian) bid