The One-Year Executive Post Graduate Programme in Management at IIM Bangalore: A Journey to Remember

It has been four weeks since EPGP Batch IX completed its programme at IIM Bangalore. While some of us are looking for accommodation and booking the services of packers and movers, others are enjoying some precious family time. As I glance through our Convocation Day pictures that celebrate the ‘we did it’ moment, I pause to reflect on this one-year roller coaster ride.

When I joined the one-year fulltime Executive Post Graduate Programme in Management at IIM Bangalore, I fretted that competing with the best minds in business would wear me out and I would not be able to handle the innumerable projects, sleep-deprived. I remember not understanding very much in the first few classes and returning with a heavy heart that navigating the next one-year would be challenging. But then things took a sharp U-turn as my new friends made each day brighter and better.

Party time!

I never did imagine that I would make dear friends here (in a short span of 11 months) but as I swam with the flow of the rigorous programme, I discovered the importance of friendship, and embraced a handful of friends who supported me, anchored me, pushed me to learn and excel, and also have loads of fun in the process.

The friend who cleared my doubts and pushed me to study for quizzes and exams, the friend who understood every word uttered by the professors, the friend whose jokes made every day a fun ride, the friend who hosted the best parties in town and made sure we could unwind after every exam, the friend who cared for me when I broke my leg (yes, that too did happen in this eventful year), the friend who listened to my cribbing with infinite patience, the friend who was always above the drama of life, and the friend who constantly stood by my side –each one of them enriched me. At this point I should also acknowledge the contribution of my spouse who supported me in this learning journey by shifting to IIMB’s family accommodation unit and who ultimately made more friends and enjoyed more than me during my EPGP experience at IIMB.

I was teary-eyed when the time came for us to pack our bags and leave ‘Ajmera’ (our home for the last one year). As I start life in a new apartment near my new workplace, I realize that what I will miss the most is the ‘Ajmera experience’ and the friends who have shaped me for the better. I could just walk over to any apartment, have an animated chat session and return refreshed to tackle my coursework. Every time I needed something (it could be a lime or a mattress), I could just ping the EPGP Group and someone would have it ready for sure. Every time something special was cooked (mutton curry, fish fry, kadhi-chawal…) in any house, all of us would indulge in a feast. Those discussions and debates over endless cups of chai will be treasured and remembered every day, for the rest of our lives.

Honestly, making friends was not my top priority when I entered this programme. Our seniors – alumni of the EPGP constantly reminded us that completing the programme would be a Herculean task. I now realize that every senior I met did forget to mention how our peers would enrich the EPGP experience, and that the friendships and memories would define our journey forward. EPGP Batch X has already entered the IIMB gates and I just want to tell them one thing: “Make some good friends and the journey will be so much easier and fun filled.”