Admitted to ISB

I guess it is stale news now. I am admitted to the Indian School of Business Class of 2010 and I am really very happy and excited about it.

The evening of 20th Nov

I didn't go to office. I was not sure but I just did not want to work on that day. I wanted to take some time off to work on Tepper essays and decided that Thursday to be that day. After my not so good ISB interview performance (according to me), I was not very hopeful of a positive result from ISB. But still, this optimistic heart hoped for a 2% chance of something positive. On top of that, I was third time applicant. So that created more anxiety. My history goes like this:

Attempt 1 - 2.5 years of work-ex - Waitlisted -> Ding
Attempt 2 - 4.5 years of work-ex - Ding
Attempt 3 - 5.5 years of work-ex, GMAT 710 -> 730 - ???

By evening, I grew tense and tired of pressing the refresh on my inbox. So by around 8:30 pm I decided to take a break and go out to have some snacks. I thought anyways ISB sends an SMS, so I'll receive one even if I am out. At 9:15, I got calls from 2 of my friends whose results were negative. ISB was not sending SMS, only email. That was bad. I gathered my group and rushed back. That was the worst 10 minutes of that day. On the way, one of my friends tried to access gmail from his GPRS phone. He said it had never worked before but let's give it a shot. And voila, it worked. While I was driving, he opened the holy mail and read, "Congratulations! You have been offered..." I couldn't hear after that.

I was happy. I was excited. I started crying with joy. That was the first time I cried with joy and believe me, the feeling is unexplainable. My efforts have finally worked out. When you try hard for something and you don't get it, you mark that as unachievable (or hard to achieve). And when you finally get it, you feel like a winner. You start believing in yourself again. You regain your lost confidence and you are a man again. That's what I was, a confident man that night.

Congratulations to all folks who have made it to ISB and all the best to all R2 folks.

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

You deserved it, congrats!

Ashwanth said...

Congrats once again, man!

A deserved admit...ATB!

Vikram Gunda said...

Congrats dude...You deserved it!

MBAlmighty said...

Congrats once again! :) Ive sent in my app this week, now the wait begins! Let me know if you have any tips for how to prepare for (if called) an ISB interview?

theincarnated said...

Congrats dude.... Party like no tomorrow... way 2 go

Dino said...

Well done, dude. Great stuff.

Prashant said...

You're an inspiration dude... Congratulations! It was well deserved.

P said...

Congrats dude !! Wish you all the best for the journey ahead :)

My Journey to B-school said...

Congrats buddy. Persistence paid off. Good luck to others and myself who are still waiting.

Um viajante said...

U r right about the "ISB cry" - that's called crying like a man!

Anonymous said...

Congrats! Have a blast!

Unknown said...

Your history reminded me of a saying "Many of us try and fail but the real hero is the one who never fails to try. And heroes always win."

Anonymous said...

hello...
I have been a regular reader of ur blog...somehow ur determination inspires me...
Congrats on ur admit...u truly deserved it! :)
I need some advice from u...wud appreciate if u cud mail me at maverick.gal8@gmail.com
Cheers!

Anonymous said...

Congrats! I will not say it is deserved from an intellectual perspective or ability point of view. NO. I think in a number of blogs of yours you have way to go in terms of that and maturity!

Rather, what makes you stand out is your unscrupulous honesty, your commitment and your never say die spirit – as I see it from your blogs. Keep it up. That itself counts a lot in the battle of life.

Btw, do not stop blogging. Keep posting on ISB life! Good luck.

Anonymous said...

Sorry. I meant scrupulous honesty. Typed via typo check and did not recheck before post.

Sodium said...

A touching write up. Many of us have similar stories to tell. My two attempts at CAT falied after 99.53 overall coz i missed the cut off in one section.
See you in class mate :)

Nikhil said...

Hats off for you "Never say Die" attitude buddy...

Randoms... said...

it is really inspiring....!

The Teacher said...

Here I am, the laziest person on Earth... after a long time on my dear blog...

Thanks a lot everyone for your wishes. It is this community support that motivates me to continue to blog.

@MBAlmighty:
@My Journey to B-school:
All the best for your app. Wish you make it.

@Smack D: Thanks Man. That was really encouraging.

@Sodium: Dude!! I have a similar story myself. Just fell short of the last step everytime. The key is to keep running till the end. The famous hare and tortoise story.

The Teacher said...

@Anonymous:

Thanks for the honest feedback and the encouraging words. I will continue to blog and feedback from readers like is most valuable. :)

In terms of maturity, maybe you are right. I have come a long way in terms of personal development since I have started my blog 2 years ago. 2 years is a long time.

Maybe I'll go back and rewrite some key articles.

Incognito_River said...

your story is inspiring, Congrats!!!

Even I am going through lows after the CAT disaster this year, was my first attempt...want to take GMAT now...

Mark Vijay said...

Congrats fella!! .. Hmm .. your blog was an interesting read.

Anonymous said...

Wow..... A person who can write this blog certainly has no reason to worry about verbal.
By the way, I'm really scared now when I think what I've gotten into.... being in the same class as people who have put in years of whole-hearted effort to get there.... C u in a month.... :)

Brady Lewis said...

I know I found this post a few years after it was originally posted, but I feel that it is still very motivational. Congratulations on being rewarded for so much hard work. This post is a good reminder to people to not give up on their dreams and aspirations. A belated congrats to you.