Should I go for MBA in 2016 or grab the top ones next year; what must be my pick? Expert view

After declaration of May MAT 2016 result only one exam which still remains to be conducted for admission to MBA 2016-18 programme is KMAT 2016 to be held on May 29, 2016. With your scores in various entrance exams like CAT/XAT/CMAT, if you find that you cannot get admission to one of the good B-schools in the country in 2016, MAT and KMAT give you an opportunity to improve your chances if you have scored high in MAT 2016 May exam or expect high score in KMAT 2016. But again, you stand no chances to get IIMs, FMS, JBIMS, XLRI, SPJIMR, MDI, IMI, IMT or NITIE.

It is therefore imperative to take decision now whether you wish to go ahead with your MBA admission plan in 2016 making a choice of an above average B-school or wish to try your luck next year. It is not that you have lost the race, it is the matter of how and what you could achieve if you are determined to get it.

In view of Prof S K Agarwal, mentor on MBA education and expert on Verbal Ability, if you dont get admission in one of the top B schools and you are a working professional, you might be better off continuing to work rather than incurring the high costs associated with obtaining an MBA or PGDM from a low ranking one as you may get more skills by spending less and still earning than by investing a huge amount.

If you think you can hit the jackpot and can get admission in one of the top rated MBA programmes next year, you must give it a try. Getting into IIM A, B, C, L, FMS, XLRI, SPJIMR, MDI among other highly ranked B-schools can be a much better proposition than joining a lower rung B-school this year.

How to decide? Importance of 1 year in my life Every minute, hour, day, month or year is very important in life. But it applies to every one whether successful or without success. In fact the person who has nothing to do is always in a hurry and thinks that his time is most important whereas the busy one spares the desired slot from somewhere.

Out of 80 years of your life 35-40 years will be in working domain and rest of the life is devoted to pre job and post job affairs. Now focus how much this 1 year is going to impact your rest of life. Assuming that you scored 80+ percentile in CAT 2016; 80+ in XAT 2017; 95 in MAT 2016 and have fairly good academic profile and are bent upon to take admission in MBA 2016, the suggestion for another option to prepare for CAT 2016 and take admission in 2017 also exists. Let us find what difference it could make

2016 2017 CAT/XAT percentile 80-85 93-98 (after 6 months devoted preparation)

Admission prospects 2nd or 3rd tier IIMs, SPJIMR, FMS, MDI, IMT, IMI, XLRI B school

Fee and other expenses Rs.8 to 15 lacs Rs. 10 to 20 lacs (all expenses can be financed)

Learning experience Average Excellent

Alumni support Average Excellent

Annual Average expected Placement compensation Rs. 4 to 8 lakhs Rs.12 to 40 lakhs

Excellent career, now or next year? There are number of B-schools who are not able to have good placement nor good recruiters are visiting them. If you are getting admission offer from such institutes you may be wasting time, energy and money. With the same investment level, you may not get even half of the average that might be available to you after a gap of 1 year and in a working life span of 35 years, this one year of preparation may not count much. You can convert it into a great loss or gain depending upon your decision.

MBA Placement 2016 shows great positive trend where highest and average salaries have gone up despite the increase in number of students seeking placement in top rated B schools. The economic slowdown appears to be over and better opportunities might be waiting from next year onwards.

Next step- judge your confidence level Please remember all cant be goodie-goodie, unless you are fully motivated and confident with your preparation level for the coming year. If you are confident to score as high as above 95 percentile, begin your preparation now, else it may not be a good decision. Target the top exams like CAT/XAT with full vigour and intelligence.

Do I need SWOT analysis? By all means Yes, find out your strengths and weaknesses. Work on them and overcome the weaknesses while improving further the strengths. Now assess with the strategy of preparation you are going to adopt, where you would stand after 1 year.

2015- my1st year of preparation If that was your first year of preparation and you couldnt focus much due to final graduation examination or couldnt get proper guidance, it could be understood. In case you repeat some other excuses this year again, it may be termed as foul and remember either you can do it this year or never. The focus therefore has to be more on right preparation in right direction.

The boom in number of admission seekers to good MBA colleges is more than ever earlier. The basic reason is high ROI; career prospects and good managerial skills. For example, if you compare admission in MBA and admission in MA, M.Com, MSc or any other Post graduate course, opportunities with MBA are more, while admission criteria are almost same. Moreover, funding the MBA education is not a major problem at least for the good B schools, why the best shouldnt be chosen instead of compromising on the 3rd tier B school.

If you are not able to make it to top 25 B schools in India, doing MBA may not have much worth. Sometimes it so happens that a candidate with excellent academic profile and work experience convert the call in final admission round even after scoring low percentile whereas a candidate with 99 percentile having above average academic back ground may not be able to convert the call. Accordingly when you make a self assessment, consider your academic profile also as it can take you to a good B-school or may drop you out despite scoring high in MBA entrance exam.