When I cleared the CAT exam without leaving my job -By Karanveer Singh from FSM Delhi

Being born in a family of achievers, I was an academically bright kid during my school days. Moreover, I topped my classes every year. The trajectory of excellence went downhill when it was not supposed to. I was diagnosed with severe chickenpox the day I had my first final exam of the ninth grade. The symptoms were so harsh that I had to miss all the remaining exams. Moreover, I was on bed rest for almost a fortnight. I moved to the tenth grade on the basis of medical grounds and my previous spotless performances. Here is my journey when I cleared the CAT exam without leaving my job.

When you are not a topper anymore

Due to my sickness, I missed the first two weeks of the new academic session. I thought I would easily catch up but that never happened. The trauma of not being the class topper hit me too hard. The journey of the next three years went into adjusting to the transition of being an above-average student. It was unsettling and sickening. The board exam results were decent.

Once the school was over, I gave several medical and engineering entrance examinations like every other clueless 17-year-old teenager. Although I appeared for AIPMT and AIEEE and performed decent enough for IP University and DU. I revived my confidence after scoring All India Rank of 13 in the Safdarjung diploma program for pharmaceutical sciences. By that time, I kept B pharma and Biotech as my options. I got a call from a well-reputed college in Chandigarh and I joined the same in the pharmaceutical program. Although I could pursue the same program from DU. I chose to move to a different city to experience freedom and hostel life.

When I made up my mind to do an MBA and cleared the CAT exam

During my graduation, I made up my mind to do an MBA. After my graduation, I decided to join a coaching institute to help me crash into one of the IIMs. Well, three months were not enough to pass the hurdle when you had no idea of the CAT exam. I joined an MNC and I didn’t want to drop a year. Getting my first salary was a blissful moment. I began working hard to achieve my targets to get additional bonuses and incentives. All of them took my attention away from my studies. I switched jobs and got hands-on experience in different domains, from sales to back-office to a quality analyst. In between, I appeared for CAT and scored miserably.

When you are financially independent

In the end, I decided to focus on my job and celebrated my first promotion. I started working hard to reach the ladder in a traditional way. The destiny had planned it this way. I cleared the CAT exam without leaving my job in the third attempt. After getting a decent percentile and offer letters from GIM, TAPMI, KJ SOMAIYA, and FORE, I chose FORE.

Moments of self-doubt and preparation

It had been a long journey to get into a premier college, but the experience was worth it. There had been moments of self-doubt and despair that crossed my path during those testing times. To all those who are still struggling to get that one coveted seat, I would say, “Believe in yourself when the night is still dark. One day, all these late nights and early mornings will pay off.”

This article was submitted as a part of Become an Author conducted by Dare2Compete.

Karanveer Singh - FSM New Delhi

(Batch 2018 - 2020)

Karanveer is a literature graduate from the University of Delhi. He has a degree in pharmaceutical sciences and is currently a final year MBA student at FORE.