Nandini Sinha is a graduating Y19 student from the Department of Material Science and Engineering. In the eighteenth edition of As We Leave, Nandni reflects on the formative years she spent at IIT K, discussing how the lessons she learned from both her successes and failures served her well moving forward.
Disclaimer:- The views presented below are the author’s own and are not in any manner representative of the views of Vox Populi as a body or IIT Kanpur in general. This is an informal account of the author’s experiences at IIT-K.
As I sit down to write this, it’s really difficult to decide where to start and where to finish because I know that no number of words can do justice to what one experiences in these four years at IITK.
Those Early Days:
It all started with an innocent fresher attending the orientation. Just very soon after attending two days of the orientation, I fell sick and missed the majority of the orientation. My then-seniors told me that I missed the best portion of my stay at IITK (XD). The place seemed very overwhelming to me in the beginning. It really felt initially that achieving something here was only meant for those who were smart and popular. I wish I could tell my younger self at that time how wrong I was! Belonging to a non-circuital branch (Material Science), in spite of having no intention to change my branch, I didn’t really know what to pursue in the future.
It was initially difficult to adapt to a completely different culture here. I was a very shy person and initially found it challenging to interact with others. However, I had a solid resolution in my mind to make the best of the resources here and bring about a change in myself as much as possible.
I took part in Drameve-1; the practice seemed difficult and exhausting to me at the time, but it was totally worth it. It helped me meet some really nice friends and seniors. The experience really helped me open up to people and improve my time management skills.
Then, as the semester progressed, I tried to be involved in other activities, such as Takneek.Due to my participation in multiple activities, I did not pay proper attention to my academics, which led to unsatisfactory end sems .Then our semester results came out. The spi came as a shock to me, and I made a firm resolution to catch up with the academics in the next semester.
However, the second semester had other plans for me. I took part in the Galaxy Group Dance. That really made me stretch my limits to the fullest. However, winning something for your hall and making your hall proud was something that really made up for the sleepless nights and long hours of practice.I will never forget singing the hall anthem in L-20.
There were many other plans and aspirations to be fulfilled, but then came the ….
The Lockdown
The COVID-19 scenario was really a huge setback for all. Many families suffered losses, and the IITK culture seemed to die down. On a personal level, it was also a very tough time. It seemed difficult to keep up with the online semester’s academics.
During such tough times, one advises oneself to just take one step at a time. It was really nice to see that, despite these distances, people were there for each other during such a tough time.The extracurriculars seemed to take a huge hit. I got involved in Astro Club, Techkriti, AnC Council, and DebSoc. Conducting activities and having reach in the online mode was indeed challenging; however, with the collective will of all (including the lovely juniors), many fun activities could be conducted successfully.
The second wave of COVID-19 was one of the most devastating things that could happen to our country. My heart still goes out to those who lost their loved ones and bravely steered through it.
As we progressed to the 3rd year, I took up responsibilities as the Manager of Career Development Wing in the AnC council and also as head of administration in IAESTE. These positions really helped me learn a lot about dealing with people. I also took up small internships to gain some experience.
Intern Season
I must admit that I was quite complacent with my preparation before the intern season actually began; however, once the intern season started, dealing with multiple rejections one after the other seemed unbearable. It was really one of the lowest points of my stay here at IITK. As I look back at that time, I realize that those rejections were something I really needed to shape into the person I am today.
I was not really sure about the field in which I wanted to work. I initially wanted to prepare for finance and consulting and pursue an MBA in the future. However, I was not getting internships in those domains. So I started to explore the core field. Initially, I did not have much interest in my branch. However, it took just one course of ‘Biomaterials’ under Vivek sir to shape up my interests in a completely different direction. I started to take up projects in my core field and started looking for research interns. I started cold-emailing universities for research internships; however, I didn’t get any positive responses.
Campus reopening
The reopening of the campus after such a long time was thrilling yet filled with apprehensions about the future. I finally got to meet my online friends, and everything seemed to change. Except for a few days of the third wave, the 6th semester was one of the best semesters on campus. My friendships also started to change; some of my friends drifted apart, but I also got to meet new people. Clubs started to revive, and the campus started to become jolly once again. We also started to conduct events in hybrid mode. After spending such a long amount of time at home, even attending offline lectures started to look like a good experience. Though most of the MSE courses were covered in the online semesters, it was still great to know about my branchmates in such a short amount of time. I also got to explore lab-related work in my projects, which was really a great learning experience.
As festivals started to be held offline, I took part in the security wing of Techkriti. It was a thrilling experience, even though it came with its fair share of problems because crowd management is really a big challenge. In scenarios where rules need to be followed, sometimes one’s personal friendships may get strained; however, one must be diligent in their duties.
Along with this, my intern search also continued, and finally, at the end of April, after messaging many people on LinkedIn, I got a referral at KPMG and secured an off-campus internship there. Now, when I look in retrospect, I think that one should keep working diligently towards our goals without taking much BT because working with a calm and clear mind is a much better alternative to being stressed all the time.
My internship experience was quite unique. Since it was an off-campus internship, I didn’t have anyone from IITK there; however, it was still fun to make new friends there and learn a lot about new things. After understanding the nature of work that a consulting firm entails, I decided to explore new career options for the future.
Final Year
Since I found the core-related work done during my projects under professors to be very interesting, I decided to pursue higher studies in my core branch. It was not a very easy decision because I saw that many others had started their preparations for grad school apping around a year ago. People had already given tests such as the GRE and TOEFL, secured their recommendations,and drafted their SOPs. On the other hand, I had made the decision to apply abroad in late June and only had a few months to complete the entire application process. Also, I wasn’t confident about the strength of my profile in the core domain, so I needed a backup plan. I did not get a PPO from KPMG; hence, I decided to sit for the placements as well.
To say that my seventh semester was loaded would be an understatement. As I was shortlisting universities, drafting SOPs, and running around to secure recommendations, I also had to prepare for the placements, handle the workload of an academically heavy semester,and study for the GRE and TOEFL as well.
At some points, I used to feel like a lone person against the whole world, not knowing if taking too much on my plate would ruin everything. During such times, my family and some seniors became my backbone and gave me the strength to move forward.
As the semester started to end, my applications and placement interviews coincided almost at the same time, and that almost seemed like a breaking point. I could not apply to a lot of companies due to time constraints, and hence only had a few interview shortlists. I just had one interview on Day 1 (which I didn’t even think I would get into) and targeted the other companies.
Little did I know that my placement BT would end within an hour of the start of placement interviews. The company (Alvarez and Marsel), which seemed out of my league, gave me the job offer after an hour of interviews. Securing a job on Day 1.1 really boosted my confidence and eased my tension about the MS application as well.
As the last semester approached, I faced some personal setbacks, but I also got to meet some of the best people I could ever meet on campus, whose friendships I will really cherish forever.
The final semester was really a blast thanks to these wonderful people. I also got admissions from various universities. It really gave me the satisfaction of ending things well at IITK.
Parting message
As I wrap up this article, I just want to say that life is too short to involve yourself in drama and negativity. It is never worth it to compare yourself to others; one should focus on their own journey and progress. In this competitive environment, I would advise my juniors to never fear taking risks (although please do pay attention to your academics), try new things, meet new people, and cultivate friendships. It is never too late for anything. IITK has really given us a lot, and we should also try to make our own contribution for its betterment. Apart from developing your personality and skills, one should also try to develop values of compassion, empathy, and betterment for all (be it at IITK or elsewhere).I guess that’s enough Gyaan for now… see you next time!!
Till then…Sayonara….!!!
Written By: Nandni Sinha
Edited By: Saloni Mittal, Zainab Fatima
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