1 Down, 2 To Go – Back to school at MDI

So the transition from the forces to corporate has started. I landed in Delhi 0n 18 nov 17 after a very hectic fortnight at the Unit due to official functions. Till date (it is 2 months since) my official documentation is still pending. Anyway, I am here to attend a resettlement course at Management Development Institute, Gurugram titled “Executive programme in business management for Armed Forces Officers” that will help us ease into the corporate/civil life. Sounds pretty serious right?

New place to stay.    18th Nov onwards the hunt for a house started since the institute was not providing us accommodation which was a major drawback for outstation officers like me. My initiation into Gurugram (or Gurgaon as it is still called even after the official name change) started from one of the best societies in the city – Central Park Resorts where my cousin had a rented accommodation. I love the place. On the flip side I didnt like any other place that I subsequently saw.

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After searching for about a month (yeah, a month!) I finally found a flat decent enough near my college. For people looking for accommodation on rent you can refer to the following links, flats and flatmates, gurugram (search on Facebook), Nestaway, fast fox, Fella Homes and many other such platforms. A lot of brokers take a half month’s rent as brokerage so try speaking to the owner directly or opt for platforms with less brokerage. Furniture was rented on Furlenco. Great quality at a reasonable rate and they also install it in your house. Payment mode is online.

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First day at college. The classes started first day itself. In a way it was good because for me any type of change is accompanied by a lot of anxiety at least for some time, especially if I have to do anything alone. So the classes took my mind off that for most part. The course is divided into 3 terms for  2 months each. Back to new class, new friends, new subjects, new books. Getting used to studying in 8 hrs work days will take some time. we have classes fom 0830 – 1730 hrs. Oops, need to get out of the forces grid, its 08.30 AM to 05.30 PM now. Lunch is at campus. Commute is an issue. I plan to use taxi – Ola and Uber services are good plus the traffic in Gurgaon is crazy. Studies have started full swing. I have zero knowledge of finance and accounting, and trying hard not to let the subjects scare me.

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Class Mix.   We have an almost equal distribution of short service officers and permanent commission officers. We are a batch of 32 students from Army, Navy and Air Force and everyone seems nice and friendly so far.  Two months down the line things are still good Thank God! On the gender diversity side we are 2 females amongst 30 males. Not so equal distribution but that’s Ok – all the three forces indeed have a skewed ratio, Army specially. Induction and retention of women officers is still a debatable topic and is being fought out in court. The class is cohesive and I am so grateful for that. It can get really difficult learning in an uncomfortable environment.

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Subjects.   We have 22 subjects in all (Business and corporate law, Marketing, Accounting, Business communication, Organisational behaviour, Operations management, SCM, HRM etc) to be covered in 3 terms. First term has 8 of them. It is a good mix and aims to help us transition and place ourselves better in the corporate world. Unfortunately the college is not very actively involved in the placement activity for the Executive programmes. It is largely a student driven activity. Lets see how we fare. For at least half of us, i.e. the short service officers it is probably the most important aspect. We plan to publish our placement brochure by 1st week of February and then we’ll see how to get on with the placement talks. I have volunteered as a member of the Placement committee.

The teachers are really experienced in their respective fields but like it happens everywhere few manage to capture the class attention easily while others need to put in extra efforts to keep the veterans from snoozing. I have a few favourites and I end up watching their teaching style more than what they are actually talking about. Need to pay more attention in class I know.

My kid asks me everyday “Mumma how are your studies?” and I ask him the same question in return. 🙂

Celebrations. The college provides cakes for all birthdays which came as a lovely surprise. We also celebrated the Navy Day and the Flag Day on campus where the acting director Dr C P Shrimali addressed the batch and some of us shared our experiences.  After all “all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” we don’t want that do we?

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Additional information to anyone who wishes to do this course at MDI.

1. The course structure may change as per the feedback recieved from the previous courses.
2. It is a non residential 6 month duration course and out-station officers have to cater for their own living/food arrangements. Lunch can be provided by the institute.
3. Though the move is covered under official Temporary duty it is without allowances (TA/DA).
4. Since a lot of officers are not released by the time the course finishes, placements will be delayed and often will depend on the efforts of the officer himself/herself. It does not reflect on the performance of the course as a whole or the institute.
5. MDI runs two courses in a year for the armed forces.
6. As of now there are no “off/adm” days offered. The schedule of classes is packed five days a week and anything that might need to be done will have to done in your own time after classes or you might have to skip some classes.
7. Reading material will be provided.
8. Course fee is divided between the forces and the student. You will have to pay 40% of the total amount. No cash payments allowed, only cheque or online transfers are accepted.
9. This is a certificate programme and a certificate of participation is provided in the end.

If any other information is needed by anyone comment below or email me at priyanka.gahlawat@gmail.com. Feedback and support are always welcome. Until the next term end. Cheers.

You can read about the second term and third term as well.