Mystory@Siddhant Kashyap: How I chose my course and college

Mystory@Siddhant Kashyap

I remember as a kid I looked up to my grandfather and wanted to become an Engineer just like him. With that focus, I took up Science in my Junior College (Wilson College, Mumbai). It was a roller coaster ride because there I was, with my dissection kit and Vernier Calipers, baffled and my peers took it with such ease (or atleast they showed me!). I wasn’t much in to academics or sports during that time and generally kept to myself and my little set of friends. But I used those 2 years to explore myself as a person. I continue to do so which I believe is a never-ending process (reflected further) however, that was the time it began.

I recall the time during my XII^th Standard Boards and by then Engineering was a far cry from my path. Rather, I was so busy exploring the little things in life and busy with the studies that I forgot to set sight at the bigger picture. Now what? So there I was, after merriment from the last paper and walking home with my Dad asking me one question – Now What? “Party” was my instant answer! It’s safe to say that rather than saying that the paper didn’t go well, but then it actually got me thinking – “Now What?” I started aligning my competencies to what course I can take up. Coupled with the guidance of peers and elders, I enrolled for the degree course of B.Sc. in Hospitality and Hotel Management at Dadar Catering College in Mumbai.

After an exhilarating 3 years of interesting subjects in the Hotel field, I decided to pursue my 4 years of work experience in Sales & Marketing followed by Customer Services (part of discovering myself). Through my work life as an entrepreneur, I decided to enroll in Masters in Management Studies with Mumbai University.

How I cracked college admission

I’ll talk about my current college later, but I’d like to share an interesting story of my entrance in Dadar Catering College. I had enrolled at Vidyasagar classes for a month’s preparation for JEE-NCHMCT. They enabled me to strengthen my basics, just my basics (something that is very essential throughout your life). With that I scored an All India Ranking of 114 out of a pool of 1 lac students.

My preparation for MMS was rather tough. I was working on an important project at my workplace which took most of my time and could not actually dedicate time to studying. I had enrolled for T.I.M.E.’s exam solving short course wherein I would only appear for their exams and self-study. I wasn’t good at all which reflected in my CAT score of 37^th percentile. The next and only exam I gave was Maharashtra CET and again it got me thinking – just need to get my basics in place.

With a month’s preparation and still working on my project I got a 90 percentile. Something I was pleased with the amount of dedication and effort that I had put in. I remember getting into another college (which I didn’t want) during the time of the selection procedure but didn’t lose hope and tried at the college I wanted persistently. I finally got the admission a week after the course had commenced.

My college life

I spend 6 hours of attending 2 lectures daily with an interactive session of presenting the topics you have learnt. Post lunch we engage in corporate based activities to get a feel of the actual world. The course is designed wonderfully in such manner that you can work on your assignments, and still get time for leisure and relaxation – something that’s important in today’s work-life balance. I love Human Resources and Marketing Classes as they are an interesting part of my subject.

I am a part of the core committee of our cultural activities and recently organized our cultural fest – MET Utsav. I’m also part of arranging teams for inter-collegiate events and I have also won awards in HR events for our college. All this in itself was a huge thing for me because all through my academic years, I had never done such a thing. Better late than never!

Given a chance, I would like to take out a college editorial and magazine for our course which would be about sharing stories and inspiring others. Pictorial articles showing the heroes our college who have now carved a niche for themselves in the corporate world is something I endeavored to showcase. Unfortunately, due to certain issues this could not have been done.

My college experience has taught that fun never stops (which I thought I had lost once I started working). But mostly, it taught me to be a mentor to my peers as I have an advantage of age and experience on my side in comparison to my peers. They look up to me for guidance. My success and happiness lies is seeing them succeed in projects/assignments/exams – no winning or losing can teach you this.

About the Author:

Siddhant Kashyap is currently pursuing his Masters in Management Studies from Mumbai Educational Trust Institute of Management Studies in Bandra, Mumbai. He is a BSc Graduate in Hospitality and Hotel Administration and has 4 years of work experience in Customer Service. His passions include cooking, collecting music & movies and travelling.