The final reward
A fat pay package job – The final reward of your years of toil though the educational system. Let us be point-blank pragmatic here, while your endless educational expedition does leave you learned and wise, the only tangible reward that you can flaunt are the jobs after MBA. What better way to land yourself a fat pay-package than an MBA from a top B-School. There is enough discussion among anxious CAT candidates that securing a good B-School is the penultimate step to success.
And why not! It is almost certain after that that you would land yourself in a respectable company, with a respectable position. Over the last few years, apart from the best Indian companies, top MBA colleges have managed to get International companies on their campus too. This gives a choice to the students to eye at a career outside India. While this option looks extremely mouth-watering, let us dissect it a little further. We shall look at the countries you actually get to go to, the salaries offered and other pros and cons of international placements.
The idea is to leave the reader better informed. Are International Jobs after MBA actually as good as the top-notch offers from Indian Companies? If one finds international placements really attractive – what is the right way to prepare for the same?
Dissecting International jobs after MBA
It will be interesting to know that international placements have postings across the globe. The lustre around an international placement might die for some if you get posted in an unknown country of Africa. Some important things you have to consider are –
Location
Most B-Schools do not easily reveal their international recruiters on their website. Yet a detailed analysis of the placement reports shows that 90% of the international jobs after MBA are located in The Middle-East, Africa and South East Asia. Some well-known recruiters are Olam International (Africa and South East Asia), Landmark Group (Middle East), Goldman Sachs (USA and South East Asia), Deutsche Bank (USA and South East Asia).
An international location means experiencing and adapting to climate, food and culture. How smooth this transition will be is likely to differ from case to case. “Dubai feels a lot like India! The food is wonderful, maximum expats are Indians or Pakistanis so you tend to feel at home.” – said Abhinav after working in Jumbo Electronics for three years. He was placed there from IIFT, known for its flagship International Business course, in 2012.
On the other hand, Anubhav of FMS 2012 batch, has a different opinion about his placement location Abidjan (Ivory Coast, Africa) in Olam International – “It took me some time to get used to the culture here. The place is beautiful but I am a vegetarian so I had to literally innovate with the food here.”
Good research of the location that you would get is very important to have the right composure. While some students revel in the alien culture, some get extremely anxious.
Relevance of the pay-package
Converting a foreign currency to Indian equivalent just through the conversion ratio might not work! PPP (Purchasing power parity) is a much important way to guess the value of the package.
Comparing with Indian Jobs
In all these parameters discussed above, do overseas jobs after MBA stand to be outright winners? Not really! India is a diverse country geographically, culturally, and economically. Location, local rents, and cost of living in each location vary drastically. Yet, within the country, transfers and movements are much easier.
Also, a secondary consideration is that you would have a much colourful social life in your country! You will have to make difficult choices – a fat pay-package or staying closer to home, long-term savings or a happening social life! Like in every decision in life – you will have to leave a few things behind!
Future professional growth prospects
An international placement does not guarantee exceptional career growth. On the other hand, domestic placements are not necessarily inferior. A number of factors are at play, including geographical location. A job in Africa or Middle East is likely to pay handsomely, but will not paint a clear picture in terms of long term growth.
The state of the economy of any country has a very direct impact on the job market . A country experiencing sluggish growth will offer limited prospects. The sentiment prevailing in the country regarding immigrants also plays a key part.
It is a different story when it comes to working within India. You can apply to work in parallel industries and improve your job profiles gradually.
Preparation to get your Dream International Job
If international placement is looking attractive to you, how do you ensure that you get one of those jobs after MBA ? It is always good to have a rough idea of which are your dream companies as early as possible. This helps in developing a profile which is attractive to them.
The first step is to get noticed. Your resume should bring out your best professional qualities and give a glimpse of your personality. Plan your resume keeping the company you are applying for in mind. Company related, industry related and geography related preparation would be very necessary.
So are you excited to travel outside India for a job? Do write to us if you wish to know more!
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