The Saga of Dedication

To say that this year's election was the most unpredictable in the history of IBA may be an understatement. Candidates who had "Won" two months ago, did not even contest the real thing, those who boasted of strong "E-VOTES" lost it when it mattered the most, and in the midst of it all, a man,whom many considered an "intruder", a "dummy" and what not, won all the marvels. To say that only luck contributed to Mir Yahya's victory would never do justice to the amount of hard work, dedication and commitment he had put in. I was a part of his team from day one, and the one thing I was told was to play fair, work hard, and leave the rest to God, and it definitely worked. The element of luck played a crucial part, exactly when it mattered. The sudden arrival of different IBA policies, Mir Yahya's reputation, and consistent hard work made all this possible. Perhaps it will be futile to mention the intricacies and politics involved in all this, but all that matters is a competitive team has won, and that it has a very big responsibility on his shoulders.

This is, by no means, meant to be a eulogistic article, had this been my motto, I could have poured such articles in before the ballots, rather it is a brief & realistic appraisal of the events that took place in the last 3 months.

Disqualified-For Small Height !!

What is the count at the moment, let me think, 1+1+1+2+3==8 disqualifications ? Wow, IBA is a party itself. The first one was justified, the policy did not change overnight, the next seven, unthought of. It's strange, more than half of the strongest contenders in the upcoming ISC elections are already out of it, but, then again, this is IBA, and IBA holds the right to change its policy whenever deemed necessary.

So technically, there are 4 candidates remaining for the post of VP, hats off to them for being able to file their nominations, and not getting rejected, for they truly are WINNERS.

2 DAYS to go, can there possibily be another shift in IBA policy ? I saw a person from one camp threatining a strong contender for VP, the quote goes, "I have strong evidence, and real facts, that will disqualify you automatically from the upcoming elections".

After all that has happened, can there possibily be anything else that can kick a candidate out, oh yes indeed, IBA's new policy may say, "Only those candidates having a height greater than 5'8 can compete in the upcoming ISC elections".

Yes sir, it is over for you now, you can't grow 5 inches in two days, because "IBA NE GAME DAAL DI HAY" ....

The Inspiration-For All Those Who Inspired Me in Any Way

Bewildered was I,where to go not known...
N the sun's scorching rays hurt me more than ever
but then the path I was shown..
The path that I could have found Never..

While the rest deterred the pathway to the ultimate aim...
I learned to keep hope when the day was dark...
n yes I rejected name and fame..
For he said thats not the way to embark...

Temptations , delusions and all the grandeur...
What could have been what would have been had I not ceased..
Fleeting were they no not at all secure..
And they would have left me besieged...

The path wasn't easy, the choice even tougher..
but quitting was not the domain i would choose...
I knew one day the sorrows it will buffer..
lest No No I won't loose..

What followed was perhaps inevitable...
I fell down, I suffered and help i need...
then a help came, a help that was credible..
and the wounds it slowly healed..

The journey continued, with more zeal and zest..
seeking new paths I went faster than before..
and I closed in, closed in to the end of my quest..
falls and impediments I would take no more..

The more I knew the better it got..
and the target I could see clear..
and I alone was good enough I thought..
as I closed in to the target, I was took over by fear..

No not alone I could go all the way..
No not alone I could conquer my inner nation..
I was weak too easy to sway..
I needed and I got my true Inspiration...

Creativity-Welcomed

We have decided to include the creative works of our visitors and followers. This is an effort to expand the genre of IBASCENE from a blog that provides gossip, to a platform for students to showcase their talent. IBASCENE has an average of 200 impressions per day and has already had more than 20,000 impressions. This, however, is a completely non-commercial blog(there are no ads).

Anyone interested in promoting his/her creative works can send them in to mahzaib.aziz@khi.iba.edu.pk.

The A Levels Fiasco...

Class of 2012: Three people from my class, and approximately 10 in all,dropped out from IBA because they coudn't get the required grades, as demanded by the IBA in their A levels exams.

Class of 2013: Approximately 63 people dropped out from IBA due to their A levels grades.

The reason for this huge increase in no: of dropouts is IBA's new, and tougher, criterion on A levels and intermediate grades. Last year they demanded BCC minimum in A levels, and a 60% intermediate score, this year, they have upped the ante to BBC minimum A levels grades and an intermediate score of 65 %. This increase in minimum grades may be a part of the toughening filteration process of students, ( a part of the IBA strategic direction).

Whatever the case is, it has left 63 people completely distraught. Few days ago, I asked a freshy about his A levels result, he said he's out of IBA, and he was most concerned about facing his family and friends, whom he had given celebration parties for getting into IBA.

We certainly cannot feel, or even sense, the agony and pain these dropouts are suffering from, and it is very easy to lose hope, but that should be something they must avoid, to move on...

Our best wishes and prayers are with you all.....

Cornering Individuals

Election campaigning is at its peak with candidates and their teams mustering as much support as possible, in the midst of all this some dirty tactics are also being used by supporters of one of the parties. Today I was at campus, after a long while, and I observed people talking politics everywhere, (perhaps it made sense because 50 % of the students did not need to be there on the first place), but the most disturbing part was the lack of respect for the opponent and the lack of a level playing field.

I saw people mocking their competitors' supporters as people who are bewildered, who don't have the sense of what's right, or even as fools. This trend has been quite prevalent from the second semester, and has put an unnecessary fear in the minds of supporters of a party that is apparantely "WEAK" .

There is still a long time before we could decide the winner, the strong or the weak, but sadly, campaigning today, seemed to be focused on cornering individuals rather than proving own credentials.

There ought to be some difference between diabolic locali politics, and politics in one of the most prestigious institutes of the country, but then again, perhaps some people involved in politics of this institute are both Local & Diabolic politicans....

Not The Right Time

"Staying at IBA is far more difficult than getting into it". This is a phrase we constantly heard during our first year and I assume most of the new entrants have heard it as well. The authenticity and correctness of this phrase should never be doubted, specially if you are in your first semester.

IBA has strict academic, disciplinary and grading policies, and hard work is demanded from whoever enters its premisis. First things first, the GPA of a 1st semester student is his main priority , "You do not wan't to end up out of IBA after the first semester once you've distributed sweets among your relatives for getting into it" said Dr.Khadija Bari, the economics professor during her first session. Unfortunatley it turned out to be that way for 3 of my classmates and 19 other students. The primary reason was prioritizing politics and keeping GPA the second concern.

This mistake proved out to be fatal and I can't help look back at the times I spent with those friends, we used to be there at soccer, go out for lunches, have gossip, and one of the person dropped out was the most popular student of the class, It was a real shock.

Involvement in politics is not evil, however this is not the right time, the first priority is staying at IBA, and for that one needs to concentrate on studies. There would be seniors approaching you from every corner of the campus, asking for their loyalty, and what not, but being apolitical, at least for the first year, would definitely be the wisest call.

All the 22 students who dropped out last year tried again this year around, and (as far as I know), only one of them got back, three of them were denied admission in the intervies & GD sections, which indicates that once you're out, IBA tries to make sure you don't get in again, they prefer to give a chance to other deserving candidates, so once out, the odds are stacked seriously against you to get in again.

The courses of the 1st semester are very demanding, and if luck isn't on your side , you may end up getting very "Unfriendly" teachers and a class average gpa of 2.7 ( This was the case with our class).

All of the freshies, I'm sure, have had a torrid six months preparing for IBA, and they ought to have another similar six months to ascertain their stay at IBA, this is the right way to go about things, the only feasable option...

What about the Campuses?

For the first time the IBA administration has decided to make a single student body, comprising of both the campuses. This has never happened before and is something debatable. The bright prospects of this decision can be more unity and less discrimination among students of the main and city campuses. I am a student of the city campus, I missed out the main campus by a single mark in the IQ section, and for the entire year I was mocked by friends for being a "CITY WALA".

This is the case with most of us, although there's no real difference between intelligence or aptitude levels of the students of both campuses. The fear or possible consequence of this decision can be insufficient representation of one of the campuses. The elections will be very transparent and fair, what if one campus comes out as the dominant one and wins all the positions up for grabs, this is a real possibility considering the perception of difference, although minor, students have about their compatriots in the opposite campus.

I am not exactly sure what might transpire if such events take place, perhaps my seniors can elaborate.... 

Why Commitment and not Cash is the call of the day.

With the approach of the election season , candidates turn to their cash safes for help.We see parties, movie nights, dinners and a lot more but should this be the prime reason why a candidate should win ?

Most of us experienced this last year. There were at least 3 to 4 events by competetors, each trying to outclass, almost literally in cash terms, the other. All of them aimed to get the new entrants on their side and, to be brutally honest, we felt for it. I won't like to comment on the amount of satisfaction, or dissatisfaction we felt after the results but one thing was for sure,Commitment and honesty didn't prove out to be the primary criterion for votes.

I hope things change this time around, and voters think twice before deciding anything.

ELECTIONS and d FRESHIES !!

1st August 2008, I walked through the shabby koridoor of IBA, after attending my class, looking for people to talk to, people who could guide me, people with whom I would feel at ease, and in came a couple of guys, volunteering help which I never asked for, Initially I thought of them as angels :P, unselfish people helping their juniors out,(perhaps that was their secondary purpose), but as it turned out they were helping themselves out, these were friends of a candidate for the student body elections...

I still, however, believe that the help they gave me, was really appreciable. It really gave an indication about the magnanimous ambiance that was IBA...

This September we'll witness a similar trend, only this time the needy will be the freshies... fresh faces will try to find out where they've reached, and just like that .. you'd be struck upon by people who'd LOVE to help u...

This is Election season, and the parties are on... We cant wait to have our share of MUFTA already... the candidates will give it their all... specially with the freshies... they'd be invited to dinners, events, movie nights and what not..

So any freshy reading out this post, be ready for a really good first month !!

Assesment Test

IBA has decided to take an assessment test of all new entrants... last year they had a similar sort of test as well... English and Maths were tested and people who failed to clear the cutoff had to take remedial courses of their respective courses.. I suppose the pattern is going to be the same this time around as well... 

POINT TO BE NOTED :

YOUR ADMISSION WILL NOT BE UNDER JEOPARDY ... 

So Any Misgivings should be cleared... Do prepare for the test by the way..cuz if you fail you may end up having only 3 courses in the first semester and two in the summers... so you won't be able to take advance courses...

and if you fail in enlgish.. Obviously you won't be able to take english grammar and composition, which is a prerequisite for SPEECH COMMUNICATION, a course of the 2nd semester..

Best of Luck...

TED- The Inspirationals

When I started this blog I wanted to come across something interesting,something inspiring, not just superflous talks , over and over again... TED was perhaps the perfect place to look for something creative, I know it all may seem common sense in retrospect, simple thoughts, presented in artistic ways can be really stirring...

We are not in a utopia, oh no... IBAians have to go through tough times after graduation, and the better we prepare for it , the more helpful it would be,... a senior was telling me that this year a significant % of IBAians (Batch 09) is actually jobless, and most of them are coming back for MBA, how draining can that be...

Here I'd post links to a few videos ... which I'm sure most of you looking for motivation would fine really helpful...

The 8 Success word: Richrd D. John

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6bbMQXQ180&feature=channel

http://www.ted.com/talks/john_wooden_on_the_difference_between_winning_and_success.html

These are just a couple of videos.. you can always check into TED's website for more...I'll keep on posting interesting stuff

Cheers...

Sick of the traditional shopping? IBA brings teachers for Sale...

Yes you heard it right, for the first time in its "celebrated" history, IBA brings teacher shopping( no you wont be allowed to take the teachers home :P )....

As rumor says, students will have the choice of teachers, although the social sciences department has been denying this rumor, "reliable sources" say that this policy will be implemented to provide choices to the students... a good measure ehh ? ...

While everyone will be eager to choose the easiest teacher, in the quest for As classes will be disintegrated... this may well end up being a sorry state of affairs..

This however, is not official yet...

IBA-Destro-Construction

IBA, The premier business school of the country is going through serious torrid times, or so it seems by the looks of things, the IBA main campus is completely destroyed, the lobby the classes, the basketball court, everything... In what seems like an attempt to make landmarks, the students will have to suffer... !!

Current students may probably be acquainted with the grim environment of IBA, this however will be a shock for them, as for the freshies, GOD ... they'd be really shocked at their choice of career :P .. maybe..

Well I and my friends, batch of 012, kind of, know it that construction will be finished by the end of our tenure, so we'd have to study in sand and dust for the next 3 years.. !! crap man..

While we hope k things get right ASAP... the images, of the main campus, posted on FB, were really horrific..

If things don't go right, i.e protracted construction, problems, etc, IBA may be on a standstill for quite some time..

But perhaps it was about time the administration took some risks, with rising competition... It will be really interesting to see what the rest of you are thinking...

Why Traditionalism , Nerdism and Lack of Creativity are Perils !!

You seek out the journals, search the internet, read newspapers, and you'd hardly, if ever find a self made millioniare with a CGPA of 4.00.... Bill gates, & Mark_Zuckerberg were drop outs... but they were creative !! they defied traditionalism and believed in creativity, I know its a Cliche, and even those who promote creativity are pretty flaccid and, sometimes, superflous and repetetive themselves, but the importance of their words should never be underestimated...

Unfortunately, todays systematic education is the result of industrialization process and is meant to create university professors, if corrective and creative steps are not taken... the students have to be the first ones to realize this...

I'm posting a link to a worthwile video... 20 mins..but worth each second of it...

this specially applies to freshies, don't aim for 4.0 gpa ( that doesn't mean don't study at all, infact for the first semester, JUST STUDY)...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY

The Admission Scene

Its that time of the year again... heartbeats racing along, everyone wanting to get in, while perhaps it is too late to give tips on fighting your way into IBA, its always the right time to talk about what happened, what will happen, and , and what could have been.....

Most of the boiiz and the gals would be crying over what could have been ryt now, kia yaar ek mcq sahi hojata toh mai b IBA mai parhta, .... but don't loose hope guys... IBA is, definitely, and I repeat, definitely, not the end of the world.... Try hard.. get in next time , or choose a better alternative...

As for those who are waiting for their interviews ...best of luck for them... n yea.. do go formally, be confident... and ... aah u know better...