Born and brought up in Bihar, I don't know when getting into an IIT became a goal. I know it was my mother who incepted the idea in me as for her she had seen a lot of JEE qualifiers in the newspaper over the years. The 15 years old version of me liked numbers and mathematics, IIT became my obvious goal.

Getting‌ ‌selected‌ ‌for‌ ‌IIT‌ ‌Roorkee‌ ‌via‌ ‌super‌ ‌30‌ ‌program.

I have always been an average student. Score 81% in class 10th CBSE board and was focused on the schools/colleges that allow me to get admission. My father was working for the government as a clerk and with 8k monthly salary, it was implied that the monthly budget is the first filter for potential schools/college. I guess the quest ended with my admission in a government college in Buxar, my home town. This had some perks that allowed me to give more time to self-study for IIT. In 2006 the government announced the JEE cutoff for 12th results, and it was 60%. This would be the big hurdle for me as getting above 60% in Bihar board from an unknown college is rare.

2007 was the year when my 12 results came and I sat for IITJEE for the first time. Due to lack of preparation, I could only make it to the EML (extended merit list) that year. I got selected for the Super-30 program the same year that helped me qualify the IIT JEE exam and with the result, I got admission in IIT Roorkee for the 2008-12 batch.

Getting into IIM was the next goal, but with 63% from Bihar board in 12th, this seemed far-fetched. I still took the exam and followed through the process and surprisingly landed in IIM Ahmedabad in 2012 for the 12-14 PGDM program. The 2 years program helped me get the internship experience in Google India in 2013 and later I got a job at Dunia Finance, a customer lending NBFC based out of Dubai. In the last 5 years at Dunia, I have worked across multiple teams, which helped me gain knowledge of how an organization works. I am currently back in India, based in Bangalore writing the course of my career with a Healthcare Startup.

One key that I have learned through my experience is, obstacles will always come in your way, may it be financial, family issues, breakups, unsuccessful attempt at something etc, you will always find a way to achieve your goals if you continue trying. Learn from your mistakes and move on, and while you are at it, smile and enjoy the journey!