One of my friends appeared in the FMS interview this year and converted the call. The interview was offline and on the FMS campus. There were two panelists. The interview started with an introduction. Next, he was given an extempore topic - Novelty. Following the extempore, there were a few questions based on his IT background  and his SOP. There were general questions like - ‘Why MBA? As there are many CXOs who aren’t MBAs.’ The interview was around 15 mins. Overall, it was a pleasant experience for him.

The brand value of ISB and XLRI, FMS, IIM L can’t be compared. ISB is known for its executive PGP while XLRI, FMS, and IIM L are reputed for their two-year-long MBA progran. These are some of the top-rated B-Schools in the country and have long-standing legacies.  ISB has a huge batch size of around 800. Due to the huge batch size students face problems getting decent opportunities through campus placements. The ROI isn’t that good. The total course fee for PGPM is around INR 36.3 lakhs. While the average CTC is around 34.07 LPA, according to the recent highlights of ISB placements.

For GEM, the CAT percentiles required to get an interview call from IIM Blackis, FMS, SP Jain, JBIMS, and MDI Gurgaon are  ABC and FMS: Both institutes required nothing less than 99.5. Those who get admission at a lesser percentile, usually don’t belong to the GEM category. There are many who don’t even get a call with 99.3. So to stay on the safer side, go for nothing less than 99.5. IIM Indore and Kozhikode: Both the institutes require percentiles around 97.5 for an interview call SPJIMR: This Institute has unique selection criteria under which CAT is given less value and calls are issued on the basis of the candidate's profile. The CAT percentile required in this case is less than the normal if you have a good academic profile along with work experience, MDI: This institute issues calls around the 96% mark. It’s important to know that these figures are based on trends and not on actual data so you will find exceptions everywhere. Moreover, it’s better you don’t waste time analyzing the CAT cutoff and start preparing for the same.

NITIE Mumbai placement is almost on the same level as FMS. Here are the 2022 placement highlights of NITIE and FMS. Institute  NITIE Mumbai  FMS  Average CTC  INR 25.41 LPA  INR 32.4 LPA  Highest CTC  INR 49 LPA  INR 58 LPA  Major recruiters  Amazon, KPMG, Deloitte Paytm, Boston Consulting Group, Nykaa As per the placement statistics of both the institutes, there’s a slight difference in the major sectors participating in placement drive and the job roles offered. 

Students at IIM-A are similar to those at SP Jain, NMIMS, FMS, and JBIMS. Aptitude and intelligence are roughly comparable. IIM-A students do not have to compete as hard for placements, so they are less concerned, whereas students from other colleges are constantly concerned about placements.  You'll notice that students from other colleges perform better in competitions than IIM-A because they are generally more hardworking during MBA because the struggle is greater for them. However, because of the brand name, IIM-A students receive far more exposure than students from any other college in India, which benefits students greatly in their personal development.

You need to clear the FMS cutoff to get a shortlist. For general category students, the required cutoff stays around 98 percentile. Shortlisted students need to go through extempore and the PI round, in order to get admission.  XLRI shortlists students based on XAT scores. The next round for admission is the GD-PI round. Performance in this round is crucial for final selection. 

You should aim for FMS and XLRI. These B-Schools don’t assign much weight to past academics and if you score well in the entrance examination, you will have a good chance of getting a shortlist.  If you score around 99+ in CAT, you should get a call from FMS. Performing well in extempore and PI will give a decent chance of converting the call. Scoring 99+ percentile in XAT and performing well in the GD-PI round will give you a good chance of getting shortlisted for XLRI.  Rather than focusing on past academics, prepare well for the entrance examination. 

Yes, there are many people who converted IIM, XLRI, FMS calls, even with a poor academic record. I personally know someone who scored less than 50 percentile in engineering yet got accepted at XLRI. He performed well in MBA and now works as a senior HR at a major eCommerce company.  Academic record isn’t the only thing that these institute takes into consideration while selecting students. Your entrance examination score, performance in GD-PI, extracurricular achievements, etc. are equally important. 

It will be difficult to get into colleges such as FMS, XLRI, and MDI with less than 60% in 12th. But it’s achievable. FMS assigns 10% weight to 10+2 scores. So, if you manage to score around the 99.5 percentile in CAT, you will have a chance of getting shortlisted. You need to perform well in the GD-PI round as well. XLRI and MDI assign 15% weight to past academics and work experience.  So, try to work on your profile by adding extra-curricular activities. Also, prepare well for entrance tests and the GD-PI round. 

It is not appropriate to make a comparison between FMS or XLRI and new IIMs. Both institutes were established in the same year and earned a huge amount of respect over many years. They offer high-class education along with placements to the students with top-level recruiters every year. They have built a strong academic set and faced many challenges as that of old IIMs to set up their reputation and attractiveness among students. Since FMS and XLRI were established many years before than new IIMs, so they have a strong alumni base that provides an edge for the students. Parameter IIMs XLRI FMS Batch Size 388 358 287 Number Of Recruiters 131 108 102 Top Recruiters BCG, McKinsey, HUL Myntra, Flipkart, Amazon, Microsoft, P & G, Cipla, etc Myntra, Flipkart, Amazon, Microsoft, ITC, Cipla, etc. Highest Package 50 LPA 50 LPA 58.8 LPA Both institutes have earned name and fame over years and ranked among the top five B-Schools in India. Also for many years, they are producing high-class entrepreneurs or business management students with their recruitment in world-class multi-national companies.