Often, we see students who have not realized their maximum potential during their post-graduation tenure crib about not having enough time to engage in self-developing extra-curricular activities. When asked why, the answer you are most likely to get is, "I can’t afford to spend time and effort running about doing different things. I need to complete the college work first". Sounds legit. But what if I told you that you could become more without having to come out of your shelter, be it a hostel or your home. Just by investing 1-2 hours a day you could add value to yourself and to your resume from the comfort of your physical boundaries and become job ready before companies walk into your campus for recruitments. Here’s my list of do-ables that any MBA student (or for that matter any student) can work on in their spare time.

1. Online certification courses
It’s the age of technology and technology has aggressively stepped into every field where it matters. The same holds true with respect to education field. Tutorials, e-books, educational mags, you name it, you got it. When physical boundaries are restricted and resources are limited, just log on to an online education portal like www.udemy.com and kick start your learning process. Online courses not only enrich your knowledge but also provide for a rich resume for any candidate. But choose your courses wisely as not all courses may fit the bill.

2. Update yourself
Staying up to date with the news is synonymous with being intellectual these days. Before you start your day grab a newspaper or download a news related mobile app and keep yourself updated with what’s going around. It’s always a plus point to know current affairs in an interview. However, it takes months of reading to be able to co-relate different news articles and have a sound idea of any particular industry or firm.

3. Go for industrial visits
Get some exposure of what actually happens in the corporate world. How?-Internet to the rescue again. Many private companies offer field visits to students for a particular fee. And they’re all available online, well within your reach. So pick up the phone, dial those numbers, and book yourself an industrial visit tour.

4. Be an intern before being an intern
As per the course plan of the affiliating university, students are required to do a summer internship after the semester exams. I say, why wait for the summer? There are multiple internship portals offering internships to students based on their merit and interest that they can do from home. That’s right, no need to go to office. Just answer a simple telephonic or online interview and ta-da! you’re an intern.

5. Ambassadorship
India, being the largest youth population, gives companies an incentive to target college students. Such companies are on the look for talented individuals who have marketing, interpersonal and IT skills. Grab such opportunities as they come because apart from a certificate and recognition, companies tend to shower free goodies on deserving individuals. The takeaway
Where there’s a will there’s a way, because, for those who do, impossible is just a state of mind. Invest your time, money and effort in the right things and grow in ways you never imagined, for opportunities will always present themselves to those who are worthy. So, the next time an opportunity presents itself to you, grab it with both hands. And if no opportunity treads your way, keep the eyes of your mind open, who knows, one might be lurking just around the corner!

Written & Submitted by GIBS B-School Student.