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My stint in UK began last year in September when I enrolled for the One Planet MBA which cost over 19,000 pounds for a year.
At the time of the first fee installment payment, exchange rate was in the range of Rs 80 to a pound which has now hit a century in the last week after touching highs of Rs 104 a pound.
Since I had to pay my fees in two installments, I have now ended up paying much more than I had planned. I have had to reduce my daily living expenses and being a part of a MBA course, I have not been able to manage a lot of part-time work since the course itself is very taxing.
However, right now it is still cut-back-to-survive time. The real challenge will begin when I have to start planning payback on the loan I have taken. I have already overshot the principal amount I had planned borrow.
Being an Indian studying in the UK, I am bound, not only by the rupee slide, but, I am also in the middle of the Eurozone crisis engulfing the UK economy itself.
Already living is expensive here, made only worse by the rupee's slide; then there aren't good enough jobs here anymore and work visas are now difficult to get with changing norms. I am still trying to secure a good job but despite my MBA chances are very dim.
I will probably return back as soon as I am done.
Loan payback will be difficult. It will now have to be in rupee term. I have already surpassed my loan amount by a minimum of Rs 1 lakh.
Although, we students studying abroad are looking at the negative impact of the currency's slide, it is now a motivation for students to study in India, for entrepreneurs to increase exports of India-made products.
It is definitely a game changer towards driving Indian goods within the country which reminds me of the Swadesi movement to reduce dependence on imported goods.
Studying business here in UK clearly shows that the world is looking at India closely. We should try and think this situation as a positive sign of a new revolution.
If I was in Mumbai, I would like to start a business and export to the world.
In UK, businesses are trying to learn from India's 'Jugaad' or Frugal Innovation to find solutions. Being at the bottom of pyramid, they are looking at finding solutions to penetrate into Indian markets, focusing on larger volumes.
For UK companies, it is an incentive to invest in India right now.
Agreed, there is a lot of panic in India with the markets crashing and indecisiveness on policy but overall, the global economy is on a downfall, hence, there are problems everywhere. However, I believe this should seed the growth tree in India.
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Mithil Shah is currently purusing the One Planet MBA at University of Exeter in UK
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Mithil Shah is currently purusing the One Planet MBA at University of Exeter in UK
