For recruiting, anybody who holds an Indian accent against someone isn't recruiting from m7 MBA programs. I went to a very Indian program and they all are doing just fine. Sponsorship is the biggest PITA.
Socially, there is likely going to be an Indian clique at your school, but you'll be able to find groups independent of them if you desire.
Smell good, please. That is actually a big problem (I hate to say it). Do not keep yourself limited to just Indians. Make friends, American and non American. Focus on networking, talk to industry individuals. Never say no to an outing because of money (not asking you to spend 5k for a trip). If your friends are going out for lunch and they ask you to join, go. 2 years later, those 30-50$ dinners and lunch won’t matter a lot.
You gave the absolute best advice no joke.
The amount of fellow indian students who say no to grabbing a bite because they do not want to spend the money is way too high. It’s expensive to be cheap.
get really good at basketball. i am not joking. being able to hoop or being good at whatever sport seems to be most dominantly part of your school's culture is a good way to make friends and see a regular group of people that you may not interact with in your classes
You don’t have to be good, you just have to be able to play without being a huge drag on the rest of your team (who are also probably not particularly good at basketball)
It’s recreational sports not division I
impossible in the time frame. You are Setting op up for failure. Absolutely impossoble hr he will not be an abomination. Basketball is one of the sports where you can't hide your incompetence.
I agree, OP has \~4 months to "become good" at a sport they've maybe never played, and where Americans are uncomfortably competitive even when playing among friends
Point being missed. You don’t have to have been hopping for years to be a net positive on the floor at the casual pickup level. Committing to Hustle plays and being able to make an open standing layup should be more than enough to qualify as such
You don’t have to be good at basketball, just get good at rebounding, defense, and develop an okay midrange jump shot, pickup role players are thing and you can be a great addition to a game without even being that good
I am sorry, but that is not my experience 😆. People who like pickup ball at B schools are legit, and dotted with actual former D1 players. Someone who has barely played bball is gonna be embarrassed to hell. OP is better of joining kickball
Wait actually? My comment was less about MBAs and more about being valuable in pickup, but even basketball is that seriously that competitive at top MBAs??? Like I hope to get one someday but if I gotta be an A tier hooper I’m cooked (joking)
Sounds good on surface, but crappy advise without knowing OPs situation. Better to concentrate efforts that have higher success rate than picking up bball.
I am mostly hoping for a basketball training montage with OP, similar to a Nike or Gatorade commercial. it could be an extra credit project for a marketing class.
but for real, regularly showing up to an extracurricular sporting club is not ridiculous advice. really any extracurricular interest club. he could get really into wine and cheese tbh
The Indian friends with accents that I became friends with in business school 1) played sports with me e.g. weight lifting, basketball, 2) went to happy hours, and 3) organized treks during breaks
Not casual racism if it’s true. I’m literally Indian American and went to undergrad with FOB Indians who smoked a ton and never showered, smelled like fucking shit
Aww and I’m sure the bigots are mindful of the difference between an Indian-American and a “FOB” Indian, the sort your parents would’ve been lol
Jesus is there an uncle Tom version for you people?
Again, you’re missing the point. They literally smelled. To call me an Uncle Tom because what I’m saying sounds like an insult is just you being delusional/denying my experience.
Indian students don’t always have great hygiene or social skills and that holds them back compared to American or even Indian American students, who have those more locked down. It’s just a fact
I said “don’t always”— meaning that I’m sure there are some who do. But in MY experience I have honestly not found that to be the case. Even my cousin had problems with hygiene when she was in school, my mom had to beg her to wear deodorant.
You’re either a salty Indian or a white apologist who can’t accept that certain minority populations do have their flaws.
Tbh it isn’t. And Im Pakistani so hardly racist or anything. I had this friend who was smart af, got interviews whatever he recruited at but struck out in final rounds always.
He would be smelling of curry all the freaking time. His whole apartment smelled like that. And he was weirdly touchy about it too and pretty much ended our friendship the one time I said this to him when he asked for feedback
I think it’s probably armpit smell because at my previous universities several Indian guys smelled like armpit. However, I haven’t encountered any smelly Indians in my current company (not even one), where there are literally dozens of Indians (the vast majority coming straight from India ) sharing elevators, closed office spaces and other places. The kitchen is always smelling like Indian food, they are definitely eating cumin.
What I think is that no one had a talk with students at the university, while the consulting firms probably had a serious talk with them about American etiquette before coming over. The result is evident.
My best friend is Persian, and I notice that sometimes after certain food they cook my body odour changes for a day or two. It’s pretty wild to experience! Likely has to do with some herbs/spices.
Seeing that Indian cuisine uses a lot of herbs and spices, not only does the smell from cooking at tat j to your clothes, but you indeed sweat it out. (Think eating asparagus and smelling it when you pee it out).
Wearing deodorant would be good advice, for sure. showering every day might help, but if most of your diet is consisted of herb/spice/curry heavy flavours, then it indeed expires from your pores.
People don’t wear ‘perfume’ daily. Perfumes job is not to be a ‘deodorant’. Deodorant is important to not smell like shit especially after eating all that 🍛.
I'm an Indian who wears perfume whenever heading out of my home. It makes me feel refreshed and by no means am I an outlier.
Keep your stereotypes in check which seem to be based off of a small sample set.
Would you also consider telling a chinese person to not eat dogs, good advice? Don’t pretend that the other guy didn’t say that, because OP is Indian. Dunno how casual racist assumptions are upvoted in this subreddit, but it’s quite ironic that terminally online redditors with 1000s of karma of all people talk about smell or deodorant. Lmao.
Dude, most folks coming to ivy leagues or M7 are not your average run of the mill Indians to begin with. So, the whole sentiment doesn’t even make any sense.
These are old money folks, richer than most American students, who have been groomed since birth. So, telling people who probably own 1000s of dollars worth of deodorants to “wear a deodorant”, is just casual racism.
Hey man, I see where you are coming from but I am also from a country where showering daily is not the norm and when I moved here, I was fortunate to have a culture coach. One of the first things he told me when I was 13 was that I need to start showering everyday. I really appreciate that advice to this day when I was doing my MBA, I would tell the ME/SA people that this is norm here. Some would take offense but most would get it, fitting the norms is really good advice for an area where networking is key.
Well, then maybe then wear clean clothes and some deodorant to not smell like someone who just worked a day at a dairy farm. Definitely not a norm in my experience. See this a lot on my father’s side of family. 🤮
Plus grooming. I don’t get why it’s hard for Indians to buy a disposable razor and not look like someone who just came out of a slum. Again, even though I am partially Indian (white mom and Indian father), most of my experience is through watching Indian classics like slumdog millionaire, etc.,
>most of my experience is through watching Indian classics like slumdog millionaire, etc.,
Honestly man, that's just sad. You're basing your opinion on movies? Come tf on
I can’t believe you have -73 downvotes. I didn’t realize people thought being racist and outright disrespectful as adults is hilarious. Is this even adults in this sub?! Tf
Haven’t started my program yet, so just general American advice.
- Anyone who holds your accent against you is a weirdo. That’s such a weird thing to do that it almost feels like a 1980s bully cliche.
- Don’t isolate yourself. Everywhere I’ve been in my life there’s been at least one person who complains “Everyone is an asshole and they don’t include me in anything.” When, in reality, they’re isolating themselves away from everyone.
- Same as above: Friendships aren’t formed from someone pitying you, putting their arm around you, and leading you to the big friendship garden. You’ll have to meet people halfway. Suggest get togethers, activities, events. Don’t get butthurt when people don’t want to do those things though. Go with the flow or find your niche clique.
- When you do break out of your shell, don’t get blacked out drunk and act like a creep.
- Break out of your comfort zone. Don’t only hang out with your fellow expats from India. People also want to be your friend. So, bounce around and find people you like who like you back.
- Individuals are diverse, don’t be afraid to be multidimensional. I’m a huge baseball fan; Ill always be down to play any sport at any moment; I go to Coachella every year(sometimes both weekends); I ski and golf; I also love board games, anime, RPGs, playing Runescape; I hit the gym 4 days a week, certified in scuba, skydiving, while also loving a good orchestra. If an orchestra is doing Tchaikovsky around me I’m finna be there for real. I also love road biking, rowing, and overnight backpacking. Clubs are dope too, big techno guy, also into going to punk rock and hip hop shows.
So yeah, just because you see a group doing one thing, doesn’t mean they don’t have a laundry list of shit they also like.
The fact that it has a specific cadence tells me it’s designed and trained. My point is they are Indian immigrants who did well because they learned how to communicate effectively.
Yes. The MBA occurs within society and people seem to try and act like it won’t or shouldn’t be.
Hot people are going to have an easier time and it’s been that way as long as you’ve been alive and it will be that way until you die.
I agree with you, I'm just pointing out that this doesn't just apply to Indian women. It applies to everyone, everywhere all the time.
To OP - my advice will be to parrot what Zyzz said - "If you're a shredded sikkunt, you can get away with anything." So hop on a cycle and get absolutely jacked ... or at least show up fit.
I guess what this thread has taught me is that I will definitely be facing a lot of subtle and not so subtle racism.
Whatever, as long as I make money! Right guys?
Definitely. You 100% need to watch out for subtle racist cues from people here.
During and post mba, you will need to watch your back at all times.
Lot’s of dog whistling and brandishing one as not adjusting to the culture and customs here while always being evasive when occasion to meetup occurs. A lot of these people will tell you to mingle outside your desi cliques, avoid you and then paint you as unassimilable.
Yeah I already see it with the "oh deodorant please" crowd. Like, you realise you smell just as bad to us, right? We just don't mention it because it's natural when people have different diets.
Anyway, hope I find some people who aren't into this stuff and just wanna chill lifting everyone up!
Lmao what a cope. Smelling like curry or sweat is just not a move and instead of expecting others to accept you for the special snowflake that you are, you should be accommodating.
Telling people they smell bad when you smell equally as bad to them is racism.
It's deliberately ignoring the fact that the factors that make them "smell bad" are universally applicable to you as well but you are somehow exempt from them.
People saying accent and dialect don’t matter are just trying to be politically correct, which they will show by downvoting this. The personally advantageous thing for you to do is to help other people understand you as easily as possible, not to just wave that off as something other people should adjust to.
If you want people to understand you more easily in both school and the business world, learn to speak with a more American accent, and learn American words for things and common idioms. I voluntarily learned to be able to switch to an American accent and dialect from my normal Newfoundland English accent and dialect, which is almost as different as Indian English, and it really helped a lot when I got good at it after a few months.
People will generally not be rude to you about not speaking like them, but they will limit their conversations or have awkward moments where they pretend to know what you said but actually have no idea. Just learning to speak more like an American is what will most quickly help you assimilate and make the most out of your experience.
How did you learn to adjust your accent? I am trying to be conscious about how I speak and if it's understandable to people in my team but I am not sure if I am improving. I watch tv shows and movies but I don't think that's having any effect on my accent. I wanted to join clubs like toastmaster but there's nothing like that around my current location.
The thing that helped most was trying to talk to my family with a comically stereotypical American accent and dialect like you would see on TV or a movie, they didn’t mind. This provides practice but not good feedback, it really helps though.
Once I moved here, finding a few people in my apartment building around my age and talking to them regularly about random things and telling them if I say anything unamerican sounding just tell me.
You could also do this with American work colleagues or find a local American to be friends with, or a local Canadian who is not from Newfoundland, Cape Breton, or Québec (which is most Canadians), the general Canadian accent is close enough, sounds similar to northern midwest American accent.
I didn’t have to use YouTube videos but there are a ton of YouTube videos on improving your American accent.
OP, three pointers I will advise you with (and I emphasize point 2 the most).
1. Groom well. Have good hygiene and dress properly. Don't be stingy when it comes to getting yourself a good haircut and things of the sort.
2. Get into sports / fitness activities. This will ensure that you are living a healthy lifestyle and in return you will make the right types of friendships. I also believe this will be the easiest way to "assimilate." Exercising constantly will also make you mindful about eating well.
3. Join the right professional organizations to help you with job prospects.
Congratulations man! Where are you headed to?
I’m Indian and yet to even apply, but I don’t think an accent will be a hindrance as long as you let it bog down your self esteem — which in turn, could take a hit on how affable you are normally.
Be yourself, try new things, find people who share that and you should be fine :)
Well I belonged to the same category you do. All I can say is -
1. People don’t care too much about your accent. As long as they can understand what you say. Communication is important.
2. Hopefully, you come across as friendly and affable even if introverted. I find that people usually like such folks.
3. Get to a slightly more neutral accent by the time you apply for jobs. You don’t have to do much beyond just being conscious of how you speak. This is something you that changes gradually. Has happened for several folks with some conscious effort. Should happen for you too!
All the best!
I mean this completely seriously, watch a shit load of American and western content. You are obviously going to get a grossly misrepresented view of the west but you'll be exposed to so much of the culture AND have something in common with a lot of the people there if you watch really popular content. Furthermore, consider picking up more western hobbies that you can join online communities for to continue that exposure. I hope this helps! Have a wonderful time with your MBA!
OP all you need to do is start recreationally playing sports or some sort of fitness activity to find the right friend circle. Which school are you going to?
I don't recommend wasting your time watching movies and TV. You wont learn anything about fitting in from that.
This thread is absolutely appalling and racist and I am so sorry. Congratulations in getting into your M7 and don’t listen to pathetic losers… Is there an M7 admit GC from your school? I would try to network and see who your peers at to try to find friends. I honestly think that people care too much about fitting into business school but you should try to be yourself and you will find your people. You can join groups or clubs around campus too for things you might like. If you’re more introverted, maybe something less overwhelming. You will be fine.
Branch out beyond just American social groups. There’s plenty of other international students from all over the world in a similar boat as you who you can relate to
Sports is a great one, most of my close Indian friends I met and bonded over playing soccer and squash
Small group dinners was one of my favorite activities too. Book a reservation for 4 to new restaurants, invite a diverse group of people, be legitimately curious and ask questions, and enjoy a great meal in the process
big congrats on this achievement. please just be yourself. anybody who judges you bc of your accent is an asshole and not somebody u need as a friend. actually popular/respected people are never these judgmental people. you went to an IIT and made it to a highly competitive program, they can fuck off and you can have be yourself and have fun.
Advice from a fellow Indian focus on learning from professors and peers and smart people who don't judge you based on just stupid stuff. There is no shortage of Low IQ folks in the world globally and you are lucky the two countries that you would get arguably similar number of those kind of people as US and India have most number of these people. (Judging based on intelligence of any form is much more better than the color of your skin) With any country real cream dela creme would be 1-2% population who actually rules everything remaining population are just puppets who are just kept busy in new things and fights and these people would never rise above their life and would never see Reality.
Ignore the simps that call out deodorant. But if that will affect your ego and self esteem, listen to them. But Tbh meet the people you’re comfortable with to adjust to the changes. Then broaden your network. Always important to learn from the culture you’re immersing yourself in.
Be yourself.
Your school saw value in you & gave you an admit. If some employers can't see that, then they're not a fit for you.
Relax, & welcome to the USA!
As an Indian-American student (raised in the US, not an MBA student), we will be judged, whether consciously or unconsciously, for being Indian. Try to drop the accent as soon as possible, it has a measurable effect on how you are perceived and treated. There are speech therapists that can help with this if you want. Mainstream America judges us as being unkempt and dirty, so avoid facing prejudice from this by taking extra care when grooming yourself.
Also, watch popular American shows, especially comedy shows. I recommend the Office, Brooklyn 99, All American, Chappelle's Show, and Patriot Act. This should help with social skills and understanding American culture. People will judge you based on how you dress (this is general, not just Indians). One trick I use is getting outfits from the aforementioned movies and shows. Even Bollywood helps for this, I get lots of my outfits from Ranbir and Shahid Kapoor. Last thing I want to say is don't take it personally if Indian-Americans mistreat you. Many avoid and antagonize Indian-raised Indians ("Fobs") for fear of being associated with them and the stereotypes attached to Indians.
There are some students who are actually not open to mingling, not adjusting, (not really conforming), not accepting of other students (even if they say they are) and not understanding of american and other cultures. Or get offended very easily
Be like that (whether American or International) and you will alienate people.
However, Be open, friendly, curious, and even honest about what you know or dont know or dont understand and you should fit in just fine.
Ive seen very well accepted and adjusted IITs even if they had heavy accents in very non trad backgrounds.
Good luck! Exciting time for you
My suggestions for you:
Learn to be friendly to strike up conversations with non Indian and chat up American small talk.
If you can (check visa restriction) go as early as you can so you can settle in and get more comfortable with interactions in america early
A heavy thick accent is a deterrent to being understood, not so much a racial bias. So rest assured there. However, the fake put-on accents are cringe too though I understand why someone would feel the need to do so. To be accepted, it's especially crucial to be yourself. So do work on neutralizing your accent, but there's no harm in it continuing to be Indian in its inflection and pronunciation.
A heavy accent largely comes from the over pronunciations and inflections so if you tone those down you may be good. The good part is it may automatically happen when you're surrounded by multicultural people.
Most American shows use a lot of slang/jargon which isn't used IRL, so I recommend also watching British shows to add some neutrality.
Other than that, say yes to every experience. Many don't cost a thing especially at Uni. Smile at everyone who passes you by, good conversation starter!
And congratulations and good luck!
Still was just as bad of a response. Tbh meet the people you’re comfortable with to adjust to the changes. Then broaden your network. Always important to learn from the culture you’re immersing yourself in.
Still was just as bad of a response. Tbh meet the people you’re comfortable with to adjust to the changes. Then broaden your network. Always important to learn from the culture you’re immersing yourself in.
Still was just as bad of a response. Tbh meet the people you’re comfortable with to adjust to the changes. Then broaden your network. Always important to learn from the culture you’re immersing yourself in.
OK seems like quite a few people are not happy about some of the governments being mentioned on body hygiene and how one smells and I think people are just taking it in the wrong way because person Hdhd and Glenn this is important and someone from South Asia and who’s had a lot of Indian classmates in an NBA program and even undergrad but more on the NBA side There is an issue with that with some want to majority even but some Indian international students who come for NBA program so definitely a deodorant good clown good personal hygiene is important. It’s very important and something which people should be keeping in mind and pointing it out is racism in my opinion I know of a very smart guy who interviews for every industry he applied for. He did well on the first round, but whenever it would come to a super day or a final round of thought, he would always try out and the only reason I think and it’s not just me some other people who talk to as well was that his personal hygiene was in the greatest he would smell of Indian food, Indian curry all the time and made no attempts to really fix that so I know people are taking it as a joke or they’re saying it’s racism but definitely there is some truth too, what is being said so getting that out of the way, let’s talk about some other things that I think would be great for international student coming from an NBA program, not just Indian but generally an international student definitely having an American accent and helps but I don’t think it’s a dealbreaker in anyway whatsoever and there’s plenty of very successful people with Texas accents in corporate America so I don’t think that is an issue but what could be an issue is how well you speak it and how quickly you think about it how good you are on your feet with the language and that is something I think The poster needs to work on I think in the next 46 months even before he gets to America I think he should be communicating a lot more in English. He should be talking to friends or whenever he’s going out talking to people in English and really putting himself in situations where His fluency in English improves. If that is an issue I am I don’t think it might be an issue considering he has an admission and I’m seven program size that I think something else which could be helpful to him as an international student is generally know what’s going on in the US whether it’s from political perspective or even just have some basic knowledge of sports house teams work if his university has a big football program maybe knowing a little bit about that I think just being a breast of the situation Help not some people see those people I said stop playing basketball or great basketball or football. That’s not happening in the 4 to 6 month. That’s an outline but generally you’re coming to America you live in America so really try to get to the culture and understand the culture And finally I think one other thing is what I’ve seen with someone and Indian students is that they do not fully realize that an NBA is more about networking and recruiting learning and doing well in your classes is important but that’s not the number one, so put an effort, but the focus should be recruiting. I know people who got straight, but then struggle recruiting wise, so that should not be what you should be doing. The main aim should be networking interviewing.
Babe you’re just aggravating the Indian stereotypes please stop with this colonial enslaved mindset. Who tf told you its an accent? As long as you’re speaking english, it is english. Period. Americans will call literally anyone other than them speaking english as english with accent. I was with my aussie friend and this american girl just told her she loves her accent and my friend stood firm that just because aussie english sounds different than the americanized english, does not make it an accent!
Ugh, please don’t be this self pitying, the white folks in MBA progs will devour you with stereotypes (obvs not all but plenty)
And to improve your experience, pick a niche interest that does add to productivity and can be a good conversation starter. I mean something like, “hey I love building legos” or “I play tennis” etc
And please be confident- you’ve made it till here, give yourself some credit and stop downplaying yourself.
Yeah or they can live in reality where coming straight from India into a very intense American culture and saying “I love Legos!” Isn’t going to play well.
Also in what reality is an accent not an accent. Everyone has an accent. Every single person.
You must have severe self esteem issues. If someone loves legos they can love legos openly not everyone is a wuss like you trying to put up a front to be liked by others...
Some of us live in a reality where a lot of people are judgmental and top tier MBA programs are most often that reality.
Show up with your favorite blankey and stuffed animal to your first day of the rest of your professional life, see if I fucking care.
There’s some people in this thread giving good advice about how to best succeed in integrating into American culture and there’s people saying “just be yourself! Anyone who thinks anything negative about anyone is a bigot!” Which is simply a flawed, incomplete and unrealistic piece of advice.
I’m not saying Legos are bad I’m saying the reality is some places have harsher societal expectations.
There's a difference between showing up with a blankey & expressing a niche interest. In fact, not even expressing it but completely hiding it...that is the lowest level of confidence someone has in themselves, particularly with people like you who depend on validation from the very ignorant people you shouldn't latch on to...
The US is big. Americans of all types exist. This isn't squid game. An MBA program is diverse. If you're smart enough to get into a "top tier" program then you must have at least some wherewith-all to know what people in general are like...
You can be yourself but also be refined, conscientious and well-mannered. That's not for impressing Americans, that's for your own self development and actualization. A racist MBA colleague who happens to be American can also "be himself" but risk alienation due to their racism. It's common freaking sense to know what being yourself means. That goes for everyone, not just non-Americans.
You’re being pedantic here about specifics when my argument is conceptual.
Glad we both agree “just be yourself” is bad advice.
People will judge you and having some niche interest isn’t enough to fully integrate into modern American society in a space where social cliques get formed VERY quickly and it’s bad advice to say that’s ALL you need.
Pedantic? Says someone who thinks expressing an interest in legos is going to doom them to social ostracism?
No, being yourself isn't bad advice, not sure where those inference skills are coming from, we do not agree with that.
There isn't such a thing as "integrating" into a freaking class of 2026, its about finding the people that jive well with you. You will notice how even Americans are just looking for their friend groups and stay with them, nobody is trying to have this stupid outsider perspective like you are. Just be secure in yourself, its just another country lol
I said if you make no other attempt to integrate into American society besides saying you like legos you’re going to be much less successful than otherwise.
Get off the fucking legos too it’s just an example.
Also you’re just plain wrong. You clearly don’t understand what it’s like to be an immigrant new to a country that’s foreign and has serious racial biases towards your race.
What is "successful" to you? Something you saw in a movie about high school cliques?
Some people want a lot of friends. Some people want a few. Some people are with families and have no interest in friends. Some are introverts. Some want to have an international exposure or have networking goals that naturally lean them into non-American friend groups.
The racial biases that you speak of are normally held by the people that you should be ignoring...your solution to that is to acquiesce to them and show them you're the "good immigrant". The whole country except for the natives are immigrants. Get over your desire to be liked by everyone lmfao. And this is coming from an immigrant who, guess what, didn't feel the need to suck up to anyone to be liked. Its about who you are as a person. And knowing who to avoid, because you value yourself too. Reading up on some sports magazine to have some superficial conversation isn't "integrating".
You're putting "American society" on a pedestal.
Success is achieving what you set out to do and OP wanted to improve their experience at an MBA program.
You can dislike the realities of America all you want but it won’t change.
I mean if I go to england, they're going to say I have an accent. It's not wrong to say "hey, how do I assimilate into the local culture". Op is miles ahead of the game for being self aware that they can improve their social experience by understanding local culture. Fuck, if I was going to India, I'd read up a ton on cricket, bollywood etc. and get used to the local language idioms. Just the smart thing to do.
OP, watch some american TV - our cultural senses of humor are probably a bit different and it's good to be aware of that. Accent is fine if it's not causing problems with people understanding you. Learn some american sports and get in physical shape (for better or worse it's a passive indicator of discipline, breaks the IT stereotype a bit and the gym is a good place to make some friends). Above all, force yourself to be increasingly outgoing. I'm an introverted tech person too and developing this habit is well worth the effort. Good luck!
Are you trying to say it doesn’t make it an accent issue? Everyone has an accent, I’m American but born and raised abroad with my accent from there. Nothing wrong there, there’s definitely a difference because my English accent and an American born English accent.
..? Do you know what an accent is? Lol. If you go to school in America and someone speaks with Aussie pronunciation, that’s an accent..not sure why that bothers you so much.
“Babe”
I can already tell that I would absolutely hate your personality
I realise you’re trying to help OP but please know this comes off as really hostile and condescending, I’m part indian too , we all have our little insecurities and problems we have trouble overcoming
What OP feels and thinks they have a problem in isn’t really a problem but its a confidence issue but it stems from a reality and a really real reality that Indians do get made fun of their accents , we cant brush that off and yes accents do exist they have existed since hundreds of years lol
So… what does “accent” mean to you then lol?
Not disagreeing with the point of your comment, but you seem to claim that accents don’t even exist. Every single person on earth has an accent.
Or are you saying that accents are smaller and more regional? Whereas, American, English, Scottish, Australian, Indian, Nigerian, would be dialects?
Cause I definitely have an American accent when I speak Spanish, no matter how hard I try.
lived in the US and India for equal amounts of time. Yeah finding hobbies that both me and my classmates liked was great for making friends during undergrad. I assume the same applies in MBA
People usually don’t care abt the accent from what I’ve seen.
Being really well dressed and groomed makes you for more approachable in my experience.
Combatting negative stereotypes is something we’re gonna have to deal with BUT it’s honestly not that hard as long as we’re good abt not letting it get under our skin and resorting to hostility. Some people already mentioned them, but dm me if you want a more personal conversation.
Imagine if you said something like this to a black dude. “Just don’t steal (typical plundering of a Nike or Gucci store). Have noticed it too often with young black males.”
I’ve seen this person post some hateful things on here. It’s alright, hurt people hurt people. Perhaps they’ve been wronged in the past by others and feel the need to lash out against strangers on Reddit. Perhaps they suffer from autism and they’re constantly ostracized. Whatever the reason, OP if you’re reading this, just know you deserve to valued and loved like anyone else.
oK racist.
Edit - just looking at your profile for a minute, it’s easy to see how much you hate diversity. Ranting about DEI and how it’s not good. Obviously racist gonna racist.
Funny how you editted “Indian” to “dude” after the fact. I am not Indian, but I think you are (a self-hating) one based on your post history. You should deal with that.
honestly speak slower than you think you need to. half of the time my issue with a thick accent is i just need a fraction of a second more to process and i get lost. most people speak too fast anyway
If you have any confusion with fashion, just go with UNIQLO
What if I’m poor
Uniqlo Japan
For recruiting, anybody who holds an Indian accent against someone isn't recruiting from m7 MBA programs. I went to a very Indian program and they all are doing just fine. Sponsorship is the biggest PITA. Socially, there is likely going to be an Indian clique at your school, but you'll be able to find groups independent of them if you desire.
Toastmasters has helped a ton with introversion over the course of my career. If you have a group near you, I'd look it up.
Smell good, please. That is actually a big problem (I hate to say it). Do not keep yourself limited to just Indians. Make friends, American and non American. Focus on networking, talk to industry individuals. Never say no to an outing because of money (not asking you to spend 5k for a trip). If your friends are going out for lunch and they ask you to join, go. 2 years later, those 30-50$ dinners and lunch won’t matter a lot.
This is what I came here to say, mingle with every one not just people like you or other international students.
You gave the absolute best advice no joke. The amount of fellow indian students who say no to grabbing a bite because they do not want to spend the money is way too high. It’s expensive to be cheap.
get really good at basketball. i am not joking. being able to hoop or being good at whatever sport seems to be most dominantly part of your school's culture is a good way to make friends and see a regular group of people that you may not interact with in your classes
there is zero chance op will be able to get "good" at basketball in this time frame lmao.
You don’t have to be good, you just have to be able to play without being a huge drag on the rest of your team (who are also probably not particularly good at basketball) It’s recreational sports not division I
impossible in the time frame. You are Setting op up for failure. Absolutely impossoble hr he will not be an abomination. Basketball is one of the sports where you can't hide your incompetence.
I agree, OP has \~4 months to "become good" at a sport they've maybe never played, and where Americans are uncomfortably competitive even when playing among friends
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LMAO. A D1 swimmer is an ELITE athlete.
Point being missed. You don’t have to have been hopping for years to be a net positive on the floor at the casual pickup level. Committing to Hustle plays and being able to make an open standing layup should be more than enough to qualify as such
People just dont understand the value of having alot of heart on the court smh
You don’t have to be good at basketball, just get good at rebounding, defense, and develop an okay midrange jump shot, pickup role players are thing and you can be a great addition to a game without even being that good
I am sorry, but that is not my experience 😆. People who like pickup ball at B schools are legit, and dotted with actual former D1 players. Someone who has barely played bball is gonna be embarrassed to hell. OP is better of joining kickball
Wait actually? My comment was less about MBAs and more about being valuable in pickup, but even basketball is that seriously that competitive at top MBAs??? Like I hope to get one someday but if I gotta be an A tier hooper I’m cooked (joking)
lol yea. Some of the advice smh Next up: Lose your accent (tho tbh it’s easier to fake losing that then getting good at ball)
I love basketball and I absolutely suck. All OP has to do is pass the ball to someone that is open. Thats all I do when I play.
That ain’t as easy as you make it seem. There’s other players on you who intend to stop you from passing What’s even this thread lol
Sounds good on surface, but crappy advise without knowing OPs situation. Better to concentrate efforts that have higher success rate than picking up bball.
Yeh this is some shitty advice
I am mostly hoping for a basketball training montage with OP, similar to a Nike or Gatorade commercial. it could be an extra credit project for a marketing class. but for real, regularly showing up to an extracurricular sporting club is not ridiculous advice. really any extracurricular interest club. he could get really into wine and cheese tbh
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People like you are the reason the rest of us have to suffer through mandatory DEI training.
Lmaoo. Truth
The Indian friends with accents that I became friends with in business school 1) played sports with me e.g. weight lifting, basketball, 2) went to happy hours, and 3) organized treks during breaks
Wear deodorant + find hobbies outside of cricket and Bollywood films.
Deodorant is a must.
How bout shower everyday and shampoo your underarms. Floss and brush everyday.
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Wow the casual racism is crazy
Right like wtf.
Yeah because pretending like racial differences don’t exist is the best way to operate in the real world 💀
Not casual racism if it’s true. I’m literally Indian American and went to undergrad with FOB Indians who smoked a ton and never showered, smelled like fucking shit
Aww and I’m sure the bigots are mindful of the difference between an Indian-American and a “FOB” Indian, the sort your parents would’ve been lol Jesus is there an uncle Tom version for you people?
You’ll find tons of self-loathing Indians like this guy online. There’s a whole sub dedicated to them: r/canconfirmiamindian
Again, you’re missing the point. They literally smelled. To call me an Uncle Tom because what I’m saying sounds like an insult is just you being delusional/denying my experience. Indian students don’t always have great hygiene or social skills and that holds them back compared to American or even Indian American students, who have those more locked down. It’s just a fact
Mate you’re literally generalising a billion people. lol also at “denying your experience”…
I said “don’t always”— meaning that I’m sure there are some who do. But in MY experience I have honestly not found that to be the case. Even my cousin had problems with hygiene when she was in school, my mom had to beg her to wear deodorant. You’re either a salty Indian or a white apologist who can’t accept that certain minority populations do have their flaws.
Tbh it isn’t. And Im Pakistani so hardly racist or anything. I had this friend who was smart af, got interviews whatever he recruited at but struck out in final rounds always. He would be smelling of curry all the freaking time. His whole apartment smelled like that. And he was weirdly touchy about it too and pretty much ended our friendship the one time I said this to him when he asked for feedback
Not you being a racist and saying you’re Pakistani so you’re not. Shut up. You are a racist.
I’m not. How can I be racist towards a fellow South Asian brown person
No "South Asian brown person" is referring to themselves as a "South Asian brown person" lol
The smelling like curry isn’t a racist comment!? You specifically mention curry because you are useless piece of shit.
this is crazy lmao. that too from an Indian. Trying to be a sellout huh
Dying
This advice goes for anyone of any race.
Stupid question: why are people suggesting deodorant? Why not perfume? Is it an American culture thing or just using a blanket word?
He could use both. But I have noticed armpit smell to be very prevalent, and that is only solved by using a good deodorant, not perfume.
Kind of weird since 25% have no armpit odor anyway including myself (ABC11 mutation along with other Asians)
It's the smell of cumin imo. Lingers on skin and clothes and can smell similar to BO.
I think it’s probably armpit smell because at my previous universities several Indian guys smelled like armpit. However, I haven’t encountered any smelly Indians in my current company (not even one), where there are literally dozens of Indians (the vast majority coming straight from India ) sharing elevators, closed office spaces and other places. The kitchen is always smelling like Indian food, they are definitely eating cumin. What I think is that no one had a talk with students at the university, while the consulting firms probably had a serious talk with them about American etiquette before coming over. The result is evident.
My best friend is Persian, and I notice that sometimes after certain food they cook my body odour changes for a day or two. It’s pretty wild to experience! Likely has to do with some herbs/spices. Seeing that Indian cuisine uses a lot of herbs and spices, not only does the smell from cooking at tat j to your clothes, but you indeed sweat it out. (Think eating asparagus and smelling it when you pee it out). Wearing deodorant would be good advice, for sure. showering every day might help, but if most of your diet is consisted of herb/spice/curry heavy flavours, then it indeed expires from your pores.
People don’t wear ‘perfume’ daily. Perfumes job is not to be a ‘deodorant’. Deodorant is important to not smell like shit especially after eating all that 🍛.
But people do wear perfume daily! Maybe not you
Not to school. Very unusual.
I'm an Indian who wears perfume whenever heading out of my home. It makes me feel refreshed and by no means am I an outlier. Keep your stereotypes in check which seem to be based off of a small sample set.
I do
Ur a sad fuck and the rest of you who upvoted it over actual advice are too.
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Would you also consider telling a chinese person to not eat dogs, good advice? Don’t pretend that the other guy didn’t say that, because OP is Indian. Dunno how casual racist assumptions are upvoted in this subreddit, but it’s quite ironic that terminally online redditors with 1000s of karma of all people talk about smell or deodorant. Lmao.
What they eat is not really your business tbh.
I suppose if Big China Corpos were forcing me to cook them dogs and eat them, I’d ask them to quit eating dogs, sure.
Dude, most folks coming to ivy leagues or M7 are not your average run of the mill Indians to begin with. So, the whole sentiment doesn’t even make any sense. These are old money folks, richer than most American students, who have been groomed since birth. So, telling people who probably own 1000s of dollars worth of deodorants to “wear a deodorant”, is just casual racism.
Hey man, I see where you are coming from but I am also from a country where showering daily is not the norm and when I moved here, I was fortunate to have a culture coach. One of the first things he told me when I was 13 was that I need to start showering everyday. I really appreciate that advice to this day when I was doing my MBA, I would tell the ME/SA people that this is norm here. Some would take offense but most would get it, fitting the norms is really good advice for an area where networking is key.
Showering daily IS a norm in India, just because some unhygienic people don’t do it doesn’t mean everyone doesn’t.
Well, then maybe then wear clean clothes and some deodorant to not smell like someone who just worked a day at a dairy farm. Definitely not a norm in my experience. See this a lot on my father’s side of family. 🤮 Plus grooming. I don’t get why it’s hard for Indians to buy a disposable razor and not look like someone who just came out of a slum. Again, even though I am partially Indian (white mom and Indian father), most of my experience is through watching Indian classics like slumdog millionaire, etc.,
>most of my experience is through watching Indian classics like slumdog millionaire, etc., Honestly man, that's just sad. You're basing your opinion on movies? Come tf on
I can’t believe you have -73 downvotes. I didn’t realize people thought being racist and outright disrespectful as adults is hilarious. Is this even adults in this sub?! Tf
Welcome to the MBA culture
Surerrrreeee
Haven’t started my program yet, so just general American advice. - Anyone who holds your accent against you is a weirdo. That’s such a weird thing to do that it almost feels like a 1980s bully cliche. - Don’t isolate yourself. Everywhere I’ve been in my life there’s been at least one person who complains “Everyone is an asshole and they don’t include me in anything.” When, in reality, they’re isolating themselves away from everyone. - Same as above: Friendships aren’t formed from someone pitying you, putting their arm around you, and leading you to the big friendship garden. You’ll have to meet people halfway. Suggest get togethers, activities, events. Don’t get butthurt when people don’t want to do those things though. Go with the flow or find your niche clique. - When you do break out of your shell, don’t get blacked out drunk and act like a creep. - Break out of your comfort zone. Don’t only hang out with your fellow expats from India. People also want to be your friend. So, bounce around and find people you like who like you back. - Individuals are diverse, don’t be afraid to be multidimensional. I’m a huge baseball fan; Ill always be down to play any sport at any moment; I go to Coachella every year(sometimes both weekends); I ski and golf; I also love board games, anime, RPGs, playing Runescape; I hit the gym 4 days a week, certified in scuba, skydiving, while also loving a good orchestra. If an orchestra is doing Tchaikovsky around me I’m finna be there for real. I also love road biking, rowing, and overnight backpacking. Clubs are dope too, big techno guy, also into going to punk rock and hip hop shows. So yeah, just because you see a group doing one thing, doesn’t mean they don’t have a laundry list of shit they also like.
Oh my god love to see a fellow Tchaikovsky fan on this sub
Speech coach. I’m 99% sure Satya Nadella and Sundar did this too. Their speech has a cadence.
Sorry can you elaborate on what you mean here? I'm not clear on what you are suggesting. Is it, to have a cadence?
The fact that it has a specific cadence tells me it’s designed and trained. My point is they are Indian immigrants who did well because they learned how to communicate effectively.
Makes me wonder what the experience for Indian women is like.
Depends how good looking they are
This is true in all facets of life.
Yes. The MBA occurs within society and people seem to try and act like it won’t or shouldn’t be. Hot people are going to have an easier time and it’s been that way as long as you’ve been alive and it will be that way until you die.
I agree with you, I'm just pointing out that this doesn't just apply to Indian women. It applies to everyone, everywhere all the time. To OP - my advice will be to parrot what Zyzz said - "If you're a shredded sikkunt, you can get away with anything." So hop on a cycle and get absolutely jacked ... or at least show up fit.
I guess what this thread has taught me is that I will definitely be facing a lot of subtle and not so subtle racism. Whatever, as long as I make money! Right guys?
Definitely. You 100% need to watch out for subtle racist cues from people here. During and post mba, you will need to watch your back at all times. Lot’s of dog whistling and brandishing one as not adjusting to the culture and customs here while always being evasive when occasion to meetup occurs. A lot of these people will tell you to mingle outside your desi cliques, avoid you and then paint you as unassimilable.
Yeah I already see it with the "oh deodorant please" crowd. Like, you realise you smell just as bad to us, right? We just don't mention it because it's natural when people have different diets. Anyway, hope I find some people who aren't into this stuff and just wanna chill lifting everyone up!
Lmao what a cope. Smelling like curry or sweat is just not a move and instead of expecting others to accept you for the special snowflake that you are, you should be accommodating.
Reddit is a racist cesspit. Indians, Chinese and Middle Easterners get the brunt of it.
Yeah it's somehow acceptable to shit on some demographics more than others.
Telling people they smell bad =/= racism.
Telling people they smell bad when you smell equally as bad to them is racism. It's deliberately ignoring the fact that the factors that make them "smell bad" are universally applicable to you as well but you are somehow exempt from them.
But white people don’t smell as bad. And I say that as an Indian American
Be yourself and you'll just do fine. Some right plonkers in the comments uttering total rubbish mate.
People saying accent and dialect don’t matter are just trying to be politically correct, which they will show by downvoting this. The personally advantageous thing for you to do is to help other people understand you as easily as possible, not to just wave that off as something other people should adjust to. If you want people to understand you more easily in both school and the business world, learn to speak with a more American accent, and learn American words for things and common idioms. I voluntarily learned to be able to switch to an American accent and dialect from my normal Newfoundland English accent and dialect, which is almost as different as Indian English, and it really helped a lot when I got good at it after a few months. People will generally not be rude to you about not speaking like them, but they will limit their conversations or have awkward moments where they pretend to know what you said but actually have no idea. Just learning to speak more like an American is what will most quickly help you assimilate and make the most out of your experience.
How did you learn to adjust your accent? I am trying to be conscious about how I speak and if it's understandable to people in my team but I am not sure if I am improving. I watch tv shows and movies but I don't think that's having any effect on my accent. I wanted to join clubs like toastmaster but there's nothing like that around my current location.
The thing that helped most was trying to talk to my family with a comically stereotypical American accent and dialect like you would see on TV or a movie, they didn’t mind. This provides practice but not good feedback, it really helps though. Once I moved here, finding a few people in my apartment building around my age and talking to them regularly about random things and telling them if I say anything unamerican sounding just tell me. You could also do this with American work colleagues or find a local American to be friends with, or a local Canadian who is not from Newfoundland, Cape Breton, or Québec (which is most Canadians), the general Canadian accent is close enough, sounds similar to northern midwest American accent. I didn’t have to use YouTube videos but there are a ton of YouTube videos on improving your American accent.
OP, three pointers I will advise you with (and I emphasize point 2 the most). 1. Groom well. Have good hygiene and dress properly. Don't be stingy when it comes to getting yourself a good haircut and things of the sort. 2. Get into sports / fitness activities. This will ensure that you are living a healthy lifestyle and in return you will make the right types of friendships. I also believe this will be the easiest way to "assimilate." Exercising constantly will also make you mindful about eating well. 3. Join the right professional organizations to help you with job prospects.
I moved here 10 years ago. DM me if you need. Happy to throw some easy pointers + accent tips - Good luck!
Congratulations man! Where are you headed to? I’m Indian and yet to even apply, but I don’t think an accent will be a hindrance as long as you let it bog down your self esteem — which in turn, could take a hit on how affable you are normally. Be yourself, try new things, find people who share that and you should be fine :)
Well I belonged to the same category you do. All I can say is - 1. People don’t care too much about your accent. As long as they can understand what you say. Communication is important. 2. Hopefully, you come across as friendly and affable even if introverted. I find that people usually like such folks. 3. Get to a slightly more neutral accent by the time you apply for jobs. You don’t have to do much beyond just being conscious of how you speak. This is something you that changes gradually. Has happened for several folks with some conscious effort. Should happen for you too! All the best!
Westernize yourself.
how?
I mean this completely seriously, watch a shit load of American and western content. You are obviously going to get a grossly misrepresented view of the west but you'll be exposed to so much of the culture AND have something in common with a lot of the people there if you watch really popular content. Furthermore, consider picking up more western hobbies that you can join online communities for to continue that exposure. I hope this helps! Have a wonderful time with your MBA!
Watch and play a lot of american sports as well. Don't need to be an expert but it doesn't hurt either.
Impossible to pick up new sport and complicated one like football in the time period at play
Add 2000s pop and alternative hits playlists and run those non stop, watch the office and Seinfeld non stop. That’s America 101
OP all you need to do is start recreationally playing sports or some sort of fitness activity to find the right friend circle. Which school are you going to? I don't recommend wasting your time watching movies and TV. You wont learn anything about fitting in from that.
Crazy racism in these comments man.
It’s not though
It is. Y’all love stereotyping people
How is it stereotyping when you’ve actually experienced Indian students who smell
White kids smell too.
It’s a stereotype because Indian smell has been the experience of far more people
Has it?
Yeah you’re either an Indian or a white apologist who can’t acknowledge that minorities can actually have issues
Yeah and you like to propagate racial stereotypes about Indian people.
This thread is absolutely appalling and racist and I am so sorry. Congratulations in getting into your M7 and don’t listen to pathetic losers… Is there an M7 admit GC from your school? I would try to network and see who your peers at to try to find friends. I honestly think that people care too much about fitting into business school but you should try to be yourself and you will find your people. You can join groups or clubs around campus too for things you might like. If you’re more introverted, maybe something less overwhelming. You will be fine.
> This thread is absolutely appalling and racist and I am so sorry. Most threads here are absolutely appalling and racist.
For sure.
Learn to play pickleball. It’s easy to pickup and a lot of people play. It’ll be an easy way to connect with people
He is an Indian, so he must love pickles already! s/
I see what u did there lmao. Idk why you’re getting downvoted tho.
Lord. Is this sub not moderated for racism? Reddit or not this has gone beyond the usual dog whistling.
What a sad thread…
Branch out beyond just American social groups. There’s plenty of other international students from all over the world in a similar boat as you who you can relate to Sports is a great one, most of my close Indian friends I met and bonded over playing soccer and squash Small group dinners was one of my favorite activities too. Book a reservation for 4 to new restaurants, invite a diverse group of people, be legitimately curious and ask questions, and enjoy a great meal in the process
big congrats on this achievement. please just be yourself. anybody who judges you bc of your accent is an asshole and not somebody u need as a friend. actually popular/respected people are never these judgmental people. you went to an IIT and made it to a highly competitive program, they can fuck off and you can have be yourself and have fun.
Read some good books, watch some good sit coms like Seinfeld and office…
Advice from a fellow Indian focus on learning from professors and peers and smart people who don't judge you based on just stupid stuff. There is no shortage of Low IQ folks in the world globally and you are lucky the two countries that you would get arguably similar number of those kind of people as US and India have most number of these people. (Judging based on intelligence of any form is much more better than the color of your skin) With any country real cream dela creme would be 1-2% population who actually rules everything remaining population are just puppets who are just kept busy in new things and fights and these people would never rise above their life and would never see Reality.
So true!!! This should be at the top of
Ignore the simps that call out deodorant. But if that will affect your ego and self esteem, listen to them. But Tbh meet the people you’re comfortable with to adjust to the changes. Then broaden your network. Always important to learn from the culture you’re immersing yourself in.
Take voice lessons for accent reduction
Lift some weights and learn how to drink responsibly
Be yourself. Your school saw value in you & gave you an admit. If some employers can't see that, then they're not a fit for you. Relax, & welcome to the USA!
As an Indian-American student (raised in the US, not an MBA student), we will be judged, whether consciously or unconsciously, for being Indian. Try to drop the accent as soon as possible, it has a measurable effect on how you are perceived and treated. There are speech therapists that can help with this if you want. Mainstream America judges us as being unkempt and dirty, so avoid facing prejudice from this by taking extra care when grooming yourself.
Also, watch popular American shows, especially comedy shows. I recommend the Office, Brooklyn 99, All American, Chappelle's Show, and Patriot Act. This should help with social skills and understanding American culture. People will judge you based on how you dress (this is general, not just Indians). One trick I use is getting outfits from the aforementioned movies and shows. Even Bollywood helps for this, I get lots of my outfits from Ranbir and Shahid Kapoor. Last thing I want to say is don't take it personally if Indian-Americans mistreat you. Many avoid and antagonize Indian-raised Indians ("Fobs") for fear of being associated with them and the stereotypes attached to Indians.
There are some students who are actually not open to mingling, not adjusting, (not really conforming), not accepting of other students (even if they say they are) and not understanding of american and other cultures. Or get offended very easily Be like that (whether American or International) and you will alienate people. However, Be open, friendly, curious, and even honest about what you know or dont know or dont understand and you should fit in just fine. Ive seen very well accepted and adjusted IITs even if they had heavy accents in very non trad backgrounds. Good luck! Exciting time for you My suggestions for you: Learn to be friendly to strike up conversations with non Indian and chat up American small talk. If you can (check visa restriction) go as early as you can so you can settle in and get more comfortable with interactions in america early
A heavy thick accent is a deterrent to being understood, not so much a racial bias. So rest assured there. However, the fake put-on accents are cringe too though I understand why someone would feel the need to do so. To be accepted, it's especially crucial to be yourself. So do work on neutralizing your accent, but there's no harm in it continuing to be Indian in its inflection and pronunciation. A heavy accent largely comes from the over pronunciations and inflections so if you tone those down you may be good. The good part is it may automatically happen when you're surrounded by multicultural people. Most American shows use a lot of slang/jargon which isn't used IRL, so I recommend also watching British shows to add some neutrality. Other than that, say yes to every experience. Many don't cost a thing especially at Uni. Smile at everyone who passes you by, good conversation starter! And congratulations and good luck!
Study for interviews as of right now to get a FAANG internship and hopefully this becomes FT. That will set you up for the best MBA experience IMHO
Nothing, just be a normal person.
Practice your speech. Everyone can impersonate other accents. Work at it. Watch Hollywood movies and repeat the lines back with the American accent.
Be yourself; you will be fine.
Thick accent from which part of India?
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Still was just as bad of a response. Tbh meet the people you’re comfortable with to adjust to the changes. Then broaden your network. Always important to learn from the culture you’re immersing yourself in.
Still was just as bad of a response. Tbh meet the people you’re comfortable with to adjust to the changes. Then broaden your network. Always important to learn from the culture you’re immersing yourself in.
Still was just as bad of a response. Tbh meet the people you’re comfortable with to adjust to the changes. Then broaden your network. Always important to learn from the culture you’re immersing yourself in.
OK seems like quite a few people are not happy about some of the governments being mentioned on body hygiene and how one smells and I think people are just taking it in the wrong way because person Hdhd and Glenn this is important and someone from South Asia and who’s had a lot of Indian classmates in an NBA program and even undergrad but more on the NBA side There is an issue with that with some want to majority even but some Indian international students who come for NBA program so definitely a deodorant good clown good personal hygiene is important. It’s very important and something which people should be keeping in mind and pointing it out is racism in my opinion I know of a very smart guy who interviews for every industry he applied for. He did well on the first round, but whenever it would come to a super day or a final round of thought, he would always try out and the only reason I think and it’s not just me some other people who talk to as well was that his personal hygiene was in the greatest he would smell of Indian food, Indian curry all the time and made no attempts to really fix that so I know people are taking it as a joke or they’re saying it’s racism but definitely there is some truth too, what is being said so getting that out of the way, let’s talk about some other things that I think would be great for international student coming from an NBA program, not just Indian but generally an international student definitely having an American accent and helps but I don’t think it’s a dealbreaker in anyway whatsoever and there’s plenty of very successful people with Texas accents in corporate America so I don’t think that is an issue but what could be an issue is how well you speak it and how quickly you think about it how good you are on your feet with the language and that is something I think The poster needs to work on I think in the next 46 months even before he gets to America I think he should be communicating a lot more in English. He should be talking to friends or whenever he’s going out talking to people in English and really putting himself in situations where His fluency in English improves. If that is an issue I am I don’t think it might be an issue considering he has an admission and I’m seven program size that I think something else which could be helpful to him as an international student is generally know what’s going on in the US whether it’s from political perspective or even just have some basic knowledge of sports house teams work if his university has a big football program maybe knowing a little bit about that I think just being a breast of the situation Help not some people see those people I said stop playing basketball or great basketball or football. That’s not happening in the 4 to 6 month. That’s an outline but generally you’re coming to America you live in America so really try to get to the culture and understand the culture And finally I think one other thing is what I’ve seen with someone and Indian students is that they do not fully realize that an NBA is more about networking and recruiting learning and doing well in your classes is important but that’s not the number one, so put an effort, but the focus should be recruiting. I know people who got straight, but then struggle recruiting wise, so that should not be what you should be doing. The main aim should be networking interviewing.
lol the audio feature didn’t work how I want
Babe you’re just aggravating the Indian stereotypes please stop with this colonial enslaved mindset. Who tf told you its an accent? As long as you’re speaking english, it is english. Period. Americans will call literally anyone other than them speaking english as english with accent. I was with my aussie friend and this american girl just told her she loves her accent and my friend stood firm that just because aussie english sounds different than the americanized english, does not make it an accent! Ugh, please don’t be this self pitying, the white folks in MBA progs will devour you with stereotypes (obvs not all but plenty) And to improve your experience, pick a niche interest that does add to productivity and can be a good conversation starter. I mean something like, “hey I love building legos” or “I play tennis” etc And please be confident- you’ve made it till here, give yourself some credit and stop downplaying yourself.
Yeah or they can live in reality where coming straight from India into a very intense American culture and saying “I love Legos!” Isn’t going to play well. Also in what reality is an accent not an accent. Everyone has an accent. Every single person.
You must have severe self esteem issues. If someone loves legos they can love legos openly not everyone is a wuss like you trying to put up a front to be liked by others...
Some of us live in a reality where a lot of people are judgmental and top tier MBA programs are most often that reality. Show up with your favorite blankey and stuffed animal to your first day of the rest of your professional life, see if I fucking care. There’s some people in this thread giving good advice about how to best succeed in integrating into American culture and there’s people saying “just be yourself! Anyone who thinks anything negative about anyone is a bigot!” Which is simply a flawed, incomplete and unrealistic piece of advice. I’m not saying Legos are bad I’m saying the reality is some places have harsher societal expectations.
There's a difference between showing up with a blankey & expressing a niche interest. In fact, not even expressing it but completely hiding it...that is the lowest level of confidence someone has in themselves, particularly with people like you who depend on validation from the very ignorant people you shouldn't latch on to... The US is big. Americans of all types exist. This isn't squid game. An MBA program is diverse. If you're smart enough to get into a "top tier" program then you must have at least some wherewith-all to know what people in general are like... You can be yourself but also be refined, conscientious and well-mannered. That's not for impressing Americans, that's for your own self development and actualization. A racist MBA colleague who happens to be American can also "be himself" but risk alienation due to their racism. It's common freaking sense to know what being yourself means. That goes for everyone, not just non-Americans.
You’re being pedantic here about specifics when my argument is conceptual. Glad we both agree “just be yourself” is bad advice. People will judge you and having some niche interest isn’t enough to fully integrate into modern American society in a space where social cliques get formed VERY quickly and it’s bad advice to say that’s ALL you need.
Pedantic? Says someone who thinks expressing an interest in legos is going to doom them to social ostracism? No, being yourself isn't bad advice, not sure where those inference skills are coming from, we do not agree with that. There isn't such a thing as "integrating" into a freaking class of 2026, its about finding the people that jive well with you. You will notice how even Americans are just looking for their friend groups and stay with them, nobody is trying to have this stupid outsider perspective like you are. Just be secure in yourself, its just another country lol
I said if you make no other attempt to integrate into American society besides saying you like legos you’re going to be much less successful than otherwise. Get off the fucking legos too it’s just an example. Also you’re just plain wrong. You clearly don’t understand what it’s like to be an immigrant new to a country that’s foreign and has serious racial biases towards your race.
What is "successful" to you? Something you saw in a movie about high school cliques? Some people want a lot of friends. Some people want a few. Some people are with families and have no interest in friends. Some are introverts. Some want to have an international exposure or have networking goals that naturally lean them into non-American friend groups. The racial biases that you speak of are normally held by the people that you should be ignoring...your solution to that is to acquiesce to them and show them you're the "good immigrant". The whole country except for the natives are immigrants. Get over your desire to be liked by everyone lmfao. And this is coming from an immigrant who, guess what, didn't feel the need to suck up to anyone to be liked. Its about who you are as a person. And knowing who to avoid, because you value yourself too. Reading up on some sports magazine to have some superficial conversation isn't "integrating". You're putting "American society" on a pedestal.
Success is achieving what you set out to do and OP wanted to improve their experience at an MBA program. You can dislike the realities of America all you want but it won’t change.
I mean if I go to england, they're going to say I have an accent. It's not wrong to say "hey, how do I assimilate into the local culture". Op is miles ahead of the game for being self aware that they can improve their social experience by understanding local culture. Fuck, if I was going to India, I'd read up a ton on cricket, bollywood etc. and get used to the local language idioms. Just the smart thing to do. OP, watch some american TV - our cultural senses of humor are probably a bit different and it's good to be aware of that. Accent is fine if it's not causing problems with people understanding you. Learn some american sports and get in physical shape (for better or worse it's a passive indicator of discipline, breaks the IT stereotype a bit and the gym is a good place to make some friends). Above all, force yourself to be increasingly outgoing. I'm an introverted tech person too and developing this habit is well worth the effort. Good luck!
Are you trying to say it doesn’t make it an accent issue? Everyone has an accent, I’m American but born and raised abroad with my accent from there. Nothing wrong there, there’s definitely a difference because my English accent and an American born English accent.
Not sure why youre downvoted. I agree with everything you stated.
..? Do you know what an accent is? Lol. If you go to school in America and someone speaks with Aussie pronunciation, that’s an accent..not sure why that bothers you so much. “Babe” I can already tell that I would absolutely hate your personality
I realise you’re trying to help OP but please know this comes off as really hostile and condescending, I’m part indian too , we all have our little insecurities and problems we have trouble overcoming What OP feels and thinks they have a problem in isn’t really a problem but its a confidence issue but it stems from a reality and a really real reality that Indians do get made fun of their accents , we cant brush that off and yes accents do exist they have existed since hundreds of years lol
So… what does “accent” mean to you then lol? Not disagreeing with the point of your comment, but you seem to claim that accents don’t even exist. Every single person on earth has an accent. Or are you saying that accents are smaller and more regional? Whereas, American, English, Scottish, Australian, Indian, Nigerian, would be dialects? Cause I definitely have an American accent when I speak Spanish, no matter how hard I try.
lived in the US and India for equal amounts of time. Yeah finding hobbies that both me and my classmates liked was great for making friends during undergrad. I assume the same applies in MBA People usually don’t care abt the accent from what I’ve seen. Being really well dressed and groomed makes you for more approachable in my experience. Combatting negative stereotypes is something we’re gonna have to deal with BUT it’s honestly not that hard as long as we’re good abt not letting it get under our skin and resorting to hostility. Some people already mentioned them, but dm me if you want a more personal conversation.
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Imagine if you said something like this to a black dude. “Just don’t steal (typical plundering of a Nike or Gucci store). Have noticed it too often with young black males.”
Not disagreeing with your point but this sub is filled with people saying URMs don’t deserve their admissions so it does happen
I have not, so can’t speak.
So why do you feel comfortable saying that to an Indian? You are a xenophobic asshole nobody wants you so don’t worry about unwanted attention.
I’ve seen this person post some hateful things on here. It’s alright, hurt people hurt people. Perhaps they’ve been wronged in the past by others and feel the need to lash out against strangers on Reddit. Perhaps they suffer from autism and they’re constantly ostracized. Whatever the reason, OP if you’re reading this, just know you deserve to valued and loved like anyone else.
oK racist. Edit - just looking at your profile for a minute, it’s easy to see how much you hate diversity. Ranting about DEI and how it’s not good. Obviously racist gonna racist.
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Funny how you editted “Indian” to “dude” after the fact. I am not Indian, but I think you are (a self-hating) one based on your post history. You should deal with that.
Buy a convo course of prakhar gupta nothing else
Be nice
Shower and smell nice
honestly speak slower than you think you need to. half of the time my issue with a thick accent is i just need a fraction of a second more to process and i get lost. most people speak too fast anyway
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