Facing Final Exams Without Job Offers: Can We Get Offer Letters Just by Asking?

We are MBA students from a B School in Coimbatore. We are in our final year, and our final exams are going to start next week. We didn't have any campus placements at all. Now, the placement officer is asking us to submit offer letters to get hall tickets for the exam. If we fail to submit the offer letter, we will not receive the hall tickets, it seems. We have informed them that we are still searching for a job and have not received an offer letter yet. However, the placement officer is suggesting that even if we do not join a company, we should at least obtain the offer letter.

We are wondering if any company would provide an offer letter if we simply approach them and ask? We would be grateful if senior members could offer some suggestions on how to address this issue we are currently facing.

First of all, as a placement officer, he is responsible for getting companies to participate in campus drives at colleges. Furthermore, no company will issue you an offer letter if you directly approach them. Obtaining one from fraudulent consultancies is of no benefit to your candidacy.

Regards

Your placement officer and your college's management do not have any right to stop you from appearing in the exam in the absence of an offer letter. It is the duty of the placement officer to arrange campus placement and get you a job. He is being paid a salary for placing the candidates in various companies. You should tell him to do his duty properly. If they do not listen, then join with your other friends and talk to the management of the college. If they also do not listen, then complain to the police, advertise in the newspaper, etc. No student will take admission in their college next year.

Regards,
Manjay Sharma

Echoing Manjay, get your parents and other students involved. The placement officer and college have everything to lose.

Response to Allegations Regarding Placement Process

This post, by our classmate, is the handiwork of a demented mind and needs to be taken with a sackful of salt. The basic allegation that he has made here is a blatant lie and a misrepresentation of facts. The few students like him who did not secure a placement were told to give a note explaining what steps they were taking to get placed on their own. This was done solely to see if the institution could help them in any way towards finding employment. They were advised to submit that note while they came to take the Hall Tickets. Students like me, who have been placed in reputed firms (thanks to our institution and the genial placement officer), were told to submit our offer letters at the same time, and we gladly did the same. There was no threat of any kind involved.

At a time when the nation's economy is in a sharp downturn, and companies are downsizing and cutting costs, our institution tried its best and helped 80% of us to get placed in fairly reputed companies. At times, I think we students are forgetting that colleges are places where they impart knowledge. They are not placement agencies, obliged by law to provide employment to each student. The placement officer is a mere coordinator who facilitates the institution, students, and the companies to make the best of the opportunities available in a growing economy. Candidates with negative attitudes would not be welcome in any company or industry, regardless of the placement officer, the institution, or their academic proficiency.

This particular guy has been whining all year round because he did not take any of the opportunities seriously and hence could not get placed purely because of his negative attitude and incompetence. There were instances when he was found sobbing on his mentor's shoulder like a primary school kid. Last month, the moron tried to instigate all of us with a group mail to revolt against the management for some silly reasons that he had cooked up on his own. We laughed it off.

We, all his classmates, feel sorry for this guy and his juvenile attempts at getting some attention. But we are really appalled by his attempts to tarnish the image of kind people like our placement officer, who is merely executing the orders of the management and following the policies laid down by them.

This guy needs help. He needs counseling, and he needs to wake up and smell the coffee before it's too late.

Request for Accurate Information

Please, members, post factual information for proper opinions. Refrain from providing distorted or incomplete information, as it can lead to misguidance. This particular thread, opened by a member, has been countered by none other than his classmate. This situation highlights how some members are misusing this forum.

Regards,
Pon

I wonder about your identity. You can see we all disclose our identity, and you are hiding yourself. I think you are not his classmate. Your language and tone are clear that you are not his classmate.

How did you come to know that your classmate has posted something on Citehr, and you came up to provide justification for your college/institution? He has not mentioned details of his college/institution, so why do you want to give justification and start blaming the student?

We all know that college is not a placement agency, so why is your college asking for a placement offer letter? Your college is not responsible for the same.

Student Exam Eligibility and Offer Letter Requirement

The question raised is "Student will not be allowed to appear for the exam in the absence of an offer letter from a company." Why is your college making such unreasonable rules? This rule of the college made him ask for a "duplicate offer letter," which results in "corruption," and unwillingly your college becomes the soil and seed for the growth of corruption.

If a student does not have an offer letter and is eligible for the exam, then he should appear for the exam. Later on, if he does not get a job offer, it is his problem, not yours or your college's.

Regards,
Manjay

Classmate justification is not an eye-opener. He is not a classmate but is from college management.

Question on Exam Eligibility

A simple question was raised: "Will students not be allowed to appear for the exam in the absence of an offer letter from a company?" Is this the correct rule?

We provided our opinion on this statement.

Regards,
Manjay

One thing is certain: the college is engaging in wrongful practices. The issue is not that they are unable to secure jobs for everyone. If I had been in their place, I would have advised him to pursue work-related certifications and start small. Not everyone in the world attends IIM or ISB. The problem is they are trying to portray a false image. They will be using inflated figures that are incorrect. I don't know who goes under the ID "Holswege," but I hope you have heard of the All India Management Association. I am a life member of this prestigious and apex body in India.

I don't know who you are. Anyways, the issue is over, so better stop these digressions. We have paid special fees, placement fees, etc., but we have not been provided with even a single good opportunity. In this situation, you asked for offer letters. We felt it was a total injustice, and no one in the college seems to listen to our words. So we felt it would be better if we get an opinion from some industry people themselves and show it to you. We did it.

You gave fake information like 80% placement blah blah. Tomorrow, you should update the true placement details on the college website. Then everyone will know the truth.

Anyways, nothing is going to happen by discussing it. We believe in ourselves. Life won't end if we don't secure a placement in college. We have the confidence that we can search for a job for ourselves in this big world.

But introspect yourself and see if what you have done is right or wrong. The placement officer's job is highly responsible and at times stressful too.

Be committed to the job. Try to build a good network, work full-time with complete dedication. Don't hesitate to do some fieldwork. Ensure some good placements for our juniors at least.

Regards.

I know very well that you are not the placement officer. If my guess is right, you should be a close associate of the placement officer. What I don't understand is that you don't even try to realize the mistakes on your side and are very keen on blaming me repeatedly. What amuses me is that you keep telling me companies came to campus seeking us. I really don't know what to say about it.

Just see things from a management point of view. We students are customers. We have paid fees (premium fees) and in response to it, we have all the rights to demand quality service.

Steps a Well-Committed Placement Officer Would Have Done

1. Prepare the placement brochure by May 2011.
2. Send the brochure to no less than 150 recruiters.
3. Have an active LinkedIn account.
4. Call companies to the campus by networking (considering the fact that the placement officer has been in the same field for 5 years, networking is not at all a problem).
5. Telecall to know about the vacancies.
6. Fix up appointments with HRs.
7. Go meet them in person and arrange campus interviews.
8. Maintain a good network with other placement officers in the region to update various interviews and arrange off-campus interviews for students.
9. Work for the whole day and not like how our placement officer usually works for 5 hours—from 9 am to 2 pm.

Say from your heart, whether the placement officer has done at least one thing I mentioned above? I can very well say, every student would have expected at least 5 good opportunities. But we haven't been provided with even a single good opportunity. Not even a single student has got a proper job. Cracking an interview is up to an individual's knowledge and skill level, but arranging interviews for them is the duty of the placement officer.

If the same thing happens to your child, will you talk so generously like how you are talking now?

Okay, let's try to see things from the 'management point of view'. You paid 'premium fees' to an institution expecting 'quality service'. Now, if the quality service was lacking, you have all the reasons to get upset, but you should be taking the institution to task. For example, in a restaurant, if the coffee was bad, you don't go about mocking the cook or start giving him lessons on coffee making. A sane customer would talk to the supervisor or the manager to get a replacement coffee or a refund. Bad-mouthing the cook can only leave a sour taste in your mouth.

Please realize that your problem is with the service provider - your institution in this case. The placement officer is a trusted employee of the institution who has the backing of the whole management. The placement officer enjoys all the freedom and working style that has been approved by the management every step of the way.

If you were so particular about studying in an institution that guaranteed opportunities in spite of your shortcomings, you should have checked the profile, the previous track record, and the work discipline of the placement officers of all the available institutions before paying 'premium fees' and becoming a customer of one.