Born and raised in Gaya, a city famously known for its roots in Buddhism, Salahuddin Md Sharib grew up absorbing the rich heritage of the ancient town and the economic struggles that a decent chunk of its residents face. Having been sensitized to the reality behind these harsh struggles where he saw people often struggle with high-interest loans offered to the underbanked population often trapping them in cycles of debt left a profound impact on him. Yet, as a kid, he didn’t know how he could solve it yet.
With an interest in digging into things, learning the mechanics of how things work, and solving problems, he decided to pursue an undergraduate degree in engineering. Upon clearing the engineering entrance examination, he made it to BITS at the Pilani campus. The four years at Pilani were marked by significant leadership experiences since the campus has a great sense of community, and there is a lot that you can explore outside the classes
Noticing that Pilani was a rural area and there was a great scope for increasing community outreach programs, he joined NSS, The National Service Scheme, a community outreach program run by the Government of India’s Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, and worked as a teaching volunteer for two years. He also worked with the Firefox community, an open-source software community, leading their front-end awareness campaign.
However, his engineering dream ended at the engineering school, and he found himself drawn to consulting. Joining Merelytics as a Business Analyst, he started with digital strategy projects. However, realizing his core interest lies in solving financial problems, he pivoted to a financial consulting role. Finding his real footing in Finance and utilizing the skills he developed in his Finance minor back at Pilani, he catalyzed multi-sector revenue growth projects, IPOs at a global scale, and M&As, refining his analytical and problem-solving skills.
Realizing that pivoting to Finance was the right call for him, he deepened his roots in Finance by taking on a banking consulting role at EXL Service. Working with the large portfolio of banking clients at EXL, specializing in credit risk consulting, Sharib helped expand credit accessibility and visibility via digital innovation and model enhancements. Additionally, he optimized profitability and advocated for financial inclusivity through comprehensive credit strategies and impacted the credit card acquisition portfolio via inclusive risk management strategies.
Through these experiences, he realized that his passion lies in disrupting the finance industry to improve financial inclusivity. His long-term goal of revolutionizing financial systems in India fueled his desire to learn from advanced financial ecosystems. “I wanted to gain a holistic understanding of how the industry works in the US because they’re doing a much better job at inclusivity,” Sharib explained. Secondly, since his role was more around operational and implementation, he wanted to take on a strategy role to comprehend how strategy firms work in this area.
Realizing that he needed to build leadership skills to better position himself to pursue his goals, he decided that an MBA was the perfect next step. Once that was clear, his next steps were tactical. With his strong academic and professional experience, especially with the fast-track promotions he received at Merelytics and EXL, he knew his profile was well-positioned for the top business schools. However, he needed to understand better how to approach this process and best articulate his story. Hearing glowing reviews about the Admissions Gateway team from his friends from BITS Pilani, he reached out to Admissions Gateway and found his perfect partner in Piyush.
Describing his interactions with Piyush and Rajdeep, he shared, “The entire experience with Piyush was transformational, to say the least. Industries in India are structured in a very functional nature. So, you think about your job and how you want to do it without discussing the long-term impact and the scale. The team really helped open my eyes to that aspect. The whole process was very holistic, and AGC’s sessions and structured guidance were invaluable in helping me manage this process. I’m still in touch with Piyush, and he’s currently helping me with tips on getting into a strategy consulting role.”
In his MBA application essays, Sharib emphasized his commitment to financial inclusivity, drawing from personal experiences in Gaya and professional work in credit risk. His essay for Haas, which revolved around the theme of what makes him feel alive, highlighted his social impact work. He recounted his time volunteering with Teach for India, working with underserved students in Mumbai. “It wasn’t just about teaching – it was about connecting with these kids and making a real difference in their lives,” he shared. His passion for creating positive change resonated with Haas’s values, particularly the principle of “Beyond Yourself,” and helped strengthen his application.
His dedication and hard work paid off when he received offers from Berkeley Haas with a 40% scholarship and UNC Kenan Flagler and Indiana Kelley with significant scholarships. After careful consideration, he accepted the admissions offer from Haas, given the perfect alignment with the school’s culture.
Now at Haas, Sharib is immersing himself in a culture that values questioning the status quo, a perfect match for his ambitions. He is an active member of clubs like Net Impact and FinTech, and is exploring courses such as “Becoming a Changemaker” and “Business Models for Social Impact.” He is also keen on experiential learning opportunities, like the international business development program, which would allow him to work on impactful projects abroad. Haas’s vibrant, collaborative community has further fueled his entrepreneurial spirit, reminding him of his time at BITS Pilani but on an even larger, more ambitious scale.
To read more such stories of folks who got into their dream business schools to pursue their lifelong passion, check out our success stories.
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