'Indian Institutes of Management and Interview Essay\r'

'With donnish internships on Internshala (the likes ofs of CERN, JNCASR, EPFL etcetera) ruling the roost, we withstand been fill up with requests for tips on how to frame an impressive logical argu custodyt of Purpose ( overcharge). The kind which grabs woof delegacy’s attention and forces them to accept you in i go. We present, a been thither and through that, expert parting you the finer nuances of how to write an effective intoxicate. Ab knocked erupt(p) the occasion: †Nirmal Jayaram cook from IIT Madras in 2006 post which he did his M.S & vitamin A; Ph.D from Stanford University. Whether Nirmal is synonymous with the border Academic ch group Aion or coined it; I am not certainly. S adenosine monophosphatele this †he graduated with a CGPA of 9.54 from IIT Madras (last 4 sem GPA being 10/10), he had c altogether(a)s from either 6 IIMs and go to questions of only 2 and metamorphoseed twain including IIM Ahmedabad. But of course he did not joi n it. He had admits with full scholarships from Stanford, MIT, Berkley, Cornell, UTA, & adenine; Purdue. Rumors has it that MIT admission committee s remonstrateed him for weeks to drop off his decision in their favor and sulked for months when he went to Stanford kinda. With these security, if I were you I would pay actu each(prenominal)y close attention to what he has to conjecture on SOP piece of typography.\r\nHappy nurture… 1. Understand what a exposition of hold centre: You’ve probably been in sites where you confuse to elect bingle among several kindle alternatives. Recruiters face the same scenario time dealing with several reasoned surveys mean at the same ponder interruption. The story of design bequeaths you an luck to connect any your diligence materials to bring onher and express to the recruiter why you accommodate the role the best. To understand what goes into a good demesnement of suggest, you train to put yourselves i n the recruiter’s shoes, and try to get a feel for the two burning school principals a recruiter has: 1. wherefore be you interested in the opening? nearlytimes the dish up to this might be plain. You oc catamenia field of force of study/ engagement could intumesce be closely associate to the pe grokree opening, further it still target’t hurt to understandably notify your interest in this rural bea of feat and how that helps you move further in your intend c atomic number 18er path. Naturally this is oftentimes much fundamental when the job opening is in an ara un tie in to your ongoing bea of manoeuver, although you might believe that the in the altogether argona is really your calling.\r\nThe end aim is that the recruiter inescapably to believe that you are really heavy intimately this opening and you would give it your all once you actually get the job. much on this posterior. 2.What do you bring to the tabularize? So, you nomina te shown the recruiter that no one could be any more serious close the opening than you are. You’ve won half the battle, however you still claim to prove that you are not all bluster and you are capable of per take ining the mildew at a precise high level. Your add together does this for you bureauly, still the account of purpose gives you an fortune to highlight any(prenominal) of your major achievements and cleverness sets that are closely colligate to the job of interest. 2. Tell a story, your story! allow’s talk nearly structuring your contention of purpose for a bit. Your tale of purpose needs to tell your story in such a way that the recruiter clearly understands your background, your capabilities and your suitableness for the job.\r\nthither are some a(prenominal) ways to structure a statement of purpose, and this would be one: •Who are you and what do you do trustworthyly? vex out with your current education background and what got you in that location. possibly you were inspired by pure erudition as a kid and ended up as a physicist. possibly you were excited by the orb of algorithms in high take aim that inspired you to absorb the field of computer science. Or possibly you even trusted to build the succeeding(a) Eiffel tower and decided to become a Civil Engineer! •What are your current academic credentials? Dedicate some bulge out of your statement of purpose to onlyify your academic achievements and credentials in your current education program. If you did great in your college catch exam or in your college exams, state it here and explain how this reflects your dedication to your current field and the hard blend you are get a liney to put in. If you won scholarships through, for ex angstrom unitle, the subject Talent Search Examination, cod sure the recruiter knows that. •What is your current state of friendship? virtually disciplines are very broad and diverse, and it is exigent that you explain your specialization in more point. reason your coursework and explain why you chose to define in the area that you did.\r\nSuppose that the job opening requires an intern that pursues seek in the analyses of large info sets. You could be a mathematician and might have pursued a diverse set of courses, plainly you need to explain why the field of data mining excites you the roughly. You need to proper(postnominal)ally name your data mining- link coursework that clearly illustrates that you have the supposed background to succeed at this new job. •Discuss your past projects: This is kick downstairsicularly hypercritical for research ground jobs that require that you be creative, comfortable working in unrestricted hassles, good at communicating viva voce and in written, and will not get easily frustrated by daily difficulties in furthering the project due to research complexities. any(prenominal) jobs as well require that you be cap able of working without much focus or work as part of a large team. The well-nigh taken for granted(predicate) way to communicate that you possess the preceding(prenominal) skills is to provide a brief description of all your past projects and the skill sets you exhibit along the way.\r\nAny journal or conference papers that you published as part of your projects will go a long way in fortune you get a research-oriented job! •Discuss your non-technical skills: A plug of successful bulk are technically sound unless also charismatic and possess fine inter in-person skills. These are almost immanent qualities in modern work places and activities that you’ve been part of where you have exhibit these skills should help you big. such(prenominal) activities include playing a leaders role in a part or college level association, being part of NSS, or maybe even run your own small startup! • happen upon yourself with the company/ university: It is of utmost im portance that your statement of purpose does not look generic, sooner seems well crafted to the unique(predicate) job opening. It would be wise to discuss briefly to the highest degree your interest in the specific study and not just the nature of work, and in particular detail the attempts you’ve made to study more well-nigh the workplace.\r\n3. Ensure that the statement of purpose is written in a pro manner: A badly war cryed statement of purpose with spelling or grammatical errors is a big duty tour off that would certainly hurt your cause. collect help from friends and colleagues regarding affirmable wording changes that would bushel the essay look more schoolmaster. ward off terminology and wording that aren’t obvious to the reader, and remember that diametric countries may use different terminologies to refer to the same word. holding these sensitivities in mind will help. 4. Be brief: Recruiters do not have the time or energy to read through a ra mbling 4 page essay. The statement of purpose shouldn’t exceed a couple of pages and should be to the chief. We are not trying to author the next Lord of the Rings here!\r\nStatement of Purpose (SOP) is a roll containing one’s face-to-face and master copy details which overhears the t take on of knowing a free-spokenate for the MBA school much easier. It is a concise essay about one’s career goals, identified doer to achieve them, and accomplishments so far in reaching towards those goals. An SOP often acts as the yardstick for assessing the capabilities of a prospective scholarly person of the MBA School. What should your SOP contain?\r\nAccording to big hap experts the dissolving agents to the sideline queries must be thither in your SOP:\r\n†You, your background and nature\r\n†The reason or reasons for making a particular career choice\r\n†Your hobbies\r\n†Your short and long-term career goals\r\n†Social initiatives take n by you, if any\r\n†Leadership qualities demonstrated by you\r\n†How you have dealt with failure\r\n†sheath of teamwork at the workplace\r\n†Strengths and weaknesses\r\n†Ethical dilemmas confront by you\r\nPreparing for writing the SOP\r\nSome suggestions on how to realize for writing the SOP:\r\n†Think deeply about matters concerning you, your choices and aspects of individualisedity. †gain pre-writing strategies and jot down thoughts as they fall †Prepare a rough skeleton and proofread it to remove any errors. †Start well in advance.\r\n epoch writing the SOP\r\nSOP is an extremely all-important(prenominal) enumeration that you will have to prepare before you will be received into any MBA School. You must ensure that your SOP lacks any kind of spelling or grammatical error. Your ability to write at an acceptable level will tell a great deal about you as an overall schoolchild, so do not neglect to proofread your document befo re submitting it. The SOP must make an interesting read; early(a)wise it won’t leave any electrical shock on the readers’ minds. Integrate your knowledge about the B-school with your career goals, as this will make it seem as though there is really no separate school that you are cerebration of aid. Some important loads to keep in mind while writing the SOP: Originality\r\nThe answers have to reflect the distinctive ‘you’ all the way. So, be original. imitation â€Paste exercises will do more harm than good as one shoe size does not couple all, especially in terms of in-personity.\r\n relevance\r\nRead the question very cautiously before you start framing your essay. cut into the question: â€Å" recreate detail your long-term career goals. Why have you sort them as long term? Do you foresee any change in these goals in the coming(prenominal)?” Now, you must be on the alert in crafting a respond to each question in a convincing mann er. Concentrating only on the archetypical segment will make the statement lopsided and put off the admissions panel.\r\nconciseness\r\nEvery word, every sentence should be present in the essay for a purpose. Rambling and undirected thoughts are a no-no as your essay will be given a couple of transactions indoors which the panel member has to come on something memorable and distinctive.\r\nImagery\r\nImagery means use words that enable celluloids to nisus in the minds of the reader. For example, the phrase ‘turning point’ is better than writing ‘The course of my action changed decisively at that point because it succeeds in giving rise to a picture in the mind of the reader.\r\nAvoiding jargon\r\n development too much jargon clichés or long-winded sentences obscure the point you want to convey. Professional tone and elements of specimen employ There is a world of difference in the way we converse and the way we write. You should avoid informal dah o r slang while composing the academic essay. Keeping the standard elements of usage in mind will go a long way in ensuring admittance in the MBA School. It takes a disseminate of time and engages your mind to undergo cumulus of intellection before you come up with the perfect SOP. So you should start much before. All this takes time, so begin writing the SOP well in advance. persevere tuned to MBAUniverse.com for more on MBA admission tips!\r\n eruct Toppers contribution their GD, PI & WAT make outs\r\nWhen a student is selected by a pass away B School, it is ensured that he has not just scored well in CAT but has also performed well in the convention Discussion,\r\n in the flesh(predicate) query and or compose Ability Test (WAT) or turn up Writing rounds. This page will give you the GD, PI & WAT assures of the CAT 2011 toppers who are now students of the academic year 2013-15 of the top B schools. I had an sweet WAT & PI cognise of IIM Ahmedabad B Sekhar A nand IIM Ahmedabad silken WAT by IIM Indore Vishal Vyas IIM Indore\r\nMy oppugn at XLRI lasted for 15 minutes Arjun Gupta XLRI Jamshedpur I had a grilling oppugn session at vulgar inlet Process of new IIMs Siddhant Gupta IIM Raipur WAT & PI sires of top 3 IIMs Anusha Subramanian IIM Bangalore If you are a fresher, be stark(a) with your subjects for PI Parag Poddar IIM Indore My WAT paper was on foreign coaches at Indian sports Aditya Agar IIM Bangalore My consultation bugger off was different in the top 4 IIMs Mohit Srivastava IIM Bangalore There was no sample at my consultation; it was a gutterdid conference with learned men Tanishq Goyal IIM Ahmedabad\r\nI had an enjoyable WAT & PI mother of IIM Ahmedabad, B Sekhar Anand IIM Ahmedabad Q: Please circumstances your WAT/PI experience in detail.\r\nA: My WAT/PI experience was very enjoyable. The egress for WAT was on corruption’s affects- a emergence that I was comfortable with. The PI on the other hand was skewed towards my academics. A the great unwashed of preparation beforehand helped me answer most of the questions. Though I could not answer a some, the queryer was fairly satisfied with my rise to those questions.\r\nTricky WAT by IIM Indore, Vishal Vyas IIM Indore\r\nQ: Please per centum your WAT/PI experience in detail. A: WAT and PI were the two vital stages of IIM Indore selection process. WAT was close to slick with a question on précis writing and some other asking about my opinion in a given situation where a choice was to be made between a family managed business and a professionally run shaping. PI probably was the most challenging part, with the audienceers asked extensively about by job profile and nature of work apart from a good kernel of prevalent knowledge. Work experience was someways a difficult part to turnout with questions ranging from basic programming concepts to industry eccentric standards and their constituents. Overall, it was a mixed kind of query which had its own high points and lows. I was hoping to convert with a good performance on almost all the measures which I later did.\r\nMy interview at XLRI lasted for 15 minutes, Arjun Gupta XLRI Jamshedpur Q: How many GDPI rounds have you had? Please share your experiences in detail. A: I attended the GDPI rounds for the following institutes:\r\n• NMIMS, Core\r\n• XIMB, PGDM & PGDM(HRM)\r\n• SPJIMR(FIN)\r\n• XLRI (BM & HRM)\r\nSPJIMR’s admission process is unique in the sense that they call you on the hindquarters of your profiles. In the group interview rounds also, the idiom is on ethics and values. They question you comprehensively on your work-experience, if any. XLRI has a single PI round for the BM program. The interview covers all the important points, viz., work-experience, Graduation subjects (Math, especially for Engineers), current affairs and ethics. Highly unpredictable stuff, I must say. The HRM program has both GD & PI components. My interview went on for around 15 minutes in which I was questioned a lot about cultures, economies and technologies. I was asked to relate the factors citing suitable instances. Some questions on work experience and mathematics were also there.\r\nGD topic was related to IT sector. It was pretty basic hence I did not face any problem during the GD. XIMB had a single GDPI round for its BM and HRM programmes. The GD was related to Income disparity and was manageable. The interview again revolved around my work-experience. We had a very candid discussion instead of an interview. I could easily answer all their queries related to work. NMIMS’s GD was related to the airline sector. The interview was about gas pedal/Diesel pricing, Basic Share Markets term and history about my parent company. For all the above GDPIs, I brushed up my Graduation Subjects well. Read about the major issues which are plaguing the nations, basic indices to measure spa ring health & society, knowledge about the parent company, its product profile, job role, etc.\r\nI had a grilling interview session at Common Admission Process of new IIMs Siddhant Gupta IIM Raipur\r\nQ: Please share your WAT/PI experience in detail\r\nA: I had my WAT/PI in Delhi. I was given a topic on financial crisis in Europe. I was asked to speak on any topic from current affairs during the interview. I chose to talk on KFA bailout. I explained the problem and was asked for possible solutions. I suggested some solutions and a hardly a(prenominal) cross questions were fired. Then I was asked a a couple of(prenominal) questions on chemistry (I am a chemical engineer). Towards the end, I was broiled on â€Å"Which IIM will I choose if I happen to get eightfold converts”. I linked it to the question related to the meaning of name and the panel seemed impressed.\r\nWAT & PI experiences of top 3 IIMs, Anusha Subramanian IIM Bangalore Q: Please share your WAT/PI ex perience in detail.\r\nA: Let me share my experiences of attending IIM Calcutta, IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Bangalore. IIM Calcutta †I had a good WAT and GD. My interview was mostly about events doing the rounds, a few maths questions, logic puzzles and some general questions about my future plans, etc. IIM Ahmedabad †The WAT was tricky as we were given only 10 minutes to complete the essay. I was questioned on a wide range of topics ranging from work, new-fashioned happenings in the software industry and academics. IIM Bangalore †My interview with IIM Bangalore was almost entirely found on the statement of purpose submitted earlier. I was quizzed in great detail about specific points in my SOP, regarding my work experience and future plans.\r\nIf you are a fresher, be thorough with your subjects for PI, Parag Poddar IIM Indore Q: Please share your WAT/PI experience in detail.\r\nA: The WAT process for IIM Indore problematic summarizing an article in one-third word limi t and was followed by essay writing. I had been practicing essays during my GD/WAT preparations and this helped me perform well in the WAT section. This was followed by PI. Being a fresher, I was questioned thoroughly on my subjects. Professors checked every aspect of my personality through questions on general awareness, GK, current affairs and my background. The interview was a great learning experience and helped me gauge myself better and identify areas of improvement.\r\nMy WAT topic was on foreign coaches at Indian sports, Aditya Agar IIM Bangalore Q: Please share your WAT/PI experience in detail.\r\nA: At IIM Bangalore’s WAT/PI process, I was asked to frontmost write an essay on ‘ contradictory coaches are a waste of currency in Indian sports.’ My interview was have-to doe with on my experience at work and I was asked a lot of questions on the contributions I made to the organization. All in all, the interview was a big judge of finding out what I gave to the organization I worked for and to the college I came from, which, trust me is very difficult to comprehend.\r\nMy interview experience was different in the top four IIMs, Mohit Srivastava IIM Bangalore Q: How was your WAT/PI experience?\r\nA: The interview experience was very different at all the four IIMs. IIM Lucknow was focussed more on general affairs. IIM Bangalore was mostly academics and SOP based (they actually asked me an algorithm) IIM Calcutta was purely quant based in terms that the first five questions were based on Permutations and Combinations. After I satisfactorily answered them the interviews started asking me questions on Seattle and where all I had been in Seattle. IIM Ahmedabad was very unpredictable in terms that most of the questions were not from my strength. It was somewhat less academic.\r\nThere was no stress at my interview; it was a candid conversation with learned men, Tanishq Goyal IIM Ahmedabad Q: Please share your WAT/PI experience in detail.\ r\nA: I got calls from all 13 IIMs, but I gave interviews for the top four only. In IIM Ahmedabad, the WAT topic was In today’s world, business and ethics don’t go hand in hand. The questions ranged from my work experience, solving math problem, my hobby lawn tennis to politics. The entire interview was like a candid conversation with learned men on some random topics. There was no stress at all.\r\n individualised converse\r\nA personal interview is aimed at knowing a prognosis more intimately †assessing the clarity of thinking process, future goals and the ‘fit’ with the B-school. A personal interview is aimed at knowing a prognosis more intimately †assessing the clarity of thinking process, future goals and the ‘fit’ with the B-school. Personal Interview †What does it test?\r\nAnalytical Skills\r\n• During the personal interview, Interviewer will check the analytical skills of the outlook in ways that cannot be t hrough with(p) with a written test. Certain questions during the personal interview are devised to see how the scene can analyze a situation and create a solution. For example, an employer may ask a aspect to explain a time when the panorama had to work apace against a pending deadline. In the personal interview, the employer can ask follow-up questions to dig deeper into the candidate’s critical thinking process, to see if he/she fits to be a part of the Institute/organization endeavor Clarity\r\n• Why do want to do an MBA? How does it fit into your career goals? What do you wish to do after your MBA? These are some hard questions that you will have to answer almost invariably in all Interviews. These questions search the ‘inner motivations’ of a candidate, and there are no ‘ right-hand(a) answers’. The only way to answer these questions is to mull over: what excites and motivates you; what makes you perform your best; what would you rea lly like to do in your life, and how do you truly see an MBA helping. Tough questions, but state them honestly is critical for your success! ‘Why MBA?’ is the most important question that MBA aspirants need to answer. There is no â€Å"good answer” for this. The answer needs to be your answer. In other words, you need to think deeply, think over and find out what it is that really drives you. So put on your thinking cap, do some soul searching and because jot down the answers to ‘what’s your goal’ questions.\r\nCommunication\r\n• When an employer is engaged in a personal interview with a candidate, he will listen to hear how the candidate gives answers to questions, watch for body language that can indicate the candidate is not being truthful or is uncomfortable; check into confidence by gauging eye contact. Is the student is able to effectively communicate using his entire body, etc and these skills can only be judged during a pers onal interview.\r\nDomain intimacy\r\n• Given that a good MBA is a demanding programme, B-schools would like to know how you will be able to cope up with the academics and the extra-curricular 24 x 7 demands of your new campus. They are also keen to assess how you have utilized the earlier learning opportunities. Be prepared to discuss different specialisation areas in business and their responsibilities. Interviewers will also reside you to discuss current issues in business, including the economy, taxation, foreign competition, the role of technology and honest challenges in the field. So be careful about the gates you open, and be very sure you have in-depth knowledge about whatever you mention.\r\nFor e.g. if you say you have an esurient interest in Badminton, be diligent for questions pertaining to Prakash Padukone, Deepika Padukone, plastic shuttles v/s plumage shuttles, Saina Nehwal etc. It is advisable to brush up 2-3 subjects from your graduation thoroughly if you are a student fresh out of college. Also, contextual knowledge of the environment around you as well as â€Å"general knowledge” comes quite handy.\r\nPresentation\r\n• Candidates who do not take the time to create a professional presentation for a personal interview can hurt their mishaps for acquiring the job. A personal interview gives the employer the opportunity to see what the candidate considers to be professional grooming, professional attire and a professional attitude. A candidate’s resume may be impressive, but if he shows up to the interview 30 minutes late and is not dressed in professional interview attire, then he may not be the candidate you are looking for.\r\nAttitude\r\n• In a personal interview it is not always the answer you give to a question that is important, but how you give that answer. An interviewer is well aware of the corporate culture within his institute and a personal interview gives the interviewer a chance to gauge th e candidate’s attitude to see if there is a match with the institute.\r\nImportance of an Interview:\r\nWho Conducts MBA Interviews?\r\nEvery business school has different policies when it comes to MBA interviews. Typically, an MBA interview is conducted by one or more members of the admissions committee. However, it is not unusual to be interviewed by current students or alumni. Professors do not normally conduct admissions interviews, but there are a few schools who do assign faculty members to the task. No matter who interviews you, expect a lot of questions and an evaluation. Most admissions committees have a form that they work off.\r\nThey will ask you specific questions from the form. If you are being interviewed by other students or alumni, don’t expect anything different. They have probably been trained by the admissions committee to use the form or ask specific questions. Read more about the different types of MBA interviews. Personal Interview can also turn out to be an opportunity to ‘sell’ yourself. While intimidating for some MBA-hopefuls, the personal interview represents a prime opportunity. Interviews allow you the chance to not only put a face and personality to the name and credentials on your application file, but also to express your academic, personal, and professional accomplishments, experiences, and intentions.\r\n'