Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur
Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh
Your seniors at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur were your true well-wishers, they shared their placement interview questions for you. 🙏
Filter interviews byIndian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur Placement Interview Questions
Updated
27 Dec 2024
411 interviews found
3 Interview Rounds
Interview Questions
- Q1. “What is P/E ratio?”
- Q2. “Infy has a P/E ratio 45, what does that mean?”
- Q3. “How do you decide the credit rating of any company?”
- Q4. “name any 5 stocks which are doing extremely good.”
Interview Preparation Tips
Round: Group Discussion
Experience: Group of 16 people, the discussion was a bit chaotic so I had to look out for a chance to speak and capitalize on it. Speaking too much won't help rather speak sensible, there were people who just spoke once and were shortlisted.
Having knowledge about various companies helped me lot in putting good examples.
Round: HR Interview
Experience: I did not know answers to most of the questions but they wanted to check my thought process, how logically I can answer the question. They wanted those candidates who would go for an MBA after working for 3-4 years with them, some questions on my family background. At the end again how confident you are with your answers is all what matters.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
Experience: Group of 16 people, the discussion was a bit chaotic so I had to look out for a chance to speak and capitalize on it. Speaking too much won't help rather speak sensible, there were people who just spoke once and were shortlisted.
Having knowledge about various companies helped me lot in putting good examples.
Round: HR Interview
Experience: I did not know answers to most of the questions but they wanted to check my thought process, how logically I can answer the question. They wanted those candidates who would go for an MBA after working for 3-4 years with them, some questions on my family background. At the end again how confident you are with your answers is all what matters.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
4 Interview Rounds
Interview Questions
- Q1. ‘Why DB?’
- Q2. ‘Why finance?’
- Q3. ‘Tell me something about yourself’;
- Q4. ‘Tell me one thing not mentioned in your resume’
- Q5. ‘Why we should take you?’
Interview Preparation Tips
Round: Test
Experience: Contains 2 sections, 1st of math and data interpretation and the other related to market awareness and finance. The former was the most important and it can be easily done in the given time. In my case I also answered the market awareness questions because of which lot of finance questions were asked in the interview.
Round: HR Interview
Experience: It was a combined technical and HR interview. ‘Why DB?’ or ‘Why finance?’ this question was asked to each and every candidate. Since I was the last in the panel the interviewer was bored of the same kind of answers again and again so he literally started laughing when I was answering. But this is where I tried to keep my composure and continued with the answer and at the end he was convinced. Since I had done well in the market awareness section in the written test, they made me solve the remaining questions also. During the interview it all depends on you where you want to direct your interview. If you claim that you know finance then be ready to face some never heard questions, it doesn't matter whether you answer it correctly or not but be confident in whatever you say. They asked me an easy puzzle; make sure that you talk to them while solving telling them what your thought process is. All this done took me to the next round.
Round: HR Interview
Experience: The interviewers were the senior officials of the company and it was an HR round. Very much similar to the 1st round if you remove the puzzles part. I had to convince them that I am really interested in the company.
Tips: Some general tips regarding the company, don't worry if you have a low CPI, you just have to prove your mettle in the test and the interviews and you will be through, girls can feel better as they are given some preference. Before the test and the interviews make sure you know how the market was recently (Sensex, Nifty etc) oil prices etc. Spend some time on the website of the company.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
Experience: Contains 2 sections, 1st of math and data interpretation and the other related to market awareness and finance. The former was the most important and it can be easily done in the given time. In my case I also answered the market awareness questions because of which lot of finance questions were asked in the interview.
Round: HR Interview
Experience: It was a combined technical and HR interview. ‘Why DB?’ or ‘Why finance?’ this question was asked to each and every candidate. Since I was the last in the panel the interviewer was bored of the same kind of answers again and again so he literally started laughing when I was answering. But this is where I tried to keep my composure and continued with the answer and at the end he was convinced. Since I had done well in the market awareness section in the written test, they made me solve the remaining questions also. During the interview it all depends on you where you want to direct your interview. If you claim that you know finance then be ready to face some never heard questions, it doesn't matter whether you answer it correctly or not but be confident in whatever you say. They asked me an easy puzzle; make sure that you talk to them while solving telling them what your thought process is. All this done took me to the next round.
Round: HR Interview
Experience: The interviewers were the senior officials of the company and it was an HR round. Very much similar to the 1st round if you remove the puzzles part. I had to convince them that I am really interested in the company.
Tips: Some general tips regarding the company, don't worry if you have a low CPI, you just have to prove your mettle in the test and the interviews and you will be through, girls can feel better as they are given some preference. Before the test and the interviews make sure you know how the market was recently (Sensex, Nifty etc) oil prices etc. Spend some time on the website of the company.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
Anonymous
posted on 22 Jan 2015
3 Interview Rounds
Interview Preparation Tips
Round: Test
Experience: 1st test had only mathematical calculations, since it was only 6 minute test so I did not wasted my time in selecting the questions, I went on and solved the first 25 out of 40. 2nd test had math and DI questions for 30 minutes; I tried to do selected questions this time. Preparations for CAT helped me lot in doing this test. The company had an absolute cutoff in both the tests.
Round: HR Interview
Experience: “Why trading and not aerospace?” the very first question fired on me, I gave a positive answer stating why I find finance more interesting instead of saying anything negative about aerospace. What is 77^3, 141^2 etc some of the verbal calculative questions asked in between, although these are very uncomfortable questions I tried to kept my composure and gave an approximate answer to these questions which was acceptable. Some simple puzzles were asked. After some time the interviewer started pitching for me and telling me stuffs about the company, this is where I was almost sure of an offer. There was no 2nd of interview for me.
General Tips: At the beginning of the 7th sem I had made up my mind that I don’t want to do MS or Phd but I was still confused between MBA and job. So I decided to prepare for both, which later on I realized that there was a lot common in the preparation of the two. After deciding this, the next question that came to my mind was ‘what kind of job I want?’ To answer this question I needed to develop basic market knowledge about the various sectors and the companies in those sectors which I did by regularly updating myself through newspapers, internet, business magazines etc. At least a month before the placements I was sure that I
would apply only for consulting and finance profiles, since there were more than 5 companies on a single day so having a preference helped me focus better and do well in the interviews.
Resumes: It is the very first test of your creativity by any company and is equally important like any interview. I tried to add some spikes in my resume which is required for both consultancies as well as finance. I started making my resume in September and after hundreds of changes and feedbacks from the seniors (which is most important) and it took me more than a month, so start with resume as early as possible.
PPTs: The most important thing that you learn in ppts is the details of the work profile which you won't find anywhere else. It is the best place to get an answer to all the questions in your mind. So I would suggest you to try and attend as many ppts as possible not because of the compulsion in attendance but for its
benefits. In any ppt make sure that the company tells you the breakup of the compensation package as there are many hidden expenses included in the package.
Preparation: This is the most important input in getting a good job. This basically includes 3 things,
Group Discussions: We used to make a group of 8-10 within our department and sometimes in my wing and discussed on any topic for 15-20 minutes. It would be just like a bulla session but in English and an element of formality involved in it. After the GDs the participants gave the feedback to each other which was most important. For GDs try to keep yourself updated with the current affairs coz most of the times the topics are related to recent happenings. And one more thing don’t feel shy or left out, say whatever you want to say even if you think that the discussion is chaotic.
Case Studies: Make a group of 3-4 people one would be the interviewer, an interviewee and the rest to just watch and would give the feedback at the end. Take up any case from the numerous case books available on the LAN and conduct such sessions. How ever tough or easy the case may be you always learn how to structure the problems and the basic knowledge which is applicable in most of the cases. Do solve lot of puzzles, this will further add to your logical thinking. This can be best done while you go to the canteen every night because a discussion can add a lot dimensions to it.
Personal Interviews: The basic mantra for a PI is to show a positive body language, be cheerful and speak confidently. This basically involves the HR questions and questions related to the stuffs written in your resume. This round is conducted by every company irrespective of whether it is a core or a non core company. I prepared myself for general questions and also participated in various one on one interviews with my friends, initially I thought that such interviews with friends won’t be a formal one but I was wrong, it helped me a lot later on.
Workshops: There would be numerous workshops conducted by the companies and the SPO. Don't miss
out on any of them as it is the most easy and effective way to learn.
College Name: IIT Kanpur
Experience: 1st test had only mathematical calculations, since it was only 6 minute test so I did not wasted my time in selecting the questions, I went on and solved the first 25 out of 40. 2nd test had math and DI questions for 30 minutes; I tried to do selected questions this time. Preparations for CAT helped me lot in doing this test. The company had an absolute cutoff in both the tests.
Round: HR Interview
Experience: “Why trading and not aerospace?” the very first question fired on me, I gave a positive answer stating why I find finance more interesting instead of saying anything negative about aerospace. What is 77^3, 141^2 etc some of the verbal calculative questions asked in between, although these are very uncomfortable questions I tried to kept my composure and gave an approximate answer to these questions which was acceptable. Some simple puzzles were asked. After some time the interviewer started pitching for me and telling me stuffs about the company, this is where I was almost sure of an offer. There was no 2nd of interview for me.
General Tips: At the beginning of the 7th sem I had made up my mind that I don’t want to do MS or Phd but I was still confused between MBA and job. So I decided to prepare for both, which later on I realized that there was a lot common in the preparation of the two. After deciding this, the next question that came to my mind was ‘what kind of job I want?’ To answer this question I needed to develop basic market knowledge about the various sectors and the companies in those sectors which I did by regularly updating myself through newspapers, internet, business magazines etc. At least a month before the placements I was sure that I
would apply only for consulting and finance profiles, since there were more than 5 companies on a single day so having a preference helped me focus better and do well in the interviews.
Resumes: It is the very first test of your creativity by any company and is equally important like any interview. I tried to add some spikes in my resume which is required for both consultancies as well as finance. I started making my resume in September and after hundreds of changes and feedbacks from the seniors (which is most important) and it took me more than a month, so start with resume as early as possible.
PPTs: The most important thing that you learn in ppts is the details of the work profile which you won't find anywhere else. It is the best place to get an answer to all the questions in your mind. So I would suggest you to try and attend as many ppts as possible not because of the compulsion in attendance but for its
benefits. In any ppt make sure that the company tells you the breakup of the compensation package as there are many hidden expenses included in the package.
Preparation: This is the most important input in getting a good job. This basically includes 3 things,
Group Discussions: We used to make a group of 8-10 within our department and sometimes in my wing and discussed on any topic for 15-20 minutes. It would be just like a bulla session but in English and an element of formality involved in it. After the GDs the participants gave the feedback to each other which was most important. For GDs try to keep yourself updated with the current affairs coz most of the times the topics are related to recent happenings. And one more thing don’t feel shy or left out, say whatever you want to say even if you think that the discussion is chaotic.
Case Studies: Make a group of 3-4 people one would be the interviewer, an interviewee and the rest to just watch and would give the feedback at the end. Take up any case from the numerous case books available on the LAN and conduct such sessions. How ever tough or easy the case may be you always learn how to structure the problems and the basic knowledge which is applicable in most of the cases. Do solve lot of puzzles, this will further add to your logical thinking. This can be best done while you go to the canteen every night because a discussion can add a lot dimensions to it.
Personal Interviews: The basic mantra for a PI is to show a positive body language, be cheerful and speak confidently. This basically involves the HR questions and questions related to the stuffs written in your resume. This round is conducted by every company irrespective of whether it is a core or a non core company. I prepared myself for general questions and also participated in various one on one interviews with my friends, initially I thought that such interviews with friends won’t be a formal one but I was wrong, it helped me a lot later on.
Workshops: There would be numerous workshops conducted by the companies and the SPO. Don't miss
out on any of them as it is the most easy and effective way to learn.
College Name: IIT Kanpur
2 Interview Rounds
Interview Preparation Tips
Round: Test
Experience: I interviewed on day one with Credit Suisse but was not selected due to lack of preparation. But, later I also interviewed with Reliance Industries and was selected.
General Tips: According to me, it is really important at the first stage to identify the sector that one wants to pursue and then target that sector and then work towards it. One must set realistic goals and one must be prepared for the worst case scenario.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
Experience: I interviewed on day one with Credit Suisse but was not selected due to lack of preparation. But, later I also interviewed with Reliance Industries and was selected.
General Tips: According to me, it is really important at the first stage to identify the sector that one wants to pursue and then target that sector and then work towards it. One must set realistic goals and one must be prepared for the worst case scenario.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
Anonymous
posted on 21 Jan 2015
5 Interview Rounds
Interview Questions
- Q1. BTP-based questions
- Q2. Questions related to Metallurgy and Metal Casting
- Q3. Generic questions about me
- Q4. Questions about stay at IITK
Interview Preparation Tips
Round: Test
Experience: Reliance had an aptitude test which was one of the easiest. I got shortlisted for the interview which had two rounds.
Round: Technical Interview
Experience: A quick skim through my departmental courses before the interview and my industrial trip during the third year helped a lot in answering those questions.
Round: HR Interview
Experience: It lasted for 15 minutes maximum.
Skills: Metallurgy, Metal Casting
College Name: IIT KANPUR
Motivation: According to me, it is really important at the first stage to identify the sector that one wants to pursue and then target that sector and then work towards it. One must set realistic goals and one must be prepared for the worst case scenario.
Experience: Reliance had an aptitude test which was one of the easiest. I got shortlisted for the interview which had two rounds.
Round: Technical Interview
Experience: A quick skim through my departmental courses before the interview and my industrial trip during the third year helped a lot in answering those questions.
Round: HR Interview
Experience: It lasted for 15 minutes maximum.
Skills: Metallurgy, Metal Casting
College Name: IIT KANPUR
Motivation: According to me, it is really important at the first stage to identify the sector that one wants to pursue and then target that sector and then work towards it. One must set realistic goals and one must be prepared for the worst case scenario.
Interview Preparation Tips
General Tips: Some general background:
1. Always stress on learning the concepts, not the course.
2. Have faith in yourself and your abilities, and thus be confident. You have made it so far and you may not be the best, but you certainly are good. (For a fact this may not necessarily be true but saying this to yourself once in a while helps build self confidence).
3. Know that the one interviewing you may or may not be an expert in the area you are good at. What this means is expect questions on each project that you have done, because if he/she is an expert in the area of even one of your projects, get ready to be screwed on that one.
With this in hand, and by talking to your seniors learn the smaller yet important points of what a company desires, what this kind of job demands from you. Luckily if you are a dual degree student you will have a fabulous experience of seeing your batch get placed, so just help them prepare in whatever way you can, as if even you were to sit in the interviews. Best way to fast pace your preparation is to do it with people you are real comfortable with. (This is so because if they take a mock interview they know what exactly could make you
uncomfortable, your closest friends know you best. Ask them to mock interview you and screw you hard enough to see how much stress you can handle). Having a few leadership and team work skills is always an added bonus to your resume, make sure at least one such point is a spike (or high impact) in your CV, and highlight it
well. Make sure you know adequate examples to back it up. In a lecture by Dr. C.V.R. Murthy he once told “When you need to present yourself to someone on a topic XYZ make sure if you know 100% you only tell 10% because then you can use the rest of the 90% to answer questions which are extensions to your work”. This aspect is something you should follow throughout your UG career. When you write a term paper, when you do a project always document it so that you have a copy of what you did. For example till this date I have done like over 25+ projects at IITK, but I have documentation for only 19. This led to the fact that I could not put those 6 projects in the best way I could, because I could not even remember how I had done it. Now you would want to object here, “How the hell am I supposed to write just 10% if I haven’t done enough and to make my resume good I need to write a few things which I hope I will be able to explain.”
If you are a final year student reading this, then I don’t have a answer for you so far except that try to make the best use of your BTP. However, for others make sure you don’t lose the heart to learn things that go beyond the scope of the course and sometimes your project. Remember that your achievement are not important always, what is important is how you achieved it. What challenges you went past. You did a great job if you over came a dozen challenges to achieve a single point of success, than if you had a project which had just one challenge and you could achieve it with impressive results.
How I got success:
1. Did PI, GD, Mock Interview sessions with my batch It helped me achieve better control on expression, accent and ability to speak with a good flow. Practicing PI’s is important so that your answers to the generic HR kind questions become more structured after each PI you take.
2. Always documented my work
This helps you because it will reduce your revision time from weeks to a couple of hours (if you did the projects yourself) else from months to weeks at least.3. Know what courses are important for Job preparation. Once you know this before hand, make your you give these courses adequate time while studying, for example for EE students with interest in microelectronics courses like EE610 and EE619, EE210, ESC102 and EE370 are extremely important. So rather than revising these in the end (which is like an enormous task) try to emphasize on them while they are taught. This will reduce the time you will need in the end to revise the basics.
4. Internship/BTP/M.Tech. Thesis
This is going to be a definite question in your interview. So prepare it well, this is one section where B.Tech student have a heavy advantage, they have all these afresh and hence can explain it on a day to day basis. Whereas M.Tech/Dual students have done their interns long time back. Thus, may not recollect it to the best of their knowledge, so I spent time here to revise my intern well. Because it was one aspect which was connected to all the courses I had done and I could really make a good impact here if given an opportunity. (Lucky for me I got
that).
5. Practice Standard Questions
I spend most of my time doing this, than revising courses. Did as many practice questions as I could, If I did not remember some topic I went back and revised it. But never during the prep did I open a book to revise an entire course.
6. Know the company
This is perhaps the place where the company gives you an opportunity to show how much you know and care about them, how much are you attached to this job, and how much you like it really. Read as much as you can about the company. I spent like 5-6 hrs before the interview to do this. The Interview:
1. Be well dressed, hold good posture and show you are confident yet anxious.
2. You and your interviewer are equals so talk like that, assume you have a job and you are going to take it. He is not someone so great that you need to fear him. Try to talk eye to eye, speak with confidence (even if you know you are wrong).
3. Pause before you start answering (take time to think) or you can fall in trap question like a piece of cake.4. Show your approach and thought process, be aware the counter questions he/she asks can be to check your confidence or in reality to correct your mistake.
5. Given an opportunity to answer a open ended question, make the best use of it. For example I screwed up my first interview trying to explain my Internship, but I adapted quickly and after 30 mins in my second interview I gave a much better explanation.
6. Sometime you might be asked a field/course of interest; tell the one you are great at. Thus find a good justification to prove why it is your favorite if it’s different from your BTP/Thesis.
7. If you get the opportunity to ask a question, ask one which wasn’t brought up in the PPT. If you don’t get an opportunity make one, and still ask the question.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
1. Always stress on learning the concepts, not the course.
2. Have faith in yourself and your abilities, and thus be confident. You have made it so far and you may not be the best, but you certainly are good. (For a fact this may not necessarily be true but saying this to yourself once in a while helps build self confidence).
3. Know that the one interviewing you may or may not be an expert in the area you are good at. What this means is expect questions on each project that you have done, because if he/she is an expert in the area of even one of your projects, get ready to be screwed on that one.
With this in hand, and by talking to your seniors learn the smaller yet important points of what a company desires, what this kind of job demands from you. Luckily if you are a dual degree student you will have a fabulous experience of seeing your batch get placed, so just help them prepare in whatever way you can, as if even you were to sit in the interviews. Best way to fast pace your preparation is to do it with people you are real comfortable with. (This is so because if they take a mock interview they know what exactly could make you
uncomfortable, your closest friends know you best. Ask them to mock interview you and screw you hard enough to see how much stress you can handle). Having a few leadership and team work skills is always an added bonus to your resume, make sure at least one such point is a spike (or high impact) in your CV, and highlight it
well. Make sure you know adequate examples to back it up. In a lecture by Dr. C.V.R. Murthy he once told “When you need to present yourself to someone on a topic XYZ make sure if you know 100% you only tell 10% because then you can use the rest of the 90% to answer questions which are extensions to your work”. This aspect is something you should follow throughout your UG career. When you write a term paper, when you do a project always document it so that you have a copy of what you did. For example till this date I have done like over 25+ projects at IITK, but I have documentation for only 19. This led to the fact that I could not put those 6 projects in the best way I could, because I could not even remember how I had done it. Now you would want to object here, “How the hell am I supposed to write just 10% if I haven’t done enough and to make my resume good I need to write a few things which I hope I will be able to explain.”
If you are a final year student reading this, then I don’t have a answer for you so far except that try to make the best use of your BTP. However, for others make sure you don’t lose the heart to learn things that go beyond the scope of the course and sometimes your project. Remember that your achievement are not important always, what is important is how you achieved it. What challenges you went past. You did a great job if you over came a dozen challenges to achieve a single point of success, than if you had a project which had just one challenge and you could achieve it with impressive results.
How I got success:
1. Did PI, GD, Mock Interview sessions with my batch It helped me achieve better control on expression, accent and ability to speak with a good flow. Practicing PI’s is important so that your answers to the generic HR kind questions become more structured after each PI you take.
2. Always documented my work
This helps you because it will reduce your revision time from weeks to a couple of hours (if you did the projects yourself) else from months to weeks at least.3. Know what courses are important for Job preparation. Once you know this before hand, make your you give these courses adequate time while studying, for example for EE students with interest in microelectronics courses like EE610 and EE619, EE210, ESC102 and EE370 are extremely important. So rather than revising these in the end (which is like an enormous task) try to emphasize on them while they are taught. This will reduce the time you will need in the end to revise the basics.
4. Internship/BTP/M.Tech. Thesis
This is going to be a definite question in your interview. So prepare it well, this is one section where B.Tech student have a heavy advantage, they have all these afresh and hence can explain it on a day to day basis. Whereas M.Tech/Dual students have done their interns long time back. Thus, may not recollect it to the best of their knowledge, so I spent time here to revise my intern well. Because it was one aspect which was connected to all the courses I had done and I could really make a good impact here if given an opportunity. (Lucky for me I got
that).
5. Practice Standard Questions
I spend most of my time doing this, than revising courses. Did as many practice questions as I could, If I did not remember some topic I went back and revised it. But never during the prep did I open a book to revise an entire course.
6. Know the company
This is perhaps the place where the company gives you an opportunity to show how much you know and care about them, how much are you attached to this job, and how much you like it really. Read as much as you can about the company. I spent like 5-6 hrs before the interview to do this. The Interview:
1. Be well dressed, hold good posture and show you are confident yet anxious.
2. You and your interviewer are equals so talk like that, assume you have a job and you are going to take it. He is not someone so great that you need to fear him. Try to talk eye to eye, speak with confidence (even if you know you are wrong).
3. Pause before you start answering (take time to think) or you can fall in trap question like a piece of cake.4. Show your approach and thought process, be aware the counter questions he/she asks can be to check your confidence or in reality to correct your mistake.
5. Given an opportunity to answer a open ended question, make the best use of it. For example I screwed up my first interview trying to explain my Internship, but I adapted quickly and after 30 mins in my second interview I gave a much better explanation.
6. Sometime you might be asked a field/course of interest; tell the one you are great at. Thus find a good justification to prove why it is your favorite if it’s different from your BTP/Thesis.
7. If you get the opportunity to ask a question, ask one which wasn’t brought up in the PPT. If you don’t get an opportunity make one, and still ask the question.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
2 Interview Rounds
Interview Preparation Tips
Round: Other Interview
Experience: It was a 10-12 minute round taken by two fairly young Analysts. It started with an informal chit chat. I grabbed my opportunity. In my first line I told them that I had done my internship with Lehman Brothers. No wonder the next 5-6 questions were on my internship. There were followed by a couple of questions on swaps, spreads etc which I had mentioned in my resume (Note questions were not out of the blue…I had used these terms in my resume). Finally one question was - You have a decent CPI and are from Maths background so why not go for a PhD? Again talked about my internship with Lehman, the corporate world, professionalism etc.
Round: Other Interview
Experience: It was a 15-20 minute round taken by the CFO and the HR head.
My M.Sc. project was 'pricing of inflation linked pension plans'. There asked question about it. In my answer I used the word 'inflation' and the next question was - what is inflation?
Then I used WPI in my answer and I was told to explain WPI. I explained them the WPI basket...the weightage of the various categories...the base year etc...(They were quite impressed as my answer was complete with all the possible detail).
Next question - apart from WPI which other indices are popular in India...I told them about CPI industrial workers, labour etc.
Next question- What is today's inflation....I explained that inflation is calculated weekly and told them the latest figures.
Next question- why is inflation being talked about these days? My answer- Recently it was at a 13 yr high and RBI has been taking various measures to bring it down.
Next question- how does RBI control inflation? My answer- through open market operations, CRR, SLR, Repo, Reverse Repo.
Next question-what is open market operations, CRR, SLR, Repo, Reverse Repo? I explained them and also gave them the figures (eg CRR then was 6.5%, SLR was 24%...they were pretty impressed). It seemed they were trying to ensure that whatever I said I knew about them completely.
Once they were satisfied with my technical knowledge they asked- Why Investment Banking now that you won’t get hefty bonuses, what do you know about DB, etc. I mentioned DB's strength, its commercial banking, high liquidity etc. I told them that I expect the learning curve to be very steep in these difficult times.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
Experience: It was a 10-12 minute round taken by two fairly young Analysts. It started with an informal chit chat. I grabbed my opportunity. In my first line I told them that I had done my internship with Lehman Brothers. No wonder the next 5-6 questions were on my internship. There were followed by a couple of questions on swaps, spreads etc which I had mentioned in my resume (Note questions were not out of the blue…I had used these terms in my resume). Finally one question was - You have a decent CPI and are from Maths background so why not go for a PhD? Again talked about my internship with Lehman, the corporate world, professionalism etc.
Round: Other Interview
Experience: It was a 15-20 minute round taken by the CFO and the HR head.
My M.Sc. project was 'pricing of inflation linked pension plans'. There asked question about it. In my answer I used the word 'inflation' and the next question was - what is inflation?
Then I used WPI in my answer and I was told to explain WPI. I explained them the WPI basket...the weightage of the various categories...the base year etc...(They were quite impressed as my answer was complete with all the possible detail).
Next question - apart from WPI which other indices are popular in India...I told them about CPI industrial workers, labour etc.
Next question- What is today's inflation....I explained that inflation is calculated weekly and told them the latest figures.
Next question- why is inflation being talked about these days? My answer- Recently it was at a 13 yr high and RBI has been taking various measures to bring it down.
Next question- how does RBI control inflation? My answer- through open market operations, CRR, SLR, Repo, Reverse Repo.
Next question-what is open market operations, CRR, SLR, Repo, Reverse Repo? I explained them and also gave them the figures (eg CRR then was 6.5%, SLR was 24%...they were pretty impressed). It seemed they were trying to ensure that whatever I said I knew about them completely.
Once they were satisfied with my technical knowledge they asked- Why Investment Banking now that you won’t get hefty bonuses, what do you know about DB, etc. I mentioned DB's strength, its commercial banking, high liquidity etc. I told them that I expect the learning curve to be very steep in these difficult times.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
3 Interview Rounds
Interview Preparation Tips
Round: Test
Experience: The written test was quite similar to the typical CAT pattern. It contained sections on Reading Comprehension, Data Interpretation and Mathematics.
Round: Interview
Experience: There were 3 interview rounds:
There were 2 interviewers in the first interview, one was a technical guy and the other was from HR. They asked me a few
very simple puzzles, a few basic programming questions (swapping the value of two variables etc.), questions related to the development cycle of software products. The HR guy asked stuff like what do you want to achieve in life? Strengths, weaknesses etc.
The second interview was resume based. He asked me about my thesis, internship, various projects, positions of responsibility etc. The third interview was the most important one (and I guess that was the deciding interview). The interviewer started with questions like why finance? Which companies are you sitting for? Then he gave me a case study: “As a banking organization, you have given house loans to a lot of customers. Given the current scenario, you have to profile the customers to which loans have been given based on the chances that they would pay back.” He started with this scenario and as I gradually started analyzing things and proposing models he kept on increasing the complexity saying you don’t have this data, you can’t make that assumption etc. Ultimately he narrowed down it down to a problem which was almost unsolvable. When I got stuck at that he told me that his idea was to just give me a taste of the toughness of problems they encounter in day-to-day business.
General Tips: After spending three or four years enjoying the IITK adventure, one suddenly feels a jolt when he/she arrives in the final year. You find yourself wondering at times, asking yourself the pertinent question, what next? And seriously, the best way to start preparing for placements, GRE, CAT or any other exam for that matter is answering this question honestly. Take a few minutes of your precious time and think what you want to do with your life? Where does your heart truly lie? I know it’s not that easy to decide on this but at least give this a good thought and prioritize your options. Make a list of them on paper if that helps. Once you are done with this, the real planning starts. Take each option one by one and do a truthful analysis of yourself from the perspective of that option. For e.g., say you have CAT as your first priority, and then analyze your strengths and weaknesses from CAT’s perspective. What all areas you need to improve on? How much time and effort would it take? How much time you have got left? By doing this exercise you will really get to know the work that needs to be done and will help you plan for the remaining time.
Resume:
I am sure you would have heard it umpteen times but still I will repeat it to stress the point, take resume making seriously! A good resume would drive your interview in the direction you want it to go, a bad resume on the other hand might end the chances of you even getting interviewed! Start by trying to remember each and every achievement of your life and write it down. Spend a few days on this part till you are sure you have got almost everything. Now write it down properly in formal language in the form of a master resume. This would serve
as a repository of information for all your subsequent resumes. And on top of that, having a fresh memory of your achievements would help you in answering the questions in interviews (especially HR questions). Ideally you should have a separate resume for every company you sit for. The way to do this is make sector specific resumes and edit them accordingly for the different companies of that sector. For example, make a single resume for all the core CSE companies and then you can probably change the list of projects (or their order of appearance) targeting individual companies.
PPTs:
If you are serious about getting job in a company, you cannot afford to miss its pre placement talk. PPT is not only an opportunity to know about the company, but it also gives you the chance to know what the company is looking for. This will give you the basic idea around which you should structure your resume and preparation for that company.
Preparation:
Core Computer Science Companies: All the core CS companies first take a written test which contains questions on C/C++, may have JAVA, UNIX, Algorithms, Data Structures, basics of Operating Systems and Compilers, some questions on basic networking in case the company works in that field. Almost all the companies have a couple of questions in which you are required to write code on paper. Some companies also have a few questions on aptitude, simple maths or data interpretations. You can find the company specific details in the placement feedback guide. This is the major
shortlisting step for core companies, so you cannot take it lightly. You can start preparing by revising the relevant courses you did (like Data Structures, Algorithms, Operating Systems, and Compilers). Practice a few questions available in the various placement preparation guides on LAN. Most importantly, practice writing code on paper. This is something we are not used to and requires some practice. This not only will do you good in the written test, but also help you in the interviews.
Non Core Companies (Finance, Consulting, and Analytics):
The written tests of most of these companies are quite similar to CAT. So if you are not preparing for CAT, get hold of some CAT preparation material for practice. These tests are more speed based than knowledge, so practice is absolutely essential. Revising some basic mathematics (like probability, progressions etc.) would also do you good. Apart from that, you need to have some basic knowledge and understanding of the field the company works in. For example, if you are appearing for a finance company, learn the basic concepts and common terminologies of finance. The least it would do is show that you are sincerely interested in the field the company works in.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
Experience: The written test was quite similar to the typical CAT pattern. It contained sections on Reading Comprehension, Data Interpretation and Mathematics.
Round: Interview
Experience: There were 3 interview rounds:
There were 2 interviewers in the first interview, one was a technical guy and the other was from HR. They asked me a few
very simple puzzles, a few basic programming questions (swapping the value of two variables etc.), questions related to the development cycle of software products. The HR guy asked stuff like what do you want to achieve in life? Strengths, weaknesses etc.
The second interview was resume based. He asked me about my thesis, internship, various projects, positions of responsibility etc. The third interview was the most important one (and I guess that was the deciding interview). The interviewer started with questions like why finance? Which companies are you sitting for? Then he gave me a case study: “As a banking organization, you have given house loans to a lot of customers. Given the current scenario, you have to profile the customers to which loans have been given based on the chances that they would pay back.” He started with this scenario and as I gradually started analyzing things and proposing models he kept on increasing the complexity saying you don’t have this data, you can’t make that assumption etc. Ultimately he narrowed down it down to a problem which was almost unsolvable. When I got stuck at that he told me that his idea was to just give me a taste of the toughness of problems they encounter in day-to-day business.
General Tips: After spending three or four years enjoying the IITK adventure, one suddenly feels a jolt when he/she arrives in the final year. You find yourself wondering at times, asking yourself the pertinent question, what next? And seriously, the best way to start preparing for placements, GRE, CAT or any other exam for that matter is answering this question honestly. Take a few minutes of your precious time and think what you want to do with your life? Where does your heart truly lie? I know it’s not that easy to decide on this but at least give this a good thought and prioritize your options. Make a list of them on paper if that helps. Once you are done with this, the real planning starts. Take each option one by one and do a truthful analysis of yourself from the perspective of that option. For e.g., say you have CAT as your first priority, and then analyze your strengths and weaknesses from CAT’s perspective. What all areas you need to improve on? How much time and effort would it take? How much time you have got left? By doing this exercise you will really get to know the work that needs to be done and will help you plan for the remaining time.
Resume:
I am sure you would have heard it umpteen times but still I will repeat it to stress the point, take resume making seriously! A good resume would drive your interview in the direction you want it to go, a bad resume on the other hand might end the chances of you even getting interviewed! Start by trying to remember each and every achievement of your life and write it down. Spend a few days on this part till you are sure you have got almost everything. Now write it down properly in formal language in the form of a master resume. This would serve
as a repository of information for all your subsequent resumes. And on top of that, having a fresh memory of your achievements would help you in answering the questions in interviews (especially HR questions). Ideally you should have a separate resume for every company you sit for. The way to do this is make sector specific resumes and edit them accordingly for the different companies of that sector. For example, make a single resume for all the core CSE companies and then you can probably change the list of projects (or their order of appearance) targeting individual companies.
PPTs:
If you are serious about getting job in a company, you cannot afford to miss its pre placement talk. PPT is not only an opportunity to know about the company, but it also gives you the chance to know what the company is looking for. This will give you the basic idea around which you should structure your resume and preparation for that company.
Preparation:
Core Computer Science Companies: All the core CS companies first take a written test which contains questions on C/C++, may have JAVA, UNIX, Algorithms, Data Structures, basics of Operating Systems and Compilers, some questions on basic networking in case the company works in that field. Almost all the companies have a couple of questions in which you are required to write code on paper. Some companies also have a few questions on aptitude, simple maths or data interpretations. You can find the company specific details in the placement feedback guide. This is the major
shortlisting step for core companies, so you cannot take it lightly. You can start preparing by revising the relevant courses you did (like Data Structures, Algorithms, Operating Systems, and Compilers). Practice a few questions available in the various placement preparation guides on LAN. Most importantly, practice writing code on paper. This is something we are not used to and requires some practice. This not only will do you good in the written test, but also help you in the interviews.
Non Core Companies (Finance, Consulting, and Analytics):
The written tests of most of these companies are quite similar to CAT. So if you are not preparing for CAT, get hold of some CAT preparation material for practice. These tests are more speed based than knowledge, so practice is absolutely essential. Revising some basic mathematics (like probability, progressions etc.) would also do you good. Apart from that, you need to have some basic knowledge and understanding of the field the company works in. For example, if you are appearing for a finance company, learn the basic concepts and common terminologies of finance. The least it would do is show that you are sincerely interested in the field the company works in.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
3 Interview Rounds
Interview Preparation Tips
Round: Test
Experience: The test contained programming problems as well as puzzle type questions. It also had questions on C++.
Round: Other Interview
Experience: There were 4 interviews I had to appear for. The interviews had questions related to programming, puzzles and probability. For the final interview, it came to a one-on-one contest between two of us. Both were sitting in different rooms and were solving the same problem at the same time.
Tips: Be prepared for such situations and be ready to take the pressure and not get unnerved.
General Tips: Pre-Placement Preparation1) Selecting sectors or companiesSelect your group of target companies and sectors. You should realize what your interests are and what kind of job would suit you, and according to that you should prepare a list of companies that you are going to focus on primarily. This list should not be too narrow that you have too few companies to target and not too broad that you end up sitting for every company visiting the campus.2) Attending PPTsThe PPTs and the workshops organized by the companies form a key input in the decision process of choosing the companies. Be attentive during the PPTs and note key points mentioned – like the profile, compensation structure and the contacts of the people (especially alumni) in the company. This helps a lot during the preparation for the particular company.3) ResumeThe best way to start the preparation for the interview process is to start by making a list of all things that you have done in your life. This list should contain every small and big thing that you have done. Once the above list is made, make a master resume out of the list by retaining all the important things and putting them into formal language. The smaller works can be kept for narrating during interviews. If your master resume is properly made then preparing company tailored resume becomes very easy. After the master resume is done, it is time to make sector/company specific resumes. Every sector must have different resumes and, if possible, also make the resume specific to every company. Take feedback from your friends and seniors and make necessary adjustments.4) Communication skillsYou can make a GD group and conduct regular GDs to help you prepare for the GDs. In fact, also ask your friends to conduct mock interviews and record these interviews. You will actually come to know what to do and how you react during the interviews.5) Written TestsIf you are targeting companies that take CAT-like aptitude tests, then prepare for them by solving some CAT papers. These tests just check practice and someone who has been preparing will definitely have an edge over a person who is not in touch.6) HR InterviewsMake a list of the commonly asked HR questions and then prepare answers for them. Do not learn the answers by heart but make sure you know the important points that you want to mention for each question.7) Case InterviewsThe best way to prepare for a case interview is to form groups and solve case studies interactively as you would do in an interview.8) CSE PreparationFor the CSE companies, I brushed up basic data structures and algorithms as well as C/C++ and Java. Other than that, I also glanced through Operating Systems, Compilers, Networks and databases. Make sure that you understand the basic concepts behind these things as well as particular details of popular implementations of each of these systems.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
Experience: The test contained programming problems as well as puzzle type questions. It also had questions on C++.
Round: Other Interview
Experience: There were 4 interviews I had to appear for. The interviews had questions related to programming, puzzles and probability. For the final interview, it came to a one-on-one contest between two of us. Both were sitting in different rooms and were solving the same problem at the same time.
Tips: Be prepared for such situations and be ready to take the pressure and not get unnerved.
General Tips: Pre-Placement Preparation1) Selecting sectors or companiesSelect your group of target companies and sectors. You should realize what your interests are and what kind of job would suit you, and according to that you should prepare a list of companies that you are going to focus on primarily. This list should not be too narrow that you have too few companies to target and not too broad that you end up sitting for every company visiting the campus.2) Attending PPTsThe PPTs and the workshops organized by the companies form a key input in the decision process of choosing the companies. Be attentive during the PPTs and note key points mentioned – like the profile, compensation structure and the contacts of the people (especially alumni) in the company. This helps a lot during the preparation for the particular company.3) ResumeThe best way to start the preparation for the interview process is to start by making a list of all things that you have done in your life. This list should contain every small and big thing that you have done. Once the above list is made, make a master resume out of the list by retaining all the important things and putting them into formal language. The smaller works can be kept for narrating during interviews. If your master resume is properly made then preparing company tailored resume becomes very easy. After the master resume is done, it is time to make sector/company specific resumes. Every sector must have different resumes and, if possible, also make the resume specific to every company. Take feedback from your friends and seniors and make necessary adjustments.4) Communication skillsYou can make a GD group and conduct regular GDs to help you prepare for the GDs. In fact, also ask your friends to conduct mock interviews and record these interviews. You will actually come to know what to do and how you react during the interviews.5) Written TestsIf you are targeting companies that take CAT-like aptitude tests, then prepare for them by solving some CAT papers. These tests just check practice and someone who has been preparing will definitely have an edge over a person who is not in touch.6) HR InterviewsMake a list of the commonly asked HR questions and then prepare answers for them. Do not learn the answers by heart but make sure you know the important points that you want to mention for each question.7) Case InterviewsThe best way to prepare for a case interview is to form groups and solve case studies interactively as you would do in an interview.8) CSE PreparationFor the CSE companies, I brushed up basic data structures and algorithms as well as C/C++ and Java. Other than that, I also glanced through Operating Systems, Compilers, Networks and databases. Make sure that you understand the basic concepts behind these things as well as particular details of popular implementations of each of these systems.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
3 Interview Rounds
Interview Preparation Tips
Round: Resume Shortlist
Experience: The company looks for exceptional performances in the resumes. They want to have people who are good on all fronts and are exceptional in a few things. So tailor the resume accordingly and bring out all the spikes that you can put forth.
Tips: They usually have a resume making workshop where they tell about their expectations from the resumes. Make full use of that workshop.
Round: Interview
Experience: I appeared for 4 interviews in total. Each interview had case study as well as HR questions. It is very important to engage the interviewer in a conversation and remain confident throughout the interview.
Tips: Show the interviewer that you are really passionate about whatever you have done.
General Tips: Pre-Placement Preparation
1) Selecting sectors or companies
Select your group of target companies and sectors. You should realize what your interests are and what kind of job would suit you, and according to that you should prepare a list of companies that you are going to focus on primarily. This list should not be too narrow that you have too few companies to target and not too broad that you end up sitting for every company visiting the campus.
2) Attending PPTs
The PPTs and the workshops organized by the companies form a key input in the decision process of choosing the companies. Be attentive during the PPTs and note key points mentioned – like the profile, compensation structure and the contacts of the people (especially alumni) in the company. This helps a lot during the preparation for the particular company.
3) Resume
The best way to start the preparation for the interview process is to start by making a list of all things that you have done in your life. This list should contain every small and big thing that you have done. Once the above list is made, make a master resume out of the list by retaining all the important things and putting them into formal language. The smaller works can be kept for narrating during interviews. If your master resume is properly made then preparing company tailored resume becomes very easy. After the master resume is done, it is time to make sector/company specific resumes. Every sector must have different resumes and, if possible, also make the resume specific to every company. Take feedback from your friends and seniors and make necessary adjustments.
4) Communication skills
You can make a GD group and conduct regular GDs to help you prepare for the GDs. In fact, also ask your friends to conduct mock interviews and record these interviews. You will actually come to know what to do and how you react during the interviews.
5) Written Tests
If you are targeting companies that take CAT-like aptitude tests, then prepare for them by solving some CAT papers. These tests just check practice and someone who has been preparing will definitely have an edge over a person who is not in touch.
6) HR Interviews
Make a list of the commonly asked HR questions and then prepare answers for them. Do not learn the answers by heart but make sure you know the important points that you want to mention for each question.
7) Case Interviews
The best way to prepare for a case interview is to form groups and solve case studies interactively as you would do in an interview.
8. CSE Preparation
For the CSE companies, I brushed up basic data structures and algorithms as well as C/C++ and Java. Other than that, I also glanced through Operating Systems, Compilers, Networks and databases. Make sure that you understand the basic concepts behind these things as well as particular details of popular implementations of each of these systems.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
Experience: The company looks for exceptional performances in the resumes. They want to have people who are good on all fronts and are exceptional in a few things. So tailor the resume accordingly and bring out all the spikes that you can put forth.
Tips: They usually have a resume making workshop where they tell about their expectations from the resumes. Make full use of that workshop.
Round: Interview
Experience: I appeared for 4 interviews in total. Each interview had case study as well as HR questions. It is very important to engage the interviewer in a conversation and remain confident throughout the interview.
Tips: Show the interviewer that you are really passionate about whatever you have done.
General Tips: Pre-Placement Preparation
1) Selecting sectors or companies
Select your group of target companies and sectors. You should realize what your interests are and what kind of job would suit you, and according to that you should prepare a list of companies that you are going to focus on primarily. This list should not be too narrow that you have too few companies to target and not too broad that you end up sitting for every company visiting the campus.
2) Attending PPTs
The PPTs and the workshops organized by the companies form a key input in the decision process of choosing the companies. Be attentive during the PPTs and note key points mentioned – like the profile, compensation structure and the contacts of the people (especially alumni) in the company. This helps a lot during the preparation for the particular company.
3) Resume
The best way to start the preparation for the interview process is to start by making a list of all things that you have done in your life. This list should contain every small and big thing that you have done. Once the above list is made, make a master resume out of the list by retaining all the important things and putting them into formal language. The smaller works can be kept for narrating during interviews. If your master resume is properly made then preparing company tailored resume becomes very easy. After the master resume is done, it is time to make sector/company specific resumes. Every sector must have different resumes and, if possible, also make the resume specific to every company. Take feedback from your friends and seniors and make necessary adjustments.
4) Communication skills
You can make a GD group and conduct regular GDs to help you prepare for the GDs. In fact, also ask your friends to conduct mock interviews and record these interviews. You will actually come to know what to do and how you react during the interviews.
5) Written Tests
If you are targeting companies that take CAT-like aptitude tests, then prepare for them by solving some CAT papers. These tests just check practice and someone who has been preparing will definitely have an edge over a person who is not in touch.
6) HR Interviews
Make a list of the commonly asked HR questions and then prepare answers for them. Do not learn the answers by heart but make sure you know the important points that you want to mention for each question.
7) Case Interviews
The best way to prepare for a case interview is to form groups and solve case studies interactively as you would do in an interview.
8. CSE Preparation
For the CSE companies, I brushed up basic data structures and algorithms as well as C/C++ and Java. Other than that, I also glanced through Operating Systems, Compilers, Networks and databases. Make sure that you understand the basic concepts behind these things as well as particular details of popular implementations of each of these systems.
College Name: IIT KANPUR
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