HIL Limited Graduate Engineer Trainee (Get) Interview Questions and Answers

Round: Resume Shortlist
Experience: It was mostly based on academic performance over the years. They had set an eligibility criteria based on our performances in Xth, XIIth and graduation.
Tips: There is no substitute for hard work when it comes to academics. A consistent performance which reflects a positive trend in your performance will always impress your recruiters.

Round: Test
Experience: Tata motors online test in conducted by AMCAT. Quantitative and logical reasoning were pretty much easy. They had questions from all the chapters one can find in any so aptitude books. English questions were mostly usage based. One needs to have a strong reading base to answer the questions. Technical questions were mostly theoretical but very conceptual.
Tips: Practice aptitude questions as much as possible. English needs to be developed through continuous effort. Read books and newspaper, once in a while try writing something in english. A thorough knowledge of your technical concepts is necessary. Focus on English if you think it is your weakest link ASAP. Many people understand this only at the 11th hour, which is of no help at all
Duration: 110 minutes
Total Questions: 100

Round: Group Discussion
Experience: Although our topic was somewhat abstract,other groups had topics based on current political ,social, and economic affairs. Based on the time that was given to us, the 7 of us each took a minute to put forth our point of view before finally concluding in the last 2 minutes of our allotted time. The discussion was a peaceful one and almost every body brought something new into the discussion. 5 of us got selected for the interview round
Tips: Develop your communication skills. Make use of your professional communication skill classes if your college provides one. Take stock of what is happening around you, in your country, in the world. Practice having fruitful discussions with your friends around you on social topics.
Duration: 8-10 minutes minutes

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: I started by giving a small introduction about myself and my upbringing. The interviewers then took up to ask questions from my project. There were 3 interviewers, one hr and 2 technical interviewers. The y were very experienced professionals of their field and their questions reflected that. I was able to answer most of the questions, however they had me stuck at the project question for quite sometime.
Throughout the interview they were going through the my application form they gave us to fill after the online tests and also my CV.
Tips: Keep confidence in yourself. If you have made this far in a placement drive then you have it in yourself to see through one more round. Interviews are hard to advise for and the only extra tip for facing an interview is to feel confident and cool.

Skill Tips: All the above skill sets need to be equally given attention to as each of those elimination rounds focused on a specific skill set.
Skills: Communication, Technical knowledge base, Reasoning Skills, General awareness, Aptitude
College Name: NIT AGARTALA

Round: Resume Shortlist
Experience: The resume that I used while applying in different companies was nearly the same, however I did incorporate certain changes in areas of interest and the projects to make them more compatible with the profile/company which i was applying to. For instance while applying to Schlumberger I highlighted some of the technical projects.

Round: Group Discussion
Experience: I did not prepare for the Group Discussion (GD) activities. The second round conducted by Tata Motors was the GD round. The topic of the GD was ‘What is the backbone of Indian economy: the service sector or the manufacturing sector?’ My group comprised of 7 candidates out of which 4 got selected for the interview round.

Round: HR Interview
Experience: I prepared for the HR interviews by writings and reciting answers to some frequently asked questions. The interviewers began by asking me to speak about myself. Next they enquired about my family background. Then they asked me to specify the reason to opt for mechanical engineering.

The interviewer then moved over to technical questions. The interviewers asked to specify my areas of interest. I replied stating refrigeration and air-conditioning, IC engines and fluid machinery as my areas my interest. In one of the questions he made a diagram with a pump, a reservoir and a relief valve and asked me to calculate something which i do not remember. Unfortunately we were not taught relief valve, and I told him about this. So the interviewer changed the topic and asked me to specify the topics which we were taught in our engineering course. I told him everything that i managed to recall at that moment. He then started asking me questions, some of them were:

What is the difference between positive Displacement Pump and Rotor Dynamics Pump?
In refrigerators only things that are kept in freezers freeze but the freezing process does not take place elsewhere in the refrigerators, why?
If in a refrigerator a particular wire is cut open, then where would gas come out and where would the liquid flow out from?
If the door of the refrigerator, which is kept in a room, is opened then would the room get cooled or heated.
The interview panel of Tata Motors is to simply test your basics. For instance in one of the questions they asked me to state the basic principle governing fluid machinery. This basic principle is the Pascal’s law. When I was asked this question, Pascal’s law never crossed my mind. Consequently, I asked him to quote which law he was talking about. He said Pascal’s law. In spite of him naming the law, it still took me about 3 to 4 minutes to recall the Pascal’s law. Once i managed to recall it i gave him the proper answer. The interview lasted for about 35 minutes.

The company eventually recruited 5 students.
Tips: The technical questions asked in the interviews are the very basic once. Generally people tend to forget the basics that were taught to them in the initial years. Revise the introductory sections of the chapters. Focus more on the concepts rather than the equations.

College Name: IIT ROORKEE
Motivation: Tata is a household name in India. I knew about this company and its activities through its promotional ads and also from its website. The company was focussing on the core technical knowledge and did not lay a lot of emphasis on knowledge about the company.

Round: Test
Experience: The written round was fairly easy. 30 questions from each section. The aptitude section was easier which didn't pose any difficulty for most of the candidates. The technical part had basic questions to test the fundamentals.
The test had a different format where each question had a specific time limit. After attending a question there was no option to review it. Around 60-70 % of the candidates got selected for the next round.
Tips: The trick lies in attending as many questions as possible. As said always accuracy matters. But then again it was not a national level exam. So all we had to do was clear the cut offs. And the no of students getting eliminated in this round was not high.
Duration: 60 minutes
Total Questions: 60

Round: Group Discussion
Experience: I had a descent experience. The discussion started well but turned rough towards the second half where students started mentioning biased points towards there own gender. Overall it was not that fierce. I started the discussion. The panel had 8 students with 2 moderators. We allowed each and everyone to present their points. 5 students got selected for the personal interview round. Only the ones who had spoke very little were eliminated.
Tips: Well there are lots of tips which are available online on how to tackle GD's. But from my personal experience i would like to state that if you are not well aware of the topic then take the risk and start or initiate the discussion. It's easier to introduce the topic covering the basic points. Or else you can give a suitable conclusion at the end by collecting the points and summering the overall topic.
Duration: 20 minutes

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: Although i have titled it as a technical interview , it was a technical cum HR interview. The discussion went on for approximately 30 minutes. Starting with my internship experience they covered core areas of automobile industry. I was able to answer most of them and denied politely to whichever questions i didn't know the answer to. They asked about my future goals, my hobbies and achievements. Overall it was very interactive and a healthy experience.
Tips: Be prepared to answer any question based on your resume. Pick your favorite subject and start preparing thoroughly. For e.g for TATA Motors (in fact for all the automobile companies) i covered basic areas of Automobile Engineering (my areas of interest were transmission and drivetrain) . Show some interest that you want to join their company. All in all try to be yourself and give your best. To avoid being nervous, believe that it's not the end. A lot of companies would visit later and life doesn't end here. So keep calm and be expressive.

General Tips: As mentioned earlier.
Skill Tips: As mentioned earlier.
Skills: Self Confidence, Determination, Communication skills
College Name: NIT ROURKELA
Motivation: As mentioned earlier.
Funny Moments: I was asked the length of football goal post and instead of 24ft i said 24m to which the panel started laughing and giving me suspicious looks. I rectified it quickly though. I guess i had lost my focus a bit towards the end of the round.

Round: Resume Shortlist
Experience: I had a standard resume for this company as per the norms of our institute’s placement cell. For Tata Motors I laid emphasis on both – my technical skills as well as extra-curricular activities.

Round: Test
Experience: The written test had both technical as well as general aptitude questions. The aptitude questions were easy as per the standards of CAT examination. Manufacturing was the major topic that they had asked besides fluid was another important topic. They had also asked topics covering almost all aspects of mechanical engineering. Surface knowledge of the major topics in the mechanical engineering area would be more than sufficient to clear the test.

Round: Group Discussion
Experience: The next round was the Group Discussion round and the topic for discussion was “Will India be a Super Power”. The group was around 10 students and 4 students from the group were selected for the next round. They were looking for students with good communication skills and those who can communicate their point in a group.

Round: HR Interview
Experience: The panel began asking questions from my resume. I had written German as one of the languages I knew. So they asked me questions related to German language. They asked me words and their meanings. They then asked me simple technical questions. I had written my interest as Solid mechanics, IC engines and Thermodynamics. My preferred subject was Solid Mechanics but they refused to ask question from it. Instead they questioned me on IC engines - What is brake horse power and questions related to knocking. Most of the questions asked were pretty simple though.

The HR interview session was pretty long though. They asked me about my aims and aspirations and also about my family. They lay a little more importance to your family values as well as on the fact that whether you will stick with their organization for long term

College Name: IIT ROORKEE
Motivation: Tata is a household name in India. I knew about this company and its activities through its promotional ads and also from its site. The company was focussing on the core technical knowledge and did not lay a lot of emphasis on knowledge about the company.

Round: Test
Experience: Test was consisted of 4 sections with individual cut-offs, so initially I was little bit afraid. But when test came on the screen, it was not that much tough as I was expecting to be. So, overall, it was good, not very difficult. They just checked the basics and presence of mind.
Tips: Solve some easy questions one day before the test. Most important thing, be confident.

Round: Group Discussion
Experience: I had faced one GD before the GD of TATA Motors so I was quite confident for it.
Tips: They gave 2 minutes time before starting the discussion, so, do not be nervous. Just think of the possible dimensions of the topic.
Most important tip :even if you don't get any idea, don't panic,just do one thing. Support other's point. For example, if someone saying I think it is good idea,........ so you say " I strongly support your point but it should be like this that etc etc "   Dilpomacy.

Round: Problem Statement
Experience: According to me, it does not play very important role because our activity did not give something fruitful, many were shortlisted after this phase also.many were shortlisted after this phase too.
Tips: In every activity whatever is given, be active participant. And keep on giving suggestions and guide the group but be sensible otherwise it may be counted as negative point also.

Round: Other Interview
Experience: Initially, as obvious was a little bit afraid,I kept speaking, covering all aspects that I could remember at that time. At last, he said he was quite impressed by my answer. 
These are very very basic question for any electrical Engg.
Tips: First all wish everyone and to the lady member first. Be confident. Take your time to think the relevant point before giving answers. They understand, you are human being not the machine. Maintain eye contact to as many persons as you can.
If you do not know answer just tell them you dnt know. Do not try to play with technical person.

General Tips: First and foremost, confidence. Take your time to give right answers instead of throwing the answers on the interviewer.
Skill Tips: Again be confident.  Have some knowledge about the company and visit the company's website before the interview.
Skills: Speaking, Behavior, Confidence
College Name: MANIT
Motivation: As TATA Motors has international recognition, so working in this company itself was a great motivation. As I wanted to have exposure of various fields like Mechanical Engg. also, so I chose to work with automobile company.
Funny Moments: We were shortlisted  into four slots for GD and my name was in the last slot and that too second last from the end of list.
Once I started in the 5 minute speaking questions, he was about to stop me but I said let me finish first .

Round: Test
Experience: Online exam was conducted in college campus.The first section(aptitude) comprised basic level questions from English , numerical and logical reasoning. It was be fun solving them. Whereas the technical part was more thorough. It included almost all subjects.

Round: Group Discussion
Experience: It was a nice experience. The other party made it clear that one makes good point whether one or two. The discussion was to be in English.
Tips: Neither panic nor hesitate. It is not how much one speaks but how well one speaks.

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: It was actually an HR-cum-Technical interview. The interviewers asked me to describe myself for the first five minutes. Later technical and some HR questions were asked. Questions related to summer training and major project were also asked.
Tips: Technical questions were easier than those in the online exam.

General Tips: Stay calm and confident.

A quick revision of subjects can help clearing the online test. Performance in GD can be a big shot.
Skill Tips: There were few other areas of judgement (apart from knowledge) like.. confidence level, English grammar, body language..
Skills: Communication
College Name: NIT BHOPAL

Round: Test
Experience: Topics(techanical) : Thermodynamics, Manufacturing and Production, Strength of Materials and IC Engines
Tips: Revise basic from these topics. Remember basic formulas.
Duration: 120 minutes
Total Questions: 90

Round: Group Discussion
Duration: 30 minutes

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: Duration on an average of 25-30 minutes.
Open for only mechanical and Electrical5 students were selected: 4 from mechanical, 1 from Electrical
Tips: If you are not able to answer some question, Don't panic. They will give you some hints.

College Name: IIT ROPAR