Tower Research Capital LLC Interview Questions, Process, and Tips for Freshers

Eligibility criteria8 CGPATower Research Capital interview preparation:Topics to prepare for the interview - DSA and Algorithms, OOPS, Database, OS, NetworksTime required to prepare for the interview - 6 monthsInterview preparation tips for other job seekers

Tip 1 : Focus on different varieties of problems, quality of problems matter greater than the quantity.
Tip 2 : Focus on design thinking, that will help in rounds other than problem solving.

Application resume tips for other job seekers

Tip 1 : Focus on demonstrating your academic excellence and course projects
Tip 2 : Mention internship details with clarity

Final outcome of the interviewSelected

Round: Test
Experience: The written test was subjective type and had questions mainly on C/C++, UNIX, Algorithms and Data Structures, Probability. The focus was on Algorithms and Data Structures, and in many of the questions you were supposed to code the algorithm you propose.

Round: Interview
Experience: I got shortlisted for the interviews and had 3 rounds. All the interviews were of about 1 hour duration. They mainly asked questions on algorithms and puzzles. Sometimes after I gave them the algorithm they asked me to code it. I felt after the process that I could have made it had I revised the algorithm courses thoroughly.
Tips: Thoroughly revise all the data structures and algorithms courses you have done. Get hold of a book like Cormen and solve the questions given at the end of each chapter. Also code the algorithms to get some practice.

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

Round: Test
Experience: Questions on C++(Virtual fns, inheritance). Two on probability, 12 on Algorithms.

Round: Other Interview
Experience: There were 4 rounds to my interview.

Round 1(Madhuresh Agrawal):
He asked a lot of puzzles. Apart from knowing how to approach a problem, you should also know the mathematical reasoning for their correctness.

Round 2 (Abhishek Gaurav):
He asked some more puzzles and some probability (expectation) questions. Then, he modified one question asked in the written test and asked me write code for it on paper.

Round 3 (Anand Sinha):
He asked questions related to graphs. Several times, he tried to trick me by asking questions like "How would you tell whether a graph has a node with n degree?" whereas no node can have degree = n.

Round 4 (Anand Sinha):
He asked me write 2 programs: 1. Given k and DFS traversal string for a k-ary tree, construct the tree. The String contains P (if a parent) and L (if a leaf). E.g. - k=3, str="PPLLLLL" 2. All the strings are arranged in the following order: A,B,..,Z,AA,...AZ,BA,...,BZ,... That is, first according to length and then according to alphabet (assume there are k alphabets instead of 26). Now, given a string, finds its position in the mentioned sequence.
Tips: First of all, prepare all the questions asked in the test before going for the interviews.

General Tips: Well, for my story, I'll start right from the 3rd year. For me that was the time when I started thinking about what to do after graduation. Believe me, this is the toughest and the most important question that needs to be answered. For most people, they have a clear idea about what they want to do in future. But, if you are not one of those lucky ones, you should really spend some time thinking about your future. There are of course, some people who are confused and try their luck at everything. Take my advice, don't be that person. You would
end up nowhere that way. Now, the question remains, how to decide which way to go. Well, being an IITian, we all are good at problem solving. I tried something similar here. Try to know more about the various options available to you. To name a few: MBA, Civil Services, PhD, Job (core, IT, Consulting, Analytics, Finance, FMCG), NGO, Journalism etc. Although I've mentioned MBA and PhD in the list above, I didn't consider them as options. Those are merely the means for achieving a higher goal. So, I looked at the bigger picture, what I really wanted to do in my life. I attended some of the PPTs (don't worry 3rd yr. students are allowed to attend PPTs). And to clarify my doubts about a corporate life, I also chose a company intern. When I had enough information about my options, I matched them with my likes/dislikes. Now, you shouldn't chase big money unless it is the only thing that you
want. Even simple likings like partying, travelling or free time in evening do matter. If your job doesn't give you all that you won't be happy with your life. And if you are not happy with your job, you won't do well there as well. I didn't apply for McKinsey, ITC or Deutsche bank as that is not the kind of life I want to live. So, choose what you want to be (you may not be able to pinpoint it but at least narrow down your options). Then, find out what you
need to get there. For example, if you want to be a researcher or a professor, you would need
at least a PhD.

Then, came the task of deciding which companies to sit for. Once you know your goal, you can decide what type of companies you want to apply for. Attending the PPTs and the notes I made of them came in handy for this purpose. Don't just look at what company does; find out exactly what your role would be. Then comes the threshold. Shortlist the companies in which you would actually be interested in going. Don't apply in a company which you won't join if you get the job.
College Name: IIT KANPUR

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