Quota Politics

There was a time when getting into an IIT was a dream for me, studying in it a favour bestowed upon me by destiny and graduating from IITK an unparalleled achievement for me in life. Today when I look back at life, I feel proud to have made it to the hallowed portals of IIT Kanpur, and all the cherished memories of the hours spent digging into my books and burning the midnight oil come back to life. This is me - a general category alumnus of IIT Kanpur.

I wonder whether certain people from future batches passing out from IITs, IIMs and other central universities will have the same happy memories and love for their degree as I have for mine now. Why should they - when everything was given to them in a golden platter with a golden spoon to feed from? Welcome to the new age India - a country smitten by quota bureaucracy and dirty politics!!!!!!

I can't help wondering whether the present state of our nation is what its fathers had envisioned when we gained our independence? Did they dream of a country where half a century later people would still be so preoccupied with meaningless scuffles and internal war that they would lose the larger picture? What about development? What about merit? What about the technical and competitive edge that has made India the frontrunner in global technology? And what about the self esteem and pride of Indian citizens? Are all these things trivial for our politicians who see no other way of promoting equality than implementing bizarre quota policies? Today, votes are more important for our political parties than upliftment and general well being of Indian masses - and instead of promoting equality, they are dividing our society even more. India is at war, with itself.

Who is to blame for this situation? We, the people!!!!! Indian votebanks comprise of people from the backward sections of the society - so that is the class that is at the front end of the government's vote oriented thinking. We are the ones at fault. Where are the elite, educated Indians? Perhaps they are too busy filling their bourses, and have no time for politics. Voting? Bah!!!! That's not our task, they say!!! Whose task is it then, I dare ask?

Coming to our government - personally I would have lauded the quota thing; had it been based on economic disparity rather than caste. In the current scenario however, it would do nothing but divide our society. The rich would get richer and the poor would remain in their dismal state. For those SC/STs and OBCs who are really meritorious; their achievements would be dismissed as a result of "quota". So much for social and economic equality, and self esteem.

I personally welcome the Supreme Court's intervention in this issue. For long, I have come to trust the Supreme Court more than our government. The SC has performed well in the past, and I hope it will handle this case effectively as well. My only fear here is - what if our constitution is amended overnight by our wily politicians? The SC would have no say over that, then! Who would save India from going down the drain? Who would give our children a better future? Perhaps it is time for us Indians to get down to the roads and face the reality, face on. Perhaps it is time that we did something, something to save our nation, something to save ourselves and our children.

Placements@ISB

ISB has formally released its placement report for the past year (Class of 2006) - and wow!!!! All records have been broken. Four students have bagged jobs which are paying them more than $200,000 per annum!!!! Average domestic salary stands at Rs 11.7 lakhs pa. Some statistics!!!!
The point is - in five years flat, ISB has given the IIMs some really tough competition; and something to think about. Do the IIMs, the older generation schools, need to learn something from the model ISB has followed? Are the trends changing? I think they sure are.
ISB has followed a model of student selection which has been tested by some of the best universities of the world!!! It also has faculty which are by far the best in their respective fields, plus it also has infrastructure which matches and perhaps beats the best in the world. Also, the GMAT average of the ingoing class is slated to be one of the highest in the world, beating biggies like Stanford and Harvard. Wonder where ISB will find itself in world rankings once it starts participating in rankings and stuff.
I sure hope this institute goes a long way - and in a very short time it has become my dream institute; alongwith IIM Bangalore. Wonder when I will be able to get into one of these. The figures these institutes have to show are quite inspiring though - enough for me to hit my study desk again :D

Friends or foes?

Living together is a double edged sword - it has its own advantages and disadvantages. My roomies and I had been enjoying the advantages all this while; but a few days back we got the taste of some disadvantages as well :)
Some wise man once said - "Familiarity breeds contempt"!!! How true he was!!! (Wonder how these old sages got their wisdom, by just sitting and meditating in mountains)
Well, back to the point - people at our home had all become seething volcanoes; hiding tons of "baggage" under their skins, ready to explode. One just had to provide the initial trigger, which was promptly provided by one roomie of mine when he talked to one of our friends a little too cutely :/. The result? An avalanche of feelings and emotions which peaked till the wee hours of morning, greatly depriving each one of us of our much beloved and precious sleep. (I am still not over the deficit; am yawning while penning this down - Allah knows when I will be able to bridge the gap that has been created. This Saturday perhaps; I am really going to hit the bed (no puns intended - just for sleeping, naughty!!!!)).
It's good that finally things were settled and seething dissatisfactions pacified for the while, after much banging, stomping and shouting. Wonder what our neighbours must be thinking - World War 3 has finally begun perhaps?
And in all this - I missed my all important guitar practice :(. I don't know how much time the net is going to take to crack a tough nut like me and turn him into a guitarist - but it sure is going to be a very long time.......

The guitar world

G...D....C...Em....Dm.....D.....E.......
Welcome to the cryptic guitar world!!! Bad boy Kshitiz has just entered it with a plum new Signature guitar up his kitty!!!! My roomies are going to have to go through hell every evening now, as I make their ears sore with my strumming....

Now to search who were the guitar greats of the world and follow their footsteps - Beatles, here I come.

The vagaries of life

Ah - back after a long time!!!!! Couldn't help being away, though. The interim time has been one of the toughest I have ever spent in life - thinking whether to take up the SPJCM offer or not. It's interesting to see how people who have never mattered in your life suddenly spring up to give you unsolicited advice when you are in a dilemma. And what do you get? A deluge of opinions which leave you even more confused than you were before!!!
Well, anyways, the bottomline is - I am not going to join the Dubai/Singapore program. So much for the upturn in life. I chose to nip it myself. Whether I live to appreciate or regret this one decision of mine; time will tell. Till then, it's the GMAT, CAT again. ISB - you have one more aspirant in the wings for the coming year :D

S P Jain Centre of Management - Dubai/Singapore!!!!!!!

They say "Life is what happens to you when you are busy making other plans"!!!! How true this is; I came to realize some time back. My roomie told me about the one year Global MBA program offered by this institute - entailing two wonderful cities - Dubai and Singapore!!!!! I applied online, got a GD/interview call, rushed to Mumbai in a jiffy (almost missing my train owing to the great Bangalore traffic); gave my evaluation and voila!!!! Today I have an admit from them in the IT specialization. All of a sudden, life changes - yesterday I didn't know where life was taking me; and today - all of a sudden, I will be flying to Dubai for six months and then to Singapore for the next six months. Talk of all the international experience I craved for!!!!!!!
Guess my rollercoaster has taken an upturn for now :)

B-school Interview tips

Disclaimer: This article has been copied from Pagalguy.com and is sole property of that site with no inputs from my side :)





PREPARATION FOR INTERVIEWS

Because communication skills are such an integral part of effective management, some schools include personal interviews as part of the admissions process. Some tips to help you prepare for an interview:

o Review your application; the interviewer is likely to ask specific questions about it.
o Be ready to provide examples and specifics and to elaborate on info on your resume and application.
o Be open and honest.
o Ask questions, since the interview is as much an opportunity for you to learn about the school as for the school to learn about you.
o Follow proper business decorum.
o Watch your nonverbal clues, such as eye contact, posture, and fidgeting.
o Be courteous to the administrative staff, since how you treat them can have an impact (positive or negative).

Some Frequently Asked Questions on Interviews :

"Tell us about yourself"?

In an interview how does one handle the question "Tell us about yourself?".

An often asked opening question. Perhaps the most frequently asked question across interviews. Your opening statement needs to be a summary of your goals, overall professional capabilities, achievements, background (educational and family), strengths, professional objectives and anything about your personality that is relevant and interesting. This question represents an opportunity to lead the interviewer in the direction you want him to go e.g., your speciality or whatever else you may wish to highlight.

Your intention should be to try subtly convincing the interviewers that you are a good candidate, you have proved that in the past and have a personality that fits the requirement.

Remember that the first impression you create will go a long way in the ultimate selection. Keep in mind, most candidates who are asked this question just blurt out their schooling, college, marks and qualifications. All this is already there in the CV. Why tell the interviewer something he already knows?

A final word on approaching this question. Once you have said what you have to say - shut up. Don't drone on for the sake of speaking for you just might say something foolish. Sometimes interviewers don't interrupt in order to give the candidate the impression that he has not spoken enough. This is just a stress/error-inducing tactic. Don't fall for it, especially if you feel you have spoken enough. In case the pause gets too awkward for your liking, just add something like, "Is there something specific that you wish to know about me?"

Is it better to have a longer selection interview or a shorter one?

The length of an interview in no way is an indicator of how well an interview went. This is especially so when there are a number of candidates to be interviewed, like in the Civil Services interview or the MBA entrance interview. In the past, a number of candidates have reported varying lengths of interviews. Nothing positive or negative should be read into this. An interview is only a device whereby the panel seeks information about the candidate. Information that will help the panel decide whether or not the candidate should be selected. If the panel feels that it has gathered enough information about the candidate in 15 minutes of the interview commencing and that it has no further questions to ask the interview will be terminated in 15 minutes. If on the other hand the panel takes an hour to gather the information required to take a decision the interview will last for an hour. In either case the decision could be positive or negative. It is a fallacy to believe that interview panels take longer interviews of candidates whom they are more interested in. No panel likes to waste its time. If an interview is lasting longer than usual then it only means that the panel is seeking more information about the candidate in order to take a decision.

In the MBA entrance interview how do I justify my decision to pursue the MBA programme?

When you are asked this for God's sake don't tell the panel that you are looking for a"challenging job in a good firm with lots of money, status and glamour". That is the first answer that most candidates think of. Unfortunately, it is the last answer that will get you admission. In the answer to a direct question on this subject you must convey to the interview panel that you have made a rational and informed decision about your career choice and your intended course of higher study. There are broadly four areas which your answer could touch upon:

Career Objectives : You could talk about your career objectives and how the two year MBA programme will help you achieve them. This implies that you have a clear idea of what your career objectives are and how you wish to achieve them. For example, you may want to be an entrepreneur and wish to set up your independent enterprise after doing your MBA and then working for a few years in a professionally managed company. You could explain to the panel that the MBA programme will provide you with the necessary inputs to help you run your business enterprise better. But then you must be clear about what the inputs you will receive in the MBA programme are.

Value Addition : That brings us to the second area that your answer should touch upon. What is the value you will add to yourself during your two year study of management. Value addition will essentially be in two forms knowledge and skills. Knowledge of the various areas of management e.g. marketing, finance, systems, HRD etc. and skills of analysis and communication. You will find it useful to talk to a few people who are either doing their MBA or have already done it. They will be able to give you a more detailed idea of what they gained from their MBA.

Background : Remember, there must be no inconsistency between your proposed study of management and your past subject of study or your past work experience. If you have studied commerce in college then management is a natural course of higher studies. If you are an engineer this is a tricky area. You must never say that by pursuing a career in management you will be wasting your engineering degree. Try and say that the MBA course and your engineering degree will help you do your job better in the company that you will join. But then you should be able to justify how your engineering qualification will help.

Opportunities and Rewards : You could also at this stage mention the opportunities that are opening up in organizations for management graduates. Highlight with examples. At the end you may mention that while monetary rewards are not everything they are also important and MBAs do get paid well. You must not mention these reasons as your primary motivators even if that may be the case.

What to Expect ?

In general, B-school interviews are not formulaic. The focus can range from specific questions about your job responsibilities to broad discussions of life. Approach the interview as a conversation to be enjoyed, not as a question-and-answer ordeal to get through. You may talk more about your hobbies or recent cross-country trip. This doesn't mean that it won't feel like a job interview. It just means you're being sized up as a person and future professional in all your dimensions. Try to be your witty, charming, natural self. Interviews are conducted by students, faculty, admissions personnel and alumni. Don't dismiss students as the lightweights; they follow a tight script and report back to the committee. However, because they're inexperienced beyond the script, their interviews are most likely to be duds. You may have to work harder to get your points across.

How to Prepare ?

Prepare for the interview in several ways: Expect to discuss many things about yourself. Be ready to go into greater depth than you did in your essays (but don't assume the interviewer has read them). Put together two or three points about yourself that you want the interviewer to remember you by. Go in with examples, or even a portfolio of your work, to showcase your achievements. Practice speaking about your accomplishments without a lot of "I did this, I did that." Finally, be prepared to give a strong and convincing answer to the interviewer's inevitable question: "Why here?"

Self Awareness

1. How would you describe yourself ?
2. Tell me about yourself ?
3. How do you think a friend or professor who knows you would describe you?
4. What motivates you to put forth your best effort ?
5. How do you determine or evaluate success ?
6. What academic subjects did you like best ? Least ?
7. What led you to choose the career for which you are preparing ?
8. What personal characteristics are necessary for succeeding in the career that you are interested in ?
9. What is your philosophy of life ?
10. Why have you switched career fields ?

Weaknesses / Negatives

1. What major problems have you encountered and how have you dealt with them ?
2. What have you learnt form your mistakes ?
3. What do you consider to be your greatest weakness ?
4. Did you ever have problems with your supervisor ?

Skills / Abilities / Qualifications

1. What do you consider to be your greatest strength ?
2. Are you creative ? Give an example.
3. What qualifications do you have that makes you think you will be successful ?
4. In what way do you think you can make a contribution to society?
5. Why should we take you ?
6. What are your own special abilities ?
7. Why should we take you over another candidate ?
8. What is your managing style ?
9. Why do you want to join this institute ?
10. What do you know about our institute ?

Values

1. What is your attitude towards working hard ?
2. What part does your family play in your life ?
3. What are the most important rewards you expect in your career ?
4. What is more important to you : money offered, or the type of job ?
5. Do you enjoy independent research ?
6. In what kind of a work environment are you most comfortable ?
7. How would you describe the ideal job for you ?
8. What two or three things are most important to you in your job ?
9. Do you prefer working with others or all by yourself ?
10. How do you like to work ?
11. Under what conditions do you work best ?
12. What is the highest form of praise ?

Experience

1. In what part-time or summer job have you been most interested ?
2. Tell me about your experience.
3. What jobs have you held ?
4. How did your previous employer treat you ?
5. What have you learnt from some of the jobs that you have held ?
6. What jobs have you enjoyed most ? Least ? Why ?
7. What have you done that shows initiative and willingness to work ?
8. Describe your current job.
9. What did you like least about your last job ?
10. What did you like most about your last job ?

Goals / Objectives

1. What are your short-term and long-term goals and objectives ?
2. What specific goals other than those related to your occupation have you chosen for yourself for the next 10 years ?
3. What do you see yourself doing 5 years from now ?
4. What do you really want to do in life ?
5. How do you plan to achieve your career goals ?

Education

1. How has your education prepared you for a career ?
2. Describe your most rewarding college experience.
3. Why did you select your college or university ?
4. If you could, would you plan your academic study differently ?
5. Do you think grades are a good indication of your academic achievement ?
6. What have you learnt from participation in extracurricular activities ?
7. Do you have plans for continuing your studies ?
8. Why did you pick your programme ?
9. What courses did you like best and why ?
10. What courses did you like least and why ?
11. How has your college experience prepared you for this job ?
12. How did you pick your dissertation ?
13. Describe your dissertation process.

Salary

1. What do you expect to earn in 5 years ?
2. What did you earn in your last job ?

Interests

1. What are your outside interests ?
2. What do you do with your free time ?
3. What are your hobbies ?
4. What types of books do you read ?
5. How interested are you in sports ?
6. How did you spend your vacations in school ?

General

1. What qualities should a successful manager possess ?
2. Describe the relationship that should exist between a supervisor and a subordinate.
3. What 3 accomplishments have given you the greatest satisfaction ?
4. If you were taking a graduate for this institute, what qualities would you look for ?
5. What can I do for you ?
6. Tell me a story.
7. Define cooperation.

Stress Questions

1. What causes you to lose your temper ?
2. How often have you been absent from school, work or training ?
3. Have you ever had trouble with other people on the job ?
4. Can you take instructions without getting upset ?
5. Don't you feel you are a little to old/young for this job ?
6. How does your family like you being away on business trips ?
7. With your background, we believe that you are overqualified to join this institute.
8. You haven't had sufficient experience in this field.
9. Our experience with women on this job has not been good.
10. What would irritate you most if I as a manager did it ?

Influencing Others

1. Tell me about the time you were most persuasive in overcoming resistance to your ideas or point of view.
2. Tell me about the last time someone made an unreasonable request of you.
3. Describe the most disappointing and frustrating experience in gaining the support of others for an idea or proposal.

Interpersonal Skills

1. Describe a situation where it was most important for you to display tact and diplomacy.
2. Tell me about the last time you had a clash or disagreement with someone at school/college/workplace.
3. Tell me about a time when you felt most frustrated and disappointed at a person with whom you had worked.

Personal Adaptability

1. Tell me about the last time you were criticized by a supervisor or a professor.
2. Tell me about the time when you felt most pressured or stressed at work/ school/internship.
3. Tell me about the time when you felt most frustrated at your school/workplace.
4. In what aspects of your work/internship do you have the most confidence in your abilities.

Communication Skills

1. Tell me about the time when you felt best about your ability to draw out or solicit information from another person.
2. Tell me about the time when you had to work your hardest in order to fully understand what another person was saying to you.
3. Describe the last time when someone at school/work misunderstood what you were trying to communicate.

Motivation

1. Tell me about the most long term, sustained extra hours of effort that you put into your work/college/internship.
2. Describe a time when you felt most frustrated or discouraged in reaching your goals or objectives.
3. What do you feel has been your most significant work/school/internship related achievement within the past year or so ?
4. Describe the last time you did something well which went beyond the expectations in your work/internship.

Administrative Skills

1. Tell me how you go about organizing your work and scheduling your own time.
2. What do you do to ensure that your goals and objectives are met in a timely way ?
3. Describe the most extensive planning that you have ever done.

Problem Solving and Decision Making

1.Tell me about the most difficult problem that you faced in your work/school/internship ?
2.Tell me about the last time you made a decision that backfired.
3.Tell me about the time when you regretted most not getting advice before you went ahead ?

Conflict Management Skills

1. Tell me about the last significant crisis situation that you faced in your work.
2. Tell me about a time when you were most persuasive in overcoming resistance to your ideas.
3. Tell me about the time when you had a disagreement with someone at work.

Federer beats Baghdatis in Australian Open finals

Federer is the champion yet again!!!!!! His seventh grand slam title, and in what style. The opposition was stiff with the unseeded Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis putting the audience in awe with his superbly timed and placed power shots and quick sprints across the court. In fact, this was best described by a commentator when he said - "For the first time after a very very long time, there is a look of concern on the world champion's face (read Federer's face)". Yes, it has been a long long time since Federer was really put to test, but the man is made of steel!!!! He passed the test with flying colours, yet again!!!

As for Baghdatis, he is a real champion-in-the-making. There was nothing one could put against him except that it was Federer on the other side. His shots were brilliant, timing and placing - excellent and agility - superb. In fact, he is said to have created the most hula in Melbourne in this series. His supporters were strong, and the sweet looking girl (his girlfriend) who was always there in the stands to cheer for him - WOW!!!! Anybody can go and conquer the moon for a girl like that. I am a staunch supporter of Federer and yet, when Baghdatis lost, I felt a tinge of pity for him. His game was great; hands-down. I hope he is able to make it to the top three seeds some time in the near future.

The most emotional moment of the entire episode, though, was when Federer cried after being awarded the trophy by the legendary Rod Laver. I was amazed to see that biggies like Federer are also subject to these "lesser" human emotions and can afford to cry in public :) It felt good though - that Federer is also a human who has achieved what he has through sheer practice and perseverance. May he play on to scale heights that no one else has achieved. Same goes for the dynamic Marcos Baghdatis.

Kshitiz

Third test between India and Pakistan@Karachi

Hooray!!!! Irfan Pathan did a hattrick in the third test against Pakistan on Sunday. Yet, after the hula was over, Pakistan cruised on to make 245 runs in the first innings. It was amazing to see the Paki tail enders hit big shots and shatter the Indian bowling. Interesting how good team work can produce spectacular results :) Not that I am a Pakistani supporter, mind you, but I do appreciate good cricket - and Pakistan played some really good cricket on Sunday - bad pitches and all.

On the Indian side - the fielding was superb, but our bowlers and batsmen need to be more refined. Common drawbacks notwithstanding, I believe that even after the initial dominance by the Indian side, Pakistan turned around and took the reins in their hands. This is something which India needs to learn to tackle. Time and again they have let go of a completely captured match. As of today, India is rated as one of the best test teams in the world - it needs to learn how to stay at this summit.

The second innings is going to be interesting. It's disgusting that I will have to sit through it in office :( Would have loved to recline in my cosy chair and watch it live on television, but work - sigh!!!!!!!!

Signing off,
Kshitiz

ISB R2 interviews - 2005-06 for class of 2007

One panel, 3 ppl , 1 AdCom + 2 Alums, Approx 12-14 interviews on 21-Jan

50 word essay
There were a bunch of papers each with a diff topic. I chose "Communication". Other essays
Cricket, Govt. of India, Animal life...

--
Before starting interview, the panel spend 10 mts (appox) reviewing/re-reviewing the appl.

Adcom: Why ISB?
Me: blah blah...
Alum1: U are same company for 4.5 yrs, Din't u get a better offer else where?
Me: Growth/Salary/Happiness - All 3 I get here.. so Y.. blah blah blah
Alum1: You are getting one of the most highest salary for this exp group. What can u expect in ISB?
Me: blah blah...
Alum2: Which unit. What is revenue of ur unit?

Case Study:
Estimate the market size for a "Divine Apple" which can make one hold breath for 30 mts.
This flopped for me royally and at one point, I chose to skip this.

I then spoke about certain self analysis, which they cross questioned.

Adcom: So what role u r aiming at after ISB?
..

Question to ISB:

--------------------------------------
Overall it went well (30 mts), except for the case study. No reactions from them, as it went good or bad.

The waiting starts..........


Profile: 4.5 Yrs IT / GMAT: 650

Regards
Harry


Ok guys. After all the laptops and backpacks, here's one on my
interview experience. I just finished my interview this
morning...9:30 am @ Oberoi.

The 50-word essay continues and you get to write it as soon as you
report at the venue, so if you want to take your time, get there as
early as possible! My essay topic was "Documentation".

The interview itself was quite short -- around 20 mins. 3 panelists -
- a lady from the adcom, one current student and an alumnus.

Here are the questions:

1) My work-exp and reasons for leaving? (I quit a couple of months
ago for personal reasons)..this discussion lasted for a while.
2) Post MBA goals? Why?
3) Company growth strategy / profit margins?
4) Hobbies?
5) Latest book I have read?
6) Why did I not choose to go into IT?( my background's in
manufacturing)
7) Questions for the panel.

And it ended with that. Like most others, I cannot gauge much from
the interview. Just that I enjoyed talking to them - a set of very
nice people and they make you feel absolutely at ease. I came out
feeling nice about the interview...and haven't gotten into the stage
of threadbare analysis yet..(frankly, i wish i don't either)

So all the best for other R2 interviews. Mail in if I can be of any
help.

Cheers,
Ramya


Hi all,
My interview was scheduled at 12:00 PM. Reached venue at 11:30. got
an essay topic to write for - "Why cant India produce great sportspersons"
wrote down a few reasons and waited.

I was called in for interview by Ms.Hema at about 12:05PM. There were two
other people - Mr.Subramaniam ( I think current student) and Mr. Ajith
RamaKrishnan ( I am not sure about his name ).

Ms.Hema asked me about my career plans and goals - ( Because the career
goals essay was very short, I could not elaborate more ). I explained to her
about my plans and she asked me what kind of consulting firms would i prefer
to jion. I said McKinsey, Bain etc..

Then she told me if Mr.Ajith were a McKinsey person, how would I convince
him that he should take me and not others. To this I cited my background
from small town, gender bias and mentioned that despite these I could come
up. So I have passion and perseverance. This would be the intangible
contribution apart from it other tangible contributions such as good
techology background, good client exposure etc...

He asked me to show my gender bias and rural background as +ve factors. I
told them how negotiation, diplomacy, strategy and team skills come
naturally to a girl because of upbringing and other cultural factors. Before
I could get to the rural backgroud, he asked me to think outwards rather
than inwards. So I mentioned about women and peopel from the towns and
villages becoming the major consumer chunk and how I could help them in this
regard.

Then he asked me why I had not thought abotu this. I said I was more inward
looking rather than outward looking because during discussions about the
itnerview several ppl told me that the interviewers want to know what I am
as a person. He said they wanted to see how we think.. and our thought
process....

Then Mr.Subramaniam asked me why am I hurrying to do an MBA. I could wait
longer and then do an MBA. I said I have enough maturity and the sooner I do
my MBA , the more the time I will have to start myown firm.

Then there was about what are you goign to do abotu funds and the huge
investment. I said I intend to take a loan and copleteing it should not be a
problem if I get into good jobs after ISB.

After this, Mr. Ajith based on my background said why I wanted to join
McKinsey, when I had earlier said I joied my company Emuzed a startup to
undersatnd startup processes and characteristics. I told him I do not know
currently abotu such startups. After graduating from ISB, if I come to kwno
of it, I woudl prefer it surely.

Then they asked me if I had any questions.

I aksed 2 questions.

1. How do the international student exchange progs work? What is the
criteria for selction? do students prefer it?


2. As a ful time MBA studets, would I be able to take a few courses ni the
executive programme.


On the whole, it was a nice experience. The board had evaluated the
application thoroughly before the interview. They were trying to get
information on issues they felt needed more information.

The best strategy would be to go through your application, find the places
where explanation/clarity needs to be provided etc...

But the best part of the whole process was taht I could learn more about my
own strengths and mistakes and think of ways to plug them!

Hope this helps. Let me know if I can be of any more help.

Cheers,
Nishkala


Hi,

I arrived at the venue at 9:45. My essay topic was "Classics". I took some time to write it doan and browsed through a Japanese newspaper in the lobby. I recently saw "Lost in Transalation" and was quite inquisitve about Japan. Ajit called me into the conference room on time.

My panel consisted of 4 members - Ajit Rangnekar (Dy Dean), Rahul (AdCom), Siddarth (a current student I believe) and an ISB alumni currently with Sun Microsystems (can't recall her name, sorry).

Cooking is my hobby and the conversation began with what I can cook.

[ Tea was served. Ajit asked me if I was interested in some. I said "I'd love to ! ". ]

Then we moved over to my plans post ISB. I had mentioned that I would like to work for McKinsey and I was asked questions like: Why McKinsey ? If I had to decide between working at McKinsey and working at BCG, what would it be ? Why ? What do I think McKinsey looks for in a candidate ?

Rahul questioned me about Web 2.0. I wasn't sure about it but attempted to answer what I thought it could be. At this Ajit asked me where I would advise him to invest his money in technology. The conversation drifted a little into what's currently happening around the world. I work on Java and was asked if I would join Microsoft post ISB. Taking lead from my response, Siddarth asked me if I was willing to work in IT department of BP.

Siddarth asked me about differences between J2EE and .Net. The alumnus asked me if I had felt any North Indian / South Indian drift during my last 8 years in Karnataka. A few more questions here and there and then we all sipped our tea and had an informal chat. Ajit briefly shared some insights about McKinsey and BCG with me. The alumnus spoke to me a little about Sun culture. We chatted about my hobbies for a while.

That's it !

At the end of it all, I was able to take away a lot from the interview. I appreciate all the help I got from R1 admits - Saurabh, Nishant, Rahul and Rinkle at the casual meet at Barista on MG Rd. yesterday evening.

All the best to all R2 applicants !

Regards,
Kanwar.

Hello Folks,

Post no.1

I've been reading interview experiences on this group, thought I'll share mine too..

Essay topic : 'Documentation'
My interview was to start at 9:30 but it started much earlier cos the dude before me was just a little late.

The panel had 4 ppl, 2 ladies from AdCom (I think), 1 alum and another gentleman..
I think, I forgot to wish them a Good Morning, this is especially shameful cos I do that to almost everyone I bump into on the streets, I even did it to my cabbie in the morn.. :((

I got standard Questions like:
-Something about you that's not in your application
-2 things about you that are outstanding
-Your take on failures
-What's the backup plan..
-What after ISB
-Are you creative
-Your interest in Sports
-Any questions you have
-- I didnt, but I read someone's interview exp. post and that guy was keen to know what ISBs take is- on the rankings that are gonna come out... Where do they think they will figure... So I asked them..
The lady said, globally they have a long way to go, and nationally they would be in the top5 perhaps..

It lasted for arnd 20-25 minutes, I think, wouldnt rate it too highly..
Dint say a lot of things that I should have,..

For the record:
I'm into S/W since about 3 yrs now...
Good Acads, Okay XCs, Good sports..
GRE -2230

I wish luck to all aspirants and to myself too -wjkk wjkf..
Have a great time everyone..

Bye,
Puneet

Hi all,

I have been a quiet observer for most of time. Here's how my
interview went. It certainly wasn't cool. More like a pressure
interview. It lasted for around 20-25 minutes.

I reached the venue at 1:45 pm for 2:00 pm appointment. I was given
a sheet to write 50word essay on airport. I do not know the purpose
but 50 words is too less to write anything upon.

I was escorted to interview room by a guy called Nitya. He along
with three other people comprised the panel. Three males, one
female.
onegentleman was slightly older, probably faculty, and other three
were either students or alumnis..(This is a guess). Here's how it
went

Older gentleman (OG) : So tell us something about yourself.
Me: I blabber about my past.
OG (interrupting) : Tell me some positive traits relating to work.
Me : Am a team player blah blah blah
OG : Your recommenders state that you are a exceptional person but
these things suggest that you are maybe just above average or maybe
average employee at best.
Me : I cannot answer on behalf of my recommenders, however if you
ask me to rate my performance i would rate it as blah blah
The guy on Right hand corner (RHC) : Your resume says you automated
the process resulting in productivity gains of 300%. How did you
measure it?
Me : on the basis of incremental deliverables, requirement of
manpower blah blah blah
The female asked (F) : Tell me what do you apart from work?
Me : Play cricket, badminton, watch television, listen to music, net
surfing etc.
F : This would be after work hours right?
Me : Some of them like listening to music and surfing happens at
work as well. blah blah
Left hand corner interviewer (LHC) : So you like cricket?
Me : yes
LHC : So you must be follwing cricket as well?
Me : yes
LHC : Whose ur favourite cricketer?
Me : Rahul Dravid.
LHC : So what do you will happen to india Pak series?
Me : If pitches remain the same it will end in 0-0 draw.
LHC: So why are pitches like this, in your opinion?
me : numerous reasons blah blah
LHC : if you were inazmam would still have same pitches? What would
you do.
Me : With shoaib Akhtar i would prepare sporting pitches. Also my
batting line up is strong. blah blah.
Some more discussion on this whic made me say that losing is not
acceptable in India Pak series and you need to take that risk as
both sides are evenly matched.
RHC : So you believe in this phiolosophy?
Me : partly
RHC : Tell me one risk you have taken??
Me : (a blunder) Taking CAT and not applying to second tier schools
Some discussion on this with OG.
RHC : All these bullet points look good on your resume, which are
the two you are proudof?
ME : blah blah
RHC : Why these two?
Me : blah blah
RHC : You have made a liner regression model, what is regression?
Me : (I committed a blunder here, i should have spoken about in a
much more clear way. Blunder two)
F : Where do u see yourself in five years.
Me : i answered it.
RHC : That will be all.
LHC : Do you have any questions for us?
I asked about their global ranking plan and ELP.

When came out, I felt i did a ok job though now as I write and
ponder on it I am not feeling too well. Lets wait fopr result and
best of luck to all.

Regards
Gaurav


I forgot to get copies of my resume so I stopped by to get printouts
of the same and reached the venue just about 5minutes to spare. My
essay topic was "China". I was surprised as some of my long term goals
revolved around offshoring. Wrote 50 words in a about 2 minutes flat.
The point being I really did not think I could write any better given
more time.

The interview began with them looking through my resume and asking the
basic questions - walk us through your resume and why mba. Actually
both the questions together. Then went through my shifting of
companies. My entrepreneurial venture and why it closed when it was a
boom time for internet those days (1997/98). Then through my goals -
long term, short term. Based on that questions like "Where is the
offshore market shifting in the coming 5 years ?" and "Which country
will you set up your offshore delivery center at ?" etc.

My academic record - 12th and first 2 years of undergrad. Though I had
used my additional essay to explain the same, I went through the
explanation again. Then on my interest "trivia quizzing" I was asked a
couple of questions. Who founded IBM ? I was not able to recollect.
Thomas Watson Sr. Then, from which research company is CTS an offshoot
? I had no clue. Dun & Bradstreet. I found this to be enjoyable.
Unfortunately I was not able to answer. Something about the TOI
editors over the last few months - APJ, SRK and NRN. Asked about Sania
I said I never read that. Happens to have come only for the Hyd
edition.

Asked if I had any questions. I geniunely am interested to know what
ISB is doing to widen its international footprint. Got a very
convincing answer for that.

Overall the interview lasted for about 15minutes.

I think the major positives for me was that I was very clear about
what I spoke, my clarity of thought regarding my goals, how I am going
to get there, how an MBA is going to help me and how specifically ISB.
It fell into place very logically. Moreover, I think my passion showed
in my words and speech about the whole idea. My personality and
articulation were two other qualities that hopefully shined through.

I am pretty pleased with the overall experience. I would give myself a
8 on 10. The reason I am taking out the 2 points is because using the
lens of hindsight any performance might seem needing improvement. So
is the case with me :)

Funnily nothing asked about some big stars on my resume like my
teaching experience. I guess in 15minutes (or 30 minutes or 1 hour)
there is only so much you can broach and talk about. Hope it helped
the Adcomm paint the correct picture about me.

Keeping my fingers crossed till the results come out. All the best to
everyone else.

Arun

PS: IT services/consulting 6yrs + GMAT 700 + B.Sc. MCA with avg acads
(low initially then good) + good extracurriculars


Hi

Reached there at 10.45 am, 45 min before. met 2 aspirants, a guy fm infosys, trivandrum and another, a telecom quality assurance guy fm bangalore.

50 words essay topic - animal rights
interview panel - Rahul adcom, an Elderly gentleman (maybe a professor) and an alumni working in nokia in business development

Few Qs..
1. You are already doing well, Why ISB MBA or any MBA at this point of career
2. Future trends in telecom
3. Mobile penetration and teledensity stats
4. What should be Govt's priority area in improving the telecom industry
5. Whats BOP Market (thats my interest area)
6. Future goals in 5 yrs/10 yrs (with and without mba)
7. New Telecom Policty - what it could be ?
8. Whats your approach in Business development, How did that serve as a differentiator in your work environment ?
9. How do you compare India's telecom industry with that of China's ?

No grilling. It was a free flowing discussion. Hence, can't predict the result, though hoping for a positive outcome.

Hope this is useful to all other R2 aspirants.
A piece of advise - Just be thorough with your company, competition and the industry - both domestic and international. Have some positive and thoughtful imagination flowing while describing future trends.

My profile - BE (Mech), REC Surat - 6.5 yrs experience in Sales and Business Development and now heading a large team in Telecom industry, Cochin, 650 GMAT.

Warm Regards and All the Best/Raghu

All,

Reached the venue 45 before scheduled time. Essay topic "Development". Had a hard time writing cause the other interviewees were pretty interactive.

The interview was pretty much on expected lines. Three panelists (alum, faculty and current student). The interview was mostly based on why i wanted to do consulting after having an experience of almost 6 years in IT as a techie. I enjoyed the interview.

Here is a snapshot of the questions:

- Walk us through your profile
- Why do you want to move onto business consulting when your primary field is IT (This was a good part of the whole interview).
- Why not IT consulting?
- What is it that makes you wanting to give back to the community (I teach students at a college on a non-profit basis)
- Why ISB? Why not US MBA schools?
- What US schools have you applied to?
- Have you visited the ISB campus?
- Any questions?

My two cents - Carefully read every bit of your essays. Find out gaps be ready with explanations. The questions will revolve around work experience and post ISB plans.

All in all, the atmosphere was very very casual. So, just be yourself and enjoy those 30 mins.

Cheers!
Tarun



I reached the venue at 1:45. The interview was scheduled for 2:30 pm. Met a few other aspirants. The essay question was "Tsunami". I was called in around 2:35.

The interview panel consisted of someone from faculty, and two other persons. One of the two other persons was definitely an alumnus, and the second person was either an alumnus or a current student.

The panel introduced themselves and I did the same.



Tell us about your career progression, Why MBA, Why ISB?
Which other schools are you applying to?
Tell us about your Leadership and Teamwork experiences.
Estimate the number of resumes posted on naukri.com
What are the challenges that you face at work?
You are general manager of a retail chain considering opening a retail store in India? What are the things you will do? Later the question turned around to how will you get customers into the store?
What is the role you want post MBA?
How will you sell an IT product to an organization?

The total interview time lasted around an hour. There were a lot of follow up questions to the answers I gave. Overall it was not a straight forward interview. I was not allowed to complete my answers to a number of questions and cross-questioning started in the middle of my answers. I was asked to continue my answers after cross-questioning resulting is loss of context and chain of thoughts. Because of this I am not sure about how I did.

Will I get through? Well… I would like to.... But, I don't know... Keeping my fingers crossed and hoping for the best...


hi all,

I was interviewed in Delhi, 5th feb, 10:30 AM.
Essay: Election commission in India

Panel - One lady from adcom, a senior prof., 3 alummi [or was it 2 alumni +
1 instructor - not sure]
With a 5-member panel, it was difficult in rotating my head to maintain
contact with everyone :-)

Interview -
Started off on a light note.... and what followed was a good discussion for
almost 45 mins...
At the start I was asked to mention anything i would like to mention about
myself apart from what was already covered in the application.

As i am currently based in Noida, so discussion went onto a comparitive
analysis of real-estate prices in Gurgaon vs Noida.

Then something on the previous organization where I used to work. Last year
it was acquired by some other group and so a good amount of discussion on
the acquiring company, its nature of business, it's idea in acquiring this
one and post acquisition how and where is it moving to.

I hail primarily from an IT-telecom background... so somehow skype came into
the picture. Seems as if one of the alumni was pretty well-versed with skype
[later on came to know that he had actually done some research on it] and we
had a good conversation on skype, its technicalities to a bit and its
business model.. and future trend.

Having mentioned rafting as one of my interests, one other alumni went on to
discuss that and the rapids encountered en-route [he was well-versed with
the same route that I had been during my rafting trips] and the current
movie i had watched and why did i like that.
From rang-de-basanti the dicussion came to the current airport-modernization
issue and my stand on it..... a couple of counter-questions on that...which
I think I could have handled better...

From here we came onto the loyalty aspect...loyalty w.r.t. sticking with an
organization..., my take on that w.r.t. my current employer. Next was
obvious, the nature of business of my current employer and how it fits into
my scheme of things.

Then the senior prof. asked on my analysis of ROI on doing an MBA from ISB
in relation to my current salary... 'why mba' being covered in that question
itself.

There was some more discussion on me being interested in politics or not...[
i think that must have followed from the essay - which must have been passed
around by that time].

Finally my query from ISB, and we had a good chat on that for a full 5-7
mins....

All-in-all, being interviewed with such an interesting and experienced
panel, with wide-ranging topics, it surely was a wonderful experience for me
and now I want to join ISB all the more. Feeling I did reasonably well, the
wait for 28th feb start now...

All the best to all mba aspirants on this group. This group is indeed very
useful and interesting.

Regards,
Ankit
My profile: GMAT 730/ approx. 5 yrs work ex/ IT - telecom & datacom


1. Take us through your career, why MBA, why ISB?
2. What do you think about Oracle's current merger plans? Is that the right strategy?
3. Problem scenario: estimate number of internet users in a city like new york
4. 2 shortcomings that I have.
5. what are the opinion as a person that your team members have about you?
6. can you describe 3 points in oracle's corporate history?
7. any qs for ISB?


Hi,

I have been a silent observer for more than a week. Let me first
extend my thanks to all of you who have shared their experience
that really helped me to prepare for the interview.

My experience was different in the way that I was the last
candidate to be interviewed for this year's batch. The
interviews were supposed to end on 20th Feb, and I was the last
one there waiting at 6 PM. pretty disheartening as I knew they
have heard everything that is needed to hear. It is gng to be
hard to prove my point and get that exclusive opinion. Anyways,
the interview started with:

1. Why did ur recommenders not answer the questions in the
prescribed format. (Actually my reccomenders added a seperate
sheet of paper answering all the questions in a letter format).
- My ans: don't know, it was their wish, the way they feel
comfortable. probably took me sometime as I wasn't prepared for
sth like that.

2. Then straight away to the salary: What is the expected salary
Ans: I don't have any figure in mind. but then i went on to
explaining how i am not concerned with the salary, expanding on
my short term goals and long term goals.

3. Then Why MBA
Ans: they were not convinced with the answer, and had a lot of
cross questioning on it. Finally, i was atleast able to convey
my point.
4. Then Why ISB and not IIM.
5. Then they wanted me to present an market idea (I said i
wanted to move to Product Management).
6. Then they asked me abt my opinion on "India as a Product
manufacuter".
Ans: I outrightly said: "We are choosing the easy way out". I
heard a chuckle from someone in the adcom.
7. Extracurricular: Even before I started, i was told not to be
politically correct. then it was a open ground, i went on for
2-3 min non-stop.
8. Finally, any questions for them. I had forgotten everything
as it was already 45- 55 min. But somehow, one of the q clicked
my mind and i asked it.
9. Then one of the adcoms asked how did i think the interview
went. i knew sth was wrong somewhere but what can u do now.

Thats my experience, it was pretty grilling, but i am glad it is
over. guys, let me know ur coments on this. My profile, engg, 3+
yrs exp, GMAT 720.

Ruchir


Hi All,

Just finished my telephonic interview sometime ago. The panel consisted
of Hema (adcom), another guy & Bharat.

It lasted 15-20 mins and most of the questions were specific to my
profile.
Here goes :

1. About how long I have been learning dance
2. Tell us something not in your resume
3. Are you not too young for an MBA (though i have 2.5 yrs of
experience...maybe my age)
4. Why not do the MBA from NUS in Singapore or Insead
5. How many street lights are there in Singapore
6. What I do in my free time (and then some cross questioning)
7. The company I want to work for post MBA
8. Why I have shifted from Engineering to Finance (I'm a Comp Engineer
working in Standard Chartered Bank)
9. What I think of the current Indian government
10. Something regarding my recommendations
11. Any questions?

Well it was not a pressure interview I was made to feel comfortable
throughout. But have no clue regarding how they perceived me.

My profile :
2.5 yrs with Standard Chartered Bank
GMAT : 710

All the best to all those who have their interviews in the next few
days.

Cheers,
Priya

Hi All,

I had my telephonic interview 5 mins back with Mr Kanan and one lady ( current student as ISB), I didn't get her name due to some problem with the telephone line.
Interview lasted for 20 mins.

1) Go through your career.
2) Why ISB so early ( I have 20 months of exp)
3) One of your major achivements
4) How do you perform a process. (I mentioned about a process)
5) Was there any difference in a team , how was it resolved ?
6) What do you do after your office hours.
7) What is the thing that u like most about singapore ( girls ;) ..kidding)
8) Any questions for us ?

Work ex : 20 months
GMAT : 690
Extracurriculars : High

Sameer


Hi All,

I just had my telephonic interview with Hema from the admissions committee and a current student from ISB , i dont remember his name . It lasted for 20 mins.

Questions asked ?

Why MBA?
As post MBA i want to be in a business development role they asked me ....Wont you be able to achieve your goals without an MBA ?
Questions regarding My roles and responsibilties at work ?
Past time hobbies , as i have mentioned mimickry they asked me to do one for them?
Which all places have you been in US ? Which city do you like the most and why?
My dream company?
Why should we select you?
Latest news from US ?
US policy for Iran? had no idea of this one.
What other colleges have you applied to?
In all it was a good experience , i have answered most of the questions to my satisfication apart from the US policy on Iran.
Keeping my fingers crossed , waiting for Feb 28 now.
My Profile
Exp - 3 Yrs 6 months IT , International - 1 yr 5 months US
GMAT 660
BE( Comp Sc ) MNNIT Allahabad , 72%
Extra curriculars - High

Jan 27th Bangalore


Anyway keeping my fingers crossed.

Here goes:
Got a 50 word essay on INDIAN CINEMA (simple topic eh??). (I wonder if
they use this to check consistency against the essays...but essays may
be refined before they are finally submitted)
Q) With a GMAT of 640 and an overall experience of around 4 years, why
should we take you?
Q) What makes you so different from a guy from an IT background with
seven years experience?
Q) A question in French (since I mentioned a proficiency level of 1),
which I could not answer. Thankfully, I could understand the second
question and could see the alumnus's head nodding...So I said "whew!!"
to myself but the prof threw it out of the window saying it was a simple
question.
Q) Do you know the profile of students who come to ISB? Then, how are
you so different? What gives you the confidence that you will be able to
handle ISB?
Have you talked to ISB alumni? Whom have you talked to? What did they
tell you about your profile?
Q) You say you do personal counseling, how do you help people? Please
explain.
Q) Post ISB??
Q) Learning you would bring to ISB?
Q) If you were given 1 more year, would you consider giving the GMAT
again?
Q) Do you have any question?

Tried my best to answer all the questions... but overall, it was a
grilling session... so don't know what's gonna happen

Duration:35 minutes...

But do keep in mind :
BE CONFIDENT, BE HONEST, BE YOURSELF....

All the best to all R2 applicants awaiting their results.



Regards,

Ajay


Had my interview on Saturday, Feb 11th. Apologies for
the late update, but was caught up with my job - had
been neglecting the work for quite a while and had to
catch up :-)

Reached the venue quite early - abt 1.5 hrs prior to
the schedule - didn't have much idea as to how did the
mumbai trafic behaved. The write-up I got was on
Airport, but inspite of repeated reminders on this
forum - I forgot to hand it over to the panel - did so
when the next candidate was called in !

The interview experience was an amazing one - never
laughed so much, in front of a panel supposed to
evaluate me, as I did that day. The panel had 3
alums(1 female) and a senior person from Ad-Com (don't
remember their names). Just as I entered, the panel
was ordering tea for themselves - so the lady asked me
if I wanted something - I asked for tea.

The questions were pretty generic, and I don't think
were aimed at finding anything about me (atleast thats
what I felt). Am getting a strog feeling that my fate
had been pre-decided, and the interview was
inconsequential, but I would go through the interview
nevertheless, for one, the benefit of other
candidates, and second, I would really love to talk
about it !

As I sat down, after everyone introduced himself, the
Ad-Com person asked about what my company name "3DPLM"
stood for - explained it to him. Then, in a pretty
informal manner, he asked, "Okay, tell us Why do u
want to do MBA, and then, u'll have to answer two more
questions for me - why ISB and why not IIM-I and
IIM-K" (incidently, I applied by my last year's Cat
score, wherein I had recieved final offers from IIM-I
and IIM-K, but did not join). Told them abt the global
perspective blah blah !

One if the alumnis was form TCS, Gagan (if I remember
his name correctly) and since I had worked for 7
months in TCS, prior to working in present firm for
the past 2 years, he asked me a pretty straight
forward GK question abt a TCS application, which I
failed to answer :-(

And then started the fun. I am also a poet, writing
mostly ghazals. They asked me to recite one of mine -
I was longing for this moment, and came up with my
best one. Eveyone was quite appreciative when the lady
asked me where I got te inspirtaion to write these.
Before I could answer, the other guy answered on my
behalf that there are hardly any females in IIT - what
else would I do. After the laughter subsided, told her
my reasons ...

Next, one of the alumni guy asked his neighbour to ask
me the golf ball question. I started smiling, so he
came straight to me and asked me to answer 'the
question'. I said I didn't know which question they
were talking abt - so he formally asked me as to how
many golf-balls I could pack in a Boeing 747. Drew up
the hypothetical break up for him, and said I would us
the FCC molecular structure to fill the balls in the
hypothetical cubes. Then he told me to assume the
dimensions and get to an answer, and thus came my most
embarassing moment. Though the environment was quite
relaxed, don't know what went through my head, and I
said I would assume the length of 747 to be 5m.
everyone was shcoked - 5m !! it would be the length of
this room - I said I was sorry, I was thinking of the
window-window distance. "Haan then its okay - but you
said length !". I tried to cover it up, which I
shouldn't have, and being a CAD developer, the best I
could come up with was - "I was looking at the side
view" !! "Okay !! Hmm !! Bhaiyya, yahan sab isometric
main banao, side/front main nahin", came the reply.
and for the next two minutes, while I was doing the
calculation, comments like "length !! - abhi 5 ki
jagah 10 hota to bolta ki radius nahin diameter dekh
raha tha" kept on pouring from all sides !! they were
upto pulling my leg, but in a completely humorous
manner, so I was kind of enjoying it.

That was the end of it - they asked if I had any
questions to them. I asked them abt a long standing
query of mine, regarding entrepreneurship and jobs
post MBA. I guess they would have taken atleast 5-7
minutes in answering that, as I was not satisfied by
their explaination, right till the end, but I guess
they consumed much more time laughing, than answering
my question. The tea, that I had asked for at the
beginning, finally arrived, so I said that I would
take it outside and bid farewell.

All in all, a very pleasant experience - the whole
panel taked to me as if I was one of them. All this,
is in sharp contrast to the Indore and Kozhikode
Interviews I faced last year. While they were
something I would like to forget asap, inspite of
being succesful, this was an experience I would love
to remember, irrespective of the result, for the sheer
fun I went through.

But now, the wait is killing - still have to take GMAT
though :-(

My profile :

S/w Engineer in CAD : 2.5 yrs
B.Tech from IIT-K (2003 batch)
Cat %ile : 99.10
Good acad, Moderate Extra-curriculars

Regards

Vibhor

My interview just got over so I thought I will publish it for the
benefit of those who are waiting.

I called in about a minute before the scheduled time. There was a
lady and 2 men who were students at ISB.

I had noted that my favourite author was PG Wodehouse so the lady
asked me what character from his novels did I like the most. I could
answer this pretty well.

Then one of the students asked me why i wanted to join ISB. I fumbled
big time here because all I could say was that it seemed natural to
me that I do my MBA at this point of my career. He repeated the
question-why ISB? I had to say that I needed some time to gather my
thoughts. I then said that I wanted to come back to India and also, a
1-yr MBA is attractive proposition.

He then asked why should ISB pick me...I guess I could nt say
anything much here either but I somehow managed through.

I was then asked that if I was to be paid good money for doing
nothing for 6 months, what would I do?

In the end, as always, I was asked if I had any questions for the
panel.

Overall, the interview panel was great. They were very friendly yet
to the point. My main advise to you is to not to get tense and be
genuine.

Guys, my interview took just about 10 minutes...is that how it is
with other people also?

Thanks!
Kunal


My interview lasted 16 minutes.

I called in at the scheduled time and spoke with Kannan & Mita(??).

The panel seemed to zero in on my "14+ years of experience". They asked me several questions related to that, but the gist of the interview was as follows. They asked me:


- how an MBA would be relevant at this stage of my career.

- what an MBA from ISB would add to my repertoire (I used that word, not them).
- tried to belittle my career progression by saying that even a guy/gal with 3-4 years of experience can become a Project Lead (because I had mentioned that I was a Project Manager/Lead).
- to mention two of my best accomplishments during my career
- why I was applying to an institution in India? In other words, why not USA, which has several top-grade B-schools
- my Post-ISB plans
- what type of company/position I was targeting after ISB
- what I would bring/contribute to ISB
- in what way I was special compared to the hundreds of IT-types that would be applying this year
- if I had any questions for them

Overall, I was neither happy nor dissatisfied with the way it went. I was expecting the interview to be a bit longer than that, to be honest. The folks on the panel were professional, neither light-hearted nor uptight.

Time to sit back and twiddle my thumbs! Best of luck to everybody. Thanks for all the great recaps and advice.

--jamdagni (is not my real name!)

--GMAT: 700
--Good Acads (M.E. from IISc./Batch of '92)
--Working in US since '94


Hi,
I had my interview today. Here are the questions(My background:
5.3 yrs IT, 1.5 yrs Petroleum Industry)

1. I had not knotted my tie properly and so the prof stood and
corrected it saying : "we care for our people"...was kind of
dumbstruck..forgot his name and the other panelist I guess ISB
passout.

2. I have worked extensively on CRM implementation, so told me
design CRM strategy for ISB. It went for 5-6 mins. Calculate the
number of aspiring students we should target etc..... It turned out
that the prof had worked on Siebel..ex IIM A passout...

3. I have applied on my CAT score...so which IIMs u got call
from....I had 99 percentile but had missed DI cutoff...He was
surprised....anyways he asked so u applied for ISB just in
case .....whats so special about IIMs....

4. If you had all six IIMs which IIM would u have gone for...goofed
up here said IIMA..which specialises in Finance and my goal is IT
consultancy......The prof explicitly said u should select institute
based on ur goal...

5. What are your dream companies...

6. What do u mean by end to end consultancy.

7. What do u like about Jack Welch(he was my choice of Leader). Who
is great...Jack Welch or Aung Shung Ki....can we compare there
leadership skills....

8. The other panelist..what plans can you think of age group 20 - 35

9. How will you start an NGO for age old people and sustain it:
Didnt seem to be so much happy..

10. What is your opinion of Palestinian election. What was Ariel
Sharon before he became Prime Minister...At the end the prof said I
was just testing whether you are aware of day to day happenings.

11. Any question for us.

Overall they kept me engaged and kool. Total time 20 - 25 mins.NO
stress interview....
Answered most of the questions well...but then its the end result
that matters.....

Best of Luck

Anand

Hi:

I have been a silent spectator all along in this forum and have
learnt a lot from experiences of people here. I would feel guilty if
I cannot contribute my own experience to help people around. I had my
telephone interview today with Hema from Ad Com and current students
Kalyan, Ravi and Savith.

Interview lasted for about 15 minutes and here are the questions:

1. Tell us something about yourself which is not in your application
pack.

2. Why an MBA when you are so well placed?

3. What career options after MBA?

4. Was grilled on why the likes of Mckinsey would not take me due to
poor academics?

5. Since I am from Hyderabad, do I see this as a move closer to home?

6. Why I want to come back to India after having spent 7 years in UK?

7. What I do in my spare time

8. Any questions for ad com.

As with most other candidates, I do not know what to make of the
interview. I feel I conveyed my answers well. The only thing I am
going to do now is have a nice cup of tea (the english way) and hope
for the best.

Let me also wish good luck to those preparing for their interviews.

Cheers,
-Giri.

My profile:

I am from IIT Kgp, 9 Years IT experience, 7 Years pure international
consulting experience with firms like Ernst & Young. So so acads and
610 GMAT but very strong on extra curriculars. Have also lead IIT KGP
as a Vice President of student community. Currently settled in London.




Well please find my interview details :

Venue : Taj President, Mumbai

Duration : 20 Mins (Thought it ended kinda fast)

Key Observations : No Cross Questioning which i was
expecting.

Panel : - Lady (L) , Adcom Guy (G) and Alumini (A)

Q1) Regarding my Finishing School
Q2) GMAT retake and vast difference in score
Q3) A Day in office
Q4) What is my team strength
Q5)What are the future trends in Telecom
Q6) What are the latest news (2)
Q7) Dream Company and profile post ISB
QOne India One rate implications on the telecom
industry
Q9) What has been the last five years of work been ?
Q10) Engineer + MBA - Too common ??
Q12) what do you do in your spare time
Q13)What is this Royal Enfield Club and where all have
you travelled ?
Q14 and 15) Questions to ISB

Well overall, kind of thanda interview. There was no
cross questioning or you can say grilling except for
the GMAT thing.
Keeping every duplex part of the body crossed...

All the best fort the rest..

adios

rajat


My interview just got over so I thought I will publish it for the
benefit of those who are waiting.

I called in about a minute before the scheduled time. There was a
lady and 2 men who were students at ISB.

I had noted that my favourite author was PG Wodehouse so the lady
asked me what character from his novels did I like the most. I could
answer this pretty well.

Then one of the students asked me why i wanted to join ISB. I fumbled
big time here because all I could say was that it seemed natural to
me that I do my MBA at this point of my career. He repeated the
question-why ISB? I had to say that I needed some time to gather my
thoughts. I then said that I wanted to come back to India and also, a
1-yr MBA is attractive proposition.

He then asked why should ISB pick me...I guess I could nt say
anything much here either but I somehow managed through.

I was then asked that if I was to be paid good money for doing
nothing for 6 months, what would I do?

In the end, as always, I was asked if I had any questions for the
panel.

Overall, the interview panel was great. They were very friendly yet
to the point. My main advise to you is to not to get tense and be
genuine.

Guys, my interview took just about 10 minutes...is that how it is
with other people also?

Thanks!
Kunal