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Profile 10th/ 12th/ Grad: 10 CGPA/ 95.6%/ 8.54 CPI
Fresher, BTech, Civil Engineering
1 Male(M) and 1 Female(F) panelist
M: So Shivangi how have you been?
Me: Good afternoon sir. I’m good. How are you?
M: I’m very good. Thank you. So have you completed your BTech or are you still in the process?
Me: Sir I already am done with it.
M: What is your branch?
Me: Sir Civil Engineering (Generally the next question is why civil being a girl?)
M: So are you confident with the subjects? What is your favorite subject?
Me: (Smiling constantly) Sir I guess I’m confident enough but I’ve not really brushed up the theory so might fail at some point. My favorite subject would be Transportation Engineering and basically Highway Engineering in that.
F: (laughing) I think you should be careful of what you speak from this point on.
Me: (Nervous AF now) Of course Ma’am
M: This is not a core civil subject, it's more of a periphery subject. ( Mostly people want to hear Strength of Materials or Fluid Mechanics or Analysis in general but I knew I didn’t have to tread that path considering the vastness of the subjects and the fact that it overlaps with mechanical engineering curriculum as well)
Me: Sir I am not confident of SOM or mechanics since it wasn’t my strongest point in my second year given the fact that I was involved in a lot of other cultural activities and my professional electives were in the transportation field itself.
M: So do you know anything about Water Bound Macadam (WBM)?
Me: (Caught off guard) Sir I don’t remember exactly but it was used to stop water from being retained on the roads as water is the worst enemy of roads.
A series of technical questions followed.
M: Explain Stopping Sight Distance. What is the difference between rigid pavement and flexible pavement? What is flexural rigidity? The formula for SSD. The formula for OSD. What is the value for the width of a single lane? Multilane? What are shoulders? Why do we use them? What is the normal width of shoulders?
Me: ( I answered everything surprisingly but the more I was answering the deeper he was diving into the particular topic)
M: You are way beyond what I expected.
F: Sir she has to be since she’s from NIT and that too Allahabad.
M: Last question from my side. ( I was genuinely relieved after the rally and it showed) NHAI has five types of roads under its jurisdiction. Can you name them?
Me: Yes sir I’m well aware of it. NH, SH, MDR, ODR, VR
F: (laughing)That was a good session.
M: Ma’am generally civil engineers forget their own subjects.
F: Now where do you belong? I mean which city?
Me: I’m from Patna. Born and brought up here itself.
F: Have you heard of Gol Ghar? Can you explain the significance and what it reminds you of?
Me: I answered the first part but couldn’t answer the second.
F: Which was the last dynasty to rule Bihar?
Me: Don’t know ma’am ( Male panelist said: Gupta Dynasty)
F: Okay. Ready for extempore? Your topic is very simple: Why not Bihar for you?
Me: Gave a few points on the governance, education system, health system, and by that time my two minutes were over.
F: It was wonderful talking to you Shivangi. Have a good day. That’s it from our side.
M: Keep up with your hard work.
Me: Thanked both of them and left the meeting room.
Conclusion: It was the most amazing and interactive interview of my life. It didn’t feel like they were professors but I hope it doesn’t backfire.
Edit: Converted.