IIM Shillong Past Years Personal Interview Experiences

Date: 18 Mar 2021

Profile: GEM, 9/9/7 (NITW – ECE)

Work experience (At the time of interview) - 20 months, Bank of America

CAT 2020: 99.57%ile

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2 male panelists (let's call them M1, M2, and myself “V”)

M1: What is happening in Telangana? Why are covid-19 cases rising?

V: Sir the initial testing was low in Telangana and as per yesterday's health ministry reports, Telangana stood first in wastage of vaccines. So, all these factors are promoting the spread.

M1: Have you heard about this school in the news where inflections were so high?

V: Sir I haven't heard about it.

M1: Tell me something about yourself that is not in the form.

V: Swimming, Gardening, and Cooking.

M1: What can we humans learn from plants?

V: Sir we can learn sustainable life from plants. Plants also teach us to live with humility.

M1: What is sustainable living?

V: It's a responsible way in which a species evolves such that every aspect of its life functions is useful or at least not harmful to other species in the biosphere and environment.

M1: Name one Indian, who was inspired by Nature and contributed greatly to the country?

V: Talked about Saalumarada Thimmakka and her Padmashri award.

M1: No, tell me one name in the fields of education and research

V: Sir over the top of my mind, I can only think of M S Swaminathan who is the architect of the green revolution in India through hybrid farming.

M1: Where and when did the green revolution happen in India?

V: Sir Punjab and Haryana are two states that benefitted the most from the green revolution. It happened between the '50s and '60s. (I wasn’t sure of the years)

M1: What is the difference between information and knowledge?

V: Sir information is just data that need not have any meaning whereas knowledge is awareness, making sense of the information, and the ability to draw conclusions from that.

M1: Can you give a real-life example?

V: Sir if you go to myactivity.google.com you will find everything Google has on you as a user. Right from web searches, app usage to voice recordings. We can only see that information, but only Google has the knowledge to integrate that information into an advertising business model.

M1: What do you think of the farmer agitations?

V: Sir I support their protest for the inclusion of MSP because food is a necessity and its producer should have a minimum guarantee for his/her crop. But at this point, it turned into more of a political debate rather than what's good for the farming community.

M1: So, what do you think of your state bifurcation (Andhra Pradesh and Telangana)?

V: Talked about the prepared points about the bifurcation, state reorganization act 2014 and common capital issues, etc.

M1: Are you from Andhra or Telangana?

V: Sir I was born and brought up in Andhra. My education and professional life are in Telangana. So, I consider both as my states.

M1: What do you read in your free time?

V: Fiction novels

M1: Name an author you like and some of his books?

V: Dan Brown. Talked about his Professor Robert Langdon series.

M1: Why do you think India's GDP is lagging in recent years?

V: Sir as foretold by former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan, Demonetisation though a well thought out plan had a detrimental impact on our economy due to poor execution. We are witnessing its after-effects. And one more reason is the lack of a strong manufacturing sector like China. I think our government is trying to address that with Atma Nirbhar Bharat.

M1: I am done, M2 you may take over.

M2: What is your current role in the project?

V: Told

M2: What is the difference between lithium-ion and lead-acid batteries?

V: Talked about durability, compactness, and efficiency of lithium batteries compared to the other. It's used in EVs like Tesla and mobile phones

M2: No tell me the exact chemical reaction.

V: Sir I don't know.

M2: What is the difference between IC and power circuits?

V: Told

M2: Name some manufacturers of ICs in India?

V: Told

M2: What are the electronic components in a car?

V: Talked about sensors and radio.

M2: What is ABS?

V: Anti-locking Braking System

M2: What is ECU?

V: Sir I am unable to recall (I couldn't remember Electronic Control Unit at that moment)

M2: You don't seem strong in your graduation subjects.

V: Sir I am not going to debate that; my interest was in communications and I don't have much liking for electronics.

M2: What are your extracurricular activities?

V: Told

M2: What are the different styles of swimming?

V: Butterfly, Breast-stroke, Freestyle.

M2: What style are you comfortable with?

V: Told

M2: Name some famous swimmers.

V: Vikram Khade from India

Matt Biondi from America

Michael Phelps, also from America currently holds the all-time records for Olympic gold medals. (Thank God, at last, some prepared questions)

M2: What is the style of Mr. Khade?

V: Sir I think it's freestyle.

M1: Do you have any questions for us?

V: Asked

M1: That will be all. You may leave the meeting.

V: Thank you, sir, good day.

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Verdict: Convert

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Source of the PI experience: Vithal Kaligotla