Interviews: Indian Institutes of Management and Personal Interview

Personality Assessment Round Process Details (2013-2015 batch) By now, you must be quite familiar with the different processes that various B-schools use in the second round of their selection program. Let us now look at some individual institutes to get a better grasp of the mechanism they use in order to select the best candidates. Please note that institutes do keep tinkering with their selection processes from time-to-time. Therefore, this list can only help you to understand all the stages that an institute has used for selection in recent years with specific focus on last year's method.However, please remember that it is quite likely that in subsequent years, an institute may use radically different processes as well. IIM Ahmedabad: Process: PGPM: Essay Writing Task + Personal Interview ABM: Group Discussion + Personal Interview Essay Writing: The candidates were given 1 minute to think and 10 minutes to write on the topic. Most of the topics were either general in nature or re lated to current affairs. Some of the topics given to the candidates were – â€Å"CAG is slowing down progress in India's telecom and mining sector†, â€Å"Obsession with constant research by smartphone companies has had a serious effect on our social life.†, â€Å"It is advisable to raise the legal drinking age limit to 25 years for responsible drinking. †Group Discussion: Usually, the Group Discussions involved case studies. Candidates were typically given a few minutes to read the case study and prepare their points. At the end of the discussion, candidates had to write a summary of the discussion. Personal Interview: Personal interviews were conducted after completion of the essay writing task / Group Discussion and, generally, lasted for about 15-20 minutes. In this round, candidates were interviewed by panels of two members each.Those with prior work experience were asked detailed questions pertaining to their experience and their company's business , its market share, growth prospects, industry prospects, turnover, etc. Some candidates were also asked indepth questions pertaining to their job profile and how their previous educational qualifications were being utilized in their current job profile. Candidates with no work experience were generally asked questions relevant to their academic background while a few candidates with prior work experience were also asked questions related to subjects from their academic background.Interestingly, almost all the candidates were asked a few questions from Mathematics as well. The questions related to Mathematics were primarily from areas like probability, distribution curves, statistics, etc. The candidates were also questioned about their hobbies and were expected to have an in-depth knowledge about them. Some candidates were also asked questions about the essay written by them. Specifically for ABM, candidates were asked questions regarding agriculture and why they wanted to join the ABM program. IIM Bangalore: Process: Essay Writing Task + Personal InterviewEssay Writing: The candidates were given 10 minutes to think about the given topic and 20 minutes to write on the topic. Most of the topics were related to current affairs. The candidates were required to do a thorough analysis of the topic and in some cases, from a particular point of view. Some of the topics given to the candidates were – â€Å"Is crime rate in urban India high mainly due to economic disparities? †, â€Å"The world is in social, economic and political turmoil. Any suggestions to improve. †, â€Å"Recently a law has been passed to ban A-rated films on television. Why do you think this decision has been taken? †Personal Interview: Each interview panel comprised three members – two professors and one alumnus of the institute. The interviews were mostly very general in nature. Candidates were asked questions pertaining to various aspects of their CV and SOP (Statement of Purpose) and the panel was typically quite pleasant and friendly. The interviews usually started with the panelists asking the candidates to talk about themselves. Some of the candidates were asked about current developments involving their company or industry. Some of them were also asked analytical questions on issues surrounding their industry / area of work.Typically, most of the candidates were asked a few questions regarding what they had written in their SOPs. IIM Calcutta: Process: Essay Writing Task + Personal Interview Essay Writing: Candidates were allotted 15 minutes to write on the topic. The word limit for the essay was 200 words. The topics given were general in nature and typically required analysis of an issue. Some of the topics given to the candidates were – â€Å"Corruption in sports committees and government interference are degrading the quality of sports in India. Elaborate and provide remedies.†, â€Å"The television media focuses more on violence, disaster and negative news. Why is it so? †, â€Å"What are your views on FDI in retail? †Personal Interview: Mostly, panels which interviewed the candidates had three members. The interviews were largely general in nature. Most of the candidates were asked questions pertaining to various aspects of their CV. Some of them were asked in-depth questions about their subjects or areas of interest. Several candidates were asked detailed questions about their prior work-experience and their reasons for choosing to pursue an MBA. IIM Lucknow:Process: Essay Writing Task + Group Discussion + Personal Interview Essay Writing: Candidates were allotted 15 minutes to write on the assigned topic. The word limit for the essay was 200 words. The topics given were philosophical / abstract. Some of the topics given to candidates were – â€Å"Fame and riches are fleeting, stupidity is eternal†, â€Å"A great city should not be confused with a populous one †, â€Å"Engine is the heart of an airplane and the pilot is its soul†. Group Discussion: The Group Discussion was held immediately after the essay writing. The topic was the same as the Essay writing task.Each group comprised 10-12 candidates. The groups were given 15 minutes to discuss the topic. Personal Interview: Panels comprising two members interviewed candidates. The interviews were very general in nature and often focused primarily on the candidate's goals and aims, as well as past experiences. Detailed questions related to area of work / job profile were common as were questions related to one's subjects of study while pursuing graduation. Many candidates were asked about their decision to pursue MBA and the candidates who had applied for ABM were asked about their reasons for opting for ABM.Candidates were also asked questions pertaining to various aspects of their CV. While most of the interviews lasted for about 20-25 minutes, some candidates reported very brief interviews of just about 8-10 minutes. IIM Indore: Process: Essay Writing Task + Personal Interview Essay Writing: Candidates were allotted 30 minutes to write on the given topic. The word limit for the essay was 300 words. The topics given were very general and analytical in nature. Some of the topics given to the candidates were – â€Å"Today's popular TV serials depict a life different from normal life.Is it a form of escapism or just for entertainment? †, â€Å"How does migration of people into other countries affect nationalism and patriotism? †, â€Å"With so many mergers and acquisitions by big business houses in India, is there any future for small scale enterprises in the country? Suggest ways to help out small scale enterprises. †, â€Å"Despite advances in medical science, progress is slow. Should research knowledge be shared with other scientists or should it be a closely guarded secret? † Personal Interview: The candidates were i nterviewed by a panel of three members.The interviews often focused primarily on a candidate's academic background. Detailed questions related to the candidate's subjects of study while pursuing graduation were asked to almost all candidates, even those who had more than two years of prior work experience. Candidates with work experience were generally asked detailed questions about their job profile. Some candidates were queried on their decision to quit their job and pursue an MBA. Quite a few candidates were also asked questions about their hobbies and extracurricular activities while some were also asked questions about  current affairs, specifically questions related to the budget.Interviews typically lasted for about 25 to 35 minutes. IIM Kozhikode: Process: Essay Writing Task + Personal Interview Essay Writing: Candidates were allotted 45 minutes to write on the given topic. The word limit for the essay was 500 words. The topics given were philosophical. Some of the topics were – â€Å"I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everyone†, â€Å"Forgive your enemies but don't forget their names†, â€Å"Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence†.Personal Interview: Panels comprising two members interviewed the candidates. The interviews did not have a set pattern; rather, they were more panel-dependent. While some candidates reported that their interviews were very general in nature and focused on their goals and aims, others reported that their interviews comprised only current affairs questions. Some candidates even reported that they were asked questions pertaining to their academic background only. Interviews generally were 20-30 minutes long. IIM Shillong: Process: Group Discussion (Case study + Essay) + Personal InterviewGroup Discussion: Each group comprised 8-10 students. They were given a topic and the candidates were allotted 10 minutes to read the topic and write on it. This to pic was then discussed by the group for 15 minutes. The topics given were small cases which described certain scenarios. The candidates had to present their perspectives on the given case. The cases were quite general in nature. Some of the cases given to the candidates were – â€Å"A diamond necklace has been stolen fromjewellery store. There is no evidence. The security in-charge decides to pin the blame on the person who last handled the necklace.It was also pointed out that the accused had provided some fake data in his joining application form. Decide whether he can be expelled on that basis, with the charge of theft. †, â€Å"An automobile company had done whatever they could to ramp up the production like overtime, compensation increment etc. There was an employee aged around 30 who died on the floor of the factory. He had been doing overtime to get extra compensation for his family needs. Now the production manager wanted to increase the production owing to th e impending festival season.But the employees disagreed on grounds of the death, and demanded 200% increment in overtime compensation. What should the production manager do? † Personal Interview: A panel, typically comprising three members, interviewed candidates. The panelists were reported to be very pleasant. The interviews generally focused on current affairs and the candidate's academic background. Questions on current affairs were asked in order to get the candidate's opinions on various issues and these opinions were then thoroughly discussed.At times, these questions were also based on the interest areas mentioned by candidates in their resume. A few candidates with prior work experience were also questioned in detail about the nature and technical aspect of their work. Some candidates were also asked ethical questions, like â€Å"What is the difference between right and wrong? †, â€Å"Is it right for the pharma companies to give gifts to medical practitioners ? †, etc. Interviews typically lasted for about 20 to 30 minutes. New IIMs Joint Process: Process: Essay Writing Task + Personal InterviewEssay Writing: For this task, candidates were allotted 20 minutes to write on the given topic and the word limit was 300 words. The topics given were very general in nature, like – â€Å"MBA, B. Tech are gearing up with the market. Are the courses like Literature, Sociology, etc. irrelevant in education today? Give your opinion†, â€Å"What if a business chooses to focus on the bottom of the pyramid? Is innovation really necessary for the growth of a business? †, â€Å"Social networking strengthens relationships but also makes youngsters lonely. †Personal Interview: Interviews were conducted after completion of the essay writing task. Candidates were interviewed by a panel of two members. The interviews were largely pleasant and stress-free. Different candidates were asked different kinds of questions; there was n o set pattern to the interviews. While some of the candidates with prior work experience were asked detailed questions pertaining to their experience, including details about their company; other candidates were primarily asked questions pertaining to their goals and ambitions.Questions such as how do subjects from your graduation help you in your job, etc. were also asked. Some candidates were also asked questions related to their academic background, their hobbies and even the effects of the most recent budget. FMS, Delhi: Process: Group Discussion + Extempore + Personal Interview Group Discussion: Group discussions typically lasted for about 14 minutes. Each group was given one minute to think before the discussion began and one minute to conclude the discussion. Every group comprised 10 to 15 candidates. The topics given to the candidates for discussion were general in nature.Some of them were – â€Å"Formal education stems the free spirit. †, â€Å"Should sting o perations be carried out? †, â€Å"Morals and values are on the decline in India†. Extempore: The extempore was typically conducted at the start of the personal interview. Candidates were given their topic and 1 minute to speak on it. No preparation time was given. A stopwatch was kept on a table in front of the candidate so that he / she could keep a tab on the time. Topics allotted to the candidates were general in nature and many of them were given topics that were somewhat related to their work.For e.g. , a candidate, who had worked in the Oil and Gas sector, was given the topic â€Å"Energy sector in India†. Another candidate, who had work experience in the field of Data Analytics and had qualified for the Maths Olympiad, was asked to speak about â€Å"Infinity†. Personal Interview:Typically, interviews were quite brief and continued for about 5 minutes. Most of them were conducted by a panel of three interviewers. The interviews were quite general in nature. Questions primarily dealt with current affairs and / or hobbies and interest areas mentioned by candidates in their forms.A few candidates reported that they were also queried about their ambitions and future plans. MDI, Gurgaon: Process: Group Discussion + Personal Interview Group Discussion: Typically, around 12 to 15 candidates participated in each group discussion and they were given around 15 minutes for the discussion. Additionally, 3 minutes were given to the group to think about the topic. At the end of every discussion, each candidate was asked to summarize what all had been discussed. Further, all the candidates were asked if they wanted to say something more on the topic.In some groups, candidates were also asked to write down a conclusion of the discussion at the end. Topics for the discussion were very general in nature, like – â€Å"Certainty of justice is more important than severity of punishment. †, â€Å"Does Reservation in Higher Education hamper the real purpose of Education? †, â€Å"Should religious teachings be taught in our schools to inculcate better values in students? † Personal Interview: Generally, a panel consisting of two members interviewed the candidates while a few candidates reported that there was only one interviewer in their case.The average interview lasted for around 10 minutes. However, there were some students who reported that their interview went on for 30 minutes and some others said that theirs lasted hardly 5 minutes. The interviews were quite pleasant and were very general in nature. Candidates were typically queried about their opinions on various issues of current affairs. In many cases, candidates were also queried on the topic that was given to them for their group discussion. Candidates with work experience were also asked questions related to their job profile and the industry they were in.