Cool Interview - how to judge yourself ??

[Phooka]

hi all,
i'm sure this kind of interview was faced by everyone. i had cool interviews at IIMB,IIMC & XLRI. i thought the interviews went really well. but in the end was booted. what is the purpose of conducting such interviews ?? how can i judge myself ?? i'm feeling very zonked bcoz have no idea what went wrong . what are your opinions

[Aarav]

Couldn't figure it out myself too. XLRI seemed in my pocket for 2 hours till I read PG.

Would be very keen to hear the theory on this.

Is there a chance XLRI rejecting people like Tirthankar just b'coz they wanted to keep their last waitlist selection low?

[Phooka]

ooh and i forgot. had very cool interviews at SJMSOM and SPJain . and converted them

[cosmicaurora]

Originally Posted by Phooka

hi all,
i'm sure this kind of interview was faced by everyone. i had cool interviews at IIMB,IIMC & XLRI. i thought the interviews went really well. but in the end was booted. what is the purpose of conducting such interviews ?? how can i judge myself ?? i'm feeling very zonked bcoz have no idea what went wrong . what are your opinions

me had d same experince for all of my IIT interviews....except for IITK, every other panel was so interactive n tht too in such a cool, composed manner....i cudn't believe tht interviews cud go this way too....

but then it figured... i was not the only candidate who felt so at my GD/PI call centre!!!

n here i m today.... having appeared in 4GD/PI's, i have just 1 final convert n 2 WL's in hand n though " i think" i coped up well even with tht khadhoos panel of IITK, they were still not interested in me....wondering why so??!!

[nidea4u]

what i can say from my own experiences is that u rarely have any hot interview as such. the interviewers are interviewing for people they want to take and not eliminate. now if any1 screws up his own interview and then feels that it was not cool, its not the due to the interviewers. i had all cool interviews except iimi and iimk, in which i cudn't answer many questions which i shud have been. so those weren't cool for me but i m only to blame for that. and again u never can 2nd guess the panel cos i dint make to iimk but did to iimi. and also i dint convert many of my super cool intvws.

and also from my experience i can say that sumtimes u hv very ordinary intvws and then u ask urself what was the intvw for?. but u dont realise that within that time u were given some scope to tell them abt ur strengths but u dint grab that. i realised that only after my xlri intvw and i dint make it. but i did corrrect myself and i used the next opportunity which i got in my iima and i was thru.

so really excepting exceptional circumstances u decide whether ur intvw is to be hot or cool or cold . and there ur always given an opportunity to prove ur mettle, u just have to see that and use it. after all the interviewers haven't predecided whom to take! and even if yes it may be u!




nidea4u

[Phooka]

my theeory is that the interviewers believe that a person will let his gaurd down when the going is cool . and then they can see how he behaves when is stress-free. as it is stress testing has been done in the written test. flip side is that interview is a diff kinda stress. i myself cant recall saying anything silly when the interview was cool

[Aarav]

Originally Posted by Phooka

my theeory is that the interviewers believe that a person will let his gaurd down when the going is cool . and then they can see how he behaves when is stress-free. as it is stress testing has been done in the written test. flip side is that interview is a diff kinda stress. i myself cant recall saying anything silly when the interview was cool

Right, I take that. But why was it not consistent for all? May be I dropped my guard, but the guy who got selected never went through that test. May be I would have performed much better under stress.

[Phooka]

i second u pal ! maybe i dropped me gaurd ( cant recall doing so ) but what about the other guys who got rejected. or is there some hidden characteristic that comes to the fore in cool interview

[kuber]

To me it seems all a matter of appeal. Appeal based on the experiences of the interviewer, his likes and dislikes etc etc.
Take for example, I used to wear a red shirt, gifted by someone. I wore it for 2 long years because I liked red colour. During this time I am bound to devlope an affinity against it just because of boredom. So the next time I get a red trouser I somehow dislike it. Same is what happens with the interviewer, he can have affinity 'for and against' certain acts and words. These can contribute for appeal or ill appeal. Something you commit during an interview could be appreciated provided the interviewer's preconcieved notions and omens regarding that match positively.
So its all as uncertain as the origin of perspectives. Still we have to prepare for the best and still learn to fail. Thats what life is and thats how learning goes on.

[vineetmanghani]

We all know that PI's are very very subjective in nature. What might click with one panelist might not click with another. Different panelists may provide different marks to similar performances (Many institutes use normalization technique to take care of this anomaly)......Then it also depends on the panelist's mood at that particular time of day. S/he might have a aversion to some actions/words (as someone pointed out before me). Most of the panelists are idiosyncratic elderly folks, and one never can tell what they are looking for in a candidate.

But certain generic gyaan holds good for each interview:

1. Be honest.
2. Be cool, calm, composed. I actually hoped that I'd be subjected to a stress interview, just because I don't lose my cool easily.
3. Be prepared with knowledge and facts, because once you are equipped with the "stuff" in the arsenal, your confidence soars.
4. Be humble, down to earth. Don't show your "attitude". even if you possess one, leave it outside the interbiew room.
5. Don't try to outsmart the panelists. You'll be royally f*****.
6. And finally, SMILE, a LOT.

As far as I'm concerned, I had a super cool PI in IIT-B, and the best case study ever of my life. Result: Rejected.

At MDI, my PI lasted all of four minutes, during which they were able to ask me everything from personality based questions to tech stuff to maths problems. Result: Selected.

At IIT-D, I had an average GD, and a stress interview, which was horrible to say the least. I was shaking my head and smiling like an idiot all the time. But to my credit, I was able to answer whatever I knew in between. It's easy to take leave of one's senses when subjected to such stress. A priori knowledge about my final selection in MDI also played a significant part in me keeping my cool. Result: Waitlisted (should clear).

At XLRI, I was with the much feared Prof Jejusaren, who tried to stress me to the max. I kept my cool and answered almost all the questions asked......was pretty satisfied...
Result: Selected.

So, you see, it's a mixed bag, you win some, you lose some......