[2011-2013] IIMB PGP Essay/PI Experiences

All the best to everyone for their B interviews and please do post in your experiences.It would be good if we can use an earlier format. For the benefit of everyone concerned, please keep the format like this: PROFILE: Acads X %,B…

All the best to everyone for their B interviews and please do post in your experiences.It would be good if we can use an earlier format.

For the benefit of everyone concerned, please keep the format like this:

PROFILE:
Acads
X %,Board, year
XII%, Board, year
Undergrad Stream(BA, BE etc), Specialization(CS, mech etc), Percentage, Year, Institute.

Work-Ex:
Sectors, Company - Number of months

CAT (2010-11):
DI
Quant
Verbal
Aggregate
(category if applicable)

Extra acads :

Any other special thing abt u:

Interview & Essay

Venue:
Date :

Essay :
Topic:
Number of Ppl present
Time:
Brief Snapshot of the attempt:
Time given :
Rate your preparation(0-5):
Rate your performance(0-5):

PI:
Panel Members Intro:
Questions:
Rate your preparation(0-5):
Rate your performance(0-5):
MISC.
Any other relevant detail.

VERDICT
Request:
1. Kindly do not post anything other than your experiences of IIM B Essay-PI.
2. For queries, you can visit this thread http://www.pagalguy.com/discussions/2011-2013-iim-bangalore-call-getters-discussion-25061737
3. For appreciating an interview post use thank button, or if you want to show more, use PM.

All in all, keep this thread for what is meant!

Puys please start posting your experiences now
IIMB ka kisi ne post nahi kiya hai abhi tak:|

no experiences yet???

Seems like nobody has posted their experiences till now.. lemme post the first one..
Acads
X %,Board, year - 86%, CBSE, 2004
XII%, Board, year - 72%, CBSE, 2006,
Undergrad Stream(BA, BE etc), Specialization(CS, mech etc), Percentage, Year, Institute - 65.2%, B.E.(ELECTRONICS),
DR. D.Y. PATIL's RAMRAO ADIK
INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY,
MUMBAI UNIVERSITY, 2010.

Work-Ex:
Sectors, Company - Fresher

Extra acads : Nuin special, a bit of Robotics-IEEE, college fests organising, quizzing, singing, etc.

Any other special thing abt u : Special Hobby-Collecting coins (Numismatism).

Interview & Essay

Venue : Hotel Sea Princess, Juhu
Date : 25th Feb, 2011
Time : 2:00 pm

Essay :
Topic : Foreign Tourism in India is a threat to culture, wildlife and
monuments of India.
Number of Ppl present - 8/9(1 Absent)
Time : 20 Mins.
Brief Snapshot of the attempt : How can Foreign Tourism be bad for our country. It brings in so much of capital to our country. So, mostly disagreed to the above stated topic. Our country has so much problem nowadays like poverty, inflation, unemployment, fiscal deficit, rising crude prices. For all this we need money. Moreover states like Goa, Kerela, North India, Rajasthan, etc, r completely dependent on tourism industry. If foreign tourism is banned, how will such economies thrive.
Time given : 20 Mins is more than enough.
Rate your preparation(0-5) : 4/5
Rate your performance(0-5) : 4/5

PI:
Panel Members Intro : 2 Lady profs(both from Social Sciences deptt.-P1 & P3), In the middle a quieter guy, who was jus lukin @ u endlessly trying to judge u - P2..!
Questions:
Twas basically an HR interview..
Me : May I hv a seat,
P3 : Pls be seated,

P3 : So, what do u think abt foreign tourism in India,
Me : Told something & then, long discussion on that,
P3 : What is Fiscal deficit & Debt burden?,
Me : Told how they r different & how fiscal deficit leads to countries taking loans from other nations.. So, both r interlinked,

P3 : (Grilling from the SOP) So, u want to do something for the poor,
I had stated that I wanted to open an NGO for the poor children of India,
Me : Yes ma'am,

P3 : Wanted to know abt my vision,
Me : Told what I wanted to do,

P2 (intervenes) : Wht do u hv to say abt the governance of India? God knows what he was trying to bring in to the discussion:wow::wow:
Me : Told that he was misunderstanding me.. I didn't want to do something for the better governance of India.. Rather something in the social service sector for the poor of India..

P2 : Wht do u hv to say abt the performance of the current government?
Me : Gave a balanced viewpoint.. Told abt both the pros and cons.. How our own money is being eaten up by the government.. Also, gave the positives such as how successful the CWG had been.. Manmohan Singh being a gud economist brought the country out of bankruptcy in 1990 to a state today when we r the 11th in the world in terms of GDP.. Also, growing at a very fast pace @ 8.5%.. Moreover, told how Manmohan Singh is a very gud & honest man.. Its only because of the allies such as DMK, etc..

P3 : So u hv stated MU & DU r very low-scoring boards.. Why?
Me : (I had stated that MU, DU & PU r very low-scoring).. Told how our toppers get only 75-76% marks.. Told PU is the worst wid the toppers getting only 73-74% marks..

P1 : So, u want to join which stream in MBA?
Me : Either Marketing or Retail,

P1 : Why? What do u think r the qualities of a gud manager?
Me : Told abt all the market research & stuff.. discounts, promotion policies, etc,

P1 : Why such low marks in grad?(Initially, I had gotten very low marks till sem3.. Twas only after sem4, that my marks really started picking up pace)
Me : Told how MU works on the last 10 yrs papers.. Said din't knew this before sem3..,

P3 : So, now for every xm that u take, u'll be looking for the past 10 yrs pprs.. correct,
Me : No, thats not ryt.. Told, I'll typically get around 4-5 months per sem for preparation.. So, I'll spend the initial 3 months studying the entire portion.. & then, spend the last 1 month studyin the past pprs to just get a feel of how the particular univ. sets the questions,

P1 : So, do u think that learning from past pprs corresponds to proper learning?
Me : Obviously, U tend to retain more if u learn objectively, insted, of beating abt the bush.. I feel the more u learn, the more u forget,

P1 : But, ur learning only that much..
Me : Its not that we cover only some particular chapters.. We do questions from all the chapters.. albeit, in an objective manner.. hence, helps to retain more..

P1 : Why din't u take up a job after graduation?
Me : Told how in my town, where I came from had only 1 IITJEE coaching institute @ that time(in 2006).. now, there r abt 3..
So, I couldn't fulfill my dream of becoming an IIT graduate due to lack of proper coaching.. So, this time, in spite of getting a job in an IT company named Packt Publishing, I chose to refuse the offer, & fulfill my dream of joining an IIM.. Told how I took coaching in TIME, cleared all my fundas & got a couple of IIM calls now..

P1(Smiling) : OK, Thank u Akash.. U can go now.. Twas nice talking to u.
Me : Thank u ma'am..

Overall - Dunno.. what they r looking for in a candidate.. they were nice to all of us.. overall, a very chilled out panel..:cheers:

Rate your preparation(0-5) : 4/5
Rate your performance(0-5) : 4/5

MISC.

Any other relevant detail -
TIPS - 1). They r grilling on the SOP.. So, rmembr to review ur SOP nicely..

VERDICT - Rejected..:oops::oops:

Essay :
Topic : Foreign Tourism in India is a threat to culture, wildlife and
monuments of India.
Number of Ppl present - 8/9(1 Absent)
Time : 20 Mins.
Brief Snapshot of the attempt : How can Foreign Tourism be bad for our country. It brings in so much of capital to our country. So, mostly disagreed to the above stated topic. Our country has so much problem nowadays like poverty, inflation, unemployment, fiscal deficit, rising crude prices. For all this we need money. Moreover states like Goa, Kerela, North India, Rajasthan, etc, r completely dependent on tourism industry. If foreign tourism is banned, how will such economies thrive.
Time given : 20 Mins is more than enough.
Rate your preparation(0-5) : 4/5
Rate your performance(0-5) : 4/5


This is confusing...doesnt foreign tourism mean tourist attraction outside the country???? Ppl goin abroad for holidays will be bad 4 the country...
Essay :
Topic : Foreign Tourism in India is a threat to culture, wildlife and
monuments of India.
Number of Ppl present - 8/9(1 Absent)
Time : 20 Mins.
Brief Snapshot of the attempt : How can Foreign Tourism be bad for our country. It brings in so much of capital to our country. So, mostly disagreed to the above stated topic. Our country has so much problem nowadays like poverty, inflation, unemployment, fiscal deficit, rising crude prices. For all this we need money. Moreover states like Goa, Kerela, North India, Rajasthan, etc, r completely dependent on tourism industry. If foreign tourism is banned, how will such economies thrive.
Time given : 20 Mins is more than enough.
Rate your preparation(0-5) : 4/5
Rate your performance(0-5) : 4/5


This is confusing...doesnt foreign tourism mean tourist attraction outside the country???? Ppl goin abroad for holidays will be bad 4 the country...


No. Foreign tourism means foreigners coming to india only. But the idea that the statement wanted to convey was this

1. Too many foreigners thronging to wildlife sanctuaries would disturb the wild animals and wouldnt let them live in peace.

2. Too many foreigners thronging to old dilapidated buildings viewed as heritage buildings would do damage to their conditions further.

3. When foreigners come to india, obviously they behave according to their respective cultures. Like dress, language, public display of affection and all. And this may be perceived as affecting our culture too.

you arguement against these could be that 1 and 2 would follow even with domestic tourism. whether foreigners go there or indians, it doesnt make much difference. If u r so averse to these conditions, then ban tourism as a whole. If not, think of striking a balance between the two. learn from how some of the most successful tourist countries manage these issues. AS for the third, again, if u dont let foreigners come to india, doesnt mean their culture wont come to india. We have television, internet, media. If u want to avoid any effect on our culture, u'd have to ban all these also. WE r a free democracy and we cant do all that. So no point banning foreigners. Rather we must inculcate a sense of pride in our youngsters for our culture so that they on their own do not deviate away from it despite all such influence. Overall conclusion, foreign tourism has more advantages and such petty concerns cannot be used as excuses to ban it.
PROFILE:
Acads
X 90%,maharashtra Board, year 2001
XII 93.67%, maharashtra Board, year 2003
Undergrad Stream(BA, BE etc), Dual Degree Mech IIT Bombay 6.88

Work-Ex:
ONGC 16 months

CAT (2010-11):
DI 90.08
Quant 99.55
Verbal 97.26
Aggregate 99.15
(category if applicable) NC-OBC
Calls: All except Shilong

Extra acads : NTSE, Physics Olympiad, Conference paper

Any other special thing abt u:

Interview & Essay

Venue: Hotel Sea Princess, Juhu
Date : 26/02/2011

Essay :
Topic:Politicians should have defined targets and annual evaluation should be made...something like this
Number of Ppl present 9
Time: 30 minutes
Brief Snapshot of the attempt:
Time given :
Rate your preparation(0-5): 2
Rate your performance(0-5): 3.5

PI:
Panel Members Intro: 2 male profs and a lady prof
Questions:

I was asked abt my SOP and workex...why less grades in IIT...
10 minutes Interview only

Some of Question Answers...

Panel: You have got good marks in 10th and 12th...why so less marks in IIT?
Me: Sir, whole life i just studied...no extra acads nothing...After i came to IIT, i got so much opportunities to learn and participate in so many things...I learnt different sports......and arts...so could not devote my whole time to studies..
Panel: even in IIMB, you will get opportunities to learn many more different things...
Me: Sir, I have now learnt that time management is the most important thing. I fell on my face once and have now understood what mistakes i committed. If given a chance, i would like to top in bengalore...
Then some discussion on SOP was there...

Rate your preparation(0-5): 3
Rate your performance(0-5): 3
MISC.
Any other relevant detail.

VERDICT Converted

Why has this thread become inactive? Puys, please post your experience, at least the essay topics.

Guys please help your fellow puys with interview experiences

10 c.b.s.e 90.2%
12 c.b.s.e 89.6%
grad 7.46 IIT roorkee

essay : dress code in educational institutions is kill of freedom of expression and choice

wrote about how a designing student would find a dress code unhealthy as it part of her profession acting school students need to dress as per the class mentioned needs to be implemented for a day like placements etc and not always with concern for others comfortablity.

ended with a mention of the hijab and it being the destruction of expression in muslim women

A : the lady B: the dude and c: wake me up when i
ts over

after the pleasentries
A: what do u do
me : ram kahani batai
A: why did you leave ur job
me : fir jhooth
A: happy with job
me ; yes
A : why mba
me : growth in career wanna do prod. management
A: tell me ur learnings in job
me : say 1 cut short say 2 cut short stammered for the third
C: qualities of a good leader
me : try to say something always being asked to say next
C:leader u like
me : narayan murthy
A: women leader
me: indra nooyi
C: what has she done
me : growth for comp etc
C: all do thatwhats new
me: diversified business to foods new initiatives like funded farming
C: is bailout good
me : no not good should not be used to fix political compulsions grilled on what should be dxone who should be bailed stammered but answered that it should be moderated as public money
B:what have u done in this event in college how does it reflect leadership
me : explaining always cut out that is not leadership this is not leadership
B: explain qualities in u that ur good leader
me : explaining cut short
B: its written in ur reference ur sort of a perfectionist and sm1 u likjes to do work alone at times
me : ended up explaining myselves for long no help he was adamant i am no good
B:3 things ur juniors will tell about u
me: told
B: ur biggest strength
me : told
B: always adamant me no good not good for management as perfectionist cannot take suggestions like to work alone
B: 4 students including me aLL meritorious fighting on project how to solve the situation
me: told will come to the table with our ideas and try to build a consensus
B: no consensus have to give in the morning
me : voting to close it
B: dont u ever go back and regroup again ( was laughing)
C: any questions to ask
me: asked about scholarships

thanks you

it was such a pain i was sweating ended up explaining i am what i have said and not what you percieve me to be

verdict : end of story anyways my acads were way below banglore standards.

10 c.b.s.e 90.2%
12 c.b.s.e 89.6%
grad 7.46 IIT roorkee

verdict : end of story anyways my acads were way below banglore standards.


U have fairly good acads yaar..dont worry..hope for the best

Done with interview today.. mentioned below is snapshot of my experience

Work-Ex: 3 yrs

Any other special thing abt u: I am an Entrepreneur

Interview & Essay

Venue: IIM - Bangalore
Date : 4/03/2011

Essay : (don't remember the exact words) - the enforcement of dress code in educational institutions is over stated. This leads to the curbing of freedom and liberty.

Number of Ppl present - 9
Time: 9.00 am
Time given : 30 min

Rate your preparation(0-5): the topics are pretty general.. you are supposed to have some general opinion. you cant be prepared for such topics.


PI
:

Panel Members Intro: 2 profs and one Alumni

Questions:

Abt yourself
couple of Questions on social work tht i did
majorly it was on my SOP and Entrepreneurship
couple of questions on my goal
How wud an MBA help you



Rate your preparation and performance(0-5): should not matter. But the idea is you have to be thorough with ur SOP/ Work details/ Goals/ and extra curricular. The interview completely revolves around your SOP and you. so it shouldn't matter wat others are asked, be sure abt yourself, walk in confidently and you will do good.

PS: Please I would suggest not swarm the person who is just out of the interview room. it just increases your nervousness and tension. the questions that are asked to you will be completely different to wat was asked to the other person as the profiles are different.

How long should the essay be? I mean, how many words are expected to be written for the 30-minute essay?

they will give 30 mins for essay.. out of which 10 mins COMPULSORY for thinking on the topic.. n remaining 20 mins to write..

in the first 10 mins.. we are not supposed to turn the paper n write the essay.. Panel will tell when to start writing the actual essay..

one side of the paper has a small rough column for jotting down points.. n second side of the paper has lines drawn on which we need to write..

there is NO word limit.. however there is only one side of a paper to write..

sid2089 Says
How long should the essay be? I mean, how many words are expected to be written for the 30-minute essay?
they will give 30 mins for essay.. out of which 10 mins COMPULSORY for thinking on the topic.. n remaining 20 mins to write..

in the first 10 mins.. we are not supposed to turn the paper n write the essay.. Panel will tell when to start writing the actual essay..

one side of the paper has a small rough column for jotting down points.. n second side of the paper has lines drawn on which we need to write..

there is NO word limit.. however there is only one side of a paper to write..



What only one side? Did you find it sufficient... I thought that since they are giving 30 minutes time they may expect a reasonably big essay to be written on both sides...
Acads
X 93.2, CBSE, 2001
XII 96.9, TN Stateboard, 2003
Undergrad Stream BE Mechanical, 93.7, Anna university


Work-Ex:
Deloitte Consulting 30 months (as of Dec-2010)

CAT (2010-11):
DI 86.5
Quant 98.5
Verbal 94.6
Aggregate 97.66
GENERAL Category


Extra Acads Gold medalist in engg
Any other special thing abt u: been in school atletic team, college and office dance team, Co-chairman of college Students union

Interview & Essay

Venue: IIMB
Date : 04-Mar-11 - 02:00 PM

Essay :
Topic: Celebrations of Valentines day is more of a marketing gimmick than about genuine feelings
Number of Ppl present: 8
Time: 30mins (10min to prepare and organize +20mins to write the essasy)
Rate your preparation(0-5):3
Rate your performance(0-5):4

PI:
Questions:
Tell me about yourself
How can you apply what you can seen in dance to management
Ideas to start dance as business and more generic questions around that
What is job profile?
Explain what you did in XXX project
What else have you done in workplace
What do you think of india s future
Generic discussion on elections, corruption etc

Rate your preparation(0-5): 3
Rate your performance(0-5): 4


MISC.
Any other relevant detail.
Essay topics are very generic, atleast until now, so those who are nervous if it ll be current affairs can breathe a sigh of relief.
Questions in interview on based on your SOP and/or tell me about yourself.
Overall the interview is chill.. All the best for everyone!!!


Kind request, there are a lot of GD PI experiences in other threads but for some weird reason its very less for IIMB. Puys who have finished their interviews please share your experiences



ALL THE BEST EVERYONE!!!! :thumbsup:


Cheers! :cheerio:


VERDICT Converted!!

Hey Guys,

These are few doubts one of our fellow call getter had. I believe it might be helpful to few more so am posting it here. Please find the replies in red

1. During the interview, do they keep your essay in front of you?

Each batch is of 9 students. when you reach the venue you would find a sheet already pasted with your room number, panel number and your order among the nine (I think its based according to the CAT registration number).
All the nine students are called in.. and the papers are already there in the respective places with the topic written on the reverse side of it. you have to wait for the signal to see the topic.


2. Is there any order in which you are called for the interview after writing the essay?

I have mentioned it in the last question (you will have your serial no. mentioned before hand)


3. I heard there is one side in which we have to write the essay and 10 minutes to think about it - Are we allowed to write points in the first 10 min in the rough points area?

Yes, you are given ten minutes to think and jot down your points in the box mentioned for the specific purpose. So calmly think and jot down your points, the topics are pretty general so shouldn't be an issue. just see you finish the essay in 20 min.. you would have only one page to write so articulate your thoughts and points accordingly.


4. Was the room in which the interview took place air-conditioned (asking coz my wearing suit might depend upon it )

You wearing a suit completely depends where you are attending the interview at and how comfortable you are in it. Mine was in IIMB in the morning slot, still i didn't find the necessity to wear a blazer or a suit (My advice - avoid it if you r not comfortable in it, you can carry a tie though). In my group there only 2 guys with suit and there were 3 without a tie. So its completely on your comfort levels.

As far as the room with the AC is concerned, to b frank i didn't have the time to notice it :P


Good Luck!!!
:cheerio:

PROFILE:

Acads
X- 90.33%,AP State Board, 2002
XII- 93.3%,AP State Board, 2004
Undergrad Stream - B.Tech, Electronics & Communication, 77.1, MGIT, Hyderabad.

Work-Ex:
IT Sector, Infosys - 30(as of Dec-2010)

CAT (2010-11):
DI - 98.68
Quant - 98.81
Verbal - 99.08
Aggregate - 99.84
(General)

Extra acads : Zilch

Any other special thing abt u: Zilch again

Interview & Essay

Venue: IIM,Bangalore
Date : 07-03-2011

Essay :
Topic: Indian companies should hire foreign nationals from lesser developed nations as part of Social responsibility( something like that)
Number of Ppl present : 9
Time: 20mins to write( 10mins to gather your thoughts ) - overall 30mins
Brief Snapshot of the attempt: Wrote about CSR activities by some companies..Then the proposal about 2% of profit to CSR activities..Was not that great on content..Then was beating around the bush for sometime :drinking:
the essay style wasn't great will lose out on that!
Time given : felt more time was given..too long it was
Rate your preparation(0-5): 2.5
Rate your performance(0-5): 2.5

PI:
Panel Members Intro: YG(probably alum), OG and Lady
YG-young guy, OG-Old guy

Questions:
OG: So are you from bangalore or hyderabad?
Told and then some more questions on background..
Lady:Straight away into my SOP!
OG:So why do you want to do this? ( I had written entreprenuerial venture in sports)
Lady:You don't have any sports experience?
Told that I have passion etc etc.
Then more discussion around that..How I will set-up..How will investment come etc etc.
Lady:What did you learn from your work-ex?
Didn't give a proper answer
Lady:Then the dreaded why finance?
I had prepared well for my answer but then in the interview scenario everything changes!
YG: Then they went into banking. Some questions on GDP of China,India and US. The sub-prime mortgage crisis..I stumbled here a little
Was an ok performance in that.
OG: Then the last question If you are CM of AP what would you do?
Gave my opinion on it. some cross-questioning I don't know if they were satisfied with my answer.

Rate your preparation(0-5): 2.5
Rate your performance(0-5): 3
MISC.
Any other relevant detail: I wasn't able to convince them I felt! But whats over is over now! I am just happy that the hectic period is over! 4 interviews in 3 days takes a lot out of you!
All the best for the others! :cheerio:

VERDICT: Not a lot of hopes but lets see!

hey should we carry anything?! I ask this since we had already uploaded all the docs... Should we carry anything with us to the interview?!