First Job and Career related Queries of Freshers!

visioniim_acl · September 28, 2011, 12:04am

Hi all Seeing the lot of queries on the issues which freshers face at the time of joining the job and/or the start of career related queries, here is the thread dedicated to cater to the issue. All the freshers can post their first job …

visioniim_acl · September 28, 2011, 12:04am

soham.b · September 29, 2011, 7:54pm

I am a B.com hons fresher from calcutta university. i want to know about Genpact and the job profiles it gives and the salary if anyone has any idea about it??. especially about F&A; Operations - Process Associate.

thank you. 😃

techiesach · October 5, 2011, 2:20am

I am a fresher selected in both tcs (IT) and nucleus software,but was in dilemma to join whom.
Nucleus software location near my home and j2ee domain(desired)
but on the other hand
tcs - big brand name,domain not known can be anything,worries of sitting on bench.

Plz help me immediately to decide.

pushkar12 · October 5, 2011, 6:44am

I am a 2011 batch student. i would like to work with MNC but no company is conducting off campus for us. Last year all companies conducted their off campus for 2010 batch but this time there is no hope. I am worried about my future. Please help 😞

uglyduckling · October 5, 2011, 7:38am

I am a fresher selected in both tcs (IT) and nucleus software,but was in dilemma to join whom.
Nucleus software location near my home and j2ee domain(desired)
but on the other hand
tcs - big brand name,domain not known can be anything,worries of sitting on bench.

Plz help me immediately to decide.

Techiesach,

The solution to your dilemma lies in your post itself.

You have already mentioned that Nucleus has multiple advantages like proximity, choice of tech platform etc. You should proceed to join Nucleus with your eyes closed.

Pros and Cons of Small companies:

Small companies usually mean less people and hence more responsibility.
Being accountable for something at the start of your career helps you mature better.
However the risk in small companies is also high since volatile markets and economic conditions may lead to salary downgrades and layoffs....but it may still be well worth the risk.

Challenges when working for big companies:

With regard to TCS, the brand name of the company is big for sure, but the role/responsibility that is assigned to you may or may not be in tune with your expectations.

The problem that most of these big companies face is that of ensuring 'quality' work for each of their employees. The reasons for this are as follows:

Most big companies like TCS,Infy, IBM,Accenture, Cogni etc. hire 10,000+ people each year
More than a 1/3rd of the revenues for these big companies comes from maintenance/support/testing projects these days.
Most freshers (and i'm not saying all of them) are placed into these smaller projects where they have little or no responsibility.
In most cases, the process of putting someone into a project is totally random. Hence, a less qualified person may land a plum project while you may be forced to sit on the bench.
The climb up the ladder to something more respectable (software development) can be very time consuming.

In short, joining a big company is a gamble. If it pays off, then there is nothing like it. However the downside may be that you could be stuck with bad quality work that may make you lazy and less qualified for something in the long run.

What are the advantages of joining a big company?
As you mentioned, the big brand name on your resume matters. This would be particularly true if you are applying for an MBA abroad at some later stage in your life. For an MBA in India, it would almost be considered a handicap these days to have 'Engineer in an IT firm' on your resume.

P.S. - I'm a guy who left a huge IT firm to join a firm that was a few hundred times smaller, hence my views may seem a bit biased. Request someone to comment more on the pros of joining a big company.

techiesach · October 6, 2011, 7:42pm

Does working in middle tier company like nucleus software- a product based company developing BFSI softwares not help on resume while doing mba/ms from abroad

uglyduckling · October 7, 2011, 8:13am

techiesach Says
Does working in middle tier company like nucleus software- a product based company developing BFSI softwares not help on resume while doing mba/ms from abroad

Applying for MBA/MS abroad is a mixed bag really.

For M.S., your SOP matters much more than the experience that you have. If you have a kick-ass SOP but no experience, then you may stand a better chance of admission as compared to someone with experience but a weak SOP. Basically, if you have work experience, then your SOP must describe how an MS from an american university will help you do your job better. That is when your SOP Work-ex combination is really effective.

For an MBA, work-ex is as important or even more important than an SOP. Naturally , if you have the name of a big brand on your resume, the person evaluating your resume will be able to recall a Global brand name better as compared to a local one. That's about it.

hitesharora7 · October 10, 2011, 2:12pm

Hey Puys!
i'm a BSc Statistics student from Venky, DU (have not seen many ppl from DU in here) :P
anyway, i'm appearing for CAT 2011 on 31st of this month with almost zero prep. :-(
have been giving mocks from CL using a friend's account.. :o
my score ranges from 70-80 and quant generally brings me down. saying that, my chances of belling the cat is as low as Bermuda winning the Cricket World Cup. :P
i'm still preparing for this one and hope to catch up with the PG junta's awesome scores till the time i take CAT 2012. so, the dilemma comes in here..
should i sit for campus placements and work till the 2013 (when i eventually join a B-school) or take a gap year and strive hard to get a good score, a really good score!!
help needed..also, i'm falling short of mocks (as my friend also uses her accnt)
any idea from where can i get free mocks with new pattern?

p.s. i plan to take 2 mocks a day now onwards.

uglyduckling · October 11, 2011, 8:24am

Hey Puys!
i'm a BSc Statistics student from Venky, DU (have not seen many ppl from DU in here) :P
my score ranges from 70-80 and quant generally brings me down

My average score for CL mocks was 65% when i gave CAT 2 years ago........my final CAT score was 95%....do not let mock scores bring you down

saying that, my chances of belling the cat is as low as Bermuda winning the Cricket World Cup. :P

That's what you think. Don't think of yourself as Bermuda.
Think of yourself as Rajasthan Royals in the 1st season of IPL instead

should i sit for campus placements and work till the 2013 (when i eventually join a B-school) or take a gap year and strive hard to get a good score, a really good score!!

Why take a gap year?
Sit for your placements and give CAT your best shot as well. Its always better to have multiple options (job/MBA)

p.s. i plan to take 2 mocks a day now onwards.

1 mock a day with 'proper analysis' is better than 2 mocks a day with no analysis

All the best!

jayarajmani · October 11, 2011, 8:31am

I am a graduate in comp engg, pune univ 2011. I will join accenture soon. The job is of an Associate Software Engineer. In this respect, how important is this brand when applying for an MBA both in India and abroad all other parameters remaining same. Even though the work is an 'engineer from a IT- firm' does this brand help me in the interviews considering i go for a MBA after a year of work experience. Please help:-(

vikrambatra · October 11, 2011, 7:45pm

hey people i need some help ... i am in the final year of my graduation. I am planning to appear for CAT 2012. My college will end in april 2012. I want to know if it is necessary for me to work during the next year once i complete my graduation.???

Also, if i do not work wil i be considered to have dropped an year and would that be a negative for my selection profile??

If i work from july next year, then will my work experience would be counted only till the time i fill up my form for CAT 2012?? that is like almost no work ex ...

senior puys please reply to this ... thank you

uglyduckling · October 12, 2011, 6:07am

jayarajmani Says
I am a graduate in comp engg, pune univ 2011. I will join accenture soon. The job is of an Associate Software Engineer. In this respect, how important is this brand when applying for an MBA both in India and abroad all other parameters remaining same. Even though the work is an 'engineer from a IT- firm' does this brand help me in the interviews considering i go for a MBA after a year of work experience. Please help

Refer to above posts for your answer wrt to MBA abroad and in India.

Having an 'engineer from an IT-firm' is not a bad thing at all. Its just that more than 50% of all people shortlisted for interviews these days are of your kind. Hence you need something that distinguishes you from the herd.

This could be in the form of something radical you did on your project within Accenture. You may also obtain certifications in tough exams to add weight to your resume.

hey people i need some help ... i am in the final year of my graduation. I am planning to appear for CAT 2012. My college will end in april 2012. I want to know if it is necessary for me to work during the next year once i complete my graduation.???

Also, if i do not work will i be considered to have dropped an year and would that be a negative for my selection profile??

If i work from july next year, then will my work experience would be counted only till the time i fill up my form for CAT 2012?? that is like almost no work ex ...

senior puys please reply to this ... thank you

If you do not work for an entire year, only then will it be considered a gap year. Taking a gap year is not a bad thing in itself. People do take a gap year when preparing for the IIT-JEE. But you need to justify yourself when being interviewed.

Work - experience when filling the CAT form is always the experience till 31st Aug (its been that way for the past couple of years)

Hence if you start working from July, you will have only 2 odd months to show. This may become a hurdle when getting shortlisted for the interview. However if shortlisted, then by the time the interview comes around, you will have enough work-ex to show.

want2crackcat · October 13, 2011, 2:01pm

Hey senior puys,

I need some help from you guys.

I am fresh mechanical engineering graduate. I got into TCS through campus recruitment and am awaiting to join TCS in 2012. With all due respect to TCS, i can't see myself among the zillions of the people in TCS. Added to that usually most freshers are relegated to the bench for a long time, my friends who already joined told me. Recently, i have been offered another position of Content Writer (full-time) by a content-writing and SEO company. The pay is not much but it is not very less than TCS. I love writing and that was the reason why i pursued this opening in the first place.

Now my doubt is what is the future of Content Writing in India? How viable is at as full time career? I also am preparing for CAT, and want to do MBA in the near future because I also want to be in the thick of the business. When I get to do an MBA, how will my experience as a content writer play out? Will it give me an edge? Will it be counted as a work-ex in the first place? Would I be able to justify the madness of it all?

Any help, any light on the position of "Content Writing/-ers" will be very very appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

want2crackcat · October 13, 2011, 2:04pm

sorry double post

uglyduckling · October 13, 2011, 2:20pm

Hey senior puys,

I need some help from you guys.

I am fresh mechanical engineering graduate. I got into TCS through campus recruitment and am awaiting to join TCS in 2012. With all due respect to TCS, i can't see myself among the zillions of the people in TCS. Added to that usually most freshers are relegated to the bench for a long time, my friends who already joined told me. Recently, i have been offered another position of Content Writer (full-time) by a content-writing and SEO company. The pay is not much but it is not very less than TCS. I love writing and that was the reason why i pursued this opening in the first place.

Now my doubt is what is the future of Content Writing in India? How viable is at as full time career? I also am preparing for CAT, and want to do MBA in the near future because I also want to be in the thick of the business. When I get to do an MBA, how will my experience as a content writer play out? Will it give me an edge? Will it be counted as a work-ex in the first place? Would I be able to justify the madness of it all?

Any help, any light on the position of "Content Writing/-ers" will be very very appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Mechanical Engineer >>> TCS >>> Content Writer

The path seems a bit confusing. Following your heart is the best thing you can do. But justifying it to a panel of interviewers may be very difficult.

Of course there have always been many people who have chosen to tread different paths. For example, read this about Rajat Mishra:My Story...

My manager in office is an architect who got an MBA from IIM-A and is now a consultant. So changing career paths is no big deal. Just be clear in your mind about the larger picture and how an MBA fits in.

About content-writing as a career, i cannot say much.

rahul_sood · October 23, 2011, 3:16pm

Hi..I'm currently in the 1st year of my MBA...I'm facing this big dilemma on where to do my summer internship?...I'd like to know how important is the company and domain you intern in for your summers, with respect to your prospects in finals. I'm a b.com fresher and have been inclined towards finance..however could not get shortlisted for some of the big banks nd co's offering fin roles..So now should I be patient and be ready to work with a PSU bank at no/low stipend(which is obv immaterial) or get into good marketing role(my 2nd interest after finance)...Since I hardly got any shortlists for summers, I'd say my resume isnt dat gr8...nd neither do I see myself getting above average marks in my MBA batch..so after a marketing summers, what would be my chances to get shortlisted in good finance co's/banks in the finals?

lookinfor · October 23, 2011, 7:55pm

need HELP!!!
b.tech electrical engg. final yr.....placed in TCS(electrical guy in IT:-o)!!
bt want to go for mba....haven't done preparation this time around!!!!
CL mock %ile ranging 65 to 75!!
suggest what should i do....if i go for mba are d clgs in dis range will be nice enough!!!
should i work in TCS for a yr or two!!!
help plz!!!
10 - 82%
12 - 71%
b.tech - 72%

sureshmalhan · November 1, 2011, 9:05am

I am a fresher and has been selected by Sapient for the post of Associate Technology. It is equivalent to Assistant Software Engineer in other IT companies of India. Can you give your feedback or review of this company? What are the options for career growth and in which companies can I switch after working here ?

deejaygr8 · November 10, 2011, 7:15am

hello puys...does anyone of you know about EXEVO ? its a subsidiary of copal partners..its a market research firm, they are offering profile of research associate...so if anyone of you know about anything pls share with me...should i join the company or not? how's the work culture or growth prospects..and will this experience be worth?

ps: i am a fresher