How To Face An Interview

Throughout the engineering spam we all are always keen to know what exactly is asked in the interviews. How many rounds take place? What is the quality and difficulty of the questions?

Well here is the answer to all of those, some personal experiences shared by the students of Pune Institute of Computer Technology. Everything explained in detail about 3 MNC Microsoft, Morgan Stanley and AirTight Networks.

How To Face Interview

 

Microsoft 

Job Profile: Software Developer
Placement Process:

Test--> Technical Interview--> Technical Interview--> Technical Interview
Round 1 - TEST

Experience:
It was an online test. The company who hosted the test messed up with the interface, and a lot of people had trouble with a coding question that could not be solved because of the faulty interface. There was no retest.

Round 2 - TECHNICAL INTERVIEW

Experience:
QUE 1: Given a compact data structure to store strings sequentially, one byte stores length l of the string, next l bytes contain the string characters. Write a code to insert the given string at the ith place, making sure the DS is still compact. Write tests to verify the correctness.

QUE 2: How will you construct parse tree for ((a+b)*c)/d? What all data structures can you use?

Round 3 - TECHNICAL INTERVIEW

Experience:
QUE 1: Given a function f that returns true or false based on whether the input string satisfies some hidden criterion C, write a function that verifies that all sub strings satisfy C.

QUE 2: You hand over 'n' identical linked lists to n salespersons. After the day's work, these salesperson return the lists. Merge these lists such that all insertions, deletions, updates are taken care of, so that you can repeat this process for the next day.

Round 4 - TECHNICAL INTERVIEW

Experience:
Told about myself, my interests, my internship projects and my work so far.
A few coding questions were asked too.
In the end, they asked if i have any questions.

Tips:
Start preparing early.
Develop priorities both sector wise and company wise.
Take sufficient water and food with you. Interviews can start at 8 am on the first day!
Have enough copies of resume and transcripts with you.
If you have been shortlisted for many companies, it is preferable to have a portfolio manager who manages your phone during the day and enables you to focus on the interviews.

How to face an interview ?

10 Unexpected Interview Questions and Answers

Morgan Stanley

 

Job Profile: Software Engineer

One Line Advice: No coding knowledge expected! But get your math well!

Placement Process:

Resume Shortlist--> Test--> HR Interview--> Technical Interview--> Group Activity

Round 1 - RESUME SHORTLIST
Experience:
Started out with learning to identify and portray the focal points in a resume companies are looking for. Then went on to list my achievements (big and small) over the years, and the qualities they reflect about me (the hardest part!!). I then selected the 4 I wanted to put forward, and wrote my resume accordingly.

Round 2 - TEST
Experience:
Written Technical test; 30 out of ~ 200 short-listed; 2 Rounds (1 Tech + 1 (Tech + HR); 15 out of 30 short-listed & 2 rounds (1 Tech + 1 Group Activity); 5/6 out of 15 selected. Test was pure coding syntax. Do not come just prepared with just algorithms! Work in one language and master the syntax. The first tech round was some basic programming problems - Eliminating the originating node in a very large circular linked list in the least computational time. Sorting algorithms - Some basic Inheritance.

Round 3 - HR INTERVIEW

Experience:
The second round was an HR round supposedly. We discussed my work in the startup I was in, and then went on to the system design for the same. Later, He tried to put me off-track with a simple guesstimate (no of petrol pumps in Bombay), and ended with a simpler puzzle (Rectangular plate with an arbitrary rectangular hole to be divided into 2 equal halves).

Round 4 - TECHNICAL INTERVIEW

Experience:
The third round was more technical with some more basic algorithm problems & - Traversing a 2 - dimensional array in a spiral fashion - Syntax of commands in C (the language I had chosen for the test, others were Java and C++) - OOPS concepts.

Round 5 - GROUP ACTIVITY

Experiences:
The fourth round was a group activity where a team had to build a model building with straws, come up with a marketing campaign for the same, and make a presentation of the same at the end of the day.

How to face an interview:
Prepare your programming language syntax well. That is where most people lose out in the written tests.- The people here are not looking for very high tech stuff, just some basic programming skills and very basic algorithms, so go through concepts like the unique features of OOPS, differences between Java and C++ etc. Read through basic algorithms they like to refer algorithms by their names. - Do not show in the interview that you are looking for working on cutting edge stuff etc. This goes for all I-Banking IT. Focus more on brand name etc., and possible client and business Interaction (seems they love it!)

You can also visit Complete Interview Guide For Accenture

Airtight Networks

 

Job Profile: Java Developer

One Line Advice: Be the best at what interests you !

Placement Process:
Technical Interview--> Technical Interview--> HR Interview

Round 1 - Technical Interview
Question 1: Core Java Interview Questions (Google it & You will Get thousands)
Question 2: Logic based questions for example calculation of offset in Pagination scenarios.

Experience: This round was basic elimination of people weak in their java basics and logic.

Round 2 - Technical Interview
Que 1: OS basics and application based questions
Que 2: Networking fundamentals
Que 3: Programming Logic Based questions
Que 4: Data structure and algorithms

Experience: Saying you're favorite subject/what you're good at means you have to be best at it.

Round 3 - HR Interview
Que: Questions may be many but they all want the same thing from you !

Experience: Most importantly you need to be sure what you have, what you want and what you think this position can give you.

How to face interview:
Work smart not hard and you will find a way which isn't as long as it seemed to be !
Keep your basics in place and logic intact.
Be clear in your thought process and confident in your approach.

All thanks to the students and PICT placement experiences facebook page for sharing this information with us.

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Jobs and Placement 

are one of the most important and key things on your way to become a successful engineer. Everyone has a dream while studying engineering to get placed in a dream company, and one gives his best to achieve their dream.

Today we have with us one such enthusiast Shantanu who strove hard to reach this peak and today he is going to share with us his success mantras. I know Shantanu personally. He is a great person indeed. Ever ready to help and never tired of answering. I guess we couldn't have found a better person than him for the first interview of EntcEngg.

Shantanu Ingle
Associate developer
"ACCENTURE"

EntcEngg: Hello Shantanu, welcome to EntcEngg and really thank you for giving your valuable time to us.

Shantanu: It's my pleasure to be part of this wonderful initiative from you !

EntcEngg: Tell us something about yourself, where have you done your engineering from and which branch?

Shantanu: I am a 4th year E&Tc Engg student from Pune Institute of Computer Technology.

EntcEngg: What was your aggregate for all the years and did you prepare for you exams keeping placements in mind?

Shantanu: My aggregate was 61%. No, I didn’t prepared for any exam.

EntcEngg: Did you have a company in your mind as a Dream company, you always wished to work with?

Shantanu: Yes I did !  I wanted to work with a startup or at least with similar environment organisation. So the only company which came in that category was Thoughtworks.

EntcEngg: When did you start taking placements seriously and how did you prepare for them?

Shantanu: Well frankly speaking, I didn't prepare for any aptitude exam. The company i got placed was seeking general apti preparations. So if you are good with the  basics like Logical reasoning , quantitative analysis and English grammar you have won half of the battle.

EntcEngg: What extra-curricular activities you did apart from studies?

Shantanu: I volunteered for various college’s technical events from 1st year of my Engg and i was a part of college’s Robocon Team in 3rd year.

EntcEngg: Tell us in brief about your placement, the number of rounds and type of questions?

Shantanu: I got placed at Accenture in the month of September this year. It was mass recruiter so the requirement for aptitude was general aptitude preparations as i mentioned in the above question. For Aptitude preparations, practice RS Aggarwal for quantitative, logical and verbal.

EntcEngg: Tell us about the Interview. What did they ask and how did you answer those questions?

Shantanu: The Interview was not that tricky. The recruiters were asking general information about me and the project.

You can also see Tips For Interview

EntcEngg: That one question which made you sweat in the interview. what did you answer and did it satisfy them?

Shantanu: There was no such question.

But there can be questions like this which can catch you off guard 10 Unexpected Interview Questions and Answers

                                                               

EntcEngg: Which books you referred for Aptitude and other stuff?

Shantanu: RS Aggarwal

EntcEngg: What was the base of your aptitude?

Shantanu: It was based on Quantitative,logic and Verbal reasoning.

EntcEngg: What was the base of the Interview? I mean was it programming related or was it something else? Please elaborate.

Shantanu: BE project.

EntcEngg: What exactly is HR round? What did they ask their?

Shantanu: HR basically is a formality round once if you have cleared the technical round then it's not so tough to clear HR. In HR they ask you about your hobbies, interests , why should we hire you and your future plans.

EntcEngg: Did you go to any Coaching classes for some kind of preparation?

Shantanu: No coaching classes.

EntcEngg: What are your future plans? are you willing to appear for GATE, GRE or MBA entrance?

Shantanu: I would continue with my job.

EntcEngg: Did they ask anything regarding your projet?

Shantanu: Yes, My interview was based on my BE project.

EntcEngg: Thanks Shantanu for this short interview it was really helpful for us, students are going to learn a lot from this.Once again thanks for sparing your valuable time with us.

Shantanu: Anytime..! You can comment below with your questions and also  reach me on facebook.

Guys you can ask whatever questions you have for Shantanu by commenting below or on our Facebook Page . Any questions are welcome we will be more than happy to answer all your questions.

To get further interview update from more candidates please like our facebook page subscribe to our newsletter to directly get the updates in your mailbox by clicking on the subscribe box to right of the screen.

If you liked this interview please like and share it on facebook and write to us your expectations and suggestions in the contact form below.

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10 Unexpected Interview Questions and Answers

10 Amazing Interview Questions and Answers

Here are some really weird interview questions which will catch you off guard. The main aim of the interview is not to test your skills and technical knowledge but to test how you react to a panic situation.

They try throw random questions at you and you just need to listen the question properly and think over it twice before answering, If you panic and answer randomly without thinking over it much Bang…! You are out.


Here are some questions asked in job interviews which were really tricky and lets learn how to answer interview questions

When patriotism hit high

Panelist 1: Do you know who wrote the Indian National Anthem?

Student's reply: Yes Sir, Rabindranath Tagore

Panelist 1: Ok, sing it now.

Student: [Stood up] Jana Gana Mana…

Panelist 2: Stop, otherwise we have to stand up too.

Result: Failed


Here is another incident which really shows how you could be targeted

When Delhi elections took a toll.

(Background:A guy was screaming a lot in the Group Discussion as well as the interview. Around the time of my interviews, During the New Delhi elections were going on where Kiran Bedi had referred to Arvind Kejriwal as 'Upadravi' for being an anarchist)


Somewhere during the interview,

Panelist 1 (in Hindi): Upadravi gotr ke ho kya?


Student: Sorry sir, I didn’t get that.

Panelist 2 (while going through my marksheets): Rehne do, isko samajh nahi aayega, 10th mein Hindi mein kam marks hain.

Student: Banged his head.

Result: Rejected.

When the question of dowry was brought to the table

Interviewer 1: Why are people poor?

Student: Not very sure, sir. Any options?

Interviewer 2: Oh! But you should know. It’s because they don’t have money. It’s simple.

Student:… Apologies Sirs, but isn’t this the ‘meaning’ of being ‘poor’, and not the reason?

Interviewer 2: (Silent)

Interviewer 1 (in his excitement to go one-up): “… He’s poor because he’s not earning. Hence, no money.”

Student: "apologies Sirs again. But is he poor because he is not earning out of laziness, or he is working and not being paid, or, is he ready to work and earn, but is not getting a job.”

Interviewer 1: Have you studied Economics in your B.Tech?

Student: “No, sir our canteen supervisor in the hostel is really poor, and he has a Master’s in English”

Result: Approved.

When the love of Math took over

Panelist: You seem to know a lot of math. What do you like in it?

Student: I like numbers, Sir.

Panelist: Ok. So tell us, what is the absolute truth?

Student: (Wow, what? Where did that come from and how is that related to numbers.) How would I know, Sir? I’m just a human being. They say God knows the absolute truth.

Panelist: Ok then, define God mathematically.

Student: Sir, God is the One. (They smile).

Result: Selected.

Too much randomness

Panelist: Spell the word COW in thirteen letters?

Candidate: Well! Caaaouuuuu.

Panelist: It’s “SEE O DOUBLE YOU”

When Comparison between 2 B-schools took over

Panelist 1 (male): What do you know about IIM Calcutta?

Student: *Gave a standard well-versed answer mostly from the content on their website*

Panelist 2 (female): Okay, tell me what do you know about IIM Bangalore?

Student (taken by surprise): Annn.. Ma’am, it is one of the best B-schools in the country. (Clueless about what more should I add)

Panelist 2: So you know more about Calcutta than Bangalore? Didn’t you get a call from IIM Bangalore?

Student: Ma’am, I do have the call from IIM Bangalore, but its interview is two weeks later. (With a poker face)

Result: Selected.

When Everything was kept aside and the question that lingered on was about email ids.

 Panelist 1: So tell me Abhishek why do you have ‘1993’ in your email-id?

Student: Sir, I needed a bit more professional id as compared to my previous one.

Panelist2: So what was your previous id?

Student: Sir, it was abhishek.perfect@yahoo.com <smiling like an idiot>

<Both laughing at me>
Panelist 2: So you think you are not perfect anymore?

*Suddenly the pseudo-intellectual philosopher in me wakes up*

Student: Sir, even the air around me is not ideal, how can I be perfect.

Result: Selected.

When things got way too philosophical

 

Interviewer: Tell me anything you know whose heading will surprise me and the explanation will shock me. More the impact, more will be your chances of success. Heading and Explanation both can be independent.

Student: Let me try. First of all, tell me what are you fascinated about?

Interviewer: Ok! From my childhood, I was really fascinated about my existence. What am I made of? Why am I here? These types of stuff.

Student: Why you did not choose a career in research?

Interviewer: There are things that are beyond our explanation. Well, answer my question.

Student: Do you know that the life we live is 50% dream and 50% reality?

Interviewer: You are successful. Explain?

Student: Something else. An electron is neither revolving around the nucleus in circular path nor in elliptical paths. It is something like a bee hovering around her honey.

Result: Selected

When someone asks you to draw intersecting parallel lines

 Interviewer: What is the sum of angles of a triangle?

Student: Sir, um, interior angles or exterior angles?

Interviewer: Interior.

Student: 180

Interviewer: Can there be two lines which are parallel and not intersecting?

Student: Sir, can you please repeat the question?

Interviewer: Draw and show it to me.” (Passed a paper and a pen)

Student: Again, after thinking for some time: I can’t, I need a ruler.

Result: Selected

When the question of dowry was brought to the table

Panelist 1: Why exactly do you want to come to this campus, because I feel that it has nothing to do with what we offer but just that you want to go home and brag about getting the admission here to your friends and parents and get a large dowry later on. Why do you want to get here?

Student: I am not aware of the dowry part. But if what you say is correct, I shall surely go back home and renegotiate.

(The interviewer bursts out laughing)

Student:  I really want to be here. Period. 

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