IIM Ahmedabad Interview Tips: The IIMA interview is a crucial stage of the MBA admission process. Candidates will be shortlisted for the Analytical Writing Test (AWT) & Personal Interview (PI) based on their CAT scores, academic records, and other factors. The IIM Ahmedabad interview round is meant to assess your skills, subject knowledge, and overall fit for its MBA program. Hence, candidates should prepare well for this stage to maximise their chances of success. Read ahead to know the IIM Ahmedabad Interview tips and real interview experience.
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IIM Ahmedabad Interview Tips: Admission Process
You should first check the IIMA admission process. This helps you plan your strategy wisely. The selection process has several stages. And clearing all these stages is mandatory for MBA admission. The detailed IIM Ahmedabad Admission Process are as follows:
- The first step is appearing in the CAT exam. IIM conducts the CAT exam for admission into the MBA/PGP and other management courses.
- After the CAT results are out, eligible candidates will be shortlisted for the AWT & PI. The shortlisting depends on your CAT scores and academic records.
- After the AWT & PI, the admission offers will be made to successful aspirants. The final selection depends on various components: CAT scores, AWT & PI, academics, achievements, work experience, etc.
IIM Ahmedabad Interview Tips: Smart Strategy
Candidates should adopt the right approach when preparing for the IIMA interview round. Any silly mistakes in the interview can reduce their chances of securing admission to their dream college. The IIM Ahmedabad interview tips are shared below for reference:
Research About the Institute
You must understand all the aspects of IIMA. This includes the college’s founding year, values, academic courses, infrastructure, etc. Visit the official website to check the institute’s recent developments. This helps you express your answers confidently and showcase your curiosity in the interview.
Analyse Your Application
Analyse your application carefully before appearing in the IIMA interview. You may have to face questions about your education and professional journey. Prepare clear answers about your academics, work experience, achievements, etc. Practice all your answers regularly. This will train your mind to speak confidently without any pause.
Stay Updated with Current Events
The next IIM Ahmedabad interview tips is to read the newspaper. You must also watch the news daily. This provides a clear picture of the latest national and international events. Be prepared to discuss your viewpoint on social matters or current affairs during the PI. You can even join the GDPI course by iQuanta to access daily GK, Current Affairs sessions and revision notes.
Polish your academic knowledge
Review the basics of your graduation subjects and project work. The interview panel may ask questions to check your conceptual clarity and depth of understanding. They test how well you can use those basics in real-life situations.
Mock interview Practice
Practice unlimited mock interviews while preparing. It can sharpen your answers and boost your communication skills. It reveals your strengths and gaps. You can practice mock interviews with your mentors, friends, or family. You will learn how to answer questions with clarity and confidence. You can even join the GDPI course by iQuanta to prepare well for the IIMA PI round. The course offers one-on-one mock interviews, GD sessions, multiple SOP reviews, WAT practice sessions, etc.
Select appropriate attire
Choose clean and formal attire for your interview day. This shows your professionalism. It will also create a strong first impression. This is one of the crucial IIM Ahmedabad Interview tips for MBA aspirants.
Stay Confident
Avoid negative thoughts on your interview day. Be focused and confident. This can maximise your chances of success.
IIM Ahmedabad Interview Tips: Topper Strategy
Cracking the IIM Ahmedabad interview is no cakewalk. The reason? Limited seats and extreme competition among the candidates. If you are planning to appear in the IIMA interview, you should go through previous interview experiences. We have included below the IIM Ahmedabad interview transcript of an aspirant who cleared the process.
IIM Ahmedabad Interview Transcript
CAT %ile : 99.6%ile | Profile : 10/95.8/8.62
Workex: 23 months (ISRO)
Aspirant shared that “ From my perspective, the interview was good, and I answered almost all the questions. The panellists were smiling throughout and never interrupted, even once. It lasted for 35 minutes.”
WAT Topic: Virat Kohli, captain of the Indian cricket team, decided to take paternity leave and return home after the 1st test match of the then-ongoing India-Australia Border Gavaskar Trophy. Various comments were passed by the retired players criticizing the Indian captain for this decision. Sports magazines compared it with army personnel who do their duty for the country and don’t leave the battlefield midway. They argued that cricket players are given equal treatment and respect as the Indian army. So it’s only fair that he should have stayed back for the nation.
IIM A Interview Transcript
(Let’s denote the male panellist as M1, M2, and myself as P. The text in the bracket represents what my thought process was & what I conveyed.)
M1: Pulkit, you are working in a very esteemed organization of our country. Why do you want to leave ISRO and join IIM for an MBA? Don’t you want to serve the nation anymore?
P: (I was pretty much expecting this question and was prepared. I gave my standard 40-second answer, mentioning my long-term career goal and how an MBA from IIM-A will help me. I also added how I could serve the nation even if I leave ISRO. The panellist seemed convinced with my plan and vision.)
M1: What is your role at ISRO?
P: (I mentioned the division and the group in which I was working. I talked about the projects and activities I carried out by me. I also explained the processes involved in layman’s terms and kept it concise.)
M1: What’s the budget of ISRO?
P: 13,000 crores for the year 2020–21. (Also mentioned how much this is in terms of % of GDP and compared it with NASA’s budget.)
M2: What are the different probability distributions.
P: Normal, Binomial, Poisson, Bernoulli, exponential.
M2: Explain with real-life examples.
P: (Explained and also gave practical examples as to where we encounter different distributions.)
M2: Mathematical expression for Poisson distribution?
P: (I didn’t know this. I wrote the expression for normal distribution and mentioned that I am not sure and it’s a guess.)
M2: Explain mean, mode, median.
P: (Explained).
M2: He gave me a few numbers and asked me to find the mean, mode, and median of that data set.
P: Solved it in a matter of seconds. It was an easy question.
M1: The space sector is seeing so many changes. Can you mention the developments and where this sector is heading?
P: In India, space is currently at an inflection point. The global market for the space sector is 350 billion dollars, and India only contributes 2% of the total trade. The Indian government is allowing private players in the space sector to change this scenario. They are also encouraging space startups to take part in end-to-end space activities. They are setting up institutions like NSIL, INSPACe, etc., for the efficient use of ISRO facilities by the interested customers.
The mapping activities have liberalized to become self-reliant in navigation, and private sector participation will open up new and exciting opportunities in the coming years.
(This discussion was followed by some details on NSIL, INSPACe. The panelists seemed genuinely interested in knowing more about these developments, and the interview felt like an interaction at this point.)
M2: How good are you with statistics?
P: I am out of practice. I read and used statistical methods during my college. But I am very well aware of the basic concepts and fundamentals.
M2: How do you rate yourself in statistics?
P: I am definitely above average and am able to answer the questions except for some mathematical expressions.
M2: You explained the mean, mode, and median mathematically. Tell me a scenario where median and mode make more sense than the mean. You have 15 seconds to think.
P: (The last statement that I have 15 seconds adds to the pressure and can sometimes really affect the thinking process.)
Median makes more sense when we analyze the b-school placement figures. (Explained how a single very high or low package can affect the mean significantly.)
M2: Alright. What about mode?
P: (After thinking for 5–10 seconds) If we have to analyze a sports player who plays archery, the mode makes more sense than the mean. The mode will tell the area which is most likely to get hit when the player aims.
M1: Where are the other ISRO centres, and what kind of work happens there?
P: Told.
M1: Is it justified for a country like India to spend so much on space when there are issues like poverty and unemployment.
P: I would like to quote Vikram Sarabhai, father of the Indian space program and one of the founding fathers of IIM-A:
“There are some who question the relevance of space activities in a developing nation. To us, there is no ambiguity of purpose. We do not have the fantasy of competing with the economically advanced nations in the exploration of the moon or the planets or manned space-flight. ”
“But we are convinced that if we are to play a meaningful role nationally, and in the community of nations, we must be second to none in the application of advanced technologies to the real problems of man and society.”
(I also explained other applications like tele-medicine, communication, resource mapping, urban planning, strategic uses like data for Uri attack, etc, and explained the importance. The panelists were quite impressed by this answer.)
M2: Explain the budget in one or two lines.
P: The government has decided to focus on growth and wants to achieve a double-digit growth rate of around 12%. They are ready to spend more while maintaining fiscal prudence by the slew of measures which include privatization and asset monetization. The government is hoping that the fiscal deficit will come down to 6.8%.
M2: Alright. That will be all.
M1: Do you have any questions for us?
P: No. I am good. Thank You.
M1: (No chocolates offered) You can leave.
Are you planning to appear in the IIM Ahmedabad Interview? You must follow the right approach to excel. To help, iQuanta have launched a GDPI course. It offers one-on-one mock sessions, GD sessions, multiple SOP reviews, WAT practice sessions, daily GK, and hybrid GDPI preparation. So, why wait any longer? Enrol now and maximise your chances of success.
