Deepak Bhardwaz- Future First

Q: Are you satisfied with the company you are placed in or you

expected a better company?

A: Given my profile, I couldn't have asked for a better company. I was

eyeing for Futures First but given the slim chances, I also prepared for high

pay Analytics companies. In the end my efforts paid off.

Q: Were there any challenges that you faced in the beginning of the

placement season?

A: I have a relatively low CGPA and it would indeed be really difficult for

me to get into one of the limited number of core companies that recruit

Electrical Engineers. So I had to concentrate on companies where CGPA is

only for the qualifying criterion and wouldn’t play a big role in my selection,

the companies which would rather test your skills and recruit you after

thorough scrutiny. 3-4 Analytics companies and Futures First were in my

mind and the real pressure was to land a package decent enough to fund

my masters (Yes, I have plans of pursuing masters some time later). This

was my biggest challenge and things worked out well in the end.

Q: Were you rejected by any other company? If yes, what could be the

possible reasons?

A: Yes I was rejected by Microsoft and Mu sigma. Microsoft was a first

round exit, where I failed to clear the written round because my coding

knowledge wasn't up to the task. In Mu sigma, I cleared the first two written

rounds and was rejected after the Group Discussion round. The possible

reason I see as to why I wasn’t selected was, I dominated the GD in a way

by trying to give it a direction or what I did might have been misinterpreted

as trying to take control over GD. Though those weren't my real intentions,

on the outset it might have appeared like that which led to my rejection.

Q: How many levels were there in the selections procedure of this

company?

A: There were four levels:

1) A 5-minute speed arithmetic round

2) A comprehensive aptitude round

3) A PI which asked general HR questions

4) A PI which can be termed as technical, was asked technical questions,

analysis of real time markets during product launches, speed math and

pressure handling

Q: What preparations did you make to get through the written

rounds?

A: For the first written round, we had to solve 30 questions of speed

arithmetic in 5 minutes. On guidelines of our seniors who were already

placed in Futures First, I practiced Vedic Math techniques for quick

simplification. Two and three digit numbers multiplication techniques

would come in handy even for the PI rounds.

The aptitude was general aptitude which comprised questions of all sects.

Few passages relevant to financial markets were given, although the

questions were not related to finance, prior knowledge in this fields would

come in handy to save time.

Q: What preparations did you make to get through the GD rounds?

A: There was no GD round. But for other companies, there were branch

GD's which were conducted by the PC's where general topics and abstract

topics were discussed with equal weightage.

Q: What preparations did you make to get through the

Interview rounds?

A: The Interview rounds of Futures First are unpredictable, they don't have

a particular pattern and are more based on the spontaneity of the

candidate and are built on in which direction he is taking the interview. I

have checked the interview experiences of candidates on sites

likewww.placementadda.com, through those experiences I gathered the

basic technical knowledge necessary to make it through, knowing that the

rest of the interview would be strictly pressure handling and I have to be

quick on my feet.

Q: Any tips or suggestions for the juniors?

A: Every company has a written aptitude round, so it would be wise to

brush up your aptitude skills and practice with set time. Refer to the

interview experiences of various people for a particular company and also

practice their technical papers that would surely come in handy. Most

importantly be yourself, be calm and confident, things will eventually work

out and you will get into a company of your choice. I would like to pass on

one important piece of advice my seniors have given me: 'No matter how

good you are, if it’s not your day, you are not going to get placed, don't get

bogged down by rejections, just wait for the right day which will be your

day'.

Q: Can you briefly explain your overall experience of the placement

season?

A: My experience of placement season was short and sweet. I appeared for

three companies, in Microsoft, I was rejected because of my lack of

preparation. The rejection from Mu sigma came as a shocker and I was

briefly low for some time because it was one of the companies I was eyeing

for and went in with proper preparation. The third company was Futures

First and there ended my placement season on a happy note.