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I recently graduated from IIM Calcutta.

My 10/12/Btech scores are (83/79/66) and


CAT score was 99.85%. Anyways back to topic, before joining IIM Calcutta, I used to
teach at Time, so I know people at almost all of the top 20 colleges. As a matter
of fact, I know people who are or have been part of the placement cell at different
colleges. So what I am going to mention below is statistical data based on what I
have experienced at IIM Calcutta and information from these friends/students.
Kindly note that everything written below is based on facts, unless specified. The
question asks for placement realities, the system, etc. Here you go.

Let�s start off with joining the placement cell. Most students think that being in
the placement cell will help them in getting good placements (General perception of
people, this statement is not a fact). So they apply for it and try to get into it.
Let�s say we look at a certain college in NCR, about 70% of the batch applied for
the post of a placement representative (placerep) a couple of years back. A certain
college in Mumbai, about 50% of the batch applied for becoming a placerep. My
college about 5% of the total batch applied for becoming a placerep. General soap
boxes are then held where you speak in front of your batchmates and seniors and try
to convince them why you should be selected as a placerep. Then different colleges
have different rules. Some colleges have an election where the students decide whom
they want to vote for and who should become a placerep. At some places, 2nd year
students take multiple rounds of interviews and at a few colleges, maybe a final
round by the faculty. That�s a broad overview of how you could join the placement
cell.

IIM ABC: People from a commerce background or an IIT, get most of the Day 0
shortlists. Most companies prefer students who have a strong academic record. So if
you are from some local engineering college. You would probably be placed after
these guys unless you have done something spectacular in life. You would have to
wait for the guys from the IITs to get placed first. BITS, NIT, etc are good. But
an IIT is an IIT, end of story. Period. You get the gist, right? Ok, so by now you
are thinking that you aren�t from an IIT, so what to do. Well, even I am not from
an IIT, an average student from a normal college. Average student at IIM Calcutta,
somehow still got placed at an investment bank. So maybe you also still have hope.
Have faith in the system?

There were a few guys in my junior batch who had a JEE rank ~1000 and were from the
top 5 IITs (IITD, K, M, B, Kgp). These guys didn�t get a shortlist from a lot of
the top firms. Whereas some girls from other local random colleges, (as mentioned
above) got shortlists to esteemed firms. So, you thought things were biased only
against you? Think again. 8 pointers from IIT are also at the receiving end. The
world is not fair, I had read somewhere.

A month before the summer placements begin. The shortlists for the top consulting
firms start coming out. I obviously didn�t have any shortlists. So, one day I was
chilling out in my hostel. Suddenly I see a female walking along the road and
yelling at someone on a call, �I slept with you multiple times, you had said that I
would get a call, how come I didn�t get a shortlist?�. Ok, that was in hindi with a
few swear words. Not sure whether she was talking to some placerep or some senior
who was already in a company where she wanted to get through. That tells how you
can game the system.

During summers, most interviews are somewhere in the range of 5-15 mins. It�s very
difficult to judge someone based on technical skills during such a short time-span.
[In general, most engineers are pretty bad at conversing in English fluently. So,
most of the times these guys who keep getting shortlisted, keep screwing up
interviews because of their communication skills.(MY opinion)] So, even with a
mediocre CV but with decent fluency, you can get a good paying job. Most of the
times people say that girls with assets are preferred over guys (Mentioned in one
answer to this question). However, as a manager, it�s your job to handle people,
that�s why it�s a high paying job. Now whether girls are preferred or not, I don�t
know. But in terms of communication skills, girls in my batch were hands down
better than the guys. [Working on excel, powerpoint and things like that can be
learnt in a couple of months. But having the confidence to talk fluently without
getting nervous can�t be learnt in a month. If you can do that nicely, you would be
well off at any institute. (My opinion)]

Some people, well let�s just say are just not good enough to be there. Can�t speak
in English, can�t comprehend what is being taught and yet they feel that since they
have been admitted to the institute, they deserve to be placed at 20-25 lacs p.a.
However, a lot of companies don�t agree with their thoughts and then we have such
people blaming the system. Some companies however take them and then don�t return
for hiring again because of the sheer brilliance and excellence these people would
have shown during their internship or job.

Remember how you had to study on your own for CAT or for any other exam. Same thing
here, if you want to learn, work hard on your own. Learning at a B-school is
totally dependent on how much effort you put in. You can either graduate after 2
years with a degree or with a degree and some knowledge. Your call what you want to
do. Just that if you work a little hard and take part in competitions and win a few
of them, even after not being from an IIT, will get you shortlists. (Most people
who won competitions were placed at good firms at good packages)

CVs: Well most people have a few lines on their CVs which are fabricated. To find
them out, placereps have a tough time. There was a person in my batch who had saved
about $1 billion for her firm while working there for 9 months. And to top it off,
this person got it approved from her manager. Most Partners at firms like Goldman
Sachs, JP Morgan etc after working there for 20 years wouldn�t have brought in a
revenue of a billion dollars and yet people right out of their local random B.Tech
college end up saving a billion dollars for their firm. Obviously the point didn�t
get approved by the placereps. Anyways there are other instances like this where
people try to game the system. There are certain cases where people have a JEE
category rank of say 800 and then somehow end up with an AIR-800 in their CV which
gets sent to companies. This guy was not a friend of any placerep. Seriously,
sometimes people game the system without having any connect and because of that
rules are changed. Similarly, a girl managed to fabricate her pre-mba job
description. The placereps could not find it out. However, the firm did a
background check (most firms do because they have people like you and me working
there and we know the system is flawed, so can�t trust it. So, we check everything
on our own) and they obviously found it out midway during the internship. Sent a
mail to the college that they don�t want her to continue with the internship.
Anyways, this story is for some other time. Anyways, the point I am trying to make
is that some people try to game the system and some get caught, some don�t.

[Today, with digitization, there is a decent change that cheaters will be caught.
Smart people at Google, Microsoft, etc are working on AI and neural networks, etc.
People get something approved by their manage but forget to update their linkedin
or maybe their FB page or something. Any trace on the internet and you are done.
CEOs get fired for this. The firm that hired you calls your previous organisation
for a verification. So, if you think that a 22 year-old who suddenly became a
placerep and is making a mockery out of the system and running around scot free and
you can�t do anything about it, don�t worry. When people try to game the system, no
matter how smart they think they are, they make mistakes and then it comes back to
bite them later on. Harshad Mehta, Nirav Modi, Rajat Gupta, Vijay Mallya. Do you
seriously think a lousy placerep can go on doing anything without anyone noticing
or doing anything against them? If you screw someone today, they will come back at
you, maybe 5 years, 10, 15 but they will surely come back. Human emotions to do
better than others, to get back at people, count on that to take care of all this.
History repeats itself. (My Opinion)]. Anyways, I am digressing a lot, back to
topic.

Different firms belong to different tiers. However, if a placerep is placed at a


certain tier and wants to get a job at a different firm, then company tiering rules
can and have been changed in the past so as to suit the needs of certain people.

Close friends and associates of placereps do sometimes get a benefit during the
placements

Placereps can most of the times decide which company they want to get into.

I know a guy who with his girlfriend got placed in the same firm and both of them
got the same joining location. That was some time back, not my college.

In general, as you keep going down in terms of rankings for college, the power at
the disposal of a placerep keeps going up Exponentially.

At most colleges, after the top students are gone and a lot of students have
screwed up their interviews, the HRs then give up on their shortlisted candidates
and directly ask the placereps to send in good candidates. Historical data suggests
that in such cases it�s mostly the friends and close ones of the placereps who are
the good students.

I could go on but I think I have made my point. Most of the data above is from 7
colleges some of which are IIMs. All were data driven points, unless stated.

My opinion: Some people work hard and get good placements, some don�t and still get
good placements. Some people receive an incentive because they are a placerep or
because of being close to a placerep. When you join a college, you don�t know
whether you would become a placerep or not. Maybe you become friends with someone
who goes on to become a placerep. Maybe you benefit, maybe you don�t. Maybe the
system is not the way it should be. Maybe you can suggest a solution on how to
improve it? Everyone before becoming a placerep says that he/she will change the
system and not be biased. Maybe they try, maybe they don�t. Power corrupts, I had
read somewhere. Maybe you would have done the same if you became a placerep?

Anyways placements aside. What have I done to be born in India with access to
resources wherein I can freely write what I think and then post it online, use
internet, have food and water? What if I was instead born in Africa and had to
start working when I was 7? What if I was born with a disability? I was born with a
decent IQ because of which I have been able to glide through in life most of the
times without working hard. What have I done to deserve this intelligence when a
lot of people struggle so hard just to get passing marks in school. All of this is
a lottery. Sometimes things work in your favour, sometimes they don�t. Certain
things are under your control, certain things aren�t. What do you do when things
are not in your favour? You can whine and blame the system or you can work hard and
focus on changing things that are under your control. You and only can change your
future.

Did someone force me to join an MBA college? So that I could then blame someone for
what happens there? Oh, I got a good placement, I am so smart. I didn�t get a good
placement, damn these placereps, damn the system, everything is biased. The choice
is yours, continue whining and blaming others or work hard and make your life
better. It�s your life and it�s ending 1 second at a time.

TLDR: The reality of placements is the same as that of life. While a bit of luck
might improve your fortunes in the short run, hard work however always rewards in
the long run. Why debate about luck, it�s called luck for a reason.

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