Placement tips

The season of campus placements is here again. And just like every year, this time too, hoards of young hopefuls are queuing up to sign up for the “Placement Training”. Save your money this time, for you’ll find all you need here!

Percentage cutoff:
It’s no use being a top-scoring student in engineering, and this is the biggest proof. Most companies that visit colleges have a cutoff between 55 to 65%. One would find just the odd one or two companies that ask for 70%. So if your aggregate is above 60%, you have very little to worry about. If you are on the borderline of the cutoff, pay attention to this- overall aggregate is not calculated by taking the average of the percentages of the marks in all the semesters. To find out your aggregate, sum up the marks obtained in each semester, and find the percentage out of the total maximum marks. Many IT companies have very strict rules regarding this factor. If your percentage is 59.9 out of the 60% cutoff, you might not be selected even if you get through all the rounds of selection!

The number of rounds of selection depends on the company. But in general, a selection process consists of the following rounds:
Written test-MAT, Logical reasoning, Verbal, non-verbal reasoning, Passage reading, technical
Group Discussion
Technical Interview(s)
HR interview



APTITUDE TEST:

This is the first round of elimination, where the company employs various testing tools to determine if the candidate is good enough for the company. Aptitude tests can vary from a set of 60 questions of just general mathematical aptitude, to laborious and grilling multi-section tests which test various skills like English comprehension, analytical reasoning ability, verbal expertise etc.

Mathematical aptitude test:
This includes a set of questions that will test how accurate, clever, and most importantly, fast you are at solving mathematical problems. These questions are similar to some of the questions you might have faced in engineering entrance exams like CET, AIEEE, COMEDK etc.

Being in engineering for 3 years, the major challenge you might face is working without a calculator. It's during this time that you will truly realize how dependent you have become on that scientific calculator. Initially, you will err even in the basic calculations like adding and subtracting! The best way to overcome this problem, is to try and reduce your dependency on calculators. Try to manually do simple calculations. Also, the art of approximating the values should be perfected. During engineering calculations, several constants are used. For example, П(pi) is usually taken as the value of 22/7, upto 9 decimal places in the scientific calculator, or as 3.14. But when calculating manually, a number with three decimals is not exactly pleasant. And it is not needed too. Basic idea in MCQ's (Multiple Choice Questions), is to decide the right answer among the 4 options given. So we just need to calculate till the point where we can eliminate the wrong ones! Many times, the answer can be found by the reverse method. If suppose, the solution to an equation is asked. It might be a lot more easier to substitute the four options in the given equation, then actually solving the whole problem manually. A good book to prepare from would be Quantitative Aptitude by R.S.Aggrwal.

Logical reasoning:
Logical reasoning is the section where your your comprehension and analytical abilities are judged. A set of statements are given, and you might be required to answer a set of questions based on the statements. For example, suppose, there are five houses, each house is of different co lour, having an owner of different nationalities, with different pets. You will be given a set of conditions, like- the Danish lives next to the British. The German, who has a dog, lives in the first house, etc. A set of questions will follow, asking about the position of each house, etc, which can be inferred logically from the given data.

Verbal aptitude:
This a section that tests your vocabulary, and grammatical aptitude. You might be asked to choose meaning of a word, or to complete a sentence, etc. The only preparation that can be done for this, is to increase vocabulary by using various books, like GRE by Barrons, etc.

Non-verbal reasoning:
This a very tricky section, and usually takes the maximum time. It also is the section that many students get wrong. Fortunately, it's also the section that's not used by many companies. Basically, a set of four to six designs are given in order, and the next one in the series in needed. The given designs are logically linked in some way. It can vary from a simple movement of the shapes in the design clockwise, the a complex relation that involves mathematical series. Non-verbal aptitude by R.S.Aggarwal is usually referred by candidates. It's a very fat book, but since it's very important, don't waste too much time in preparation for this section. Maybe look at the book when taking breaks.

Passage reading:
This is the good old comprehension passage, that every one of us has been facing from the 4th standard. A passage will be given, and a set of questions will follow, the answers to which resides in the passage. Many students waste valuable time in reading the whole passage first. The easier way, is to read all the questions first. Then read the passage, and mark the appropriate answers as and when encountered.
Technical section:
Many companies have begun employing this section to eliminate students using this section. This section analyses the student's numerical ability with technical problems, along with challenging his memory, and basics in the technical field. There are many books available in the market, like Test your C skills by Yashwant Kanitkar. But the best preparation is to know the basics of the subject.

Based on the marks obtained, the candidates are short listed. Usually, there's no negative marking. Also, a section-cut off is usually employed, making sure that the student clears a minimum criterion is each section.

Getting through written tests, is as much a matter of luck, as ability. Many times, your friend, who submitted his answers, as though it was a photocopy of yours, may get through, while you are left behind. Yes, it's not fair, but that's the way it is! Also, there's usually, a talk among students, about an upper cut-off. Though companies deny it aggressively, there are instances where students who have performed exceedingly well have been eliminated. So the best thing to do would be, to give your best shot, and leave the rest to fate! After all, no use working for a company that looks for students who are duller than you!