In order to avoid revealing any "secret" information, I am refraining from

naming the companies (Just numbering them in the order in which they
came).

Before the first day : There was nervous energy all around. People were
getting their formals pressed, resumes printed out & what not. For the first
time in my college life ,I was not relieved that my end-sems were over.

Day 1

A written test was scheduled, early morning for company1 (the Dream
company for s/w engineers & their *PPT aptly explained why). I was pretty
relaxed as I had no hopes of clearing it.

The written exam had some MCQs & a couple of coding questions. To my
surprise I found the test quite easy. But I knew that the number of candidates
that were to be shortlisted was very few & I literally had no chance.

In the afternoon was written test for company2. It was more a test of speed
than skills & tested candidates on various aspects like aptitude, logical
reasoning & programming skills. Some 100 students were shortlisted & I
made the cut.

It was followed by an online coding round (no compilers). There were 2 quite
simple questions to be done in about 40 minutes, quite similar to the once
that had been asked in the IITs a couple of days ago. QUITE unfortunately I
couldn't notice a slight modification in the 2nd question, which had made it
much easier. I was shocked when I realized what I had done.

Day 2

One of the highest paying companies (company3) was in the campus. I

wasn't really interested in working their mainly due to their small team size &
the amount of work that I might end up doing. But during placements
students generally tend to put their preferences on the back burner & try to
get it over with, as quickly as possible.The test again contained 2 coding
questions. These were more on the tougher side. I almost walked out of it
mid-way. 10 of the most brilliant coders were selected.

Written test for company4 was also conducted late that night. Some MCQs &
couple of coding questions (no compilers again). It went quite well.

Day 3

I was shortlisted for the 2nd coding round of company4, with 50 other
candidates. We were given 30 min to write a code (on paper). All I could come
up with was an O(NlogN) solution, while the best possible solution was
O(logN). The results were quite surprising though; many students who had
given an O(NlogN) solution were selected while many others with O(logN)
were not. Unfortunately I was not one of the lucky ones.

A tip: For coding questions,that would be evaluated manually, do give

importance to its readability.

Late that night was coding round for company5. Again 2 coding questions.
Around 50 students got shortlisted.

Day 4

Company6 s PPT early morning. It was probably the best PPT (after
company1 of course) & what they did seem to interest me. This was followed
by a written test ( MCQs + 2 coding questions Based on my past
experience I wrote a more readable code for one of these, even though I
knew of a more optimal solution).

Afternoon: I was waiting for PPT of company7 when I got a call from my friend
that I had been shortlisted for company6s interview. I ran back to my room,
to change to formals (I was very keen to see how I looked, having seen many
of my friends in those). I had to wait for more than 6 hours before my
interview began.
Round 1 : 2 puzzles - I even surprised myself when I was able to come up with
a solution for both of them. Even the interviewer seemed impressed. Then a
design question. Typical discussion that is associated with these type of
questions followed. Then he took a look at my resume & asked 2 or 3
questions on Java. I wasn't able to answer any. Then he left the room & told
me that Id be informed about his decision in a few minutes. Fortunately, I
cleared this round.

Another tip:Dont mention Java in your resume unless you know all its
concepts thoroughly. Most companies work in Java & its highly likely that you
interviewer has a lot more knowledge about it than you do.

Round 2: Some very simple coding questions. Question from DB, Networks,
my projects & the written test that was conducted earlier that day. Few
questions on DS. I could answer most of the questions.

Round 3: HR He asked me whether I had cleared the 1st round of company5

. I told him that I didn't. Few questions like why company6 etc. Then he
asked me if I had any questions for him. I asked about the companies culture.
He went on for a long time. In the end I gave some examples from my past
experience that suggested him that I was a suitable candidate for the
company. He seemed very pleased.

Round 4 : Algorithmic First question was a standard problem & I knew its
solution. Second question was a bit tricky. He told me that no one from our
college had been able to solve it. The Brute Force solution was O(mn). Using
kmp I was able to give a O(m+n) solution, but it wasn't very neat & he asked
me for another solution. I told him I was stuck.

He said Come on man, we have high expectations from you. Ill give you one
last question. You should solve this. The question was not very trivial. Having
seen that I hadn't made considerable progress, he gave me a hint. I was able
to proceed further with his help & came very close to a solution, when he said
"your are heading in the right direction, but now we have run out of time".

I was told that the results will be out in a couple of hours. As I came back to
my wing, I was (as is any candidate who come back after giving an
interview ) met with hopeful looks & showered with the common question
(Hua kya? , kaisa raha? , kya sawal pucha?).It was almost 1 am & we
had a written test the next day at 5 in the morning. I wasn't really sure if I
would make it or not. So I had partly changed.Coincidentally, I was having a
conversation with my friend Vibhor , who said " Bhai tera to company6 mein
ho jaye " and was just standing near the door, about to leave, when one of
my friend shouted these exact word Oaa, Menon ka company6 mein
hogaya.At first I thought it was a prank, but soon, one of my more reliable
friends ( and a member of **SPC) reached my room & gave me the good
news.

Boy was I excited. I quickly changed back to formals & ran back to the Main
Building. I was running & I performed some moves which I am sure I never
have & never will be able to again. I was congratulated by many friends &
had the coveted offer letter in my hand. As I walked back to my room , some
of my friends caught hold of me & started tearing down my shirt & trouser
(Its a custom , if you are not aware). By the time I reached my room, I barely
had any clothes on. Many more friends congratulated & this went on for
another 15 min. Then everyone went back to bed.

For me things had changed. For one, I could stay up as long as I wanted to
(not literally as I had promised my friends to stay awake till 5 & wake them
up). Suddenly you ask your self what next & realize , you have no answer .
All the while you prepare for placements, you say to yourself Placement ke
bade ye karunga- Placement ke bade wo karunga & suddenly when you are
actually placed you have nothing. It leaves a void.

I spent the next few days helping my friends & then left home. Nothing can
match the happiness you get, when you tuck yourself under a blanket, pick
up your favorite novel & read it with a cup of coffee, knowing that a fun filled
semester lies ahead of you.

*PPT : Pre Placement Talk

** SPC : Students Placement Committee

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