My Crazy experience at IIT Delhi Placements

Dec 06, 2024

The placements at IITs are wild—wild in the sense that they can be very chaotic for those experiencing them. This blog focuses primarily on my experience during the first week of December.

My placement preparation began at the start of my 7th semester. We were scheduled to have our interviews in about five months, during the first week of December. Everyone was busy preparing for the placement tests in one way or another. As for me, I was fairly certain that targeting Quant roles would be quite difficult. So, I decided to focus mostly on SDE and ML roles. I had several unique projects related to ML, which set me apart from the crowd (although this doesn’t matter much during interviews). For preparation, I primarily relied on LeetCode and worked through a set of revision questions I had collected since the previous year (after sitting for internships).

Once my major exams ended on November 24, I started preparing intensively for the interviews. This preparation mainly involved reviewing everything I had listed in my CV, anticipating potential questions, and revisiting commonly asked topics such as OOPS, DBMS, and others. There’s an overwhelming amount of material one can cover, making it easy to feel lost. Having a clear plan for what to revise helps a lot.

Day 1

On Day 1, I had no interview shortlist in the 1.1 slot and three interview shortlists in the 1.2 slot. Unexpectedly, I was able to sleep peacefully that night. Yes, I was somewhat nervous, but I guess the blunders from my internship season had taught me to stay calm.

My first interview was with an ML startup (it got a Day 1 slot, probably because it was paying well 🤷‍♂️). The shortlist was based on resumes and CGPA. In fact, every startup working in ML that used resume shortlisting shortlisted me for interviews on Day 1 and 2. The only issue with these startups was that they didn’t hire anyone 😒 due to a mismatch between their expectations and the students’ skills.

My next interview was with BlueStone, and it was a disaster. I was asked a question on linked lists that I couldn’t answer properly, and in the subsequent round, there was a clear lack of communication between me and the interviewer. I was eliminated in Round 1. I felt fine about it because I was convinced there was no way I could have saved that interview. There are many factors that determine how an interview goes—the mood of the interviewer, the questions you get asked, whether the correct solution strikes you at the right time, your presence of mind, etc.

My last interview was with Amex for a Data Scientist role. I have no idea why I was shortlisted for that role. Of all the interviews I was shortlisted for on Days 1 and 2, this one felt the most random. Just after my introduction and a few questions, I became convinced that this role was not for me. I politely conveyed my thoughts to the interviewer and left the interview (yes, people like me exist).

By around 10:00 pm, I went back to my hostel. I went to bed at 11:00 pm as I had to wake up early. However, I wasn’t able to sleep—it wasn’t my usual time to sleep, and the nervousness of the placements was starting to set in. I finally managed to fall asleep after two hours.

Day 2

I woke up at 5 am and went to take a bath right after, on a chilly Delhi winter morning. Yes, my brain was not braining 🫠. The slotting was supposed to be announced at 6:00 am. I had three interviews in the 2.1 slot.

My first interview was with Oracle. They were conducting three rounds: two technical and one HR. After my first technical round, I had the option to leave for my other two interviews, but I stayed, hoping to make it through. Once I completed all three rounds, the company informed us that they would release the results later. My interviews went well, but you should never be hopeful until you actually get the offer.

I then left for an interview with another ML startup. When I arrived at the venue where the interviews were being held, I assessed the situation and decided not to sit for the interview. It was the same reason I mentioned earlier regarding ML startups, so I left.

My last interview in that slot was with Deutsche Bank, which was hiring many students. I was hopeful about making it here, but there was a slotting issue since I was delayed due to my Oracle interviews. My turn came quite late. The first round was going well, but towards the end of the interview, the interviewer had to leave for something urgent. A second interviewer came to continue, and it felt like I was giving the first round all over again. Overall, both attempts at the first round went well, but by the time it was done, it was already 1:00 pm, and the company decided to pack up and leave. I couldn’t sit for the HR round. This was yet another reminder that life can be very random.

I went back to the hostel, and Oracle’s results came in. I was the only one who didn’t get selected after making it to the HR round. I had no idea where I went wrong. By this point, I felt completely dead inside. Almost all my friends were placed by now, and that’s when I truly started feeling the pressure. There was no way I wanted to sit for placements on Day 3. I had to get placed in the 2.2 slot no matter what.

I don’t even remember exactly how many shortlists I had in this slot. Samsung Research Institute - Delhi (SRID) and Noida (SRIN) were my top priorities in this slot. My first four interviews were with SRIN, Meesho, SRID, and SLB. I went for the SRIN interview at 5:00 pm, and by 5:45 pm, I had completed the first round. When I checked my phone, I saw 3–4 missed calls from different companies’ POCs calling me for interviews.

Since I was still waiting for the SRIN round 1 results, I decided to go directly for the SRID interview. Over the next 1.5 hours, I completed both the technical and HR rounds of SRID. Until now, all my interviews had gone well. I’ve also written about my experience with the SRID interview here.

By this point, I was utterly exhausted. My throat was dry, and I could barely speak. I kept getting call after call for interviews, but I had to intentionally tell POCs that I wouldn’t be appearing for some. Then, I found out that I was rejected after SRIN’s first round. The stress was mounting, and I had to carefully choose which interviews to attend.

I went next for the SLB interview. During the process, it became clear that my expectations and the company’s work didn’t align. After completing the interview, I left for my next one without much hope for the final round. I then appeared for Dream11 and Harness.io interviews, but I was rejected in the first round of both. The competition was cutthroat—just one wrong answer, and you’re out. It’s unpredictable. Sometimes, you feel your interview went well, and you get rejected; other times, you feel you messed up, and somehow you make it to the next round.

By the end, I had run out of options. The companies where I hadn’t attended interviews (there were about five of them) had already completed their processes or left. I had also not gone for interview of any of the ML/AI startup for the same reason I explained above. My only remaining hope was an offer from SRID. But, as always, never be hopeful until you actually get the offer.

I waited outside the SRID interview room until the results were announced. It was already very late—10:00 pm. Around 7–8 students had made it to the HR round, but we weren’t sure how many would be selected. After some time, the POC came out and informed us that the company had selected three students, and I was one of them.

Sigh. I can’t explain the relief that washed over me. December 2 was, without a doubt, my most eventful day of 2024. It was nearly midnight. I had been awake since 5:00 am, my mouth was dry, and I could barely speak after so many interviews. I had a mild headache and lacked sleep. But in the end, all the rejections were worth it. I was glad to have been placed in the company that was my top preference in this slot.

Written by Khushvind Maurya