Great Lakes AWT PI Experiences

By Anisha Mukhija Group Discussion, Group Exercise Comments Off

Currently, Great Lakes Institute of Management conducts its Analytical Writing Test (AWT) and Personal Interview (PI) online. The institute does not conduct a Group Discussion (GD). A pre-process briefing is conducted on the day of the AWT, right before the test, explaining in depth the program and the selection process.

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The AWT is initiated through the applicant’s application dashboard and the option to do so is only enabled during the designated time slot, and the test is proctored over Zoom. The AWT is a 30-minute extempore essay to be written as a commentary on one of the topics provided at the time of the test. The test determines the applicant’s skills in reasoning, forming opinions & communicating their thoughts on real life situations based on current affairs – economy, world news, business & industry, innovation – or sometimes even abstract topics.

Post AWT, candidates receive their PI login details over email, as per their allotted dates and time slots. Interviews are conducted over Zoom in multiple breakout rooms in 3 slots per day – morning, forenoon, and afternoon. There are also separate breakout rooms for queries and clarifications. Each interview panel consists of a Faculty Member or Academic Expert, and an Industry Expert – to evaluate the candidates on the basis of program and industry expectations, along with basic soft skills, sense of purpose and attitude.

Here are some AWT-PI experiences of the students of Great Lakes currently on campus:

Sarani Dasgupta – PGPM 2021-22, Great Lakes Chennai:

I think the AWT process was quite smooth; the topics were current and helped in thought exploration. The interview process was conducted on time and the focus was more on the student expectations and whether they can take up the academic rigor of the program.

The personal interview was conducted on Zoom and the ease of access was fine. One of the panelists was a Professor of Statistics and Economics background. The interview started with my brief introduction, and the panelists picked up points from my extracurricular activities, and asked questions on the same. Some of the questions were on how I had handled both academics and extra-curricular activities, what I had learnt from those activities, how I was incorporating the learnings in my profession and going forward in MBA. Then they asked a few questions about my state and city with respect to current affairs. I was also asked to provide my views on other topics given in the AWT. A few basic MBA interview questions were also asked – what my expectations were from the program, where did I see myself in 5 years, etc. The conversation was calm and relaxed.
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Aniket Jadhav – PGPM 2021-22, Great Lakes Gurgaon:

Great lakes’ interview was one of the best interviews in my B-school PI journey. The interviews were conducted over Zoom which is quite commonly used and is very user-friendly. I was interviewed by Dr. Ravindra Ojha, a Great Lakes professor, and an industry expert. The interviewers asked me about my achievements, my education, and my past work experience. They also asked me about my future career aspirations, what is unique about me. Then they moved on to asking about my city (Mumbai), how can I tackle the water logging problem of Mumbai if I am the MLA of the city and a few behavioral questions. Towards the end they asked me what other B-schools I am considering for admissions, and also provided a few suggestions of how I can get the best out of my MBA.

The interface of the application portal was pretty good and intuitive. The interview process was very well organized and co-ordinated by the admissions office members. The AWT process was also well managed, without a single second wasted. Before the interview, I did not have to wait for a long time in the waiting room.

Mohammed Arbaaz Nadeem Ahmed Shaikh – PGDM 2021-23, Great Lakes Chennai
To summarize my experience:

The process was well organized
The AWT topics were unique
The results were released quickly

The interview process was very good as compared to the process of different colleges. First of all, it wasn’t a stressful interview. The panelists were very calm and were understanding my answers with ease. They had in-depth knowledge in my academic domain, so it was very easy for me to explain the scope and aspects of my academic projects to them. Other questions were based on my CV and the essay that I wrote as a part of the AWT process. The quality of conversation was very good and I felt very good and relaxed while speaking to the interviewers.

Akshita Sachdev – PGDM 2021-23, Great Lakes Gurgaon:
The AWT and PI Process for me was quite concise and formal. The interview began with the basic question – tell me about yourself. During the interview, the conversation steered towards a research paper that I had worked on and the questions were on what it was all about, how I performed the survey for it and how I reached out to my intended participants. The panellists also asked me about my internship ad why I didn’t appear for CAT. They also wanted to know more about why I wanted to pursue Marketing, what do I already know about marketing, and I was asked about my point of view on Sales v/s Marketing. The entire conversation was on my achievements, interests and goals.

K K Anirudh – PGDM 2021-23, Great Lakes Gurgaon:
During my interview, I was asked only relevant questions based on the current business environment along with a few questions that tested my interpersonal skills. The whole process was smoothly conducted, the ease of access was amazing; after all, it was on Zoom and it doesn’t get easier. The interview took place on time and I didn’t really have to wait too long. The interviewers were quite welcoming and made sure that I didn’t feel nervous. All they wanted to know was the kind person am and what my interests are, apart from asking me questions on what’s going on in the industry. The interview, though it went on only for 20 minutes or so, covered most of my profile, personality, and must-haves for a future management student; I was even asked about the movies I watched recently. Absolutely happy with the experience.

Sangit Borthakur – PGDM 2021-23, Great Lakes Chennai:
Beginning with the AWT – the topics were generic and didn’t really require domain knowledge. The topics also turned out to be a good talking point in the interview. You present a thoughtful opinion in the AWT and it generates interest among the panelists.

The interview process was quite smooth. We were assigned slots and when my turn arrived, I was transferred to a breakout room from the main meeting. My panellists were a professor and an industry guests who had extensive knowledge especially in the domain that I came from. It was a structured interview with general questions about myself and about my background, and a few questions on current affairs.

Arindam Kalra – PGPM 2021-22, Great Lakes Chennai:
For the AWT, there were multiple topics given and we had to choose one of them. The AWT & Interview process was carried out brilliantly. It was on time and the panelists judged me on various parameters such as basic aptitude as well as general knowledge.

The interview was candid and felt more like a conversation than an interview. It was about 20–25 minutes long and the panellists just wanted to know more about me. Most of the interview was around my profile. Most of the questions were very basic like how would I contribute to Great Lakes and what makes me special for it. There were also a few questions on the essay that I wrote for the admission process.

Katyayni Dubey – PGPM 2021-22, Great Lakes Chennai:
For my personal interview, there were two panelists, both of whom were very friendly in nature. The quality of conversation was good, beginning with basic questions about myself, my goals, my plans and my journey. The type of questions included aspects both at personal as well as professional level. Since I had also taken up Economics Majors during my under-graduation, they also asked me some basic conceptual questions on economics which were expected of me to know. Overall what I feel is – the AWT helped gauge my thought process, the interview process was very well conducted and to the point, and the overall admission process was quite friendly.

Great Lakes Interview Experience

I had my Great Lakes PI on 30 Jan
Profile: GEM 94.62, 8/6/7
10 months work
2 Panelist both male

M1
Q1. Tell me about yourself
Q2. Why did you leave your job?
Q3. Why lrdi percentile so high and the quant a bit low, generally we see both on the same ground?
Q4. A short summary of the WAT that you have written on AI
Q5. What skills should one have keeping in mind thai AI is inevitable in future?

M2
Q1. Queried about CMAT 22 rank and score
Q2. What according to you was the main reason behind Russia Ukraine war?
Q3. What is NATO? (as mentioned NATO in the previous answer)
Q4. How many members are there in NATO?
Q5. Do you have any questions for us?

Also read: SPJIMR WAT-PI Experiences

Great Lakes
31 Jan
9/86/8
Pharma + Work ex – 8 months
(1st candidate for interview)

P1 – male age 55+
P2 – female

P2 : introduce yourself
P1 : what is delhi famous for?
India’s capital before delhi?
,P1: in which year delhi became capital?
Any gaps? Why you left job? (Told)
P2 : give brief about father’s business (told)
revenue, turnover, gross margin, profitability of fathers business – answered (P1 unsatisfied with revenue – explained it again)

P2: why not masters in your domain, MBA won’t help you (answered)
P1: grilled me about my limitations in industry due to pharma background
(Countered with 2-3 examples)

P2 : vice president india (told)
defence minister (told)
External minister (told)
MSME minister

P1 : brief about role of external minister(told)3 pillars of govt (told)
P1 most powerful ministery of india (told)
P2 : current cabinet secretary (told)
P2 : role of cabinet secretary (told) (P1 – unsatisfied)
P1 : why low score in VARC (told)

P2 : we are short of time, you may leave now
All the best

#GIM @CATGDPI

Also read: SPJIMR workbook

Great Lakes (Glim) Interview Experience

8/7.9/7.5 – Cat – 87%le

Introduce yourself
Why Mba , joining only for learning prospect or any reasons?
Which colleges have you applied
Which one would you choose if you get into GLIM (Told m interested for Analytics which is offered in glim as their flagship)
What is data Analytics
How to use data Analytics
Which are the skills that a manager require
You missed one skills – Of being well informed – Yes Sir, missed that one
How do you keep yourself well informed (News – Twitter – Media apps)
What are the current trends? (Adani vs Hindenburg issue, Republic Day news, India U-19 Women World cup)
Being from Junagadh, what are your views on Adani (Told he has high debt, but have supreme court clearance, Independent ratings agency have given good ratings, So I would say it’s a fair play)
Chief Minister of Gujarat
Governor of Gujarat
Name three cabinet ministers of Modi Govt
Finance aspirant – Causes of Financial crisis of 2008? (Told inflation & said Sir I am not able to recall the same)
Explain to me how stock market works like I am a 10 year old

Any questions you would want to ask us?

How would be a fresher like me who don’t have practical knowledge in Analytics – Be eligible for the program?

Is it a good career prospect for me opting for Finance and Analytics at Glim C?

No grilling, Totally supportive..

#GIM @CATGDPI

Rohit Cheepuru

83.65%ile CAT
NC-OBC non engineer(Agriculture stream) male working (5 months work-ex)
Great lakes interview experience
Date: 30 Jan
Time: 11:15 to 2pm
Joined the call
They had lobbies inside the call which they used to interview personally(U’ll understand later during the call)
Waited for my turn and joined my corresponding panel (number 6)
2 Male panelists- 50+ , 35+
Wished them and they started interviewing
Panelist 1 (50+)
1. Briefly explain urself (where I’m from, family details, under grad, work-ex)- done
2. Tell me about ur achievements and hobbies- done
Adani and hindenburg issue (told that I invest in stonks?)
3. Work-ex in detail and some questions related(I work in a listed pesticide company) – done
4. More work related questions…. Answered
5. Why MBA, is there a sabbatical for in ur company- told
Panelist 2 takes up
1. Greetings and wishes
2. Where do u belong, neighbouring states their capitals and some general discussion about them
3. Which sports do u play (they looked over achievements)
4. Do u follow cricket? I said no
5. World Cup of which sport recently took place
Answered hockey(after big brainstorming session) which country is hosting?(India) Which state – I don’t know…. He said it was odisha
Some general why are u a fit for our clg and other questions (I forgot what he asked??)
Finally…
All the best for ur future…. Just get lost (politely)
Thank u sir… And I left the lobby
Confirmed if my doc’s are clear in the main meeting
After confirming I left the main meeting too

Overall easy interview and quite conversational
Subtle and chill going panelists
Took a good 20 min for interviewing completely
No mess and difficulty while attending interview