How I approached the AWT-PI at IIM-A: Priyanjit Biswas

A graduate in Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering from Jadavpur University, Priyanjit Biswas appeared for CAT 2017 with the hope of securing a seat in a top B-School of the country. With strong academic scores and 99.68 percentile in CAT, Priyanjit received calls from top B-Schools like IIM Ahmedabad, Calcutta, Lucknow, Kozhikode and Indore. 

Priyanjit wanted to fulfill his dream of securing a seat in any of the IIMs, and for the same, he knew that he had to give in his best at the GD-PI rounds. His academic scores are as follows: 

X: 92.3%

XII: 92.5%

GPA: 9.14

CAT 2017: 99.68percentile 

Shiksha got in touch with Priyanjit to know how he handled his GD-PI round. Though Priyanjit’s final decision is to join IIM Calcutta, here he has shared his IIM Ahmedabad’s GD-PI experience. The GD-PI was conducted on March 17, 2018 at Kolkata. Read his full interview below: 

AWT

AWT Topic: An argument was presented that talked about the prevalent ‘Jaisa chal raha hain waise chal ne do’ attitude of Indians. It talked about the ignorant attitude seen amongst Indians in general that allowed inefficiencies to creep into various systems. We were asked to analyse the argument and present our views. 

I tried to analyse the argument while citing various examples. I also commented on the opinionated view of the author in the argument trying to cite examples. 

Personal Interview

I was the second candidate interviewed in my panel. There were 2 panelists - let’s say P1 and P2. The duration of the PI was about 25-30 minutes. 

P1: So Priyanjit, tell me about this publication that you have mentioned here. What is this about?

Me: Sir, back during my second year of under graduation, I was working as an intern with the Social Informatics Research Group of IIM Calcutta. The idea was to assess the extent of ICT and develop digital based platforms with the objective of mobilizing the dormant knowledge capital possessed by educated elderly communities like retired professionals and homemakers while delivering quality education to underprivileged sections of the society. This eventually led to a paper that was presented at a conference abroad. The idea of the paper was to draw attention to how such a take on education along the lines of collaborative consumption could deliver an impact by providing education for all.   

P1: And why do you think such a take on education is necessary here? What are the problems in the current system we have?

Me: Sir, in India, the literacy rates flaunted by the authorities are usually based on data considering enrollment in schools. However, the drop-out rates are almost never accounted for. For instance, drop-out rates across rural and semi-urban schools at the secondary and higher secondary levels are often over 40%. This is primarily a result of poor educational infrastructure across India. Teacher absenteeism is a big problem across schools for the unprivileged communities. To add to that, the quality of the assigned teachers is another issue. In most cases, they are not motivated enough to deliver quality education either. Finally, availability of quality teaching material is another problem. Our approach addresses these very issues and aims to deliver quality education by leveraging the power of digital tools and platforms. 

P1: But don’t you think that student absenteeism is also a problem here?    

Me: Yes Sir, student absenteeism is a problem at the moment. However this can be attributed to the existing issues in the current system that I talked about. In all, the current system leads to a situation where students lose interest in classes and absenteeism on their part becomes a norm. 

P1: And how do you know that this digital approach will work better?

Me: We have conducted multiple pilot runs using our approach across various regions in West Bengal. We have observed how using quality material, made available by leveraging the power of the internet coupled with dedicated teaching methods used by retired professionals and motivated homemakers, has led to a drastic decline in student absenteeism. Also, innovative teaching methods were found to motivate students to an extent where they were retaining more of what they were being taught.  

This was followed by a general discussion around the details of the project. The panelists discussed their views about the approach and were interested in my opinions regarding the same

P2: Coming to something different, do you know who conducts the elections in India?

Me: Sir, I think, that would be the Election Commission.   

P2: Are you not sure about this?

Me: I am not entirely sure if there are other important bodies that need to be mentioned as well. Hence, the confusion. 

P2: And what do you call those machines that are used nowadays during the elections?

Me: Sir, are you talking about the EVMs or the Electronic Voting Machines here? 

P2: Yes. So, while going through the newspaper today morning, I read that these machines can be hacked. Do you think that it is really possible to hack an EVM or manipulate these EVMs?

Me: Sir, I am not entirely sure about the technology used in EVMs but I suppose every technology can be hacked. For instance, maybe, the portals collating the poll results could be hacked and results could be manipulated. 

P2: Could you think of tackling this issue? Could we have a more secure system?

Me: Sir, maybe we could use emerging technologies. I have read somewhere that authorities across the globe are looking at possible Blockchain powered voting systems which are more secure. 

P2: I am a layman here. I don’t really understand technology. Can a blockchain powered system not be hacked?

Me: Sir, from what I have come to understand, it might be theoretically possible but it isn’t practically feasible at the moment given the resources that one would need to hack into a Blockchain network. Hence, it is could prove to be a more secure option. 

P2: Okay, fine. 

P1: I see that you work at PwC. What kind of practice are you involved in?

Me: Sir, I am working as a Consultant with the Data and Analytics practice of PwC. 

P1: What does your practice exactly do?

Me: Talked about the kind of projects and assignments that our practice deals with. 

P1: Any particular analytics based assignment that you have worked with? 

Me: Talked about an assignment involving customer segmentation in the retail space. Talked about delivering end-to-end solutions through detailed analytics using data generated from well-designed IoT powered systems. 

This was followed by a general discussion about the assignment. Again, the panelists voiced their opinions and insights about the approach and wanted my opinions regarding the same 

P1 (to P2): Okay, I am done. Anything else?

P2: Okay Priyanjit! That will be all. And have a candy from one of the bowls. Or you can have one from all the three if you like. 

Me: Thank you so much Sir. I will just have the Mentos. (Took a candy)  

Status: Converted!