IIM Admission 2023: Know how Tushar Sarkar made his way to IIM Calcutta; Know his PI WAT experience

Tushar Sarkar, who scored 99.80 percentile in the CAT 2022, has accepted an admission offer from IIM Calcutta. With his CAT 2022 percentile, he received calls from major B-schools such as IIM Lucknow and has been waitlisted.  Tushar Sarkar co-founded a firm with his friends and is interested in marketing, strategy, and data science. He believes that having a thorough understanding of oneself will assist one to ace the interview. Tushar advised Shiksha on the importance of remaining confident while sharing his experience. Continue reading to learn about Tushar's PI WAT experience at IIM Calcutta.

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Shiksha: Hi, please tell us about yourself.

Tushar: I am Tushar Sarkar, a 21-year-old Computer Engineer and I love to solve business problems using data. I am running a start-up with my friends and I have published a few research papers in top journals like Elsevier.

Shiksha: Was IIM Calcutta your first choice? Why?

Tushar: Right from the moment I started my preparation for CAT, IIM Calcutta was one of the colleges I was aiming for. I somehow love the culture that they follow. For example, it was the only college that sent a hard copy of the interview letter by mail. The old-school approach that upholds traditions like these really connects me to the ideology of the B-School.

Shiksha: What was your WAT and how did you present your argument?

Tushar: My WAT topic was based on the Future of E-Commerce and my views on some cons. I started with a general introduction followed by my analysis of the current scenario. This analysis became my supporting argument for my predictions of the future. I also provided some limitations of this analysis and then stated my view on the cons that were asked.

Shiksha: How was your PI experience? Tell us about your high points or low points during the interview.

Tushar: The entire interview experience was my second offline interview and it was extremely smooth. My Calcutta Interview did not particularly have any highs as it was kind of a stressful interview. The low point during the interview was when I almost panicked while answering a follow-up question on statistics. But the interviewer helped me during that time.

Shiksha: Can You please Transcript your PI?

Tushar: Three-panel members,

Date: 26th Feb 2023

Offline

P1:

Q1. Tell me something about yourself

Q2. Picked up a point on a project with the government and asked a lot of questions on that. Went on for 10 mins. Answered most of the things. He told the point that he was looking for but I forgot to list that so that went wrong.

Q3. Why MBA? You have a lot of research experience.

Q4. Suppose I give you Ms and Ph.D. at Stanford vs MBA IIM Calcutta which one will you choose? Answered IIM call. P2 says Don't lie! and laughs. Then I explain my answer and P1 looked pretty convinced.

P2. Picked up questions from terms in a research paper that I wrote in my first year of engineering

Q1. What is the R2 score? answered

Q2. Write formula? answered

Q3. What is this ( pointed at a term)in the formula? Gave the full form. Was not able to recall the formula.

Q4. Asked for the interpretation of a mathematical term in the formula. No idea. P2 gave some hints but was still not able to answer.

Q5. What is an adjusted r2 score? Knew some parts of the formula but was not able to explain it and got stressed out. P2 said to think and speak.

Said some things that I could remember. But P2 laughs and says I am learning Mathematics from you!

Q6. What is sarimax? Answered

Q7. Where did you use regression in the paper answered.

Q8. Pointed out a few things that we failed to cover in the research paper comprehensively. Replied it was my first paper and the professors actually wrote it I just gave the maths for it and I did not repeat them in the next papers. He laughs and says let's not go there

P3. Alumni

Tell me about your startup from the ground up. Answered. No cross-questions.

Thank you and left. P2 told me to check all the documents that I brought as I brought a lot of it

Shiksha: At what point of time during the interview you thought you made it?

Tushar: Honestly, I did not think that I could make it after this interview. I tanked a few statistics questions that I should have answered and was not able to give the complete answer to a sampling survey question to P1.

Shiksha: Was there a trick question in PI? How did you handle it?

Tushar: IIM Calcutta interviews revolve around mathematics and academic questions in general followed by current affairs. But as I had a start-up and a few research papers, they felt more inclined to ask questions on those lines. The trick is to always remain calm in the interview no matter what.  

Shiksha: How much credit will you give to your academics and professional experience for IIM Calcutta selection?

Tushar: Depth is everything that matters in your interview. If you know about yourself and what you have done and who you are completely and can express that you are good to go. Academics and experience do matter but an interview is scheduled to check your cultural fit with the college, to see if can you not only survive but make the most of your time in the B-School. I am a fresher without any work experience and my only suggestion is once you are on the hot seat nothing other than that interview matters. If you can portray your fit, they’ll move the interviewers will ensure that you get a fair chance at the college.

Shiksha: Any tips for future aspirants?

Tushar: The journey to a B-School is filled with ups and downs. I got calls from a lot of colleges but my first convert was unexpectedly IIM Lucknow and the second is IIM Calcutta. I am waitlisted at other institutes. So just be persistent, keep working hard, and don’t feel dejected if a B-School did not give you a call or a convert. It all makes sense in the end.

Shiksha: What is your future plan?

Tushar: I would like to start my own company after completing my MB.