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Admission
Process
How can one procure the application form for the various
programs offered by your institute? What are the application
submission deadlines?
The reply is with specific reference to PGDM (Equivalent
to MBA) course. The application forms are available
from select branches of SBI all over the country. These
are also available from the institute counter at Mumbai
(Andheri campus). Application forms can also be downloaded
from the website. The details for the current year are
as under:
1. Sale of forms from 30/8/01 to 15/12/01
2. Last date of submission: 21/12/01
3. CAT examination: 9/12/01
Please explain the various
stages in admission process for each of the programs
offered by you. (e.g. test, interview, group discussions
etc).
The various stages are as under:
1. The form is to be filled in & submitted to the
institute along with CAT Registration number.
2. The candidate is to write the CAT examination.
3. There is a shortlisting process at the institute
that comprises various parameters including past academic
records, CAT score, the qualitative evaluation of the
SPJIMR form submitted & the work experience.
4. The shortlisted candidates are called for a process
of group-interview at select centers all over the country.
5. Depending on the performance in the interview as
well as the parameters mentioned at item 3 above the
merit list is drawn and 1st merit list is brought out.
6. Depending on withdrawal situation the second merit
list is brought out.
What
is the most important stage / aspect of the entire process
(with maximum weightage)?
All stages are equally important. The weightages vary
from year to year and also across specializations.
What
are the skills /qualities you want to test during exam,
interview and GD?
Written Test:
The CAT examination normally looks at the analytical
ability & speed of the candidate for problem solving.
Interview: At SPJIMR we do not have a separate
GD. This is included in the process of group interview
where a panel member comprising of 5-6 experts interview
5-6 candidates at a time. This is unique to SPJIMR.
Normally the aspects that are looked into are maturity,
character (including value-system), and communication
skills.
How do you ensure the diversity
of the class?
As the admission is purely merit-based, by itself, it
ensures diversity in terms of geographical dispersion,
gender, educational qualification (engineer vs non-engineer,
arts & commerce vs science, different professional
qualifications like architecture, CA, ICWA, etc.). Every
year the class composition is highly diversified in
nature & its composition.
Academic Background
Are engineers
more preferred over non-engineer?
No
Is there a separate cut-off
for engineers and non-engineers? Do you evaluate the
two types of candidates differently?
No. There is no separate evaluation norm based on any
specific qualification including the engineers.
How important
are grades in the selection process?
The past academic records play some role in the selection
process. But as stated earlier, the composite index
comprises several parameters & therefore, any shortcoming
in any respect may be compensated by better performance
in other areas. We have several such instances at the
institute.
How do you take an applicant's undergraduate alma
mater into consideration?
The credibility of the alma mater is an important issue.
But it is integrated in the academic performance &
hence constitutes a portion of the overall index.
Work Experience
How important is work experience
for the selection?
Work experience is a part of the overall index. There
is no special preference for the same. For last 3 years
the overall composition of the class has been almost
an equal mix of population that has experience and those
without having any experience.
What kind of work experience
is preferred?
The work experience should be relevant to the specialization
sought by the candidate. For instance, for admission
to Information Management specialization, software experience
may be considered as relevant, and so on.
What is the school's ideal amount of work experience?
There is nothing called "ideal" work experience.
As sated earlier, work experience is not insisted and
is one of the criteria used.
Are applicants
with one year of work experience evaluated differently
than candidates with five years under their belts?
Yes. Weightages could be different. The parameters could
vary even according to the area of specialization. For
example, for FMCG or Bank, experience is not needed.
On the contrary, for consulting companies experience
does matter. All these issues / factors are taken into
consideration while factoring in experience as criteria.
How much professional experience is too much? Is
a candidate, say, with 12 years of work experience going
to fit into the program?
There is nothing called "too much" or "too
less" experience. It varies from case to case.
We decide the cases of admission on merit.
Interview
What
kinds of questions can an interviewee expect to hear
during an interview?
Mostly personal, experiential, or situational
What
attributes are you looking for when you interview candidates?
As stated earlier, in interview process normally the
aspects that are looked into are maturity, character
(including value-system), and communication skills.
How long do your interviews
last?
40-45 minutes for the group interview
Is a long interview better
than a short interview?
There can not be any optimum timing for an interview
process. There should be adequate time both for the
interviewer / interviewee to understand each other.
Group Discussions
As stated earlier, at SPJIMR we do not have the concept
of group discussion. The methodology we follow is what
is known as "group interview" wherein the
panel of interviewers looks at 5-6 candidates at a time.
This may be called an alternative mechanism of group
discussion as the participants are often asked to give
their views on the same topic.
Waitlist
How many applicants are placed
on wait list? And how many eventually make it off?
It depends from year to year.
Ultimately, what is it that
separates accepted applicants from the wait listed and
denied folks?
As described earlier, the merit list once drawn is final.
Depending on the dropouts the persons from the waitlist
are given offers. There is no other differentiating
factor between the two groups.
General
How can
applicants show you and your staff that they're a good
match for the program?
The system at SPJIMR is open, transparent & merit-based.
The system has also been described earlier. There is
nothing more to add.
What's the worst thing an applicant
can do during the selection process?
No specific comments. We do not think there is anything
like doing worst. Students always try to put in their
best efforts. However, it is a matter of competitive
situation and merit is always a relative concept. One
should try to project one's true self.
Applicants should apply to your program if they're interested
in... becoming good managers with practical relevance,
change agents in their respective companies, and finally
good corporate citizens.
And on the other side of the
coin?
MBA candidates should not apply to your program if they're
interested...in pursuing MBA for the sake of it.
Well, what characteristics is the B-school looking
for?
We are looking for good, bright young persons with good
value-system & initiative having potential to become
leaders in the long-term.
Which aspect of the application
should an applicant be most concerned with to make himself
/ herself a competitive player?
Attitude towards life with particular reference to value
system & character
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