Wipro - A name synonymous with Indian IT. Big campuses, bigger crowds & an opportunity to work with a very vast - both depth & breadth wise - organisation comes to mind. During the third semester just after our summer internships, nominations were invited to apply for Wipro's campus hiring program. The e-mail wasn't too detailed, however basic info like expected work location, remuneration etc. were covered. So, the nominated candidates were invited for a day-long process to Gurgaon. The initial pre-placement talks were not too great. It was a crowded room as a couple of other colleges were there too (the venue was shared, the process was independent for each institute), and we weren't able to fathom much detail about the work itself. The presentation hovered around CSR, marathons, HR initiatives, diversity and so on, not treading upon actual work expected from someone in the role, or details regarding compensation & benefits etc. I am okay with trumpeting the horn about the bigger picture and the company as a whole, but for prospective b-school grads for whom this selection could shape the direction & shape their career would take on for good, objectivity wouldn't have hurt. This was in stark contrast with another US-origin consulting firm that had visited our campus a couple of days ago - they were absolutely to the point & had nailed every question we might or might not have asked regarding life as an employee. Such attention to detail will take a long way for the global hiring & engagement team it seems, sadly. After the session, groups were formed for discussions. A three-member panel oversaw the sessions and topics ranged from vague, political to downright controversial. However, it went amicably as after one year of life together, we were all friends and were courteous & respectful towards each other even if we disagreed. After a 15-minute discussion I was asked to summarize the proceedings & later as we waited we were informed that 3 from our group of 12 were shortlisted for the interview. My interview turn came real soon as it was alphabetical. I was nervous as even though my profile was somewhat diverse with quite enough talking points, what I lacked in was academics, & having been through the Wipro process during my graduation as well (didn't join at that time, went for higher education) I was expecting some grilling. The interview panel consisted of three people - two seemingly senior guys probably from their respective business domains, and one hiring manager which we knew and interacted with in the morning. The interview was mostly profile-based, with them inquiring about chronologically since my school days. Some questions threw me off, they asked Java & Data structures to someone who had been studying marketing & finance, but I regained my composure & didn't lose my comfort zone. A lot of vagueness herein as well. Questions ranged from general knowledge about Wipro, outlooks towards IT in general, typical consulting-type arguments regarding business viability, a little bit of guesstimate work too, but nothing too daunting. It lasted quite a while, but what was beginning to bug me was that I had started feeling it was hovering too much on my engineering days, while those were behind me. Nevertheless, I myself tried to steer them onto my ongoing projects and internships, and the interview ended with a smile. I was happy that it was harmonious & calm, but on the other hand was worried that maybe the serenity was a result of an ordinary profile, though they did not make too much comments about me having less than ordinary grades. After the interview, I immediately gorged on lunch and even though I could have left in the afternoon and avoided traffic as my home was at least a 50 Km motorcycle-ride away. I waited till night fell, and an exhausted recruiter make his final parting speech and announced my name. Ecstasy prevailed and phone calls were in order. Four of us had been selected and we went home happy. It took three hours of mind-numbing bumper to bumper driving to reach home, and yet I do not remember that commute at all. Came home to a visibly jubilant family and slept like an infant that night.