Hillori Desai Awasthi on Life of an IITIAN in India | Learning Stories EP39

On Episode 39 of #LearningStories we chat with Hillori Desai Awasthi.
Hillori is from Surat, Gujarat, and studied at Bhulka Bhawan School, a well-known Gujarati medium school. From the 9th grade, she dreamed of joining IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) and started preparing for it in Surat and Kota. She cleared her JEE Advanced and then completed her B.Tech in Biotechnology from IIT Roorkee. Her career began at Microland, an IT MNC in Bangalore, where she worked as a software developer for three years, later taking up roles as a DevOps engineer and project manager. Now, she’s been a senior software engineer for over a year at Floworks, a startup focused on generative AI. With hands-on experience in designing, developing, and deploying SaaS products, Hillori is deeply passionate about how technology can drive transformational change and is motivated to make an impact in the world. When she’s not working, she enjoys reading and traveling, which help fuel her curiosity and creativity. You can find her work and thoughts on Linkedin.
Show Chapters
00:20 - Hillori Background and Work
02:30 - Childhood Stories from Surat
02:50 - "I strived to be the best in academics"
03:20 - "I used to read Jules Verne in Gujarati at school"
04:40 - "I saw pamphlets in Mumbai showing names of students that got into IIT"
05:20 - Why I wanted to study at IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) in India?
06:00 - Coaching Centres for IIT Entrance Exams
06:15 - "I started preparing for IIT in ninth grade"
07:20 - Who inspired you to be an engineer?
08:20 - "I can become whatever I want to become if I become an IITIAN"
08:40 - How my parents influenced my thinking?
09:30 - What is JEE (Joint Entrance Engineering Exam)?
10:00 - Why are the IIT's (Indian Institute of Technology) so important in India?
11:00 - What are some tips to get into IIT?
11:50 - Why you need to have a strong foundation in Mathematics?
13:15 - How to prepare for JEE exams?
13:40 - What is the difference between JEE Mains and JEE Advanced?
15:15 - Why I moved to Kota, Rajasthan to prepare for my JEE exams?
15:55 - "You have the best faculty in Kota"
17:25 - "Every month there are exams and rankings to know your standing"
17:45 - "There is a lot of pressure on students at Kota"
19:00 - What was my rank in my first JEE attempt?
20:50 - What was my rank in the second JEE attempt?
21:11 - How do you choose your stream of engineering once you get a good JEE rank?
22:43 - "The top rankers will get IIT Delhi or IIT Bombay"
23:20 - What is the difference between the older and newer IIT's?
23:45 - "The older IIT's have a lot of legacy and good alumni network"
24:48 - "The older IIT's may have more experienced faculty"
25:26 - "The big companies come for placement to older IIT's"
26:00 - What were my options for courses at IIT?
27:00 - "I was interested in Biotechnology at IIT Rourkee"
27:38 - "I had a dream to pursue research in MIT in brain and cognitive science"
29:00 - What is biotechnology and how it is used in the real world?
32:00 - What was your experience as a student at IIT Rourkee?
36:00 - "There were around 7000 to 8000 students on campus"
38:00 - "There were so many things going on around the campus"
39:00 - Why it is important to balance health and work in life?
39:30 - Why Sal Khan inspired me at university?
40:30 - "You get a lot of exposure and opportunities at IIT"
41:40 - "I was curious about civil service at IIT"
45:18 - "Finally people come to IIT for placements"
45:45 - What is the process of placements at IIT?
48:25 - "I had my first interview with Goldman Sachs on day zero and that I blew up"
50:20 - "I had an interview on day four with Microland & I got a job as a software developer"
51:32 - What is the final year project at IIT?
52:00 - My experience with academic and scientific research
53:40 - "I did not want to study abroad because..."
55:00 - What training did you receive in your first job after IIT?
1:00:00 - "I learned basic computer science from a Crash Course series"
1:01:00 - How I became a software developer from scratch after IIT?
1:05:00 - Why software can help you achieve impact at scale?
1:08:00 - "I wanted to learn about entrepreneurship and build something"
1:08:00 - What was my experience working as an engineer at a top startup?
1:11:00 - What do software engineers do?
1:17:52 - What are some important life lessons from my journey?
1:40:00 - Conclusion and Show Notes
Hillori's Work/Projects
Hillori on Linkedin - / hillori-desai-awasthi-...
Floworks Website - floworks.ai/
Microland Website - www.microland....
IIT Rourkee Website - www.iitr.ac.in/
Show Description
This is a show where we interview a diverse set of learners from the 21st century. Each guest profiled here has a unique story to share about how they acquired a set of valuable skills and knowledge in a creative and innovative manner.
#IITStudent #IndianInstituteOfTechnology #IITLife #IITRourkee #IITAlumni

[@hilloridesai7513]

Guys, if you are watching this, I need a little help. I want to start sharing more on social media platforms going forward. Would love to hear your ideas on what kind of content you might like to see from someone like me. Thanks in advance. 😊❤️

[@teachertuber]

Learned so much from you Hillori. Would love to see more content on some of these things
1) Interview and shorts with other IITIANS in India and around the world
2) Updates on research from the top IIT'S
3) Interviews with other software engineers in India
4) Day to day life of a software engineer in India (short clips)
5) Short videos about the history of IIT
6) Short explainers about concepts and terms related to software engineering.
Thanks again. I am excited to see more of your work on this platform Hillori!

[@hilloridesai7513]

@@teachertuberAmazing ideas! Thanks for sharing. Also, will be coming to you for tips on how to get started because you have some amazing presentation skills! 😅😊