41st BCS Viva Experience
Choice: Foreign, Admin, Customs
Board : Mubina Ma’am
Serial on board: 3rd
Subject: Mechanical Engineer, MBA
N.B: The whole conversation was in English.
Me: Assalamualaikum, may I come in ma’am?
Ma’am: Yes, come in (With a smile sharper than a shark’s teeth). Please have a seat. Are you feeling fine? (As I was coughing)
Me: Sorry ma’am, I have a cold sore.
Ma’am: Oh, it’s okay then. Okay Shahadat, what’s your first choice?
Me: Replied
Ma’am: Nowadays, there’s a lot of discussion going on regarding the ‘Blue Economy’. Can you explain it to me?
Me: Replied (Explained what the blue economy is, its prospects from both global and local perspectives, and the maritime disputes Bangladesh has won, backed by relevant data)
Ma’am: Which unit have you mentioned for the sea territory Bangladesh won from India and Myanmar?
Me: Square kilometers.
Ma’am: Are you sure about that?
Me: Yes, ma’am.
Ma’am: Okay. As you mentioned the ecological balance on the seashore, why are we expanding ship breaking in those areas? Shouldn’t we ban ship breaking on seashores?
Me: No, ma’am. I explained this with Bangladesh’s performance, proper rankings, future potentials, and added the 3R policy for proper disposal management along with social awareness programs.
External-01: What do you understand by Ecological footprint?
Me: Sorry, sir! I have heard the term, but I can’t recall it now. (As I was a bit confused, I didn’t want to beat around the bush)
External-01: Shahadat, what do you understand about the term we frequently use, ‘Geopolitics’?
Me: Explained with examples. (Not the academic one)
External-01: What’s our foreign policy?
Me: Answered
Ma’am: Don’t you think it’s a weakness that we are not picking any side, acting between the two blocks?
Me: No, ma’am. I explained this with the socioeconomic success and growth Bangladesh has been enjoying compared to neighboring countries that have chosen sides of the two major blocks and have failed terribly. If our foreign policy was not well designed, we wouldn’t have been able to achieve this significant success. (Added several major indices of our continuous socioeconomic growth)
External-01: Can you deliver a speech at the UN as a Bangladeshi representative, to represent Bangladesh as a rising power?
Me: May I please stand up, sir?
External-01: Sure.
Me: I was well prepared for this question. Fastening the first button of my suit, I delivered a confident speech by maintaining proper eye contact and smiling until they asked me to take a seat. (Around 2 to 3 minutes)
Ma’am: Please take your seat.
External-02: Can you explain SMART Bangladesh?
Me: Answered
External-02: What do you understand by ETP? Have you ever heard this term before?
Me: Yes, sir. Explained its functionalities.
External-02: Do you know what it looks like?
Me: No, sir. I have never seen one.
External-02: Can you explain the term PESTEL and its uses? (As I have completed an MBA as well, so it was form that part of my syllabus)
Me: Answered.
Ma’am: Thank you Shahadat, you can go now.
Me: Thank you, ma’am, thank you, sir. Assalamualaikum.
Best of luck!
Shahadat Hossain,
Mechanical Engineering-12, CUET.
Recommended as Assistant Secretary (Foreign Affairs).