First of all Congratulations to all of you for getting selected to appear in Group Discussion and Personal Interview for MBA/IMBA programme at the Business School, University of Kashmir. This is really a good job. But the difficulties doesn’t end here. Now, you have to face the harder part which, I have experienced, is a cut-throat competition. Last year, in 2010, after qualifying the entrance examination, I had a lot of questions to ask about how to prepare for the GD/PI. I asked number of friends that had already qualified for MBA but to be honest, the answers were diverse. I never got a clear cut answer. I don’t blame them as they had different experiences to share. Keeping this thing in mind, today I am going to share with you “How to Crack GD/PI at The Business School, University of Kashmir”.
First of all, whatever rank you may have in the entrance examination, FORGET IT. For the good ranker, It will create over-confidence and for the average ranker, it might block the way towards the success. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF-that is the key here.
The marks obtained in the entrance examination are reduced to 75. i.e., for example, if you have got 60 out of 200 in the entrance examination, it will be reduced to 60/200 * 75 = 22.5 . 15 marks are reserved for GD and 10 for PI.Last year, the topper obtained 36/75 in the written examination which summed up to 56/100 overall.
The faculty that will be moderating the group discussion are from outside universities. They are generally not from the Kashmir University, be it the group discussion or the Personal Interview. They are nice and calm people which are looking for basic three things in you:
- Your Personality ( Dressing, etc)
- Your Communication Skills
- How you dominate others.
Each Group Discussion comprises of 2-3 moderators or accesses and 10-12 candidates. The Group Discussion lasts for about an hour. Topics are randomly placed in a bowl and one of the candidate is allowed to choose the topic. The topics are generally social or political issues but they are free to put anything in that bowl. Once you know the topic, TRY TO INITIATE THE TOPIC. The topic Initiator certainly gets extra points but of course, there can be only one topic initiator. So, if you don’t get a chance, don’t worry. On the better side, you have got few extra minutes to recollect your points. Every topic has two aspects-either to go with it, or against it. You should be able to select which way you are going as soon as the topic strikes your mind. There is nothing like right and wrong side. But generally try to go with side which has less candidates as more points are distributed per candidate. You can rephrase other’s points but you need to be smarter than the panel, who of course are highly qualified.
Besides content, they also look for your personality and communication skills. You need to dress formally. Try to maintain eye contact with the panel and rest of the candidates. You Only get 5-7 minutes, so try to be precise. Help others in expressing their ideas. At the end of the GD, give your concluding statement but keep this thing in mind, in the whole process, NEVER CONTRADICT YOURSELF.
After GD, the Personal Interview is the downhill task. If you have done good in GD, it will give you extra confidence in PI. Try to greet the Interviewer as soon as you enter the room. If you are a guy, a handshake is preferred. The interviewer will again be from outside university or a General. The questions are generally personal and not academical but do expect questions about your graduate stream. An average person gets 7/10 in PI. Academic certificates are not required in the PI. The interviewer mostly asks about your hobbies. If you name a hobby or interest, be prepared to answer questions about it. e.g., if your hobby is reading books, the obvious questions would be
- Your favorite author?
- Your favorite book?
- Last book you read?
- Something about the author?
Try not to be extra smart in PI, believe me they are smarter. Try to end the PI on a good note and greet the interviewer before leaving. Reach home and don’t take the stress ;). Best of Luck. Hope to see you there.
If you liked this post, share the knowledge with your friends. In case of any questions/ queries, Contact me. I’ll be happy to help.
