IIFT GD-PI

IIFT GDPI

Tips by Aakash Maheshwari

Group Discussion

1. Dress formally. Suit is preferred. The appearance of GD room is like a Corporate Boardroom.

2. GD is held for 50 minutes so content is important. 15 to 16 people participate. Topics are based on current affairs. After the topic is given, 2 to 3 minutes are given for a review and then every participant has to speak for a minute.

Personal Interview

1. Questions are on current affairs related to your interest mentioned in the form.

2. Read the paper of that day. Questions are asked on the headlines.

3. Read a lot about WTO, NAFTA, Trade and FDI.

CPLC PI Form

CPLC PI FORM

Name:

Age:

Address:

Phone No.:

Email address:

Instructions:

Please do not be brief. You may please exceed the word limit if required.

You can write more than one option for one answer but ensure each option is more than or equals the word limit

Section 1: Educational Details

1.1 Mention in a table, all your exams, key subjects, university/school and marks achieved from class ten till now.

1.2 Mention in bullet points your academic achievements

1.3 Mention in bullet points any other achievements or courses you have done

1.4 From where have you got your calls and your score

1.5 Specialisation in Graduation ________________________________

1.6 Favourite subjects in Graduation ______________________________

1.7 If you would like to describe (optional) any projects undertaken as part of your graduate studies please describe each one of the projects in 50 words.

Section 2: Personal Details

2.1 Tell us when each of your 3 strengths has helped you achieve success and how? (3 essays of 200 words each)

2.2 Tell us when each of your 3 weaknesses has let you down and how? (3 essays of 200 words each)

2.3 Please recommend in 100 words any book to us. Please mention how the book impacted you personally and why others should read it

2.4 Please write 200 words about 3 things that you value most in your life and why?

2.5 In 200 words, give us your family background which must mention details of your immediate family, their educational qualifications and their professions. Add anything else, that you think is important

2.6 In 200 words, tell us who is your role model and why?

2.7 In 150 words tell us how would your best friend describe you?

2.8 In 50 words tell us how would you add value to our institute?

2.9 In 50 words or more, give us two reasons, why you should not be selected?

2.10 In 50 words or more, give us two reasons, why you should be selected?

2.11 Describe in 100 words each, two incidents which have most impacted India’s growth and why

2.12 In 100 words tell us how you spend your leisure time. (please do not mention more than 3 extra curricular activities or hobbies)

2.13 Describe one situation where you had to lead a group and you were successful (100 words) (college/work)

2.14 Are you interested in any social work/voluntary activity, which one and why and what do you personally do/contribute (100-200 words)

Section 3: Professional Details

3.1 Total number of years of Work-experience _____ years and _____ months

3.2 Details of your Work-Experience (in reverse chronological order)

1. Name of the company

Duration From __________ to __________ ( _____ months)

Designation

Job Profile in 20 to 30 words

2. Name of the company

Duration From __________ to __________ ( _____ months)

Designation

Job Profile in 20 to 30 words

3. Name of the company

Duration From __________ to __________ ( _____ months)

Designation

Job Profile in 20 to 30words

3.3 Describe your job profile and job responsibility at your current work place (100 words)

3.4 Describe one major achievement at work (100 words)

3.5 List down all your achievements at work in 20-30 words each apart from above

3.6 Describe one major failure at work (100 words)

3.7 If you were the CEO of your company, what would you list down as 3 challenges for the company?

3.8 Tell us in 100 words, why do you wish to pursue an MBA?

3.9 Tell us in 100 words, which specialization you wish to pursue and why?

Section 4: Additional Details

4.1 Please write your biographical sketch in about 300 words.

Symbiosis Group Activity Process

SIBM Pune process:

The total selection procedure lasts for quite some time. My allotted slot was 11 am. I was ushered in at 12 P.M, and I came out only past 8.30 P.M.

Sequential order of proceedings:

· There is a huge chaos at the registration desk most of the time. However, their system is well in place. For each day of GD-PI process and for each slot (There are 2 slots: morning and evening) there are 10 groups each, with 10-12 students per group. The group allotted to you stays till the end of the GD-PI process and every activity is to be done within the group.

· The groups A, B, C, D, E.... are allotted as per the code in the appointment letter for the 2^nd round of process, after one gets a call from SIBM Pune.

· All the groups are made to sit in a huge auditorium. Lunch, snacks and tea are usually provided as and when a group gets a break from a certain activity. The entire process is very well managed and exclusively taken care of by students.

· There are 3 core activities in the entire process:

1. Group Discussion

2. Group activity (management games)

3. Personal Interview

· None of these stages are elimination stages. All the activities are to be carried out by all candidates who have got a call.

· Any of the three activities can happen first, according to the slots allotted to the group you are in. There is no sequential order for these three activities.

· There is a split up of 120 marks for the process as follows:

GD: 30

PI: 40

Activity: 30

SNAP score weight age: 20

· GD:

The group discussion is a major setback for people who cannot enter at the right moments in a GD effectively. Usually, per GD, there are the 10-12 candidates from your allotted group. Time given to the GD varies, but is usually not more than 15 minutes. That makes 1.2 minutes per person on an average if everyone speaks. Most of the times, the GD is a fish market. For the last 3 years, GD has been a business case study type GD. On the basis of SIBM’s seniors’ experience and my own experience, here are a few tips:

1. Give statistics for whatever case study you get. They love them.

2. Entering and exiting the GD does not make a difference to your marks. They look for how well you logically analyse the case.

3. Give parallel examples from outside closely mirroring the case study.

· Group Activity:

This activity, on a personal note, really does not matter, as all people from your group are bound to perform equally. That is, equally brilliant, or equally horrible! Most of this activity is a part of luck. If your group is sensible, you will sail through. If it is not, you will have to score heavily in the GD and PI, because, individually, there is hardly any incentive you get. More so, your group is allotted the marks and your score is averaged out accordingly.

What all comprises group activity?

1. Management games like making your entire group stand on two bricks without breaking them and without your feet touching the ground; making a hut out of thin paper and loose plastic straws; making a body-pyramid by carrying people on your shoulders etc.

2. Very important to note here is that, even if it sounds clichéd, “The journey is more important than the destination” in group activities. In other words, the judges will not see whether a group has passed or failed. They will see the following:

ü Camaraderie

ü Approach to the exercise and task

ü Over-smartness, or aloofness displayed

ü How the group together tries to reach the goal

ü Most important: How well you take the INITIATIVE—when the panel asks “Who would take the risk of doing....?” Your hand should go up. Take the initiative.

3. Individual questions may be asked to people regarding the exercise. These are generally very stressful. Ample instances are known of judges humiliating people for not completing the allotted task. Keep your cool. This is a just a part of the evaluation and not personal comments. Give logical reasons for doing or not doing a particular thing. DO NOT blame ANY member of your group for the failure. “We as a group” should reflect EVERYWHERE.

· Personal Interview:

Much emphasis is on the answers you have written in the SIBM Form one has to fill within a stipulated time after one gets a call. The interview may last for a range of 5 minutes to 40 minutes, depending on what gets displayed in your interview. This is invariably a stress interview. Keep bringing positive aspects of your personality in the interview.

All in all, it is a very rigorous process. Kudos if you sail through!

SCMHRD Process:

· The most well managed of all processes across many esteemed campuses.

· Mostly similar to the SIBM process with A, B, C, D, E... etc groups.

· The differences however are:

1. Group Discussion:

The GD group consists of only 6 people as opposed to 12 in SIBM. Hence, the situation of chaos does not arise at all, and you normally do not have people pouncing on each other in the GD. The GD also has a case study type and never has SCMHRD being known to conduct topic based GD’s. The case study is given a good 40-45 minutes per group to ensure that everyone speaks. At the end, the group is supposed to come out with a valid decision. This aspect is very important. In SIBM, the panel might not expect that and score you only for your good points in the GD. The judge panel is so fair most of the times that people who have not spoken for a long time are being made to speak and encouraged. Panel consists of 3 people.

2. Group Activity:

There is no group activity. There is GD, PI and a short document verification process for your certificates and recognitions, as SCMHRD gives profile based calls. However, this is set to change, with Symbiosis scrapping individual institutes’ profile based calls this year.

3. Personal interview:

For those with work experience, it is more or less based on that. For a fresher, BEWARE, the interview is mostly on academics and whatever you have learnt up till the interview. They literally grill you on your academics. Be prepared on current affairs pertaining to your area of graduation. A lot of these were asked to me, as well as few of my other friends, the same year. The panel consists of 2 people mostly and both these are SCMHRD faculty.

Round up:

It is definitely a very relaxed process. The entire process gets done in less than three hours, including a lunch break, if you are slotted there. MOST IMPORTANTLY, YOU CAN CHOOSE YOUR OWN DAY and slot according to YOUR convenience. You cannot do this in SIBM. They allot slots randomly. The weight ages for individual processes are never declared. However I believe, this will change too, this year, owing to the changed system of Symbiosis University.

CONGRATULATIONS to all who got calls from SIBM and SCMHRD!

All the best for you process!

Tanmay Joshi

MMS 1

JBIMS

Written Ability Test of IIMs - A Glimpse

IIM A essay topics(2011-13 Batch):

1. India’s huge population is a big hindrance to its development

2. Networking is more important for success than acads

3. Collectivism is a myth

4. Something on the recently passed- Education Bill

5. Social Networking is a waste of time

6. Is business ethics contradictory to terms?"

7. One should not study the subject which lacks practical applications

8. India claims high literacy rate but India is actually illiterate( Something like that)

9. Diversity is not necessarily an indicator of Inclusiveness.

10. Information Communication and Technology has done little to bridge Digital Divide

Few pointers(My take):

· IIM A has a 10 minute essay(Thinking + writing)

· Topics given will not test pure general knowledge; basic knowledge about current issues is required though.

· Important is what opinion you have on the issue given as the topic

· Evaluation of all possible options!!!! Is a must

o Consider the topic: India’s huge population is a big hindrance to its development

§ Don’t get swayed by the tone of the topic, evaluate both aspects(here one can justify that he thinks, huge population is an advantage to India)

§ First figure out whether you agree/disagree with the topic

§ Next is to structure your thoughts:

· 1^st paragraph: what you think the topic conveys

· 2^nd para: For the topic(objective evaluation)

· 3^rd: Against(objective evaluation)

· 4^th: your stand and reason(Subjective is okay but not ‘too radical’)

· Each para’s first line must be what you want to say; remaining lines must be examples or support for the statement

· Use connectors to link the paras....however, moreover, etc

· No time for proof reading!!! (only 10 mins)

Any single statistics or any organization you write about be prepared with the background research....(eg: In the easy if you mention about the literacy rate(how the govt calculates it?) or NREGA(when, where did it start and any recent news?)

Study data about INDIAN ECONOMY well!!! Stats and industry scenario is very helpful in any topic!!!

Writing this in 10 minutes is very difficult but possible.

That was my topic and what I followed, so can you...

Ensure you practice at least 10 essays before your final day(allotting 10 mins time) and do get them checked by profs!!!

For other calls IIM L/B/K

· There is a lot of time, so think and structure your thoughts for the 1^st 3-5 minutes

· Follow the four paragraph rule but elaborate on each para

· Give three-four reasons/examples/arguments for each for and against the topic

· Proof reading is a must here!!!

· IIM B is very particular about grammar and spellings!!!

Other views that might be helpful:

a) So the essay topic was "Social Networking is a waste of time". Since 10 mins were too less it is important that you jog down all the points you have in mind. Arguments are required but don't make elaborate once. Realistically you will be able to write a max of 200 words. So plan you have a introduction, body and conclusion in these 200 words. One more important thing is write about the topic from the first word itself. My personal experience was that I was able to write about 4-5 points but did not have a conclusion. Though it worked for me, I strongly advise that you have a conclusion of about 30 words. For preparation, general awareness and current affairs will help. I did not have a lot of time on hand before my interview. So did not practice much. My only practice was during the TIME 2 day workshop. All the best for your preparation.

b) What is looked for?
• Subject knowledge
• Clarity of thought
• Flow of ideas
• Examples
• Facts
• Correct usage of grammar
• Correct usage of words
• A neat hand-writing

How should you write?
• Always write in paragraphs
• It’s not a natural but learned skill
• Different paragraphs express different ideas that contribute to the main idea
• A paragraph should ideally contain :
(i) Topic Sentence: it is the 1st sentence expressing the main idea of the paragraph- Say what you are going to say
(ii) Supporting Sentences: they expand the main idea expressed in the topic sentence- Say it
(iii) Concluding Sentence: rounding off what has been said or a logical conclusion of the idea in the topic sentence- Say it again!!!

How should you write?
• Follow a flow of paragraphs
• Always let the first paragraph be an introduction to the subject matter
• Expansion/ support/ refutation of the idea must follow in subsequent paragraphs
• The last paragraph must have a conclusion of the main idea
• There could be two forms of writing- Deductive and Inductive
• You should have good knowledge of the topic to write about
• Read the directions carefully
• Recognize action words- discuss, evaluate, argue, comment etc.
• Focus on the issue rather than peripheries
• Choose words with precise meanings; avoid ambiguity
• Do not use Jargon
• Do not use Slang
• Do not use Cliché
• Do not use Abbreviations
• Do not use Quotations without acknowledgments
• Make tentative statements; avoid definitive statements- it leaves a scope for further discussion

c) Read the topic carefully and determine what you have been asked to write.
Are you expected to present the pros and cons of a particular issue? Are you expected to present an analytical piece? Are you required to write an argumentative essay or come up with different prespectives vis-a-vis an abstract topic?
Once you have a clear picture, jot down the important points that occur to you

Now reorganise thoughts into the three-section format:

A terrific introduction:
Employ a quote, [only if it is relevant] or a generic observation pertaining to the topic at hand.

Supporting ideas:
This effectively is the body of the essay that is generally fleshed out over two or three small paragraphs. You can move from one paragraph to other by means of connectives such as 'Furthermore', 'Moreover' or 'To illustrate' etc. If you wish to present a deviation from the main line of thought or state an exception, you can use words like 'however', 'but' etc.
Examples will be the key to showcase your understanding of the topic. Provide those that are a function of your reading, observation or personal experience.
You must be politically correct and at the same time avoid wishy washy examples that do not stand scrutiny.

Conclusion:
Wrap up the essay with a fitting finale, using connectives such as ' In conclusion' , 'Hence' or 'Thus'. Otherwise, however well written the essay, it will hang and have an unfinished feel to it.

Tick the important checklist
A] Cogency and coherence: The essay should have a smooth flow of thought and maintain relevance at all times. Moving back and forth will have a stilted effect.
B] Sentence structure: The word choice and construction of sentences should be apt and concise. Certain principles of grammar and usage must be adhered to.
C] Proofreading: Spelling errors and slang are a strict no-no in a formal essay.

You might want to read up on:

European debt crisis

Draft telecom policy

Wikileaks,
* Internal Security - Naxal, saffron terror, Kashmir Autonomy, North-east, States Reorganisation (Telangana etc.)
* Right to Education, Foreign Education Bill, Autonomy - IITs/IIMs,issues with new IITs/IIMs, Ragging, Sex Education, Corporal punishment
* Census, UID - Aadhar, Public Distribution System (PDS)
* Tata Nano, Singur, Land Acquisition
* Arundhati Roy, Mamata Banerjee - West Bengal, Nitish Kumar - Bihar, Coalition politics
* Scams / Corruption - 2G, CWG, Adarsh, IPL, Karnataka, Jharkhand
* Climate change - science, politics & economics
* Female foeticide, Women reservation, Khap panchayats, Honour Killing, Gujjar reservation
* Reality TV shows, Item numbers, moral policing, censorship, freedom of expression, News channels, Cinema
* Public-private partnership, SEZ, Microfinance, Basel III, Corporate Social Responsibility, Philanthropy - azim premji, Buffett, Gates
* Cricket and state of other sports in India, IPL, Asian Games, CWG, World cup - cricket, hockey, FIFA, Olympics, Doping in Sports, Betting in Games
* Inflation, Unemployment, Recession, Outsourcing, economic disparity, HDI
* Social Media impact: socio-cultural, politico- economic, Telecom revolution: e/m-commerce, Mobile Number Portability
* Corporate Governance - Radia Tapes, housing, insurance scams, satyam
* Disaster Management: (BP, Mumbai) Oil spill, Floods, fire, terror attacks, earthquake, stampede, building collapse, air crash
* Air India, TATA, Birla, Ambanis, Mahindra, Hero Honda, Bharti
* Indo- US, EU, China, Pak, Russia, UN Security Council, ASEAN
* Financial Crisis - PIIGS
* Homosexuality, Live in Relationship, Capital Punishment, Domestic Violence, Euthanasia
* Judicial Activism, corruption in judiciary

*Reading on all these topics and other recent news is quite important but most important is

YOU HAVE IN DEPTH KNOWLEDGE OF EACH AND EVERY WORD ON OUR PI FORM!!!!

All the best !!!

Atin Jain

PGP 2011-13 | IIM Ahmedabad