Personal Essays, Personal Interview & Group Discussion

Group Discussions and Personal Interviews are typically used for Personality Assessment Stage, which is usually
the final evaluation stage for selection for most B-Schools across India. The weightage of the Personality
Assessment stage is almost equal to that of the Written/Online Aptitude Assessment stage such as CAT, XAT etc.

Personal Interviews and Personal Essays are closely inter-related and assess you in terms of clarity, consistency
and coherence of YOUR story. This story must come out with as much conviction in your essays as in the actual
interview. A significant part of the interview is conducted around the personal essays that most B-Schools ask
the candidates to write and submit. SOP (Statement of Purpose) is one such important essay. While some B-
Schools do not seek exhaustive Personal Essays, preparing your essays gives your preparation for the Personal
Interview a strong platform, from where you can withstand the scrutiny and cross-questioning that usually
happens during a Personal Interview. Your Personal Essays also help you identify specific areas where you need
to work upon, say, in terms of awareness. For example, if you belong to Patna it becomes an automatic point for
an interviewer to ask you a little bit about the history of education in Patna. Or if your hobby is reading books,
then questions such as your favourite author, his latest work etc. are the likely to come up in the Interview.

If Personal Interviews assess how clear, consistent and logical your story is, Group Discussions attempt to see
how you behave in a group. These try to assess how you think, structure your thoughts and communicate with
confidence and poise, on a given topic, as a part of a group. The group can be of any sixe between 5 and 15
candidates, and the time span may vary from 10 to 30 minutes. The simplest format of a Group Discussion is a
topic given to the group, and a few minutes given for you to think about that topic, before the actual Group
Discussion commences. The panel gauges a lot of things, including but not limited to, your confidence, content,
communication, presentation, poise, body language, group work, energy levels, ability to build upon
thoughts/ideas, and even listening skills.

The following pages contain Work Sheets for you to work your way through. Towards the end of the booklet,
you can see the Personal Interview Assessment Sheets and GD Tracker Sheets. These will be used during your
actual practice GDs and Interviews.

IMPORTANT
You would typically require atleast 2-3 iterations of improvement while working your way to true, consistent
and coherent Personal Essays. It is therefore strongly advised that you use a Pencil while working your way
through the booklet.

The actual use of this workbook is best understood during the ‘Initiation Session’ conducted by a GD-PI-PE
expert. Please contact your centre in-charge to know more about the same.

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 Personal Essays
(Getting Your Story)

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 Getting Started : Internal Fit

The questionnaire below has some very simple questions. Keep your answers simple, true and to-the-point
and write them within the space provided for each.

1. Where am I presently?

2. Why am I here?

3. Where do I want to be?

4. How do I want to get there?

5. Why do I want to get there and what am I ready to do and/or forgo to get there?

6. Three things I am passionate about:

1.
2.
3.

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7. What activities related to my passion have I been doing in the recent past?

8. My best experience in life is/was/has been:

9. The 3 areas where (or reasons why) I generally struggle to perform are(Be as specific as possible):
1.
2.
3.

10. The 3 most important things that I need to become my best (in an area I want to be the best in) are:
1.
2.
3.

11. This is what I want my obituary to read like:

12. I need to ask myself the following three questions to gain greater clarity about my goal right now:
1.
2.
3.

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13. I need to undertake the following three (SPECIFIC) activities to gain greater confidence in my
preparation for my goal (Also put in a time-line/frequency for undertaking those activities):
1.
2.
3.

14. What connection do I see between my passions, my source of happiness in the past, my goals and what I
finally want to be remembered as?

15. I commit myself to honestly explore and ruthlessly seek from myself better answers to all those
questions about the responses to which I am not entirely certain at this point in time.

Signed: ____________________

Date: _____________________

Place: _____________________

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 Convictions & Commitments

This questionnaire has 3 Sets – for your past, present and future respectively. Each set has 6 groups of
statements. From each group of statements, select one that you think best describes your conviction.

Set-1

What is it that you have valued so far in life? Answer the following from your experiences based only on your
past. Please choose only one option out of each set of four options given below:

A) A relaxed life with no time pressures

B) Only moderate time pressures
C) Time pressures brought the best out of me
D) If there was no time pressure, I felt my time was being wasted.

A) I was the happiest spending time with my family and friends

B) I liked visiting my close ones often
C) Once in a while, it was good to be with my family – that helped me relax
D) Family, friends, socialization etc. were a waste of time.

A) I was too busy with other things – studies, friends, hobbies. Somehow never thought about money.
B) Life occasionally reminded me of the importance of money
C) Money has been one of the variables on which I based my important decisions.
D) Decisions related to my studies, friends, passions all have had an important concern of money

A) I have had very strong passions since my childhood. They have influenced all my important decisions.
B) Often I found myself being motivated more by my passions than extrinsic factors
C) I have moderated my passions with my intellect.
D) I was a left-brainer – I based my decisions on careful thought rather than passions.

A) I hated repetitive work – I was most aroused by unusual, challenging work

B) Challenge and unpredictability gave me a high but I need sanity after a while!
C) I liked a balanced mix of structured (may be repetitive) and unstructured work.
D) I was at my best with tasks that require a high degree of efficiency within repetitive work.

A) Subjects like Social Sciences, Humanities bored the ghost out of me

B) I liked science and technical subjects much more as compared to social sciences
C) I was ok with social sciences and humanities as well as technical subjects
D) I loved History and Literature but had to study Science under different pressures

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Set-2

What is it that you value now in life? Answer this from your thoughts as of today. Please choose only one
option out of each set of four options given below:

E) A relaxed life with no time pressures

F) Only moderate time pressures
G) Time pressures, as they bring the best out of me
H) If there is no time pressure, I feel my time is being wasted.

E) I am the happiest spending time with my family and friends

F) I like visiting my close ones often
G) Once in a while, its good to be with my family – that helps me relax
H) Family, friends, socialization etc. is a waste of time.

E) I am too occupied with studies, friends, and hobbies. Somehow never think about money.
F) Life occasionally reminds me of the importance of money
G) Money has been one of the variables on which I am basing my important decisions.
H) Decisions related to my studies, friends, passions all have an important concern of money

E) I can say that my passions are influencing all my important decisions.

F) Today I find myself motivated more by my passions than extrinsic factors
G) I have moderated my passions with my intellect.
H) I have developed into a left-brainer- I base my decisions on careful thought rather than passions.

E) I hate repetitive work – I am most aroused by unusual, challenging work

F) Challenge and unpredictability give me a high but I need sanity after a while!
G) I like a balanced mix of structured (may be repetitive) and unstructured work.
H) I am at my best with tasks that require a high degree of efficiency within repetitive work.

E) I hate novels, fiction, and literature of any kind. Glad that I got rid of History as a subject.
F) Once in a while I like studying about the society around me.
G) I have broadened my knowledge base even in non-technical areas.
H) Last few years gave me ample opportunity to read from all around the world in all different areas.

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Set-3

What is it that life after an MBA degree would comprise? Please choose only one option out of each set of four
options given below:

I) A relaxed life with no time pressures

J) Only moderate time pressures
K) Lots of time pressures that would bring the best out of me
L) So much time pressure that I would actually crave for free time

I) I would have a lot of happy time with my family and friends

J) I would be able to visit my close ones often
K) To relax, I would visit my family once in a while.
L) Family, friends, socialization etc. would be a waste of time.

I) I would too busy with other things – studies, friends, realising my vision. Money won’t be important.
J) Life would occasionally remind me of the importance of money
K) Money will be one of the important variables on which I will base my important decisions.
L) All my important decisions will be based on the concern of money and money alone.

I) My strong passions that I have carried since my childhood will dictate all my decisions.
J) Often I will find myself being motivated more by my passions than extrinsic factors
K) I will need to moderate my passions with my intellect.
L) I will turn a left-brainer, if I am not one already- and will base my decisions on careful thought rather
than passions.

I) I am most aroused by unusual, challenging work and that’s what I will do round the clock
J) The work will involve challenge and unpredictability but I will need sanity after a while!
K) I will have a balanced mix of structured (may be repetitive) and unstructured work.
L) I will like it as I am at my best with tasks that require a high degree of efficiency within repetitive work.

I) I hated anything but numbers and science and that’s the work I will do.
J) My work will sometimes require an awareness of my surroundings.
K) My work will be a good mix of objectivity and subjectivity.
L) I am thrilled that I finally will get to do some non-technical work, which would allow me to use my right
brain more often

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Scoring Key:

For the sequentially corresponding responses from each set, resonant combinations such as A-E-I, B-F-J, C-G-K or D-H-L should get a score
of zero. Treating the response to the first set as the base, any deviation from the above mentioned combinations amounts to dissonance.
For example, A-F-L will amount to 4 marks. All such marks add up to a final score.

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 Discovering ‘your’ Purpose

Think through before beginning to write down YOUR responses to the following questions. Avoid over-writing
or exceeding the space provide for each response.

1. What is it that you can work for, for 12 hours a day for the next 25-30 years of your life?

2. What could be that line of work where you may compromise your family and health issues on a short-
term basis? Which sort of challenges and extrinsic rewards would enable you make a choice in favour of
work rather than family and health? (Note: You are not allowed to answer that you will never make such
compromises.)

3. What is you view on working in corporate sector vis-à-vis lines of work in social sector viz. education,
health, helping underprivileged etc?

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4. Do you think that work in the corporate sector is inferior to that of social sector? Justify your answer.

5. Write down four reasons as to why more money (a disposable income of more than Rs.30000 per month
after taking care of educational loan and house rent etc) is important in your life.

6. What is more important to you: money, fame, internal satisfaction or just being different? Why?

7. Given your responses to the above questions, how does a degree in business administration help in
materializing the above responses?

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8. If you are unable to answer the Question No. 7, list down three most crucial reasons for choosing an
MBA over your passion or whatever else is significant and available as an alternative to you today.

9. What are you proud of (about yourself) except for academic achievements and status of family? How
the pride would be enhanced by an MBA, assuming that things you are proud of are influenced by your
future education i.e. an MBA?

10. Is getting into a prestigious business school an emotional decision or a logical one? Specify the reasons
for stating so.

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11. Write what we call a “future memory” article. This is an article about YOU, in a magazine you respect, in
a field of your interest, written as if it were five year from now. The article describes events occurring
between today and five years from now. Here are the guidelines:

Describe a moment celebrating something important you’ve accomplished, five years from now, in an
area important to you.
Write with rich detail about the future. Visualize what’s happening.
Note key decisions five years ago (today) that made the success possible for YOU.
Report what the subject of the article, YOU, imagine doing for the next five years.
Don’t worry about the quality of the prose; get the story down and vividly.

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12. Go through your responses to all the earlier questions and re-work them unless you are sure that they
are coherent and consistent with your aspirations, beliefs and your understanding of yourself and your
personal and professional goals. Once you have ensured this, write a short essay on yourself in the space
provided below. Do not use additional sheets for your essay. You may wish to talk about your
background, significant events, accomplishments, experience at your workplace, extracurricular
activities, relationships with friends and family, career plans and how the Post Graduate Programme in
Management from a leading B-School fits into your dreams and ambitions. Please make sure that your
essay forms a coherent whole.

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 Management fit (Skills and Aspirations)

Directions: Answer each of the following questions as briefly as possible. You may use some of the options
from the indicative lists at the end of each question/question-set intended for assisting you in the process.
Please note that the list is only indicative and not meant to be exhaustive. You may include any other options
as a part/whole of your answer to any of/all the questions.

Set-1

1. What according to you are the three most important qualities required to succeed in life (in order of
importance)? Please use your own definition/understanding of success for the same.
a. ___________________________________
b. ___________________________________
c. ___________________________________

2. What according to you are the three most important qualities required to succeed as a manager working
in a conventional corporate job (in order of importance)?
a. ___________________________________
b. ___________________________________
c. ___________________________________

3. What according to you are the three most important qualities required to succeed as an entrepreneur
(in order of importance)?
a. ___________________________________
b. ___________________________________
c. ___________________________________

4. What according to you are the three most important qualities required to succeed for a person working
in the social sector, say an NGO (in order of importance)?
a. ___________________________________
b. ___________________________________
c. ___________________________________

(Determination, Ability to work hard, Communication skills, Organizational skills, Teamwork, Leadership,
Analytical ability, Vision, Discipline, Punctuality, Ability to multi-task, Command over his field, Ability to
delegate tasks, General Awareness, Understanding, Risk-taking ability, Focus, Self-motivation,
Perseverance, Awareness of immediate environment, Compassion, Passion, Ability to handle pressure)

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Set-2

4. What are the three most important things that you expect out of the 2 years that you would spend at an
IIM/B-School?
a. ______________________________________________________________________
b. ______________________________________________________________________
c. ______________________________________________________________________

(Knowledge of a specific discipline, Knowledge of various business streams, Fun, Exposure to real-life
case-studies, Better understanding of your goals, Better understanding of the means to realize your
goals, Increase in confidence, Making (girl/boy)friends for life, Developing contacts for future use,
Platform to display your strengths, Platform to work on your weaknesses, Chance to improve
communication skills, Chance to improve presentation skills, Chance to work in various teams,
Discovering your passion, Exposure to pressure situations etc.)

5. What are the three most important things that you expect at the end of the 2 years that you would
spend at an IIM/B-School?
a. ______________________________________________________________________
b. ______________________________________________________________________
c. ______________________________________________________________________

(Being master of a specific discipline, Having a knowledge of various business streams, A monetarily
rewarding career in a company, A meaningful corporate job, Being ready to start your own venture,
Being ready to contribute to the society/cause close to your heart, Being ready to tackle real-life
business problems, Being closer to understanding your goals, Being better equipped with the means to
pursue your goals, Increased confidence, (Girl/boy)friends for life, Contacts for future use, Stronger
strengths, Weaker weaknesses, Improved communication skills, Improved presentation skills, Improved
team-skills, Passion, Ability to handle pressure etc.)

6. What are the three most important things that you expect to have (with respect to your professional
career path) 5 years from now?
a. ______________________________________________________________________
b. ______________________________________________________________________
c. ______________________________________________________________________

(Being master of a specific discipline, Having a knowledge of various business streams, A monetarily
rewarding career in a company/ a healthy bank balance, A meaningful corporate job, Being ready to
start your own venture, Being ready to contribute to the society/cause close to your heart, Being ready
to tackle real-life business problems, Better closer to understanding your goals, Being better equipped
with the means to pursue your goals, Supreme confidence, The same (Girl/boy)friends for life, Lots of
influential contacts, Stronger strengths, Weaker weaknesses, Impressive communication skills, Mind-
blowing presentation skills, Great team-skills, Ability to handle pressure etc.)

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Set-3
7. What are your three most important qualities/strengths (in order of importance to you)?
a. ___________________________________
b. ___________________________________
c. ___________________________________
(Determination, Ability to work hard, Communication skills, Organizational skills, Teamwork, Leadership,
Analytical ability, Vision, Discipline, Punctuality, Ability to multi-task, Command over your field/subject,
Ability to delegate tasks, General Awareness, Understanding, Risk-taking ability, Focus, Self-motivation,
Perseverance, Awareness of immediate environment, Compassion, Passion, Ability to handle pressure)

8. What according to you are your three most significant weaknesses (in order of importance to you)?
a. ___________________________________
b. ___________________________________
c. ___________________________________
(Lack of Determination, Inability to work hard, Poor Communication skills, Poor Organizational skills,
Lack of teamskills, Lack of leadership qualities, Poor Analytical ability, Lack of direction/vision,
Indiscipline, Lack of punctuality, Inability to multi-task, Lack of command over your field/subject,
Inability to delegate tasks, Poor General Awareness, Lack of Understanding towards others, Inability to
take risks, Lack of focus, Lack of self-motivation, Lack of perseverance, Poor awareness of immediate
environment, Lack of compassion, Lack of passion, Inability to handle pressure)

9. What according to you are your three most important qualities/strengths (in order of importance with
respect to a managerial career)?
a. ___________________________________
b. ___________________________________
c. ___________________________________
(Determination, Ability to work hard, Communication skills, Organizational skills, Teamwork, Leadership,
Analytical ability, Vision, Discipline, Punctuality, Ability to multi-task, Command over his field, Ability to
delegate tasks, General Awareness, Understanding, Risk-taking ability, Focus, Self-motivation,
Perseverance, Awareness of immediate environment, Compassion, Passion, Ability to handle pressure)
10. What are your three most significant weaknesses (in order of importance w.r.t. a managerial career)?
a. ___________________________________
b. ___________________________________
c. ___________________________________
(Lack of Determination, Inability to work hard, Poor Communication skills, Poor Organizational skills,
Lack of teamskills, Lack of leadership qualities, Poor Analytical ability, Lack of direction/vision,
Indiscipline, Lack of punctuality, Inability to multi-task, Lack of command over your field/subject,
Inability to delegate tasks, Poor General Awareness, Lack of Understanding towards others, Inability to
take risks, Lack of focus, Lack of self-motivation, Lack of perseverance, Poor awareness of immediate
environment, Lack of compassion)

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Set-4
Please re-visit your responses to all the previous questions, before answering the following questions. Arrive
at a rating for yourself for each of the questions on the basis of your responses to the previous questions.

11. How would you rate yourself as being fit (having the qualities) for pursuing management education?
a. 1 – Extremely unfit
b. 2 – Somewhat unfit
c. 3 – Suited
d. 4 – Made for it!

12. How would you rate yourself as being fit (having the qualities) for pursuing a management career
(corporate/entrepreneurial/any other)?
a. 1 – Extremely unfit
b. 2 – Somewhat unfit
c. 3 – Suited
d. 4 – Made for it!

13. In terms of value addition in areas that you consider important personally, how would you rate the
relevance of management education/career?
a. 1 – Extremely irrelevant
b. 2 – Not really relevant
c. 3 – Somewhat relevant
d. 4 – Extremely relevant

14. In terms of value addition in areas that you consider important professionally, how would you rate the
relevance of management education/career?
a. 1 – Extremely irrelevant
b. 2 – Not really relevant
c. 3 – Somewhat relevant
d. 4 – Extremely relevant

15. In terms of realising what you want to accomplish in life, an MBA would probably
a. 1 – Decrease your chances of achieving it
b. 2 – Have no impact on your chances of achieving it
c. 3 – Increase your chances of achieving it marginally
d. 4 – Increase your chances of achieving it significantly

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 Interview face-off

Distribute 20 points each among the options to each of the questions. The points you accord to an option must
be proportional to the importance you attach to it. An option may attract 0-10 points.

1. What are the feelings that the thought of a B-school interview evokes in you?
A] Apprehension
B] Confusion
C] Confidence
D] Achievement
E] Eagerness

2. What do you think the interview will revolve around?

A] You
B] The IIM/B-school for which you are being interviewed
C] Economics/Current Affairs
D] Your educational background/Work-experience
E] What you don’t know

3. What are your fears with respect to an IIM/B-school interview?

A] That you would not know the answer to some questions
B] That you would not know the answer to most questions
C] That you would wrongly answer some simple questions
D] That you will not be able to communicate your fit/ability to the panel adequately
E] That you will simply have a very bad day

4. What are the reasons for your apprehension, if any?

A] You cannot afford to fail at it – the stakes are too high
B] Your reputation amongst your peers will take a beating
C] Interviews are not your cup of tea
D] You have worked so hard, and this is the final step
E] Who knows whether there will be another chance

5. How do you view the entire interview process with respect to your goal of making it to an IIM/B-school?
A] As a hurdle
B] As a challenge
C] As an opportunity
D] As an elimination stage/process
E] As a preview of things to come

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6. Keeping in mind your alternative career options, what do you think you will miss out on if you fail to
convert your interview call?
A] Two years of fun-filled campus life
B] A great chance for a money-spinning career
C] Management education at the best management institute
D] One year till the next CAT/MBA entrance exams
E] A chance to impress your peers/family once again

7. What would you want the interview to revolve around?

A] You
B] The IIM/B-school for which you are being interviewed
C] Economics/Current Affairs
D] Your educational background/Work-experience
E] What you don’t know

8. How much thought have you given to your decision of choosing to pursue a career in management?
A] I have really thought a lot about it
B] Since the last few months, I have given it a fair thought
C] I am mainly relying upon the advice of my near-ones
D] Not much
E] Just a little bit till now

9. You want to pursue an MBA because

A] It is such a sought-after field/ You will have to do it sooner or later
B] It fits in really well with your abilities and aspirations
C] You want to ensure great financial security and flexibility for yourself
D] You really like the idea of management education – a holistic understanding of business
E] You want to be at the helm of a company sometime in the future

10. Think of the biggest loss you have faced / may face at some point in your life (say losing someone close
to you) and rate it as 10. Now, in relative terms, what would a failure at an IIM/B-school interview mean
to you? (Mark only one option)
A] ≤1
B] 2-3
C] 4-5
D] 6-8
E] >8

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Scoring Key:
To calculate the score in a question, add the modulus (positive value of the difference) of weight assigned by you and the weight given (in the table
corresponding to that option) for all the options. For example if you have assigned weights 5, 4, 7, 3 and 1 to options A, B, C, D and E respectively in
question-1, your score for question-1 would be: |5 – 4| + |4 - 1| + |7 - 6| + |3 - 4| + |1 - 5| = 1 + 3 + 1 + 1 + 4 = 10
Weights Score

Q.No. A B C D E Score
1 4 1 6 4 5
2 7 2 4 5 2
3 7 3 6 3 1
4 3 2 5 6 4
5 4 5 6 3 2
6 5 3 6 4 2
7 6 5 4 4 1
8 7 6 2 1 4
9 2 6 4 5 3

For Q. 10, score yourself as: A- 0, B- 2, C- 5, D-7, E- 11

The final score is to be calculated by adding up the scores for each of the questions.

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 Personal Interview
(Forms & Feedback)

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 Interview-1

Directions
1. This form shall only be used as a guide to structure the first interview so that it
may help identify areas that may require improvement.
2. There are no right or wrong answers for the questions in the Career Goals and
Personal Interests section, as each individual’s personality and career goals
may be different from others.
3. The Personal Skills Assessment section is to help us gauge your understanding
of your strengths and weaknesses and compare the same with the panel's
assessment.

Name:

Institute*: IIMA/ IIMB/ IIMC/ IIML/ IIMI/ IIMK/ XLRI/ FMS/ MDI/ SPJ / IIFT / Others ( )
(Tick whichever is applicable) (Please specify)

*The Institute preference (if applicable) is only for the purpose of structuring the interview accordingly.

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 CAREER GOALS AND PERSONAL INTERESTS - 1

Answer the following questions. Try to limit the answers to space provided for each.

1. How would you describe yourself?

2. What are your short-term and long-term career plans?

3. Describe a situation in which you displayed leadership qualities.

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3. What value or quality in you do you hold most dear and why?

4. Besides management education what would interest you most as a career or further education?

5. What are your hobbies and/or interests?

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 PERSONAL SKILLS ASSESSMENT FORM
The following table is meant to gauge your assessment of yourself in the parameters given below. Each
parameter is on a scale of 4 levels. The description of each level for each parameter is also given. Please choose
the appropriate level for each parameter by placing a tick mark in the relevant box.

Parameter Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4

Very poor; not Poor; under confident; Good; confident; Very good; very
confident; low energy; low energy; able to displays good energy; confident; high energy;
unable to articulate articulate views but able to articulate views able to clearly articulate
views; unable to defend unable to defend points easily; able to defend views and defend points
points of view in the of view in face of some points of view in of view in the face of
Interview skills face of questioning; questioning; displays the face of questioning; questioning; excellent
poor eye contact; visibly slight nervousness and good eye contact; eye contact; relaxed but
uncomfortable body uncomfortable body comfortable body professional body
language (clearly language; able to language but shows language
displays nervousness) maintain eye contact some signs of anxiety/
for short duration nervousness
Very poor; low energy; Poor; low energy; under Good; high energy; Very good; high energy;
not confident; unable to confident; able to confident; able to able to clearly articulate
articulate views; unable articulate views but articulate views easily; views and defend points
to defend point of view unable to defend points able to defend some of view in the face of
in face of opposition; of view in face of points of view in the opposition; allows others
unable to synthesize opposition; able to face of opposition; able to put forth points while
Group own and other’s synthesize some of own to synthesize most of being in control of the
Discussion skills thoughts; visibly and other’s views; own and other’s points discussion; able to
uncomfortable body displays slight of view; comfortable synthesize own and
language; gets agitated nervousness and body language but other’s thoughts; relaxed
in the face of opposition uncomfortable body shows some signs of body language and
language anxiety; does not demeanor
control the flow of the
discussion
Very poor; not Poor; has knowledge of Good; has knowledge of Very good; displays
knowledgeable of basics basics of business; able basics of business; able knowledge of current
of business; unable to to relate to some major to relate to most major affairs and business
General current
relate to recent major national and national and events; able to relate
affairs
national or international international events; international events; various national and
awareness
events; does not have has point of view of has point of view of international events to
point of view on even some current affairs most current affairs form definite point of
basic current affairs view
Very poor; poor/ no Poor; some thin Good; somewhat clear Very good; has strong
rationale for doing rationale for doing rationale for doing reasons for doing MBA;
MBA; has not MBA; has very lightly MBA; has actively and fully aware of benefits
Clarity of
considered other considered other considered other and challenges of doing
purpose for
options; displays “herd options; aware of some options; aware of an MBA
doing an MBA
mentality”; not aware of the benefits/ benefits/ challenges of
of challenges of doing challenges of doing an doing an MBA
an MBA MBA

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 To be filled in by the Interviewer/Mentor After the Interview

1. This form is meant to assist the interviewer in assessing/summarizing the interviewee's responses.
2. The ratings for the parameters that are not assessed are to be left blank.
Parameter Rating (Scale = 5) Remarks
Confidence
a) Body Language
b) Eye Contact
c) Energy
d) Etiquette
e) Under Stress
Communication
a) Command over language
b) Clarity of expression
c) Written Communication
Academics
a) Consistency
b) Knowledge / Sincerity
Knowledge
a) General/Business Awareness
b) Knowledge to form opinion
c) Interest specific
Analytical Ability

a) Structured Approach
b) Lateral Approach

Why MBA?

a) Clarity of Purpose & Goals

b) Strengths & Weaknesses
c) Institute Knowledge/interest

Overall Assessment

Takeaway:

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 Interview-2

Directions
1. This form shall only be used as a guide to structure the first interview so that it
may help identify areas that may require improvement.
2. There are no right or wrong answers for the questions in the Career Goals and
Personal Interests section, as each individual’s personality and career goals
may be different from others.

Name:

Institute*: IIMA/ IIMB/ IIMC/ IIML/ IIMI/ IIMK/ XLRI/ FMS/ MDI/ SPJ / IIFT / Others ( )
(tick whichever is applicable) (Please specify)

*The Institute preference (if applicable) is only for the purpose of structuring the interview accordingly.

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 CAREER GOALS AND PERSONAL INTERESTS - 2

Answer the following questions. Limit the answers to space provided for each.

1. Why do you want to do an MBA?

2. What accomplishment has given you the greatest satisfaction in life?

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3. How have your hobbies helped you evolve as a person?

4. Give an example of a situation where you came up with a creative solution to a problem.

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5. Give an example of a situation wherein you made a bad decision.

6. Tell us something about yourself that sets you apart from others with a similar educational background.

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 To be filled in by the Interviewer/Mentor After the Interview

1. This form is meant to assist the interviewer in assessing/summarizing the interviewee's responses.
2. The ratings for the parameters that are not assessed are to be left blank.
Parameter Rating (Scale = 5) Remarks
Confidence
a) Body Language
b) Eye Contact
c) Energy
d) Etiquette
e) Under Stress
Communication
a) Command over language
b) Clarity of expression
c) Written Communication
Academics
a) Consistency
b) Knowledge / Sincerity
Knowledge
a) General/Business Awareness
b) Knowledge to form opinion
c) Interest specific
Analytical Ability

a) Structured Approach
b) Lateral Approach

Why MBA?

a) Clarity of Purpose & Goals

b) Strengths & Weaknesses
c) Institute Knowledge/interest

Overall Assessment

Takeaway:

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 Group Discussion
(Do’s & Don’ts,
Performance Tracker)

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What is a GD?

Group Discussion (GD) is an activity, wherein 8-12 people form a group, and are given a topic to discuss/situation
to analyze and reason. Normal duration of a GD ranges between 15-20 minutes. Usually, the participants are
given a preparation time of 2-5 minutes but there are also instances when one will be required to speak
impromptu.

When and why is the GD conducted as part of the selection process?

Group Discussion is usually the second round of selection process at both academic institutions of higher studies
and corporates during hiring process. The group discussion for the top B-Schools are held after the written
entrance exams (such as CAT) and usually held from the last week of February up till April.

While the written exam is usually the elimination process, the group discussion is used as a selection process
because it seeks to evaluate specific characteristic / personality traits, just as the written part of the exam helps
to establish conceptual and academic knowledge.

B-schools and corporates expect to make Managers out of students and young executives respectively. A GD is
an important tool used to ascertain a person’s ability to be a part of, contribute and lead a team, as it is
prerequisite quality for a Manager to be a team player in the beginning of the career mostly as a team member
and later on in the role of a team leader. If an aspirant for MBA lacks these basic skills, in all probability, he/she
would not go on to make a good manager in the future.

There are other skills that are tested through the GD apart from the team skills. These are
 Communication skills
 Leadership
 Ability to reason and be objective & open
 Listening
 Confidence
 Initiative and any other specific skills that are required by the institute/organization

How do you benefit from practicing for GDs?

A GD is conducted to establish one or more of the above mentioned skills. Outside the purview of the selection
process, students gain a lot by practicing GD:

 It helps to learn and improve your understanding of a subject with clarity and objectivity.
 It enhances the ability to logically reason and think critically about any topic, situation or problem.
 Helps to establish the differences between debating and discussing a topic, as we tend to speak for and
against the given topic rather than discuss it meaningfully.
 It gives insights into a group/ collective decision making process.
 It helps to improve listening skills and ability to relate and understand others’ ideas.
 Results in improved personality, level of confidence and positive attitude / objective outlook.

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 Do’s of Group Discussions

 Utilize the time effectively to understand the overall meaning of the topic – Have an
open mind. This will help you to bring in those points that are not likely to be raised by
others.
 Organize and structure your thoughts before speaking – i.e. Opening the GD or while
summarizing it.
 Maintain eye contact with the group in general and with the individual when he/she is
speaking.
 Address the group in general; avoid over-communicating with or referring to specific
individuals
 Use short sentences to convey the essence of your points – i.e. – speak with depth

 Add quality of thought to the discussion by bringing in unique points, so that the group
would be more likely to add to the thought initiated by you
 Listen carefully – this will help in summarizing the GD incase you are asked to and also to
build your thoughts
 Be assertive and constructive while conveying your thoughts – you can agree to disagree
with a member of the group in a positive manner.
 Control your weaknesses – e.g. difficult vocabulary, speaking about points that you
cannot substantiate or defend.
 Manage the way you look, speak and conduct – Etiquettes.
 Use the right (rare ) moments when the more vocal members pause to bring in your
point.
 When you think you have made quality contribution, consider limiting your presence by
just being there – a nod while listening, agreeing with a member of the group etc.
 Use ‘we’ or ‘the group’ or ‘most of us/all of us/some of us’ – remember it’s a group
discussion and you are part of the group
 Summarize or conclude on the points contributed by the group in the discussion – what
is final result of the GD – e.g. Did the group arrive at a consensus or conclusion or
whether the group was divided.

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 Don’ts of Group Discussions

 Do not just think from one angle of thought and bring only obvious facts or ideas to the
discussion.
 Do not speak your thoughts in disjoint phrases. Avoid stutters and stammers.
 Do not look at your notes while speaking or when others are speaking. Stay involved even when
you are not speaking.
 Avoid having dialogues or conversation with specific individuals within the group
 Do not use long-winding sentences to convey your points.
 Avoid citing examples of points raised by others or repeat your own points – remember time is
limited – quantity does not fetch extra points.
 Don’t be so pre-occupied with your own contribution that you ignore the points made by others.

 Do not be aggressive* or use negative tone of speech – e.g. use of words/phrases like ‘but’ or
‘this point is not important’ or ‘I disagree with this point’.
 Do not lose control or become nervous – some GD topics can lead to heated discussion or some
topics may be very vague. Avoid attracting negative attention.
 Avoid aggressive body language – make sure you do not occupy the space of other participants
and also while making hand movements avoid having pen or pencil in the hand that point to
others.

 Do not moderate / cut others in between unnecessarily.

 Do not concentrate on the quantity of contribution and land up contradicting your own points
made earlier.
 Avoid using ‘I’ or ‘he/she’, ‘they’
 Do not bring in new points in the summary or conclusion
 Do not initiate/summarize on your own unless you can do an excellent job of it

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 GD Tracker Sheet

This sheet is to be maintained by you throughout the program and it may be referred to by your
mentors periodically to help you improve more efficiently. The feedback given by the faculty/mentor
during each session must be noted carefully for future reference.

GD No. GD Topic & Date Feedback Faculty Name

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 GD No. GD Topic & Date Feedback Faculty Name

10

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 GD No. GD Topic & Date Feedback Faculty Name

11

12

13

14

15

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 GD No. GD Topic & Date Feedback Faculty Name

16

17

18

19

20

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