A QUICK GUIDE TO

GD-PI-WAT
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A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

CONTENTS
Introduction3
Group Discussion (GD)

Personal Interview (PI)

Written Ability Test (WAT)

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A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

INTRODUCTION

fter fetching high percentiles in the Common

Admission Test or other MBA entrance exams,
you are only half way through towards your
endeavor to get admission in one of your
dream B-schools. While you display your computing,
analytical and logical skills in the MBA entrance tests,
your soft skills are tested in the next rounds of the IIM
s or B-schools selection process, namely Written Ability Test (WAT), Group Discussion (GD) and Personal
Interview (PI).

the communication, writing and personal skills of

the shortlisted candidates. Hence, you need to
prepare for all the sections separately as the selection process will start from the month of February.
This E-book by Careers360 is a complete
guide on how to crack the GD-PI-WAT stage of
the admission process. It has topics for GD and
WAT, tips from experts and toppers, and strategies you must follow for each of the criteria, to
let you take a step closer towards your success.

B-schools conduct GD-PI-WAT process, to test

A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

GROUP DISCUSSION (GD)

-schools conduct Group Discussion, commonly known as GD, to test the communication skills of the shortlisted candidates.
Though Group Discussion has been replaced
by WAT in several B-schools including many IIMs,
there are still many management institutes which conduct GD rounds to test the communication skills of the
shortlisted candidates. Hence, along with WAT and PI,
you need to prepare for GD as well.

the CAT, MBA aspirants should start preparing for

the second stage of selection. It is very important
not to waste time and energy on thinking about your
performance in the CAT and how you might have
approached particular problems differently. That is
a thing of the past and you cannot change it.
Careers360 brings you Group Discussion
tips from CAT toppers who qualified for admissions in top B-schools like IIMs and MDI.

As soon as you get your results which enable you

to get shortlisted at your desired B-schools, you
should shift your focus immediately on the preparation for WAT, GD and PI. Vinayak Kudva, Head, PG
India & Mumbai Region, IMS says, Immediately after

What GD is meant for?

Group Discussion, according to Vinayak Kudva,
evaluates personality traits such as clarity of thought,
communication including listening skills, ability to

A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

critically evaluate and ability to interact in a group.

Stating the objective of GD, Kudva says, The
objective of a group discussion is to appraise a
candidates ability to critically analyze a given piece
of information and collectively work in a group
to arrive at a solution or develop a perspective.

process. Therefore, while gathering knowledge you

should also build opinion which you can justify and
defend during your arguments. It helps one win
the trust of group members and take lead in the
group. Vinayak Kudva, says, While reading up on
news-making events, candidates should consider
various aspects and arguments and use their own
judgement to decide what their stand should be.

B-schools conduct GDs to find out whether candidates possess the qualities that are critical to become
an effective manager. The rationale behind this exercise is that when a group of human beings are given
a task to accomplish within an unstructured situation,
they will try to accomplish it by establishing some
order or structure. In this process, they will reveal
some of their personality characteristics, he adds.

Vipasha Bhardwaj from MDI Gurgaon also suggests that candidates should build their own thoughts
on a given topic and bring fresh perspective to
it. Do not take any sides during the GD but present your thoughts and opinions in the discussion.
Also try to give the GD new directions by contributing fresh ideas related to the topic, he says.

Some B-schools organize a case discussion instead

of a simple group discussion. A case-study simulates a
real-life situation, and prompts candidates to apply their
mind to get the best possible solution. There may not
be any wrong or perfect solutions to a case study, but
there definitely is a best possible solution, which the
group is expected to collectively arrive at, Kudva says.

C. Make facts basis of your arguments: Experts

suggest that you should bring facts into your argument to make it strong and credible. The factual
information during your arguments also helps you to
frame counter arguments. Harshad Eklahare, JBIMS
alumni, suggests that arguments must be avoided
and the direction of the GD should be followed. By
reading about current events and stating the same as
examples, candidates can draw more attention and
also help the group reach a consensus, he says,
advising candidates to avoid fish market; in case it
happens, be the leader and give direction to the topic.

What should be your GD strategy?

Enhance knowledge and current affairs: You
should be abreast of current happenings and issues
that have made news over the last one year. The GD
topics can range from issues of social importance to
issues based on current affairs. Toney Mathews, an
IIFT Delhi Alumni, says, Before actually appearing in
the IIFT GD, I went for 2-3 mock GDs on the latest
happenings. It is important to keep yourself abreast
of news regularly, as GD can cover the latest news
and related issues as there topic for discussions.

D. Enter the discussion at the opportune

moment: In the Group Discussions, there are rare
possibilities that group members will allow you to
speak unless you really make efforts for it. You need
to find gaps and enter the discussion while picking a
tread of the arguments. Sandeep Manudhane says
that a candidate must make it sure that he is able to
speak. My benchmark is clear: in a 20 minute GD, if

B. Build opinion on issues: Group Discussion

is also a tool for B-schools to assess your thought

A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

A Few GD Topics in IIMs and

B-School

you can speak for 3 to 4 times making a lot of sense

without repeating, and with examples and facts, and
30 to 50 seconds each times, youve made it, he says.

Though the GD topics asked in the IIMs and Top

B-Schools can vary across field but look for controversial or debatable topics which could go either way.
You will probably be given a topic which are related to
the latest happenings around the world be it related
to Economics, Technology, National News or other
debatable issues. Based on the CAT Toppers inputs
below are a few Group Discussion topics which were
given to the students in IIMs and other B-schools,

Sombit Roy, IIT Delhi alumni, explains the process of

participating in a GD and the right moment when to
step in and grasp the opportune moment. He says,
I first wrote down my points and then when the GD
began I started to make note of what others were
speaking, if anything relevant or useful. I tried to get
into the GD but it was difficult as it was a complete fish
market. But I waited and finally made my point when I
got a chance to speak just after the fish market. After
the chaos there is generally few minutes of peace and I
took the opportunity to make my point at that moment.

E. Structure your argument: In a GD, you should

follow a structured approach while presenting your
thoughts. Experts suggest that you should be
able to present your understanding of the topic
and communicate your opinion on it. Thereafter,
you should be backing your opinion with arguments that are supported with facts and data.

Smartphones- boon or bane- MDI Gurgaon

Are smaller states easier to govern

F. Be a Team Player: During your Group discussion,

you should always exhibit that you are a team player.
In some cases, your opinion and argument might be
very strong about the GD topic; still you should accommodate thoughts of other members in the group. Even
when you dont agree with a particular argument, you
should be respecting such voice and reflect the same
while opposing the same. This brings out your ability to
work in a team, which is key to be a successful manager.

Inflation or Corruption: which is more important?- MDI

Gurgaon

Juveniles who committed serious crimes should be

tried as adults or not- JBIMS Mumbai
How to market PCs to convince the consumer to buy
them over laptops and tablets- IIT Delhi
Are women in positions of power more aggressive
than men in the same positions?- IIM Rohtak
MOOC will soon replace the traditional method of
classroom teaching system- IIM Rohtak
Eminent sportsperson will turn out to be good
coaches as well- IIFT Delhi
Should referendum be used as a method to take

A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

important strategic decisions- IIFT Delhi

Is management education really necessary to

succeed in business- IIM Indore

A few Hot Topics for CAT 2015:

l

Is debate on intolerance harming the secular fabric

of India?
Should India continue to talk peace with Pakistan
despite terror attacks?

Should government stop subsidizing oil and gas

products?
Facebook Free Basic is good or bad?
Should industry professionals take over sectorspecific bureaucratic roles?

A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

PERSONAL INTERVIEW (PI)

he IIMs and B-schools admit not only students

with a high CAT percentile, but students who
are a great presenter, have sharp communication techniques, who are the smartest of all.
Personal Interview is a crucial stage in the admission
process at every top b-school as this stage makes or
breaks your chances of admissions.

Personal Interview (PI) generally is the last among key

components of selection process at B-schools. While
many B-schools have either replaced Group Discussion
(GD) with Writing Ability Test (WAT) or added another
component like Group Exercise or Case Discussion
in the final stages of their selection process, Personal
Interview has remained intact as the key component
of the selection process during MBA admissions.

During the personal interview with a candidate, the interview panel evaluates spontaneity in the character; confidence level of a candidates and also his stress management capabilities.

Experts suggest that before appearing for a PI,

candidates must know how to tackle witty and
twisted questions of the interview panel; and

A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

impress them by his answers. So, what do interviewers look into while interviewing a candidate?

How far have you come so far?

l What excites you really?
l What depresses you to death?
l What do you like about your country?
l What are your strengths and weaknesses?
l What would you really like to become one day?
l How much money do you want to make?
l Did you really study? Prove it.
l Which movies do you like? Why?
l Can you sing / dance? Do it.
l

Vinayak Kudva, Head PG India & Mumbai

Region, IMS, says, A personal interview is the last
step to get to know the candidate well. Personality traits that cannot be uncovered through Entrance
tests, GD or WAT are evaluated here. The selectors try to understand the candidates personality, his/her interests, motivation, aspirations etc.

How to get started with PI prep?

The PI section of any IIM or B-school is structured in a way which can test the candidates on
different parameters like, Current affairs, Educational background and Personal Interests, or maybe
a general discussion on the GD experience and
your goals, shares Jyotsna Chadha of IIM Rohtak.

There is no particular methodology to prepare

for PI as the more spontaneous and clear you
are, better would be your performance. Since PI
rounds will also include questions on your graduation subjects, work experience, current affairs
etc., an overall preparation would be necessary.

Have clarity on your MBA aspirations The inevitable question in the PI round would be Why MBA.
Prepare the answer carefully so that it does not
sound like a mugged up answer. It must be an honest answer to be given with conviction. As Gautam
Puri, Career Launcher Expert, mentions, One needs
to be honest with oneself and one need to think
objectively to the basic questions. There is no right
or wrong answer in an interview; it depends on how
the candidate offers his responses. The interviewers expect honest answers without any bluffing.

Kudva mentions, The selectors try to understand the kind of person the candidate is, what
all are his/her interests, motivation, aspirations etc.

Approach for PI:

Get answers to the common questions - To start
with, list down the most common questions which
are asked in the PI rounds. Introspection is very
important for the PI preparation. As Himaghna
Banerjee from SP Jain says, The important part of
preparation for PI involves structuring the answers
to the common personality related questions.

Apart from the Why MBA question, also prepare

for other pertinent aspects like Where do you want
to see yourself 5 or 10 years down the line?, Why
do you want to take admission in this B-School?
etc. Also know a bit about what to expect in the
B-school and the different specializations offered by
the B-school. B-schools desire mature students who
are able to think independently and are tolerant of

Sandeep Manudhane, Chairman, PT Education suggests asking the following questions

to yourself as part of the introspection exercise.
Who are you?
l What do you want from life?
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A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

differing views on an issue. You should be able to recognize the pros and cons of any issue, says Kudva.

your interview also makes your responses natural.

Experts suggest that you should be fully prepared
with arguments to justify whatever you think is right.
Toppers also suggest that it is better to skip the question which you are not sure about. An answer which
you yourself are not convinced may invite unnecessary counter questions which may embarrass you
further and hamper your chance in Personal Interview.
Jay Mehta of JBIMS says, A candidates honest
nature and confidence is the key. There were some
I dont knows during the interview, which the panel
appreciated as I was honest towards their questions.

What does the PI test?

In the PI rounds, the interviewers get up close and
personal with you. You can be asked anything
under the sun, but to streamline, you can refer
to your CV which includes your education, work
experience (if any) followed by your hobbies, likes,
dislikes, opinion on current affairs and last but not
the least, your performance in the GD and WAT
rounds. The interviewers can very well ask you to
justify your views or actions displayed in those rounds.

C. Be Polite: Your politeness during the interview also

brings positive impression on your interviewers. In some
cases, while you might be correct with your answers,
you must not out rightly reject interviews views to your
response. Instead, you should listen to them carefully
and put forward your response with better argument.
Experts suggest that sometimes, interviewers may
also be wrong with some information, but you should
not directly point it out. Instead, you should try to
convince them politely about the correct information.

Strategies to crack PI
Based on Experts analysis and toppers insights,
below are a few strategies to crack the PI
rounds of a B-schools management admissions.
A. Reflect confidence: During Personal Interview,
you should reflect confidence while answering to
different questions. Interviewers often tend to crossquestion you even on your right answers just to
check your confidence on your own answers. Amir
Khan from IIM Rohtak shares a question being
asked in the interview which was to check his positive approach and confidence. There was a question on estimating the number of 100 rupee notes
in all the ATMs of the country. I found this question
a bit tough since I was not aware of the method of
answering such guesstimate questions at that time
but it was fun analysing the same. In the end I understood that it was not the answer that mattered but
the approach I took to arrive to an answer, he said.

D. Drive the interview towards your strength:

While the questions asked in the interview may vary
from candidate to candidate, it is important for you
to gradually invite the questions from your areas of
strength as the interview progress. For PI its very
important to try and guide the personal interview
towards your strength. So its important to identify
your strengths i.e. topics which you are comfortable
with and try and guide the discussion towards those
topics, Soham Barman, a B-school student, shares.

B. Be honest to yourself and interviewers: During

PI, you are also tested for integrity of your basic characteristics like honesty. Your honest approach during

E. Be thorough with what you write in your CV:

During the interview, interviewers also tend to pick
questions based on the information that your CV

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A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

carries. Interviewers expect you to be fully prepared

with minute details on any information that you provide
in your CV. Prakriti says, I think it is extremely important
to be thorough with everything that is written on CV. It
is alright to not be able to answer some questions with
regard to current affairs and academics but the inability to answer questions about oneself is unpardonable.

well for current affairs. Even if the first few PIs you
appear for do not go as well as planned, do not get
disheartened, and do not let that affect your performance anywhere else, suggests Nitish Bagai of MDI
Gurgaon about how to tackle and crack the PI rounds
of B-school admissions. It is important to be thorough, confident and honest for a positive selection.

I believe the most important thing is to be confident

when you answer questions during your PI. Prepare

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A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

WRITTEN ABILITY TEST (WAT)

B-schools have scrapped group discussion (GD) from

their admissions process and emphasized on WAT. The
six new IIMs namely IIM Rohtak, Raipur, Ranchi, Trichy,
Udaipur and Kashipur introduced WAT in the Common
Admission Process which was introduced in 2011.

WAT or Essay Writing is a comparatively new phenomenon for the MBA admission process. Over a past
couple of years, it has been observed that most of the

Mr. Ramnath Kanakadandi, CAT course Director for

T.I.M.E. explains a few possible reasons why WAT
is being preferred over GD, he says, First may be
to give every participant a fair chance to voice out
their opinions, which is not always possible in GDs
with participants cutting out/interrupting others, and

he second stage of the admission criteria- Written Ability Test or WAT is not just a 100-150
words write up, rather it is a test that measures
your critical thinking ability and how well you
can communicate your ideas on paper. No need to
panic if you are appearing for WAT soon, here are tips
from toppers on How they cracked WAT at IIMs or Top
B-schools.

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A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

second, to see how one builds up an argument.

Careers360 here brings you Tips and Guidance from the toppers from IIM and B-Schools;
and experts of various coaching institutes.

As WAT measures your analytical and structural skills it also evaluates your thought process
introspecting the reasons behind the given critique and argument in a write up. It is must that
before writing you first understand the topic, collect information, analyze the issue and communicate the same in the best possible structured way.

Udit Dhiman from MDI Gurgaon explains the basic

of preparing for WAT. The idea is not to make
the topic colloquial and to not drag the same
points and bring out some insights. It is important
to note that evaluations essentially look for some
nuanced points and thus the 10-20% thinking time
is required, he says. Use of examples, from personal experiences or otherwise, relevant to the topic
that can substantiate the WAT point, are simple
way of preparing yourselves for the WAT, he adds.

Detailing the role of WAT in the admission process

at various B-schools, Mr. Ravi Shankar, Programs
Officer, IFMR Chennai says, Writing Ability Test
(WAT) helps us check the ability of the applicant
to articulate basic ideas in writing. If a candidate
does not have the required level of this ability, he/
she will find it very difficult participate in case presentations, quizzes and exams. That is why we
have been using WAT for the last three years.

Strategy for approaching WAT

While you may be very much well prepared and well
read, but your performance on the D-Day will depend
on the factors like topic of the WAT and duration
assigned. Here are a few tips and tricks to crack WAT.

What to focus on
Arks Srinivas, CEO- Vista Mind, Director- Vanguard
Business School, explains the Evaluation parameters on which WAT is analyses. Hepoints out
the following parameters that WAT is evaluated on:
l Quality of content Facts
l Interpretation or Analysis
l Conclusion/Opinion/Solution
l Quality of Logical arguments
l Support your Conclusion
l Coherence
l Clarity of Language
l Basic Spelling and Grammar

While the mentioned parameters are exhaustive, each B-School decides which of these
parameters they should give more weightage to.

Understand Analyze and Approach: After

you are assigned with a topic, you need to
first understand what the topic is about and
analyze different angles around the topic. This
helps you build your thought process and
bring quality to your WAT write-up. Once you
are done with this, approach the topic in a
very structured way. Jay Mehta, WAT Topper
from JBIMS says, I was very structured and
focused in my approach towards WAT. I put
in a lot of facts and figures and included my
opinions on the different topics as well.

Akshat Modi also explains how his clear

understanding of the topic helped him analyze
the same during his WAT paper. His WAT topic

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A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

was: since there have been talks on formation

of Telangana, analyze on the socio-economic
impact on the newly formed states in India.

I broadly classified the three newly formed

states of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and
Uttarakhand on their relative sizes and
respective parent states. Since I hailed
from Ranchi, Jharkhand, I focused only on
Jharkhand and its transformation vis--vis
socio-economic condition before and after its
inception as a separate state. I then explained
the social and economic changes that I had
witnessed in the area since last 15 years and
how it has changed the lifestyle and behavior
of people, and what is the hope it has given,
he says, adding, I supported my arguments
with specific examples and finally concluded
my viewpoint.
l

Follow a structure: Experts say that a

candidate must structure the WAT content
before writing it on the piece of paper. They
suggest that drawing a structure based on
your understanding of topic is important as it
reflects how you process information into your
communication. Students need to learn how
to analyze the topic, identify or build relevant
arguments and finalize their position on the
issue, says Kudva. He also adds, The next
step should be deciding on the sequence in
which it should be presented on paper. The
candidates need to decide what will be the
introduction, body and conclusion and finally,
write the essay neatly and coherently.

Jyotsna Chadda from IIM Rohtak explains

her strategy which made her crack WAT and
secures admission in one of the IIMs. My
idea was to display my knowledge about the
topic in an effective manner and support it
with relevant examples. I presented some
radical views too, but backed them with
strong arguments. I tried to assure that the
essay displays a logical thought process and
is well organized and coherent. I would rate
my essay as 7.5 out of a scale of 10, as I
exceeded the word limit, she explains.

Take your stand: Based on your

understanding and analysis of the WAT topic,
you should develop opinion on whether you
are for the topic or against it. In either
condition, you need to substantiate your
opinion with logical arguments and facts.
Experts say your arguments in the WAT reflect
clarity of your thoughts. Toppers also advise
that your write-up should carry facts to support
your claims. Shray from SP Jain explains the
importance of strategically dividing the topic
and then follow an approach. I broke down
the topic in four questions Id ask from the
author, and then I tried to answer them with an
equal importance. It helped with planning time
as well as I allocated an equal share to each
question, he says.

14

Watch your time: You should do a balancing

act while dividing your time between building
your thoughts and putting the same on the
paper during your WAT. Given that the allotted
time for WAT may vary at different B-Schools,
you should also be ready with a strategy to
complete both the component within given
timeframe. According to the toppers they
divide 10-15 minutes on understanding and

A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

analyzing the topic, and spend remaining time

on writing the same.

says that a regular practice may get

candidates into the habit of building opinions
rather than merely collecting facts.

Jayesh from IIM Kashipur says, Allotted time

for WAT was 25 minutes. I spent around
13 minutes towards thinking and structuring
the points and utilized remaining time in
writing the essay. I was able to complete my
writing on the topic in around 20 minutes. I
spent the remaining time in proofreading and
corrections.

Practice is very important. The students

must focus on their language skills- good
grammar, appropriate vocabulary, and correct
punctuation etc during their practice sessions.
Also, the students must practice putting pen
to paper and work on their handwriting. It
is important that one writes at least one or
two essays on a daily basis and seek expert
opinion on them, he adds. He also suggests,
WAT tests the candidates knowledge on the
given topic along with the writing style. To
build on these two, the student must read
newspapers and magazines, and cover a
wide variety of topics ranging across the
domestic and the international circuit.

Nitish Bagai from MDI Gurgaon explains his

WAT Time management strategy, As the
topic for WAT was to summarize the GD, no
preparation in terms of content was needed
beforehand. I was prepared with my strategy
to keep jotting down all good points during the
GD itself, and then compile them during WAT.
l

A Few WAT Topics

Keep it Short and Simple: Your write-up

should be short and easy to understand. You
should also avoid using difficult words when it
can be replaced with a short and easy word.

l
l
l

Sandeep Manudhane says, As in life, so in

WAT. Follow the K-I-S-S-S principle. KEEP
IT SHORT SWEET STUPID. Dont use 11
words if 10 would do. You should not twist the
sentence if straight would do. Be active not
passive. Be direct not indirect. You should not
use procrastinate if postpone would do. Put
examples, facts, and figures. Start well. End
better. Be crisp.

l
l
l
l

l
l

Experts believe that regular practice and

evaluation is the key to crack WAT. Gautam
Puri, Managing Director, Career Launcher,

15

Role of Regional Political Parties in Indian Politics

Global warming is a hyped up propaganda
Need of vocational training in todays education
system
Are women in positions of power more aggressive
than men in the same p
Importance of RTE
sanitation in India
Briefly Describe the GDP
Comment on the merits and demerits of online
education versus classroom learning
Promoting Hockey in India
Which song defines you

A QUICK GUIDE TO GD-PI-WAT

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