group discussion
It is that time of year when students look take Group Discussion (hereafter, we will call it as GD) in their stride as a part of admission process. GD as it is commonly termed as, is often treated like an insurmountable myth to many, while it still is a cake piece for many. Through this series of articles we would look into approaching GD with a fresher approach. Remember originality and insights will always fetch you brownie points in a GD.
Before we begin to see how roles interplay in GD, let’s understand the objective and the outcome of such an exercise. Normally 8-10 candidates are grouped into a leaderless unit. They are given a specific situation (case study, topic etc) to analyze and discuss amongst them. A panel judges you by your participation in the whole process. What possibly can be the evaluation criteria? Why the groups why not an extempore?
From examiners perspective, they are looking to take the right candidates. Note that Right Candidate is the operative word here. If we can understand what a right candidate should constitute we would go a long way in actually fulfilling it. The panel is looking to check for people who can think on issues with a cutting insight not only to tear it open but also provide a solution to it. More often than not, the second part of the argument “provide a solution” is ignored by many students. Dissecting a problem which has no solution is like digging up a dead end- FUTILE!
We are constantly living in a world of progressive perceptions. Everyone is forming perception about the other by their traits. Often, the basis of this perception is how people think. Speech always should communicate how you think. But due to various language barriers arising out of non-nativity, social background etc words fail to portray the thoughts. Remember GD is all about how do you think and portray it. GD is not a speech or debate to check your preparedness, it’s about thinking aloud.
group discussion snapshot
Few more things before we move along. Contrary to the ordinary belief a GD group is carefully prepared in most cases. It tables around candidates of various backgrounds and various thinking cultures. Remember you are unique with respect to the background you hail from-connect to it. Sometimes you can directly cite examples from your life whilst at other times you can draw a parallel to your daily lives. Think out of the box, out of the crowd! With this understanding we are ready to dig deeper into various nuances of GD.
If we jot down the points to be taken care of based on the previous premise, we would find the following aspects:
- Ability to work in a team
- Communication skills
- Leadership skills
- Reasoning ability
- Looking to take initiatives
- Assertiveness
- Creativity
- Flexibility
- Ability to think and act independently
We will look into each of these points in detail in the next article with a focus on understanding the examiners requirements.
