The last word

After the common admission test, the group discussion (GD) and personal interview (PI) are next challenges for you. We break them down for you in a two-part series that tells you how to avoid common pitfalls and leave a lasting impression in these selection rounds. Here is the lowdown on the group discussion.

The purpose
The purpose of the GD is to test:
l Your communication skills.
l How you respond to different situations and your ability to think on your feet.
l Your ability to analyse different topics.
l Your knowledge on different subjects.
l Your group dynamics and team skills.

Some myths about GDs
I should be able to speak English fluently: Remember, a GD is not a test of your spoken English skills, but a test of communication. You need not be a very glib talker or a very articulate person to succeed in a GD.

Although these characteristics are desired, do not fret in case you are not so comfortable with the language or have an accent. There are many cases where students from vernacular medium institutions have left their impact in GDs. As long as others are able to understand you and what you are trying to communicate, it hardly matters whether you speak perfect English.

However, this may play an important role if the evaluators are specifically looking out for people who are fluent in English (for example, if the job requires this quality).

The longer I speak, the better: It is not how long you speak but what you say that is important. You should have the ability to enter a GD frequently with short but impactful contribution and not long bursts of statements. It is desired that you should keep quiet and listen to others, as listening forms an important part of communication.

This will also allow others to make their contribution. Hence ‘quality’, not ‘quantity’, is what matters.

The louder I speak, the better: This is situational. In a very calm GD, where everybody is able to contribute comfortably, you may be seen as being aggressive if you were to speak loudly. On the other hand, in a very chaotic GD or a ‘fish market’ GD, you may be required to make yourself heard. Generally, others in the group may get intimidated and may not readily accept you and your views if you speak loudly without any reason.

Starting a GD will earn me points: Not always! A wrong start may work against you.

Hence it is extremely important that if you choose to start a GD, you should be sure about the topic and what you are going to say. As a golden rule, do not take a stand at the beginning of the GD. One should ideally describe the topic and define what all aspects could be discussed in the GD at the start.

I cannot change my stand in the middle of a GD: Many feel that changing one’s stand in the middle of a GD indicates fickle-mindedness. This is not true. Let us understand that a GD is not a debate where you are supposed to take a stand and defend it at any cost.

The objective of a GD is to evaluate various aspects of the topic and come to a conclusion. Hence, you need not stick to a position. You can change your stand as well.

Ultimately, what matters is how you substantiate and justify the different stands.
What is tested in a GD?

Communication skills: This involves verbal and non-verbal communication. Verbal communication is your ability to convince others of what you feel and defend your stand. Non-verbal communication involves eye contact, gestures, other body language — e.g. the way you sit — and the way you dress.

The content: If communication tests you on how you speak, content is all about what you say. Don’t throw in points just for the sake of speaking. What matters most is how you corroborate your point. Toss in a lot of data, statistics and examples into what you say. Also, try to bring in different perspectives into the topic. This means analyse the topic from different angles.

Leadership and group skills: This is tested by how much your group members respect you. This can be taken care of by having the right kind of gestures and eye contact, giving others a chance to have their say and by being assertive, not aggressive.

This is also displayed by your content and your command over the topic. You should have the ability to influence the group to accept your views not by force but by respect for how you behave in the group.

Remember, there are two aspects of a GD — content and process. You can master the content by being well-read and creative. But however much you prepare, you do not have control over the process. The process is independent of the topic, group and situation.

Many of us lay too much emphasis on content and forget to get our processes right. Both are important and have to go hand in hand if you wish to emerge a winner in any GD.

Many candidates also get nervous if they know nothing or little about the topic. While participating in the GD, we must understand the most common thought process of the group about the topic and try to go beyond the routine framework to expand the subject.

For example, if the topic is ‘Sonia Gandhi should be prime minister of India’, then most of the participants might talk on her nationality and cultural issues.

In this case, you can dissect the subject into three parts: 1) Prime minister — talk about what role the PM plays, what exposure s/he is expected to have, what skills and qualities are needed to be a prime mister. 2) India — The good side of India, the challenges the country is facing and has for the future. 3) Sonia Gandhi as person, professional, politician, man manager, and what other skills she possesses. Then try to link these three domains to put forth your point in favour or in opposition of the topic.

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Information provided by CPLC