Group Discussion

Students are divided into groups and topics are alloted.  Students discuss the respective topics and present their ideas.

 

These are the four main areas tested in your GD:

i. Content
ii. Communication skills
iii. Group dynamics
iv. Leadership

The skills that are usually assessed in a Group Discussion are:
 

• Communication Skills
• Interpersonal Skills
• Leadership Skills
• Motivational Skills
• Team Building Skills
• Tolerance to Ambiguity
• Divergent Thinking
• Listening skills
• Presentation Skills
• Analytical / Logical skills

Group Discussion, as the name itself indicates, is a group activity carried out by participating individuals. It is an exchange of ideas among the individuals of a group on a specific topic.

It is used as reliable, testing device - mainly as a tool to assess all the candidates in a group at one go -in order to select the best in comparative perspective.

Group Discussion is an informal discussion in which participants of the same educational standard discuss a topic of current interest.

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Types of GDs
i. Topic-based
~ Knowledge intensive: Here, the background knowledge of a subject is required for effective participation (for example: Should India go in for full convertibility of the rupee?).

~ Non-knowledge intensive: Requires structured thinking, but subject knowledge is not required (for example: Do women make better managers?)
~ Abstract: Requires out-of-the-box thinking, analogy and example-based discussion (For example: Money is sweeter than honey, blue is better than red).
ii. Case studies
A structured discussion of a specific situation is given as a case. Sometimes, you will be asked to enact a role play where each participant is allotted a role to play, with relevance to the case study.
iii. Group tasks
These are an extension of case studies where specific objectives are to be achieved as a group.
Conducting GDs
While there is a great deal of variety in the methodology of conducting a Group Discussion, let's discuss the methodology commonly used for B-School selections.
Normally 8-10 students are taken as a group, though in some cases, up to 16 people may be included in a group. The GD lasts for 10-15 minutes.
For a topic-based GD, 2-3 minutes of thinking time may be given; though the group is often told to start right away. For case studies, however, about 15 minutes is given.
The evaluation is done by one or two experts, usually professors from the B-School itself. Please remember that these people are experts with a lot of experience and can be counted upon to observe all details, even if the GD is chaotic.
The candidates may be seated in a circle or in a rectangular arrangement, with or without a table. Seating arrangements may be prefixed or there may be free seating.
The discussion may be stopped at the set time or even earlier. A conclusion or consensus may be asked for, though it usually does not occur. A written or oral summary may asked for at the end from each candidate.