Group discussion

Group Discussion Basics.
In interview process the GD is important step. it is used to check the verbal skills of candidates.

1. GROUPDISCUSSION
Mr. A. B. Shinde
Assistant Professor
Electronics Engineering
PVPIT, Budhgaon
[email protected]

2. GD: BASICS
AGDisamethodologyusedbyanorganizationtotestwhetherthe
candidatehascertainpersonalityqualitiesand/orskillsthatit
desiresinitsmembers.
Inthismethodology,thegroupofcandidatesisgivenatopicora
situation,givenafewminutestothinkaboutthesame,andthen
askedtodiscussitamongthemselvesfor10-15minutes.
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3. WHYGDS
TheGroupdiscussiontestshowyoufunctionasapartofateam.
Howyouinteractinateambecomesanimportantcriterionforyour
selection.
The GD is to check
how you behave, participate and contribute in a group.
how much importance do you give to the group objective as well
as your own,
how well do you listen to viewpoints of others and
how open-minded are you in accepting views contrary to your
own.
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4. TYPESOFGD
FactualTopics:
Factualtopicsareaboutpracticalthings.
Typicallytheseareaboutsocio-economictopics.Thesecanbe
currentissues.
Afactualtopicfordiscussiongivesacandidateachancetoprove
thatheisawareofandsensitivetohisenvironment.
E.g.TheeducationpolicyofIndia,TourisminIndiaetc…
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5. TYPESOFGD
ControversialTopics:
Controversialtopicsaretheonesthatareargumentativeinnature,
togeneratecontroversy.
Theideabehindgivingatopiclikethisistoseehowmuchmaturity
thecandidateisdisplayingbykeepinghistemperincheck,by
rationallyandlogicallyarguinghispointofviewwithoutgetting
personalandemotional.
E.g.Reservationsshouldberemoved,Womenarebetter
managersetc.
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6. TYPESOFGD
AbstractTopics:
Abstracttopicsareaboutintangiblethings.
Thesetopicsarenotgivenoftenfordiscussion.Thesetopicstest
yourlateralthinkingandcreativity.
E.g.Twinkletwinklelittlestar,Thenumber10etc…
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7. TYPESOFGD
Case-basedGD:
Thecasestudytriestosimulateareal-lifesituation.
Informationaboutthesituationwillbegiventoyouandyouwould
beaskedasagrouptoresolvethesituation.
Inthecasestudytherearenoincorrectanswersorperfect
solutions.
IIM,IIMIndoreandIITSOMMumbaihaveacase-based
discussionratherthantopic-baseddiscussionintheirselection
procedures.
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8. REASONSFORHAVINGAGD
Ithelpsyoutounderstandasubjectmoredeeply.
Itimprovesyourabilitytothinkcritically.
Ithelpsinsolvingaparticularproblem.
Ithelpsthegrouptomakeaparticulardecision.
Itgivesyouthechancetohearotherstudents'ideas.
Itimprovesyourlisteningskills.
Itincreasesyourconfidenceinspeaking.
Itcanchangeyourattitudes.
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9. AFRAIDOFGDS: TRYTHEFOLLOWING
Observe
Attendseminarsandtutorials:Noticewhatothersdo.
Askyourself:
Howotherstudentsmakecomments?
Howtheyaskquestions?
Howtheydisagreewithorsupportarguments?
Whatspecialphrasestheyusetoshowpolitenesson
disagreement?
Howtheysignaltointerrupt,askaquestionormakeapoint? 9

10. AFRAIDOFGDS: TRYTHEFOLLOWING
Practice
Startpracticingyourdiscussionskillsinaninformalsettingorwitha
smallgroup.
Askfortheiropinions.Askforinformationoraskforhelp.
Participate
Takeeveryopportunitytotakepartinsocial/informaldiscussions.
Startbymakingsmallcontributionstotutorialdiscussions.
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11. DISCUSSIONETIQUETTE
Do’s
Speakpleasantlyandpolitelytothegroup.
Respectthecontributionofeveryspeaker.
Rememberthatadiscussionisnotanargument.
Learntodisagreepolitely.
Thinkaboutyourcontributionbeforeyouspeak.
Trytosticktothediscussiontopic.
Don'tintroduceirrelevantinformation.
Beawareofyourbodylanguagewhenyouarespeaking.
Agreewithandacknowledgewhatyoufindinteresting.
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12. DISCUSSIONETIQUETTE
Don't
Loseyourtemper
(Adiscussionisnotanargument.)
Shout.
(Useamoderatetoneandmediumpitch.)
Usetoomanygestureswhenyouspeak.
(Gestureslikefingerpointingandtablethumpingcanappear
aggressive)
Dominatethediscussion.
(Confidentspeakersshouldallowquieterstudentsachanceto
contribute.)
Interrupt.
(Waitforaspeakertofinishwhattheyaresayingbeforeyouspeak)
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13. HOWTOFACEGD
Agroupdiscussionconsistsof:
CommunicationSkills
Knowledgeandideasregardingagivensubject
Capabilitytoco-ordinateandlead
Exchangeofthoughts
Itisnotnecessarytoaddressanyonebyname
Itisbettertoaddressthegroupasawhole
Additionalmarksmaybegivenforstartingorconcludingthe
discussion.
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14. POINTSTOREMEMBERINGDS
AGDisaformaloccasionwhereargumentistoavoid.
AGDisnotadebatingstage.
Languageshouldbesimple,directandstraightforward
Don'tinterruptaspeakerwhenthesessionison
Maintainrapportwithfellowparticipants
Communicatewitheachandeverycandidatepresent
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15. GD TIPS
InitiatingaGDisahighprofit-highlossstrategy.
WhenyouinitiateaGD,younotonlygrabtheopportunitytospeak,
youalsograbtheattentionoftheexaminer.
Ifyoucanmakeafavorablefirstimpressionwithyourcontentand
communicationskillsafteryouinitiateaGD,itwillhelpyousailthrough
thediscussion.
ButifyouinitiateaGDandstammer/stutter/quotewrongfacts,the
damagemightbeirreparable.
IfyouinitiateaGDperfectlybutdon'tspeakmuchafterthat,itgives
theimpressionthatyoustartedtheGDforthesakeofstarting.
WhenyoustartaGD,youareresponsibleforputtingitintotheright
perspectiveorframework.Soinitiateoneonlyifyouhavein-depth
knowledgeaboutthetopic.
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16. BODYOFTHEGROUPDISCUSSION
Quotes
Quotes are an effective way of initiating a GD.
Definition
Start a GD by defining the topic or an important term in the topic.
Question
Asking a question is an impact way of starting a GD.
Shock statement
Initiating a GD with a shocking statement is the best way to grab
immediate attention and put forth your point.
Facts, figures and statistics
If you decide to initiate your GD with facts, figure and statistics, make
sure to quote them accurately.
Short story
Use a short story in a GD topic like, Attitude is Everything.
General statement
Use a general statement to put the GD in proper perspective.
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17. SUMMARIZATION/ CONCLUSION
Most GD does not really have conclusions. A conclusion is where
the whole group decides in favor or against the topic.
But every GD is summarized. You can summaries what the group
has discussed in the GD in a nutshell.
Keep the following points in mind while summarizing a
discussion:
Avoid raising new points.
Avoid stating only your viewpoint.
Avoid dwelling only on one aspect of the GD.
Keep it brief and concise.
It must incorporate all the important points that came out during the
GD.
If the examiner asks you to summaries a GD, it means the GD has
come to an end.
Do not add anything once the GD has been summarized.
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18. GD MISTAKES
Deviatefromthesubject.
Loseobjectivityandmakepersonalattacks.
Evaluationisbasedonquality,andnotonquantity.Your
contributionmustberelevant.
Falsestartsleadstowrongdiscussion.
Improperbodylanguage.
Wrongtoneofvoice.
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19. ALLTHEBEST…!!!
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