If we all had the right guidance, the requisite reference material at hand, and unlimited time to write and revise the essays that we write, quite a few of us would eventually be able to produce satisfactory essays. The same task becomes infinitely more difficult when it is presented in the form of the WAT, which must be accomplished in approximately 15 minutes, and which must be produced entirely from references in one’s memory. When we are ultimately faced with the final WAT assignment and a blank paper, several factors begin to weigh heavy on our minds. There is the complexity of the t

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This is the second article in the series of posts that we are doing on ‘Reading for CAT’. The other ones can be read at the links given below: Why Building a Reading Habit is an important part of CAT 2021 Preparation?  How to develop a Reading Habit to help you with CAT 2021?  What should you read to help with CAT 2021 Preparation? (Will be published soon) Which novels / books should a CAT aspirant read in 2021? (Will be published soon) There are plenty of things that CAT aspirants differ about. For example, what is the right number of mocks to attempt or which coach

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Over the last few years, most of the top B-schools have switched over from group discussion to writing ability test (WAT). There are compelling reasons why this has happened. It will be prudent to understand them before we begin our preparation for the WAT. The most important reason, I feel, behind this change is that, unlike in GDs, in an essay, it is impossible to borrow the content from anyone else or further develop someone else’s thoughts. You must entirely depend on your own content and reasoning. In fact, GDs are meant to test your ability to assimilate diverse points of view alon

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Most of the questions that one encounters in a B-school personal interview can be classified into the following categories: A – Introductory questions B – Academic and work-experience related questions C – Current affairs and general awareness questions D – Personality-based questions E – Goal-related questions F – Stress questions Let us begin by looking at these types, and the common questions that are asked under each type. Please note that while most interviews begin with introductory questions, no particular order of question types is followed by the panel as regards

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I hope that anyone reading this article would know that the CAT exam is broadly divided into 3 areas: Reading Comprehension and Verbal Ability Logical Reasoning and Data Interpretation Quantitative Aptitude I guess that some of you would not know how important Reading Comprehension is in the entire scheme of things. What I know for a fact, is that a large number of CAT aspirants neglect ‘Reading Comprehension’ in the early stages of their preparation and more often than not – never actually end up performing up to their peak potential. It is a problem that is quite co

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Having looked at the pre-interview preparation in the previous post, we can now focus on what happens in the initial stages of the personal interview. There is one factor of your PI performance that invariably shapes your first impression in the minds of the panellists even before they meet you. Can you imagine what it is? It’s not your CAT score, or your academic scores, or your work-experience, or your hobbies and interests. It is your punctuality. Whether or not you turn up on time for the interview greatly influences not only the panel’s first impression but also your own

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Often after the announcement of CAT/XAT results, MBA aspirants starts getting confused regarding the B-school selection. A lot of data is available about Old IIMs in public domain regarding various parameters like academics, profiles offered etc. But in case of Private B-schools barring MDI, SP Jain, information on all parameters is incomplete. Situation gets even trickier when two similar colleges are compared. Aspirants log on to various MBA related websites, Facebook and Pagalguy group of colleges. These sources can be good for knowledge about institutes but they have a risk of objectivit

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Personal Interview Tips: I must have interviewed at least a few thousand candidates in my time. Every time I feel that I have seen it all and I have met them all, a Higher Power Up There intervenes and restores my humility by presenting a sample that I have never seen before. I share with readers these samples in the (absolutely vain) hope that they will not repeat these cases, and make their own new mistakes so that my life remains exciting. I just pray that you make those new mistakes in the mock interviews and not in the actual ones! Sin No 1: Negative Body language and Attitude: Thi

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Group Tasks, though not as common as group discussions and WATs, present us with challenges of their own kind. A group task aims to evaluate the candidate on psychological parameters so that the evaluators can understand the candidates’ comprehension, communication, decision making, and leadership quality within the dynamic context of a group. Working in a group, the candidates also demonstrate their social and interpersonal skills to the panel. The objective of a group task is to perform a clearly-defined exercise within the stipulated time, by using the available resources and en

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The process of a case-study group discussion is almost similar to that of a topical discussion in that there is a preparation time of about 5 minutes, the panel starts the discussion and observes the discussion without moderating it, and the group is at complete liberty to understand, analyse, and interpret the case as it deems appropriate in order to make a recommendation. There are however 2 key differences. The first is that instead of an opinion-oriented or a descriptive topic, the participants are given a case statement, which they must read so as to prepare within the given prep

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