GD IBA

Well, once you clear your general test at IBA you are caller for
a group discussion and interview on the same day one after
another. There is munimum cut off for both activities so you
need perform at a certain level to get an admission offer.
Group is discussion is basically a two stage activity. A group of
30-50 people is seated in a room selected based in their
registration serial no. Once seated a topic is written on board
(general topic) which doesn't require much knowledge to
speak on. Then 5 mins are given so that candidates can
construct their one sided I.e for or against arguements
mentally. Following this, each student is given one minute to
speak on this topic in the order of their seating so you might be
lucky getting the most time if you are the last person seated
however by that time most of the points would already have
been given so this method gas both pros and cons. Now in
second stage 15 mins are given, all the candidates are told to
indulge in constructive two sided debate on the same topic
making sure that there is only person speaking at a time
( though this never happens as people in room shout to raise
their view point) regardless one has to speak whether or not
he is being listened to. Each sa
Stage carries 50marks and candidates are marked in
cinfidence, reasoning and argument construction skills. If you
can speak angreizi, the trick to pass both stages is to speak in
both stages. Make sure you do not stop speaking in stage 1
without giving 2 reasons and a final one sided conclusion but
should be in 1 min e.g can be given. In stage 2 try to raise
hand as soon as the supervisor ends explaining rules of stage
2 so that you start the debate otherwise you would have to
should your viewpoint at a later stage. Speaking once in this
stage would be enough but make it count by prolonging ur talk.
No need to stand up in this stage. This whole activity is
supervised by 2 people who do not speak at all during stage 2
no matter what. In stage 1 interruptions are done to highlight
time left e.t.c. After this activity candidates are taken back to
waiting room where names for interviews are called in order of
reg no. The interview is fairly simple. There are four panelists,
questions can come from any one of them. They may ask you
question in Urdu but make sure you reply only in English. Say
hello on entering the room and ask for permission to sit if not
already given. No need to shake hands. Questions are mostly
general but they may ask you 2-3 very easy/basic technical
questions. The key to pass this activity is not to lose your
confidence and not to lie on any question. Be honest, if you
don't know the answer tell them you would try to find the
answer later as a person is learning continuously. General
questions include : tell us about yourself? Make sure you only
mention things not already on your profile such as your uncle
is your inspiration who had done c.s degree etc. Another
question why Cs? Why iba? Tell them that iba has an alumni
network in industry and they produce some of the best grads
working in industry. Their strong history, best faculty and
repute e.t.c. do not tell salary or monetary benefits as an
incentive.

They may also ask what if we fail you in interview and you
don't get admission in iba, what will you do and do you have
backup? Tell them that it would hurt you since iba is your first
preference but you only ask them for your weaknesses so that
you could improve them in future and come out as a better
man rather than fretting over it. Tell them that you always keep
backup in certain situations and you have one in this too.
Overall the talk should be semi formal and make sure you ask
them some genuine question at the end of the interview that
has not been already answered anywhere else. Lastly, say bye
and thank you and leave. It is important here that you do not
stretch your arms or legs during interview as it show lack of
confidence. Make sure your hand movements support your
words but avoid excessive hand movements and posture
changes. Do not keep your hands on table in front of you
rather keep on armrests of your chair. Sit straight, maintaining
eye contact with person asking question at that time. But
rotating it to other people when answering do not stare. You
can ask for 1 min before answering if the question requires
particular info or construction and you feel the need to recall it.
Do not be rude in your answers if you disagree with interviewer
tell them politely that you disagree and your view point is this if
he still insists tell them that you would search the point again.
Hope this helps you.
P.s: I applied for bba last year and was awarded 50% merit
scholarship but i am not in iba currently.

I wrote the half page long description to make sure you don't
face something new while going through the process. People
who lack preparation for this process actually go blank during
this. I have literally seen people not uttering a single word in
group discussion - that's how they fail.
As long as you control your anxiety level you would pass. I
went to these activities without knowing a single thing about
any of above things I mentioned above yet my anxiety level
was kept in check because I wasn't serious about iba and so
didn't feel the pressure. You need to treat this as class
discussion forgetting the fact that you are in iba. Just be
yourself! It is not at all frightening, they won't kill you if you get
anything wrong as long as you are willing to improve on the
basis of your mistakes.
As long as you score above threshold you would be given
admission. But there is also a separate threshold for total
score. So the gap between total score from minimum threshold
from individual activities and total score threshold should be
compensated in my opinion by scoring higher on aptitude test.
I think my g.d topic was ' is sibling rivalry a beneficial thing'.