Associate Content Manager | Updated On - Jul 3, 2024
CAT PI in IIMs: PI or Personal Interview in IIM is the second stage of the selection process for admission to MBA programs. PI is conducted for students who have qualified CAT cut off marks. The article brings you about Personal Interview (PI) in IIMs, preparation tips, PI questions, books to refer, and cut off.
Candidates are evaluated based on their verbal communication abilities and clarity of thought during CAT PI round. When candidates are interviewed, the interviewers gauge how effectively they can persuade the panel of experts to accept their points of view. So, in order to prepare for the CAT's GD PI, candidates must employ a successful plan.
- Upon qualifying CAT cut off score, candidates will be called for PI-WAT round.
- PI weightage differ in all IIMs. IIM Calcutta has capped 48 points for PI round but the weightage of WAT in IIM Calcutta is 8 points. Read More IIM Shortlist and Admission
| Table of Contents |
Personal Interview in IIMs: Preparation Tips
It is crucial for CATqualified aspirants to prepare for IIMs Personal Interviews strategically. Through PI in IIMs candidates’ communication, leadership, and decision-making skills are analysed first as these are important for future business purposes. Some well-curated tips are discussed below.
Stay Updated with Current Events:
One of the key methods to ace the Personal Interview in IIM is to keep yourself updated with current events. Be it economics, social, or sports events read newspapers and magazines and be well versed with them.
Brush up Academics
You are expected to have a good academic knowledge in your specialization. The interview penalist may ask questions based on your specialization subject. You can revise some topics you find difficult.
Be Yourself
When you're in front of a panel of judges, it's vital to portray your personality. It makes no difference to the judges whether you are an extrovert or an introvert; your characteristics are what matter to them. Always make an effort to improve your appearance in front of the CAT GD PI judgment panel.
Be Positive and Calm
You must maintain a good attitude and be sincere when responding to the questions in the CAT GD PI. Avoid talking too much and make an effort to respond to questions presented with precision.
Through their questioning, the panel will assess the candidates' personalities, strengths, and weaknesses. Never share motivational quotes or tales rather deliver your ideas with logic and clearly.
Must Read:
- IIM Shillong CAT 2023 Cut off and Admission Criteria
- IIM Lucknow CAT 2023 Cut off and Selection Process
- IIM Ranchi CAT 2023 Cut off and Selection Process
IIM Personal Interview (PI) Questions
- Introduce yourself
- Why MBA
- Questions based on academic records
- Questions based on work-experience
- Questions on residing state/city
- Questions on specialization
- Question on current happenings or events
- Question on Extracurricular activities
- Questions on leadership role
Apart from these, the penalist may ask questions on other areas such as about life goals, failures, role models, teamwork, budget, privatizations, national and international happenings and many more.
Also Check:
| IIM Ahmedabad Selection Process 2023 | IIM Bangalore Selection Process 2023 | IIM Calcutta Selection Process 2023 |
Weightage of CAT PI in IIM Selection Process
| Institute | Weightage |
|---|---|
| IIM Bangalore | 30 |
| IIM Calcutta | 48 |
| IIM Lucknow | 40 |
| IIM Ahmedabad | Formula will be used |
| IIM Trichy | 25 |
| IIM Indore | Formula will be used |
| IIM Sirmaur | 30 |
| IIM Jammu | 30 |
| IIM Rohtak | 20 |
| IIM Ranchi | 30 |
| IIM Amritsar | 25 |
| IIM Visakhapatnam | 25 |
| IIM Raipur | 35 |
| IIM Udaipur | 15 |
| IIM Kashipur | 25 |
| IIM Kozhikode | 44 |
| IIM Bodh Gaya | 20 (If WAT is not conducted then 30) |
Check CAT Percentile Calculation
IIM Final Cut offs
Students after qualifying the CAT exam need to qualify the final PI round. Look at the CAT cut off and the final cut off marks after the PI round at various IIM insdtitute.
| IIM | Qualifying CAT cut offs | Expected CAT cut offs |
|---|---|---|
| IIM Ahmedabad | 80 | 99-100 |
| IIM Bangalore | 85 | 99-100 |
| IIM Calcutta | 85 | 99 |
| IIM Lucknow | 90 | 97-99 |
| IIM Indore | 90 | 97-99 |
| IIM Kozhikode | 85 | 97-98 |
| IIM Amritsar | 85 | 95-96 |
| IIM Nagpur | 85 | 95-96 |
| IIM Sambalpur | 93 | 95-96 |
| IIM Trichy | 93 | 94-95 |
| IIM Raipur | 93 | 94-95 |
| IIM Ranchi | 93 | 94-95 |
| IIM Kashipur | 94 | 94-95 |
| IIM Vizag | 80 | 92-94 |
| IIM Udaipur | 93 | 92-94 |
| IIM Bodhgaya | 93 | 92-94 |
| IIM Shillong | 75 | 90-94 |
| IIM Sirmaur | 93 | 90-94 |
| IIM Rohtak | 95 | 95-97 |
| IIM Nagpur | 85 | 90-94 |
| IIM Jammu | 93 | 90-94 |
CAT PI in IIMs Preparation Books
| Book Name | Subject |
|---|---|
| Sheetal Desarda | Master the Group Discussion & Personal Interview: Complete Discussion on the topics which are asked by reputed B-schools & IIMs |
| Shel Leanne | How to Interview Like a Top MBA: Fortune 100 Recruiters, Job-Winning Strategies From Headhunters, and Career Counsellors |
| Nimish V. Dwivedi | Marketing Chronicles: Compendium of Global and Local Marketing Insights from the Pre-Smartphone and Post-Smartphone Eras |
| Dale Carnegie | How to Develop Self-Confidence & Influence People by Public Speaking |
| Anand Ganguly & RPH Editorial Board | Group Discussions And Interviews |
| Mathur D | Mastering Interviews And Group Discussions 4ed (Pb 2018) |
| S. Hundiwala | A Complete Kit for Group Discussion |
| Universal | Group Discussion: More Than 100 Topics Covered |
| P. N. Joshi | Group Discussion on Current Topics |
| Manoj Kumar Sharma | Universal Interview And Group Discussion Book |
| Jeremy Shinewald | Complete Start-to-Finish MBA Admissions Guide |
Quick Links:
| IIM Udaipur Shortlist & Admission Criteria | IIM Trichy Shortlist & Admission Criteria |
| IIM Jammu Shortlist & Admission Criteria | IIM Ranchi Shortlist & Admission Criteria |
WAT PI Preparation
To qualify PI round at IIM is not a tough nut to crack, To ace the interview, one needs to instill confidence in them to be able to face any type of questions asked during the PI round. Since WAT round has been removed from the selection process, most IIMs are now conducting only Personal Interview rounds as the final selection criteria. However, some of the factors that are considered as judging criteria are listed below:
- Communication skills
- Writing ability
- Subject knowledge
- Listening power
- Confidence
- Leadership skills
- Presentation skills
- Interactive skills
- Decision making ability
- Problem solving ability
- Critical and analytical thinking
- Open-mindedness
CAT PI in IIMs FAQs
Ques. Is IIM PI tough?
Ans. Though IIM PI is challenging but not tough to crack. The questions asked are unpredictable as they ask questions on a wide range of topics like current affairs, life goals, failures, role models, teamwork, budget, privatizations, and national and international happenings.
Ques. How to crack IIM PI?
Ans. Some important tips to prepare for IIM Interview are listed below
- Read topics more
- Always be a good listener
- Practice to speak fluently in front of others
- Before answering, organize your thoughts first and then deliver your answer. This will help you answer the questions with a good flow during PI round.
Ques. What is the weightage of PI in IIMs?
Ans. The weightage of PI varies from institute to institute. In IIM Bangalore, PI has a weightage of 30% while IIM Calcutta set 48% weightage for PI round.
Ques. What are IIM interview questions?
Ans. IIM interview questions vary each year. But some common questions that you can prepare before appeaaring for the interview are:
- Tell us about yourself.
- What are your strengths and weakness?
- Why do you want to study MBA?
- Why do we select you for our institutes?
Ques. How to prepare for IIM Interview?
Ans. To crack PI at any IIM institute, students are advised to keep themselves calm and composed throughout the interview. Secondly, students will be asked questions on wide areas to judge their communicative skills, subject knowledge, leadership ability, critical and analytical thinking, problem-solving ability, etc. Therefore, candidates must focus on developing these skills to sail through the interview.
*The article might have information for the previous academic years, which will be updated soon subject to the notification issued by the University/College.
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