Saturday, November 30, 2013

IBPS PO Exam 2013: Results

IBPS announced the results for Online Common Written Examination conducted on 19 October 2013, 20 October 2013, 26 October 2013, and 27 October 2013. The examination was held on online pattern for recruitment in Public Sector Banks of India. The candidates from all over the country appeared for CWE PO Exam 2013 conducted by IBPS. All candidates can check their results through below mentioned link.

IBPS PO Exam 2013 Result
IBPS Clerk Exam 2013
IBPS is all set to conduct Common Written Examination 2013 for recruitment of Clerical Cadre. IBPS Clerk Exam 2013 is scheduled to be held 30 November 2013, 1 December 2013, 7 December 2013, 8 December 2013 and 14 December 2013. The IBPS common written examination (CWE) includes 5 sections comprising General Awareness, English Language, Reasoning, Numerical Ability and Computer Knowledge. Jagran josh.com has bring out comprehensive study material, previous year questions, tips and strategies to make your IBPS Clerk Exam an easy walk.
IBPS SO Exam 2014
IBPS will conduct common written examination for recruitment to the posts of Specialist Officers. The candidates who aspire to join the participating organization are required to register for the Common Recruitment Process- (CWE SPL-III). The eligible candidates can apply through online format before 14 December 2013.
The examination will be conducted on 08 February 2014 and 9 February 2014. The expert team of Jagranjosh.com has prepared an IBPS Specialist Officer 2014 Preparation Study Package in the form of PDF, which is a perfect study package for every candidate desiring to score well in the upcoming IBPS Specialist Officer Common Written Exam. We also provide Eligiblity Criteria, How to apply, and exam pattern.

IIM C dmission Policy for the PGP Batch 2014 -2016

Admission Policy for the PGP Batch (2014-16) (FOR DOMESTIC CANDIDATES)

Criteria for short listing and final selection of   PGDM and PGDCM candidates for 2014-2016 Batch

STAGE: I
Candidates will be shortlisted based on CAT score and academic performance provided they achieve the following minimum section-wise and overall percentile in CAT 2013 as per table 1 below:

Table 1: Minimum Cut-off Percentile for short-listing the candidates for Personal Interview (PI) stage

Category Section – I Section – II Overall
OPEN ≥ 90 ≥ 90 ≥ 95
NC-OBC ≥ 75 ≥ 75 ≥ 85
SC ≥ 65 ≥ 65 ≥ 75
ST ≥ 60 ≥ 60 ≥ 70
DA ≥ 60 ≥ 60 ≥ 70

Candidates in each category securing the above percentile in CAT2013 will only be considered for calculation of their composite score in Stage II. However, please note that the actual cut-offs for generation of short list for each category for PI stage will depend on composite score calculated in Stage II, section-wise and overall percentile in CAT 2013 and which may be much higher than the above mentioned minimum cut-offs.

STAGE: II
Method of allotting points for Class X and Class XII percentages of marks based on aggregate scores is given in Table 2 below:

Table 2: Points for Class X and Class XII marks*

Class X Marks (in %) Class XII Marks (in %) Points
≥81 ≥81 5
≥ 76 and < 81 ≥ 76 and < 81 4
≥ 71 and < 76 ≥ 71 and < 76 3
≥ 66 and < 71 ≥ 66 and < 71 2
≥ 60 and < 66 ≥ 60 and < 66 1
< 60 < 60 0
*(for computing the percentage of marks obtained in Class X and Class XII, the aggregate marks of all subjects that appear in the mark sheet/grade sheet would be considered)

Table 3: Components and corresponding weights assigned for generating category-wise short-lists for the PI stage

Components Weights Method of Calculation

CAT2013 Score 77 (A / B) x 77
Class X marks 10 (C / 5) X 10
Class XII marks 10 (D / 5) X 10
Gender Diversity Factor 3                  (To ensure gender diversity, 3 points will be awarded to female candidates only.)

Total 100  

A = Candidate’s total CAT2013 score
B = Maximum CAT 2013 Score
C = Points awarded for Class X marks as per table 2
D = Points awarded for Class XII marks as per table 2

Candidates based on their performance in CAT 2013, Class X and XII marks and gender diversity criteria will be called for the PI stage of selection process like Personal Interview (PI), Written Ability Test (WAT) etc. Cut-offs for the PI stage of selection category-wise will depend upon the section-wise and overall percentile in CAT 2013, composite score based on components in Table 3 and intake for the batch.


PI Stage

Criteria for Final Selection for PGDM & PGDCM (Batch 2014-16)
The following table indicates the criteria and their weights to be used for final selection for PGDM and PGDCM for the batch 2014-16.


Table 4: Criteria and weights for final selection for PGDM & PGDCM

Criterion Weights

CAT Score 35

Personal Interview (PI) 44

Writing Ability Test (WAT) 10

Point awarded for Academic Diversity at Bachelor’s degree level ADFB=2;
 (Academic Diversity Factor for Bachelor’s degree (ADFB)):  else
Candidates with any of the following bachelor’s degree in the list X  ADFB=0
below are eligible for ADFB: List X : BA, BA(H), B.Sc, B.Sc.(H), 
BS, B.Com, B.Com(H), BCA, BBA, B.Pharma, LL.B, MBBS, BDS 
or any other Non-Engineering bachelor’s degree not mentioned above.
If (Bachelor’s degree is from the list X) 

Point awarded to  Academic Diversity at Post Graduation         ADFP=1;
/ Professional Qualification Level (Academic Diversity
Factor for Post Graduation(PG)/Professional Qualification (ADFP)):   else
Candidates with any of the following Post Graduation (PG)/Professional   ADFP =0;
Qualification in the list Y below are eligible for ADFP: 
List Y : Post Graduation (PG)/Professional Qualification like ICAI, ICWA, 
Company Secretary. Here, Post Graduation means Master’s degree like MA
 M.Sc, M.Com, MS, MD, LL.M or any other non-engineering post graduate
 degree not mentioned above** If (Post Graduation (PG)/ Professional 
Qualification is from the list Y) 

Work Experience 08
Total 100
**Points will be awarded to only those candidates, who have completed their post graduate/professional qualification as on January 31, 2014.

For work experience, a maximum of eight points will be awarded depending on the length of service as on January 31, 2014 (Please refer Table 5). 
Only managerial work experience after graduation will be considered. Training/Project work/work done as an integral part of curricular requirement will not be considered.

Table 5: Points for work experience in completed months
Months <6 class="Apple-tab-span" span="" style="white-space: pre;"> 6 to 9 10 to 12 13 to 15 16 to 18 19 to 21 22 to24   25 to27    28 to30
Points 0 0.5 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
31 to 36 37 to 39 40 to 42 >= 43
8 7 6 5

The final selection list will be based on merit in each category; minimum qualification on the above mentioned criteria would not automatically qualify the candidate for admission into IIMC

Reservation Policy:
IIM Calcutta will apply Government of India reservation policy for admission to Central Educational Institutions (CEIs).




FOR OVERSEAS CANDIDATES

Definition of ‘Overseas Candidate’:
Indian and foreign national living, working or studying outside India during the period January 1, 2013 to February 15, 2014 will be considered as ‘Overseas Candidate’ for admission to IIM Calcutta in 2014-16 batch.
However, overseas candidate who is expected to be in India during testing window of CAT 2013 i.e., from the period October 15 to November 15, 2013 will  not be eligible to apply under overseas category. Candidate residing in neighbouring countries like Nepal from which there are no entry restrictions to India, will also not be considered as ‘Overseas Candidate’. These candidates will have to appear in CAT 2013 for admission to IIM Calcutta.
Eligibility:
In order to be eligible to apply for Post Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM) and Post Graduate Diploma in Computer Aided Management (PGDCM) programmes, a candidate must have at least a Bachelor’s degree with at least 50% marks awarded by any of the Universities incorporated by an act of the central or state legislature in India or other educational institutions established by an act of Parliament or declared to be deemed as a University under Section 3 of the UGC Act, 1956, or possess an equivalent qualification recognized by the Ministry of HRD, Government of India or abroad.  The equivalence of the foreign degree needs to be certified by the Association of Indian Universities.  The percentage of marks obtained by the candidate in the bachelor’s degree would be calculated based on the practice followed by the university/institution from where the candidate has obtained the degree. In case the candidates are awarded grades/CGPA instead of marks, the conversion of grades/CGPA to percentage of marks would be based on the procedure certified by the university/ institution from where they have obtained the bachelor’s degree. In case the university/ institution does not have any scheme for converting CGPA into equivalent marks, the equivalence would be established by dividing the candidate’s CGPA by the maximum possible CGPA and multiplying the result with 100.
Candidates appearing for the final year of bachelor’s degree/equivalent qualification examination and those who have completed degree requirements and are awaiting results can also apply. If selected, such candidates will be allowed to join the programme provisionally, only if he/she submits a certificate latest by June 30, 2014 from the Principal/Registrar of his/her College/Institute (issued on or before June 30, 2014) stating that the candidate has completed all the requirements for obtaining the bachelor’s degree/equivalent qualification on the date of the issue of the certificate.
How to Apply:
Overseas candidates seeking admission to the two year residential Post Graduate Programmes in Management (PGDM and PGDCM) should take GMAT and apply in the prescribed form available on our website (www.iimcal.ac.in). The completed application form should be sent to IIM Calcutta along with the following:
(a) Copy of the latest GMAT score certificate (not older than 2 years as on January 7, 2014).
(b) Attested copy of all academic mark-sheets/certificates (Class X, XII & Graduation etc.)
(c)   Two letters of recommendation from two academic referees (preferably from professors/teachers who have taught in the recent past). Candidates who are working presently and are not able to submit recommendation letters from two academic referees, then at least one letter of recommendation must be submitted from an academic referee and the other referee can be from Industry/work place, etc.
(d) Copy of all Passport pages having official entries
(e) The application fee for overseas candidate is US$ 150 (or equivalent amount in Indian currency).
  • The payment may be made by way of a bank draft to be drawn in favour of ‘Indian Institute of Management Calcutta’ payable at Kolkata and should be sent along with the PGP Application Form latest by January 7, 2014.
  • Candidate can also pay their application fee on-line through the Institute’s Payment Gateway by clicking on the link below http://programslive.iimcal.ac.in/overseas-onlinepayment
    Alternately the candidate may click on the “Pay Online” tab on our websites’ home page (www.iimcal.ac.in) and then select “Application-fees PGP Overseas (GMAT) Candidates” to make the payment.
    The candidate will receive an automated computer generated confirmatory e-mail which is mandatory to be enclosed along with the Application Form.
Application Form (Download):
Click here  to download the application form.
Please send the filled-in Application Form along with required documents and application fee by way of a bank draft in favour of "Indian Institute of Management Calcutta" payable in Kolkata or computer generated payment receipt to:
In-charge, Admissions Office
Indian Institute of Management Calcutta
Joka, Diamond Harbour Road
Kolkata 700 104, West Bengal, India
GMAT Institution Code Number:
The GMAT Institution Code Number for Indian Institute of Management Calcutta is  7003.
Short-listing and Interview:
Candidates will be shortlisted based on GMAT score, academic performance, relevant work experience and letters of reference. Shortlisted candidates will be required to appear for interview in India from middle of February to end of March 2013. The interviews will be held in Bangalore, Mumbai, Kolkata and New Delhi. Please indicate your choice of interview centre while filling-in the Application Form. Necessary travel arrangements for this purpose must be made by the candidate. Institute will not bear any expenses for attending the interview.
The final selection is made using multiple criteria that includes the parameters mentioned above.
Fees and Expenses:
The total fee for the overseas student for the batch 2013-15 was US$40,000 for a period of two years @ US$20,000 per annum. The above fee was payable, phase-wise, in six semesters in two years. In addition to the course fees, the overseas student is required to pay one time refundable caution deposit of INR 10,000/-. Living and other expenses during the period of his/her stay are payable in Indian rupees, which comes to about INR 2,500/- per month.
Availability of loans from banks and financial institutions:
Financial Institutions and Commercial Banks provide loans to students at a concessional rate of interest. Details will be available at their websites. Students who desire to avail of the loan facility should contact banks directly. Although the Institute endeavors to facilitate the process of availing of loan from financial institutions and banks, it is not directly involved in the process.

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Above 110 Firms Participated in IIM-A Summer Internship Placement

The Summer Internship placement procedure in Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A) has been concluded for the post-graduate programme of batch of 2013-15.
More than 110 companies played a part in the summer placement of IIM-A,  presenting Job opportunities in a range of sectors such as investment banking and finance, private equity, consulting, consumer goods and services, sales and marketing, technology, internet and e-commerce.
IIM-A students also preferred to pursue internship opportunity in unusual sectors intended to discover suitable careers in social and regulatory roles.
A small number of students opted to intern with firms with a new start-up, which contributed in the 'Entre Fair'. This fair was prearranged on IIM-A campus on 12 October 2013.
Tanishq Goyal, recruitment secretary, IIM-A informed that, Boston Consulting Group was the higher recruiter In terms of number of offers, who picked 14 students from the campus.
The IIM-A adopted an approach on cohort-cluster, in which companies to offer similar roles are grouped together and a certain number of cohorts are requested to visit campus to hold recruitment process throughout a particular cluster.

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

MBAUniverse.com B school Ranking 2013-14: Why IIMB, SPJIMR, XIMB, IMI, IIM T are big gainers

 

This article will deal with such B schools which have been big gainers as far as the ranking 2013-14 is concerned as compared with previous years ranking.


The 4th edition of annual MBAUniverse.com B-schools Ranking 2013 - 14 came with a surprise change in the hierarchies of many leading B schools. This article will deal with such B schools which have been big gainers as far as the ranking 2013-14 is concerned as compared to the previous year’s ranking. 
MBAUniverse.com B schools ranking is India’s most comprehensive & ‘toughest’ MBA ranking in which 11 IIMs and virtually every top 100 B-schools from across the country participated.
The entry of six new IIMS in the top 30 B Schools in the MBAUniverse.com B school ranking 2013-14 has made a great difference to this year’s rankings as a result many well known B schools have lost their previous ranking positions.
The biggest surprise of the ranking 2013-14 has been Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB) which got rank 2 by pushing Indian Institute of Management Calcutta (IIMC) down to the third rank. While IIM Ahmadabad kept its crown of India’s number one B school. 
The ranking survey has been conducted under the guidance of a high-power advisory body, headed by Padma Shree Dr Bakul Dholakia, former director of IIM Ahmedabad.  Appreciating the Ranking process, Dr Dholakia said, “As the Chairman of the MBAUniverse.com Ranking 2013-14 Advisory Body, I am satisfied with the objectives, processes adopted, and the final outcome of the Rankings. I applaud MBAUniverse.com for getting relevant data from virtually every B-school that matters, even if they had to use provisions of RTI Act in some cases.”
B School Ranking 2013 - 14: MBAUniverse.com released; offers many surprises
MBAUniverse.com used the provision of Right to Information (RTI) to gather valuable information from maximum number of B Schools from across the country. 

Click below to Apply to top B schools for MBA Admission 2014
B Schools with improved rankings
Many well known B schools have improved their rankings in MBAUniverse.com B schools ranking 2013-14 as compared to the previous year’s rankings. The description about some of them is as follows.
SP Jain Institute of Management (SPJIMR), Mumbai
SP Jain Institute of Management, Mumbai (SPJIMR) which was on rank 9 in the previous improved its ranking to 6 in MBAUniverse.com 2013-14 ranking. It also got a better placement salary of Rs 15,95,000 for the placement session 2013 as compared to the previous placement session. It also got a cut off of 92% based on CAT 2012.

Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT), New Delhi
Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT), New Delhi which was at the rank 13 in the previous year’s ranking improved its ranking to 11 in the MBAUniverse.com 2013-14 ranking. It also got an improved average placement of Rs 11, 50,000 in the placement session 2013.

International Management Institute (IMI), New Delhi
The International Management Institute (IMI), New Delhi has also been one of the main gainers with jumping to the rank 12 from the previous year’s ranking of 16. It got a median placement of Rs 9, 80,000 for the placement session 2013. It also got a cut off percentile of 92.5 based on CAT 2012.

Xavier Institute of Management (XIMB), Bhubaneswar
XIMB, Bhubaneswar improved its position in MBAUniverse.com ranking 2013-14 to rank 13 as compared to the rank 17 which it got in the previous ranking. It got an improved median salary of Rs 11,36,000 for the placement session 2013. It got a high cut off percentile of 94 based on CAT 2012 and XAT 2013 respectively.

Indian Institute of Management , Tiruchirapalli (IIM Trichy )
Among the new IIMs, IIM Trichy has been the main gainer at rank 19 by unsettling TAPMI to rank 22 from the previous year’s ranking of 19. Having a faculty size of 19 it got an improved median placement of Rs 11,50,000 lakhs. It got a cut off percentile of 80 based on both CAT 2012.

Click below to know the complete list of MBAUniverse.com B Schools ranking 2013-14 http://www.mbauniverse.com/BSchoolRanking2014/mba-rankings-comparative-business-school-rankings.php

JIMS Rohini - TOI organize HR Strategy Summit

JIMS Rohini and Times of India organized HR Strategy Summit on October 23, 2013, the theme of which was the new "R" word! Re-tooling, re-skilling and rejuvenating.


An HR Strategy Summit was recently organized by Jagan Institute of Management Studies (JIMS ) Rohini & The Times of India on the topic R word ; Re-tooling, Re-skilling and Re-juvenating,  providing an insight into the concept of the new age Human Resource Practices.
It aimed at an enriched deliberation amongst industry stalwarts on revitalizing the concept of the new age HR practices. Event was an excellent learning experience for students and faculty.
Speaking on the event Mr. Jitin Prasada, Minister of State for Human Resources and Development said “young and dynamic population of the country needs to be given the right channel, education and values.”
Mr Manish Gupta, Chairman, JIMS also emphasized on crisis, competition and consolidation faced by the Global market.
Distinguished guest including Mr. Ranjan Roy, Associate Editor, The Times of India; Mr Manish Gupta, Chairman, JIMS; Mr. D. Shivakumar, Ex-Head of Emerging Markets, Nokia; Dr T.V Rao, Chairman, TVRLS, Ahmedabad; Mr. Anurag Malik, Partner-People & Organisation, E& Y and others also addressed the session.
Mr Jitin Prasada also launched a coffee table book "Educators" by TOI, which is a compilation of profiles of 16 private institutions in the NCR, discussing the role of private educators in creating an education cluster.
Click below to Apply to top B schools for MBA Admission 2014

Jagan Institute of Management Studies (JIMS) Rohini imparts professional education at post graduate level in the fields of management and Information Technology. It has been built with an aim to impart education that surpasses the benchmarks of excellence. To achieve the motto it has a comprehensive pedagogical structure which provides paramount academic skills, curriculum with the ever-evolving dynamics of global business environment, esteemed faculty with their vast experience and expertise and world class facilities.
Prepare for XAT 2014, IIFT, NMAT, SNAP, IBSAT XAT 2014: Paper pattern, Key dates, B schools using XAT Scores

IIM Bangalore closes summer internships

Technology giants such as Google, Microsoft and Juniper Networks took part at IIM Bangalore (IIMB) Summer Placement programme.
Technology companies offered unique roles to students selected. Big players from the e-commerce segment included Amazon (12 offers) and Flipkart (10 offers) for different profiles including operations.
Tata Steel and Maersk Line also extended offers for operations roles. Media houses like Bennett Coleman and HT Media visited the campus adding diversity to the range of profiles offered.
Students also showed interest in start-ups like TaxiforSure and FreeCharge, choosing companies offering hands-on experience of working in a start-up environment over regular recruiters.
“These students will gain exposure to entrepreneurial ventures during their stint working with start-ups which aligns well with IIMB’s philosophy of promoting the entrepreneurial spirit among students,” Professor Sankarshan Basu, Chairperson, Career Development Services, IIMB.
With 106 women in the batch, students received offers from regular as well as new recruiters across sectors.
IIM Bangalore played host to an increasing number of MNCs and banks who hired for international career programs and more than 50 students are expected to intern at international destinations.
The placement programme saw new recruiters on campus which included Roland Berger, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Juniper Networks, Maersk Line, Feedback Infra, C.K. Birla Group, Landmark Group and iNautix.
Management Consulting
Around 23 per cent of the batch will intern in the consulting sector. Big recruiters this year were The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) with 15 offers, McKinsey & Co. with 11 offers, and Accenture Management Consulting making 10 offers.
Other prominent recruiters included Alvarez & Marsal, A.T. Kearney, Bain & Co., Booz & Co., Deloitte, Roland Berger and Siemens Management Consulting.
Sales & Marketing
Around 29 per cent of the batch received offers for sales and marketing internships. Procter & Gamble and Hindustan Unilever hired 11 and 8 interns respectively for domestic and international locations. Top FMCG companies who continued showing keen interest in talent from IIMB included Nestle, Kraft Foods, PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, GlaxoSmithKline and Reckitt Benckiser. Johnson & Johnson and DuPont participated in the process offering international marketing leadership programme. Other major recruiters in marketing space included Airtel, Abbott, Asian Paints, Philips and Vodafone.
General Management
Around 12 per cent of the batch has chosen to intern in this sector. Aditya Birla Group with 11 offers was the top recruiter this year. Conglomerates offering general management and leadership programs such as TAS, Mahindra & Mahindra, GE, Shell, Reliance and Cairn also recruited in higher numbers. Firms such as C.K. Birla Group and Syngenta participated for the first time selecting students for general management roles.
The Summer Placement process for the Class of 2015 at IIM Bangalore (IIMB) concluded in a record time of three days, placing the largest ever batch of IIMB. The Summer Internship Placement process was completed in six slots spread over three days. A total of 135 recruiters visited the campus resulting in 398 internship offers for students of PGP program, the flagship program of IIM Bangalore. Five students with more than 34 months of work experience opted out of summer internship process.

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Less Women Aspirants for CAT, again for this year

As compared to CAT 2012, a dip of 2,500 female candidates competing for the desirable admission seats at the IIMs will occur this year. Although several IIMs take measures to cover in a decent gender ratio in their management course each year, yet CAT registrations 2013 have observed mere a marginal increase in the applications submitted by females, ranging from approximately 28.43% of the total registrations in 2012 to a 30% this year.
Though the number of female applicants for CAT registration is on the rise, 2013’s overall reduced registration has seen a fall in the number of women aspirants too. As informed by Rohit Kapoor (the convener of CAT-2013 besides, Professor at IIM-Indore)”Approximately one third of the total registrations are coming from women, which is quite a good number,”. He also said to have given no extra incentives at his institute in order to attract female aspirants.
On the other hand, many IIMs are attempting to improve the tilted gender ratio on their campuses. IIMs of Ahmedabad, Bangalore, and Calcutta have also noticed a rise in women candidates after they pulled admission policies to draw more women. These b-schools had over 100 female students in the batch of year 2013-15.

Once the Voucher is purchased, is registration possible after the last date of registration?

No, the registration is not possible after the last date of registration i.e. 26 September 2013, even if the Voucher has been purchased on time. Purchasing the voucher is the first step of the registration process and regisration gets completed only after the further steps get finished which includes creation of your profile and hence forth.

Is CAT 2013 Voucher amount refundable?

No, CAT voucher once sold cannot be refunded under any circumstances including but not limited to
  1. If the voucher is lost
  2. the voucher number is not readable due to mishandling of the voucher by the candidate
  3. candidate is found to be ineligible for taking the CAT test
  4. CAT not be a prerequisite for the program
  5. Candidates’ registration s rejected for providing incorrect  / incomplete  information.

What is NDA Agreement in CAT Exam 2013?

NDA or Non-Disclosure Agreement in CAT 2013 Exam is signed by the candidates appearing for the exam. As per the Agreement, all candidates appearing for CAT 2013 exam are prohibited from disclosing, publishing, reproducing or transmitting the test information, in whole or in part, in any form or by any means, verbal or written, electronic or mechanical and for any purpose. The IIMs can initiate legal action against any person found to be in violation of this NDA. Such person shall also be in violation of Indian Contract Act, 1872 and / or the Copyright Act, 1957 and / or the Information Techonolgy Act, 2000 and the actions and / or abetment may constitute a cognizable offence punishable with imprisonment for a term up to 3 years and fine up to Rs.2 lakhs.

Solving Critical Reasoning questions in MBA Entrance Exams

Critical Reasoning is an important aspect of the management entrance examinations. It is very helpful in solving Reading Comprehension, Paragraph Completion and Summary type questions.
The types of questions based on critical reasoning are strengthening/ weakening the argument, strengthening/ weakening the conclusion and finding the assumption. Let us look at each type.
Paragraph 1:
Yesterday, I went to the park. The weather was nice and sunny. The park has a lot of greenery. There were a lot of dogs. Hence, I should stop going to the park.
Question:
We need to find the assumption for this argument.
Solution:
The first 4 sentences make up the premise. Sentences beginning with “Hence” signify that they are conclusions.  The gap that bridges the premise and the conclusion is that I should stop going to the park because of the presence of dogs. Hence, that is the assumption.
Paragraph 2:
Pushkar Village is the only village in the nation that borders two national parks— Pushpika and Batika. These parks protect and preserve nationally known marine ecosystems that attract visitors from all over the world and provide us with amazing places to appreciate and recreate. Unfortunately, both parks face serious threats from developers who want to build new homes near the parks.
Question:
Which of the following strengthens the author’s argument?
a)      Pushkar Village has two parks.
b)      The two parks protect ocean life, attract tourists, and provide us with places to enjoy.
c)       Developers destroy national parks and are greedy people.
d)      Pushkar Village should encourage residents to visit its two national parks.
Solution:
To solve such questions you need to understand the theme of the argument. Read the question carefully to see whether the whole argument has to be strengthened or a part which is mentioned in the question. You have to provide an additional fact that supports the theme of the argument. Any irrelevant data would not affect the argument.
Option B strengthens the author’s view as it provides a correct explanation for why the parks should not be replaced by the builders.
Paragraph 3:
On a recent Saturday morning at 9 a.m., I was driving from South Extension towards Connaught Place. All the roads, including Asoka Road, Janpath, and Minto Road had been taken over by bicyclists riding in groups on the middle of the road. With total disregard of car traffic or safety, they ignored traffic signals, ran red lights, and cut in front of cars. Police regulation is needed.
Question:
Which of the following weakens the author’s argument?
a)      Roads in New Delhi are dangerous for drivers.
b)      People should not drive around Connaught Place on Saturday mornings.
c)       Bicycle riders in Connaught Place do not obey traffic laws and are a hazard to drivers.
d)      There was a circular stating the ride and traffic had been cordoned in Connaught Place for Saturday.
Solution:
You have to provide an additional fact that opposes the theme of the argument.  Any irrelevant data would not affect the argument. Option D is the correct answer as it gives a reason as to why the author faced the traffic problems.
One can also solve by eliminating the options. The wrong options usually fall into the following categories:
  • Opposite: An option which contradicts the argument. This option weakens the argument.
  • Irrelevant: Has no effect on the argument.
  • Off-track: An option which is related but does not hit the bull’s eye. A wayward answer choice.
  • Beyond Scope: An option having extra data.
  • Absurd: is extremely irrelevant. E.g. An argument that focuses on hair-loss; but the option talks of stomachache.
  • Poetic: They are looking for a logical choice and not a poetic one.
  • General statements: Defining or preaching statements.
  • Narrow statement: Too specific to only one aspect of the argument.

53 Differently-abled Candidates sat in the CAT on 24 October

Out of 6,346 candidates who took the Common Aptitude Test (CAT) on 24 October 2013, 53 were differently-abled ones.
"Prometric is committed to providing all candidates -- regardless of physical ability -- a fair opportunity to be judged on their merits. Today's delivery of the CAT included a dedicated scheduling of DA candidates. All testing candidates have completed their exams and the day has concluded successfully," said Soumitra Roy, general manager, Prometric India, in a statement.
The testing assistive devices that DA candidates were allowed to bring for the CAT, depending on the type of support requested, are abacus (without calculator), hearing aid, wheel chair, magnifying screen (provided at the test centre) and/or a scribe/reader, said Roy.

Tips for Paragraph Completion Questions in MBA Entrance Exams

Paragraph completion is a prominent question type in CAT exams. In case of para-completion questions, one needs to complete the sentence of the paragraph. When you say paragraph completion does not necessarily mean that one needs to find a conclusion of the paragraph. Paragraphs are typically picked up from larger articles. The question maker can join two or more paragraphs or could handover one previous paragraph and a test taker would need to supply the beginning of the next paragraph. Sounds difficult, but if one reads carefully, by gauging the tone and theme of a passage it is possible to understand what an author would want to say. We have already put into practice the methods of skimming and scanning in our RC sessions. Those concepts will help us to solve para-completion. Let us look at what tone and theme would mean and how we can apply them to solve para-completion.
Tone represents the dominant emotion or mood of the author towards the topic. Tone can be gauged by paying attention to the adjectives used by the author. Passages are normally the author’s reaction to some issue. If one can perceive the emotion in this reaction one can get very close to the right one.
A paragraph revolves around a theme. Hence the sentence which continues it has to continue the theme. If a choice is far away from the theme then it is said to be beyond the scope of the paragraph.
Example CAT 2005:
The audiences for crosswords and Sudoku, understandably, overlap greatly, but there are differences, too. A crossword attracts a more literary person, while Sudoku appeals to a keenly logical mind. Some crossword enthusiasts turn up their noses at Sudoku because they feel it lacks depth. A good crossword requires vocabulary, knowledge, mental flexibility and sometimes even a sense of humor to complete. It touches numerous areas of life and provides an "Aha!" or two along the way.
a. Sudoku, on the other hand, is just a logical exercise, each one similar to the last.
b. Sudoku, incidentally, is growing faster in popularity than crosswords, even among the literati.
c. Sudoku, on the other hand, can be attempted and enjoyed even by children.
d. Sudoku, however, is not exciting in any sense of the term.
Solution:
Let us solve this by elimination. B gets eliminated because of the idea of ‘popularity’ in it. This is a new idea and will require some reader intervention to support it. Reader intervention is not required in the last sentence of a paragraph. C gets eliminated because of ‘even by children’; we need to assume that children lack ‘vocabulary’ etc. mentioned in the paragraph. D contradicts the paragraph. The paragraph says it appeals to a logical mind. A effortlessly closes the paragraph. The comparison between Crossword and Sudoku is completed and the purpose of the paragraph is fulfilled.
Hence, the correct answer is A.
Other pints to be kept in mind while looking at the options is:
Summing up: Many times the correct choice sums up the discussion in the paragraph.
Pronoun antecedent: As seen in para-jumbles, pronoun antecedent linkage can also be used to crack these questions.
Last sentence is important: Though the right choice should be related to the topic running in the paragraph, the last sentence before the blank is an important clue to the right choice.
Creative end: Sometimes the correct choice turns out to be a short creative one which adds on/carries forward the second last line in an emphatic manner.
Parajumble approach: Sometimes the choices can be logically rearranged like a para-jumble.
When eliminating options one can check the flaws that exist in wrong options:
Repetition: Many a times the option repeats what has been said in the paragraph.
Abruptness: This happens when the choice moves from general to specific or vice-versa too fast.
Beyond Scope: This happens when the choice is distanced from the theme beyond relevant boundaries.
Opposite: This happens when the choice is opposite in theme or tone to the paragraph.
Generally the wrong options have the following characteristics:
Incomplete:  When one reads this option one gets a feeling that it is incomplete in summarizing the passage.
Excessive information/ Verbosity (too lengthy): When one reads this choice one gets a feeling that the choice is long-winded and verbose.
Wrong information / Misleading: This is very common. The choice seems to sum up the paragraph but one or two elements are deliberately twisted or distorted. Hence the option is misleading.
Extra information/ beyond scope: In this the choice talks about things not mentioned in the paragraph.