If I feel strongly about an issue, should I voice my feelings?
It is important to be cool and emotionally objective in a
GD. If you react emotionally you are likely to lose control over yourself
during the group discussion. You have to be calm and logical, not emotional in
a GD.
Can I use technical terms or jargon, which is clear to me, but not to the group?
If you have to use technical terms, please do not use
abbreviations. After mentioning the term in full take time out to explain to
the group what it means. It is quite likely that other participants of the
group have a different academic background from you, and you should make sure
you are all on a level playing field.
Do I begin my participation by requesting the group's permission to do so?
It is not likely that you will get a chance to ask for such
permission. It may also go against you (as appearing weak on your part).
What is the right time to enter a GD to ensure that I am heard properly?
In any GD, there are crests and troughs during the discussion.
The crest is when the noise level is at its peak. The trough is when there is
almost total silence. Ideally, you should enter the GD during the trough
period. But in competitive GDs, the crests occur more often and troughs may not
occur at all. In such cases, you could identify the stages in the GD, where
ideas dear to you are being discussed and enter the