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Which are the premier institutes that come under the
purview of the CET? What was the structure of the CET
2003?
- Sarah John, Pune
The top institutes, which come under the purview
of the CET, are JBIMS, Sydenham, K.J Somaiya,
Welingkar, PUMBA (Pune), Chetana and SIES. (Do
note that these institutes have not been ranked in any
order) The CET is of 2 and 1/2 hrs duration with about
200 questions spread over different areas. The
structure of the CET in 2003 was as follows:
Topic Area

No. of
Questions

Verbal Ability & Verbal

Reasoning

65

Reading Comprehension

Quantitative Aptitude

26

Data Interpretation

21

objective tests, which aim to test the applicants

aptitude. The scores indicate which students are
likely to do well in that particular course. However,
the test scores are not the only criterion for the final
selection, especially for the IIMs and other good
institutes. Most of the institutes test on two basic areas:
Quantitative Ability and Verbal Ability
Understanding the environment and possessing
While a good test score enables ones name to
appear on the merit list, the final selection depends
on performance at the Group Discussion and the
Personal Interview, which are held roughly two
months after the written test. Some institutes also
conduct General Knowledge - based tests.
knowledge about political, socio- economic and
business scenario is also an important parameter in
student selection. Though Group Discussion and
Personal Interviews test a candidates knowledge of
the same, institutes like FMS, XLRI, IIFT, test these in
the entrance test as well.

Logical & Analytical

Reasoning

50

Visual Reasoning

30

Total Questions

200

Time (Minutes)

150

Questions in the CET are arranged in random order

(questions are not grouped topic-wise). For example,
it is common to find, a question on arithmetic followed
by one on grammar. Hence time management and
flexibility in approaching questions from different
subjects and topic areas is an important factor for
success in this test. In the CET there is no negative
marking i.e., you are not penalised for incorrect
answers. Therefore it is imperative that you attempt
all the questions and intelligently guess the answers
to those you are unable to solve.

I aspire to do an MBA in 2005-07, what does MBA

admission process test?
- Sheetal Kanwar, Chandigarh
Most Management Entrance examinations are

I am working in a world-class software firm, and am

interested in pursuing an MBA should I pursue a full
time or part time MBA? Is it worthwhile to pursue MBA
by correspondence?
- Krishna Rao, Hyderabad
As you are already working with a world-class
software firm, you should now work towards an MBA
from an institute that will provide you with a
worthwhile value-add.
We believe that a two-year full-time residential
MBA program from the premier institutes in the
country will truly give you the complete MBA
Experience.
One of the factors contributing to your learning at
the B-School is the profile of the peer group. The mix
of experience and educational backgrounds will
enable you to learn from the experiences of other
members of the batch.
Also a full time program allows you to dedicate
yourself to the coursework and be able to participate

Advanc'edge MBA April 2004

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in a wide range of learning opportunities beyond the

classroom.
Further corporate recognition and placement
services generally focus on full-time students. Also
the contacts made at a B-school can help you
throughout your career.
It is comparatively difficult to develop the same
kind of relationships with peers - or do the same kind
of networking - that full-time students enjoy while
doing a part -time or correspondence course.
The entire MBA program is so designed, that the
maximum benefit is gained from a fulltime program.
However only, if you have a personal constraint
and cannot go in for a fulltime program should you
opt for a part-time or correspondence program like
the one offered by IGNOU.

I am interested in specialising in HR, what is HR, and

which are the best B-Schools?
Bishnu Sen, Ranchi
HR is a field for those who possess a flair for human
interaction. Out of the other resources available to the
company like Machines, Money, Materials; Man or
Human Resources forms the most volatile and

important resource. There are three broad

opportunities for HR professional: Human Resource
Development (HRD), Personnel Management and
Industrial Relations.
HRD managers are involved in activities like
performance appraisals, employee counselling,
employee training and employee development.
Personnel managers handle activities like
recruitments, salary management, attendance records,
employee welfare etc.
Industrial Relations Managers focus on labour and
trade union management especially at factories.
As an HR Professional you could work as part of
the HR team in a manufacturing/service organisation;
in an HR Consultancy or in a Manpower Placement
Consultancy.
The courses offered by TISS (Tata Institute of Social
Sciences), Mumbai and the PM&IR (Personnel
Management and Industrial Relations) Course at
XLRI, Jamshedpur are the best courses in Asia, in this
stream. Alternatively you should aim to do an MBA
from the top B-schools in India like IIMs, FMS, SPJain,
JBIMS etc and specialise in HR. You could also look
at dual specialisation from these institutes.

New learning facilitators on

www.advancedge.com
Advancedge MBA, since inception, has tried
to help MBA aspirants in all the three stages of
the selection process. Towards this, two new tools
have been put up on our website
www.advancedge.com.
The first is Admissions 2004: Want to know
the GD topics and PI questions? In this section,
we have compiled the GD topics as well as the PI
questions asked in the premier B-Schools of the
country during this year as well as last year.
The second is Upgrade Your Skills. In this section
we have put up some topics on the site followed by a
small essay on the topic. As far as possible we have
also put links under the topic, which will give you a
wider understanding of the topics.
Apart from these two tools, PRImE MBA gives all

MBA aspirants latest information on developments in

the premier B-Schools in terms of the Placements,
RecruItment, and reMuneration and Exchange
programs.
Please keep visiting the website as we would be
adding new learning tools to help supplement your
learning process.

Advanc'edge MBA April 2004