The Personal Information Questionnaire or PIQ form is often called the biodata of a candidate in SSB, which includes parts of their lives. It forms the basis of your assessment and hence, is an important document. However, a lot of candidates make errors in it, which they find negligible but aren’t so. Hence, today, we tell you the PIQ form mistakes you must avoid in your SSB.
What is PIQ Form?
PIQ stands for personal information questionnaire in SSB. It is a formal document that comprises key details of your life, and all screened in candidates have to fill it before they sit for stage two. In Army SSBs, PIQ forms are not filled at the centre, but carried by candidates as online PIQs from joinindianarmy.nic.in. However, AFSBs and NSBs still continue with the handwritten document.
Some important things that you need to fill in the form include:
- Places of residence
- Family-related information
- Your education and employment (if applicable) details
- Details about sports and extra-curricular activities
- Positions of responsibility/NCC/interests and hobbies
- Previous SSB attempts, if any
Five Common PIQ Form Mistakes
As we shared, your PIQ is the basis of your assessment in SSB because one copy goes to the psychologist, and the other goes to the interviewing officer. These two assessors refer to your PIQ form before they draw your profile.
Hence, you must avoid committing these PIQ form mistakes that can affect your assessment:
I. Exaggeration or false information
Candidates often succumb to the idea of ‘the more, the better’ and make tall claims in their PIQ. They exaggerate their achievements or write false information to impress the assessors but fall flat when questioned on the same. As an example,
Let’s say candidate X has an interest in music but he lies that he can play the guitar to look cool. When the IO asks him about the parts of a guitar or delves into its specifications, he cannot answer anything. This brings embarrassment to him.
If you don’t know about something, it’s better to avoid writing it because the IO is an experienced person, and he will delve deeper into whatever you write. So, to save yourself from embarrassment later, it’s better to either write genuine things or be thorough with whatever you write.
II. Overwriting or cutting things off
Overwriting is one of the PIQ form mistakes which applies to handwritten documents. Sometimes, you may write something and cut if off immediately, maybe due to spelling errors or being unsure. But, you should never do this.
The PIQ is a formal document and overwriting or cutting things off shows lack of clarity on your part or that you’re trying to hide something. After all, what can you expect from a person who cannot fill a two-page document neatly? Hence, fill your PIQ patiently at the centre.
III. Leaving blank spaces
This is one of the common PIQ form mistakes that I have encountered among fellow candidates. Since there are a lot of blocks to fill, some might not apply to you, for example, you may not have done post-graduation or NCC. But, you should refrain from leaving the space blank while writing.
Blanks show that you’ve overlooked that area and the psychologist may perceive it as negligence (SSB assessment is about the details, after all). Therefore, if you feel that you have nothing to write in a particular section, you can either put a dash or write, “N/A”, which means not applicable rather than leaving it blank.
IV. Copying PIQs of others
Sometimes, we are so hell bent on getting a recommendation that we tend to copy the PIQ of recommended candidates. However, this does not bring you the plus sign at all. Please know that each personality is uniquely formed via personal experiences, and these cannot be copied.
Anything and everything that you write in your PIQ will be scrutinized by the assessors, and they’ll catch your rehearsed answers within seconds. Hence, avoid such PIQ form mistakes and make the document about yourself and not someone else.
V. Forgetting what you wrote
Have you ever filled your PIQ form and forgotten some details that you wrote, such as your duration of participation or percentage? Well, it is quite common to be in such a position. However, you cannot afford to do so when you have your personal interview lined up because SSB operates on the congruence of ‘mansa, vacha, and karmana’.
So, an easy way to resolve this is to write those details on another sheet of paper for revision later. You can write about your duration of participation in an activity, or any other detail you find necessary on a rough sheet. This will save you from forgetting what matters, and make your answers more confident.
Some Other PIQ Form Mistakes
While the above-mentioned PIQ form mistakes are most prevalent, here is a list of those blunders that also affect your assessment in the long run.
- Writing incomplete information
- Mentioning hobbies or interests just to impress
- Having no sports to write at all
- Not writing things chronologically
- Trying to have the perfect personality
Remember that the assessors are not looking for a perfect person, but an average one who can be perfected over the years of service. Therefore, avoid PIQ form mistakes by being genuine and thorough with all your details to earn your recommendation from SSB.
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