Aside from your personal statement, the MBA application interview is one of the things that you need to pass with flying colors in order to ensure a slot in your chosen school. Connecticut College shares some tips on how to ace the interview.
Be yourself, be on time, and be physically prepared
- Be yourself. The goal of the interview is to get to know you.
- Be on time. Plan on arriving 10 to 15 minutes early.
- Be prepared to engage in conversation for about a half hour.
- Wear appropriate clothing.
Never be late for an admissions interview. This will only leave you with minus points on your application. Another important thing you have to do before the interview is to prepare. Prepare yourself emotionally, psychologically, and physically. You have to wear a suit or any clothing that best suits the affair. You want to make a positive impression.
Be positive, be enthusiastic, and be smart during the MBA application interview
- Be positive. Avoid saying “I hate”
- Avoid one-word answers. Be prepared to elaborate.
The important thing to remember is that you have to exude the aura of positivity. This means you have to convey positive thoughts through your answers. Aside from this, you have to show the admissions panel your enthusiasm. This will show how you really value your application. You also have to prepare for the questions. Before heading to the venue, make sure that you do your research well.
Be honest and be yourself
- It is ok to say “I don’t know” It is better to be honest than to make anything up.
- Do not answer in the way you feel the interviewer “wants” Again, be yourself.
- Don’t be nervous. It’s just a conversation. And remember: it’s all about YOU.
Make sure that it is your idea you are conveying during the interview and not just anyone else’s. Have confidence and be sincere when answering questions. According to this excerpt from another article:
Candidates ought not to try and “second guess” or patronize the interviewer(s) by responding with answers they think are wanted. Some interviewers play the “devil’s advocate” When “I don’t know” is the honest reply, it should be used.
You have to remember that interviewers have interviewed hundreds or even thousands of applicants before you. For sure, they have ways of seeing through your lies.
MBA application interview is your chance to show that you deserve a slot in the chosen MBA program. Don’t blow this chance. Prepare, be yourself, and have confidence during the interview.
Your MBA essays and GMAT scores are not everything about your MBA application. Your MBA admissions interview is also one of the tickets to your application. Kokalta Dreams has a lot of sample questions that could aid you in paving your way to the MBA school of your dreams.
Common interview questions for MBA admissions
# Why business school?
# Why did you decide to apply to this business school?
# What makes you stand out among other candidates?
# What can you contribute to our program?
The questions asked during the MBA admissions interview are usually about your goals and purposes in applying to an MBA school. These also include your valuable characteristics that could make you a deserving MBA student. It is important that you read your personal statement so that your answers on the interview and the things you wrote in your essay about your goals are consistent.
# What would you say is your biggest weakness?
# What are your greatest strengths?
# How would your colleagues describe you?
# What are your hobbies?
Your MBA admissions interview is just like your MBA essay, as it tackles a lot of personal things about you. In the interview, you are also asked about your favorite hobbies, strengths, as well as weaknesses. One blog also tells something about the personal aspect of MBA admissions.
Interviews may include behavioral questions. Questions may center on specific examples or detailed descriptions of events, projects or experience that demonstrate how situations you’ve faced in the past have been handled and what you learned from them. Behavioral interviewing holds that past performance predicts future behavior.
Behavioral interviews help admission officers learn more about the applicants. However, this type of interview may not be widely used in all universities. This is why you should prepare yourself to answer any type of interview question. Also make sure that you are honest and sincere because the admissions committee can see through your lies.
The do’s for the interview
* Do plan to arrive at least ten minutes early. Know where the interview location is and know how long it takes to get there.
* Do prepare and practice answers for common interview questions. Don’t wait until the night before to begin preparation. The sooner you start, the more comfortable you will be.
* Do dress for success. Jeans and T-shirts have no place at an interview. When in doubt, be conservative.
Preparing for an MBA admissions interview is necessary. It is the first and the most important part of the interview process. You have to choose your attire carefully. You also have to practice answering probable questions. Preparation can actually boost your confidence.
The don’ts for the interview
* Don?t reschedule the interview unless it is absolutely unavoidable.
* Don’t forget the interviewer’s name.
* Don’t forget to smile.
* Don’t answer every question with a simple yes or no. Elaborate on your answers whenever possible.
* Don’t lie. Answer questions honestly and frankly.
* Don’t ever offer any negative information about yourself.
* Don’t forget to verbally thank the interviewer for their time and consideration.
These tips may seem common but they are still worth mentioning because many still forget to avoid these MBA admissions no-no’s. Committing a single no-no from the list above can have a detrimental impact on your application. This is why before you go to the interview, make sure that you read and keep the list above in mind.
If you are really aspiring to be an MBA degree holder, you should make sure that you fare well in the admissions interview. Like your essay and GMAT, the interview result matters a great deal. This is why you really have to prepare yourself for the admission interview.
How important is your MBA admission essay in the whole school application process? Generally speaking, your essay is one of the factors that could make or break your application. It has a domino effect on the application process. It can even influence the interview questions. MBA Admission secrets tells us about the importance of MBA admission essay and how it impacts your interview.
Interviews present a great opportunity for applicants to seal the admission deal…The questions that may arise may be as simple as probing for more details with regards to an essay you wrote. It could be feedback that your mistake essay seems weak and for you to come up with another example. Perhaps the choice of essays and the way you approached all your essays did not reveal fully who you are and this could be a flag that the admission committee has about you. Perhaps you have focused too much on work or too much on your personal/community side. The important thing with preparing for your interview is to have one or two people who know you well evaluate your admission essays and identify the knee-jerk response/issues that jump out at them. Then you may want to have an objective person who has experience evaluating candidates to assess your story in order to flag blind spots and potential gaps/issues which you can prepare for ahead of the interview.
Tips in acing the interview
Preparation for the interview requires a lot of effort. As part of your preparation, you should read blogs written by students who made it into prestigious schools. Here’s an excerpt from a blog where you can find a lot of tips that could help you prepare for MBA.
Tip #1: Share stories that demonstrate your leadership skills, team experience and approach to solving complex problems.
Tip #2: A confident appearance goes a long way.
Tip #3: Be passionate about future goals.
Tip #4: Be authentic with your interviewer, and don’t assume SOM is looking for a specific candidate.
Tip #5: Have clear career goals upon graduation, and explain how an MBA from Yale SOM with help get you there.
Tip #6: Show how your goals tie in with the school’s mission of educating leaders for business and society.
Tip #7: Don’t over-sell your volunteer work, and have confidence in the contributions business makes to society.
MBA admission interviews in Stanford
You should not only prepare yourself for questions based on your personal statement. Some universities ask questions about almost any topic. For a more specific example, let’s take a look at how Stanford conducts their MBA admission interviews.
Some schools outsource their interviews to alumni primarily. Stanford GSB is an example. My advice to candidates interviewing at Stanford is to be prepared to talk about ANYTHING. The interview is really more of an assessment of who you are, your vibe, whether you will fit at Stanford versus how impressive your particular work project or leadership impact was. Subtlety is key. That’s not to say that other MBA programs do not ask for awareness. It matters regardless of MBA program but pay particular attention to it for Stanford. And know the schools’ brand. If a school is very big on team culture (think Kellogg, Tuck) for example, going on and on about what you did and your great, impressive achievements could signal that you are not a good fit for the program. It also appears that Stanford is taking a great deal of time in matching alumni interviewers with MBA applicants which is interesting because it allows the school to get a really good read on the candidate’s authenticity. Don’t however assume that this is based primarily on work experience similarities.
You can increase your chances of getting admitted by writing an interesting personal statement and acing the interview. You can accomplish these things if you make the necessary preparation. Prepare a clear essay and review it carefully, as some questions in the interview will probably come from it. However, you should also be ready to answer questions about topics not discussed in your essay.
