AshForGMAT wrote:
Hi Guys,
Please can you help me understand how best to tackle the interview questions like Why MBA? What is it that the interviewer is looking for in this question?
Also how is it different from 'Why KFBS?' and 'What are you short term and long term goals?'
Thanks,
Ash
There are several things you need to understand about yourself / career goals before going into the MBA interview: what you want to do, why you want to do it, why an MBA will help you achieve those goals, and why specifically an MBA from XXX school. Furthermore, you need to be able to articulate answers to each of these questions in an intelligent manor.
Answers to the questions above will be different for every person, depending on goals etc.
Why an MBA? You should have a well laid out plan, or at least a flexible guideline for your career that depends on you achieving an MBA. Maybe you want to switch careers from Engineering to Marketing and you need the MBA to give you the toolset and ability to make the jump. Maybe you're climbing corporate ladder at a tech company and you need additional business sense on top of your engineering degree and experience. etc... Whatever your case here you should have some plan that requires you having the additional education; but make sure you truly believe in the plan adcoms hear these stories everyday and will point you out quickly if they think you're just throwing buzzwords at them.
Why KFBS? Each MBA program will work this question in somehow. Regardless of where you go in say the top 25 schools you'll get a great education from some VERY impressive / smart people. But, and this is a big but, not all programs are created equal with regard to other aspects. Some schools, like Harvard, teach exclusively using case method (KFBS is mostly case, but not all) while others are light on the case approach. Some schools are HUGE i.e. lots of students, Harvard / Wharton, and some are small, Tuck. You have to figure out what type of atmosphere is right for you; some schools are more competitive while others are more collaborative team based. Additionally, maybe one school has a professor that studies something you're interested in, one of the KFBS profs studies airport business models. Finally, don't forget about location, that varies a lot with the different business schools. Regardless of your answers for these questions you should definitely have done research on the B-School you're getting ready to interview and know a lot about it, and why you fit in and want to go there etc.
Short term and long term goals will factor into your answer to the "Why an MBA" question. Usually short term is within the next 5 years and long term is after that, i.e. if you could pick out a final job in your career what would it be. Be careful spitting out an answer of say CEO, your answer should be well thought out and follow a logical progression from short term to long term.
I hope this helps!
Andrew