TJ wrote:
Hi,
Please add me onto the R2 Sloan list....I received my interview invite last week and it is scheduled for mid-Feb.
Any tips on the MIT interview would be greatly appreciated! Also, I'm trying to find a close yet reasonably priced place to stay close to
MIT...any suggestions?
I'm also on a R2 decision from Kellogg so thanks for all the useful posts comparing the pros/cons Steel and nontraditional...I hope to be having to make this difficult decision in a few months!
TJ
Many congratulations on the invite. Data are readily available that show that 2/3 of interviewees get in. More difficult to document is an admittedly unscientific statistic that riverripper suggested in November. I have no idea whether it's true, but it sure got me excited when I read it in December because my invite came pretty early. So, happy speculating.
riverripper wrote:
Judging by info available through the normal sources, it seems like if you get an interview quickly your chances are extremely high that you will get in.
My wife found me a room at the Kendall (
https://www.kendallhotel.com) for $100 per night. Apparently that's a super deal. It was a great hotel and it's a seven minute walk to the admissions office.
I showed up four hours early and wandered upstairs to where classes are held. I approached a student and asked if I could talk for a minute. He was super friendly and told me all about why he chose MIT. People started to join us and pretty soon I was surrounded by ~10 students. Someone rounded up two people from my region of the US. A few people invited me to lunch. It was nice to meet a bunch of students and realize that they are people just like you and me. Maybe you have nerves of steel, but I sure don't. I would advise you to find some students before your interview to get comfortable.
The advice they gave me:
Relax enough to let your personality shine. Recognize that if you're interviewing, you're most of the way there. They already think you're qualified. They just want to see whether you've got a personality.
Use STAR, but be natural about it. STAR is the way you naturally tell a story. Don't be all rigid about it.
You'll only get to tell two or three stories, so don't save your best stories for a perfect question.
I guess it worked for me, but it's worth what you paid for it. Good luck.