UCLA Anderson 2012 - Calling All Applicants

Nothing on my side yet. Hopefully that changes this week
Last invite from the 2011 thread was the second week of December (just saying...)

that's scary, hahaha

aaaand commence hyperventilating. just kidding. kinda

Last year they had 20% fewer applicants, so maybe it took less time.

Hi Anderson applicants! FYI if you're applying to Anderson through the Consortium Graduate Study in Management (CGSM), hop over to the Consortium 2012 Forum and Update Your Profile to reflect that you are applying through the Consortium.

It's simple. Just select your school as "Consortium, the", then indicate which specific institution(s) you'll be applying to and the Consortium round you'll be applying in. You can do all of this easily through the handy 'Add to Your Schools' link on the front page of the Consortium 2012 Forum.

We have a special analytics specifically for those candidates applying via Consortium and lots of useful tips for your application and assessment of your candidacy.

Cheers!

Had my interview this evening with an alumni at a coffee shop in my city. He called me 15 minutes beforehand to tell me he'd be running a little late. His late arrival allowed me to find seats in the bustling and loud coffee shop. Once he arrived he grabbed a coffee while I saved our seats. He then sat down and briefly introduced himself. I mentioned I had actually seen him speak at a local UCLA information session a few months back.

He then pulled out my resume and began criticizing the format and detail level of it. He suggested I look into condensing it and have someone look it over. This was a shock as I just had three trustworthy professionals look over my resume recently for critique before submitting it to business schools. I used the format presented in Richard Montauk's admissions guide. First page is my professional work exp and the back is high level education, internships, EC. I did my best to take his "advice" in stride and keep going.

His first question was "Why UCLA?" I responded authentically. Next was "Why an MBA" which I had down comfortably from other interviews. Then came the curveballs.

He presented a scenario where I had to understand the different aspects of a companies operations and how to assign responsibility. He wanted me to explain what the operations director's responsibility would be when implementing a new feature into a new BMW. He wanted me to tell him what kind of people with what specific backgrounds would I select for a team of 4 to launch this new product.

I stumbled through the scenarios clumsily. This being my third bschool interview I felt pretty comfortable and confident beforehand. The previous two went very pleasantly. I was caught off guard from the moment this interview started. He mentioned he does a lot of interviews at the prestigious company he works at so I got the feeling he typically grills people.

He asked me to bring up examples of conflict within a team. I told two professional stories and neither satisfied. He wanted a story where no comprise was reached. He wanted to know what I'd do in the hypothetical situation that a coworker wouldn't back down in a disagreement but I knew I was right. I said I'd try to improve my communication with said coworker to understand each other better. "What if that doesn't work?" I suppose I'd go to my manager to get his opinion and direction. "What if that doesn't work, what then?" I was stumped and said I've been fortunate to have only work in groups where our big issues have been eventually been worked out.

The final question was asking me to describe a weakness of mine. I cited numerous areas of business I lack experience in and am excited to learn about in bschool. He didn't like that answer and wanted a personality weakness. I said I can grow impatient when I am not challenged. He agreed that he is the same way.

He then asked if I had questions, I asked a few about his professional experience and his school experience.

Obviously I would not say my interview went well. Luck of the draw I guess. Oh well.

I'm for round 2..freaking out with only a month to go!

Wow, that sounds brutal! I definitely would not have done well in that interview either. I had a tough off-campus as well for Kellogg, but this one definitely trumps my experience. If you've been on your third interview, you must be a strong candidate. I'm sure it will all work out. Good luck!

Wow this sounds intense. Sorry you had to go through the ringer! Honestly this makes me happy that I'm going to campus to do mine. From what I hear the on-campus interviews are pretty straightforward and laid back.

It sounds like you did a good job of dealing with his crazy questions though!

had my off-campus interview recently and it was pretty straight forward. I got the usual batch of questions such as why ucla, what other schools, why mba, went through my resume, examples of leadership, how would i make a decision of i got into all my schools..

I think if you review the clearadmit wiki for Anderson and prepare the most common questions, you will be well equipped to handle a "normal" interview

First, falcondevil - SO sorry to hear about your experience. Dont lose hope - remember that post a few pages back that said the adcom takes interviews with a grain of salt considering they are done by so many different people!

Second, just had an off-campus in NYC. Very casual chat at a Starbucks. Started by walking through my resume, which segued into why mba. Was asked how I found out about Anderson's program, tell me about a time I did something innovative, and what do I expect my Anderson experience to be like/what would I say I got out of it looking back on it. then I asked some questions... 60 min.

I liked how my interviewer didnt ask about other schools - he did say he assumed I was applying to other schools (and told me about the schools he applied to other than Anderson) - but didnt delve into it. Now the waiting game begins...oof

Good luck to everyone to with invites and those still waiting - there's still time!

Has anyone from India gotten a call yet? Seems weird that not too many international applicants have received the call (atleast in this thread)

How does UCLA interview internationally located candidates?

Is it skype/phone or an in-person alumni or adcom interview?

Getting to LA on Friday and leaving Saturday Night after my interview. I just pricelined a car for two days for $13 a day. Not too bad actually, probably much cheaper than cabs in LA (total was less than $45).

I am assuming that Saturday interviews are conducted by current students not adcoms, right? Looking forward to visiting UCLA campus. Im going to start researching UCLA specific initiatives/clubs/courses over the next few days.

Adcom is "killing me softly"

I was raised in and currently live in LA so PM me if you want any tips on things to do in LA while you are visiting. Same goes for anyone else interviewing on campus.

chirp chirp. No invites this week? Why do I have this sinking feeling...