Harvard 2013 (HBS) - Calling All Applicants

Included a thank you as part of my reflection too.

Posted from my mobile device

I agree - Dee's emails are well-timed and informative! 12 on 12-12-12 cannot come soon enough.

I interviewed Friday, Nov 16th. I also did not send a thank you card. Between expressing gratitude in the post-interview reflection and the generic email address, I did not feel the separate thank you was needed (despite the urge to still send something...).

Did anyone else feel their interview was atypical? (mainly RE the types of questions asked).

If by 'atypical' you mean not having questions such as "Why HBS?", "Why MBA?", etc., then yeah it was definitely atypical. All my questions were based off from my application. But I felt that those questions did not try to trick me or anything and could be anticipated if I were to read my application as a third person (seeking greater clarity on my decisions, etc).

Was yours different?

I also had a very relaxed, conversational interview based completely on my resume and the choices that I have made in my career. I think the process is now truly about selecting a class rather than evaluating people - unless you flubbed the interview really badly as Sandy notes.

I had an incredibly atypical interview with one of the people Sandy mentioned earlier. All of my questions were oddball questions that had nothing to do with my application/resume, background/experience, why bschool/MBA. They were not behavioral questions either. I had visited clear admit in advance and only one of my 12/13 questions had been previously asked. It didn't feel conversational even though he had asked me to relax prior to beginning. It felt rapid fire, and questions bounced around with no real direction or connection to one another. Before my current job in clean tech, I had worked in investment banking and have gone through many investment banking, consulting, and other oddball type interviews (e.g. Google). I have to say that I left this interview feeling the worst out of any interview I've ever had. Reading through others' experiences here, I'm envious that most others received a job-like or conversational-style interview based on experiences and career. At least my interviewer was incredibly warm and friendly, which certainly helped calm my nerves. But alas, it's over now! Time to wait...

Oy! That's rough. But maybe they were trying to test an ability to handle stressful situations - anyway, I'm sure it probably went better than you think it did - but 12/12 can't come soon enough!

This sums up my experience, though I interviewed on campus. I reviewed the clearadmit wiki and unofficial HBS interview guide and also had a few mock interviews with current students - none of which prepared me for the majority of the questions I was asked. The interviewers were very nice, but some of the questions bordered on case interview style and required significant thinking on my feet beyond just knowing my application and transition story.

An interesting similarity: we both are in cleantech.

If it makes you feel any better, I also interviewed on campus and I feel that part of my interview was based on my application - ie: clarifying what I do on a regular basis - but the other half seemed rapid fire. I probably received 20 questions (at least felt that way) in the 30 minutes. This of course does not help the agonizing wait between interviewing at the end of October and replaying the interview over and over in my head. I felt like I was spinning when I walked out and now feel that this was the worst of my interviews. I'm sure part of that is the passage of time, but it makes this wait horrible!

I'm not in cleantech.

the wait is certainly horrible! all I can say is I wasn't terribly thrilled by the prospect of a post-interview reflection before the interview...but was very happy to have the last word after the interview...

lol, I was not thrilled about having the last word. My interview was quite thorough, so I found myself not having a lot more to get off my chest. Plus the internet went down at the place I was staying and I ended up having to rush to three coffee shops that morning before I found one with working internet...yeah, that was fun. Oh well, it's done. Now just need to stay extremely busy for the next 16 days!

Wow, these experiences sound crazy... I am not sure what to make of the intense interviews versus ones that were pretty laid back. Don't want to read too much into it, but do you think interviewers have freedom as to which questions to ask? That might explain the variance.

Yeah - I am both surprised and not surprised at the incredible variability in experiences. But I really think the interviewers have an idea up front on what they are trying to test/learn from the interview experience.

Mine was 90% based on my resume. This was not what I was expecting, but preferred as I think it is very easy to talk about what I have done at work. The questions were very specific about projects I had listed/the role our team served, etc. Zero questions about strengths/weaknesses/traits/tell me about a time, etc. In retrospect, being a younger candidate may have been the reason for the focus on work experience.

The next 16 days will be torturous to say the least...

Also not a fan of the post-interview reflection. I can see how it could be helpful to some, but when you feel like your life was clearly out on the table, it is hard to know what to say without botching anything up. Add that to the list of things playing in my head for the next 16 days! I'm sure, if admitted, I'll claim that it was a fantastic way to let the adcom get to know me. Certainly do not feel that way now!