Calling all HBS Fall 2009 Applicants

Interesting. for all this talk about HBS interviews counting more than other schools, it seems like everyone's experiences has been uneventful / anti-climactic. I really wonder how adcom makes decisions after interviewing...

I'll tell you how: I saw two people who when greeted by their friendly interviewers and asked how they were doing simply responded "good". No, "thank you", "and you?", that's it. Just silence. Silence!

:facepalm:

So either they were rude or lying about their answer (real answer being "scared ****!").

Yea that and they have poor English skills... unless they actually are "doing good (deeds)".

yah.. people were sooooo stressed in the waiting room. it was rather funny. there was a guy pacing around mumbling to himself... there were a few people playing with their cell phones... one guy looked like he had drugged himself. Another kept going to the bathroom.

i was by no means not nervous... but jeez. I actually enjoyed the interview. my person was very friendly and i really enjoyed talking to her.

I agree 100%. While I'm not joyous about my interview, I actually quite liked it. The admissions group there is super friendly and easy-going.

i agree with egy and rca215. the adcom at harvard are super nice and friendly!
i had my interview yesterday--while the adcom members are very nice, it is nearly impossible to read them at all during the interview! i was hoping and praying for some signals of approval or disapproval but nothing at all. that was expected, but still can be frustrating if you are interviewing! no trick questions--my interviewer asked me a lot about career development and my plan post MBA which i thought was interesting..

btw, question for ppl who had their interviews on campus already--
did you guys write a thankyou email to your interviewers? if so, how did you guys go about it?
i'm wondering if 1) it is customary to send a thank you note to an adcom member 2) while i got the full name of my interviewer, i actually did not ger her email address. all i have is "admissionsboard@hbs.edu", which i'm guessing is everyone on the admissions board...

if you're typing a thank-you email how do you address your interviewer (if her name was say Mary Smith, do you say "Mary" or Ms. or "Mrs. Smith"?)

i would start with "dear mary" not "ms. smith"
i think that sounds more personable since you've met the interviewer in person but thats just my two cents...

It depends upon how they introduced themselves during the interview. If she says, Hi I'm Mary, then you can say Dear Mary. However, if she says, Hi, I'm Mary Smith, then I would use Mrs. Smith.

If they said "call me Mary" during the interview, go with Mary. If they just introduced themselves with their full name, I would say "Ms. Smith" (not Mrs. unless you know she is married... for a fact). For all my interviews they all stated "call me [insert first name], so my decisions were easy.

So thats my take.....

Recent article on HBS debate regarding future of MBA program.

Do you guys believe current HBS MBA program needs to be updated?

https://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/6053.html

did people bring copies of the resumes for HBS interviews? or literally just walk in empty handed?

I brought a resume but my interviewer had one already.

Quick question - As you prepare for your HBS interview, are you guys brushing up on current events? Or do you think that's beyond the scope of an HBS interview?

NOT beyond the scope. but as long as you're a thinking/breathing person, it shouldn't be too hard to talk about all the crazy things going on in the world.

ditto. Best to look prepared though. Personally, I would feel weird walking into an interview empty handed.