With Round 2 application deadlines behind us and interview invitations being released in the coming weeks, many MBA hopefuls will soon be shifting their focus to interview prep if they haven\u2019t already.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s smart to get a head start, especially this year. We\u2019re finding that the turnaround time between an interview invitation and the big day is much tighter since interviews are being conducted virtually (i.e., there aren\u2019t travel constraints and it\u2019s easier to pair applicants with alumni because they don\u2019t have to be located in the same city). A current client of mine submitted his Kellogg application on the deadline and completed his interview just over two weeks later!<\/p>\n
In this<\/a> recent article, we provided some general tips on how to approach the interview portion of the MBA application process. Today I\u2019m going to get more tactical and share some of the questions you\u2019re likely to be asked as well as how to approach the answers.<\/p>\n Note that the advice that follows mainly applies to schools that conduct the common conversational, \u2018blind\u2019 interviews, not the more in-depth, probing type that schools like HBS, Stanford, and, to a certain extent, Sloan are known for. In addition, if you are interviewing at Wharton, here<\/a> is an article on how to prep for their Team Based Discussion.<\/p>\n Those caveats aside, here are three main types of questions you are likely to be asked in your MBA interview:<\/p>\n This question is more than just an ice breaker! It is your opportunity to take ownership of the conversation and really sell yourself to the interviewer. \u00a0It is also one that there is a very high likelihood you\u2019ll be asked so you should absolutely practice your answer (multiple times).<\/p>\n From a timing standpoint, 2-3 minutes in length is ideal and budget that time wisely. You don\u2019t want to spend two minutes on college and then speed through everything you\u2019ve done since you graduated! Try to spend more time discussing recent things like your current role and less time the further back something occurred.<\/p>\n From a content standpoint, the critical thing to cover is the \u2018why\u2019 behind each of your choices, from where you went to undergrad \/ what you studied to why you took each job you\u2019ve had since that time. The interviewer has seen your resume, so they know \u2018what\u2019 you\u2019ve done; this is your chance to demonstrate that you are planful, reflective, and consistently seek growth.<\/p>\n When they leave the conversation, your interviewer will be scoring you on a number of criteria including your ability to work in diverse teams, leadership potential, and history of achievement. \u00a0In addition to your resume, the best way they can assess your skills in these areas is by asking you for concrete examples of how you\u2019ve performed in the past. This is where the behavioral questions (i.e., \u2018tell me about a time when\u2026\u2019) come into play.<\/p>\n While it\u2019s tempting to build an exhaustive list of questions people have been asked in the past and then script your answers, this is not the approach I\u2019d recommend. Instead, brainstorm your 4-5 best \u2018stories\u2019 \u2013 the capstone achievements that best showcase the skills adcoms seek while remaining consistent with your personal brand<\/a>. Then<\/em>, run through interview reports<\/a> to see the types of behavioral prompts you may get and assess which of your stories fit. The key is to share your most impressive achievements within the confines of the questions you are asked \u2013 the interview is short and you may not have a chance to talk about them later!<\/p>\n For each story you tell, use the SAR (Situation \/ Action \/ Result) framework with which you\u2019re likely familiar and aim to spend roughly two minutes on your answer. After setting up the situation in language that is jargon free and understandable to a broad audience, spend the bulk of your time on the actions you<\/em> took to ensure a successful outcome. Make the interviewer feel like they were there \u2013 share what you said during an important conversation, how the other party responded, etc. Lastly, don\u2019t forget to share the final result and, critically, why it was important to your company or organization. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n This group of questions is arguably the most critical of those you\u2019ll be asked in your interview. At the root of it, schools use the interview to assess: 1) if this person is admitted, are they likely to attend and robustly contribute to our program and 2) once this person graduates, are they likely to become a leader in their chosen field and be an asset to our alumni network. Show them that the answer to both of these questions is \u2018yes\u2019 by communicating a convincing narrative around why you need the degree and why that particular program is the ideal fit for you. \u00a0<\/p>\n The great thing is that you\u2019ve likely already given significant thought to these topics while writing your essays. The task now is to verbalize them in a concise yet thorough manner, being sure to connect the dots between your past experiences \/ passions, what you hope to achieve in the future, and how the specific<\/em> attributes of the program at hand will enable those goals.\u00a0<\/p>\n Once you have your answers to these three categories of questions down pat, rest assured that you will have strong answers for the majority of questions you will be asked. The hardest thing about interviews, of course, is that there will inevitably be curveballs that you simply can\u2019t prepare for \u2013 try not to stress! The interviewer isn\u2019t expecting perfection, so taking some time to collect yourself before answering or stumbling through a response or two won\u2019t ruin your chances of admission (seriously!). \u00a0<\/p>\n Reach out if some live practice and\/or coaching would help! Click here<\/a> for a free consultation.<\/p>\n The post Prepare for These Three Questions Before Your MBA Interview<\/a> appeared first on Vantage Point MBA<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" With Round 2 application deadlines behind us and interview invitations being released in the coming weeks, many MBA hopefuls will soon be shifting their focus to interview prep if they…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":167,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"1","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,1955,775,243],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-50882","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-mba","category-vantage-point-mba","category-admission-consultants","category-blog","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50882","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/167"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50882"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50882\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50882"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50882"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50882"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}1. Walk Me Through Your Resume \/ Tell Me About Yourself<\/strong><\/h5>\n
2. Behavioral Questions<\/strong><\/h5>\n
3. Why MBA \/ Why School X<\/strong><\/h5>\n