Hi HKUST, Would love to speak to someone regarding admissions for the 2017 MBA intake. Abhishek

Last visit was: 27 Apr 2026, 19:34

It is currently 27 Apr 2026, 19:34

Toolkit

Business School and MBA

MBA Archive

GMAT Club Daily Prep

Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.

Customized
for You

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History

Track
Your Progress

every week, we’ll send you an estimated GMAT score based on your performance

Practice
Pays

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History

Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.

Go to My Error Log Learn more

Request Expert Reply

Confirm Cancel

Back to Forum

Create Topic

Calling all HKUST MBA Applicants: (2017 Intake) Class of 2019!!

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

mbatrojan

Joined: 31 Oct 2016

Last visit: 06 Jul 2017

Posts: 10

Own Kudos:

Given Kudos: 2

Location: Canada

Schools: HKUST '19 (A$) NUS '19 (M$)

GMAT 1: 600 Q40 V32 Verified score

GPA: 3.3

Schools: HKUST '19 (A$) NUS '19 (M$)

GMAT 1: 600 Q40 V32 Verified score

Posts: 10

Kudos: 2

17 Jan 2017, 12:40

Kudos

Bookmarks

For those that went through the interviews already, what kind of questions did they ask in each interview? How should we prepare?

Alex75PAris

Joined: 16 Mar 2016

Last visit: 08 Mar 2017

Posts: 100

Own Kudos:

274

Location: France

Schools: Marshall '19 Darden '19 HKUST '19 Anderson '19

GMAT 1: 660 Q47 V33 Verified score

GPA: 3.25

Schools: Marshall '19 Darden '19 HKUST '19 Anderson '19

GMAT 1: 660 Q47 V33 Verified score

Posts: 100

Kudos: 274

18 Jan 2017, 01:42

Kudos

Bookmarks

Hi

I received the email interview yesterday and I feel fantastic!
Can people who already went through the interviews with alumn and adcom share their experience and advice ?
What kind of questions ? how is the discussion (only question or bilateral exchange, etc.) ?
It is only by skype, or one can arrange a physical meeting ?

Thanks!

yash88

Joined: 12 Aug 2015

Last visit: 21 Oct 2023

Posts: 106

Own Kudos:

Given Kudos: 76

Location: India

Concentration: General Management, Strategy

Schools: ISB '18 IIMA IIMB IIMC XLRI GM"18 Insead Sept '17 Oxford"18 Kellogg 1YR '18 LBS '19 IIMA PGPX"18 HKUST '19 NTU '18 Judge"18

GMAT 1: 690 Q50 V32 Verified score

GPA: 3.38

Products:

Schools: ISB '18 IIMA IIMB IIMC XLRI GM"18 Insead Sept '17 Oxford"18 Kellogg 1YR '18 LBS '19 IIMA PGPX"18 HKUST '19 NTU '18 Judge"18

GMAT 1: 690 Q50 V32 Verified score

Posts: 106

Kudos: 40

19 Jan 2017, 07:25

Kudos

Bookmarks

Are all the interview invite given. I havent heard anything from them. Should i consider " dinged" for HKUST.

rahulprasad11

Joined: 05 May 2016

Last visit: 05 Nov 2018

Posts: 70

Own Kudos:

174

Given Kudos: 5

Location: India

Concentration: Strategy, Entrepreneurship

Schools: NUS '19 (M$)

GMAT 1: 670 Q49 V31 Verified score

GMAT 2: 730 Q49 V40 Verified score

GPA: 3.75

WE:Information Technology (Telecommunications)

Schools: NUS '19 (M$)

GMAT 2: 730 Q49 V40 Verified score

Posts: 70

Kudos: 174

19 Jan 2017, 10:01

Kudos

Bookmarks

1988achilles

Are all the interview invite given. I haven't heard anything from them. Should I consider " dinged" for HKUST?

I have limited information but surely what you are saying cannot be correct. HKUST's website says that for round 2, Interview Notification would come till Mar 10, 2017. There is a lot of time left; I was in fact surprised to get the interview call so soon. Chin up, you should remain optimistic. Best of luck.

BR,
Rahul

y4nkee

Joined: 16 Feb 2016

Last visit: 12 Nov 2017

Posts: 38

Own Kudos:

Given Kudos: 26

Concentration: Other, Other

Products:

Posts: 38

Kudos: 42

22 Jan 2017, 17:29

Kudos

Bookmarks

My HKUST MBA Program Review by 2-nd year student. Rating:**

harshdeepVaghela

Joined: 08 Jan 2015

Last visit: 06 Oct 2017

Posts: 7

Own Kudos:

Given Kudos: 5

Posts: 7

Kudos: 7

22 Jan 2017, 21:52

Kudos

Bookmarks

rahulprasad11

Same here, received the email in the afternoon. The first interview slot available was on the 6th of Feb.
Should we now immediately mail our transcripts to the admission office or wait till after the interview?

You can provide just the copy of your transcript at this point of time. You have to send the originals after you get your interview decision.

harshdeepVaghela

Joined: 08 Jan 2015

Last visit: 06 Oct 2017

Posts: 7

Own Kudos:

[2]

Given Kudos: 5

Posts: 7

Kudos: 7

[2]

Updated on: 30 Jan 2017, 22:33

Originally posted by harshdeepVaghela on 22 Jan 2017, 22:10.
Last edited by harshdeepVaghela on 30 Jan 2017, 22:33, edited 1 time in total.

Kudos

Bookmarks

Interview debrief - R1 candidate (admitted)

My first interview was with a current student. It was a normal conversation. He asked about work profile. Reason to do MBA. Plans post MBA. Why HKUST and what do you intend to gain from the program. Just basic Q & A and you can use the opportunity to get answers to any queries that you may have. The interview lasted for ~25 mins.

The second interview was with two AdComs. Normal Q&A. Your professional journey so far, why MBA, why HUST, why Hong Kong, post-MBA plans. The interview lasted for ~20 mins.

Overall it was a pleasant experience. Be thorough with your past work ex and where you want to go post-HKUST and how HKUST will help you achieve your professional goals.

Since I am not from HK, I just had the option to pick up the skype interview dates. If you want to opt for a one-one interview, you can get in touch with the adCom.

Good luck with interviews and if there is anything you may need help with, do get in touch.
PM me for faster reply

y4nkee

Joined: 16 Feb 2016

Last visit: 12 Nov 2017

Posts: 38

Own Kudos:

Given Kudos: 26

Concentration: Other, Other

Products:

Posts: 38

Kudos: 42

29 Jan 2017, 15:03

Kudos

Bookmarks

My HKUST MBA Program Review by 2-nd year student. Rating:****

rbhasin11

Joined: 05 Jan 2017

Last visit: 12 Aug 2018

Posts: 79

Own Kudos:

Given Kudos: 12

Location: India

Concentration: Finance, Strategy

Schools: Cox '20 (A$) Rotman '20 MBS '20 (A) Marshall '20 (S) ISB '19 Kenan-Flagler '20 Tepper '20 Simon '20 Olin '20 Merage '20

Posts: 79

Kudos: 14

31 Jan 2017, 08:42

Kudos

Bookmarks

I just had the first interview with a current student. The conversation was very interactive, and was mostly about knowing me as a person. It went for about 40mins and I asked her a lot of questions, all of which were answered to my satisfaction.

I have the 2nd interview with the Adcom on 7th Feb.

rahulprasad11

Joined: 05 May 2016

Last visit: 05 Nov 2018

Posts: 70

Own Kudos:

174

Given Kudos: 5

Location: India

Concentration: Strategy, Entrepreneurship

Schools: NUS '19 (M$)

GMAT 1: 670 Q49 V31 Verified score

GMAT 2: 730 Q49 V40 Verified score

GPA: 3.75

WE:Information Technology (Telecommunications)

Schools: NUS '19 (M$)

GMAT 2: 730 Q49 V40 Verified score

Posts: 70

Kudos: 174

Updated on: 31 Jan 2017, 15:05

Originally posted by rahulprasad11 on 31 Jan 2017, 09:54.
Last edited by rahulprasad11 on 31 Jan 2017, 15:05, edited 2 times in total.

Kudos

Bookmarks

rbhasin11

I just had the first interview with a current student. The conversation was very interactive and was mostly about knowing me as a person. It went for about 40mins, and I asked her a lot of questions, all of which were answered to my satisfaction.

I have the 2nd interview with the Adcom on 7th Feb.

You are lucky. My interview today went horribly. The interviewer was not only egoistic but also racist (both I and him are Indians). The whole point of this conversation he told me at the start of the interview was to gauge me as a potential classmate. Unfortunately, he completely forgot that I would also be doing the same. Sample this: the interview scheduled for 2.30 pm started at 2.45 without much ado from his side, he stopped the interview in between to take a personal call, and I kid you not send a chat reply. Throughout the interview, his intention was only somehow to show the flaw in my reasoning and thinking. If you think his intention was to grill me, then that was also not the case because, after my response, he would give his views and move on to the next question without allowing me to revert. He was extremely condescending about the companies I have worked in as he had no idea about their workings. When I explained about the niche products these companies had developed and their revenues streams, his response was "huh..ok". I am not kidding; this was happening in my MBA interview, I simply could not believe it and was left flabbergasted. I somehow kept my composure and at the end came the time for me to ask questions. I asked him about his experience so far at hkust, and he answered this query for a total of 12 mins without giving me the chance to intervene. These 12 mins covered such unnecessary sub-topics as how people in his old company could not believe that he went for an MBA because he was earning big time. Also included were topics like how European students enjoy their weekends partying and he did not approve their behaviour. Also, his feeling about the Indian batchmates was that he just could not believe that those people were Indians because of their behaviour and so on. At this point, if you are thinking huh??, then just imagine my state of mind when I was going through one of the most important interviews of my life. To keep this message short, I am going to skip talking about his opinions on my goals and the FT ranking of HKUST!

The interview went on for 47 mins, and at the end of it, I was left thinking whether I should just withdraw my application before the next interview on the 6th of Feb. I am not exaggerating; it was a horrendous experience. The interviewer is the vice president of a prestigious club at HKUST, and if he represents the students there, I am wondering if I should even consider joining such an institution.
Do not get me wrong. I am no superstar candidate who the colleges are lining up to take in and in fact, have no offer on my plate currently, but still I am seriously considering withdrawing my application. It pains that this stupidity had to happen at such an important institution as HKUST. :cry:

krutik123

Joined: 17 Jan 2015

Last visit: 18 Jul 2018

Posts: 159

Own Kudos:

Given Kudos: 110

Schools: Tuck '19 (D) Carlson '19 (A) Anderson '19 Darden '19 CBS '19 Stern '19 Duke '19 Ross '19 Rotman '19 Kenan-Flagler '19 (WL) Mays '19 LBS '19 Olin '19 NUS '19 HKUST '19 Sloan '19 Tepper '19 Johnson '18 CUHK '19 CEIBS '19 Goizueta '19 (D) Kelley '19 Georgia Tech '19 McCombs '19 McDonough '19 HKU MBA"19 (WD) ESADE '20 (A) Bocconi '20 (A)

Posts: 159

Kudos: 6

31 Jan 2017, 10:39

Kudos

Bookmarks

One should go by the feel that he/she gets about the school. In the end it's all about the fit. If you aren't happy, then the MBA wouldn't be as much as an enjoyable experience as it should have been otherwise.

Sent from my iPhone using GMAT Club Forum mobile app

nalinnair

Joined: 09 Jan 2016

Last visit: 20 Nov 2024

Posts: 104

Own Kudos:

4,555

Given Kudos: 94

Status:Persevere

Location: Hong Kong

GMAT 1: 750 Q50 V41 Verified score

GPA: 3.52

Products:

GMAT 1: 750 Q50 V41 Verified score

Posts: 104

Kudos: 4,555

31 Jan 2017, 11:08

Kudos

Bookmarks

rahulprasad11 and rbhasin11

When did you guys receive email for the interview with the current student?
I have also been invited. I scheduled my interview with the Adcom on 8th Feb. I am yet to receive any email for my interview with the current student/ alum. Should I be worried? Should I contact the Admissions Office?

rbhasin11

Joined: 05 Jan 2017

Last visit: 12 Aug 2018

Posts: 79

Own Kudos:

Given Kudos: 12

Location: India

Concentration: Finance, Strategy

Schools: Cox '20 (A$) Rotman '20 MBS '20 (A) Marshall '20 (S) ISB '19 Kenan-Flagler '20 Tepper '20 Simon '20 Olin '20 Merage '20

Posts: 79

Kudos: 14

31 Jan 2017, 11:28

Kudos

Bookmarks

nalinnair

I received the interview invite about 15-20 days back. I scheduled the adcom interview (Part B) instantly, and the mail mentioned that I would be contacted by the current student for the other interview (Part A). I got an email from the student on Saturday and I took the appointment for today.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

rahulprasad11

Joined: 05 May 2016

Last visit: 05 Nov 2018

Posts: 70

Own Kudos:

174

Given Kudos: 5

Location: India

Concentration: Strategy, Entrepreneurship

Schools: NUS '19 (M$)

GMAT 1: 670 Q49 V31 Verified score

GMAT 2: 730 Q49 V40 Verified score

GPA: 3.75

WE:Information Technology (Telecommunications)

Schools: NUS '19 (M$)

GMAT 2: 730 Q49 V40 Verified score

Posts: 70

Kudos: 174

31 Jan 2017, 14:40

Kudos

Bookmarks

rbhasin11

nalinnair

Further to what rbhasin11 has said, the email, received on the 17th of Jan, describing the interview process stated "Our alumnus / current student, XXX, will contact you directly to arrange a Skype or face-to-face interview. Please expect an e-mail from them in the coming 2-3 weeks."
If you had also received the said email on the 17th, then probably you can wait until the end of this week before sending an email to the ad com. No need to be worried.

rahulprasad11

Joined: 05 May 2016

Last visit: 05 Nov 2018

Posts: 70

Own Kudos:

174

Given Kudos: 5

Location: India

Concentration: Strategy, Entrepreneurship

Schools: NUS '19 (M$)

GMAT 1: 670 Q49 V31 Verified score

GMAT 2: 730 Q49 V40 Verified score

GPA: 3.75

WE:Information Technology (Telecommunications)

Schools: NUS '19 (M$)

GMAT 2: 730 Q49 V40 Verified score

Posts: 70

Kudos: 174

31 Jan 2017, 15:20

Kudos

Bookmarks

krutik123

One should go by the feel that he/she gets about the school. In the end, it's all about the fit. If you aren't happy, then the MBA wouldn't be as much as an enjoyable experience as it should have been otherwise.

Sent from my iPhone using GMAT Club Forum mobile app

Hi Krutik,

I agree completely with your assessment, but at this stage, I have decided to play along. I am waiting for the decision from NUS, CUHK and Copenhagen Business schools. I hope I get in either at NUS or Copenhagen. Frankly, I doubt that this guy would have given me even a neutral review on account of the opinion he had of me.

Haha, I just remembered one more thing. The interviewer brought up FT-2017 rankings, so I commended the stupendous rise that HKUST has seen over the last decade, congratulated him as well as the school for being in the top 15 and so on. Then I just said that there is a bit of a discrepancy between HKUST ranks in FT and the Economist, so HKUST should look to also address that. His response - " The Economist also ranks b-schools! Huh, I did not know that(with that smirk on his face). Anyway only FT rank matters!"

BR,
Rahul

Adam3249

Joined: 21 Feb 2014

Last visit: 02 Feb 2021

Posts: 10

Own Kudos:

[1]

Given Kudos: 1

Location: United Kingdom

Schools: Oxford"18 (D) Judge"18 (D)

GMAT 1: 680 Q48 V35 Verified score

GPA: 3.48

Products:

Schools: Oxford"18 (D) Judge"18 (D)

GMAT 1: 680 Q48 V35 Verified score

Posts: 10

Kudos: 5

[1]

01 Feb 2017, 00:42

Kudos

Bookmarks

hi all,

I submit my application to HKUST in round 2 deadline, and I got invited to an interview quite early on 13th January.
They sent me an email to confirm the interview date which would be on the 19th January
and the other interview would be with a current student of HKUST.
She emailed me the very next day, and we agreed to have a skype interview on 18th January

So basically, I have 2 interviews in 24 hours.. The questions are very common, why MBA, why Hong Kong, what is your post MBA career plan and so on... They also asked about how you will contribute to the class, and if you were in a situation where 2 of your study groups are arguing, what will you do..

If you guys have an experience on interview throughout your application, it will be sufficient. Just be prepared.

In my opinion, both interviews went quite well, although I think I could be more elaborate when answering the questions (anxiety can make your whole brain goes blank)

But in the end, I got the good news just a week after the interviews on 27th January.
I got accepted at HKUST business school with partial merit scholarship..

well, that's my experience... Hope to get in touch with my future classmates here...

rahulprasad11

Joined: 05 May 2016

Last visit: 05 Nov 2018

Posts: 70

Own Kudos:

174

Given Kudos: 5

Location: India

Concentration: Strategy, Entrepreneurship

Schools: NUS '19 (M$)

GMAT 1: 670 Q49 V31 Verified score

GMAT 2: 730 Q49 V40 Verified score

GPA: 3.75

WE:Information Technology (Telecommunications)

Schools: NUS '19 (M$)

GMAT 2: 730 Q49 V40 Verified score

Posts: 70

Kudos: 174

05 Feb 2017, 20:16

Kudos

Bookmarks

rahulprasad11

Just had my 2nd interview an hour ago. Contrary to my interview with a current student, this interview with 2 ad-com members went very well.
It was a friendly but very thorough interview that lasted for half an hour and more than made up for my bad experience in the first interview.

In addition to the standard MBA interview questions, an unusual and unexpected question asked was: "Describe the product that you conceptualised and your role in the start-up to an eight-year-old. " The question had me stumped, and I made two attempts to ans the question. My first attempt was the usual description of my role, and all of us knew that I had not answered their question correctly.
At this point, we had a big laugh, and I asked them to give me another opportunity to ans the same, and they did. The interviewer's response at this moment is why I say it was a good interview because they could have very easily given me a bad feedback for this ans and gone ahead or grilled me for my fallacy. Instead, they gave me a chance to make amends.

At the end of the interview, I had to tell them that I have an offer from NUS and have to accept it by the 15th. So, I requested them to kindly let me know the result of my application by then. The panel told me that they are interviewing a lot of candidates during this period, but they will update the ad-com of my situation.

Overall, to all prospective candidates (some of whom have pinged me and were concerned about their interviews because of my bad experience in the 1st interview) - Do not worry and just go into the interview with an open mind and put in your best effort. Everyone's experience is different; this two-round interview process is considerably fair and gives us an opportunity to come back if things do not go according to our plans.
Best of luck, do well!

BR,
Rahul

pranab708

Joined: 18 May 2016

Last visit: 24 Oct 2018

Posts: 10

Own Kudos:

Given Kudos: 23

Location: India

Concentration: Finance, Economics

Schools: HKUST '19 (D) CUHK '19 (WD) HKU MBA"18 (A)

GMAT 1: 690 Q50 V32 Verified score

GPA: 3.4

WE:Investment Banking (Finance: Investment Banking)

Schools: HKUST '19 (D) CUHK '19 (WD) HKU MBA"18 (A)

GMAT 1: 690 Q50 V32 Verified score

Posts: 10

Kudos: 6

06 Feb 2017, 02:52

Kudos

Bookmarks

That's great Rahul. I wish you all the best and may you get admitted to the school of your choice.

rahulprasad11

smgmat1

Joined: 24 Nov 2016

Last visit: 05 Feb 2018

Posts: 30

Own Kudos:

Location: India

Schools: CEIBS '19 (M)

GMAT 1: 710 Q44 V44 Verified score

Schools: CEIBS '19 (M)

GMAT 1: 710 Q44 V44 Verified score

Posts: 30

Kudos: 10

06 Feb 2017, 19:04

Kudos

Bookmarks

I had my first interview with a current student on Saturday and the second interview with two ad-com members yesterday. My experience of both these interviews was positive. I had met this current student before the interview, during a coffee chat in Mumbai and I found him to be very friendly and helpful. Both the ad-com members were also very pleasant to talk to.

While in the first interview I was asked typical MBA interview questions, the second interview had some variation. I was asked to explain what I do, at the leadership magazine I work for, to an eight year old. I was also asked for my response to a hypothetical situation of conflict between two of my team-mates. At the end of the interview, I was told that they will get back to me with a decision in two weeks.

Wish you all, the very best with your applications.

rbhasin11

Joined: 05 Jan 2017

Last visit: 12 Aug 2018

Posts: 79

Own Kudos:

Given Kudos: 12

Location: India

Concentration: Finance, Strategy

Schools: Cox '20 (A$) Rotman '20 MBS '20 (A) Marshall '20 (S) ISB '19 Kenan-Flagler '20 Tepper '20 Simon '20 Olin '20 Merage '20

Posts: 79

Kudos: 14

06 Feb 2017, 21:22

Kudos

Bookmarks

I just finished my 2nd interview, with the Adcom. There were 2 members on the panel, but only one of them was asking all the questions. I don't think it went very well as I was a little anxious. She started by asking about my interaction with the student a week back and asked about the things that we had discussed. Then she went on to ask the normal questions (Why HK, why HKUST, future goals). I was also asked 2 unexpected questions that had me stumped:

1. Explain your role, past experience and work profile to an 8 year old.
2. How would you describe a consulting profile/business to an 8 year old?

I don't think I answered the 2nd question very well. They said they would get back with a decision in 3-4 weeks.