HEC Paris

"We started with the 10-min presentation. My interviewer let me finish the presentation then raised questions regarding the contents afterwards. Gave some really useful feedback from the perspective of an acutal consulting plan presentation, highlighting that I should've made the most of my 10 minutes (I used 7-8) as if I'm selling a consulting plan worth a million to a CEO. Do not end early. The next part was the motivation and some general MBA interview questions, 1. Walk me through your resume. 2. Why you think this is the right time to do MBA now? 3. How do you see you will contribute in HEC classroom? 4. After graduating from HEC, which company to work do you plan to work in? Why? 5. What’s your Leadership style? 6. Tell me more about your biggest achievement (essay question)? Lastly, my interviewer gave me some valuable advice for future job searching and the life in France (highlighting that learning French is important if I intend to find a job in France after graduation.) Overall, it was quite conversational and the interviewer was friendly, supportive yet straightforward."

"I had two interviews in total. One of my interviewers was a MBA 2022 alumna, and the other was 2018. PART I - Small talk and introductions (5 minutes) PART II - The presentation (10-12 mins total) -I shared a product I marketed in a past role -I walked through an 8 slide Google Sheet presentation that I shared with the interviewers 30 minutes beforehand -Interviewers asked specific questions on the contents: --How did you decide on the pricing? What was the initial feedback you received and how did you respond to it? How do you deal with difficult team members? --I think speaking about a real project gave me more confidence than presenting on an open-ended topic. This also made it feel more like a job interview than a judgment about myself. I also felt like the 'expert' of this content. Part III - Motivational questions (35 minutes) -Why HEC Paris? -Experience in France and speaking French -Post-MBA goals -Can't you transition industries + geos without an MBA? Part IV - Questions (30 minutes) -I asked them why HEC Paris -How studying in France prepared both interviewers to move to London -How did your MBA studies prep for current role + industry -What is a need-to-do activity (club, cafe, course, etc) at HEC? Notes - -Both interviews went 20+ minutes over and we spoke about the interviewer's past, experience, @ HEC, and random similarities -Do research on interviewer. Be ready with personally relevant questions based on their grad year, location, and current job -Have a solid 'why HEC' story. As an American, they asked me about other US MBA programs and why I don't want to do a semester abroad while studying in the States. Overall, it was a positive experience. Both alumni spoke highly of the program. I never felt like I was being caught, tricked, drilled during the chat. Both came across as professional and incredibly smart- certainly people who I would have enjoyed studying alongside."

"I had both my interviews a day apart. Interview #1 Alum of class '09. He started off with the standard - Why HEC - Why Europe - Which other colleges I applied to - My current role and industry - Short term and long term goals - How will I finance the MBA He then asked me to present my PPT. Asked a few questions on the technology and disagreed with a few of my points. I subsequently clarified them. We did not go through all the slides, as he concluded the interview and gave me a few pointers on applying for scholarships and loans. I asked him questions on his MBA journey, which he was happy to answer. Overall we quickly wrapped up the call in 30mins. Interview #2 We started with my presentation. He sat through all of it and asked me some applications of the tool which I had used (my topic was an AI tool) We delved into the Why HEC, Why MBA - Post MBA goals - Behavioural questions such as how I resolve conflicts at workplace - What have I prepared for adjusting to life in France - Which companies do I plan to apply post HEC - Any startups? (I had mentioned Big techs) - Any other initiatives I was part of apart from work? - Biggest challenge faced? - Which specialisation I would consider? - He said I would probably be the youngest in the batch. How would I bridge this gap? (I wasn't expecting this question) He was taking notes throughout the interview and really delved into every aspect to get to know me as a person. I asked him about his MBA journey, about certain courses, the outbound experience, study exchange trips and his current role. Towards the end we were chatting and joking about. (I joked about how my mother would rather have me married than go for an MBA!). Interview lasted for an hour and was a pleasant experience which I will cherish despite the admit outcome!"

"Had my interview last night (I applied in R2) Duration: 25 mins Questions asked: - Introduce yourself - Why did you choose your undergraduate major - Why MiM - Why Europe - How will you adjust to Europe / France (food, weather, language) - Work Experience-related question - Do you have any questions for us It went alright I believe. There was hardly any focus on the "why HEC" kind of specific questions which was surprising to me. You will also be first meeting with a few student ambassadors before you're shifted to your interview breakout room. It was a pleasant experience interacting with them - just seeing and conversing with them helped me calm my nerves!"

"Interview 1 Started with the presentation, asked a couple of questions afterward. 1) tell me about yourself 2) Why HEC 3) Why MBA, the moment you realized you need to do an MBA 4) Strengths and weaknesses 5) How will you add value to the class 6) what will you do if someone is upset with you, give an example 7) a couple of questions on professional experiences Interview 2 1) Tell me about yourself, what makes you pop out, how HEC will be part of your career growth 2) Career goals 3) Strengths and weakness as par 1) Supervisor 2) Colleague 3) Sub-ordinate 4) why Europe 5) subjects at HEC (electives) 6)questions related to the profession He was discussing his point of view after each of my answers and shared a lot of his experiences, I don't know if that's a good thing or not Took the presentation in the end, and asked a lot of questions, a couple of them were out of topic but related to my profession Overall, both interviews were very conversational and went almost for 1hour."

"My first interviewer asked me: 1) why HEC? why not other comparable schools? 2) Why I was leaving my current degree (doing a dual degree) 3) dealing with the program at such a young age 4) Skills I wanted to learn from the program 5) Why not learn them in industry 6) What I brought that was unique My second interviewer pretty much skipped all those questions I'd already answered in my essays: 1) a personal accomplishment outside of those in my essays? 2) Weaknesses (3) 3) Language learning process (I speak 4) 4) My experience studying in China, evaluating my teamwork there compared to in Europe 5) Compare how I'd chosen my current school and how I'd come to choose HEC 6) Questions about my ethnic background to understand my culture, our traditions, etc. (I'd spoken about it in my presentation and it seemed to interest him, plus it was one ow my unique perspectives) Both interviews were very different one from the other so don't get stuck on a certain interview format while prepping. You have to be versatile and adaptable. You need to show that you are interesting, determined and curious. Name dropping people you've spoken to in admissions or management works well. Smile and laugh if you can, I made both my interviewers chuckle and that really helped give a good impression."

"Interviewed with program executive director Olivier Bossard and one alumna of the program. At times it seemed like they played good cop - bad cop. The interview was very quick in the sense that I got asked question after question by mr. Bossard, I am sure that was in order to see if I can think quickly and not suffer under pressure. He was more on the "aggressive" side but definitely not in a rude way, I know it was to see how I would react. When the alumna asked me questions she was much "nicer" and always smiling and that part of the interview tended to slow down a little bit. Overall it was quite fun, just half an hour with last 5 minutes left for me to ask questions. It was challenging so be prepared to be challenged."

"Applied on 2 Feb, but due to a tech glitch and corona interviews were pushed to the 9th April Admissions jury. 1 interview with Indian, 1 interview with a French person. Both on Skype. 27th March & 2 April Got my admit on 10th April Very conversational in nature. Not a set question-answer session, but rather a series of cross questions akin to a conversation. 1. Why HEC? 2. Short term, long term goals? 3. Reasoning for long term goal? 4. Talk about a time you disagreed with a colleague, how did you handle the situation? 5. CV related questions 6. Strengths & Weaknesses 7. How will I add value to HEC 8. Essays related questions"

"I had two skype interviews with HEC alumni, both from Canada. We started off with the presentation (screen shared) with some questions at the end. We then talked about myself, why now, what to expect, why HEC, etc. I also took the opportunity to ask questions, and they kindly shared their experiences and how they have capitalized on their MBA. We talked for about an hour to an hour and half each. It was very convivial."

"I had two interviews with HEC Alumni. The alumni were selected based on my short term goal since both were working in the field of consulting. Interview 1 - Interview questions: 1) Introduce yourself - there were also some follow up questions from the interviewers side. He was listening carefully to what I was saying 2) Why MBA now.? 3) Why HEC.? 4) Why not INSEAD 5) How would you be able to cope with age difference in the class since you are very young 6) What do you bring to the table.? 7) What are two of your greatest skills.? 8) What are the subjects at HEC.? 9) What is your long term goal.? 10) Do you have any questions.? Overall the interviewer was very friendly and he was responding positively to the answers. Interview 2 - Thee questions asked during second interview were as follows: 1) Introduce yourself 2) Why MBA now? 3) Why HEC PARIS? 4) When was the time you failed in your professional life? 5) Did you have any conflicts in the team. how did you resolve? 6) What is your leadership style like.? 7) In Egypt how did you gel with the new associates.? 8) What is your back up plan in case you do not get admit this year.? The second interviewer was very much interested in my current field of work and so we discussed the implications of my work at length for around an hour. All through this discussion, she seemed to be gauging if the number of years of work experience is justified through my answers"

"I had both the interviews on Skype. One with an alum from Korea and the other interview was with an Indian. First interview: Started off with Presentation, two to three questions at the end. The interviewer was impressed with the content and found it interesting. From there on, I had usual questions like Why MBA, Why HEC and What are my goals. After that it lasted for about an hour and I felt I was asking most of the questions regarding the school. Pretty much similar experience with the second interviewer as well. We had lot more in common - background, career aspirations etc. The school matches the alumni profile according to your short term goal. Overall, be prepared about Why MBA? Why HEC? Why not INSEAD or LBS?"

"Interviewed on a Sunday morning with an alumnus from the class of 2017. She was in consulting pre-MBA, and is now in finance. She was located in the US both before and after her MBA. She told me a little about herself, and then asked the usual questions such as: Why an MBA now? Why HEC? In particular, she seemed impressed that I managed to confidently answer her question about why I was choosing HEC over INSEAD. She commented that I seemed to have done my research well. I then presented my presentation. As my target post-MBA industry was consulting, and having been a consultant herself, she commented that my slides needed to be more comprehensive (as slides are very important in consulting). I took this as a slightly negative sign, but the rest of the interview went fine otherwise. She proceeded to tell me about the campus life as well, and was happy to answer any questions I had. She was quite a reserved person so I couldn't tell how well it had gone overall but since I have been admitted, I assume it went well!"

"nterview 1 : Recent ex alum working at Amazon. I started off with my presentation. After that she asked a few questions on the presentation and gave me a little feedback on the length and my slide content. After that there were questions on Why HEC (lots of counter questions here on why not other schools), post MBA career choice and how I will achieve it. The interviewer grilled me on my experiences working internationally. After that I asked a few questions. Mostly the interview was very conversational. The second interview was pretty much the same. The only difference was the interviewer was really interested in how I would finance the MBA, where I wanted to work afterwards and what salary I was expecting."

"HEC MBA I had the first interview this week with a 2014 Alumni who is now an MBA teacher in Argentina. He invited me to his office He was super friendly with me and the interview seemed more like a regular chat with alumni, as many others I had when researching the school. First, he asked me to give an overview of my career path. (I am an international relations grad who wanted to be a diplomat, failed, and shifted career into consulting and later tech) Then, I did my presentation (I brought my PC). I talked about the experience I had when director of AIESEC ( an NGO). He just listened during the whole presentation and in the end, asked about my contribution there and the reasons why. Finally, he asked basic interview questions: why MBA, which other schools, why HEC, 3 strengths and weakness, main achievement and contributions to the class. Good point: He commented on my answers, mentioning how my profile fits with the school. (He even give me tips on where to live in the second year) Bad point: Given that he asked my strengths in the context of a classroom, I talked about contributions to the class. Later, when he asked me this specific question, I was out of things to say."

"The interview was scheduled for half an hour, whereas my interview lasted for 15 minutes. Partly because my slot was the final slot of the day before a long Thanksgiving holiday there. Was not expecting the admit since I was sure 15 minutes aren't enough. But in those 15 minutes, they asked 6-7 questions. Based on the profile, why mim, why France, priority over other schools etc."

"I had two Alumni interviews. Both on Skype. Usually, HEC keeps one in-person but I believe my 11 plus years work-ex made it a little difficult to find the right interviewer. HEC requires you to present a 10-minute presentation and then the normal interview happens. My 10 minute presentation was from my field of work, more from the business perspective. Both my interviewers liked my presentation. Since Presentation is usually the first step, it acts as an ice breaker. The interesting the presentation is, the easier the interview gets. We spent around 20 minutes discussing the presentation. The discussion was really good and I had to be thorough with the topics in the presentation to answer those. Other interview questions : 1. Why HEC? 2. Why MBA and why now? 3. Question related to the extra curricular activities. 4. Best essay topic within the HEC application. 5. Short term and long term goals. 6. Questions from my stay in the US. 7. Anything I wanted to know. Interviewers at HEC spends the time to understand the real you and then recommends your fit in the program. HEC has rolling admissions and the results are out usually 1-2 weeks post interview."