Oxford (Said) 2013 - Calling All Applicants

Hi kaushinside, Paras123;

Thanks for writing back to me. What I have come to know is

1. Oxford has stronger brand name even outside UK and Europe. But they offer little scholarship. Their MBA will be complete in 12 months but no chances of Exchange program.

2. HEC has better ranking than Oxford. Program is completed over 16 months and offers opportunity for exchange program. Scholarships are also a plus but overall language can be a constraint.

So still hanging in the middle..

Can some highlight the areas of expertise of these two schools.. Like which one is better in consultancy , management or entrepreneurship etc...

Regards

Hi - are there any current students or alumni on the forum that I could get in touch to ask a few queries

I interviewed with a professor and overall do not have a good feeling. The majority of the questions were around the industry that I come from and its interaction with the society, ethical dilemmas and pretty in-depth discussion of recent events. I could tell that the interviewed had prepared to quiz me specifically on industry topics that he expected that I know in depth, based on my current position, but also challenged me to understand how I think about the big picture. However, the questions and overall tone was very academic. I was left feeling that my practical responses were not exactly what the interviewer was asking for. Advise - read the news and think about the big picture.

On a couple of instances I tried to change the topic, bringing in the typical why MBA, why now and why Oxford, but the interviewer did not appear interested. I think these questions were already answered pretty well within the essays, so maybe they didn't need to be brought-up.

Any questions, PM me...

Bro, it was not that bad, atleast you were able to communicate ... I had an interview (not in OxBridge) where the interviewer was unable to speak 2 sentences!!

Read the interesting episode here interviews-from-the-hell-146339.html

In this context, I truly appreciate what David from Cranfield told me during my interviews. He was very upfront to set the context of the interviews and very clearly mentioned that interviews is a very crucial part of the selection process. He then mentioned why they engage only few senior people to conduct the interviews and never ever engage any alumni or some random professor.

They want to keep the consistency and they want to give fair and equal chance to everyone. It is so unfair to kill someone's hard work and aspiration just by one careless action.

It was really so touching as just a couple of days back I had that hellish and frustrating encounter with a stupid! And that simple statement from David elevated Cranfield few notches higher in my mind. It is not about loud talk on HOLISTIC selection process, but it is about small ACTION.

Have you tried to politely ask for a second interview? Given the circumstances, that might be a possibility. I fully agree that interviews are somehwat limiting, which is why employers typically want you to interview with 4-5 people before making an offer. That way you are evaluated by a variety of perspectives.

As I mentioned, that school was my backup and by that time I already had offer from my preferred schools. I do not believe in BEGGING. Having said that, I have never shown such attitude and I was as serious as one should be in the interviews.

What happened is, I got an impression that the school's standard is too LOW!!, too low to be even a third tier school in UK. And my impression was proved when I complained to the dean of the school and that fellow too had no basic courtesy to acknowledge, forget about an apology or email reply. I, myself manage customer service too and I know how unprofessional and arrogant was the action by the Dean.

And no wonder, why the school has gone down the drain over the period!!

Some of of you had sent me personal messages. I apologize for not being able to reply. This term has been crazy so far. One of these days, I will get to them. I logged in today for a specific reason.

It was an interview day today. Some of you were given this opportunity to sit in a Operations Management class as guests. Please understand that you are here to observe and experience a MBA class. Students have spent hours preparing for a case to discuss in the class. While I understand your enthusiasm to speak and contribute from your experience, it takes away airtime from students and ends up being a distraction than a meaningful contribution.

To the gentleman who had his cell phone ringer on - please silence your cell phone when you attend a class.


To the gentleman who didn't have a tie on. Good luck with your other interviews. From a personal experience, you have a better chance of making a good impression during your interview, if you dress professionally.

Some of these may seem too obvious, but, unfortunately, I had to point these out.

@wouldbecrazy - I don't really mean to engage in a dialogue with you. My class is comprised of students from 50 different countries and about 70% of class can't claim to have English to be their first language. You are right about fit. You should look for a school with more uniform student body.

On a side note, in the real business world, in most circumstances communication doesn't usually go the way you have planned. How you steer the uncomfortable situation to your advantage and get your message across determines your success.

Incorrect. There are many who receive scholarship of some form. Its not automatic and its not based on your GMAT score alone. My flatmate is one of the Skollars and has full funding.

I mostly agree with Jon here. However, if you have a compelling story, strong application and why you can't wait another year, I say you should definitely give it a go. I am sure Jon can help you out here too...

PS: This post in no way is an endorsement of this or any other consulting service. I was a R3 applicant myself last year and I was able to get admitted at 2 out 3 programs I submitted an application for.

.

Insults are completely out of order. Let's keep it civilised.

Yes, you are correct. Just seemed somewhat out of order to imply that another applicant was unprofessional and ruined his chances by failing to wear a tie.


I do hope the guy gets an admit!

I lead my life according to Barney's teachings... so I would say "Suit up!"

My interview at Said and other schools meant wearing a tie for the first time in a few years!

Well, on a different topic- I had my interview on 25th..But immediately after the interview started we started to face connection issues. The call dropped for 4 times in 6 minutes !!

Finally on suggestion of the interviewer, I rescheduled my interview on 11-March which is so close to the decision date..

Now I am kind of worried due to this- its so close to the 15-March decision date that there would be hardly any time left after my interview is finished on 11th..

I feel like this forum has been a great source of helpful advice and camaraderie- people that post are only trying to help you get accepted, so let's all play nicely and hope for the best
MagicC- think of it this way- it's much better to have a less stressful interview later in the cycle than a stressful, interrupted interview earlier. Take it as a blessing to prepare for an extra 2 weeks and make sure you have great answers for the questions the interviewer already posed to you. Maybe try to extrapolate from those questions to guess what might be follow-ups so you can really shine on the 11th