Calling all Kellogg Fall'08 applicants

My interview did not go as well as I typically interview. However, I think that being personable and enthusiastic about everything I talked about probably helped overcome some of my not so stellar answers. Also I did show strong knowledge of the program and how I fit. Didnt really have many unusual questions, well except for on my background since I went to a no name odd college and had to explain that decision and if I regretted it or not. He did ask if I felt my boss was a good leader which was strange, and what I thought his weaknesses were...that is the only thing that slightly threw me.

They have a list of questions and things to check off. Just show up, look confident, dress nicely, firm hand shake, eye contact but dont stare them down, be animated and excited (not spazzing out though)...they love team players so basically you want your interviewer to think you are a nice guy, that would fit into the Kellogg community.

I got my K-bud in december and havent talked to him since haha. I am sure anyone in banking or consulting is extremely busy at school right now so I am not concerned. I dont really have any questions to ask him either but if I did I would fire off an email and I am sure he would get back to me.

Steel are you going to DAK in Feb, where does Kellogg stand in your pool of schools?

Oh, and you post on the BW forum too right...is that how you found this place? Just curiuos cause we have had a large influx of new folks lately, its nice to see word is spreading.

I'll be at DAK! Got my flight booked and will be staying with my friend and his roommates (all 2nd years). I've been trying to figure out where the schools stand and really having a tough time. I really love both Kellogg and MIT (both for different reasons and a couple of common threads). My decision might get a lot easier if I don't get into MIT, but if I do - then its going to be really tough. As for Harvard, it really doesn't get me as excited as Kellogg or MIT, but its Harvard. I very nearly didn't apply to Harvard R2, but I said to myself "why not - you might regret it in 20 years if you didn't at least try". Even if I get in though, I still think I would probably go to Kellogg or MIT.

Yup, I've been on the BW forums for months and never knew about these. The post about "other sites" on the BW forum piqued my interest. I like how the people on these boards don't seem to take themselves so seriously and are enjoying this process. Also, variety of discussion seems to be a lot more engaging and the community a lot more tight nit.

Steel, welcome to the GMATClub!
You are right about the community here: we support one another and regularly ban the meanies who occasionally surface here. Please introduce yourself and update your profile here:

103-t53748

Steel, I went for MIT too but as an engineer I think my chances are much worse than if I had a different background. That said Kellogg will definitely round out my background more but my wife loves Boston and would take it over Chicago.

Your reason for applying to HBS, the what if I had applied thought is a pretty common reason I have heard for a lot of folks. I had the opposite reaction, growing up in the Boston area I was completely turned off by the image of HBS. My fear was applying, after my early admit to Kellogg a lot of people were telling me to, and then getting in. If I went and it was everything I imagined and completely hated it, then i would be so mad at myself for giving in....if I got in and didnt go then it would be the what if thought. After reading the HBS thread on BW, if those people end up there I think I made the right choice.

WELCOME Steel! It's good to see our subtle (or not-so-subtle) hints of "the other site" got some nice people over.

The motto of this site, "Be Nice". Just do that and be helpful and you'll fit right in!

The interview is generally conversational?
Because i have a few anecdotes which i sometimes use in interviews which are slightly humourous, and shows a knowledge of cultural diversity

1) The first time i went to Japan and DJ'd at a club.
2) The first trip to India (business related) and understanding what 'Bangalore-Time' actually meant.

Would these be appropriate in a Kellogg style interview?

Thanks Kryzak and Riverripper! I appreciate the welcome.

Riverripper - you have pretty much written in words my exact same angst in applying to Harvard. I justified it to myself by saying that I really hadn't done enough research or talked to enough people and thus would apply and worry about the confirming/denying the image later. We'll see - but I think I could turn down Harvard should I get that vibe upon doing my due diligence (should I be fortunate to get to that point).

Alas, you have to listen to your wife - she does have to live through your two years at B-school. From what it sounds like - both Kellogg and MIT have great JV/SO communities.

Also, in an irony befitting the b-school application process, my K-Bud called me about an hour ago (only a few hours after finding out on these boards that there was such a thing) and we had a nice 30 minute conversation (I'm currently snowed in at my house). I don't know how the adcom matches people - but they did an amazing job matching (right down to favorite travel destinations).

Steel, for me, the HBS decision was Stanford. I knew the admit rate was very low, but I can't live with the "what if" if I didn't apply. =)

Stanford is the toughest school to get into and i could see doing the what if there. I thought of attempting one there R2 but decided it wasnt worth wasting $250 and another month of my sanity.

yeah, some days I regret spending so much of my blood and sweat on the Stanford app (and making my Kellogg app slip to R2), but it's definitely better than having the "what if" a few years down the road...

Yah - I decreased the blood and sweat equity by not applying to Harvard until last. Thus, I had all the stuff from before - ended up punching out the application it was was essentially a few days of work. Was a good app, but not as good as my MIT/Kellogg apps.

So....how did it go?

It went ok. But i am not very satisfied. This was my first interview in over 6 years, so i was pretty rusted. I left out several points that i should have talked about. One of the questions that the interviewer asked was how will you contribute to which i gave the standard, in class outside classroom ,clubs etc. but he was not satisfied. He wanted to know what unique thing i will do at K that others wont do or cant do or is not there already to which i got a little stumped and talked about some new club i wanted to start etc.

In the end when he walked with me to the parking he asked what other school i was applying and asked me to keep him in loop especially before my Chicago GSB interview.

Over all i would rate myself 6/10 for the interview. The interviewer took extensive notes as he wanted to report back details in the feedback and had a book titled Kellogg confidential something from which he asked questions. The questions were all from the list i compiled from accepted.com and clear admit sites. They ask questions from sections: leadership, team building, innovation, impact on student body, maturity etc etc

If anyone needs the questions i had compiled, let me know.

oh and another question that struck me as odd was the interviewer asked my GMAT and GPA and then asked whether i thought they truly represented my abilities and if i could have improved on them. He also seemed to note my GMAT prep time. That was quite strange. May be gathering info that would help them waitlist me and then have me retake the GMAT? cant think of any other reason why he would ask that.

GMAT scores seem to have come up a lot this year for various schools. Your interviewer hasnt seen your application so maybe its their way of gauging how competitive you are for the school. Dont take it as a bad sign, especially if you have an above avg score...that would only help you. My interviewer said wow when I told him I had a 740.

Kellogg is very into what are you going to do at the school and how you will fit in. I made sure to use activities and clubs that werent standard...I didnt say I want to be in the management consulting club or anything like that. I think the more knowledge you show in regards to what they offer, the better off you are.

true. i got that impression too. But clubs and course and seminars etc did not seem to satisfy him. May be he was looking for something very specific which i did not have. Although when i talked about my interest in emerging markets and my plans to build a deeper relationship with companies from these markets, he noted it and moved on. May be it satisfied him partially.