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Had my first interview today. A quick report:

FACTS
... interviewer graduated from INSEAD 10 years ago
... it was extremely conversational & friendly, lasted 1.5 hours
... 50% in German, 50% in English (I'm located in Germany)

QUESTIONS
... why B.A & M.A. majors
... describe my current job, the company, the industry
... why MBA, why INSEAD, why now
... campus preference & why
... exchange program preference & why
... career plan after INSEAD; what I would do if rejected
... if admitted, what I would do until program starts
... what I do outside of work (interests, hobbies)
... which student clubs I would like to join, why
... how I can contribute to INSEAD
... my travel experiences; my understanding of other cultures & my own
... whether I have started learning French
... how I plan to finance my study
... any questions I had for him

INTERVIEWER's COMMENTS
... the purpose of this interview is to figure out whether he would like to have me as his classmate ("personality fit")
... he has interviewed many candidates and did not recommend those who couldn't show a genuine interest in the program
... the MBA did not affect his career path directly but helped him build confidence, cultural sensitivity & lasting friendships
... he's not allowed to reveal whether he would recommend me, but he was very positive about today's interview
... he's supposed to fill the interview questionnaire & give feedback to INSEAD within 48 hours

Feel free to ask me questions. Best luck to everyone!
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ulmandy
Had my first interview today. A quick report:

FACTS
... interviewer graduated from INSEAD 10 years ago
... it was extremely conversational & friendly, lasted 1.5 hours
... 50% in German, 50% in English (I'm located in Germany)

QUESTIONS
... why B.A & M.A. majors
... describe my current job, the company, the industry
... why MBA, why INSEAD, why now
... campus preference & why
... exchange program preference & why
... career plan after INSEAD; what I would do if rejected
... if admitted, what I would do until program starts
... what I do outside of work (interests, hobbies)
... which student clubs I would like to join, why
... how I can contribute to INSEAD
... my travel experiences; my understanding of other cultures & my own
... whether I have started learning French
... how I plan to finance my study
... any questions I had for him

INTERVIEWER's COMMENTS
... the purpose of this interview is to figure out whether he would like to have me as his classmate ("personality fit")
... he has interviewed many candidates and did not recommend those who couldn't show a genuine interest in the program
... the MBA did not affect his career path directly but helped him build confidence, cultural sensitivity & lasting friendships
... he's not allowed to reveal whether he would recommend me, but he was very positive about today's interview
... he's supposed to fill the interview questionnaire & give feedback to INSEAD with 48 hours

Feel free to ask me questions. Best luck to everyone!


Thanks for great posts. I am sure you will get admitted =)
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ducceus
ulmandy
Had my first interview today. A quick report:

FACTS
... interviewer graduated from INSEAD 10 years ago
... it was extremely conversational & friendly, lasted 1.5 hours
... 50% in German, 50% in English (I'm located in Germany)

QUESTIONS
... why B.A & M.A. majors
... describe my current job, the company, the industry
... why MBA, why INSEAD, why now
... campus preference & why
... exchange program preference & why
... career plan after INSEAD; what I would do if rejected
... if admitted, what I would do until program starts
... what I do outside of work (interests, hobbies)
... which student clubs I would like to join, why
... how I can contribute to INSEAD
... my travel experiences; my understanding of other cultures & my own
... whether I have started learning French
... how I plan to finance my study
... any questions I had for him

INTERVIEWER's COMMENTS
... the purpose of this interview is to figure out whether he would like to have me as his classmate ("personality fit")
... he has interviewed many candidates and did not recommend those who couldn't show a genuine interest in the program
... the MBA did not affect his career path directly but helped him build confidence, cultural sensitivity & lasting friendships
... he's not allowed to reveal whether he would recommend me, but he was very positive about today's interview
... he's supposed to fill the interview questionnaire & give feedback to INSEAD with 48 hours

Feel free to ask me questions. Best luck to everyone!


Thanks for great posts. I am sure you will get admitted =)


Thanks. Same to you :-)
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ulmandy
Had my first interview today. A quick report:

FACTS
... interviewer graduated from INSEAD 10 years ago
... it was extremely conversational & friendly, lasted 1.5 hours
... 50% in German, 50% in English (I'm located in Germany)

QUESTIONS
... why B.A & M.A. majors
... describe my current job, the company, the industry
... why MBA, why INSEAD, why now
... campus preference & why
... exchange program preference & why
... career plan after INSEAD; what I would do if rejected
... if admitted, what I would do until program starts
... what I do outside of work (interests, hobbies)
... which student clubs I would like to join, why
... how I can contribute to INSEAD
... my travel experiences; my understanding of other cultures & my own
... whether I have started learning French
... how I plan to finance my study
... any questions I had for him

INTERVIEWER's COMMENTS
... the purpose of this interview is to figure out whether he would like to have me as his classmate ("personality fit")
... he has interviewed many candidates and did not recommend those who couldn't show a genuine interest in the program
... the MBA did not affect his career path directly but helped him build confidence, cultural sensitivity & lasting friendships
... he's not allowed to reveal whether he would recommend me, but he was very positive about today's interview
... he's supposed to fill the interview questionnaire & give feedback to INSEAD with 48 hours

Feel free to ask me questions. Best luck to everyone!

seems very comprehensive interview and without weird questions like leadership style or ethical dilemmas.
Question: did your interviewer ask specific questions based on your profile or what you've written in the essays?

thanks for sharing and good luck with your next interview.
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man i'd be over the moon if those were the questions i got.

none of that tell me about a time yadda yadda yadda
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nomepreocupes
man i'd be over the moon if those were the questions i got.

none of that tell me about a time yadda yadda yadda


I hope the good cop/bad cop interview strategy is the thing of the past. I hope they are all good cop
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cyberhawk
ulmandy
Had my first interview today. A quick report:

FACTS
... interviewer graduated from INSEAD 10 years ago
... it was extremely conversational & friendly, lasted 1.5 hours
... 50% in German, 50% in English (I'm located in Germany)

QUESTIONS
... why B.A & M.A. majors
... describe my current job, the company, the industry
... why MBA, why INSEAD, why now
... campus preference & why
... exchange program preference & why
... career plan after INSEAD; what I would do if rejected
... if admitted, what I would do until program starts
... what I do outside of work (interests, hobbies)
... which student clubs I would like to join, why
... how I can contribute to INSEAD
... my travel experiences; my understanding of other cultures & my own
... whether I have started learning French
... how I plan to finance my study
... any questions I had for him

INTERVIEWER's COMMENTS
... the purpose of this interview is to figure out whether he would like to have me as his classmate ("personality fit")
... he has interviewed many candidates and did not recommend those who couldn't show a genuine interest in the program
... the MBA did not affect his career path directly but helped him build confidence, cultural sensitivity & lasting friendships
... he's not allowed to reveal whether he would recommend me, but he was very positive about today's interview
... he's supposed to fill the interview questionnaire & give feedback to INSEAD with 48 hours

Feel free to ask me questions. Best luck to everyone!

seems very comprehensive interview and without weird questions like leadership style or ethical dilemmas.
Question: did your interviewer ask specific questions based on your profile or what you've written in the essays?

thanks for sharing and good luck with your next interview.


The interviewer didn't ask for my essays. As for my profile, he said "since you're here with me today, INSEAD must have checked your profile and liked it. So I won't scrutinize the details on your profile."

He did however refer to my profile when he asked about my choice of undergraduate major, about one of my hobbies, and about my responsibilities on my job.
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I also had my first interview this week and my experience was pretty similar to Ulmandy's

  • The interviewer attended INSEAD 20 years ago and was now working with corporate strategy for a well-known international company with more than 20k employees
  • He told me he did not know much about what happens after he sends in the report. It's all a black box to the interviewers
  • He only had the interview PDF and my public LinkedIn profile
  • The entire interview was held the local tongue and with a very relaxed and conversational style
  • Most of the interview was about going through my background.
  • He did probe a bit, in particular about why I've taken different choices over the years. I think time I had spent on the earlier part of the MBA application writing essays and making sure that studying at INSEAD is a great and logical choice for me was very helpful.
  • He never asked directly the MBA question triplets. "Why MBA/INSEAD/now", but weaved those into the conversation
  • The future: What do I plan after INSEAD. Is the MBA necessary for me to reach my goals?
  • Some classical interview questions: describe yourself as a person? how is your leadership style?
  • In total about an hour and 15 minutes.

This was certainly a good cop interview. Wondering if the next will be the same.

Good luck to everyone else preparing for interviews these days :-)
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Anybody else from India still waiting for their interviewer details from SH. I got my pre-selection email on the 14th but haven't received any further communication.

Wondering if I should email SH or wait it out for a couple of more days?

This wait is nerve wracking!
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SonnyC
Anybody else from India still waiting for their interviewer details from SH. I got my pre-selection email on the 14th but haven't received any further communication.

Wondering if I should email SH or wait it out for a couple of more days?

This wait is nerve wracking!

Hang in there, she's getting around to everybody now.
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ChickenTikka
SonnyC
Anybody else from India still waiting for their interviewer details from SH. I got my pre-selection email on the 14th but haven't received any further communication.

Wondering if I should email SH or wait it out for a couple of more days?

This wait is nerve wracking!

Hang in there, she's getting around to everybody now.

Looking back at this thread, it seems to me that INSEAD usually sent out notification, invitation on a Tuesday(or at least my coordinator is). I could be wrong tho.
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One of my interviewers pulled out:( so I'm also waiting to hear about another one.

Posted from my mobile device
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joey88
One of my interviewers pulled out:( so I'm also waiting to hear about another one.

Posted from my mobile device

they are so fluid -> we have to hurry until they change their mind

i've scheduled one interview for next Tuesday, and then on Wednesday will call another to confirm the date
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joey88
One of my interviewers pulled out:( so I'm also waiting to hear about another one.

Posted from my mobile device

I am in the same boat. I got one schedule for this Saturday at a small cafe in Philadelphia. Waiting to hear from a new interview. I let my coordinator know I am willing to travel wherever they need me to
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I have completed both of my interviews now and I just wanted to give you guys an update -

First of all, both of the interviews I had were quite enjoyable and there were no bad cop/good cop scenarios - or maybe you could call both of them good cops.

I am not going to repeat all the questions as most of them have been posted above (classic questions we all expect regarding why-MBA/INSEAD/at this stage in your life pop up in some way or form even if not asked directly in that context) . What I think the interviewers are trying to find out though are three main things:

1) If you were their classmate at INSEAD, would they like to spend a very intense 10 months with you? Both of them mentioned INSEAD's "work hard, play hard" motto, and that is the main factor INSEAD alumni see themselves better connected at an emotional level with each other compared to other top business schools. One of them mentioned that while all top business schools were looking for great, intelligent, and highly skilled students, INSEAD was never interested in someone who would do "whatever it takes" to get to the top. So you should show you have a good factor of Emotional Intelligence - you're very successful but also cool to hang out with.

2) If you are able to work in a team, which consists of multiple nationalities, multiple personalities, and thus multiple opinions. How do you get your point across if there is a divergence of opinion in the group? How can you get your ideas accepted without stepping on your teammates' ideas. This actually came as a question and I was asked to walk the interviewer through a situation where this happened and what the result was.

3) That you are committed to an international career - and that you have international experience. This is something that INSEAD prides itself of and interviewers don't want to hear that you will go back home after INSEAD (even if it is what you want to do and even if it is an international company that you are going to work with).

Of course, the above is my take from my interviews and I may be wrong in what I felt coming across the table. I also was asked some thought provoking questions on both interviews like:

- What I thought the role of technology was in my sector and how tech companies should partner with companies from my sector. How should they share profits.
- What makes a team successful and how I would build successful teams. Also how I would measure success in a team.
- Where was my sector going in the next five years? What I thought some of the developments were - on this I was told that it was important to INSEAD for their applicants to have good analytical skills and they are able to form creative thoughts about the future business.

Hope this is helpful to at least some of you. I think the questions themselves, although they might aim to find out similar information, change from interviewer to interviewer, as well as from applicant profile to profile.

Good luck everybody :-D
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joey88
One of my interviewers pulled out:(

Whoah there cowboy, not sure the interviewers are supposed to vet you that way! :oops:
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Thanks ulmandy, bob99 and spearo1907 for sharing your experiences. Great to hear that all of you enjoyed the interviews (no bad cop yet).
I have scheduled my first interview on May 31st. In talks with second interviewer to align on the date.

Just got update from my second interviewer....second interview is on 5/31 as well .....biggest day of my life :lol: :wink:
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