Folks,
Here's my interview debrief:
Location: Kolkata
Date: 31st January 2015
Panel No. : 3
One word essay: Serenity
My Profile :
GMAT : 710
Work Experience : 6.5 yrs
Industry : IT (Product based MNC)
Role : Senior Developer
The interview was scheduled for 12:15 and it started around 12:20. I reached the location at around 11:00 and was guided to a room where 3 people were seated. All had completed their one word essay and they were discussing each others profiles. Getting involved in this conversation helped me a lot to calm my nerves and get ready for the interview. They also informed me about the folks who had left earlier and gave insights on different panels. Overall, it seemed like the panelists were:-
1. Three in number
2. Not asking any case studies
3. More interested in "Why MBA" and
4. Asking questions majorly based upon our essays
I had prepared for this, thanks to this forum, ankurgupta03 and bandan, who helped me with a mock interview and gave me a holistic list of questions (9 pages in total). I cannot thank you guys enough for the solid preparation!
Coming back to the interview, as the time was coming closer, I grew more nervous. By this time, all the folks whom I had met finished their interviews and I was now passing on the information to the new folks in the room. Then the guy who was being interviewed by panel no. 3 came out and told me it was a 'walk in the park'. I was next. Another visit to the restroom(3 in total AFAIR!) and I was called by one of the panelists. There were three of them. Lets call them A,B and C. Here's what happened inside:-
A: Why business from tech?
Ans : Answered the question in detail (This seemed like a 'Why MBA' question in disguise)
B : Why ISB
And : gave 5-6 points on ISB. I also told them that ISB was the only school that I was applying to this year. this brought about a smile on their faces.
B : That was a very well researched answer (Phew! I grew a bit confident after this)
C : What is it that you do exactly?
Ans : Explained the whole business
C : Can you give me an example of how one of your customers uses your product
Ans : Explained with a specific example
C : Can you tell me about this specific activity (I had mentioned in the essay about it)
Ans : Answered in detail about the event(This event was very close to my heart so I was really chirpy when answering this question)
C : Can you give me 3 good and 1 bad experience from that event?
Ans : Quickly answered
A : Do you have any questions for us?
Me : Asked couple of questions
The interview lasted for approximately 30 minutes. Overall, even I felt the same as the guy before me had felt : The interview was a 'walk in the park'. The panelists were extremely polite and friendly. It never felt like an interview to be honest. There was no cross questioning and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. They had smiles on their faces all the time.
I am not sure what to make out of it since most people would leave with similar experiences that day. I guess it all boils down to 'who has a better story to tell'.
Key Takeaways:-
1. Prepare very well on why you want to do an MBA. Ideally, link it to your short and long term goals. If the picture is unclear, then keep thinking about it for a few days, discuss it with peers and the answer will come in front of you. Also remember to take feedback from whomever you can
2. Research Research Research and add your own flavor to your research
3. Dig in deep. Build your answer around specific stories that you think will affect your chances of getting into ISB.
That's it from my side guys. Irrespective of what the outcome is, it was a awesome journey to take. All you guys on this forum are awesome and doing a great job. Kudos to you guys!
Cheers,
Nitesh