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So I just submitted my video essays for R2 and I think I may have bombed them. I spoke way too fast throughout, and got cutoff on #3 and possibly #2. My response to #2 was prepared so I think that went fine, but the examples I used for #1 and #3 were not great, and I spent too much time explaining the situation around them rather than directly responding to the questions. Therefore I didn't leave enough time to talk about my thoughts, feelings, and lessons learned (the mushy stuff Kellogg loves). It was a missed opportunity to show some personality and really help my case.
My question is - how bad can video essays hurt you for Kellogg? Can a poor response make or break your entire application? Is there anyone out there who can share a similar experience of botching the video essays and still getting admitted?
Looking for some words of encouragement, or some brutal honesty! Both are welcome... :-D
My question is - how bad can video essays hurt you for Kellogg? Can a poor response make or break your entire application? Is there anyone out there who can share a similar experience of botching the video essays and still getting admitted?
Looking for some words of encouragement, or some brutal honesty! Both are welcome... :-D
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ConsideringMBA17
Joined: 15 Feb 2016
Last visit: 07 May 2018
Posts: 30
Location: United States (CA)
Concentration: Nonprofit, Social Entrepreneurship
Schools: HBS '19 (D) Kellogg '19 (D) Yale '19 (D) Duke '19 (D) Tuck '19 (D) McCombs '20 (A) Darden '20 (WL) McDonough '20 (A)
GMAT 1: 730 Q43 V46
GRE 1: Q162 V170
GPA: 3.8
WE:Analyst (Non-Profit and Government)
Schools: HBS '19 (D) Kellogg '19 (D) Yale '19 (D) Duke '19 (D) Tuck '19 (D) McCombs '20 (A) Darden '20 (WL) McDonough '20 (A)
GMAT 1: 730 Q43 V46
GRE 1: Q162 V170
Posts: 30
I've seen people who thought they bombed their interviews get accepted to MBA programs. I've also seen folks who thought they aced everything get rejected.
Who knows? Admissions are holistic, and probably depend as much on the mood of the readers as anything.
Who knows? Admissions are holistic, and probably depend as much on the mood of the readers as anything.
mbaboop
I wouldn't worry too much. I described myself as "brash" in video 1 not realizing until afterwards that the word has a negative connotation. I also ran out of time on video #3. I had 5 seconds left after setting up the context and concluded with "and the project was a great success." So yeah... that was pretty miserable, but hey -- I got in with $$$!
My feeling is that the video essay is really about measuring your basic English proficiency (if you're an intl applicant), presence on camera, and likability, so don't worry too much about the content of your answers as long as you don't say something truly ridiculous.
I don't think I did very well during the video interview. I did an on campus interview and ultimately got it. Happy to answer any questions you have via DM. Don't stress about video interview everyone gets an interview just focus on crushing that. I can share my experience if you like.
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BigRedBro
Joined: 06 Oct 2016
Last visit: 12 Jan 2017
Posts: 2
Schools: HBS '19 (D) Kellogg '19 (A) Sloan '19 (A)
GMAT 1: 740 Q47 V45
GPA: 3.7
I likewise think that I did poorly on the video essays. My "ice breaker" asked me about my greatest weakness, which totally caught me off guard. I also ran out of time on the third question and don't think my response was coherent in the first place. When I mentioned this experience to a current student he said that the prevailing view of his group of friends was that they were admitted despite their awkward video responses...Good Luck!
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The videos are an important part of the application but they are just one part. Since you can show them how you interact through an interview, this can offset some potential negative performance in a video. I had a client last round who thought he bombed one of the questions and he ended up getting in and getting $90K of fellowship support. So you never know!
Best,
Scott
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Great advice above! Of course it is better to have felt you performed well on the video interview than not but ultimately the process is holistic and there are many other components of the application fortunately so if you are a strong candidate in the other areas you should be fine. Good luck!
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Archived Kellogg Discussion
Hi there,
You've stumbled upon an old discussion from our Kellogg Forum
that's now outdated and has been archived. No more replies are possible here.
Interested in current discussions? Feel free to dive into our dedicated Kellogg Forum
for all fresh things related to the Kellogg MBA program.
Thank you for understanding, and happy exploring!
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