Acing the MBA Application Interview

It's nerve-wracking and full of land mines. But an MBA admissions interview can be a key element of your business school application

By Francesca Di Meglio

The admissions interview is your chance to get up close and personal with the business schools to which you are applying. It is an opportunity for you to reveal more of your personality in a way that's simply not possible in an admissions essay. Schools interview applicants to ask follow-up questions after reading their applications, find out how they express themselves in person, and determine how well they will eventually interview for recruiters. "Sometimes, we can sense the energy and vitality of the person we're interviewing," says Julie Barefoot, associate dean of MBA admissions at the Emory University Goizueta Business School (Goizueta Full-Time MBA Profile). "If we can sense it, then recruiters will sense it, too."

Although interviews are just one part of the application process, they can give you a boost with the admissions committee. You may create a lasting dialogue with the interviewer and, as a result, become a memorable applicant, says Michael Cohan, president of MBAPrepAdvantage, an admissions consultant. Memorable applicants—at least those who are memorable for positive reasons—have a better chance of succeeding with the admissions committee. If you want to have a successful admissions interview, here's what you have to do:

Prepare Yourself

One of the most obvious ways to prepare for the admissions interview is often overlooked by candidates. Many never bother to find out how the interview will be structured.

Some admissions interviews are formal, highly structured affairs only for those who have already passed a particular screening process. Usually, these kinds of interviews are conducted by trained staff members, who are seeking answers to specific questions. Other schools allow anyone who visits campus to have an interview,which might be conducted by staff, alumni, or even current students. Some Internet research, discussions with students and alumni, and a review of the materials provided to you by the school are usually enough to determine the kind of admissions interview to expect.

If you can find out the name of the person with whom you'll be interviewing ahead of time, you can Google him or her, says Cohan. "Don't stalk him," he warns. "Be appropriate and explore if you have any commonalities that you might be able to discuss."

Get ready to share your story. Reread your application before the interview, suggest most admissions experts. You shouldn't regurgitate your application in the interview because the admissions committee is looking to learn more about you than it already knows. But remembering the goals you discussed, what you thought made the school stand out, and what you expected to contribute to the campus can help you when responding to questions face-to-face. Having this information in the back of your mind will also help you make the most of your time during the admissions interview, which usually takes between 30 and 40 minutes at most.

The interview is a chance for the school to ask you follow-up questions about your work experience or what you shared in your essays. In the past year, with the economic crisis, Barefoot says, many applicants had been laid off and were embarrassed to come out and say so. One applicant was unclear about his work status on the résumé that Goizueta asks candidates to bring to their interviews, says Barefoot, who adds that he would have been more successful if he had been honest. Candidates should explain their employment history and say, "I was laid off, so I decided to prepare for the GMAT" or "I was laid off, so I spent time volunteering for X," says Barefoot.

Tardiness is another way to make a bad impression, because most interviewers are on tight schedules. Leave early and get directions ahead of time if you're unsure of the location. Another obvious tip worth mentioning is getting rest ahead of time, says Rod Garcia, director of MBA admissions at Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Sloan School of Management (MIT Sloan Full-Time MBA Profile). If you're well rested, you will look and feel better, which will make you better apt to carry on an interesting conversation.

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