A Talk with Notre Dame's Admissions Director
An Excerpt from the Q&A

Q: What impression should applicants aim to leave on the interviewer?
A: That they have thought about why they want an MBA and how it's going to impact their careers. That they have valid and solid reasons for [pursuing] Notre Dame. That they are team players.

For the full version of this Q&A

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Comments from Student 1:
Scheduling the Interview: I got an e-mail from some member of the Admissions team asking when I would be available for an interview. I answered with 2 possible dates and they came back with a day and time. We confirmed the date and time.

Location of Interview: Phone interview

Preparedness of Interviewer: My impression was that beyond checking that the information I had given was accurate he wanted to get a feeling on how well I would fit into the program. At Notre Dame everybody is talking about a certain sense of great family – he wanted to make sure I would fit into the family.

Interviewer University affiliation: Mr. Brian T. Lohr, Senior Associate Director, Admissions

Atmosphere: Very familiar atmosphere, yet professional at the same time. Before getting into the real interview he took time to talk a little bit about other subjects, to get the conversation started.

Questions asked: The questions were regarding my work experience, my motivation for undertaking the MBA at this point in my career, my motivation for applying to Notre Dame and my motivation for applying at the time when I applied (I was invited to apply a few times before actually deciding to do so). I was also asked about a moment in my life when I had to make a ethical choice. Last question was about how I speak English so well. I was asked if I have any questions – I asked about when a decision would be made – this was the last school I was hearing from and I had already been accepted to three other universities. He asked me where I had been accepted and whether I was still waiting to hear from others. I didn't bring up the financial aid question during the interview, but I followed up with an e-mail on this issue.

Length of Interview: 30 minutes