A Talk with Stern's Admissions Director
An Excerpt from the Q&A:

Q: What questions can applicants expect to field during a Stern interview?
A: If you have good judgment and are a good self-assessor, you should be able to figure out the questions. Interviewers have read your application ahead of time, so ask, "What things might the [admissions committee] have more questions about?" We want to understand your story. How will you be a fit? How will you work in groups?

Q: What interview tips can you offer?
A: Relax. Be genuine. Be passionate. A lot of people go into the interview saying what they think we want to hear. We want people who are excited about themselves, their future, and who are going to make good things happen.

For the full version of this Q&A

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Comments from Student 1:
In terms of my interview process, my experience was a bit of an anomaly. I applied to Stern through the Consortium for Graduate Studies in Management, which is offers admission to minority students at selected schools throughout the country. My interview at Stern was held during a minority recruiting weekend at Stern, and lasted about an hour. One of the most memorable parts of my interview was the "placebility" question that I got. I don't remember the exact wording, but the interviewer wanted to know how, given my entrepreneurial ambitions, I was planning on getting a job post-graduation. I assumed that question was intended to ensure that I wouldn't ruin Stern's placement statistics, but that's just my guess.

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Comments from Student 2:
I applied to a total of six schools -- NYU, Columbia, Wharton, Harvard, Duke, and Georgetown -- and got interviews with four out of these six (NYU, Wharton, Duke and Georgetown). I was eventually accepted to three out of four of these schools, NYU, Duke and Georgetown -- so hopefully I'll be able to provide some helpful insights to prospective students.

In terms of questions asked, some general ones that all four schools asked included:

1) "Walk me through your resume...and why do you feel like an MBA is right for you given your experience to date?" (All schools)

2) "If your friends were sitting in this room with us, what would they tell me [interviewer] about you?" (Duke)

3) "Given your experience/background/personality, what do you think you can contribute to [the school]?" (All schools)

4) "If you had 24 hours to do anything that you wanted, what would it be and why?" (a little strange, but I got this question from both Wharton and Duke).

5) "What are your long and short-term goals post MBA?" (All schools)

6) "Describe a time when you failed -- either a project or personal goal, etc." (Duke)

7) "Describe a time that you had to work with others on a project and what the outcome was. What did you learn from it?" (Duke)

8) "Picture yourself in 20 years, as an alumni of our school. If you were at a reunion function and we were to introduce you, what would you want to be noted for?" (What personal or professional or community achievement?) (NYU)

9) "What are the specific qualities about this school that makes it attractive to you?" (All schools)

The locations and types of interviewers were as follows: NYU: On-campus at the Admissions Office with the Associate Director of Admissions
Georgetown: During the annual World MBA Forum in New York at the Grand Hyatt with a recent MBA graduate (Class of 2002)
Duke: On-campus at the Admissions Office with a second-year student (Class of 2003)
Wharton: On-campus at the Admissions Office with a second-year student (Class of 2003)