subject: Insider Mba Interview Tips [print this page] Want to know a secret? When you step inside for your MBA admission interview, everyone in the room knows you're as nervous as ever. Panelists are aware of the fact that you want to get into their program badly - and that the interview is testing every inch of whatever control you have over your nerves. In an interview about getting into the top MBA schools, panelists revealed that one of their primary concerns during the interview round is the overall impact each of their applicants create. Those who have poor eye contact, are lacking in eloquence, give inconsistent answers, and appear too rehearsed or, reversely, too detached are instantly given the failing mark in their MBA interview questions answers.
What you need to do in order to pass is to simply show the panelists that you're in control. Stay focused and be sensitive to the questions being asked. Every question in the interview is asked not at random; they each have their own agenda. For instance, if you are asked to say why you're in the room, the panelists actually want to know what you deem appealing about the school and why you want an MBA. A question like this requires only a 60-to-90-second answer. On the other hand, if you are asked to say what others think about you, the panelists are asking for your strong and weak points in MBA interview questions and answers. Most applicants shield their weak points and give something vague, such as being a perfectionist. Panelists, however, advise applicants to say something more specific, such as having little or no background in mathematics, and include the steps you have taken in order to make that weakness become strength, i.e. enrolling in a calculus or economics class. Or you could talk about a past mistake from which you have clearly learned your lesson.
Finally, it is important to be yourself. In the recent interview mentioned earlier, panelists revealed that they can instantly tell whether an applicant is just hamming it up for the MBA interview question. They find this annoying because the MBA program is a tough one, and those who are not sure if their heart is in it should not apply at all. Besides, the interview is a means for panelists to see if the school fits your culture and if you fit the school's. Thus, it's important to show your true colors so you too can have an idea if the MBA program and the school are really for you.
