Interview Reports
UNC Kenan-Flagler
Below are MBA admissions interview questions and experiences submitted by Kenan-Flagler applicants. If you interviewed at UNC, we encourage you to submit a report detailing your experience!UNC / Kenan-Flagler MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 3 / AdCom / Phone
My interview was with AdCom member John Hughes. He was very relaxing and has a great interview style where it feels much more like a relaxing conversation than an interview. I am usually very nervous in interview situations but he really put me at ease. In so many words he asked me the following questions….
- Where did you grow up?
- Walk me through your resume.
- What was your biggest work accomplishment?
- What are your short term and long term goals?
- Why Kenan Flagler?
- Do you feel your GMAT score/GPA are a true representation of your ability?
John and I had similar backgrounds and my career aspirations are similar to what he’s done with his life so we really just had a great conversation about his experiences and how he felt Kenan Flagler would be a great fit for me.
UNC / Kenan-Flagler MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 1 / Alum / Off-Campus
A summary of questions asked:
- Top 3 accomplishments
- Teamwork
- Walk me through your resume
- Community involvement and extra curriculars
- A lot of grilling on why MBA, why UNC and short term and long term goals
- Plan B if the school rejects you
- Small town/ big city orientation
- International exposure
- A lot of personal questions regarding family.
- Which other schools have you applied to and why?
He also gave me inputs about his stay at UNC and what were the key takeaways for him…
Tt was fairly conversational and he put me at ease.
All in all, a very good interview. He was a thorough gentleman.
UNC / Kenan-Flagler MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 3 / Adcom / Skype
The interview lasted approximately 45 minutes and it started with the AdCom saying that she had my resume and that she hadn’t reviewed my application but she had notes from others who did review it. The questions she asked me were:
- “Walk me through your resume”
- “Your GPA seems low. Are there any extenuating circumstances or explanations for that?”
- “Why are you interested in getting your MBA?”
- “Why now?”
- “What are your goals?
- ”Tell me a couple of adjectives to describe yourself.”
The AdCom was very professional but still pleasant. The interview was very formal and she did take notes all throughout the interview.
UNC / Kenan-Flagler MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2/ Admissions Officer / Off-campus
When I arrived I was asked to submit my resume and told that my interviewer would go through my resume mins before the start of the interview. The interview was blind. The only information my interviewer had was my resume.
The interview started and they asked me to walk them through my resume, because they told me there were bits that needed clarification. Then they asked,
- “Why do you want to get an MBA?”
- “Why an MBA from Kenan Flagler?”
- “What qualities do you hope to develop during your MBA?”
- “What do you plan to do after your MBA?”
As my answers were quite long, the time was almost up when they told me to ask them any questions if I had any. I asked one final question and it was over.
UNC / Kenan-Flagler MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 1/Alumnus/On-campus
There were no questions on Why MBA, Why Now or What have I done to date at my work place. The questions were on my achievements outside of my work area, my other extracurricular activities, my interests, my personal background and other similar stuff. He also asked me about other schools in my list and we also talked about the current economic scenario.
We talked about some of his experiences at the school and while finding jobs and internships.
Finally, it came to questions from my side. I asked him 2 questions and got the answers.
UNC / Kenan-Flagler MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / Adcom / On Campus
I visited Kenan-Flagler during my visit I interviewed on campus with one of the Associate Admissions Directors. After arriving and settling into the interview with pleasantries and introductions, my interviewer pulled up a copy of my resume and then asked me to walk them through my resume. Afterwards, they moved onto some other questions ranging from
- Why an MBA?
- Why Now?
- What about KF appeals to you?
- What is the hardest lesson you have learned?
- What specifically have you learned in these leadership positions?
- Specific question about my undergraduate leadership experiences
- What I knew about the Research Triangle technology and innovation scene (I work in tech)
They left sometime for me to ask some questions and then closed with the timeline/process. Overall, the interview felt very conversational. While I felt the interviewer was hard to read they were also very at ease and very relaxed which made me feel the same.
UNC / Kenan-Flagler MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 3 / Adcom / Phone
My interview was with the Director of admissions of Kenan-Flagler. The questions I was asked were:
- Why do you want an MBA and why now
- MBA is a big monetary commitment.Are you prepared for loss of income
- How did you choose which schools to apply to
- Which achievement are you most proud of
- What have been your disappointments
- You have lived/worked in multiple states across US. Which one did you like the most
- What are your career goals
- Is there a role model who has influenced your career goals
- When did you first think about getting an MBA
The interview was about 40 minutes long. The adcom member was very friendly and conversational. Showing fit is big at Kenan-Flagler
UNC / Kenan-Flagler MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / Adcom / Telephone Interview
I interviewed with a member of the Adcom, Mr John Hughes, on December 5, 2011 over telephone. He had a copy of my resume with himself and started the interview in an unexpected manner by trying to throw me off my feet. I had worked with two organizations before joining my family business in 2010 but most questions revolved around my first two jobs.
A) Tell me about the town your hometown and schooling.
B) Why did you choose your undergrad college?
C) Why did you choose to do an undergrad in Economics?
D) Why did you pursue a Masters in Economics?
E) How did you get your first job? Was it through the school?
F) What did you enjoy the most about your first job?
F) What prompted you to change your first job (to second job)?
G) What’s your current role in your family business (my third job on the resume)?
H) Why MBA?
I) Why now?
J) Why UNC Kenan-Flagler? He was impressed to know that I had done my research and was in touch with several students from the school.
K) What will be your responsibility when you return to your family business after MBA?
L) How many siblings do you have and what do they do currently? Upon reflection I thought that he was trying to figure out if there maybe a succession issue with my business.
M) If I called your manager from your second job today, what would he have to say about the following things:
- Your 3 greatest qualities
- One thing you can improve upon
- Your biggest contribution to the company
Then he gave me the opportunity to ask questions to him, and told me that he hoped to see me at UNC KF next year. He also told me his name again and added that he hoped that I would remember him and shake his hand. The interview lasted around 50 minutes. Mr Hughes was very friendly and patient, and he made me feel very comfortable.
Result: Admitted in R2.
UNC / Kenan-Flagler MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / Adcom / On-campus
The interview was a blind interview, meaning my interviewer had not reviewed my application. He only had a copy of my resume, and the interview revolved around my resume. We spent a few minutes with chitchat, and he described his background and what he was aiming to get out of the interview. It was very casual and conversational, and the interview lasted about 45 min. Everybody at KFBS was extremely friendly, and I was quite impressed. The interviewer went right off my resume and made notes on the resume itself. Questions included:
- Why did you pick your college?
- What was your favorite thing about your college?
- Tell me about your favorite college extracurricular.
- What do you enjoy doing in your free time now?
- Talk about each of your jobs post-college and how has your role progressed.
- If your current boss had to pick two adjectives to describe you, what would he pick?
- What is one area your boss would say you need improvement?
- Why do you think Kenan-Flagler would be a good fit for you? (KFBS very focused on fit, so have a good answer(s) here)
- What would you contribute to the KFBS community?
- Have to spoken with any current students/alums?
- What questions do you have for me?
UNC / Kenan-Flagler MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / Adcom / On Campus
I interviewed with John Hughes (adcom member) on January 31st on campus. Like other people have said it was a blind interview. Overall it was conversational. He had a list of questions he wanted to get answered, but there was definitely some back and forth discussion throughout the 45 minutes. My goal is to work in the sports industry, and Mr. Hughes attended a rival college of mine so we discussed the state of our football teams on the outset of the interview. The rest of the questions were:
- Where did you grow up, was your high school public or private
- Why did you choose your ug institution
- How did you decide to choose your major
- Short term career goals
- “Golden chalice” career goals. What is the dream without any regard to feasibility
- Why MBA?
- Why KFBS?
- What recommender knew me the best, and what would they say are my strenghts/weaknesses?
- If I had a free vacation day come up, how would I spend it?
Overall they were very basic questions, but he had an interesting way of bringing them up. It was my very first interview, but he kept me feeling comfortable throughout the process. The interview finished with him giving me a chance to ask him any questions and some small talk back and forth.
Result: Admitted in R2 (R1 timing for most schools, but KFBS has that early action round they call R1).
UNC / Kenan-Flagler MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 3 / Adcom / Off-campus
I applied for the third deadline, and opted for an off-campus interview. I was interviewed on January 21, 2011 at a hotel in San Francisco. My interviewer was Sherry Wallace, Director of MBA Admissions. She was visibly exhausted conducting back-to-back interviews for two days in a row, but was still very friendly and inspiring. We started off with my current job and she asked me to explain my duties and the significance of my work as a Traffic Safety Engineer at Caltrans. Other questions included:
- Why an MBA? Why do you want to work on improving infrastructure in the emerging markets (my career goal)? What is your inspiration and motivation?
- Why Kenan-Flagler?
- What is one thing that you are most proud of? (I gave example of a personal and a professional accomplishment)
- What are your greatest qualities that people who know you well would talk about?
- What is one thing that they would say you could improve upon?
- What role do you play in a team? (I explained my role with an example)
- How are you going to finance your studies?
- Do you have any role model in the career path that you have chosen? (I mentioned about an alumnus of Kenan-Flagler, who returned to his country Costa Rica after his MBA, and worked on financing small businesses and helping in economic development)
- Outside of work, how do you engage yourself?
Sherry asked the questions in a very friendly, yet professional manner. She probably had a set of questions that needed to be completed within the stipulated 30 minutes, so at times I found her as well as myself rushing a bit. However, our conversation seemed to be pretty engaging. She showed genuine interest in my experiences and my future career goals. Also, when I touched upon various unique characteristics of the MBA program at Kenan-Flagler, she expressed her agreement.
At the end of her questionnaire, there was a few minutes left, so I asked her about new initiatives at Kenan-Flagler, and also about opening a new club focused on the emerging markets. I also briefly talked about one of the famous Indian Professors at the school, and she was very excited to talk about him as well.
Overall, it was a nice experience. I felt that I could have said a bit more if I would have had a little more time. That is an area I have to improve, and that is my advice as well – do not keep talking too much about one topic. Once you have said your bullet points, move on to the next topic. If your interviewer wants, she will ask for more.
Hope this feedback helps you in your endeavors. All the best to you in your application process.
UNC Kenan-Flagler
| MEDIAN GMAT | 700 |
| MEAN GPA | 3.3 |
| CLASS SIZE | 290 |
| % FEMALE | 25% |
Round 4 applicants received admissions decisions on April 29...
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