Tell Us Tuesdays: Submit an MBA Interview Report from UCLA / Anderson, Yale SOM, London Business School, MIT / Sloan, Dartmouth / Tuck and Win a $10 Amazon Gift Card!
Hello and welcome to April’s first edition of Tell Us Tuesdays, where we highlight MBA interview reports that have recently been posted to our Interview Archive! Over the past week, we have received interview reports from schools such U.Penn / Wharton, Harvard, NYU / Stern, and Chicago Booth.
The Clear Admit team greatly appreciates all of the interview reports we’ve received this admissions season! If you’re interested in sharing your experience, we’ll be awarding a $10 Amazon gift certificate to every third applicant who submits an interview report for UCLA / Anderson, Yale SOM, London Business School, MIT / Sloan, Dartmouth / Tuck through next Tuesday, April 9th at 4 p.m. EST! All you have to do is send us your interview field report for the selected schools for inclusion in the Interview Archive and we’ll send you a $10 Amazon gift certificate. We will notify the winners by e-mail (Limit: one gift card per person).
The most helpful and informative reports usually include the following information:
- Date/Admissions Round
- Description of visit and/or interview atmosphere
- Type of interview (alum vs. adcom, blind vs. application-based)
- List of interview questions
- Commentary (What did you think of the interview? What surprised you? What didn’t surprise you? What might you conclude about the school based on this experience?)
Applicants who would like to supplement the information available on the Interview Archive can check out our Clear Admit Interview Guides, which provide school-specific insight about admissions interviews. Good luck interviewing!
UCLA / Anderson MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 3 / Admission Staff
I just came back from an interview with an admission staff at Anderson. I was surprised that they would actually schedule an interview with me since the school does not provide interviews for round 3 applicants. Anyway… the meeting was only 20-25 minutes long as they mentioned on the invitation email. I was asked
1. Tell me about yourself (not exactly the way she said it)
2. Why do you need an MBA?
3. How did you prepare for your GMAT? ( I was surprised with this question)
4. How do you work in a team?
5. What do you think about your most recent employer’s evaluation? What do you need to improve and how?
6 Any questions?
Hope you find my experience helps. Good luck!
Trivia Tuesday: UCLA Anderson’s Management Core
It’s time again for Trivia Tuesday, in which we at Clear Admit cut through the maze of information out there and show you the elements that distinguish one MBA program from the next. Today, we’ll turn our spotlight on the Clear Admit Guide to UCLA Anderson to learn more about its Management Core.
“Anderson’s customizable core dominates the first-year curriculum, comprising all of Fall and Winter Quarters and half of the spring course load. Students may take an optional elective in the winter, though many have historically chosen instead to focus on their core courses. Anderson’s goal in designing such a rigorous initial core is to equip all students with a background in all primary business disciplines and functions before they embark on their internships. Continue reading…
UCLA / Anderson MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / Dean of Admissions / On Campus
I received my interview invitation on January 30th, exactly 3 weeks after the Round 2 application deadline (January 9th).
Going in, I prepared myself for an interview with a second year student—since that’s what I read on this blog, and in other places. (And the advice was greatly appreciated!) However, when I arrived on campus for my interview, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that I was being interviewed by the assistant dean. We went into his office, and from the beginning, the environment was extremely friendly and relaxed.
He told me a little bit about himself—his background, education, career, and what brought him back to work at Anderson—and expressed how much he loves interacting with students. This set the tone nicely for the rest of the interview, because I could see his genuine passion for the program and for student life.
With my resume in front of him, he asked me the following questions:
1. Tell me about yourself? (Maybe this wasn’t the exact wording, but it was a general question about my background, in reference to my resume.) During my answer, he also asked me a few clarifying questions.
2. Why do you want an MBA?
3. Why Anderson?
4. What are your weaknesses?
5. Tell me how you function in a team setting – what kind of leader are you?
6. Tell me about about a time that you lead a team (it can be work or non-work related)?
7. What clubs would you like to be involved with at Anderson?
8. Do you have any questions for me? (I asked him a specific questions about tracks vs. specializations, about how many extracurriculars were realistic given the course load, and a specific question about the AMR program, among others)
9. Where do you really want to go to business school?
Much of the interview was a free flowing conversation, and even the more “difficult” questions were asked in a gentle way that didn’t make it seem like he was prodding. I could tell he was trying to see if i would be a good fit for the culture, and we ended up talking a lot about teamwork, collaboration, and the nature of the student body at Anderson.
My advice is to get to know the program as much as you can, particularly the student culture, and decide for yourself if you think you’ll be a good fit. If you can demonstrate that you’ve done your research and made your decision intelligently, this will shine through in your interview.
Overall: I left with an exceptional impression of UCLA Anderson, surprised at how fulfilling the interview was in itself. Maybe I was lucky because I happened to resonate with the dean, but my feeling is that genuine human connection and interest in its students is the general spirit of Anderson.
BEST OF LUCK to everyone!
*Admitted February 15th and I couldn’t be happier.
UCLA / Anderson MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / Second-year student / On-campus
My interview was very relaxed. He asked the following questions:
-Walk me through your résumé.
-why do you think now is a good time to get your mba?
-why Anderson?
-are you focusing your bschool search in CA?
-tell me about an experience working in a team?
-what is your leadership style?
-what about bschool are you hoping to learn that you haven’t had a chance to learn in your career so far?
-where do you see yourself in 5-10 years?
-Any questions for me?
Round 2 MBA Admissions Update from UCLA Anderson School of Management
The MBA Admissions office at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management released an early batch of Round 2 decisions late last week, according to a post on Anderson MBA Insider’s Blog. “This was a relatively small group of applicants and we are still evaluating files, conducting interviews and sending out interview invitations,” wrote Associate Director of Admissions Jessica Chung. Chung added that some admitted students received fellowship offers as part of these early offers, but that fellowship funds remain for future Round 2 and Round 3 admits as well.
“We’re excited to see lots more great applicants in the mix, and interview invitations will continue to go out over the next several weeks,” Chung wrote. She added that applicants can expect a few more batches of early decisions in advance of the April 3rd final notification deadline. Continue reading…
UCLA / Anderson MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 1 (Waitlisted) / Second-year student / On-campus
I am a round 1 applicant who was waitlisted then invited to interview on the round 1 decision date.
My interview was on campus with a very sharp 2nd year student who only had my resume that I handed him when we sat down (blind interview). Judging by the previous posts and interview reports, it seems as if some of the questions (listed below) asked by my interviewer were a bit unusual. However, this could be attributed to the fact that my target industry and background are somewhat unconventional. Regardless, the interview atmosphere was very relaxed and conversational.
- Walk me through your resume.
- Why did you decide to pursue an MBA?
- What are your career goals?
- What is one question that I have not asked but you have an excellent response to?
- What would you do if your industry of choice was outlawed tomorrow?
- What sort of a position would you pursue in your industry of choice?
- Why haven’t you pursued such a position in this industry before?
- What are you going to do if you cannot find this kind of position since this is such a relatively small, niche industry?
- What questions do you have for me?
Overall, it was an excellent experience and I’m hoping for some good news soon!
UCLA / Anderson MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2/ 2nd Year Student/ On-Campus
The UCLA interview was very casual and conducted by 2nd Year students at the Admissions Office on Campus. My interviewer began by asking for my resume and asked me to walk him through. I began from my college undergrad degree and worked my way up the resume, giving highlights for each position. Thereafter, most of the questions were focused on my current position and role which he was interested in learning more about. This was a blind interview. Questions asked:
1. Tell me about your current position and role
2. What was one of the most challenging experiences you’ve encountered
3. Why UCLA and why MBA?
4. Short term and long-term goals
5. How will you contribute to UCLA?
6. How do you plan on getting involved at UCLA?
7. Do you have any aims to be involved in your community or create social change? What are those goals?
The interview ended with about 15-20min of questions for me to ask the interviewer. The school is definitely focused on a candidate’s fit and it doesn’t hurt to show your enthusiasm for the school and the career choices you’ve made.
Plagiarized Admissions Essays Doom MBA Applicants at Top Schools, Again
Fifteen prospective applicants to UCLA’s Anderson School of Management and another 48 at Penn State’s Smeal College of Business got dinged when a plagiarism-spotting service revealed that portions of their admissions essays had been lifted from other sources, Bloomberg BusinessWeek reports today. The schools say those numbers are likely to grow in subsequent admissions rounds.
Both Smeal and Anderson use a service called Turnitin for Admissions, which checks admissions essays against a database of published and unpublished sources and flags similarities. In total, about 15 schools use Turnitin, according to company spokesman Chris Harrick, but only four have publically disclosed that fact. (Northeastern’s D’Amore-McKim School of Business and Wake Forest Schools of Business also make their use of Turnitin public, though no applicants have been rejected for plagiarism at either school so far this year, Bloomberg BW reports.) Continue reading…
UCLA Anderson School of Management Financial Aid Team Shares Tips for Funding the MBA
Getting into a top MBA program is one thing. Paying for one is quite another… The MBA Financial Aid team at the Anderson School of Management at UCLA shared some valuable advice for prospective MBAs at Anderson and elsewhere in a recent post to the MBA Insider’s Blog. Topping their list: Start saving early, don’t borrow more than you need and be sure to thoroughly research your financing options.
Ji Choi and Andy Promsiri, Anderson’s full-time MBA Financial Aid team, field questions every day from prospective and current MBA students about how to pay for the cost of an MBA program. With years of financial aid experience between them, Choi and Promsiri urge prospective applicants to avoid a couple of common mistakes, namely borrowing more than you need and borrowing without adequately researching the options available to you. Continue reading…
Should Career Services Staff Weigh in on MBA Admissions Decisions? Wall Street Journal Consults Clear Admit for Insight
The Wall Street Journal recently turned to Clear Admit co-founder Graham Richmond to get his take on a trend taking hold in MBA admissions, namely, bringing in career services staff to evaluate candidates as part of the admissions process.
A WSJ article published today reports that admissions staff at several top MBA programs, including UCLA’s Anderson School of Management, UNC’s Kenan-Flagler Business School and the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management, have begun to ask career services staff to sit in on committee meetings to help assess how realistic candidates’ stated career goals are or otherwise inform the admissions process. Schools are increasingly employing this more integrated approach in an effort to help admissions officers better understand which candidates will be more employable come graduation and ultimately boost schools’ placement statistics.
For example, at the University of Rochester’s Simon Graduate School of Business, the director of career services has for the past year and a half been meeting every couple of weeks with the admissions team, sharing information on which firms and industries are recruiting at the school and which types of students have fared best post-graduation. At Kenan-Flagler, meanwhile, career services staff now routinely train admissions staff to look for the same traits in prospective applicants that a hiring manager will look for in current students.
Clear Admit’s Richmond pointed out as part of the WSJ article that involving career services staff in this way in the admissions process can benefit applicants, providing a key reality check for them early in the game. But he cautioned that looking too closely at employability and stated goals – that is, looking to only admit candidates who seem to be “sure things” for post-MBA employment – could lead to a very plain class and/or cause applicants to keep riskier post-MBA plans to themselves.
Balance is key when it comes to involving career services staff in the admissions process, Richmond advises. “Having well defined – and feasible – career goals is important in terms of ensuring success in b-school and beyond, but I also think that having a diverse class that heads off into dozens of industries and positions is pretty important, too,” he says. Career services offices can share with admissions that they are good at placing students in certain industries, so that the admissions team looks for applicants whose stated goals include those industries. But admissions officers should also push career services staff to open new doors with recruiters if they notice growing interest in the applicant pool in a new area, Richmond offers.
Read the full WSJ article, “MBA Pop Quiz: Are Your Employable?” And don’t miss Clear Admit’s Q&A Series with Career Services Directors at top MBA programs. We also feature a line of Clear Admit School Selection Guides, which are specifically designed to help applicants understand career-specific offerings at the leading MBA programs and identify the schools that will best support their career goals.
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