We interviewed at a local Starbucks and it was fairly conversational and friendly. The focus was more so on my background and behavioral questions along with a focus on “why Haas?”. It was a blind interview and so she had not seen anything until we got there, I brought a resume for her to reference and review.
I think the graduates of Haas really make an effort to stay in touch with the school and are very willing to vet the future students to ensure that the tight community stays in tact.
The alumna followed a few pages of outlined questions. So I imagine that is a standard prompt that interviewers will use. It is about one hour long.
Questions:
- Walk me through your resume. Tell me where, why and what you did in school and then the jobs that you have had since as well as the progression of roles. (Will randomly ask questions throughout interview that delve into specifics on resume. e.g. Tell me about this organization, your involvement in X, what was Y like?)
- What is your definition of success? And what is the top success that you have had in your current role? — What about the future, what is your most desired success?
- Referencing a leadership or management position held, what is your style of leadership and how have you been effective?
- Tell me about a time that you had a problem while leading a team, how overcame it, what was the result?
- Do you have a mentor? (*More so professionally, try to provide someone senior to you. Maybe give example of why, how, what have learned from him/her)
- Describe three adjectives that friends would say about you… Three that your family would say about you … Three that your co-workers/subordinates would say about you.
- What is your number one weakness?
- Why Haas? What is something that was unexpected that you discovered about Haas? What programs/classes/ECs would you join while attending Haas?
- Why an MBA? When did you decide? Why not another degree or continued professional education?
- Do you have any questions for me? Or about Haas?
—-
I found it interesting that she did not send the prompt to the school in a timely manner, so the admissions office contacted me weeks afterward as though I had never interviewed. I had to tell them with whom I interviewed and that she should have a record of the meeting. Afterward, I was surprised to get a call from the interviewer (now 3-4 weeks later) and get “one last question asked over the phone that was not originally asked”. That being “what is a challenge that I foresee in going to business-school/Haas?”.
Altogether, I have been happy with my visits and the people I have met who are affiliated with Haas. I am excited to hear the admission decision in the next couple weeks along with the Consortium Fellowship announcements in the middle of March.
