The interview was applicant-initiated and part of a full day on campus. The day started off with a group of students meeting some of the HSM team followed by a lunch, adcom Q&A, then the interview, and finally a class at the end of the day.
The interview was conversational and very low-key. It started off with an introduction by the 2nd year
(who they were, what led them to Fuqua, where they were going post-Fuqua, etc.) followed by some preliminary questions about me like where I’m from, where I went to school, career history, etc. followed up by a Why an MBA and Why Fuqua?
After that, it was a lot of behavioral-type questions like, a time I struggled, a time I succeeded, strengths, weaknesses, etc. We also discussed how I plan to contribute to Fuqua, academically as well as socially, and what Team Fuqua meant to me.
The one question I wasn’t truly prepared for was one about 4 words I would use to describe myself to the Adcom. I was given some time to think about it (and write down some ideas) before I answered with some explanations of why I chose those 4 words. I talked to a fellow prospective student after the interview and she mentioned encountering a similar question she wasn’t prepared for (what famous person, dead or alive, would you want to have dinner with and why). That being said, like in my case, she was given time to think over her response before answering.
Overall, it was very straight forward and easy. I felt like the 2nd year truly was interested in who I was, why I was there, and why Fuqua. It truly exemplified the concept of Team Fuqua to me. Given that I had some time for Q&A with my interviewer after, I was able to ask some thought-provoking questions as well as rebound some back to them (what Team Fuqua meant to them, what their most memorable experience was, what would they change about their experience, etc).
I truly felt like Team Fuqua was a real thing, not a motto that a school had in place to try to recruit potential students.
Clear Admit Resources
Preparing for your Duke / Fuqua admissions interview? Check out Clear Admit’s other resources:
- Clear Admit Duke / Fuqua Interview Guide: Strategic tips for approaching Fuqua’s interview questions, and more.
- Interview Archive: More firsthand accounts from Duke Fuqua MBA applicants themselves
- Understanding the MBA Admissions Interview: Blind Interviews vs. Non-blind Interviews
- Podcast Episode 23: 5 Most Common MBA Interview Questions You Need to Ace
