I had my first interview with INSEAD 20th February. The alum who conducted it was a graduate in 2003 and is a Malaysian. Overall, I think the interview went well. It was very casual, and I felt a bit overdressed with a tie on. He was dressed in business attire sans tie and coat.
The questions mainly centered on “Why MBA?”, “Why Now?” & “Why INSEAD”. I felt that I ended telling much of my life story while answering the first two questions. The third one was quite tough as I had to justify why INSEAD would be the logical choice for me. In the end, I think I did a fairly reasonable job. We had it at a cafeteria and when it closed, we moved outside to continue at a table near a garden. I managed to get a lot of information on the actual program and it reinforced further that INSEAD would be a great school in which to study at. On reflection, it seemed to me that he was trying to gauge firstly my reasons for doing the MBA, and secondly, whether I would fit into the schools. The question on the third language also arose, and I told him that I had basic German after studying it in school. He recommended that I try and qualify for it (i.e. do the test) before going to Fontainebleau so that I can devote the rest of the time outside classes and study groups to socialising and also for job hunting.
2nd Interview was conducted on 28th February (last day for interviews) and I was a bit more nervous for this interview as I haven’t spoken to the interviewer before but only to his secretary. It became worse when she (the secretary) called to postpone the 11.30 monday morning interview and rearranged it for Tuesday afternoon.
The interviewer came down (about 15 mins late) to his office reception area and suggested that we go to a coffee shop at a nearby mall. As it was an order/pay first system, I faced a conundrum whether to offer to pay. I knew that for sure he would pick up the tab (it’s only coffee and he’s a high ranking executive) but I wasn’t sure whether I should at least make the offer (or whether that would seem too over-eager), so in my hesitation he promptly paid which left me no option but to offer a sheepish “thanks”.
We then moved to a crowded sitting area and it made me a bit uncomfortable initially. However like the first interview, our discussion went well. It was almost like a casual chat but was more detailed as he had not read my essays (my first interviewer specifically asked for them). It started off with questions about my career so far, and where I see it headed. He seemed to want to find out more detail on my work (“describe how your typical work day is like” and “how have you progressed in terms of work over the past few years” or something along those lines). I guess he wanted confirmation that what I put down on my resume was true and not just some fabrication. One tough question he asked which I didn’t expect was “how do you make money in your business?”. I think I gave a fairly good answer which he seemed satisfied with.
He then went on to Why INSEAD type questions and also “Why Now” but thankfully the first interview prepared me for these and I think I gave out genuine reasons based on my personal circumstances. He mainly agreed that I had made the right choice and that my reasons were well based. He then asked about which other schools I’d apply to so I told him about the Harvard & Wharton dings (which I know was a bit risky – as I had applied to them first, but I had to show him that right now INSEAD was my number one choice). I also told him that I initially had doubts about a 1 year program but upon further research and speaking to alumni I found out that INSEAD’s program just crammed it all within a year and you don’t miss out on too much. In the end I think we finished off on a good note with him giving an account of his experiences in INSEAD. He graduated in 97 so his experiences were not too recent but nevertheless it again cemented my belief that the school is right for me.
Overall, the second interview was a bit more formal than the first Interview (which was more like a casual chat about my life and also my goals). However it still had a very casual feel which I really liked, and it was over within an hour. I think I did an ok job connecting with both interviewers. Perhaps the first one was easier as we got along better being in a similar age group. I also left both interviews thinking that INSEAD graduates quite “cool” MBA grads.
