Location: His office in a stylish skyscraper. Time: Early morning His sector: Private Equity His Previous Job: Consulting
My background: Sales/Marketing in a famous multinational.Only 3 years experience but good progress. Strong GMAT/GPA. Strong Essays.
Summary
We bought coffee and muffins from the cafe downstairs; immediately he put me at ease by being very friendly. I asked him questions about the deal his firm was trying to close.(something I learned by researching about him)
Interviewer had read my application carefully. He had specific questions to ask,making the interview experience similar to that of HBS.
- He walked me through his own resume first,then said ,now it is you turn, tell me about yourself. After my answer came the following questions:
- Would you prefer your old job or current? Why? (one is very quant based, the other one a brand management position)
- Tell me your improvement areas.(as many as you like)
- Why LBS? ( I said, general management+international business focus of the programme, student diversity, London advantage and reputation of the school)
- What would you do with and without an MBA in 5 years? (2 different scenarios)
- Why do you wanna join firm X or Y( I had mentioned them in my goals essay as companies I would like to work in upon graduation; it was easy to answer because I had solid reasons)
- How did you gain the respect of your team?( I am 4-5 years younger than my reports)
- Which other schools have you applied to?
- Then he talked about pros and cons (mostly pros) of LBS.
As you can see, suprisingly , there was no impromptu presentation. I think that is at the discretion of the interviewer;he didnt think it was necessary.
At the end of 45 mins,he said: I am going to say Yes and will recommend you.
Decision:Admitted.
