Getting Technically Ready for Online Admissions Interviews

One of the frustrations I regularly experience with clients and potential clients is their lack of technical readiness for having Zoom (or Skype or Google or FaceTime) sessions with me.  This especially freaks me out when we are doing mock interviews for MBA and other programs.  There are just some basic technical things I expect and that are critical to effective training sessions and actual interviews:

 

Be on a good internet connection. While some poor connection situations are unavoidable (power outages, location in a low bandwidth environment), most are not.  Make sure you will be interviewing in whatever optimal location you have for a high bandwidth connection.  If necessary and financially viable, if your home connection sucks get your hands a mobile connection with higher bandwidth.

 

Use a computer, tablet, or other device that Zoom (or other platform) ready.  This means making sure you have device that can handle the platform you are on consistently and effectively.  Beyond doing updates, check your device and the platform you will be on in advance.  Have a friend do a test with you.

 

Getting visual: Make sure your camera is working, your setting is acceptable, and your lighting is good.  This means checking these things in advance. Cameras are usually not the problem (unless, of course, you have failed to authorize the application to access the camera).  Lighting is important. I am not an expert on this. Google it. Tons of stuff will help you figure it out.   It is fine to use a virtual background as long as your device and bandwidth can handle it.  I am not an interior director but do try to create some sort of home office, office,  conference room type setting. Find a friend (s) to give you feedback on your setup.

 

CAN YOU HEAR ME? Be audio ready.  I have saved the most important for last. Actually sometimes bandwidth issues will make video difficult but audio is critical. Check your set-up carefully.  Some computers have great audio input (mic) and output, others don't.  Whatever the situation make sure you have an audio situation that is optimal. No echoes, no muffled speaking, no mikes that are moving around and not picking your voice in a consistent way. Just make sure you sound clear and consistently. Again, have a friend(s) help you out.

 

Finally, I would have thought that the above post would be unnecessary to write but after the last year where almost everyone has been using Zoom, I  find myself still surprised about how many people (typically 20-30 years younger than me) haven't sorted out the above issues. Given that all interviews for the foreseeable future will be online, it is critical to be technically ready for them.

Good luck!

 

Advice on Scheduling MBA Interviews

 Clients frequently ask me questions about the interview scheduling process for MBA programs. Below I have provided advice on the topics I am most frequently asked about both for interviews that are scheduled using online scheduling systems (usually interviews with admissions officers and second year students) and those that are scheduled with an alumnus.

 

 

This post is being written in January 2021, so it assumes all interviews are being conducted via Zoom, Skype, or other online platform and not in-person on or off-campus.

 

 

Scheduling Interviews for MBA Programs That Use Online Scheduling Systems

 

1. If you are invited for an interview and the school uses an online scheduling system, I recommend that you schedule as soon as possible because slots will fill quickly. This is especially true for HBS and Wharton.

 

 

2. If you want more time to prepare for an interview, schedule the session at a later date.  There is no inherent disadvantage in terms of admissions outcomes for taking a later date.  There is no inherent advantage for taking an earlier date in terms of admissions outcomes.  Some applicants who feel ready to interview or want to get an interview out of the way as soon as possible will take earlier dates by choice. Many applicants prefer having more time to prepare. Whatever the case, the important thing is to try and schedule when you think you will be ready.

 

 

3.  You should schedule at a time that is best for you. With respect to time, to whatever extent it is possible to do so, try to interview at the time of the day or evening when you feel you will perform at your best. Some of us are night people, maybe some are afternoon people, and some are day people.  It is not always easy to get a good time but to whatever extent you can try to do so.

 

 

4.  With exception of MIT Sloan, you most likely will not know who your interviewer is in advance. MIT Sloan always lets you know who your interviewer will be but most programs don't provide that information in advance.

 

 

 

Scheduling  Alumni Interviews

 

1. If you are invited to interview with an alumnus, the MBA program will assign one to you and you will need to make contact with alumnus to arrange a time for your interview.

 

 

2.  For most schools you will usually have about a two-week window to complete the interview but this varies from school to school and can be extended due to extenuating circumstances (see below).

 

 

2. It is best to make contact with the alumnus within 24 hours as it looks odd if you wait much longer than that. If you don't get a reply from the interviewer in around  2 business days, feel free to send a follow-up email but I would suggest contacting the school if you have not heard anything within 4 business days.

 

 

4. Be aware that just because you are assigned an alumnus to interview with, there is no guarantee that this person will be available.  It is often the case that alumni agree to be interviewers but are not available when asked to conduct an interview. Schools where this frequently happens include Columbia Business School, INSEAD, and Kellogg. It even occasionally happens with Stanford GSB where alumni interviewers are more intentionally selected than at other business schools.  If this should happen contact the admissions office so that they assign another interviewer to you. They also usually extend the deadline for completing the interview based on assigning a new interviewer.

 

 

5.  I highly recommend checking online to learn about your interviewer.  LinkedIn is an obvious first way to learn about the interviewer as most will have a listing there.  Knowing who your interviewer is important with respect to:

-Understanding to what extent they may have a similar or different background from you. This will help you be strategic in the way you communicate about yourself.

-Being aware of when they graduated from the MBA program so you can tailor questions to them accordingly (Example: Asking new grads about a program is very different from asking someone who graduated from it 5 or more years ago).

-Determining whether you know anyone who knows the alumnus so you can get information about them (Be careful with the way you handle this).

- This one is unlikely: determining whether there is some reason why interviewing with this alumnus would be problematic (Examples: a conflict of interest situation, someone from your past who you would not want to interview with, or someone who based on their background would likely have a bias against you. If this is really an issue contact the admissions office and explain the situation. I have been an admissions consultant since 2001 and have only encountered a few cases where this was an issue.

 

 

6. Finally, it is to a large extent the alumni interviewer's choice of when to conduct the interview, so I do recommend being flexible about this so as not to give the interviewer a bad impression even before you interview.

 

 

Best of luck with your interviews!