M7+S16+INSEAD+CEIBS 面经 (Work in Progress)

前段时间拿到了INSEAD offer，也答应分享面经，因为工作比较忙一直没时间写。前天有又面完了Cornell，我觉得
还是发一个综合的面经吧，必经MBA面试还是很多共性的。因为我多数的MBA research都是用英文
所以我觉得用英文写我更有效率。这是一个work in progress，等我有时间我会继续写更多细节。

Having completed 7 interviews with: Kellogg, Tuck, Duke, CEIBS, Ross, Cornell, INSEAD (2 interviews each)
I think I could share some experiences here:

MUST-KNOW QUESTIONS:

1. Why MBA, Why School
This question is key. If you dont give a compelling answer or if the interviewers feels that you are using them
as a safety school or if they feel that you dont really need an MBA, you will likely get a ‘bad’ feedback. Some schools like
Duke, INSEAD, Tuck really looks for fit. They are making alot of efforts to preserve their ‘culture’ and they
really only want to admit people who know what they ‘stand for’.

So what do these schools stand for?

Duke - Russell reveals lots of details on what Duke is looking for. In a nutshell, the school is looking for a
motivated person who is intelligent, hardworking but at the same time down to earth and REALLY REALLY
understands TEAMWORK. I think a very good example is Tim Cook, who is generally regarded as a very
low profile person who is v good at execution (不张扬，执行力强，接地气）。而且Russell本身也是个很
Texas人，自己本身就接地气，所以录人标准，你懂得。。。。

INSEAD - INSEAD is a typical essay school + Interview heavy school. They are not GMAT whores or brandname whores. They value these qualities:
1. Cross-cultural awarenes and international motivation. Show that you are really open-minded and embrace a multi-cultural enrivonment
2. Career Maturity. Career Goals MATTER at INSEAD. You only have 10months so you need to have the professional maturity
and show your interviewer that you know and can get what you want within a year. Some people got challenged during their interview
regarding their career goals, and those who couldnt 'fight back' usually get dinged
3. Diversity and Creativity - INSEAD is a diverse place and hence very good for entrepreneurship. They really embrace different backgrounds.

Tuck - Well Tuck is a really really really distant place. It basically has nothing apart from a campus and a bar and a hanover inn. So you
need to demonstrate that you are a NICE GUY that people will like and you KNOW what you are BUYING when you sign up for a TUCK
MBA. If you can demonstrate that you really know what Tuck stands for, then it increases your chance significantly. Apparently being
a nice guy school, you need to show TEAMWORK. However, my Tuck interviewer was the 'least' friendly among ALL my 8 INTERVIEWERS. So
I am not sure if Tuck is overated as a NICE GUY SCHOOL.

2. Why your Career Goal, why is it a short-term bridge to your long term goal etc
Again, this question is key. My ross interviewer (alumni) told me quite explicitly that they are not expecting
you to stick to your goal, they know you will change. This is just a question to test that you understand
career planning, a skill so important for future success (whether u get an MBA or not)

3. Leadership, Teamwork, Failure, overcome obstacle questions. Prepare one compelling example of each
Classic MBA interview questions. The time-honored way to answer this question is to use the so called STARL method, i.e.
Situation, Task, Action, Results and Learnings. However, I would like to add my own unique insight to it. During the 'Action'
component, I will always emphasize that I had a CHOICE during the situation. For example, during my Duke interview, I mentioned
this after my Situation and Action component:

1. My teammate, who was more senior and experienced than me didnt do a job well, and I had the opportunity
and resources to do this job in a much better way than him. I could literally leverage his failures to make myself ‘look better’.
2. However, i didnt do it. Instead, i helped him privately so that he could ‘fight back’ and win back his credibility.
Our relationships improved, and in future projects, our team was functioning much better.
3. This experience taught me that choosing to work as a team is always better for the long term. Individualism works for the
short-term, but the toxic culture created as a result is eventually highly harmful to the team and the company.

By showing that you had a ‘choice, you are creating a contrast that illustrates your point in a manner that leaves an impression,
which in my opinion creates a suspense that helps the interviewer ‘focus’ on your answers. Trust me, it is easy for the interviewer
to get bored of listening to ‘robotic’ answers the whole day, especially when he/she is an Adcom member who interviews dozens per day.

4. Walk me through your resume
Ah, the classic interview starter. My experience is always focus to focus on these 3 major components:
1. Why you choce your degree, job or role
2. Your major accomplishments there
3. Why your past + MBA = your future
I always end my ‘walk through’ question with a ‘hence, this is why i am here for an interview today…..’

Prepare these questions well and you should be able to handle any MBA interview, which really
is an exercise to help the Adcom know YOU better as a PERSON.

Hope this helps, please feel free to comment!