After the results of the written or Computer-based examination, successful candidates are asked to appear for the next stage of testing: Group Discussions/ Essay Writing and a Personal Interview.

In this article, I shall provide five simple yet crucial tips pertaining to Personal Interviews.

Tips for Interviews:

1. Most interviews commence with the candidate being asked to introduce himself/ herself. This serves not only as an ice-breaker, but provides a quick insight to the panel about the candidate.

The Introduction is a vital aspect of the Interview, yet it is often neglected by the candidate. Vital, as many studies have found that Interview Panels often make up their mind in the first 2-3 minutes (or even less) about whether to select a candidate or not!

So how can you deal with the question? In your Introduction, try and ensure that you go do more than just mentioning some mundane details about yourself. Details pertaining to your schooling, college etc may already be available with the panel members since you are generally asked to fill up a form before the Interview. Try and make your Introduction interesting-by highlighting your unique qualities, interests, aims etc.

It is important to highlight your achievements in your Introduction-this could impress the evaluators and go a long way in ensuring your success.

I strongly suggest that you write down some major points about yourself that you wish to mention in your Introduction-you don’t have to learn these by rote, but this will ensure that you don’t miss out anything. It may also aid in a smooth delivery of your Introduction on the actual Interview day.

2. B-schools often ask questions pertaining to academics. For this, I advise that you revise the fundamentals/ basics of the subjects that you have studied during your graduation. Application-based questions could also be asked. For example, you may not only be asked the Laws of Thermodynamics, but also their applications.

3. For candidates having work experience, they can expect some questions pertaining to the company in which you work and your role. You may also be asked about your firm’s major competitors, the industry in which your company operates etc. Also be prepared for questions on major recent developments in the industry in which you have worked in.

My advice would be to read a newspaper every day. This is because a prospective MBA is expected to be up-to-date with the latest developments across a variety of fields.

4. Questions on your career goals, Strenghts & Weaknesses, Hobbies etc can be expected. My advice is to ensure that you do some introspection before framing answers to these questions. Most importantly, be honest!

Do not invent some hobby or strength just to impress the interviewer! It could land you into trouble. Be ready to providing examples that demonstrate where you demonstrated your professed strength.

5. Finally, I suggest you read a little about the MBA course before the Interview. A common question that is asked of the candidate is “Why MBA?” and ‘why not some other course?” Here, you could speak about the subjects that you are interested in or how the methodology used for teaching the course interests you-the use of Case Studies, ‘live projects’ with companies, the summer placement experience, interactions with people working in the corporate sector through guest lectures etc.

Sidharth Balakrishna

About the Author

Sidharth Balakrishna is an alumnus of IIM Calcutta and has been employed with the world's top Marketing, Management Consultancy and energy firms. Besides his regular Corporate job, he has written a number of books and articles for various reputed publications, is a Faculty with top Business Schools and has held seminars across the country. Click here to know more about his books.

Sidharth is also a Career Counseling Expert (he is on the Expert Panel of Campuswalkin as well) and a member of the Interview Panel to select MBA students at various MBA institutes.

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