An Alumni Interviewer’s Advice for Off Campus Interviews

What makes for a strong performance in an alumni interview for your MBA? Keep it simple. Show that you’ve done your homework. Know about the school. Also, know about yourself.

Know Your Audience
With alumni interviews, you need to start by recognizing your audience. Your interviewer probably does 3-4 interviews a year.  Therefore, they often feel self-righteous in their role of “gate keeper.”
Additionally, they have a self-interest in keeping out weak applicants. After all, these applicants would otherwise sully the strength of their alma-mater. Alumni interviews are usually conducted blind. That is, they’ll only have your resume. Therefore, interviewers often put little weight on your job experience. They know you’ll be able to BS your way through it.

Instead, they often put more weight on something else. So, long story short—the interview is likely not going to be a cakewalk. So, long story short—the interview is likely not going to be a cakewalk.

The Importance of Preparation
Since graduating, I have conducted dozens of interviews for Kellogg. Therefore, I most often decline to recommend certain applicants. Specifically, those who haven’t adequately prepared. They can’t explain their interest in Kellogg. Nor can they explain how they’ll be a good fit. If they’re lazy in preparing for an interview, the logic goes, they’ll be lazy working in groups, being involved in the school community, and in the workforce.

I have been amazed, for example, at how many applicants don’t bother to visit the campus. Specifically, those who live in Chicago. They don’t sit in a class. They don’t make even the most basic effort to experience the Kellogg culture. Of these particular applicants, I have recommended only one. Specifically, she was one of the strongest candidates I’ve ever seen. Additionally, she played the “I just had a new baby” card. This explained her inability to travel five miles north to Evanston.

If you live within driving distance of a school, the expectation is that you’ve visited it. I have applied to several schools that I couldn’t visit myself. Therefore, I can attest to something. Specifically, visiting a school makes it exponentially easier to write your essays. It also helps you craft your story.

Another area where applicants get hung up is telling their stories. Specifically, they struggle to explain how business school fits into their overall career strategies. While I’ll ask the question, I have almost zero interest in what you want to do after school. After all, 99% of those who want to go into “non-profit” will inevitably end up in consulting or finance. However, what I do put a lot of weight on is asking every candidate something. Specifically, what they’d do if they don’t get in anywhere. I love this question because it throws applicants off their ground. Additionally, it speaks to the candidate’s career progression. That is, are they getting an MBA only because they’ve been blocked? Do they not have any other options to continue their career?

I’ve seen an extremely high correlation. Specifically, between candidates who can speak through that question and the ones that I recommend. Even if the question takes them off guard, they have done enough self-reflection. Therefore, they can discuss how they’re thinking about their career. They can also discuss next steps. Additionally, they can explain how getting an MBA—right now—is one option. However, it’s not the only one.

Lastly, I judge people on the questions they ask me. If I get asked a question readily available on the website, I will usually ding the candidate. For example, “is a quarter or trimester system?”

This comes back to the whole issue of being prepared. However, it also speaks to the idea of self-reflection. Investing in business school is a huge decision. Therefore, given the opportunity to speak to an alumni, you should push them hard. Ask them to help you determine whether you’re making the right choice.