50 Most Commonly Asked MBA Interview Questions

In this article, we will cover the 50 questions that you are most likely to be asked in your MBA interview. This is an exhaustive list, and by carefully understanding these questions, you will be able to approach your MBA interview with a good idea of what to expect.

Recap of the 10 Core Questions

To begin with, let us revise the 10 core MBA interview questions, the most frequently asked and important questions. These questions are:

#1 Tell Me Something About Yourself?
#2 Why do You Want to Pursue an MBA?
#3 Why do You Want to Pursue an MBA from Our Business School?
#4 What are Your Strengths?
#5 What are Your Weaknesses?
#6 What are Your Career Goals Immediately after MBA?
#7 What is Your Long-Term Career Objective?
#8 Describe a Challenge that You Faced in Your Professional Life. How did You Overcome It?
#9 Describe a Challenge that You Faced Outside your Professional or Academic Life. How did You Overcome It?
#10 What Questions do You Have for the Admissions Committee?
#11 (Bonus Question) Questions on the Most Peculiar Aspects of your Candidature.

To elaborate on the bonus question, if your candidature happens to include anything particularly noteworthy, positive or negative, be sure to expect an interview question on it.

Now, let us proceed with the next 40 questions.

Personality Based Questions (#11-#16)

These questions are intended to help the interviewer get to know you, as a person, and are usually along the lines of the following:
#11 How will you describe yourself in five terms?
#12 How will your colleagues/friends describe you in five terms?
#13 How will your supervisor describe you in five terms?
# 14 What one quality or train separates you from others?
# 15 What is the first thing that a person will notice about you when he/she meets you?
#16 What have been the three key decisions in your life?

MBA Program/School Related Questions (#17-#22)

The purpose of these questions is to help your MBA interviewer judge whether you have given your decision to pursue an MBA from that school sufficient thought.

#17 What are the five key takeaways that you expect from an MBA?
#18 What student activities do you intend to engage in during your MBA?
#19 What steps have you taken to learn about our MBA program.
#20 What specific concentrations and courses do you intend to take up?
#21 How will you contribute to the MBA class?
#22 If you do not get selected, what will be your alternative?

Career Goal Related Questions (#23-#28)

Business schools want candidates who will be able to put their teachings to good use; the purpose of these interview questions is to gauge whether you have a clear and feasible career plan.

#23 Where do you see yourself, 5, 10, and 20 years after graduation?
#24 How do your background and skills prepare you to meet your career goals?
#25 What impact do you wish to leave on your industry/functional area?
#26 Why don't you pursue your career goals by staying at your job? Why invest time and money in an MBA?
#27 What specific skills would you want to develop for the successful attainment of your post-MBA goals?
#28 If you are not successful in achieving your desired objective after MBA, what will be your plan B?

Your Industry/Functional Area Questions (#29-#33)

As the MBA is a professional degree, your MBA interview is also meant to judge your strength as a professional, particularly your familiarity with your industry.

#29 Discuss three recent developments in your industry.
#30 How do you see your industry panning out over the next decade? What major changes do you foresee?
#31 What is the biggest challenge that your industry is facing?
#32 For this challenge, what solution do you propose?
#33 What are the five key skills needed for a successful manager in your work function?

Situational /Story -based Questions (#34-#39)

Your MBA interview will also include questions on specific experiences that you may have had; these questions will allow your interviewer to get a clearer picture of your experiences, thus far.

#34 Describe one situation where you displayed leadership.
#35 Describe one situation where you faced an ethical dilemma. How did you resolve it?
#36 Describe one formative event. Why do you view it as such?
#37 Describe a failure and what you learned from it.
#38 Describe one situation where you faced adversity.
#39 Describe one situation where you faced an interpersonal issue while working with a diverse group.

Leadership and Global Perspective Related Questions (#40-#45)

Business schools want their students to go on to be the business leaders of the future and during your MBA interview, your interviewer will take the opportunity to see if you have the potential to be such a leader.

#40 How will you describe leadership?
#41 Which global business leader do you admire the most?
#42 What, according to you, are five key qualities of an effective business leader?
#43 In your opinion, how does a global perspective help a business manager in today's world?
#44 How have the recent socio-economic trends affected you and your thought process?
#45 Which recent global phenomenon changed the way you perceive leadership? How?

Weakness/Extenuating Circumstances Related Questions (#46-#50)

If there are any notable weaknesses or special circumstances in your profile, you should definitely expect a question on it in your MBA interview. Some common topics that such questions center around are:

A shift in career

If you have already had a major change or if your essays suggest that you intend to take one up in the future, expect a question on the same.

Low GPA/GMAT/TOEFL

If your GMAT score, last GPA, or TOEFL score happens to be below average, the interviewer is sure to inquire about the reasons behind the same.

Years of experience

If your professional experience happens to be significantly lower or higher than the class average, you will have to use your MBA interview to explain that it will not be a hindrance.

Choice of recommenders

If the people recommending you are not your immediate supervisors or have nor worked with you for a long time, in a supervisory capacity, you should expect an interview question asking for an explanation.

History of conviction or academic misconduct

If there is such an incident in your history, do not try to lie to the interviewer; humbly confess, plead ignorance, and explain what you learned from the situation.

These were the 50 most commonly asked MBA interview questions; we will cover how to answer these questions in the subsequent articles. For a more complete understanding of MBA interview preparation, please read the other articles, prepared by Experts' Global.