Have you been invited to an MBA admissions interview at Harvard? Are you prepared to tackle the HBS post-interview reflection essay? This comprehensive guide will equip you with everything you need to excel at this critical stage.
The Intensity of Harvard MBA Interviews
Interviewing for Harvard Business School (HBS) is a high-pressure experience. Competing against thousands of applicants, you face an unpredictable interview process. Unlike typical admissions interviews, HBS interviews are rigorous, fast-paced, and uniquely challenging, especially with the “Post-Interview Reflection” essay that must be submitted within 24 hours of your interview.
What percentage of HBS applicants get an interview? Many applicants compete each year for the coveted seats in the incoming HBS class. About 20% of that applicant pool make it to the interview stage. About half of those interviewed are finally admitted. Making it to the interview means a lot, but clearing the interview is the ultimate goal.
The Significance of the HBS Interview
The interview at Harvard is pivotal. With many top MBA programs reducing essays and limiting recommendation word counts, the admissions interview has gained importance. It’s Harvard’s opportunity to evaluate your communication skills, assess any unclear aspects of your candidacy, and observe how you handle pressure.
Preparing for the HBS Interview
Analyze Your Candidacy
Understand your strengths and weaknesses. Be ready to present yourself fluidly, with detailed accuracy. Knowing the value you bring helps you convey this effectively during the interview.
Know Your Story
Identify which strengths are most beneficial and which vulnerabilities could be detrimental. These insights will guide you in addressing these aspects in the post-interview reflection.
Communicate Your Passion
Show your enthusiasm for attending HBS. Clearly articulate your fit, determination, and how you plan to contribute as a student and future graduate.
Key Observations from HBS Application Experts
Extra Pressure in the Application Process
By the time you interview, your qualifications are established. Now is the moment to demonstrate how effective you can be in a real-time dialogue with a probing, poker-faced – sometimes even pushy – “interrogator.” In addition to the interviewer, there’s also an official observer in the room, watching, listening and taking notes. So, staying calm, cool and focused is absolutely essential for interviewees.
Easier said than done? Planning and practice are the best ways to rise above this challenge.
Performance Assessments in Case Discussions
Harvard’s famed case-study method of learning demands that students demonstrate a range of sometimes contradictory skills: planning and spontaneity, listening and speaking, questioning and advocating and so on. HBS interviewers are the “border guards” who ensure that no one gets admitted who doesn’t demonstrate these essential skills during the interview. The good news is that effectively discussing a case is a mindset that interviewees can learn in advance.
Professional Profile Over Academics
Transcript and test scores are common denominators that confirm an applicant’s competence to handle the MBA curriculum. A more differentiated and revealing component of a candidacy is past, present and future professional priorities. In addition, Harvard interviewers may press you to confirm that you truly understand – and can help others understand – your job, industry and market. So, doing some homework now will go a long way later.
Self-Awareness and Authenticity
Harvard probes, digs and drills down during the interview to get past superficialities and discover the genuine person behind the application. They already know what you’ve accomplished. Now they want to hear what you learned along the way, and how it’s helped you grow into who you are and who you will become. They want to understand what makes you tick. Scripted and memorized content simply will not work. Relevant, actionable frameworks and outlines are the way to go.
Understanding the “Why”
Examining the motivation that has informed and influenced major professional, personal and academic decisions is of great interest to HBS interviewers. While some other business schools emphasize the tactics and mechanics of what you’ve done, Harvard really wants to grasp the reasons for and expectations behind those choices. It can take some time to recall and revisit what you were thinking and feeling at those times, so make it part of your interview preparation.
Confidence Without Arrogance
Succeeding in case discussions and bonding with classmates are high priorities at Harvard. These behaviors require verbal, interpersonal and attitudinal strengths in order to engage, rather than distance, those around you. So, interviewers look for tell-tale signs of egotism or conceit that will eliminate even the most qualified candidate from further consideration. This can be difficult for many interviewees to detect and eliminate on their own, so get some objective feedback from a trusted source.
Early and Firm Decisions
In many business encounters, first impressions determine the ultimate outcome and rarely reversed. This is also true for Harvard admissions interviews. Successful applicants are those who establish a positive presence early in the interview, then confirm and reinforce it during the remaining time and through the post-interview essay. Reserving the “good stuff” in hopes of ending the interview process with a bang can be a fatal mistake. Lead with your strengths.
Crafting Your Harvard MBA Interview Prep Plan
Time Commitment
Prepare as much as needed to remain composed and confident throughout the interview.
HBS Interview Questions
It actually makes sense to think of HBS interviews as similar to the case interview method used at other top-of-the-top business schools like Wharton. So, instead of memorizing answers to generic questions, get ready to show off reasoning, leadership, communication and quantitative skills on the fly with focused HBS case interview prep.
Sample HBS Interview Questions
Some questions that could – and we stress, COULD – show up in the 30-40 questions you’re likely to field during your interview include:
- What would people who know you personally describe as a weakness of yours?
- What’s the Harvard application process been like for you?
- How do you handle negative feedback from supervisors?
- What are your plans with an MBA post-graduation?
- Who are you looking forward to connecting with at Harvard?
The HBS Post-Interview Reflection: A Unique Opportunity
Congratulations! The HBS Admissions Board has analyzed your application, compared you to your peers, and believes you’re qualified for a coveted seat in the incoming MBA class.
You’ve won that battle, but the war is far from over. The next and final step is actually two steps – the in-person interview and a post-interview “reflection” essay. As part of the HBS application process, interviewees are also required to write and submit – within just 24 hours – a “Post-Interview Reflection.”
Official guidance from HBS is to prepare this document “as an email you might write to a colleague or supervisor after a meeting.” Fortunately, there’s no official word-count limit. And the school indicates they will be liberal regarding any typos and grammatical errors. However, HBS strongly cautions against “pre-packaged responses” that have been “produced before the interview.” How can an HBS interviewee make the most of this extra element in the interview process? Here are some steps to consider:
Review the interview
Which aspects of your candidacy did the interviewer probe most? Which aspects did he or she ignore? These answers reveal what’s most important to the Admissions Board and thus can help you identify the topics to be revisited and reinforced in the reflection.
Review your application
Which of the strengths you presented are most beneficial to your candidacy? Which of the vulnerabilities you listed are most harmful? These answers identify aspects of your “story” to be further examined, explained and explored in the reflection.
Acknowledge disconnects
Where does your candidacy diverge most from the attributes that HBS prioritizes and emphasizes? This is “ground” to be seized in the reflection. Confront any disconnects with fresh content backed by hard facts and conveyed with confidence.
Close the sale
This is the time and place – and the final opportunity – to tell HBS, with no doubts or regrets about what you include or exclude, why adcoms should take a chance on you, and select you as a member of the next Harvard incoming MBA class.
By taking a thoughtful, strategic and proven approach, Harvard Business School applicants can utilize their Post-Interview Reflection to convey a superior value proposition that gives them a competitive edge in the pursuit of admission.
Harvard MBA Services
Given the importance of this interview, thoughtful and thorough preparation is essential. At The MBA Exchange, we provide applicants with a 3-step process to ensure they are at their very best on interview day.
Our approach features:
- Written strategies and tactics to identify their most compelling content
- Self-practice using interactive video simulations of 25 different interviews
- Real-time mock interview with actionable feedback from an experienced MBA graduate or former admissions officer
However you choose to prepare, we urge you to put your heart and soul into it. Only by doing so will you have the competence and confidence to be at your best when you enter the interview room on your big day. With two former Harvard MBA admissions officers and over a dozen Harvard MBA grads on our consulting team, no one knows HBS – and HBS interviews – better than The MBA Exchange. Our interviewing experience, expertise and proprietary approach can help you prep and practice for success.
We’re eager to hear from you, learn about your candidacy, and share our proven strategies and customized tactics. HBS interviewees, The MBA Exchange is here for you! Our HBS interview prep consulting services give you expert support as you tackle the HBS interview prep process.
