STANFORD GSB MBA Interview
Duration: 45- 60 minutes
Format: By Invitation only, invites are extended on a rolling basis over approximately a month-long period.
Who conducts them? Members of admissions committee and alumni
Location: Interviews are held in person or via Zoom. Stanford does not hold interviews on campus
Interviewers access: Alumni interviewers have access to your resume
How to schedule the interview? Stanford GSB interviews two to three applicants per seat available.
If invited to interview, the admissions committee will contact you by email and match you with a member of their admissions team or alumni after you share your current location with them. You and your interviewer can work together to schedule the interview, usually within a week.
Interview Process: Stanford strives to pair applicants with interviewers from similar industries or region to ensure a better understanding of the applicants’ background. (kudos to them for this!)
The Stanford MBA interview has mainly two parts. The first segment is evaluative and goes for about half an hour. The second segment is for you to ask your interviewer questions and get to know the Stanford MBA program better. While the interview is intense, the tone is conversational and friendly.
While most b-schools ask some behavioural questions, Stanford’s interviews are almost entirely behavioural in nature. The b-school believes that your past actions are the best indicator of your current and future personality.
The interviewer will delve into your resume and asks about specific situations you encountered and dealt with in the past. The questions begin often begin with prompts like, “Tell me a time when….”. Topics may include your leadership experiences, handling failure, managing team conflict, your significant achievements or failures. Your answers can be from both professional or community-based experiences. It’s advisable to use recent examples (within the past three years) and structure your responses using the STAR method:
- Situation: Describe the context.
- Task: Explain the challenge you faced in that situation.
- Action: Detail the steps you took.
- Result: Share the outcomes and what impact you were able to create.
- At the end, add what you learned from this situation or how it shaped you.
Another differentiator in the Stanford GSB interview is that the depth of probing into your experiences, more so than many other business schools. Be prepared for multiple follow-up questions per example, such as, “What happened next ?”, “What did you tell your manager after this?”, “How did they respond” and “What would you do differently the next time?” Interviewers ask you these questions not to stress you out, but to genuinely understand your experiences and motivations. They are not seeking tactical responses, but want to assess your strategic thinking capability. Stanford values authentic connections, so its crucial to be honest during the interview, as any bluff is likely to be exposed through this probing approach.
The second part of interview is more relaxed, where you can ask the interviewer questions and learn more about the Stanford community. This section can last from 15 -30 minutes.
After the interview, interviewers complete a detailed report on your performance and the qualities that GSB is looking for.
The second part of the interview is more relaxed, allowing you to ask questions and learn more about the Stanford community. This segment can last from 15 to 30 minutes.
After the interview, interviewers complete a detailed report on your performance and the qualities that Stanford GSB is seeking.
Sample Interview Questions:
What are your career goals
Why MBA?
Why GSB?
How will you contribute to the GSB community?
Tell me about yourself and your background
What are you up to these days?
What is your proudest achievement?
Tell me about a time you took initiative or stepped beyond your role.
How have you helped support the learning of others?
How did you help someone else develop a skill or achieve something?
Tell me when you had to manage different types of stakeholders.
Tell me about a time you had to convince your seniors/ team members for making something happen.
Tell me about a time when you had to persuade someone of something they didn’t initially believe in.
Tell me about a time you found an insight no one else could.
Tell me a time you resolved an interpersonal issue.
Tell me of an obstacle in your professional life. How did you solve it and what did you learn?
Tell me about a time you were blocked from achieving something.
Tell me a situation where you dealt with failure.
What are your hobbies?
What are your strengths?
What is your biggest weakness?
What would you say to your younger self?