Haas MBA Interview Process
Duration: 30-45 minutes
Format: By Invitation only
Who conducts them? Haas interviews are conducted remotely by current students or alumni, or in a video format, where applicants must answer pre-recorded questions. All interviews, whether live or video are assessed similarly by the admissions staff, so there is no advantage doing one type of interview over the other.
Interview invitation timing: Haas sends out interview notifications on a rolling basis, starting approximately four weeks after the application deadline.
Interviewer’s access: The interviews are blind, meaning the interviewer has not reviewed your application.
How to schedule the interview: Interview invitations are sent out via emails. If you select to do a video interview, you can complete this at your earliest convenience. If you choose an alumni or student interview, it will be scheduled as per your mutual availability.
Interview Process:
In the pre-recorded video format, applicants are asked five questions. From these, three questions are fixed (Questions 1, 2 and 5) and two questions are variable (Questions 3 & 4). The three fixed questions are about “Why Haas”, a DEI experience and anything else you’d want to share with the admissions committee. The variable questions are on behavioural situations.
After logging into the Kira Talent Platform, you will see an introductory video explaining the interview process. At this time, you can also test your audio and video settings. You’ll have access to practice questions, which are random and unrelated to the actual interview prompts. – you can rehearse these as many times as you like.
However, once you start the official interview, you can not pause or redo your responses. For each of the five questions, you will have 45 seconds to prepare and upto 3 minutes to answer. You will hear an adcom member reading aloud each question, which will remain visible on the screen for the entire duration for easy reference.
If you’ve opted for the pre-recorded video interview, practice speaking confidently to the camera without expecting any responses. Even though no one is on the other side, make sure to look presentable, maintain good posture, and smile naturally while answering.
The in-person interview at Haas follows a structure similar to most top business schools. The interviewer typically asks questions covering your career goals, reasons for choosing Haas, and a range of behavioral scenarios, before ending with an opportunity for you to ask your own questions.
After reviewing numerous interview reports, we have concluded that Haas interviewers tend to focus heavily on behavioral questions related to team dynamics, conflict resolution, and collaboration. They often probe deeply into your examples, asking follow-up questions such as: What was your thought process? How did you feel? How did you respond? What actions did you take, and why?
To perform well, thoroughly know your stories and be prepared to discuss both your actions and the reasoning behind them. Despite their depth, the questions are not meant to daunt you; instead, the tone of Haas interviewers is friendly, conversational, and engaging, aimed at understanding who you are.
VIDEO INTERVIEW SAMPLE QUESTIONS:
Fixed questions:
What do you hope to accomplish out of your business school experience, and why is Haas the right place for this?
Describe an experience in DE&I, whether in the workplace or at a community organization, that will enhance your contribution to the Haas community.
Is there anything else you would like to add that hasn’t been covered already?
Variable behavioral questions:
MOTIVATION
Tell me about a time when team morale was low and you worked towards improving it through collaboration.
Tell me about a time you championed a creative initiative in the workplace. What was your thought process and attitude?
Tell me about a time when you convinced someone to do something that was outside their scope of work.
CONFLICT
Tell me about a time you had to work on getting your team aligned on a project. How did you build consensus?
Describe a challenging experience of disruption or struggle within a team. How did you feel and what did you learn?
Tell me about a time when you worked in a team where people had strong opinions, and how you overcame that.
TEAM
Tell me about a time when you led a cross-functional team. What did you do, and how did that make you feel?
Describe a situation where you successfully fostered trust and collaboration with the individuals you were working with. How did it make you feel, and what did you learn?
Tell me about an experience where you persuaded a team to adopt your perspective. How did you accomplish this, and what was the outcome?
LIVE INTERVIEW SAMPLE QUESTIONS:
Live interviews are conducted by Haas students or alumni, either in person or online. While the overall structure is similar to the pre-recorded video format, the live setting allows for more follow-up questions or entirely new ones based on your responses. You’ll also have an opportunity to ask your interviewer questions, making the experience more conversational and interactive.
INTRODUCTION AND HAAS RELATED:
Tell me about yourself, walk me through your resume
What are your short-term and long-term goals?
Why an MBA now? Why Haas?
Have you interacted with any member of the Haas community?
Which other b-schools have you applied to?
BEHAVIOURAL QUESTIONS:
DIVERSITY & INCLUSION:
Tell me about a time you fostered DEI in your professional/personal life.
Tell me about how you have promoted diversity?
MANAGING CONFLICT:
Tell me about a time when you were proven wrong. How did you react? What actions did you take? How did you feel?
Tell me about a time you experienced conflict with a co-worker or your team. How did you resolve it, and what did you learn from it?
Tell me about a time when you led a cross-functional team, and the members did not get along. What did you do?
LEADERSHIP:
Tell me about a time when you influenced someone to collaborate on a project that fell outside the scope of their work.
Tell me about a time when you had to question the status quo?
Tell me about a time you had to bring change in a professional setting. What did you learn from it?
What does success mean to you?
What is the most significant risk you took in your professional life, and what was the outcome, along with the thought process that led you to take that risk?
TEAM:
Tell me about a time when you had to reach a consensus within your team.
Which three words would your teammates use to describe you? Which words would your friends use?
FAILURE/ ADVERSITY:
Tell me about a time when a decision you made failed and how you handled it.
Tell me about a time when you failed at work.
If you could change something you’ve done in a professional setting, what would it be?
Tell me about a time when you were proven wrong and how did you proceed?
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS:
Is there anything else you would like to tell me about yourself that we haven’t talked about yet?
Do you have any questions for me?