2022-23 Stanford GSB MBA Interview Questions & Guide.

QUICK LINKS

Stanford MBA Interview Overview.
Mock MBA Interview Service.
Examples of Stanford MBA Interview Questions.

Stanford MBA Interview Overview.

Each year the Stanford admissions committee invites a limited number of applicants to interview for its MBA program. Top MBA programs like Stanford generally interview 2-3 applicants for every available place in their upcoming MBA class. While an invite is sign that you’re in the running for an admit, you’re also now part of a highly competitive subset of the overall applicant pool. You can prepare for your interview with the help of this guide and, optionally, the Mock Interview Service.

Tip: Wondering if interview invites have already gone out? Check out MBA LiveWire for real-time updates.

Interviews conducted by alumni.

During the 2022-23 MBA application season, live Stanford MBA interviews are led by alumni of the Stanford MBA program.

Resume-based Interviews.

Stanford MBA program conducts resume-based interviews. A resume-based MBA interview is one in which the interviewer has read your resume but has not read the the rest of your MBA application (recommendations, essays, short answers etc.).

If the MBA interview is in-person, bring a paper copy of your resume to the interview location as a courtesy to the interviewer. If the interview takes place online then applicants should have a PDF copy of their resume handy should the interview request that it be sent via email. Sometimes a busy current students or alum MBA interviewer will not have spent much time reviewing the applicant’s resume before the interview. That’s why Stanford MBA applicants should be ready to give their interviewer a 2-minute overview of themselves at the beginning of the interview if asked (note that this is often the first interview question anyway, ‘So tell me about yourself…‘).

Influence of interview on admissions decision? Low to Moderate.

The reality is that a successful interview will not help you lock in an admit to Stanford’s incoming MBA class, but a failed interview can hurt your application. That’s because with so many alumni conducting interviews, it’s hard for the admissions committee to normalize positive feedback (one alum interviewer might say Tom is ‘great’ while another might report that he’s ‘interesting’. That said, it’s still pretty easy for the admissions committee to take into account blatently negative feedback “The candidate was totally unprepared to answer even simple questions.” “The candidate was rude.” “The candidate’s English was very difficult to understand.”

Your main goal when interviewing with a current student or alum is for them to like you and to think that you have something to contribute to the school (both in terms of the professional perspective you will bring to the classroom and the contributions you’ll make within the student community).

Stanford Mock MBA Interview Service.

In addition to practicing interview questions on your own, our mock interview service can be a great way to receive feedback on your responses (with a view to improving them).

A mock interview session with mbaSTORY.builders will help you develop and refine answers to a few specific MBA interview questions (like Tell me about yourself? What are your goals? Why MBA? Why school X?). More general questions (Strengths/Weakness?) and behavioral questions (Tell me about a time when…?) are then used to help you develop a core set of stories. Most people have 4 to 8 core stories which they learn to use to answer a variety of interview questions.

Below you can listen to former clients answer MBA interview questions and receive feedback on their answers. You can earn more about

An audit professional answers the question Tell me about yourself in part 1 and receives feedback in part 2 and an employee compensation consultant answers the behavioral question Tell me about a time when you mentored someone in part 1 and receives feedback in part 2.

Stanford MBA Interview Questions.

Note that a lot of schools have begun asking about diversity, equity, and inclusion during interviews. You should be prepared to talk about these issues and how diversity, equity, or inclusion have played out in your work.

Here’s a list of core questions to practice before your Stanford MBA interview:

1. Tell me about yourself.
2. What are your short-term goals and how can Stanford help you achieve those goals?
3. What would you get involved in outside the Stanford MBA classroom?
4. What would others say are your two core strengths and one area for improvement (weakness)?
5. + Prepare stories for at least 3-5 behavioral questions of your choice. You can access a list of behavioral interview questions organized by categorically at our sister website, resumeSTORY.builders An example would be: Tell me about a time when you encountered pushback. Tell me about a time when you worked in a professional setting that was diverse. What was one challenge you encountered? Tell me about a time when you received constructive feedback.
6. Have you ever encountered a diversity issue in an organization?
7. Is there anything you’d like to talk about that we didn’t cover?
8. + Prepare two solid questions for the interviewer.

Here are some mock interview sequences for the Stanford MBA program. Studying the sequences will give you a sense of the questions Stanford interviewers tend to ask.

Sequence 1. Stanford MBA Mock Interview Questions.

1. Walk me through your resume.
2. Why pursue an MBA at Stanford?
3. How would you spend the summer between first and second year?
4. What has been the biggest challenge you’ve faced at your current employer?
5. What was it like mentoring an at-risk high school student?
6. (Behavioral Question) Tell me about a time when you feel you added value to a team effort.
7. (Behavioral Question) Give me an example of a time when you overcame a hurdle.
8. Any questions for me?

Sequence 2. Stanford MBA Mock Interview Questions.

1. Why an MBA and why Stanford?
2. What is one thing that you did that you’re really proud of?
3. (Behavioral Question) Tell me about a time when you had to collaborate with someone who had a different working style or a different communication style from you.
4. (Behavioral Question) Can you tell me about time when you convinced someone or a group of people to see things your way?
5. How do you work with all the different people that you do? How do you communicate with them?
6. (Behavioral Question) Can you tell me about a time when you received a piece of constructive feedback. What did you do to address the issue raised?

Sequence 3. Stanford MBA Mock Interview Questions.

1. What is the world’s biggest misconception about the pro tennis world?
2. Why Stanford?
3. What made you decide to choose philosophy as your major at university?
4. Tell me about the hardest situation you’ve ever been in at work? What did you learn from it?
5. (Behavioral Question) Tell me about a time when you stepped outside of your defined role.
6. (Behavioral Question)  Tell me about a time when you mentored someone.
7. (Behavioral Question)  Tell me about a time when you failed.
8. What else should I have asked you?

Sequence 4. Stanford MBA Mock Interview Questions.

1. Tell me about yourself
2. (Behavioral Question) Tell me about a time when you took initiative.
3. (Behavioral Question) Tell me about a time when you were part of a team that was struggling.
4. (Behavioral Question) Tell me about a time when you failed to meet a goal you’d set for yourself.
5. Tell me more about your thesis in college.
6. Do you have any questions for me?

Sequence 5. Stanford MBA Mock Interview Questions.

1. What made you decide to start your own company during college?
2. Tell me something you’ve learned about yourself.
3. Why were you selected over more experienced colleagues to be the project lead?
4. Was it difficult managing those same colleagues (given that they were older/more senior)?
5. (Behavioral Question) Tell me about a time when you identified a new way to do something or to approach an issue.
6. (Behavioral Question) Tell me about a time when you encountered an obstacle or someone prevented you from doing something?
7. (Behavioral Question) Tell me about a time when you showed initiative.
8. What questions do you have for me?

Sequence 6. Stanford MBA Mock Interview Questions.

1. Why an MBA? Why Stanford?
2. (Behavioral Question) Tell me a time when you created something / were creative.
3. (Behavioral Question) Tell me a time when you deal with a difficult colleague.
4. (Behavioral Question) Tell me a time when you were under a tight deadline.
5. (Behavioral Question) Tell me a time when someone persuaded you to change your opinion.