What is Personal Interview in MBA admission?

A personal interview or commonly known as PI round in MBA admission. What is Personal Interview in MBA admission?  It is a face-to-face interpersonal round in which either a single person (known as the interviewer) or a group of people (known as interview panel) take the interview. The selection procedure at B-Schools mandatorily includes the personal interview round to check the candidate’s verbal ability, interpersonal skills as well as the presence of mind. MBA Entrance exams mainly CAT, MAT, XAT, CMAT, SNAP and group discussion rounds do not divulge the personality traits of any candidate. Henceforth, the personal interview round in MBA is conducted. Certain tips on the essential components which all candidates must keep in mind before appearing for MBA personal interview are also given in this article.

Important MBA Personal Interview Questions

Experts divide the questions for MBA interviews into two parts. One that deals with the personal or personality traits of the candidate and the other that helps the interviewer/ interviewers to know about the candidate’s knowledge on managerial and interpersonal areas.

Top questions asked in Personal interview round of MBA admissions

Question – Give a brief introduction about yourself? Tell us something interesting about yourself?

Answer – One of the most common interview question is to introduce yourself. This is considered open-ended.

Candidates have an extensive opportunity and gain interviewer’s confidence in the very first question only if they know-how and in which tone to answer it.

The answer should be 2-3 minutes but should have major details.

Candidates must prove that they are well-versed about themselves and can express the same as well.

Question – Describe yourself in three words?

Answer – Keep your answer crisp and mention any three words which describe you well.

Be confident enough to disclose about your personality in three captivating words that impress the interviewer or the interviewing panel.

Candidates can use synonyms to learn fascinating words instead of being too simple.

Question – Why do you wish to do an MBA? What are your plans after getting an MBA degree?

Answer – Be confident and speak about your plans. Discuss the main reason for which you are pursuing an MBA and what have you planned to do once you have the two-year postgraduate degree from best B-School.

Question – How will MBA support your life goals?

Answer – Candidates can amalgamate their life goals with MBA goals and explain to the panel how the MBA degree will help them to earn a livelihood and stand on their feet. How through a better understanding of business terms will lead your career path to advancements. Emphasize on the special goal you wish to achieve by MBA course.

Question – Mention any one life experience that you wish to change.

Answer – In this MBA interview question candidates must make sure to answer any major or specific involvement of their life. Something that is worth telling and may leave interviewers thinking. Do not sit passively and think about that one experience. Be well-prepared and answer attentively.

Question – Do you have any goals? Five years or ten-year goals?

Answer – In these types of questions, candidates can specifically define their goals. Starting should be from the one-year goal followed by five and ten-year plans. Do not hesitate while answering these questions. People have goals. Remember the words of APJ Abdul Kalam Sir “You have to dream before the dream comes true”.

Question – Who do you admire and wish to be like?
Answer – It is your life, your dreams, your motive. You can admire anyone. Be it your mother, father, close family, any friend, famous personality, a fictional character that you might have read in a book. Be confident about your choice and say impactfully. Discuss the features that made you fall for them as an admirer.

Question – Express about the qualities which you have and make you peculiar from others?

Answer – Sound polite while answering about your qualities. Do not look overconfident and flaunt your strengths as this may appear crummy to the interviewer. If you feel there is any special quality you have you can discuss the same.

Question – What did you learn from your failures till now?

Answer – Know it is ok to fail and learn from your mistakes. Do not feel shy to discuss your failure.

Be prepared to answer this question or anything related to failure because such questions aim to judge the tolerance level of candidates.

Do not sound broken or disheartened while answering or discussing your failure.

Try to focus on what you learned instead of what you lost.

Question – What are your negative qualities which you are working on?

Answer – Before jumping directly to say about your negative qualities, start with something positive instead.

Show the interviewer how you can channelize the negative energies.

Do not choose to not answer this question as it may show your shyness to discuss things openly.

Focus more on how you are overcoming your negative qualities, what extra effort you put to convert the bad into good.