THE MBA CAREER SWITCHER: What I know now about MBA interviews

Things are looking up! Since I last wrote the market has continued to strengthen and I've been fortunate enough to be interviewed by various firms, including three bulge bracket banks and four boutiques. I'm still waiting to hear whether I'll receive any offers, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Having been through several interviews in as many weeks, I feel I've become something of an expert on what to expect from a financial services interview. So too have my fellow students, who've been going through the same process. Having pooled our knowledge, this is what we now know.

The questions are totally predictable

All the interviews I've had have been with MDs. Despite this, the questions have been less technical than I was anticipating. Interviewers want candidates to have a good understanding of what's happening in the finance world and good knowledge about their firm.

In my experience, confirmed by classmates, they assume that simply studying an MBA with a concentration in finance means you'll have the necessary technical knowledge.

Typical questions therefore include:

'Explain how your past experience and the MBA will allow you to contribute?'

'Why did you choose to study an MBA?'

'Why do you want to switch careers?'

'Why do you want to work for this firm/group/team?'

'What's the greatest threat to the financial world in the next 12/24/36 months?'

'Are markets efficient?'

'Who/what is to blame for the financial crises?'

The best way to prepare for these questions is to read. Look at the Financial Times or the Wall Street Journal daily; read books that are topical; read opinion pieces or blogs on the web and research the firm you are interviewing.

Interviewers know that I can do a DCF or calculate WACC, but what they really want to know is whether I have an idea of the world that I am about to step into.

Originality goes a long way

As long as you're not too off the wall, interviewers like original answers.

Originality provides great insight into your thinking process, and provides a talking point.

On one recent occasion, for example, I was asked, 'What caused the credit crisis?' My answer was the cheap price of oil during the past 20 years. I then went to demonstrate the logic of my answer. The interviewer and I then debated the points (many of which he did not agree with) but it provide an enriching conversation and in the end he said that he was impressed with my thinking. I believe that being original, if done correctly, provides the interviewer with a memorable reference that will help you stand out in the crowd.

It helps if you can read the interviewer

Success lies in the ability to adjust to the style of the interview as quickly as possible, preferably in the first two minutes. As far as I can gauge (and my peers agree), interviewers are either structured or spontaneous, dominant or passive.

For structured interviews, I keep my answers short and to the point, waiting for the next question to elaborate. For the spontaneous interviewer, I answer the question with a more conversational style ensure to elaborate on the points that I want to highlight.

For the dominant interviewer I ensure that I let them take the lead and don't step on their toes. Dominant interviews don't mind interrupting answers or changing a question half through an answer, and you must not let them throw you off. Passive interviewers will generally not interrupt an answer, so try not to go off on a tangent.

One fellow student was told by a company he interviewed with that he talked himself out of the next round by giving too much information. Equally, I recently did not get a second round because the interviewer said I went off on too many tangents and I did not stay focused enough in answering the question.

It will benefit you to have a personality

Developing a connection involves being able to read the interviewer and let your personality shine. You cannot connect with everyone, but you can increase the probability by being personable and finding commonalities.

I recently connected with a financial consultant who I was interviewing with because, I knew that he graduated during the last recession and would be empathetic about my situation. During another interview I was able to connect by speaking about our mutual love of running and how the company had an active running club. In contrast, during a recent bank interview, the MD did not understand how I could not have a job and assumed that something was wrong. He did not even believe that many of my classmates were in the same situation. It turns out that he graduated during the boom and has never been laid off.

I hope these insights are helpful. I encourage you to share your own stories and advice and look forward to reading them and gaining further insights that will help us all improve our interview techniques in future!