Interviewing - Number of Schools Question?

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Interviewing - Number of Schools Question?

by j41981 » Sun Feb 11, 2007 2:06 pm
Hi Stacy,

Excuse me if this question has already come up, but I did not see it. It seems that in every interview, the interviewer suspiciously leads off with the question "What other schools are you applying to?"

It would seem that this question is the school's way of checking where it stands in your school list, and I'm somewhat unsure how to answer it. For example, I applied to 6 schools (yes, I know, one of my worse decisions). If, at the interview for my "worst-ranked" school, I rattle off 5 other schools that are seemingly "better-ranked," I am scared of implying that I am not interested in going to that specific school. Obviously, I would love to go to any of the 6 to which I applied, and therefore am very wary of how I answer this question.

Am I overanalyzing this question? Should I only give a partial list of the schools to which I applied? Should I give the full list?

I appreciate any help - thanks so much!
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by aim-wsc » Sun Feb 11, 2007 7:02 pm
Interviews are conducted to know the applicants better.
Interviewer asks such question not to gauge where they (b-school) stand but to know your tastes.


say for example if I talk about my long term plans in entrepreneurship and my list has Babson in it; it ll give good impression. :)

these are my views btw. Stacy might answer better.

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by Stacy Blackman » Sun Feb 11, 2007 10:40 pm
This is a good question - I actually agree with aim-wsc. As an interviewer myself, I refrain from asking that question because I think it's unfair. However, I often am curious, and that would be the only reason for the question. There is no right or wrong answer to this. If you have a good reason for wanting to attend a given school, the interveiwer should not make assumptions about how they stack up against the other schools.
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