Midway through our mock interview, I asked one of the toughest MBA interview questions, “Which other business schools are you applying to?”.

I could see my client getting visibly uncomfortable, starting to say something, and then just like that giving up and growing silent.

When I gently probed whether she needed more time to think about her response, she told me about a not-so-pleasant experience she had when she interviewed with a leading business school just a few months ago.

Her interview was going great when just towards the end, one of the interviewers asked her the very same question – “Which other business schools are you applying to?”

She wasn’t prepared for this question.

So she paused briefly, her mind a blank, and then blurted out, “I’m not applying to any other school, this is the only school I’ve applied to”.

The interviewers exclaimed that it was unusual, smiled politely, and moved on to the next question. But my client knew the interviewers weren’t convinced by her response.

Her confidence was shaken after that and she exited the interview knowing she hadn’t made a favorable impression due to that one stumbling block.

And that’s why this question about which other school(s) you’re applying to is regarded as one of the toughest MBA interview questions.

Furthermore, unlike questions such as “Tell me about yourself” or “What’s your greatest weakness,” this question demands reflection and careful research.

Firstly, why’s this question important? Why do schools ask this question?

By asking this question, what the school really wants to know is,

“How well do you know my unique value proposition, values, and culture?”

and

“Am I your first choice?”

Think about it –

When we are looking for jobs, do we apply to just one company?

Nope.

We tend to have multiple options. We don’t bet on just one thing. That would be impractical, right?

Similarly, business schools are practical institutions operating in a highly competitive marketplace.

In fact, schools expect applicants to apply to multiple business schools.

But every school still wants to know where it stands in your preferred set of choices.

Another important reason is that the schools want to see whether the attributes you’ve used to shortlist other schools are consistent with the rest of your application.

For instance, if your post-MBA career focus is entrepreneurship but the other schools you list in your response are clearly focused on grooming MBAs for investment firms, consulting companies, or technology enterprises, then that’s a clear red flag a) that your response isn’t consistent with what you’ve stated in your application and b) that you don’t have a sound rationale for shortlisting schools.

How should you respond to this question?

By being strategic and by being succinct.

To respond strategically –

1. List no more than 3 schools you are applying to. There’s no need to rattle off the names of all the schools you’ve either applied to or are planning to.
2. List schools that share similar attributes such as geography, program length, specialization, curriculum design, etc. and that’s preferably, similar or lower in ranking to the school you are interviewing with.
3. Be consistent by sharing only those school names that align with your overall application’s theme
   1. For e.g., if you want to study in India and you want to be part of a 1-year program, then
      1. ISB and IIM-B are both in India.
      2. If you were to instead mention schools such as HBS or Darden, that are based out of India and have 2-year MBA programs, it’ll indicate you either haven’t researched your schools well or you are simply targeting top-rated schools.
   2. For instance, if your theme is a small school experience for better collaboration and teamwork, then
      1. Duke Fuqua and Emory would be schools similar in their ethos.
      2. However, if you were to list schools such as HBS or Booth that in fact, focus on large communities, it’ll seem inconsistent with your application’s theme.
   3. Let’s say, if your theme is to go to a school that’s focused on finance, then
      1. Wharton and Columbia would be schools similar in their focus on finance.
      2. If you were to instead list schools such as Ross, known for operations, or Kellogg, known for marketing, it again indicates you haven’t researched your schools well.

Be succinct.

• Share a concise response by listing at the most, 3 schools and then prepare to move to the next question.

Real Life Examples of How Successful Candidates Responded to “Which Other Schools Are You Applying To?”

Example 1

“Given my interest in doing my MBA in India, I am also applying to IIM – Bangalore. While IIM – Bangalore also has a 1-year program and  could also provide me with a strong finance education, ISB remains my first choice due to its distinctive global faculty and an extensive curriculum that covers both emerging and developed economies.”

Example 2

“Given my interest in building a career in finance, I am also applying to Wharton, Chicago Booth and NYU Stern. While these schools could also provide me with a strong finance education, CBS remains my first choice due to its unique value investing program.”

Example 3

“Given my interest to specialize in marketing, I am also applying to Kelley and McCombs. While these schools could also provide me with a strong marketing education, Duke remains my first choice due to its emphasis on teamwork and collaboration through its closely-knit community.”

Example 4

“Given my interest in building a career in innovation and entrepreneurship, I am also applying to McGill and Schulich. While these schools could also provide me with a strong foundation in innovation strategy, Rotman remains my first choice due to its Creative Destruction Lab.”

To Reiterate

List schools that share similar attributes such as geography, program length, specialization, curriculum design etc. and that’re either similar or lower in ranking to the school you are interviewing with.

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If you want to know about the most powerful body language tips for your MBA interview, check out our article on

10 Powerful Body Language Tips to Ace Your Business School Interview

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