How To Answer 'Why MBA' In Your Interviews

"The secret of acing an interview is to stop believing in luck and start believing in yourself."

After my previous articles on IIM’s interview experiences, I received multiple requests from aspirants to help them in their answers for the interview process. Some of them made mistakes while writing their answers, and some didn’t know what to answer and how to answer critical questions that are generally asked in every PI process. So, I decided to share tips on how to answer one of the difficult and pivotal questions asked in many disguises of the B-school interview process that can break or make your way.

“Why MBA?” or “Why everyone wants to do an MBA?” or “Don’t you have other options available besides doing MBA?” or “Are you doing MBA for more money or peer pressure?” or “Why do you think doing MBA will help you in reaching this position in next 5 or 10 years?” or “Why don’t you do an online MBA course from Coursera or Udacity?”  or “Why MBA after engineering?”.
All the questions have the same answers, with just a small change in the introductory line. I faced the same question in different formats in every B-school interview I applied for.
So, I earlier mentioned that it is one of the difficult questions to answer. I stand by my statement; the story behind your motivation to do MBA should be straightforward. If you answer that “you wanted to earn more” or “change your line of work” or “delay my marriage”, then you are not the right candidate that particular B-school is looking for.

If you want to pursue an MBA, you should be 100% confident and know the reason behind it. You shouldn’t be confused about it. If you are confused, you will get trapped in counter questioning, which will further impact your performance in the interview. Sometimes, aspirants start criticizing their current job, and you wish to pursue an MBA to change it, which is not the right way to answer it. It shouldn’t be reflected as your plan B.

It is not just a career advancement tool, it provides a wide range of exposure and learning, and your answer to this question must reflect that. The answer to this question should be structured and in a story format, starting from the variables that lead to your decision and how doing MBA will help you in your career ahead.  You should include reasons like peer learning, interpersonal skills, management & leadership skills, communication skills, networking, multi-perspective, case competitions, collaborative working, and more in-depth insights into the domain. In the end, you can even answer how this particular B-school can help you in pursuing an MBA course; this will help in creating a positive impression.

Sample Answer:
For the past XX months, I have worked as a project manager in XYZ Company. I have developed an interest in the same. In the short term, I would like to take up managerial roles in Project Management / Operations. I have developed specific skills like communication, foresightedness, planning, teamwork, and customer satisfaction during my work experience. Hence, I believe that pursuing an MBA will help me fine-tune my skills and achieve my dreams. Additionally, the learnings from experienced faculties, who have a mix of industry and academic experience, a diverse peer group, and project/case-based learning experience will help me enhance my knowledge base. I will be able to lead the business with a great set of knowledge and thus wanted to pursue an MBA.

I hope this article has provided you with some clarity and helps you prepare an answer for "Why MBA?".

Best of luck!

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