I recall getting the SJMSOM interview call letter on February 17th, and I couldn't keep my smile from being spotted by my boss, so I made up a phoney explanation for it. I had gotten several interview calls and had completed virtually all of them previous to SJMSOM's. The fundamental format of most interviews was to join the zoom link at the set time (same for a batch of students) with one phrase on the screen saying "Please wait, the panel will let you in soon" which then dragged on for hours. You had to sit and wait in front of the camera throughout that period, with no idea when the panel would let you in or whether something was wrong with your setup.
Then there was SJMSOM, which assigned a mentor to each student with whom you could contact through email or phone. The interview took place on the "gather platform." It was like a virtual environment where one could wander around with their animated characters to different areas and communicate with others just by approaching them and video conversation would begin. The entire online admissions process seemed like an in-person campus interview. The platform included a room for document verification, a dedicated waiting room for students who were next in line for the interview, and a general announcements room where we needed to meet at the table with our panel number & could interact with each other and the adcom members who guided us through the interview.
The interview began with a request for me to calm down and drink water & the most generic question, "tell me about yourself," followed by questions related to IC engine, guestimates, job experience, hypothetical situation-based and finally ended with a question "5 great people you admire", it lasted for about 20 minutes in all.
