An interview is an opportunity for a school to learn more about you than just your transcript and admission essays. Here are a few tips for surviving the interviewing process:

• It should go without saying, but you must learn as much as possible about the school as possible: visit the schools website, learn about the school’s strengths and weaknesses, read any recent articles on the school in the press, read any and all blogs by the school’s students, talk with alumni, talk with current students, etc.

• With so much riding on a business school interview, it’s easy to be nervous. However, be sure to answer the question asked by the interviewer and stay on topic. It can help if you take a second or two to collect your thoughts before beginning to answer a question.

• Come prepared with questions to ask at the end of the interview. Not asking questions makes it look like you are not interested in the school. There is the possibility that some of your questions will be answered during the interview, so be sure to bring at least 5 questions to ask. Also, don’t feel like you have to rely on these questions. It will make the interview flow a lot more smoothly if you ask questions based on what you’ve heard in the interview rather than simply asking canned questions.

• Your interviewer may ask you to elaborate on your admissions essays, so remember to re-read them prior to the interview.

• Bring extra copies of your resume to the interview.

• If you are interviewing on campus, take the opportunity to see as much of the campus as possible. Talk with students, sit in on a class, visit the library, visit the student hangouts, etc.

• It is important to be polite and cordial to everyone you meet on campus, not just your interviewer. Just assume that you are interviewing the entire time you are on campus.

• If the interviewer spends much of the interview talking about unrelated topics, the does not mean the interview is going well. Do your best to gently guide the interview back to focus on your strengths and your interest in the program.

• Write a thank-you note to the interviewer immediately after the interview.

• You should prepare a number of vignettes to answer some of the most commonly asked interview questions. However, do not plan to recite these vignettes word-for-word during the interview. This will only serve to make you sound dull and lifeless.

• Be sure to set the conditions for your interview so that you look and feel your best. For example, you should schedule your arrival to your interview location to leave you enough time to not be stressed about being late. Also, you should try to get plenty of sleep the night before the interview.

• There are a number of topics that you should come prepared to discuss. For instance, the interviewer will likely as you about your background, the reason you pursued certain paths in your background, the reason you are pursuing an MBA, the reason you are pursuing an MBA at this particular school. By searching online, you may even be able to find a list of questions typically asked at a school at which you are interviewing.