UPDATE: This article was originally posted on October 30, 2019. It has been updated with 2023-24 information and tips below.
With a strong focus on developing “Leaders of Consequence,” Duke Fuqua offers a highly collaborative MBA experience. With such a strong focus on community, Fuqua is at the top of the list for many professionals.
As more and more young professionals seek careers with purpose, getting a spot at this elite business school is more challenging than ever.
That’s why we’ve prepared this guide to help you use your Duke admissions interview to stand out. We’ve rounded up not only our best tips but have also included sample interview questions to ensure you give your Duke application your best shot.
How the Duke Fuqua Interview Works
As one of the most elite business schools in the world, landing an interview with Duke Fuqua is no easy task.
Thus, if you have passed to the interview phase of the Duke application process, congratulations! This is already an exceptional achievement.
Duke interviews tend to be slightly friendlier than interviews conducted by the admissions committee. Nonetheless, the interviewer is still trying to gauge how solid your motivations for wanting to pursue an MBA are, how interested you seem in the Duke program, and whether you fit well with the program’s collaborative community.
Interviewers often ask many standard MBA interview questions, as well as questions designed to test your understanding of just what it means to be part of Team Fuqua. You can also expect numerous follow-up questions.
Our clients who have interviewed with Duke in the past say that the interviewer was very friendly and demonstrated a genuine interest in their answers. For some clients, questions were far more personal in nature, covering topics like their childhood and family upbringing. Other clients reported their interview was strictly professional, so make sure you’re ready for anything when you interview with Duke.
According to Duke Fuqua:
Two Interview Styles
Duke Fuqua offers two different types of interviews – Open Period and Invitation Only interviews. Here is more information, according to the school’s site:
- During the Open Interview Period
All applicants, regardless of the round in which you intend to apply, are eligible to interview during the Open Interview Period. A completed application is not required to interview during the Open Interview Period, but you must have started an application and have completed the biographical information. Once you have completed your biographical information, you can access the interview and campus visit schedules to select your date. Interviews during the Open Interview Period are on a first come, first served basis, and may be done in person at our Durham campus, or virtually via Zoom.
On-Campus Open Interview Period Fast Facts:
When: September 11 – October 6, 2023
Where: Durham, NC
How: Sign up through the online application, select the date for your on-campus interview, and choose from a menu of other activities you may want to join during your visit, such as an admissions session, student panel, or class visit.
Virtual Open Interview Period Fast Facts:
When: August 24 – October 6, 2023
Where: Virtually
How: Sign up through the online application, and be sure you complete the mailing address section so we can match you with an interviewer in a similar time zone. You will not be asked to select a specific date for a virtual interview; rather, you will be introduced to your interviewer via email in mid-August, and together you and your interviewer can find a mutually convenient date and time to meet. You must complete your interview no later than October 6.
If your interview is not conducted during the Open Interview Period, your interview will be scheduled by invitation only. For an invitation-only interview, you must first submit your completed application for review by the Admissions Committee. Interview decisions will be made after a review of all submitted applications for a given round have been received, and applicants will be notified via email of their interview decision. An interview decision is not a final decision on your application. Additional details on interviews by invitation can be found in the next section.
To learn more about Team Fuqua, we encourage you to also sign up for activities offered through our campus visit program.
- Interview by invitation
If you do not interview during the Open Interview Period, you will only be able to interview if invited to do so. Invitations are extended based on a thorough evaluation of your completed application. If invited, you will be interviewed during the interview period that corresponds to your application round.
Interview by Invitation Fast Facts:
Interviews by invitation are conducted in each application round by staff, alumni, and Admissions Fellows (select second-year MBA students).
When: Interview decisions are sent on published dates for each round
Where: Applicants may choose to interview on campus in Durham, in person at one of our off-campus interview locations, or virtually.
Interviews during the Diversity events, which are invitation-only interviews, will be conducted in person during the event.
Interviews are conducted by staff, alumni, and Admissions Fellows, a select group of second year students. All interviews are valued equally, regardless of who conducts your interview or the type of interview (in-person or virtual). As you prepare for your interview, please be aware that your interviewer will only have access to your resume and will not have read your application.
Who will interview you?
An admissions staff member, an alumnus/a, or an admissions fellow (a second-year MBA student) will conduct your interview.
Will the interviewer have read my application?
No. The Duke Fuqua interview is blind, meaning the interviewer will only have access to your CV.
How long will the Duke interview last?
30-45 minutes.
Who is Duke Looking For?
Source @dukefuquabia on Instagram
“You’ll find the Fuqua Daytime MBA program is challenging and very rewarding. Acceptance is based on the ability to excel academically—and in the business community. Our students have a desire to bring out the best in others and succeed while making positive changes in the world.” Duke Fuqua Admissions
Every year, Duke’s admissions team sorts through thousands of applications to find the perfect admits for its class of about 400 students. With a strong emphasis on diversity, teamwork and collaboration, there is no “standard” student at Duke. Surprisingly, in contrast to many US schools, the average age for the Class of 2025 was 29. The middle 80% range for admissions tests for admitted students were as follows: GMAT 670-760, GRE 306-330 combined Verbal/Quant, and Executive Assessment 146-16.
Source: The Duke Fuqua website
Beyond the impressive statistics, though, Duke is also a highly community-driven school (think Team Fuqua!) and tends to look for a certain set of characteristics in prospective students.
If this sounds like a community in which you’d be right at home, you’ll first have to prove you’ve got what it takes by successfully navigating Duke Fuqua’s interview process.
How can you prepare for your Duke interview?
Though no interview is 100% predictable, Duke interviews do tend to center around a fairly standard list of MBA interview questions. As such, we have prepared some model questions below that previous candidates have received in their past Duke interviews.
SAMPLE DUKE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
The questions below are drawn from our clients’ interview reports, as well as from sites like clearadmit.com. Though these are not all the potential questions you could possibly receive during your Duke interview, preparing for these (and any follow-up questions you think you might be asked) should give you a very solid foundation for your interview.
STARTING UP QUESTIONS
- Can you walk me through your resume?
- Expect follow-up questions based on resume content.
- What do you do in your free time?
- What are your short-term and long-term goals?
- What is your backup plan in case your goals aren’t achievable?
- Why MBA?
- Why Duke?
- Where else did you apply?
- What will you do if you are not accepted into any business school this year?
- How will you contribute to Fuqua?
- What clubs will you get involved in?
- Do you know what the Decency Quotient is? Have you ever faced an ethical situation in your career?
- What do you hope to gain from our community?
- What does “Team Fuqua” mean to you?
TEAMWORK & LEADERSHIP
- Tell me about a time that you led without being in a leadership position.
- Give an example of a leader you respect and explain why that leader was effective.
- Describe the type of leader you are. Please give me an example of your leadership in action.
- Tell me about a time when one of your team members did not participate well. What did you do?
- Tell me about a situation where you worked with a team and there was a difference in opinion and how you helped reconcile the situation to come to a solution.
- Tell me about a time when you worked in a team with someone who was difficult.
- What would be the five attributes you look for in desired teammates?
MISCELLANEOUS BEHAVIORAL
- Tell me about a time when you received negative feedback that you did not agree with.
- What are your strengths and weaknesses?
- What is your weakest soft skill?
- What is your most significant accomplishment?
- Do you have any regrets from your professional experience?
- What is one of your 25 things?
- Tell me about a personal or professional failure.
- Give me an example of a time you resolved a conflict.
- How do you deal with diversity?
- What is a weakness that you have been working on?
CLOSING
- You have 60 seconds to address the admissions committee. What do you want to say?
- Is there anything else you would like Duke to know about you? / Is there anything you wish I had asked you?
- Questions for me
We have found that answering real interview questions on the spot is a much better means of preparation than reading lists of interview questions for most candidates.
We highly suggest you take a look at mock interview questions and sample interview responses before your interview.
Our MBA Resource Center has dozens of real interview mocks from Duke, as well as detailed guides to help you prepare for questions ranging from “Why our MBA program?” to “Tell us about a time you failed.”
The Ellin Lolis Consulting MBA Resource Center is your one-stop shop to interview success. Click to join!
Finally, just because your interview may happen on Zoom doesn’t mean you can relax and assume your non-verbal cues don’t matter. Though body language is not as apparent on camera as in person, it’s still an important aspect of the interview you want to make sure to take charge of.
If you’re still not quite confident with your interview skills, our interview experts can help you craft your answers or prepare you for the Duke interview through mock interviews tailored to your profile.
What to do if you get a question you weren’t prepared for
Despite your most diligent preparation, you will almost always receive a question you had not prepared.
First, stay calm and take a deep breath. You have already made it this far in the process, and one question will not trip you up!
Second, make sure you directly answer the question the interviewer asked you. For example, if the interviewer asks you about a time you had to deal with a difficult manager, make sure to tell a story about a difficult manager and how you handled the situation.
If you’re having trouble thinking of an answer or an example to support your answer, however, take a drink of water to give yourself a few more minutes to think. If you really can’t think of an example from your personal or professional experience, you can use a hypothetical answer about how you would act in a certain situation.
Finally, assume that the interviewer is testing how you think on your feet and respond to questions you didn’t prepare in advance. Though your answer might not be as polished as if you’d had weeks to rehearse it, smile and confidently give your answer to show you can respond to any question they throw at you.
Make sure you’re admitted to Duke Fuqua
Several years ago, I had the pleasure of helping a client, Phillip, put the finishing touches on his MBA admissions essays. A stellar candidate in all regards, those essays secured him interviews at all of the impressive set of elite programs he applied to!
Phillip was overjoyed when he called me with the news but was surprised that the first words out of my mouth (after “Congratulations!” of course) were, “Well it sounds like we have a lot of practicing ahead of us.”
Though Phillip knew the statistics — at most elite MBAs, only 50% of candidates called to interview are actually admitted — he felt he’d already overcome the toughest hurdle and could relax a bit. “I’m really good with people,” he said, “so I’m just going to go in there and be myself.”
In the end, Phillip got 5 dings and ended up having to reapply the following year.
Practice is incredibly important. Especially when it comes to public speaking and highly-competitive selective processes.
Our interview prep and practice service focuses on helping you determine what to highlight in your interview depending on the program while using appropriate, impact-driven language without being artificial, or worse, robotic. We also help you choose (and perfect) culturally appropriate examples based on the schools you’re interviewing for.
Our tailored approach was critical to helping our client Manoel secure a spot at Duke with a $60k scholarship!
Forget simulation platforms or long lists of tips – our 1:1 preparation focuses on playing to your strengths and overcoming your weaknesses to turn you into an interview expert. Hire our interview services here. VIP packages that allow you to work directly with Ellin sell out quickly, so make sure you sign up today!
Real MBA Essays That Got People In
School-specific sample essays that got our clients accepted
