Fictional interviewer written for this sample; the employers are invented.

Susannah Whitlock

Associate Director, MBA Admissions at Harvard Business School | Admissions Board Boston, Massachusetts, United States · 500+ connections

About

I interview MBA applicants for the HBS Admissions Board and read files from the energy, industrials and infrastructure pool. Before HBS, I spent six years as a strategy consultant and three years running admissions for a fellowship that funds first-generation engineers. In interviews I want to hear how people actually make decisions, especially the ones that went wrong. I read every application closely before we talk, so I'll often start from a single line on your resume.

Experience

Harvard Business School - Associate Director, MBA Admissions (Admissions Board) · Jul 2022 - present · Boston, MA Read and evaluate MBA applications; conduct 30-minute interviews on campus, in hub cities and on Zoom. Lead file review for energy and industrials applicants. - Assistant Director, MBA Admissions · Aug 2019 - Jun 2022 Ran Round 2 interview logistics; managed applicant events in Houston and Lagos.

Larkspur Engineering Fellows (nonprofit fellowship) - Director of Selection · 2016 - 2019 · Atlanta, GA Built a selection process for 60 fellows a year from 2,400 applicants; added structured interviews and scoring rubrics.

Thornbury Partners (strategy consulting) - Engagement Manager · 2014 - 2016 · Chicago, IL - Consultant / Associate · 2010 - 2014 Utility and power-generation clients; regulatory rate cases, capital planning and storage procurement studies.

Education

Harvard Business School - Master of Business Administration (MBA) · 2012 - 2014

Bowdoin College - BA, Economics; minor in Environmental Studies · 2006 - 2010

Volunteering

• Dorchester Reads (fictional) - Weekly reading tutor, grades 3-5 · 2020 - present
• Boston Women in Energy (fictional) - Mentor for early-career engineers · 2018 - present

Interests

Open-water swimming off Nahant, Maine lighthouses, long-form biographies of industrialists, and a sourdough starter that is older than some applicants' work experience.