Filed under: General — admin @ 4:03 am

I’m often asked about specific programs that target unique interests, whether it is real estate, entertainment or what have you.

I came across this article that talks about different customized programs for those interested in a career in the bio tech space  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123809943944451143.html

But beyond the schools covered in this article, there are also many U.S. MBA programs where students interested in pursuing a career in the BioTech industry can thrive. The key is to look at the course offerings at schools and the list of firms that recruit graduates of the program. Schools like Stanford and HBS, given their vicinity to the industry, are also worth consideration.

Filed under: Essays, Uncategorized — admin @ 9:06 am

Without a doubt, the essay remains a critical part of the application process. Applicants have to find creative ways of sharing their brand but schools are also becoming creative with the types of essay questions they are asking.

But they are not stopping there. Applicants now have the option to write a cover letter as one of the essays at Harvard Business School. Chicago has for the past few years required applicants to provide 4 slides to showcase who they are. UCLA’s Anderson program with its audio essay question has definitely raised the bar for applicants. What’s next? Applicants have to turn in a short video of themselves answering an admission question? That may not be too far away. In any case, what applicants need to focus on is knowing their brand and effectively communicating it to the admission board, regardless of the questions they face or the mode of presentation  

Filed under: MBA NEWS — admin @ 2:29 am

With a new Dean at Stanford (Garth Saloner)  and the recent resignation of Dean Dipak Jain at Kellogg, it will be interesting to see what changes if any will emerge under the new leadership. Every leader puts her mark on the organization she leads. Business Schools are no different. Time will tell if there will be any fundamental change in the brand of these schools. 

Filed under: MBA NEWS — admin @ 2:14 am

EARLIER APPLICATION DEADLINES

I’ve often wondered why it took MBA Admissions Offices so long to set their deadlines and post their new application essays. Most schools wait till July and August to post their essays leaving applicants with less time to complete their application (especially those applying in the first round).

The Good news is that Stanford GSB and HBS have posted their essays and deadlines already.   These two schools have also moved their round one deadline to the beginning of October and their notification date to December. Applicants will find out quicker about their application outcome leaving them more time to explore other courses of action if things don’t work out. Columbia with its early decision admission has confirmed its deadlines as well. Hopefully more schools will update their essay and deadline requirements sooner.

Filed under: MBA NEWS — admin @ 2:06 am

Like Stanford GSB and MIT, HBS will begin accepting GRE scores in lieu of the GMAT starting this fall. For more details, check out the full press release from Harvard announcing this change. 

Filed under: Internationals — admin @ 7:13 am

There is good news for international students who were facing the challenge of finding financing for their MBA. With the emergency $500 million International Student Loan Program created at the request of the Graduate Management Admission Council, many international students at top U.S. and European Business Schools will not have to give up their dreams of attending a top MBA program. International students admitted to top business schools should contact their financial aid officers at their schools to find out more about the application process.

Filed under: General, Uncategorized — admin @ 6:52 am

There are just a few weeks remaining before classes end and MBA programs wrap up their class visit programs at most business schools. Since the class visit programs are not usually available before the first deadlines, applicants who can fit them in now should try to do so in the next few weeks.

Some of you may be questioning whether campus visits are worth it. I know, cost is a major factor, especially for those of you who live abroad or in different states. And one can’t forget the fact that you already have crazy work schedules and it’s near impossible to get away from work. I get it and quite honestly, admissions people know this and can be lenient regarding campus visits, especially for those who live far away from their programs. Now if you work in the same city and never take the time to attend a class or an information session, you clearly are opening yourself up to some scrutiny down the road.

I personally think that applicants should visit the MBA programs before applying, and certainly before enrolling to the program. Would you buy a $50,000 car without testing it out, or for that matter, seeing it? Why would you go on other people’s opinion (alumni recommendation, websites, etc) without visiting a school that would cost you over $140,000? I’m a bit risk adverse and want to know what I’m “buying”.

Five Reasons to Visit Your MBA Programs

1.      MBA Programs like it. It signals that you have done your homework and that you are serious about them.

2.      It can help you position why you are a fit for the particular program since you gain insight into the nuanced culture and what makes the program different from others.

3.      It can tip your admission to your favor in some unique circumstances such as getting off a waitlist.

4.      You can better assess whether the program is a fit for you.

5.      It’s a great chance to network with students and connect with future classmates

If you can’t make a campus visit, the next best thing is to attend an open house event in your city. These fill up quickly so make sure you are in the program’s database so you can be invited to open house events in the late summer and fall.

Filed under: General, Uncategorized — admin @ 6:09 am

There are many ways an applicant can jeopardize his/her chance of admission. One common way is not getting the timing of the application right–that is applying when you don’t have enough experience or applying after too long, and the MBA doesn’t make sense anymore for you.

Applicants who time it right are more likely to have a successful application outcome. As a first step, applicants should find out the age/work experience profile of students at their target schools. It’s not enough to get the average age since the mean doesn’t necessarily paint a full picture of the class.

Take a look at the profile of Harvard’s class of 2010 Complete List From the Director – MBA – Harvard Business School. Only 102 out of 900 admitted students had graduated from undergraduate programs within the past 6 years or more. Majority had graduated in the past 5 years. While graduation year doesn’t necessarily translate to number of years of work experience, there is a strong link between the two. That doesn’t mean that you have no chance of gaining admission to a MBA program like HBS if you have been out of school for 8 years. But knowing that only 14 students with 8 years out of school gained admission in 2008 is important information to have when applying. You should research all programs to find out what the class profile looks like and to get a better sense of how you fit in that profile. Do keep in mind that every MBA program is different.

Three Quick Things to Help You Time Your MBA:

1.      Take the GMAT early and get it out of the way. Ideally, you should take the test while you are in college–consider taking it in your senior year. Remember that the test is active for five years.

2.      Seek Challenging Projects: You can create a track record of leadership early in your career and don’t have to wait for too long to apply to business school. What ever you do, volunteer for more challenging opportunities and build a track record of creating impact. The quality of the work experience is what MBA Boards care about not just number of years of work experience.

3.      Plan Ahead: This is an obvious one but lack of careful planning has caused many applicants to delay their MBA applications, leaving it too late. You should commit to two years to plan and execute a successful MBA application.

Filed under: General — admin @ 4:28 am

Getting a pink slip shouldn’t derail your admission plans. In fact, it can serve as a catalyst for moving forward with the application you may have been putting off for so long.

There are some practical things you can do immediately to mitigate any negative impact a pink slip can have on your MBA admission outcome.

Don’t stay home and mop around. It is important that you use the time wisely. You will not be able to get away with saying that you spent the last 6 months looking for a job. Vacationing for more than a few weeks also would be a poor example as far as the admissions board is concerned.

Develop a track record that shows your leadership initiative and potential. A practical use of the time in between getting a pink slip and securing another job is volunteering. It’s not enough to simply go to a soup kitchen once a month. The MBA Board will scrutinize what you have spent your time on. Select a nonprofit organization that you genuinely care about and arrange to work with them to solve some of the challenges they are facing. For example, if you have a technical background, you could help them transform their technology infrastructure to help them become more efficient. If your background is in business development, it would be useful to draw from your experience, even contacts, to help the organization form new partnerships. The key here is that you are able to demonstrate your leadership ability and produce real impact in an area that reinforces your brand.

Be Open to New Opportunities. Say you are a career changer and wish to pursue an MBA to move into a different industry or function, getting laid off could be an opportunity for you to get some preliminary experience in the new career area before business school. Don’t be afraid to take on an interesting job that is a one year commitment. I had a client leave banking to go to the Amazonian Jungles for a year. The experiences he gained in the first three months of his time there featured prominently in his application and he was able to gain admission to all his schools.  If entrepreneurship is appealing to you, this may be an opportunity for you to start an organization that you are truly passionate about. The key is to have a game plan, targeted goals and a realistic timeline to achieve them so you can ensure you have results you can point to that demonstrate your commitment and value to the MBA class should you be admitted.

Beef Up Your Academics. If your transcript is spotty with several C grades or lower, it may be worth taking some coursework and earning strong grades to show academic discipline. On the GMAT front, you can use this time to take a prep program to significantly improve your score. I’m often asked the magic score and while there isn’t one, a benchmark that I use is that if it is below 680, and it’s the first time you have taken it, you should definitely retake it if you have the time to prepare more thoroughly for it. If you have taken it 5 times, even after two prep courses, and still have 620 as your highest score, you may be better off focusing on other parts of your application. You may also want to try the GRE (Graduate Records Examination) since a few schools accept them (Stanford and MIT Sloan to name a few).   

Filed under: General — admin @ 7:15 am

So you poured your heart into the admission process and invested hundreds of hours into fine-tuning your application. And what do you have to show for all your efforts? Or maybe you dashed off an application at the last minute after learning that your group was being fired. Regardless of where you fall on the effort continuum, getting that email that says “sorry we are unable to admit you given an extraordinarily competitive pool and year…” still stings.

Here are Three things I encourage anyone considering reapplying to do:

Reassess

Examine what was weak in the application. And be objective. Have an expert assess your entire application to give you honest feedback. If cost is a factor, consider a friend/colleague you trust (especially someone who has an MBA from a top school as they can also provide insight gleaned from their own experience. Follow up with MBA programs that give feedback (eg. Wharton) but don’t count on them to spend a lot of time going over the old application. And try to read between the lines as sometimes schools are not going to explicitly tell you why your application didn’t meet their criteria. Finally, the reality may be simply one of timing (you left it too late and are now a better fit for an executive or part time MBA instead of a full time program).

Strategize

Once you have a clear sense of what you need to improve upon, you will need to devise an application strategy that will increase your odds of success the next time around. If the issue is a weak GMAT, you should absolutely invest in a course/private tutoring to make sure you make it a non-issue. I have a wonderful client who took the GMAT and applied with a score of under 600 to later retake the GMAT and score over 700. His very low GMAT contributed in keeping him out of several of his top schools. Fortunately, he was able to gain admission to a top program. If the issue is the reverse, great GMAT scores but weak GPA, in some instances, it is worth taking a couple of business courses and earning grades of As to show that you can sit through an academic course and have the discipline to do well. Weak leadership can also torpedo an application. Beef up your leadership in the interim (even if you have a 9 month track record). The quality of your impact can go a long way so start today to build leadership experiences if you are lacking in this area. Another common weakness in applications is a poor choice of Brand Champions (recommenders). You need to set a plan to reconnect with people you have worked for in the past who were brand champions. Seek out new brand champions who could write honest, detailed and compelling recommendation letters on your behalf. The reality is that you may need to put off the reapplication for over a year to address the weaknesses (depending on your age/where you are in your career).

Execute

Now that you are reapplying, it is critical to avoid having a chip on your shoulder. It is equally important not to be paranoid. The most important message a reapplicant has to convey is why he/she is reapplying. Success can’t be achieved without effectively addressing this point. So make sure that you convey to the admissions board what is new about your application and why your new application demonstrates that you are a fit for their program.

Having taken an objective view of your application, identified the gaps and proactively addressed them, you should approach the reapplication with calm and confidence. Pace yourself effectively and split your application (consider 3 applications in round 1 and 2 or 3 in round 2). Take advantage of open house events, visitation programs at the schools, network and get to know the admissions staff (this can be helpful at schools with an open door policy, for example, Tuck). Give your recommenders at least 4 weeks head start so that they have enough time to work on your application. With the applications submitted, you can take a deep breadth and relax, knowing you sent in the absolute best application you possibly could.