The common myth surrounding Round 3 of the MBA application process is that you can't, or shouldn't, apply late in the admission cycle. "The class is pretty much full" is one refrain. "You have to be a truly unique applicant" is another. "Only European programs admit people that late" is yet another. As with anything, there are bits of truth in these sound bites ... but only bits.
Today we are going to talk about the new HBS application and what it means for applicants. We've already gone on record with our thoughts on how something like "this" (a school eliminating required essays) might impact our work as consultants, so this post is going to break down what this means for applicants. First, we are going to provide some context, to properly frame expectations.
This time of year, we get a huge number of inquiries from students gearing up for the reapplication process. This makes sense, as this subset of students is often driven to succeed, still hurting from the sting of getting rejection letters, and aware that going at it alone all over again might not make much sense. Here are a few techniques and things we have discovered that can help all reapplicants, not just those who become our clients:
![The Art of Transferability: brainstorming pre-MBA experiences and skills you *already possess*]()
In working with clients of all age, gender, nationality, and industry, one thing we're always trying to do is identify things that connect everyone - common elements that become and remain true, regardless of differences. To be honest, there aren't many such elements. Almost everything about the MBA admissions process is a contextual exercise. You can almost never divorce a unique applicant or a specific school from your analysis. It's part of the reason this is such a difficult endeavor for people, part of the reason why so many admissions consultants do a horribly incomplete job of advising candidates, and a huge part of the reason why admissions consulting even exists. You have to do a lot of things right and you have to do them with great contextual specificity. If you confront "one size fits all" advice, typically you can sprint away from that as fast as possible.
That said, there is one universal truth that we have uncovered that seems largely overlooked by the rest of the MBA admissions landscape and that is how enormously important it is to abide by what we call the Art of Transferability.
Yesterday was October 23rd. A relatively uneventful day for many humans, but a big one for a select group of Wharton applicants who received an interview invite. It's obviously a magical moment to get that letter, err, email that says that mighty Wharton wants to talk to you. However, this year that feeling of excitement is lasting for about two seconds for most applicants as it is quickly replaced by a feeling of uncertainty. That's because Wharton has partnered with the Wharton Innovation Group to come up with a whole new style of interviewing ... the group interview. Enter the ominous organ music!
Today's blog post concerns the tricky Columbia Regular Decision deadline, which starts the day after Early Decision (which had a deadline of October 3rd this year) and extends all the way into April. While long, rolling deadlines are commonplace in college admissions or law school admissions, they are strangely out of place in the MBA space, which creates a lot of consternation on the part of applicants everywhere. Here's the weird part though: normally when applicants ring their hands over something ambiguous and unfamiliar we tell them to buck up and have some courage ("Stop worrying so much," is a common refrain around here), but in this case, there actually is some very real strategy to consider. We take into consideration a few rules of thumb, some common sense, and our own experiences sitting in the admissions officer's chair to arrive at a recommendation.
One of our jobs as admissions consultants is to anticipate new angles and opportunities for our applicants and one that we have been sharing with our clients this year is the idea of looking more aggressively to MBA programs in the EU. We have seen clients find better fits, enjoy some great results, and go on to be incredibly happy in European business schools (granted, they just started, but still), all after initially not even considering the possibility. Let's break down why this is emerging as an ideal market, at least for our clients (and you can then determine if this also applies to you):
Harvard's new essays questions and application process (timing) represent the continuation of a theme at HBS – namely, the program's desire to matriculate an even greater diversity of student. Previously, we have seen this through HBS' introduction of the 2+2 program, as well as the acceptance of the GRE. The 2+2 program is designed to seek out the best and the brightest from the youngest of potential applicants – undergraduates. The GRE is an exam whose test taking pool is approximately 50% female. If you look at Harvard's numbers over the past few years, you can see that demographics are trending younger and more female. This is something that most applicants to HBS already knew.
If you are a college student with dreams of one day attending HBS, you should definitely be thinking about the unique 2+2 program the school offers. And with the Summer Deadline in the not-so-distant future, we seem to be talking to many candidates who are doing just that. What are we telling them? Obviously, a huge part of any consultation or client engagement comes down to specifics particular to that individual. However, there are other broader things that we seem to be covering with everyone and that seemed worthy of sharing:
