Going back for an MBA is a multi-faceted decision. Unlike Law School, Medical School or even regular graduate schools, where a master’s degree or higher is often tacked onto the end of an undergraduate degree, business school takes some planning. Is now the right time for you to make the break? The market may be saying YES.
Inevitably there are applicants each season who decide rather late in the game to apply to business school. While it’s hard to believe for those who spend months or even years preparing themselves specifically for a run at top schools, due to career focus or simple procrastination, some applicants find themselves with a short window before due dates pass.
You may be debating right now on whether to cram in a round three application or wait until later in the year when round one starts up for next year's class. Before you rush into your decision, consider three important things:
Whether you are a procrastinator, or you were simply waiting until you were ready and the time was right, round three is quickly rolling by. Do you have what it takes in the most competitive round?
So your friends have all been accepted to business school, but you haven’t even applied yet. Think you’re out of time?
Preparing business school applications is a grueling process, but there is another use of the word “prepare” which is far more important than the actual process itself. How about this play on words: Are you making proper preparations to prepare your applications?
One of the first steps in preparing for any job interview or business school application is to take an inventory of your strengths and weaknesses. Generally, this is done via introspection and thoughtful reflection on things you have done well in your professional or academic career. How about taking a more methodical approach?
New York University is one of the most elite colleges in the country, so it’s not a surprise that its business school is no different. Stern’s diversely populated, highly energetic and hands-on students fit perfectly within its ideal location in the heart of Manhattan, the world’s business center. While it’s no secret the school consistently falls in the top group of great b-schools, there are a few important reasons why they remain there.
This time of year is all about Thanksgiving. Well, and Christmas, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Giving thanks is an important part of everyone’s lives, but the busy schedules we all lead can leave us skipping over thankfulness altogether. Similarly, when it comes to business school applications, clients often fail to remember to give appropriate thanks too. Are you one of them?
Choosing the right business school can be a lot of work. Between research, self-assessment and in-person visits, you have likely realized that much time is spent to decide where you might fit well even before you begin actually writing applications. Why not leverage that effort by applying to clone programs to give yourself more options?
There has historically never been a shortage of international applicants to US business schools, but the recent political shift in the area of immigration coupled with burdensome financial requirements has sent applications plummeting this year. Perhaps it’s a good time to apply?
Stanford Graduate School of Business is considered by many to be the best business school in the world, and swaps the ranking of #1 with HBS or Wharton on any given day. With over 8,000 applicants per year and only about 1/10th of that number in the student body, it’s daunting to imagine them saying yes. If you happen to have a good-but-not-great GMAT score, you may struggle with your odds of admission at all. But is it even worth applying if you have a 650 or lower?
Cornell’s early admission decisions for their one-year MBA will be released in a few days, so even if you did not apply to this program, it’s essentially the starting gun for this year’s results. Since over the next several weeks and months applicants the world over will be getting good and bad news from their target schools, it’s a great time to prepare yourself to receive the responses. Will you be getting a “yes” from your top choice?
In the last post, we talked about how important it is to be engaged outside the classroom and outside the workplace. But what if you decided to prepare for b-school a little late and have not really done much other than your job? You may be more engaged than you realize once you do a few things in your application (and your daily life) to cast your extracurricular life in a new light.
We get it---you’re busy. You’ve always been busy. Busy people are the ones going to good colleges andgood b-schools, and busy people are the one’s getting the good jobs and running good companies. But were you too busy to get involved outside the classroom in college? Have you been too busy to get involved outside the workplace? Does it really make a difference? You bet it does.
Getting graded. It’s been a necessary evil in everyone’s life since we were all old enough to hold a crayon. At every stage, we either cut the mustard or we don’t and then progress to the next level of grading. For those applying to graduate school, you may have thought those college grades were all but forgotten, but now find yourself having to face them once again. And guess what? The grading doesn’t stop with the application process, because very soon you’ll be back in the classroom. This begs the question…do grades really matter?
It’s hard to ignore the top ten business schools in America. Of all the applications that are submitted to b-schools each year, the top ten schools receive 75% of them. No wonder the process is so competitive! While it’s a great idea to apply to schools in the top ten if you feel you are competitive and a good fit, there are dozens of other great programs out there which you might want to consider as part of your broader application strategy. Here’s a list of pick-six programs you might want to investigate…
One of the most oft overlooked profile characteristics is employability. Marketing yourself as a potential MBA candidate who will be not only highly qualified on the backend of the degree, but as someone whom recruiters will clamor over could be a great way to differentiate yourself in the application process.
It’s getting real. School packages are out. Applications are rolling into the top schools and the sorting and reading has begun. Unless you are way ahead of the pack, you have likely just begun to organize your approach to MBA application season. Do you know what to look out for?
India's growing economy has created many exciting opportunities, and with access to business education in the US widely coveted, thousands of Indians are applying to the top business schools each year. How can someone stand out in the eyes of the admissions committees? A good start to this process is to first understand what the typical Indian applicant reveals in her application. Let’s go…
