Business School Culture, School Fit, and Your MBA Experience
Common interview questions asked after the Wharton Team Based Discussion
What should I do during the “in between?”
Advice for Applying to MBA Programs in Round 3
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.
MBA Applicants: Which Round to Apply
As we move through the winter months and host calls with b-school candidates for the upcoming cycle, it's interesting to note that some admissions questions come up a lot more this time of year than they do later. We are going to try to use that as a cue to address these types of issues and concerns here on the blog - and we are starting with a very common question this far out from the process, which is "what round should I apply in?"
THE ANSWER TO THIS QUESTION DEPENDS LARGELY ON THREE FACTORS.
Do I need to take Calculus prior to business school?
For a good number of years, Calculus was a prerequisite to joining any decent MBA program. There were several good reasons for this, including the fact that rate of change (computed using Calculus from the first derivative of an equation), is a very useful concept and commonly seen not only in finance coursework, but also in other classes where time is a factor (arguably almost any business concept has some component of time). But over the years, we have seen an increasing number of schools drop Calculus from the required list (cue the cheering crowd of “poets!”)
Monday MBA Resource: Behavioral Interview Questions
Time for another edition of Monday MBA Resource, where we share the things we are reading, watching, and listening to that might be helpful to people in the MBA community. Some are more focused on applicants, others are better for students, some for both - but all of them offer great insights that are worth soaking up. Three weeks ago we broke down the Knowledge @Wharton podcast and people seem to really be enjoying it. Two weeks ago it was one of my favorite articles in years: "Happy Ambition: Striving for Success, Avoiding Status Cocaine, and Prioritizing Happiness" by Ben Casnocha. Last week was The Charisma Myth by Olivia Fox. Let's hope we can keep it up with this next entry, which is this blog post:
Are You "Unique" ?
The Optional Essay — When to use it, and when to lose it.
Many schools have become extremely restrictive on how many essays they allow you to submit.
The crushing numbers of applicants has forced schools to streamline the evaluation process and they simply do not have the staff or time to read 1000 word essays from everyone. Of course, whether you're applying there or not, you likely know that Harvard, as an extreme example, actually has no required essays as part of their application! They allow you to submit one essay if you like, but it's not technically a requirement for consideration as an MBA applicant. While we don't recommend you submit to HBS without leveraging the essay, this approach from schools highlights the fact that every word does indeed count.
Monday MBA Resource: The Charisma Myth by Cynthia Fox Cabene
Time for another edition of Monday MBA Resource, where we share the things we are reading, watching, and listening to that might be helpful to people in the MBA community. Some are more focused on applicants, others are better for students, some for both - but all of them offer great insights that are worth soaking up. Two weeks we broke down the Knowledge @Wharton podcast and people seem to really be enjoying it. Last week it was one of my favorite articles in years: "Happy Ambition: Striving for Success, Avoiding Status Cocaine, and Prioritizing Happiness" by Ben Casnocha. Let's hope we can keep it up with this next entry, which is the book:
THE CHARISMA MYTH: HOW ANYONE CAN MASTER THE ART AND SCIENCE OF PERSONAL MAGNETISM by Olivia Fox Cabene.
Why I like the Economist MBA Rankings
The latest MBA rankings from The Economist are out and people are understandably freaking out about some of the odd placements that you can find in their list. Poets and Quants has already done an impeccable job running all this down, so I am not going to try to repeat all the great work John Byrne already did. But you should definitely check out the P&Q piece on it. What I want to talk about is why I am happy P&Q ran that extensive post on those rankings (rather than dismissing them) and, indeed, why I am happy these Economist rankings even exist.
Chicago Booth MBA Interviews: Current Student or Alumni? On Campus or Off Campus?
Responding to your HBS decision (2016)
This Wednesday (October 12) is one of those days on the calendar that tend to stop everyone in their tracks and dominate the headlines. Nevermind that the Duke Fuqua or Dartmouth Tuck deadlines are right around the corner - no, it's all about the final HBS Round 1 notification deadline. Interview or ding? Rather, interview or ding or deferral, as that appears to be a popular option this year as well. Let's make sense of things and offer some advice on how to respond from here. We'll group it result-by-result.
Monday MBA Resource: "Happy Ambition" by Ben Casnocha
Time for another edition of Monday MBA Resource, where we share the things we are reading, watching, and listening to that might be helpful to people in the MBA community. Some are more focused on applicants, others are better for students, some for both - but all of them offer great insights that are worth soaking up. Last week we broke down the Knowledge @Wharton podcast and people seem to really be enjoying it. Let's hope we can keep it up with this next entry, which is the article:
"Happy Ambition: Striving for Success, Avoiding Status Cocaine, and Prioritizing Happiness" by Ben Casnocha.
Monday MBA Resource: Knowledge@Wharton Podcast
Trying something new for Mondays, which is to pass along my favorite MBA resource that I found that weekend. It's a good way to start the week, a way to get great tools out into the MBA community, and, quite frankly, a good for me to remember these items myself so I can show them to future candidates and corporate clients.
Today's Resource is the Knowledge@Wharton podcast.
Most Common Mistakes on Round 1 MBA Essays
I just saw a whole lot of MBA essays over the past few months and now that Round 1 is (mostly) finished, I thought it would be an interesting exercise to jot down the most common mistake I saw for each of the most common essays I worked on with clients. Round 2 clients can get a leg up by simply avoiding these traps.
Why MBA Candidates Should Ditch the Phrase "Safety School"
Today we are going to take the term "Safety School" and put it through the shredder. Reasonable minds can probably disagree on what the term should mean, but what I want to do is explain why I personally do not believe that "Safety School" should be part of an MBA applicant's lexicon.
First, the term is used incorrectly about 90% of the time. When applicants say "safety school," what they often mean is "a school that is really good but that hopefully I have a better chance to get into." If you are using the term this way, just as a shorthand, that is fine but make sure that it's clarified with anyone you are working with, such as your consultant. The real use for "safety school" should probably translate more or less to "a sure bet." With college applicants - due to the pressure to be enrolled on an exact timeline (following high school graduation, of course) - a "safety school" is a very real thing; you simply have to pick some programs that you are sure to get into. Often this means a program from that student's home state, sometimes with sheer numerical thresholds (lacking holistic admissions processes). If you go to school in California and have a certain matrix of GPA and test scores, you can feel "safe" about getting into certain Cal-State programs. That's a safety school. Ross and Duke Fuqua are not safety schools. Now, what if you are using the term in the right way?
Can I get into Harvard Business School with a 650 GMAT?
Getting a job in the entertainment industry with an MBA
Working in the Entertainment Industry is the ultimate career goal for some. The Glitz, the Glamour, and the Gluttony beckon folks from far and wide to Hollywood, New York, Canada, London, and even Bollywood to work. It is a well-known truism that breaking into this super-fortified fortress of employment is not just difficult, it’s notoriously the most impossible industry in the world to catch a break and get your foot in the door. How can you find a way in?
Weighing the pros and cons of getting an MBA outside of the US
Heads up, today's post is for the Americans among us, as we have been getting a lot of questions about international MBA programs.
If you are a US citizen trying to decide where you want to get your MBA degree, it can be tempting to think about schools outside the USA.
After all, the world knows no boundaries thanks to technology and a global marketplace. Right? Spending a couple of years in Spain, England or Asia also sound like nice places to see new things and meet new people while you sharpen your business acumen. And since most programs at reputable business schools are in English, you won’t face the language barrier that may have stopped you otherwise. Seems like a slam dunk? Read on ...