Business school applications are all about laying out how you have exhibited the qualities of a leader. After all, this is the quality that b-schools, in general, desire the most in their applicants. A lot of my admissions consulting clients struggle with a succinct definition of leadership. That is, one that they as the applicant can use as a succinct model.
Plans change. Sometimes the vision you had for your career takes a right turn and you simply need extra time to get things done. Was the effort you put into your positive admissions decision a total waste of time? Not if you can defer the decision.
These days, in addition to helping our clients get ready for interviews we also meet a lot of new folks who didn't use admissions consulting services to apply - but now are wondering if perhaps they should have. Most often, they are asking for "ding analysis," which is basically "please tell me if I did something wrong and whether I can fix it for next time." We are happy to oblige, of course, and so we see a lot (we mean A LOT) of rejected applications, to a lot of schools.
Waitlist season is in full bloom and with R3 notification deadlines wrapping up the countdown clock is ticking for those still waiting in line. Of course it’s inevitable that most of you will be waitlisted at some of your top school choices - after all, getting waitlisted at a stretch school means that you hedged effectively. (Note - my opinion is that an effective hedging strategy should include a stretch, safe-stretch and backup school selections.)
So what can you do at this point in the game?
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:
What you do after you graduate college can make or break your b-school application. How have you been spending your professional time? Will your career history impress the admissions committees?
One of the biggest dilemmas for b-school applicants every year is how and when to break it to your employer that you are trying to go back to school full time. Have you figured out your strategy in this area yet?
Clients often go crazy trying to decide what business school to choose. While I always advise people to go to as good a school as they can get into, there is indeed much merit in having a good fit. On the other hand, when it comes to getting a job at the end, which can be argued is the real reason we all go back to b-school, how much does it really matter where you got your degree?
For many years, GMAT-challenged MBA hopefuls flocked to the GRE as an alternative test considered by many to be more accessible and in some cases, easier to get a decent score. Is this loophole closing?
In addition to MBA decision season, this time of year is all about basketball. If you are one of the millions of hoops fans out there, you may be wondering where you can get a great graduate business education and also a seat at some great basketball games. Here's a ranking of schools where you can have both.
Today's blog post is about negotiating your offer of admission ... except that it's not. Because "negotiation" is not what you do when it comes to securing more financial aid from a business school. The term of art for what you are going to be doing is "asking." Let us explain. Obviously, any discussion of an offer in this context automatically means we're dealing with some good news: you've been accepted. So congrats on that! However, with the news that a b-school wants you to enroll comes the sobering reality that they also want you to *pay* for that privilege. Sure, offers often come with dollar signs attached, but the amount left in the "you" column is almost always going to be the bigger number. And that fact tends to bring up the following question: "How can I negotiate my offer?"
Today's blog post is about negotiating your offer of admission ... except that it's not. Because "negotiation" is not what you do when it comes to securing more financial aid from a business school. The term of art for what you are going to be doing is "asking." Let us explain. Obviously, any discussion of an offer in this context automatically means we're dealing with some good news: you've been accepted.
If you are one of the unfortunate few who are stuck in waitlist hell, there is some information you may not know that could make the time until you find out their decision more tolerable.
Hopefully by now you are getting calls from your target schools to interview, but perhaps you are unavailable to go in person. Check out these rules for undertaking non-traditional interviews and get the offer.
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?
For those preparing for their upcoming Wharton Team-based Discussion (TBD), we wanted to offer up some specific guidance on how to approach the group interview and your 1-minute pitch.
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?
