Friday, November 26, 2004

Admissions Tip: The HBS Interview

Most applicants know that getting an interview from Harvard Business School is a very good sign. At the same time, very few applicants manage to effectively prepare for the ‘non-blind’ nature of an HBS interview.

If you have been so fortunate as to have received an invitation, keep in mind that your interviewer will be highly familiar with your application essays and overall profile. The result will be a set of customized questions that probe any areas of concern and tease out additional stories from your background.

One candidate recently posted the following comment about his HBS interview:

“….He [the interviewer] drilled down to my experiences and especially why I made the decisions I made at every turn in my career path. He started right after college, asking what options were open to me and why I chose company X. After working at company X why did I make the transition to Y. Again, what options did I consider then and why Y over the rest….”

For the full posting and other pertinent discussion, visit the following thread in the BusinessWeek forums: http://forums.businessweek.com/bw-bschools/messages?msg=59484.22

Keep in mind that HBS interviews all the applicants they admit. It is also important to remember that they admit roughly half of those applicants who interview.

Contact Clear Admit directly for more information about the HBS interview process. We offer mock-interviews, sample questions and strategy sessions to help you prepare.

Wednesday, November 24, 2004

Happy Thanksgiving!

We would like to wish all the readers of this blog a very happy Thanksgiving holiday!

While it will be important to spend time with family and friends on Thursday, the long weekend is a great time to make progress on MBA applications for the December deadlines (or the looming January rush). Here’s a short list of some of the key deadlines in the next week or so…..

December 1st: Dartmouth/Tuck, NYU/Stern, UVA/Darden, INSEAD, USC/Marshall
December 2nd: UNC/Kenan-Flagler
December 3rd: Georgetown
December 10th: Berkeley/Haas

Tuesday, November 23, 2004

Interviews, Interviews, Interviews…

In many cases, the interview is a critical component of the MBA admissions process. We are currently in one of the more active time periods for interviews, with Harvard, Wharton, Cornell, Yale and Columbia all sending out invites in recent weeks. As with the rest of the MBA admissions process, the key to success in your interview is preparation and hard work. Here are a few general tips/things to consider as you approach an MBA interview:

1) Who will interview you? This sounds obvious, but many applicants do not give it much thought. Will you be sitting down with an admissions officer, a current student, a professor or an alum? Will the person interviewing you have an MBA? Will the person interviewing you have an intimate understanding of the industry in which you work? Each of these scenarios requires a different approach. Remember, the interview is truly an exercise in marketing. Any company selling a product needs to understand their ‘customer’.

2) What kind of interview will you be having? Blind? Semi-blind? Non-blind? It goes without saying that a resume-based, blind interview at Wharton is quite different from a non-blind interview at HBS. Prepare accordingly!

3) Practice. Many of you will be rusty at interviewing. Even those who have recently had professional interviews may not be used to the academic style that is employed for admission to an educational institution. Because this process will be rather unfamiliar, it pays to practice. You need to hear yourself responding to questions in order to truly assess any weaknesses that might be addressed prior to the real interview. Looking over sample questions and thinking about your potential responses is not enough.

4) ‘Read up’ on the school. Comb the web for recent news on the school in question. Visit the school’s site and read about the programs/courses/clubs/activities that interest you. Be prepared to discuss them in your interview. Interact with current students via email to learn more about an area of interest. The more you know about your ‘fit’ with the program, the better off you will be.

There are dozens of additional tips we could provide, but this should be a good start…

Best of luck to everyone prepping for their MBA interviews!

Monday, November 22, 2004

Article: GMAT Volume Report

The Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC) has posted the global GMAT test taker volume through October 31st, 2004. Numbers continue to be down overall (-7.82% vs. last year), but they do appear to be stabilizing. Of course, the real issue continues to be sinking international volume (-12.21% vs. the 2003 figures).

GMAC claims that much of the declines in international volume are due to fewer test takers in Canada, China and India. Perhaps residents of these countries are pursuing MBA options closer to home? In Europe?

For the GMAT volume report: http://www.gmac.org/gmac/ResearchandTrends/GMATStatistics/CurrentGMATVolume.htm#Link1

For the 4 year trend chart:
http://www.gmac.org/gmac/TheGMAT/Tools/YeartoDateGMATVolume.htm

Friday, November 19, 2004

Admissions Tip: Wharton’s Process

The admissions office at Wharton have posted a really wonderful entry in their blog today. It reaches out to those students who did not make the cut and offers advice for the future, etc.

Read it here: http://adcomblog.wharton.upenn.edu/admissions/2004/11/round_1_midrele.html

At this point we would like to highlight something unique about the Wharton MBA admissions process. In addition to the school’s reputation for transparency (via a blog, diaries and discussion boards), the admissions office does two very interesting things:

1) If you do not get an interview, they let you know that you are out of the process ASAP. Candidates who were rejected yesterday now have ample time to regroup for R2.

2) If you are rejected, you are entitled to a ‘feedback session’ with a member of the admissions committee (in the spring/summer).

These aspects make for a big difference in the process. In essence, Wharton takes care of those candidates who are denied. A truly novel approach!

Thursday, November 18, 2004

Interview Decision Day at Wharton

Today is the last day that interview invites will be released at Wharton. Congratulations to all of you who have been offered an interview! Your hard work is beginning to pay off! Despite a great deal of debate on the discussion boards, we would like to encourage everyone to avoid speculating with regards to the timing of their invitation. There are simply too many operational factors at play with readers in the admissions office to draw any definitive conclusions.

For those of you looking to get a sense of what to expect in your Wharton interview, be sure to check out our previous posting on the subject as well as the Wharton student2student discussion forums. Also, we highly recommend tracking the blog entries of your fellow applicants who have already interviewed. One blogger, known as ‘Megami’, posted a thorough description of her alumni interview, citing the questions she received and more.

We also thought that a special mention was in order for those fellow bloggers who are busily posting information about their Wharton application experiences: poweryogi, britchick, megami, onmyway, durba, aregon23, riter, the raver, and swoop. Great work everyone!

Wednesday, November 17, 2004

Article: Are B-schools Fudging Their Numbers?

An interview with Dean Patrick Harker at Wharton has reignited the debate over the validity of MBA rankings. The interview is part of an article featured in today’s Globe and Mail. In the article, Dean Harker questions whether or not some of Wharton’s peer schools are fudging their numbers when reporting statistics on employment. He also reiterates the school’s stance on rankings in general - further explaining the school’s decision (along with HBS) to withdraw from active participation in the major ranking surveys conducted by BusinessWeek, FT, the Economist, etc.

For the full text of the article: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20041117/RBIZSCHOOLS17

As many of our readers know, Wharton and Harvard officially withdrew their participation in the rankings back in April of this year, resulting in a barrage of press and speculation in the MBA community. For background and official statements from both HBS and Wharton, see our earlier postings on this subject (April 7th-10th, 2004).

Archived postings on Wharton/HBS rankings dispute:
http://www.clearadmit.com/2004_04_01_archive.html

Tuesday, November 16, 2004

Admissions Tip: Wharton Interview Questions

As many of you approach the interview process at Wharton, we wanted to share a handful of questions that are likely to come up in the actual interview. Keep in mind that Wharton conducts ‘blind’, somewhat improvisational interviews. This means that there is no set script that the interviewer is following. It also means that the interviewer has only viewed your resume, not your application.

The sample questions below come from three sources: a) our experiences working in the Wharton admissions office, b) recent discussions with Wharton admissions staff and c) historic data from the hundreds of Clear Admit clients who have interviewed with Wharton over the last few seasons.

-”Walk me through your post-undergraduate work experience and describe transitions you’ve made.”
-”What do you think makes an effective manager?”
-”What are some of the frustrations/rewards you’ve experienced as a manager?”
-”How do you operate in a team?”
-”Describe your ideal work environment.”
-”Tell me about the person with whom you have least enjoyed working. How did this relationship function?”
-”What are your plans upon graduation from the MBA?”
-”What are your plans if you’re not accepted into an MBA program of your choice?”
-”If you suddenly had an afternoon off, what would you do with it?”

For additional questions and strategy regarding the Wharton interview, contact Clear Admit to learn more our Wharton mock interview services.

Monday, November 15, 2004

Admissions Tip: Avoid the ‘R2′ Crunch

The R2 admissions deadlines are densely packed into the first half of January. This will create several challenges. As many of you begin preparing applications, we thought it might be helpful to offer a deadline summary along with some useful tips.

Here are the critical deadlines to mark on your calendar:

1/3/05: Duke
1/5/05: Harvard, UCLA
1/6/05: Stanford, Wharton
1/7/05: Chicago, Michigan, Kellogg, LBS, Oxford
1/10/05: CMU
1/12/05: Yale, UVA
1/13/05: UNC
1/15/05: NYU, Cornell, USC,
1/17/05: Dartmouth
1/19/05: MIT, Insead (R3)
1/21/05: Berkeley (R3)

Tips
1) Take advantage of the next four weeks (November 15 - December 15). The more you do between now and mid-December, the better off you will be. Strong applications to the top schools take a lot of time to produce. Do not underestimate this!

2) Beware of the holidays! It is incredibly easy to coast along in November and promise yourself that you’ll get to your MBA applications after the Thanksgiving holiday. Of course, when Thanksgiving weekend comes along, you may realize that you prefer spending that time with family and taking some time to relax. Before you know it, late November turns into early December and the seasonal holiday parties and other family gatherings continue to absorb your time.

3) Don’t take on more than you can handle. Given the challenge that the deadlines pose, it often makes sense to think carefully about each school you are targeting and make sure that you’ve narrowed your list down. It’s not just the essays that will take up your time. Keep in mind that you will be managing your recommendation writers, filling out application forms, setting up interviews and pulling together official transcripts, etc.

Contact Clear Admit to learn more about our R2 admissions services. We’ll help you target the right schools, refine your message and put your best foot forward in the process.

Friday, November 12, 2004

Chicago Deadline Postponed!

Chicago has pushed their ‘R1′ deadline back to Monday. Oddly enough, it seems that this is due to some ‘unscheduled maintenance’ on their application payment system. For those of you who were struggling to pull things together, this news offers a few extra days to polish essays, etc. Of course, for those of you who have already submitted, this feels a lot like the scenarios at Darden and Michigan earlier this season…

From the Chicago GSB web site:

Campus MBA Only–Round 1 Application Deadline Extended
An unscheduled update of our application payment system will commence at 11:00 p.m. (CST) on Friday, November 12. This update will not allow us to accept applications through the 12:00 a.m. published deadline. Therefore, in good faith we are extending the deadline for submitting Round 1 applications to Monday, November 15, at 12:00 p.m. (CST). We are sorry for the inconvenience and thank you for your interest in Chicago GSB.

http://admissions.chicagogsb.edu/admissions/app

Thanks to our clients and fellow blogger PowerYogi for picking up on this news…

Thursday, November 11, 2004

Interview Invites: Wharton, HBS, etc.

At this time of year many ‘R1′ applicants get nervous while waiting for interview invites. In hopes of easing your fears, here are a few facts to help you understand the process of application review (and why it pays to wait patiently):

1) Reviewing files takes time. Think of your MBA application as a library book that has to be ‘checked out’ and returned by an admissions officer in order for one round of review to have taken place. Also, remember that everyone has scheduling conflicts, busy days, etc. It is not uncommon for an application to sit on someone’s desk for a few days (or weeks) if the reader assigned has to travel to an event or is otherwise occupied.

2) Files are typically reviewed more than once. At most of the top schools an MBA application needs to be read twice before an interview decision can be made. In other words, take the ‘library book’ metaphor above and multiply the process by two. Have you ever been late to return a library book? Now you know why your file may take some time to make it through the process.

3) ‘First in’ doesn’t always mean ‘first out’. Because applications are not all read by the same readers, there is no guarantee that a file received early in the process will be reviewed faster. For example, imagine that one admissions reader needs to be out of the office hosting receptions for a week; their files may get delayed, whereas files being reviewing by another officer may move through at a faster pace (even if they arrived in the office at a later date).

Overall, it pays to wait until the end of the process before jumping to any conclusions. It also pays to be ready for your interviews when the time comes - but we’ll post more on that later…

Wednesday, November 10, 2004

Article: ‘Sculpting’ the Class at Stanford

The latest issue of Stanford’s MBA admissions newsletter has an interesting article in the Director’s Corner, written by Derrick Bolton (Assistant Dean and Director of MBA Admissions). The article talks about the way that files are reviewed with a focus on the elements of the admissions process that are under the applicant’s control vs. those aspects that are determined more by the quality and composition of the applicant pool at large.

As always, the Director’s Corner is a ‘must read’ for anyone considering Stanford.

For the full text of the article:
http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/mba/connect/newsletter/04_11_director.html

Tuesday, November 09, 2004

Article: The Enlightened MBA

Today’s New York Times featured an interesting article about Harvard Business School’s Social Enterprise Initiative. The program, which recently marked its 10th anniversary, includes a number of activities and events, ranging from a business plan competition to coursework and other community-oriented activities.

For the full text of the article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/07/education/edlife/117CAT.html

Monday, November 08, 2004

Discussion: Columbia’s ED Round

There is a really interesting debate with regards to Columbia’s ED round taking place in the Wharton student-2-student discussion forums. The debate surrounds the ‘binding’ nature of the ED round, the $5,000 deposit and whether or not Columbia’s system presents an ethical dilemma.

Click here to see how applicants and admissions staff are weighing in on the issue:
http://s2s.wharton.upenn.edu/wh-wharton/messages?msg=6149.2331

Thursday, November 04, 2004

Tuck: Women In Business

Here’s an email that Tuck sent out yesterday…

—– Original Message —–
From: Tuck Admissions
To: xxxxx
Sent: Wednesday, November 03, 2004 1:38 PM
Subject: Tuck Women in Business Receptions!

Dear xxxxx,

Tuck alumnae members of the Tuck Women in Business Club (WIB) invite you to a festive evening of food, drink, and good conversation. Come meet Tuck alumnae and other women in business at an informal wine and cheese reception at a city near you. This is your opportunity to learn more about Tuck from the women who lived it. They are excited to meet you!

Here is the schedule:

San Francisco, CA
Wednesday, Nov. 17
7:00pm
The Bubble Lounge
714 Montgomery Street

New York City, NY
Wednesday, Nov. 17
7:00 pm
Lemon 230 Park Avenue South at 18th Street

Washington, DC
Wednesday, Nov. 17
7:00pm
Zaytinya
Pepco Building
701 9th St. N.W.

Boston, MA
Thursday, Nov. 18
7:00pm
Vinalia Restaurant, Lounge and Wine Bar
101 Arch Street

Chicago, IL
Thursday, Nov 18
7:00pm
Webster’s Wine Bar
1480 W. Webster Ave.

West Hollywood, CA
Thursday, Nov 18
7:00pm
Asia de Cuba
8440 W. Sunset Boulevard

Visit www.tuck.dartmouth.edu/mba/events to register for a WIB reception. We hope you can attend! In addition, if you haven’t visited campus, Fall is a great time to do so. We can’t promise that there won’t already be snow on the ground (!), but we can promise a great visit experience. To register for a campus visit, please visit www.tuck.dartmouth.edu/mba/visit. While you are in Hanover, you are welcome to connect with student members of WIB. Also, be sure to check out the WIB website at:
http://mba.tuck.dartmouth.edu/pages/clubs/wib/.

We hope to see you soon at a WIB reception or on campus - or both!

Tuck Admissions

Wednesday, November 03, 2004

Michigan Deadline, NYU Application Fees

A few news items worth noting:

1) According to discussion in the BW Forums, Michigan appears to have extended their first round deadline. There has been some debate about the causes for this extension (systems issues, fewer applications, etc.). There are also a handful of applicants who are not happy about the extension, since they raced to submit by the 1st, only to find out that some of their peers were given more time. For details: http://forums.businessweek.com/bw-bschools/messages?msg=59231.1

2) NYU is using a rather unorthodox marketing campaign this year. Here is the text from their web site: “Sign up to receive our marketing materials, and you’ll automatically be entered in a weekly drawing for an application fee waiver. MBA Admissions will contact the lucky winner each week.” For details: http://w4.stern.nyu.edu/admissions/fulltime/applyingtostern.cfm?doc_id=296

3) GMAC (the Graduate Management Admissions Council) has received an award for its work with executive MBA programs. Both part-time and executive MBA offerings have made considerable gains in the last two years, as full-time application volume was in decline. For the full article

Tuesday, November 02, 2004

Wharton Admissions Director On the Move

From: Jain, Anjani
Sent: Mon 11/1/2004 10:27 AM
To: xxx
Subject: Important Announcement About a Transition

To: All MBA Students

It is with a considerable sense of loss that I am writing to inform you that Rose Martinelli, our Director of MBA Admissions and Financial Aid, will be stepping down from her position at the end of April 2005 to accept the position of Associate Dean for Recruitment and Admissions at the University of Chicago’s Graduate School of Business. This is a great opportunity for Rose, and will enable her to return to her native Chicago to be closer to her family.

Rose will begin consulting for Chicago’s program on a limited basis, beginning shortly. She wants me to emphasize that she remains fully on board, leading our admissions processes during the current cycle. The advance notice of her resignation gives us several months to find her replacement. I have constituted a Search Committee, which will cast a wide net, screen and interview applicants, and recommend three candidates for selection. The final selection will be made after extensive interviews on campus. The Committee will be headed by Peter Degnan, Director of MBA Career Management, and will include Prof. Peggy Lane, Lisa Warshaw, Paula Greenberg, a faculty member from the MBA Executive Committee, a senior member of the Admissions Office, an alumnus/alumna, and a current student. The WGA Executive Board has appointed Justin Pallari as the student member of the Committee.

In her six years with the Admissions Office, Rose has been an outstanding spokesperson for our MBA Program. Under her leadership, our staff and the large team of alumni, graduate assistants, and student volunteers have elevated our admissions processes to new levels of professionalism, transparency, and rigor. She has represented the School with grace and a deep knowledge of our culture in many professional symposia and in meetings with corporations and other stakeholders around the world. With her passion and commitment, she has earned the warmth and admiration of her colleagues and the thousands of students whom she guided through the admissions process. Rose is determined to make this academic year the strongest of her tenure at Wharton and I hope you will help her accomplish that in whatever capacity you can.

With best regards,

Anjani

Monday, November 01, 2004

Article: Yale Career Services

BusinessWeek has published an interview with Coleen Singer, director of career development at Yale SOM. In the wake of the poor marks Yale received in this category (in the BW rankings survey), it is interesting to read about how the school is reacting.

For the full text of the article:
http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/content/oct2004/bs20041029_5637.htm