Posted by Clear Admit on January 31, 2005, at 5:11 pm
Posted in:  General , School: Penn / Wharton Once again, we’d like to remind our readers about the free GMAT and Admissions Strategy seminar that will take place in NYC this Thursday evening. Grace Wang from Manhattan GMAT will be leading the seminar. Graham Richmond from Clear Admit will be present to answer your questions and discuss MBA admissions strategy. For more information click here: http://www.manhattangmat.com/EventShow.cfm?EID=3&eventID=260
Also in the news, Wharton has announced a successor to Peter Degnan:
“We are pleased to announce the appointment of Christopher O. Morris as Director of the MBA Career Management Office to succeed Peter Degnan. Christopher has been the senior associate director of MBA Career Management since August 2003. He came to Wharton after two-and-a-half years as marketing manager at Campbell Soup Co. Prior to that he was brand manager at Procter & Gamble in their Cincinnati headquarters where he was also very involved with MBA recruiting. Christopher earned his MBA at Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management while working full time at the University, serving first as Assistant Director and then Director of MBA Admissions. He has a BS degree in management from Rutgers University.”
Posted by Clear Admit on January 28, 2005, at 3:59 pm
Posted in: General Although applicants should feel fortunate to be admitted to multiple MBA programs, it’s not always an easy task to choose among schools. Having said that, we strongly encourage anyone in this position to really do his or her homework. Our basic suggestions for evaluating schools and making a decision are as follows:
1) Now is the time to “kick the tires.” As an applicant, you can investigate schools and learn about their offerings, but are always conscious of the fact that you are being evaluated. Once you’ve been admitted, the shoe is truly on the other foot. You no longer need to market yourself to the schools – rather, it’s their turn to market their programs to you. Don’t be shy about asking questions and gathering information that can help you make an informed decision.
2) Talk to current students. This should go without saying, but it’s always a good idea to talk with MBA students at the programs that have offered you admission. Get in touch with people pursuing similar career goals (via the appropriate b-school clubs/conferences, etc). Find out what they like and dislike about their program. Try to figure out whether or not you can envision yourself in a learning team or group project with these students.
3) Talk to alumni. Find out whether or not the school has an alumni club near you and see if you can get in touch with the president of the group. If possible, set up an informational chat or look to attend any local alumni events. Talking with alumni can really give you a sense of the quality of the school’s network.
4) Explore your career path – talk to your potential employers. If it is your dream to work at company X, then you might actually contact their HR department and get their feedback on the various schools you are considering. You may also want to see if the school can put you in touch with any alumni who are working in your target field. Finally, it makes sense to comb through the career stats that the b-schools are publishing to learn about their placement record in your field.
5) Visit. Don’t rely on rumors; try to see the schools through your own eyes. If the school has any sort of admitted students events, you should aim to attend them. Have a look around and evaluate the facilities, surrounding environs, etc. Where do students live? What kind of social life does the campus (or city) offer? The danger of going on rumor alone is illustrated by the following example: Wharton students almost universally report that they are pleasantly surprised by the city of Philadelphia and find it to be a great place to spend two years. Despite this fact, discussion forums and public opinion frequently disparage the city.
As the tips above illustrate, there are a number of avenues to pursue when comparing the schools that have offered you admission. Since this is a major decision, it makes sense . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on January 27, 2005, at 4:38 pm
Posted in: School: Chicago , School: Penn / Wharton Wharton Admissions Suite The Wharton School has just announced a $1.25 MM gift from UBS (a Swiss-based financial firm). The funds will go towards the naming of the MBA admissions suite in Jon M. Huntsman Hall. According to the school, the admissions suite will be called the “UBS MBA Admissions Suite“. It will be interesting to see how prominently their co-branding will be displayed. Stay tuned… http://www.upenn.edu/almanac/volumes/v51/n18/gift.html
Chicago Waitlist Since there seems to be some confusion amongst Chicago waitlisters in R1, we thought we would clarify the policy that the school has put forth. First, waitlisted candidates received a letter explaining the school’s decision and inviting them to forward additional information to the committee. Here’s an excerpt:
“If there is additional information that you believe would be helpful to the Admissions Committee, please forward it to the Admissions Office with a cover letter clearly stating that we are holding your application on our Waitlist.”
As one might expect, it’s a good idea to take the school up on their offer to accept additional information from waitlisted candidates. It’s also critical to demonstrate interest in joining the class of 2007. Reports from the BW discussion forum and our clients indicate that waitlisted applicants who have contacted the committee with additional information have received word that a waitlist counselor will be in touch in the near future. Contact us directly for more information on how to manage this process.
Posted by Clear Admit on January 26, 2005, at 5:20 pm
Posted in: Admissions Tips , School: Penn / Wharton Wharton has begun offering interview invites to R2 candidates. This process will continue until February 17th (so please do not panic if you haven’t yet heard anything).
For a full explanation of interview logistics at Wharton, check out today’s posting in the Wharton Admissions Blog: http://adcomblog.wharton.upenn.edu/admissions/2005/01/interview_invit.html
Also, we’d like to offer the following sample interview questions from the Clear Admit blog archives to help those of you who are preparing…. (see our original post on the matter for more information, or simply browse the archives).
Selected Wharton Interview Questions -”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?”
Posted by Clear Admit on January 25, 2005, at 9:29 am
Posted in: School: Penn / Wharton , School: Yale Wharton announced yesterday that the head of the Career Management office, Peter Degnan, is moving on to lead the school’s executive education program. A former investment banker, Degnan is credited with turning the school’s career services department around after the recruiting bubble burst in 2001. For a wonderful summary of his contributions to date, check out the following article in the Wharton Journal. For another view on his departure, read the following opinion piece.
As many of our readers noted last week, the Yale SOM received a nice bump up in the FT rankings this year (moving from #13 to #9 in the world). This coupled with favorable marks in recent WSJ and Forbes rankings, prompted the Yale Daily News to publish an article on the subject: http://www.yaledailynews.com/article.asp?AID=27999
Posted by Clear Admit on January 24, 2005, at 11:10 am
Posted in: General We’d like to alert our NYC-area readers to a free seminar being held on Thursday, February 3rd from 6:30 – 8:30 PM in the New York City offices of Manhattan GMAT.
The seminar is designed for MBA applicants who are interested in learning more about the GMAT as well as the general MBA admissions process. Grace Wang, a GMAT expert and Harvard Business School graduate, will be leading the event. Graham Richmond, co-founder of Clear Admit, Wharton MBA graduate and former Wharton admissions counselor, will also be present to discuss the admissions process and take questions. To sign up for this free seminar, please use the following link: http://www.manhattangmat.com/EventShow.cfm?EID=3&eventID=260
In other news, the Financial Times rankings are now available on the FT’s web site. There is an accompanying article about the value of the degree that should be of interest to MBA applicants as well: http://news.ft.com/cms/s/8bdc8412-6d8b-11d9-9b69-00000e2511c8.html.
Posted by Clear Admit on January 21, 2005, at 10:03 am
Posted in: General While the Financial Times 2005 MBA rankings aren’t due out until this Monday, the listing was available for a brief time period on the publication’s web site yesterday. We’re not sure if this was inadvertent or purposeful – but the rankings are no longer visible today. Luckily, a post in the Business Week discussion forums listed the full rankings before the FT site pulled them away…
Here’s a partial listing from the new 2005 rankings: 1) Harvard, Wharton (tied) 3) Columbia 4) Stanford 5) London Business School 6) U. of Chicago 7) Dartmouth/Tuck INSEAD 9) NYU/Stern, Yale SOM (tied) 11) Northwestern/Kellogg
For reference, here are last year’s FT rankings: 1) Wharton 2) Harvard 3) Columbia 4) INSEAD, London Business School, Chicago (3-way tie) 7) Stanford NYU/Stern 9) MIT/Sloan 10) Dartmouth/Tuck 11) Northwestern/Kellogg
Of note for 2005: a) Harvard, Wharton and Columbia continue to dominate the top three slots. b) Stanford jumps from 7th to 4th place. c) INSEAD falls from 4th to 8th place. d) While performing exceedingly well in salary and placement rankings, Columbia continues to struggle in the “alumni recommend” rank e) Michigan/Ross leaps from #30 to #16, Berkeley/Haas climbs from #22 to #13. f) Cornell falls from #16 to #24
We look forward to the reading the FT on Monday, along with the accompanying articles. Stay tuned…
Posted by Clear Admit on January 20, 2005, at 10:37 am
Posted in: General This week has been filled with MBA admissions decisions from top schools. We wanted to share a sampling of the wonderful emails we received from our clients in the last 24 hours (see below).
Also, congratulations are in order for all the applicants in the blogging community who have gained admission this week (Power-Yogi, Megami, Wakechick and more).
—– Original Message —– From: xxxxxxxx To: Graham Richmond Sent: Wednesday, January 19, 2005 12:31 PM Subject: IN AT HBS!!!!!!!!!!
Hello Graham,
I am in a complete state of shock right now…. From the bottom of my heart, I am sending you and your terrific team all of my heartfelt thanks for helping me get into HBS. I am POSITIVE that I would not have had this terrific occurrence happen if it had not been for your help and Clear Admit.
How is it possible to thank you for helping me achieve my dreams?
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU
xxxxxxxxxx
—– Original Message —– From: xxxxxxxx To: Clear Admit Sent: Wednesday, January 19, 2005 12:36 PM Subject: I’m admitted to HBS!!
Hi guys!! I am admitted to HBS!!!! I’m very excited! I can’t believe I made it to all 3 schools I applied to!! Thank you so much for all your help! )))))))
xxxxxxxx
—– Original Message —– From: xxxxxxx To: Clear Admit Sent: Wednesday, January 19, 2005 12:45 PM Subject: FW: Update
Graham -
I was meaning to email you as soon as I had a free moment. I was accepted at Harvard and at Stanford. An incredible turnaround from last year. Thank you not only for your help, but also for your strong encouragement to re-apply. I can’t tell you how important your feedback was to making that decision. I will definitely relay my positive experience to other applicants. Thanks again!
Best regards,
xxxxxxxx
Posted by Clear Admit on January 19, 2005, at 1:40 pm
Posted in: Admissions Tips What should an applicant do when placed on the waitlist at his or her dream school? While most applicants regard the waitlist in a negative light (we’ve even heard it described as “a sort of purgatory prior to getting dinged”), the best approach is to view the glass as being half-full (especially for R1 waitlisters). In all cases, getting waitlisted is much better than getting denied.
Here are a few tips to help you navigate this often difficult and mysterious process:
1) Know your file. Before you can develop a waitlist strategy you need to understand where you may have fallen short in the application process. Read over your file with a critical eye and try to identify any weaknesses. Talk to anyone you know who might be able to give you feedback (MBA students at the target school, former admissions officers, admissions consultants, etc). 2) Familiarize yourself with the school’s waitlist rules. Do you need to ‘opt-in’ in order to be on the list? Are you allowed to submit supplemental materials to bolster your case or inform the committee of changes to your candidacy? Does the school offer a chance for feedback via a phone session or interview with a ‘waitlist manager’?
3) Follow the waitlist rules.
CASE A: Schools that accept supplemental materials. If a school hints that you may want to provide a supplemental essay or recommendation letter, then by all means, take this offer seriously and get something together for them. Approach these materials in the same way that you would approach the application process (e.g. do not just send along something that you dash off in a matter of minutes). If you have several items you wish to send, it may make sense to spread them out over the course of a few weeks to demonstrate steady interest.
CASE B: Schools that do not accept supplemental materials. This may sound obvious, but if a school indicates that they do not want supplemental materials, then you should respect their guidelines. In other words, do not send along a new recommendation or an essay if the program has clearly indicated that you should not do so. There may be exceptions to this – for example, if a dramatic change has taken place in your candidacy – but in most cases, you should simply follow the rules. [Contact us to learn about other ways to improve your waitlist status with schools that frown on supplemental materials.]
4) Consider a school visit. It may make sense to visit the school, particularly if you have not been before. So many different things can happen on a visit:
a) You never know when you’ll have that chance meeting with an admissions officer who is willing to give you a little feedback (and who through the process of meeting you face to face might get a better sense of your candidacy)
b) A school may take note of your visit (if you sign in with the admissions office) and view it as . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on January 18, 2005, at 2:02 pm
Posted in: School: Chicago , School: Penn / Wharton , School: Stanford Stanford has started calling R1 applicants who have been admitted! Derrick Bolton, Director of Admissions, has contacted applicants across the globe – but given the frenzy of postings in the BW discussion forums, he’s far from finished making all the calls. Our fingers are crossed for those of you who are still awaiting word!
According to this blog, Chicago is fully poised to notify their R1 admits. It appears that a R2 applicant (who happened to be interviewing on campus) witnessed the admissions staff preparing admit packs for R1 applicants. The phone calls should begin shortly. Check in here with other Chicago R1 applicants.
With Wharton’s first round of admissions complete, we thought we would offer some interesting statistics on how things have been going on their end. According to an email that went out to alumni, the admissions office visited 75 cities in 48 countries around the world this year. Attendance at these events was up 60% over last year (this may explain why the school is holding strong with their application volume). In addition, R1 saw over 400 students admitted to the program. For those of you doing the math, Wharton admitted 1219 students in total last year, which means that they still have 800 offers left to make (assuming a similar predicted yield). Of course, keep in mind that a percentage of those offers will go to R1 waitlisted candidates.
Finally, we’d like to draw your attention to the most recent Wharton MBA Admissions Blog posting about visiting schools. It should be of interest to class of ’08 early birds as well as R3 candidates.
Posted by Clear Admit on January 17, 2005, at 11:09 am
Posted in: Deadlines This week features the following MBA application deadlines for top programs:
Dartmouth/Tuck – Monday, January 17th (today!) INSEAD – Wednesday, January 19th (R3 of four rounds) MIT/Sloan – Wednesday, January 19th (final round) UC Berkeley – Friday, January 21st (R3 of four rounds)
There are also several decision deadlines for R1 applicants. Here are the schools that will be delivering news as the week progresses:
MIT/Sloan – Tuesday, January 18th Stanford – Tuesday, January 18th Harvard – Wednesday, January 19th Chicago – Friday, January 21st
Best of luck to those of you racing for the deadlines or anxiously awaiting decisions!
Posted by Clear Admit on January 14, 2005, at 1:02 pm
Posted in: Deadlines This season has been marked by an unusual amount of mid-season deadline policy changes on the part of top MBA programs.
In the first round, we saw schools like Chicago, Michigan and Darden bump their deadlines back to give applicants more time (and to address technical problems with online systems). In recent weeks, a similar shift occurred for the R2 date at Chicago and the rolling/fellowship deadline at Columbia (again, due to systems issues). Similarly, Dartmouth/Tuck extended their on-campus interview deadline through the end of January.
Beyond deadline changes, this blog has also noted that Columbia began reviewing rolling applications earlier than their published date of January 10th.
Finally, INSEAD has just added a fourth admissions round to their September 2005 intake. While the third and final round had previously been slated for next week (January 19th), the school is now offering a fourth round with a deadline of March 23rd, 2005. The most recent edition of the INSEAD newsletter cites feedback from applicants as the primary cause for this change in policy, although we also think it makes sense for INSEAD to offer a late round that is more or less timed with final rounds at Harvard, Kellogg, Wharton, Stanford and Chicago.
Posted by Clear Admit on January 13, 2005, at 10:37 am
Posted in: General The Wall Street Journal’s College Journal has just published an interesting article about how MBA students team up with their classmates in order to connect with CEOs and high level executives. The story focuses on a student at MIT/Sloan who, along with a group of classmates, organized a networking event with media executives from Miramax, Bertelsmann AG and other top media firms.
Read the article here: http://www.collegejournal.com/jobhunting/searchstrategies/20050112-needleman.html
While this story focuses on the media and entertainment sector, there are two very valuable lessons that can be taken away for MBA applicants:
1) Students who collaborate under the marquee of a top MBA program have the power to reach out to companies in a way that no individual can replicate. This is part of the appeal of attending business school.
2) Most of the top MBA programs play host to dozens of conferences, forums and executive speaker series each year. These events offer students tremendous opportunities to learn while making the kinds of connections that can further their career. Although MBA rankings tend to focus on the caliber of learning that goes on inside the classroom, it’s often these extracurricular events that can really shape a student’s experience in business school.
This is why it pays to do your homework as an MBA applicant and reach out to the current students who are organizing events in your field of interest. You can do this by contacting the head of the student club that interests you (most clubs have web sites with email contact info for club officers). The more you know about the program, the more likely it is that you will submit informed essays. Learning about these extracurricular events will also help you to refine your school selection.
Posted by Clear Admit on January 12, 2005, at 10:14 am
Posted in: School: Northwestern / Kellogg The last week has been very active for the Kellogg School of Management, as the school has released more R1 decisions. We’d like to congratulate those of you who received the good news! We’d also like to offer some words of encouragement to those of you who were waitlisted – since history has shown that R1 waitlisters have fairly good odds of ultimately making the cut. The nice thing about Kellogg’s WL process is that it allows applicants to add information to their file and take steps to improve their chances.
For those of you who were not offered a spot at Kellogg this year, we encourage you to regroup and stay focused on your remaining schools (or any plans you have for reapplication). The following blog, by Wakechick, has taken a positive and humorous approach to dealing with a negative decision.
In other Kellogg news, there is a lot of good discussion in the BW Forums about the decisions that have been coming out. Finally, Business Week recently published an interview with Dipak Jain, the school’s dean, about his experiences in Phuket, Thailand during the tsunamis.
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