Posted by Clear Admit on July 11, 2005, at 10:33 am
Posted in:  General The Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC) have just released GMAT testing volume figures through May 31st of 2005, citing what appears to be a slight increase in test taking volume this year. While volume is merely stable within the United States, test-taking activity has increased by 3.75% internationally. Countries like Korea, Taiwan, China, India, Canada and Greece seem to be driving this increase.
Although volume has been up and down this year (ahead of the pace in February, slightly behind in April), one thing seems to be clear: the significant declines in volume that were seen over the last few seasons are looking less and less probable for this season. It is worth noting that at this time last year, GMAC was reporting an overall decline in test-taking volume of more than 8%.
For the full text of GMAC’s report:
http://www.gmac.org/gmac/ResearchandTrends/GMATStatistics/CurrentGMATVolume.htm
This news about increasing GMAT volume isn’t terribly surprising, given the positive MBA recruiting news that has been widely publicized of late.
Posted by Clear Admit on July 9, 2005, at 9:00 pm
Posted in: Essay Topic Analysis , School: Penn / Wharton As promised, today’s blog entry offers a quick breakdown of the Wharton essay topics for 2005-06. These tips were compiled by members of the Clear Admit admissions counseling team (a team that includes Alex Brown – former Senior Associate Director of Admissions at Wharton).
1. Describe your career progress to date and your future short-term and long-term career goals. How do you expect an MBA from Wharton to help you achieve these goals and why now? (1,000 words)
As is the case with the main essay of most schools, this is fairly straightforward. At the same time, your response to this question will ultimately become a critical component of the admissions file, so it’s important to get it right. Focused goals and a good deal of school-specific detail are important. As your discussion evolves, keep in mind that you are being asked to discuss three main points (i.e. your career path to date, future plans, and reasons for seeking a Wharton MBA) and that you’ll want to devote roughly equal portions of the essay to each. Many applicants make the mistake of devoting 80% of the essay to a discussion of their career progress to date, leaving only limited time to cover their goals, interest in the MBA and passion for Wharton.
2. Describe an impact you’ve had on an individual, group or organization. How has this experience been valuable to you or others? (500 words)
Many applicants lead off the shorter essays with a recent professional accomplishment, but if you have done something that has significantly benefited one person or an organization in which you are involved outside of work, these are viable options as well. This question is really driving at the results of your actions, but remember that the process is just as important. You’ll want to pick a specific instance in which you’ve made an especially significant impact, discussing the steps you took to bring about the positive results and their lasting consequences. A comment on your development as a leader as a result of this example would be a nice way to address the second part of the question here.
3. Please complete two of the following three questions (500 words each):
- Describe when you were part of a team where the group process and/or intended outcome failed. What did you learn?
This is a tricky question to navigate, as you’re being asked to volunteer information about a negative aspect of your background. The key with this response is to select a failure for which the blame is shared among a team rather than an instance in which something went wrong as a result of your actions or oversight. You should then summarize the failure and the reasons behind it as briefly as possible, spending the bulk of the essay discussing the lessons you learned – and providing another more recent example that illustrates that you have successfully used them since. Keep in mind that part of the reason Wharton is asking this question is due to the program’s reliance on Learning Teams during the first year.
- Describe a situation where your values, ethics, or morals were challenged. How did you handle the situation?
This is very similar to the ethical dilemma question posed by many schools. See our comments on Columbia’s questions [http://www.clearadmit.com/2005/06/admissions-tip-columbia-essays.html] for our advice on approaching this essay.
Beyond the ethics framework, you might also note that the “values” element of the question could provide a great platform to discuss a challenging cross-cultural experience, a great way to showcase international work experience or extensive time spent abroad.
- Describe a personal characteristic or something in your background that will help the Admissions Committee to know you better.
This is a great opportunity to introduce an interesting element of your candidacy that you have not had a chance to mention in your other essays. You have a chance here to set yourself apart from other applicants by commenting on what drives you or by sharing a unique hobby or interest. Of course, it would also be ideal to share a story that illustrates your leadership ability or is linked to some contribution you could make to the business school community.
Optional: If you feel there are extenuating circumstances of which the Committee should be aware, please explain them here (e.g., unexplained gaps in work experience, choice of recommenders, inconsistent or questionable academic performance, significant weaknesses in your application).
Remember that in responding to an optional question, you are creating more work for the person reviewing your file. This question should be used only to address serious weaknesses or issues in your profile, and you should cover these topics as briefly and in as straightforward a manner as possible.
Posted by Clear Admit on July 8, 2005, at 10:05 am
Posted in: Essay Topics , School: Penn / Wharton Wharton has released their essay topics for the coming admissions season. Despite the change in leadership on the admissions side, the questions have remained the same. We’ll post some in-depth analysis of the topics in our next blog entry, but without further ado, here are the essay questions:
1. Describe your career progress to date and your future short-term and long-term career goals. How do you expect an MBA from Wharton to help you achieve these goals and why now? (1,000 words)
2. Describe an impact you’ve had on an individual, group or organization. How has this experience been valuable to you or others? (500 words)
3. Please complete two of the following three questions (500 words each):
- Describe when you were part of a team where the group process and/or intended outcome failed. What did you learn?
- Describe a situation where your values, ethics, or morals were challenged. How did you handle the situation?
- Describe a personal characteristic or something in your background that will help the Admissions Committee to know you better.
Optional: If you feel there are extenuating circumstances of which the Committee should be aware, please explain them here (e.g., unexplained gaps in work experience, choice of recommenders, inconsistent or questionable academic performance, significant weaknesses in your application).
For full instructions, as well as reapplicant information, see the Wharton adcom blog: http://adcomblog.wharton.upenn.edu/admissions/2005/07/begin_your_fall.html
Stay tuned for our analysis on the topics. In the meantime, for some relevant tips on getting to know Wharton:
http://www.clearadmit.com/2004/05/admissions-tip-getting-to-know-wharton.html
Posted by Clear Admit on July 7, 2005, at 12:49 pm
Posted in: Essay Topics , School: Chicago Chicago’s essay questions are now available for the 2005-06 season. As many of our readers know, the Chicago GSB has traditionally been famous for having quirky essay questions (about elevator rides with the dean, mascots for the school’s facilities, childhood heroes, etc). This year, there are substantial changes of note – suggesting that the days of quirky essay questions are now gone. As you will see from our brief analysis below, our guess is that this may relate to Rose Martinelli’s influence as the new director of admissions. Without further ado, here are the questions:
Essay 1: To complete, we require that you answer all parts of A, B, and C below. (1500 words maximum total):
A. Explain the path that has led you to pursue an MBA as the next step in your professional/ personal development. What steps did you take and how did you reach your decision?
B. What or who has influenced your choice of schools? What criteria will you use to decide where you will attend? What is it specifically about Chicago GSB that is going to help you succeed?
C. Describe your short and long term post-MBA career goals. What steps will you be taking in order to achieve your goals?
This is basically an expanded ‘career goals/why MBA’ essay, requiring applicants to cover their career path to date, interest in the MBA, specific interest in the GSB and the details surrounding their short and long-term post-MBA career goals. In fact, essay #1 is fairly similar to what has traditionally been Wharton’s essay #1…
Essay 2: Choose one of the following two questions to answer (500 word maximum for this essay)
A. Describe the most challenging team environment in which you have been involved. What role did you play? What impact did you have? What did you learn from this challenge?
B. Describe a time when you exhibited leadership skills even though you were not the designated leader. What was the situation? What skills did you utilize?
Both options for this essay focus on teamwork and the applicant’s ability to work with peers and make an impact/move things forward, etc. Options A and B are actually comparable to Wharton’s essays 2 and 3a from last season.
Essays 3 & 4: Choose two of the following five questions to answer (500 word maximum for each).
A. How have you used your personal characteristics and resources to improve the lives of others?
B. Describe a time when you felt a strong sense of purpose in your life. What motivated you? What changes did you make personally and professionally to achieve that purpose?
C. What would you consider the biggest failure or disappointment in your life? How did you adapt your plans or move past that failure or disappointment?
D. If you can spend one day as someone else, who would it be? Why? What would your day look like?
E. To be successful in life, you must be able to distinguish between a fleeting trend and a permanent development. Tell us of a time when you had to make such as a distinction. What, if anything, would you have done differently?
These topics obviously cover a great deal of ground, but they are essentially designed to get at the applicant’s passions, personality and outside interests. In order to properly select and address these questions, applicants will need to analyze their responses to Essays #1 and #2 and make choices that allow them to ensure that the essays all work together in presenting a balanced portrait of their candidacy. In fact, balancing the subject matter across a set of essays is a critical aspect of the MBA application process in general. Far too often, we see candidates who fail to use these kinds of short essays to add breadth to their candidacy – instead opting to draft yet another essay about their accomplishments in the work place.
Link to questions on the school’s site: http://www.chicagogsb.edu/fulltime/admissions/essay.aspx
Thanks to fellow blogger Sghama for calling our attention to the official publication of the new topics on Chicago’s site!
Posted by Clear Admit on July 6, 2005, at 12:19 pm
Posted in: Essay Topic Analysis , School: Harvard As promised yesterday, here are some thoughts on how you might approach each of Harvard’s essay questions for the coming admissions season:
1. What would you like the MBA Admissions Board to know about your undergraduate academic experience? (new question for this year) This question seems focused purely on the applicant’s educational experience while in college as opposed to part time work or extracurricular involvements (although if you excelled in the class room in spite of having numerous other commitments, this could be worth mentioning). This is your chance to go into some detail about why you chose your school and major and tell the admissions committee about your academic interests and educational milestones. A great essay will underscore an applicant’s intelligence and work ethic, as well as incorporate some element of leadership angle in the event that he or she had a significant impact on the department or school as a whole. If you pursued a course of study that is in line with your work experience and/or career goals, this essay could also be a great intro to the rest of your file.
2. What are your three most substantial accomplishments and why do you view them as such? This question isn’t anything new. When selecting topics, keep in mind that the HBS adcom has a very results-oriented attitude, and that you’ll want to select some examples that involve a lasting, positive impact you made on a project or organization. We would recommend that you lead with a recent professional accomplishment, and include a balanced sampling of examples from various jobs and outside activities.
3. Discuss a defining experience in your development as a leader. (slightly new question for this year) Remember that it’s best to use detailed examples whenever possible in your essays in order to make a strong impression on the reader. While one could concievable discuss his or her tenure in a certain role or position over time, the best response to this question will cover one specific event or instance. Make sure that you take care to set the scene and then fully describe your actions, as well as their results. Note that because this is a defining experience, something needs to change between the beginning and end of the story – your leadership skills. This being the case, it’s likely that this essay will cover a very valuable lesson you have learned or a significant challenge you overcame. It would also be ideal to comment on the way this experience altered your perspective and has influenced your thought and actions since this time.
4. In your career, you will have to deal with many ethical issues. What are likely to be the most challenging and what is your plan for developing the competencies you will need to handle these issues effectively? (new question for this year) In devising an answer to this question, stay focused on the importance to keep your discussion grounded in your experiences and objectives as opposed to writing generally and waxing philosophical. Unlike most ethics-oriented essay questions that focus on a dilemma you have already tackled, this one calls on applicants to be forward-looking and anticipate ones that they will encounter down the line. It seems like this could be a platform to expand upon one’s career goals and comment on issues that are specific to a given function or industry. In explaining the compentencies that will equip you to handle these situations, it’s possible for you to draw from past experiences dealing with such issues and comment that Harvard’s specific curricular offerings and the diverse student body would be instrumental in solidifying and reinforcing your already sound principles.
5. What are your strengths and weaknesses as a leader? (slightly new question for this year) This question is similar to last year’s, except that it now focuses on the applicant’s strong points and shortcomings within the context of leadership. A strong essay will introduce two or three positive qualities and provide a brief example illustrating each, and name a weakness that the applicant has taken steps to address along with an anecdote that confirms this improvement.
6. What are your career aspirations and how can an MBA help you to reach them? Why now? This is a fairly standard career goals essay, with the added difficulty of a very restrictive word limit. You will need to summarize your career to date in a very concise manner (think just a few sentences) before moving on to a detailed discussion of your short and long-term goals and the reasons that you are applying to business school at this point in time. There’s no room here for a generic discussion of the merits of a business degree in general – all of your comments should be centered on Harvard’s program and the way specific classes and clubs would prepare you for your goals.
7. What do you wish the MBA Admissions Board had asked you? This essay is another great opportunity to share some new and interesting information about your candidacy that you have not had a chance to include in response to the other questions. This is not the place to discuss your choice of recommender or that bad semester as an undergrad – save this sort of detail for the “Additional Information” section. Rather, this is your chance to go into detail about that unique hobby, detail the ways that you would contribute to the HBS community or, for reapplicants, highlight the improvements in your candidacy since your last application.
Please note: The general advice we offer here is designed to help HBS applicants think broadly about the questions. For more tailored counseling and advice, we encourage applicants to contact us directly and learn about our consulting services.
Posted by Clear Admit on July 5, 2005, at 3:24 pm
Posted in: Deadlines , Essay Topics , School: Harvard HBS has just released its application deadlines and essay questions for the class entering in 2006:
Deadline/Decision Schedule
Round One
Deadline: October 11, 2005
Decision: January 18, 2006
Round Two
Deadline: January 3, 2006
Decision: March 29, 2006
Round Three
Deadline: March 7, 2006
Decision: May 10, 2006
Essay Questions
1. What would you like the MBA Admissions Board to know about your undergraduate academic experience? (400-word limit)
2. What are your three most substantial accomplishments and why do you view them as such? (600-word limit)
3. Discuss a defining experience in your development as a leader. (400-word limit)
4. In your career, you will have to deal with many ethical issues. What are likely to be the most challenging and what is your plan for developing the competencies you will need to handle these issues effectively? (400-word limit)
5. What are your strengths and weaknesses as a leader? (400-word limit)
6. What are your career aspirations and how can an MBA help you to reach them? Why now? (400-word limit)
7. What do you wish the MBA Admissions Board had asked you? (400-word limit)
Harvard has added a question, meaning this year’s application will be a bit more work than previously. The good news is that another essay means another opportunity to share interesting information about your candidacy. Be sure to check back tomorrow for some comments and tips on how to handle each of these questions.
Posted by Clear Admit on July 5, 2005, at 11:15 am
Posted in: General We’d like to call your attention to an interesting blog that is presently detailing the process of making the move from work into an MBA program (e.g. what happens after you accept an offer of admission).
The blogger in question is mbafarbe and the school is IMD (one of Europe’s leading MBA programs, located in Lausanne, Switzerland). Mbafarbe’s recent entries about paying deposits, securing visas, exploring loans, finding an apartment and learning about future classmates are wonderful reading for the entire MBA applicant community. In addition, if one delves into mbafarbe’s blog archives, there are some good posts with regards to GMAT preparation and other aspects of the admissions process.
Full link to Mbafarbe’s blog: http://colours.typepad.com/mbafarbe/
We also like to point our readers back to a posting in our own archives that details the process of school selection, as many of our clients are currently contemplating the best ways to research and select schools. This is a must-read for applicants:
http://www.clearadmit.com/2005/03/admissions-tip-school-selection.html
Posted by Clear Admit on July 4, 2005, at 12:37 pm
Posted in: General Business Week‘s Jeremy Gangemi has just published a wonderful article that should be of interest to international students contemplating a move to the USA for their MBA. Touching on a subject that is often overlooked, Gangemi highlights the challenge facing many international students who find themselves in a US business school classroom with little or no prior exposure to American academic culture.
In summary, the article offers several key recommendations for international students looking at US programs:
1) Make sure the school has support networks and services to help international students adjust.
2) Think about getting your English skills in good working order. This is usually best accomplished by taking English courses on the university campus in the summer (see point #3 below), reading English-language publications and watching American films or television.
3) Show up before the start of classes or pre-term. This is critical for international students, since it not only helps with one’s English skills but it also allows students to have the extra time to get settled, open bank accounts, learn their way around a new place/culture, etc.
4) Understand the US teaching style and classroom etiquette. The article has a somewhat humorous account of a Chinese student’s reaction to their first ‘cold call’. In essence, it pays to know how the classroom functions in the US.
5) Tap into the school’s career services offerings at an early date. It is critical for international students to get up to speed on the US-style recruiting process by using the resources available on campus.
For the full text of the article: http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/content/jul2005/bs2005071_5022_bs001.htm
Also, the author has invited readers to submit additional tips about making the adjustment (see the article for details).
Happy 4th of July to all of our American readers!
Posted by Clear Admit on July 1, 2005, at 8:58 am
Posted in: General As this blog reported in April, Joel Podolny, the new Dean at Yale’s SOM, has big plans for the school’s small-sized MBA program. As Podolny officially takes the helm at Yale SOM today, Bloomberg News has published an in-depth article about the new dean. What is perhaps most interesting about the Bloomberg piece are the bold quotes from Podolny and his peers. Here are a few excerpts of note:
Joel Podolny already knows what kind of student he doesn’t want at Yale University’s business school: “I don’t want Gordon Gekko-like students,” Podolny says, referring to the ruthless arbitrager played by Michael Douglas in the 1987 film “Wall Street.”
Podolny says he intends to elevate Yale’s second-tier M.B.A. program to the “pantheon” of U.S. business schools, challenging top-ranked Harvard in Boston, Stanford University in California, and the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia: “I would say to Harvard and Stanford, `Caveat scholar — watch out,’ because Yale is smaller and more nimble,” says David Wilson, president of the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC).
Full article: http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=nifea&&sid=aRixxFmW7xQ0
Also, as a reminder to our readers, the Clear Admit early-bird discount offer ends today (at 11:59 PM). For those of you planning to apply this coming season, now is an excellent time to lock in our services at a reduced rate. See the discount page: http://www.clearadmit.com/earlydiscount.html.
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