Admissions Director Q&A Below are links to Clear Admit's exclusive interviews with MBA admissions directors at leading programs.
Application Deadlines Below are the upcoming deadlines for admission to the leading MBA programs.
Essay Topic Analysis Below are links to our comments on some of the leading programs' essay topics.
MBA Tipline We encourage admissions officers, students and applicants to alert us of interesting news and developments, please send an email to news@clearadmit.com so we can blog it. MBA Programs: North America If an MBA Program is not listed, please e-mail and we will be happy to list it.
MBA Programs: The Rest of the World As there is some variety in the length of international MBA programs, we have denoted the length of the program next to its name (1 = one year; 2 = 2 years). If an MBA Program is not listed, please e-mail and we will be happy to list it.
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Posted by Clear Admit on March 30, 2007, at 11:14 am
Earlier today, U.S. News & World Report released its 2008 ranking of the top full-time U.S. MBA programs. Because this particular ranking relies heavily on statistics like GMAT averages, GPAs, starting salaries and peer assessments, there’s generally less variation year-to-year than in rankings based on student and recruiter opinion (the dominant metrics in several other prominent rankings). There are, however, a few interesting changes to note when comparing the list to last year’s ranking.
First, let’s take a look at this year’s top-ranking schools:
1. Harvard University
2. Stanford University
3. University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)
4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Sloan)
5. Northwestern University (Kellogg)
5. University of Chicago
7. Dartmouth College (Tuck)
8. University of California–Berkeley (Haas)
9. Columbia University
10. New York University (Stern)
11. University of . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 30, 2007, at 2:23 am
Welcome back to Fridays from the Frontline, Clear Admit’s run-down of all the MBA blogosphere news that’s fit to blog (or at least all that fits in this week’s installment)! Recounting the thrill of admission, doling out congratulations to fellow admits and offering advice to future prospectives, applicant bloggers are on cloud nine this week, while first and second year students are celebrating a well-deserved spring break from stations around the world. Let’s take a closer look at this virtual era of good feelings.
Hardly able to believe it, AGirlsMBA chronicles the surreal feeling that accompanied her HBS triumph, while Forrest concisely conveys his success at Chicago (way to go Forrest!). We’d also like to note the . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 29, 2007, at 2:00 am
Many MBA applicants are already accustomed to getting their news – not to mention Business Week and Economist articles – delivered through their headphones, but some might be unaware that most top business schools also offer podcasts. For the applicants out there with extremely busy schedules, podcasts offer one more valuable way to get a feel for the current research and developments unique to each institution. This helps prospective students identify the programs that best fit their own interests (i.e. healthcare management, hi-tech entrepreneurship, marketing, etc.), enabling them to offer a nuanced answer to the dreaded ‘why School X and not School Y?’ interview question, if the time comes. Let’s take a closer look at a selection of some of the . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 28, 2007, at 2:30 am
Welcome to another installment of Wiki Wednesdays! For several months now, we’ve been focusing on the fantastic interview reports that our readers have submitted to the Clear Admit Wiki. Though interview season is nearly over, we’re still receiving some great posts. This week, we saw valuable comments from two applicants to Columbia and Stanford, respectively, who both touched on a similar note. AsianGal shared this insight:
“I realize now that most alumni conducting MBA interviews are probably very much in love with their schools, so the ‘any questions’ bit at the end is an excellent way to end off on a high and positive note. When many b-school applicants start talking about their school . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 27, 2007, at 8:29 am
Welcome to another edition of Trivia Tuesday! Today we’ll consider the options available to students interested in complementing their MBA studies with an advanced degree in another academic area. Often referred to as either joint or dual degrees, most business schools partner with other graduate programs at their home universities to offer one or more of these joint study options. Dual degree programs differ from the certificate programs we’ve discussed in earlier Trivia Tuesday columns in that students earn two degrees – often an MBA and a Master’s. Although studying for a dual degree typically takes 3-5 years instead of the normal two years of the MBA, it is almost always . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 26, 2007, at 2:27 pm
After spending some time last week revamping our press page to include a more comprehensive list of Clear Admit’s appearances in the media, we wanted to feature these links in our blog as well to point readers to a number of informative interviews and articles about MBA admissions. Happy reading!
Audio Interviews
The Economist Online MBA Fair, October 10th, 2006
“Creating a Quality Application,” interview by Roger McShane
Download the Audio or View the Feature (subscription only)
MBA Podcaster, August 29th, 2006
“Your Application Essays” with host Charles Lane
Download the Audio or Read the Transcript
MBA Podcaster, January 23rd, 2006
“MBA Admission Consultants” with host Janet Nakano
Download the Audio or Read the Transcript
Q&A and Chat
Manhattan . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 26, 2007, at 2:28 am
Spring is in the air, but spring breaks have largely come to an end and that means that MBA students are back on campus and diving into the second half of the spring semester. Let’s check in on what they’re up to with a round-up from the student newspapers at Stanford and Wharton.
For many MBA students, spring break meant an opportunity to travel abroad. An article in this week’s Stanford Reporter (back after a lengthy hiatus!) discusses the recent study trip to India, which included 25 students plus several partners and Stanford GSB professors. Participants learned about the companies fueling India’s economy, as well as the living conditions and economic prospects of those currently left . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 23, 2007, at 3:07 pm
As anyone who attempted to post to the Clear Admit Wiki in the past week might have noticed, the site has been frozen while we’ve been upgrading to the latest version of the MediaWiki software.
The wiki is now back up and running, so we hope that those who’ve been applying this year will continue to share their interview reports, campus visit experience, and thought process in deciding which school to attend. We’re especially hopeful that the ongoing wave of admissions notifications will inspire some great new content!
To add material, simply create an account or send an email with your content to . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 23, 2007, at 4:00 am
Welcome back to Fridays from the Frontline, our weekly summary of recent activity on MBA student and applicant blogs. This week seems to have been a happy one across the MBA blogosphere. Applicant bloggers shared wise advice with each other, and relayed the lessons they’ve learned this season to next year’s candidates. Moreover, current students had some great things to say about their programs! Let’s take a look:
Checking in with the applicant crowd, we find that while some are still waiting restlessly, others have been notified by schools and are blogging accordingly. Congrats go out this week go to Asian Gal on her Wharton admit and to Inblue, who officially enrolled at Chicago. It also . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 22, 2007, at 4:20 am
Though many business school applicants know exactly what they want to do – and how much they hope to make – after they graduate from an MBA program, a surprising number apply to school without thinking about how they’ll pay for this expensive degree. While some students do foot the entire bill themselves or receive scholarship support from the school or an outside institution, the vast majority of MBA students borrow funds to cover their tuition and living expenses. With this in mind, we wanted to cover some very basic information on loans for the benefit of both recent admits entering school this fall and early birds entry just beginning to think about their applications for Fall ’08.
The primary source of . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 21, 2007, at 2:21 pm
With Wharton’s final decisions going out to Round 2 applicants tomorrow, and notifications from a number of other programs due this week and next, we wanted to take a moment to say good luck to those readers who are still eagerly awaiting news from their target schools!
Here’s a quick rundown of the remaining March and April notification schedule:
March 22: Wharton
March 23: Cornell R3, Darden R3, LBS, Tuck
March 26: Kellogg
March 28: Chicago, HBS
March 29: UCLA/Anderson
March 30: NYU/Stern
April 5: Stanford, Yale SOM
April 20: Haas, Darden R4
April 27: Cornell R4
April 30: CMU/Tepper
Depending on the outcome, here are some links to recent blog entries that might be of interest:
Choosing Between Schools
Understanding Background Checks
Scholarships
Navigating the Waitlist
Waitlists that Discourage Supplemental Materials
Stay . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 21, 2007, at 7:00 am
For all you “early birds” who are planning to apply to business school this fall, we wanted to offer a few tips on managing your time as it relates to the GMAT exam. Because this is an important element for many applicants in determining at which schools they will be competitive, it’s best to prep intensively and get this out of the way early in the process.
You should ideally be finished with the GMAT by mid-summer. The reason for this is that you will want to reserve the months of August, September and October for essay writing, school visits, managing your recommenders and other miscellaneous application-related tasks. The last thing you want to be doing in September is juggling the demands . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 20, 2007, at 4:26 am
It’s Tuesday, so that means it’s time for a look at the programs and possibilities at the leading business schools. Today we’ll examine the opportunities available for MBA graduates at Chicago and Tuck to continue their business education through alumni education programs.
For instance, the Chicago GSB permits alumni to enroll in up to three courses free of tuition at any time after they graduate. Most graduates use the courses to hone or sharpen their skills in a particular area and the grades received in these courses become part of their official Chicago GSB transcript.
In contrast to Chicago’s formal alumni education program, Tuck offers a much more informal continuing education program. In addition to life-long access to the Career Development Office, Tuck . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 19, 2007, at 6:21 am
With most MBA students off on spring break or studying for mid-terms, it’s been a quiet week for campus newspapers. Today let’s check on the few hardy papers still going to press during the mid-semester lull.
The recent issues of the papers at Ross and Harvard each showcased the academic and social opportunities available to MBA students. Ross’s dean offers a great explanation of the value of the MAP projects, a centerpiece of Ross’s action-based learning model of education (which is an important aspect of Ross’s application essays). At Harvard, several student groups reported on recent career treks to Washington, D.C. and Saudi Arabia, which were attended by approximately 60 and 30 . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 16, 2007, at 3:32 pm
There was an interesting article on Bloomberg.com earlier this week about the companies recruiting on business school campuses and the prices they’re willing to pay to secure top talent. While the main point of the feature is that MBAs remain in demand, with the average starting package of graduates from the top programs hovering between $160,000 and $180,000, the article also offers a perspective on the sometimes overwhelming experience of being pursued by a potential employer:
“Wall Street recruiters can be as aggressive as professional football players, says Chris Eitzmann, who will receive his master of business administration degree in May from Dartmouth College’s Tuck School of Business.
‘Once given the offer, you . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 16, 2007, at 8:57 am
Welcome back to Fridays From the Frontline, Clear Admit’s round-up of recent happenings in the MBA blogosphere! It’s been an exciting week out there for MBA bloggers: we see everything from good news to bad, true love to hard drive disasters. Let’s take a closer look!
Applicants’ emotions are running high as more and more of them are hearing back from schools. There are many congratulations to go around this week: Chicago admitted Iday, HairTwirler was accepted at Cambridge, and AGirlsMBA received good news from Fuqua, Ross and Stern! Equally impressive was Bschool Diva’s resolution to get herself off McCombs’ waitlist and into the Class of 2009, and . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 15, 2007, at 1:06 pm
Continuing our series of essay analyses for European schools with upcoming deadlines, we wanted to feature our thoughts in INSEAD’s topics for this year. The approaching March 28th submission date is the last deadline for September 2007 intake, and the first for applicants hoping to start in January 2008.
The program’s essay questions cover a good deal of ground, giving candidates ample opportunity to discuss a range of topics related to their candidacies and highlight various elements of their interests and experiences. Though the first two “job essays” ask for a factual account of one’s current position and overall professional progression, the five other essays invite the sort of reflection and exposition to which MBA applicants are accustomed.
Of course, this . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 15, 2007, at 7:00 am
The signs of spring are about here in Philadelphia, a time of year for exciting things like mild weather, baseball season and, of course, our annual Best of Blogging Awards! For the uninitiated, each year we make an effort to identify exceptional blogs maintained by MBA applicants and students for two important purposes: to recognize the effort and output of the best applicant and student bloggers, and to identify valuable sources of information for the next round of applicants.
Here’s the timeline for this year’s awards, focusing on the 2006-07 admissions/academic cycle:
Nominees Announced – Friday, April 6th
We’ll begin by considering all blogs listed in the Clear Admit Wiki and featured in Fridays from the Frontline (bloggers are encouraged . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 14, 2007, at 2:00 am
Welcome back to Wiki Wednesdays, where we feature some of the latest contributions to the Clear Admit Wiki! As we approach the end of interview season, we’re still receiving some great interview reports from applicants. In fact, over the last few days we’ve received submissions on interviews at no less than seven schools!
This week, we’d like to highlight a few “curveball” questions that applicants to HBS and Sloan reported this week, and that are actually quite common across the board. A curveball question is one that appears to be straightforward on the surface, but often becomes challenging when one attempts a response. The first is the much-dreaded question about the other schools the applicant is considering. . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 13, 2007, at 4:13 am
Welcome back to Trivia Tuesday, our weekly examination of the offerings and opportunities at the leading business schools.
Today we turn our attention to options for studying health care in business school, with a particular emphasis on Wharton’s Health Care Systems Major, one of the oldest and strongest health care programs among U.S. business schools. Drawing its faculty from the business, medical and nursing schools, as well as from practicing health care professionals, the Health Care Systems major is an interdisciplinary approach to the issues in the field.
The Health Care Systems major differs from other majors at Wharton in that students must choose the major in their initial application to the school instead of in their second year. Health Care Systems further . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 12, 2007, at 1:54 pm
The winners of the first annual the New England Energy Innovation Collaborative (NEEIC) $150K Business Creation Competition were announced today at MIT’s Energy Conference. The competition challenged New England-based ventures to develop proprietary, innovative energy technology or an innovative services business model. An original field of 41 companies was narrowed down to four finalists, most of which drew on students and faculty of MIT Sloan and Harvard Business School.
The winning company, StarSolar, developed patented technology that significantly increases the efficiency of solar cells, thereby driving down the cost of these cells. Other finalists include an MIT/HBS collaboration called C3 BioEnergy, which processes sugar into propane; an MIT/MIT Sloan venture . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on March 12, 2007, at 3:14 am
With the mid-semester squarely upon us, some student newspapers keep chugging, while others seem to have run out of steam. It takes a dedicated staff of students to put out a newspaper and the work they do is read by students, professors and prospective students across campus and around the world. For applicants thinking about how they can contribute to their target schools, remember to consider clubs like the newspaper that go beyond single professional or social interests. Whether your interest is in photography, news reporting, editorials or humor pieces, the campus paper is a great way to make a visible impact on the MBA community.
With that said, let’s take a look at what’s being reported from campus this week!
At Chicago, . . . → Continue Reading
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Clear Admit’s Most Recent Posts
MBA Admissions Wiki In the Clear Admit Wiki, you can share your experiences through the application process and learn from those of others. Below are the five most popular pages in the wiki:
BW Business SchoolsThe BusinessWeek Discussion Boards are another way to learn about the issues applicants face. Clear Admit hosts the Ask Clear Admit thread, which should help answer your questions. Here are the five most recent discussions taking place in the forum:
Beat the GMATClear Admit is a featured expert in the BeatTheGMAT forums, answering questions from applicants across the globe. Feel free to ask us your questions in this forum! Here are the most recent posts:
GMAT ClubGMAT Club
Below are the five most recent posts to the GMAT Club message boards.
Wharton Student2StudentStudent2Student
The student-2-student Discussion Boards are managed by Wharton. Here are the five most recent discussions.
Studylink ForumsClear Admit manages the Applying section of the StudyLink MBA discussion boards.
School-Hosted BlogsStraight from the source: aggregated posts from students and administration. Below are the seven most recent posts in school-hosted blogs.
Individuals’ BlogsA selection of the latest updates to MBA blogs compiled by Hella.
MBA Applicants
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