Posted by Clear Admit on December 31, 2008, at 4:00 pm
Posted in:  MBA News , School: Harvard In a post last week, Harvard Business School (HBS) Director of Admissions Deirdre Leopold promised new details this week for round 2 applicants. Yesterday she delivered.
In yesterday’s post, Leopold provided answers to some of the questions her office has been hearing the most over the past few days.
For starters, she informed applicants that they should expect their online status to remain as “submitted” until notification day, which is April 2nd. There is no such status as “under review” or anything similar.
She also assured anxious applicants scheduled to take the GMAT in the next few days that they needn’t worry about whether their official report from GMAC reaches her office by January 6th. “You need to report a GMAT score when you submit the application,” she wrote. If verification from GMAC arrives slightly later than the application deadline, that’s fine.
The TOEFL is a different matter, she wrote. “You need to have taken the TOEFL and have an official score to report before you can submit the application,” she said. As a reminder, only those candidates whose undergraduate university instruction was NOT in English are required to take the TOEFL.
Finally, Leopold clarified for round 2 applicants that they do not need to wait until their recommendations have been send before submitting their own application. “The requirement for submitting is that you input the names/information about your recommenders,” she wrote. Recommendations can be submitted any time up until the January 6th deadline at 5 p.m. EST, she added, but there is no need to wait until then to submit an actual application.
Posted by Clear Admit on December 31, 2008, at 11:30 am
Posted in: Interview Tips , School: Dartmouth / Tuck , School: Duke / Fuqua , Wiki Wednesdays With 2009 nearly upon us, welcome to the final 2008 edition of Wiki Wednesdays, where we share fresh interview reports published in the Clear Admit Wiki, a repository of MBA applicants’ experiences and observations! As most schools have distributed decisions to Round 1 candidates, we’re taking a break from the race to Round 2 deadlines to peruse a few interview reports from Dartmouth / Tuck and Duke / Fuqua.
A recent Tuck candidate recounted the following interview experience with an adcom member:
Walk [me] through [your] resume, starting from undergrad. What [were you] involved in outside of class in undergrad? Why MBA? (Which led to discussion of goals after school.) Why Tuck? (It seems they ask everyone this) Tell about a time / how [you] work in teams. Tell about a time / how [you] lead. How will [you] get involved in Tuck, outside of class? (what groups and activities?)
Blogger MissionMBA shared the following questions from his Fuqua interview in the Clear Admit Wiki:
Tell me something about yourself, starting with your education. Tell me about a team-effort that did not work out well. Tell me about a time when you had to convey a difficult message to somebody. How would you enrich the cultutre at Fuqua? If given a chance, what would you like to change in your life?
That wraps up Wiki Wednesdays for 2008! We’d like to thank everyone who has contributed to the Clear Admit Wiki this year and we look forward to receiving plenty of reports in 2009! If you would like to contribute a report of your experience in applying for an MBA, simply e-mail your interview report, campus visit account or school comparison evaluation to wiki@clearadmit.com. You can also post directly to the Clear Admit Wiki by creating an account. Thanks again to all those who have contributed this year and best of luck to those undergoing the application process in 2009!
Posted by Clear Admit on December 31, 2008, at 3:14 am
Posted in: Uncategorized
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Posted by Clear Admit on December 30, 2008, at 12:00 pm
Posted in: General , MBA News , School: NYU Stern Thomas Cooley, who has served as dean of New York University’s Stern School of Business since August 2002, plans to step down, according to a report earlier this month in the Financial Times. NYU Stern is now beginning its search for a new dean, the report continued.
Cooley, a macroeconomist, was a former faculty member at Wharton, Rochester and Santa Barbara before coming to NYU Stern, where he replaced George Daley, who is now dean at Georgetown.
In his tenure at Stern, Cooley has hired more than 90 faculty, the FT reported. Under his watch, the school also has raised more than $190 million in the latest fundraising initiative and set up 24 professorships, the FT continued.
Setting up joint programs with schools outside the United States has been a particular focus for Cooley. He has helped to establish programs with schools in Hong Kong, Switzerland and the Netherlands, according to the FT report.
Clear Admit will provide more information regarding NYU Stern’s search for a new dean here as it becomes available.
Posted by Clear Admit on December 30, 2008, at 2:07 am
Posted in: School: London Business School , Trivia Tuesday In this week’s Trivia Tuesday column we turn our attention to experiential education across the pond, examining the Shadowing Project at London Business School.
The shadowing project at LBS enables students to gain a firsthand perspective on the daily role of a high ranking manager by “shadowing” that person for up to a week as they perform their job. Students report that they benefit immensely from this exposure, which illuminates skills they need to develop to succeed as managers.
Before entering the workplace of their “shadowees,” as they are called, students examine key studies and concepts in managerial behavior, building a theoretical framework to help them assess the management situations they will witness during the project. After the shadowing period, students synthesize their observations in a graded report that objectively profiles the leadership style of their shadowee.
To set up the Shadowing Project, students are expected to initiate contact with a manager of their choosing, and to arrange mutually acceptable dates for the shadowing to take place. While the task of contacting a high-level manager and pitching the shadowing idea may seem daunting, LBS explains that learning to harness the LBS network and preexisting professional contacts is one of the project’s key takeaways for students. The shadowing project can be completed between January and May in either the first or second year. The actual shadowing need not occur over five consecutive days, so students and their shadowees may decide to schedule the shadowing dates around critical meetings or events that it would be most helpful to witness.
Of the managers LBS students have shadowed over the past few years, about 15% have been CEO’s, 25% Managing Directors, General Managers or Vice Presidents, and 10% have held the highest ranking finance post in their organizations. In addition to the more traditional shadowees at investment banks and pharmaceutical companies, students have shadowed prominent figures in politics, as well as the management of a symphony orchestra. More than one-third of students travel outside the UK for the project.
For more on the projects and experiential learning opportunities at London Business School or other leading MBA programs, be sure to check out the Academics and Special Projects sections of the Clear Admit School Guides!
The Yale School of Management (SOM) is among a handful of other schools in the New York area that have begun to offer students a course in hedge fund operations and management taught by someone with real-world experience, according to a recent article in the New York Times.
At most business schools, students can study aspects of hedge funds in classes like investment management, financial engineering, endowment management and entrepreneurship, the Times reported. But at Yale SOM, students study under Leon Metzger, an 18-year industry veteran and founder of Paloma Partners, one of the “granddaddies” of the hedge fund industry, the Times continued.
In a syllabus modeled after an offering memorandum for a hedge fund, Metzger advises students interested in learning the secrets of moneymaking to register for a different class.
His is grounded in current events and practical application of theory. As an example, the Times reported that a class devoted to valuation involved a three-hour discussion of Merrill Lynch’s sale of $30 billion of collateralized debt obligations to the Lone Star Funds for 22 cents on the dollar and financing support.
“Talking about valuations is slightly more interesting than watching grass grow or paint dry, but talking about this sale brings the topic to life,” Metzger told the Times.
Other class exercises put students in front of real-life hedge fund insiders, who judge the students’ presentations of their mock hedge funds. Jacob Navon, an executive recruiter who served as one such judge, praised the Yale SOM class for teaching students presentation and other practical skills. “That’s an angle not uniformly taught,” he told the Times.
Yale SOM dean Sharon Oster told the Times that she views teachers like Metzger with real-life experience as providing a valuable complement to the academic curriculum.
Other New York-area schools, including New York University, Columbia and Cornell, are doing the same, according to the Times report. Still other schools recognize the need to include a focus on hedge funds as part of a complete business school education.
“Hedge funds have become such a big factor in financial markets that in order to make sure your students’ knowledge base is current, you really have to cover hedge funds somewhere in the curriculum,” Andrew W. Lo, professor at the M.I.T. Sloan School of Management and director of the M.I.T. Laboratory for Financial Engineering, told the Times.
In fact, at Yale SOM, few of the students in Metzger’s class plan to pursue careers in hedge funds. “I knew a long time ago what I was going to be doing, and it wasn’t hedge funds,” Yulee Newsome, a student in the class, told the Times. Newsome will join Dow Chemical when he graduates. “But it seemed to me that I would be pretty remiss if I left business school and didn’t know about one of the more important aspects of finance,” he continued.
Posted by Clear Admit on December 29, 2008, at 3:00 am
Posted in: Admissions Tips , General As we prepare to bid goodbye to 2008 and greet the deadline-packed first month of 2009, we would like to take the opportunity to recap the upcoming Round Two deadlines and offer some advice for hardworking applicants.
First, a summary of this month’s deadlines along with the exact time each application is due:
Friday, January 2nd Ross/Michigan, 11:59 p.m. EST
Tuesday, January 6th Harvard Business School, 5 p.m. EST London Business School, Noon EST
Wednesday, January 7th Booth/Chicago, 5 p.m. CST Yale, 11:59 p.m. EST Tuck/Dartmouth, 5 p.m. EST Fuqua/Duke, 11:59 p.m. EST Darden/UVA, 11:59 p.m. EST Stanford, 5 p.m. PST
Thursday, January 8th Wharton, 5 p.m. EST Anderson/UCLA, 9 p.m. PST
Monday, January 12th Northwestern/Kellogg, 11:59 p.m. CST Cornell, 11:59 p.m. EST
Tuesday, January 13th Sloan/MIT, Noon PST
Thursday, January 15th Stern/NYU, 11:59 p.m. EST
For those candidates who have already submitted their Round Two applications, we wish you a hearty congratulations and an exciting New Year’s Eve. However, for the many applicants still working feverishly to finish, we offer a few pieces of last minute advice:
1) Prioritize. The difference between a January 2nd and 8th deadline didn’t matter much when you started working on your applications in the fall. However, with just a few days remaining, make sure you are taking deadlines into account as you prioritize your work. Though your MIT Sloan essays may need the most revising, save that polishing until after you turn in the Wharton application on the 8th. Similarly, for those of you really facing the crunch, you may need to take a step back and pare down your list of target schools, as it’s better to submit three or four solid applications than it is to turn in six half-baked efforts.
2) Proof. Tired of reading the same essay for the 19th time? Ask a friend, family member or Clear Admit consultant to provide a final read through, checking for grammar, punctuation, typos, and other easy to miss mistakes. Don’t let a careless error be what the admissions committee first notices about your application.
3) Get a good night’s sleep! While New Year’s celebrations will offer a tempting distraction, remember that clear writing comes from clear thinking, and clear thinking is helped by a good night’s sleep. Ring in the new year, but save the real partying for after the application deadlines!
4) Avoid Loose Ends. While focusing frantically on essays is likely a high priority, do not overlook the fact that there are other components to your application package. Have you checked with your recommenders to ensure that they’ve done their part? Have you gathered any needed information for transcript reports? Have you worked on the application forms (employment history, activities listings, etc)? In the rush to submit many applicants overlook these critical areas, resulting in an inconsistent application.
As always, you can contact Clear Admit to learn more about our admissions consulting services by emailing your resume to . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on December 26, 2008, at 12:00 pm
Posted in: Fridays from the Frontline Another seven days have slipped through our collective fingers, and here we are for another Fridays From The Frontline. Applicants have continued to receive news from their first round applications while enrolled students wrapped up their first semesters/terms/quarters and headed home to celebrate (or not) the holidays. The gift of an acceptance certainly lifted the spirits of many a blogger, while the zaps that others received should not be taken as a definitive sign of whether they were ‘naughty’ or ‘nice’, as much as a reflection of the sheer competition all applicants are facing this season.
While not an acceptance, Ahembeea did receive his waitlist notification from Tuck and shared a few lessons from his application process. MissionMBA also heard from Tuck and considered his placement on the school’s waitlist a ‘ray of hope’. While they began the wait on tenterhooks to see if they get off the waitlist, The Teacher was unfortunately zapped and wondered what his next step should be. Maverick was waitlisted by W.P. Carey, but had an optimistic outlook. MBAlmighty was happy to be invited to interview by ISB. Earlybird, aware of the fierce competition for an acceptance from Harvard, considered other top choices. Samantha was getting into the Kellogg and cookie-eating spirit. Samantha’s future Kellogg classmate, D.G., shared his plan for fully taking advantage of this chance and realizing his ambitions. Mike’s Kellogg admission packet arrived, and he elaborated on his plans in regards to his remaining HBS and Duke applications. Soni, also, found an admission packet in his mailbox, for Chicago Booth. Maxwriter wished the blogosphere a merry Christmas and happy new year.
Speaking of Christmas, LBS ’10 N.A.S. posted an open letter to ‘Mrs. Klaus’, requesting a number of things including help with slaying the ‘Facebook monster’. Darden ’10 JulyDream enjoyed the holidays and slept past noon for the first time in months. Fellow Darden community member, Anand, shared his outlook on the rigors of the program. Darden ’09 Mandy was loving her Patagonia Christmas. Ross ’09 M@ was reminded of what was really important during his Christmas, the result: a punch in the face from reality. Chicago ’09 MaybeMBA empathized with those hearing from their round one schools.
Here we conclude our traipse through the treacherous travels and terrific treats of the past week. For those of you who celebrated Christmas yesterday, we hope that you received gifts that made you smile and that your stockings were properly stuffed. As round two deadlines become even more imminent, we hope that those planning to send applications have planned accordingly and will have a (relatively) stress-free next two weeks!
Posted by Clear Admit on December 26, 2008, at 2:19 am
Posted in: Admissions Tips , MBA News , School: Chicago In a recent post on her blog, Associate Dean for Student Recruitment and Admissions Rose Martinelli reflected on a successful year at the Chicago Booth Graduate School of Business and shared details about her office’s hours and resources for prospective applicants who will be working on their applications over the holidays.
“We will have staff available during normal working hours (8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. CST) on December 23rd, December 29th, December 30th and flexible hours on December 24th and December 31st,” she wrote.
Chicago Booth also will hold an admissions chat on Tuesday, December 30th, at 9 a.m. CST. “This is a great time for you to get any last minute questions answered,” Martinelli advised.
To participate in the hour-long chat, bookmark this page. A “Join Now” button will become active half an hour before the chat begins.
In the meantime, you also can review transcripts of recent admissions chats at Chicago Booth. An archive is available in the Chicago Booth Chat Center. Finally, don’t forget to read Rose Martinelli’s Admissions Director Q&A with Clear Admit.
Posted by Clear Admit on December 25, 2008, at 3:00 am
Posted in: Campus Chronicles , General ‘Tis the day to be jolly, as it’s time for another edition of Campus Chronicles! Today we turn our attention back to NYU Stern, checking out what the student newspaper, Opportunity, has to reveal about the latest happenings on campus.
Opportunity sheds light on the efforts of NYU Stern’s ProMotion Pictures Program to create branded content for Cisco’s Digital Cribs Campaign. This campaign enables students to delve into how individuals employ technology in innovative ways to encourage consumers to adopt these new technologies. In working on these creative interpretations, both business and film students gain real-world experience in working with a corporate sponsor to generate and market their content. Eight teams of NYU business and film students have worked over the last couple of months to produce documentaries which explore the intersection of technology and consumers. NYU Stern students had the opportunity to view and vote on these films at http://www.cisco.com/web/consumer/digitalcribs/index.html.
On the social front, over 600 members of the Stern alumni community attended the Eighth Annual Stern Alumni Ball on December 6th at the American Museum of Natural History. A special tradition, the gala allows alumni, faculty, administrators and friends the opportunity to reunite and celebrate the Stern community over the holidays. Over the course of evening, alumni enjoyed exclusive access to the exhibits in the Cullman Hall of the Universe, the Gottesman Hall of Planet Earth, and the Heilbrunn Cosmic Pathway, enjoying an breath-taking light show in the Big Bang Theater. The gala was a great success, strengthening community ties and allowing all to enjoy one terrific evening.
Stayed tuned next week for a new edition of Campus Chronicles! In the meantime, happy holidays!
Posted by Clear Admit on December 24, 2008, at 5:17 pm
Posted in: MBA News , School: London Business School London Business School (LBS) announced Monday that Robin Buchanan, the school’s current dean, will become its president and that professor Sir Andrew Likierman will succeed Buchanan as dean.
Likierman, who is currently a professor of management practice in accounting at LBS, will be the eighth dean in the school’s 44-year history.
The role president Buchanan will assume is a new role created on his recommendation, with endorsement by the school’s governing body. In this new role he will focus on development and external relations.
“I am extremely honoured to have been offered the role of dean,” Likierman said in a statement announcing his appointment. “The school’s vision is to be the pre-eminent global business school, and my priority will be to build on the work of Robin and my other predecessors to ensure that vision continues to be realised,” he continued.
Buchanan, too, looked forward toward the future in his new role as president. “I am proud of what we have all achieved at London Business School during my time as dean,” he said. “I look forward to working with Andrew in this new role and to continuing to move the school forward.” he continued.
To learn more about the new leadership structure at LBS, click here.
Welcome to another round of Wiki Wednesdays, where we highlight new and informative reports in the Clear Admit Wiki, an online repository of information learned by applicants throughout the MBA admissions process. This week, we’re setting the spotlight on UCLA / Anderson, NYU / Stern and the Yale School of Management as they are still distributing Round 1 interview invitations.
In California, a Round 1 applicant shared his on-campus interview experience at Anderson:
Tell me about what you do now? Why did you choose your current position? What part of your leadership experience will be the most helpful at Anderson? Elaborate on your career goals. How will Anderson help you get to your career goals?
Back on the East Coast, a Stern candidate faced the following queries from a member of the adcom:
What are three words to describe Stern? What do you like about NYU? If you got into all the schools you applied to, how would you decide?
The Sterns candidate also noted, “I did not get any questions on my application or essays. She had my resume in front of her and asked a few questions from it.”
Another Round 1 candidate recounted the following interview with a second-year student at Yale:
“The questions were like ‘what do you think of this topic (related to your industry)’. I don’t think the question was meant to throw me off or test me, but a different way to understand my point of view (and, of course, to see if I am informed). Because I added in stories on my own, I think that precluded the interviewer of asking me ‘tell me about a leadership experience etc…’ Then, Why MBA/Why Yale/Post-MBA goals. Because Yale is a lot about fit, I think the Why Yale question needs to be sincere and when you ask questions at the end they should be thoughtful. You don’t want them to think this is another stop on your interview tour.”
In line with this candidate’s advice, applicants may want to conduct some research by checking out the school’s website, contacting current students or reading the Clear Admit School Guide for Yale School of Management in order to prepare a distinctive case. Also, don’t forget to check out the Clear Admit Interview Guides for a bit of extra guidance.
That concludes Wiki Wednesdays for this week. As always, we’d like to thank everyone who has contributed content to the Clear Admit Wiki this season! If you would like to share your interview or campus visit for the benefit of other applicants, simply create an account or send your reports to wiki@clearadmit.com. Thanks for tuning in and best of luck!
Posted by Clear Admit on December 24, 2008, at 3:02 am
Posted in: Poll For many around the world, the holidays are upon us. In the case of Channukah and Christmas, many gifts will be exchanged over the next week. This led Clear Admit to wonder what you would want, regardless of any religious affiliation, in regards to your business school application process.
What Would The Best Holiday Present Be For You?
A puppy, it will love me with or without an MBA. A second set of hands, and an extra brain, in order to be able to write two schools’ essays simultaneously! A week-long hiatus from the pressures of round two deadlines would be great, with or without a bow. An acceptance at any of my round one schools, I’m not picky. An acceptance at my first choice of school, anything else would be the equivalent of coal in one’s stocking.
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Posted by Clear Admit on December 23, 2008, at 9:35 am
Posted in: MBA News , School: Harvard In a post on her blog, Harvard Business School (HBS) Director of Admissions and Financial Aid Deirdre Leopold took it upon herself to provide one last update to round one candidates before leaving for the holidays.
According to Leopold, she and her staff will be reviewing candidates following their interviews up until the round 1 notification date on January 21st. They also will be building the round one waitlist during this time.
“I expect that around 100 Round One candidates not yet invited to interview will be asked to join the waitlist on notification day,” Leopold wrote. Some of these waitlisted applicants will be invited to interview in the round two cycle, she continued. “Thus, you could say that a Round One waitlist decision is essentially a ‘further consideration’ message,” she wrote.
If you are among those applicants asked to join the waitlist, you will receive detailed information about the process and will be assigned a contact person in Dillon House. “We have every intention of admitting some candidates from the waitlist,” Leopold wrote reassuringly.
The HBS Admissions Office will close tomorrow for the winter holiday break and reopen on January 5th, although Leopold’s post does indicate that applicants working on round two applications should expect a message from the Admissions Committee on her blog early next week.
Good luck everyone!
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