2009 August » Clear Admit: MBA Admissions Consultants Blog

APPLICANT RESOURCES

Have an iPhone or iPod Touch? Research schools on the go and keep your applications organized with Clear Admit's new MBA Planner App! Now available in a free 'Lite' version too!

Admissions Director Q&A
Below are links to Clear Admit's exclusive interviews with MBA admissions directors at leading programs.
Dawna Clarke (Tuck)
Rose Martinelli (Chicago)
Judith Hodara (Wharton)
Sara Neher (Darden)
Soojin Kwon Koh (Michigan)
Randall Sawyer (Cornell)
Beth Flye (Kellogg)
David Simpson (LBS)
Liz Riley Hargrove (Duke)
Linda Meehan (Columbia)
Bruce DelMonico (Yale)
Peter Johnson (Berkeley)
Isser Gallogly (NYU)
Mae Jennifer Shores (UCLA)
J.J. Cutler (Wharton)
Jake Cohen (INSEAD)
Rod Garcia (MIT Sloan)
Mary Miller (Columbia)

Clear Admit School Guides
Become an expert on your target schools overnight! Get the program-specific details you need to craft essays that stand out. See how schools compare head-to-head in key areas like recruiting, curricular structure, elective offerings and more. Available for immediate download. As featured in the Economist.

Clear Admit Career Guides
Understand career-specific offerings at leading MBA programs and identify the schools that will best support your career goals with the Clear Admit Career Guides! Available for Consulting, Investment Banking, Entrepreneurship, Marketing and Healthcare.

Clear Admit Strategy Series
Craft a winning application with the Clear Admit Strategy Series! Step-by-Step guidance through the application process. Titles include a Resume Guide, Recommendations Guide, Waitlist Guide and more!

Clear Admit Interview Guides
Be as prepared as possible for your MBA interviews this season with the Clear Admit Interview Guides! School-specific sample questions and in-depth strategy, campus visit details and places to stay.

Application Deadlines
Below are the upcoming deadlines for admission to top-tier schools.
Feb 10: INSEAD R3
Mar 1: Michigan / Ross R3
Mar 3: CBS
Mar 3: LBS R3
Mar 4: Kellogg R3
Mar 8: Cambridge / Judge R4
Mar 8: CMU / Tepper R3
Mar 9: Duke / Fuqua R3
Mar 9: Penn / Wharton R3
Mar 10: Berkeley / Hass R4
Mar 10: Chicago Booth R3
Mar 10: Yale SOM R3
Mar 15: NYU / Stern R3
Mar 17: UCLA / Anderson R3
Mar 19: UNC / Kenan-Flagler R4
Mar 30: Cornell / Johnson R4
Mar 31: UVA / Darden R3
Mar 31: INSEAD R4
Apr 1: UT-Austin / McCombs
Apr 2: Dartmouth / Tuck R3
Apr 2: Oxford / Saїd R3
Apr 7: Stanford GSB R4
Apr 8: Harvard R3
Apr 14: CBS

Essay Topic Analysis
Below are links to our comments on some of the top programs' essay topics.
The Career Goals Essay
Berkeley / Haas*
Chicago Booth*
CMU / Tepper*
Columbia*
Cornell / Johnson*
Dartmouth / Tuck*
Duke / Fuqua*
Harvard*
Indian School of Business*
INSEAD*
London Business School*
MIT / Sloan*
Michigan / Ross*
Northwestern / Kellogg*
NYU / Stern*
Oxford / Said*
Penn / Wharton*
Stanford GSB*
UCLA / Anderson*
UNC / Kenan-Flagler*
USC / Marshall*
UT Austin / McCombs*
UVA / Darden*
Yale SOM*
* denotes '09-'10 commentary

Categories
Use categories to access all that has been written on each of the topics. We have categorized by school and by subject matter.

Interview Reports
A selection of interview field reports from fellow applicants posted to the MBA Admissions Wiki. Add your reports when you are finished with your interviews.
Chicago
Columbia
Dartmouth / Tuck
Duke / Fuqua
Harvard
Kellogg
Michigan / Ross
MIT / Sloan
Stanford
UNC / Chapel Hill
Virginia / Darden
Wharton
London Business School

GMAT Resources
MBA.com
Manhattan GMAT
GMAT Club
Princeton Review
Test Prep New York
Kaplan
Beat The GMAT
Knewton

Writing Resources
Guide to Grammar and Writing
The Internet Grammar of English
English Usage, Style and Composition
The Economist Style Guide
Paradigm Online Writing Assistant

School Rankings
Rankings are a good way to start your research on various MBA Programs. Keep in mind each uses a different methodology.
Business Week
Economist
Financial Times
Forbes
USNews
Wall Street Journal

Career Guides
The following resources should be useful to those who want to research the careers open to them after (or before) earning an MBA.
Vault.com
Wetfeet

Business School Resources
The following are business resources offered by a variety of leading Business Schools. It's useful to subscribe to these resources, especially for the schools to which you are applying.

MBA Programs: North America
If an MBA Program is not listed, please e-mail and we will be happy to list it.
Berkeley / Haas
Boston College / Carroll
Carnegie Mellon / Tepper
Chicago
Columbia
Concordia
Cornell / Johnson
Dartmouth / Tuck
Duke / Fuqua
Emory / Goizueta
Harvard
HEC Montreal
Indiana / Kelley
Michigan
MIT / Sloan
Northwestern / Kellogg
New York / Stern
North Carolina / Kenan Flagler
Notre Dame / Mendoza
Pennsylvania / Wharton
Queens
Stanford
Syracuse / Whitman
Texas / McCombs
Thunderbird
Toronto
USC / Marshall
UCLA / Anderson
Vanderbilt / Owen
Virginia / Darden
Washington University in St. Louis / Olin
Western Ontario / Ivey
Yale

MBA Programs: 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.
AGSM (Australia) 2
Cambridge / Judge (UK) 1
CIEBS (China) 2
Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (China) 1
Cranfield School of Mgmt (UK) 1
ESADE (Spain) 1 or 2
HEC (France) 2
Hult (UK) 1
IESE (Spain) 2
IMD (Switzerland) 1
INCAE (Costa Rica) 2
INSEAD (France) 1
IPADE (Mexico)
ISB (India) 1
London Business School (UK) 2
Manchester Bus. School (UK) 2
Melbourne (Australia) 2
Oxford / Said (UK) 1
Rotterdam (Netherlands) 1
Tsinghua IMBA (China) 2
University of St. Gallen (Switzerland) 1

Additional Resources
Here we link a host of additional resources available across the web. E-mail info@clearadmit.com to have resources added to this list.
AACSB International
Association of MBAs
Beyond Grey Pinstripes
EFMD
gradschools.com (worldwide)
Infozee
International Student Loans
mba.com (GMAT Scores)
MBAInfo
mbaleague.blogspot.com
MBAzone
MBA Jungle
TOEFL
Top MBA

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.

Blog Archive

Get a $10 Amazon.com Gift Card! Contribute your MBA interview reports to the Clear Admit Wiki.

Taking the GMAT? Download our free, independent guide to the leading test prep companies - includes coupons for savings at 10 leading test prep firms!

ARCHIVE FOR AUGUST 2009

Monday, August 31, 2009

Head of Women’s Recruiting for Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business Looks Forward to Forte Foundation Fall Events

As students return to campus at Dartmouth University’s Tuck School of Business, the head of women’s recruiting for the school is gearing up to attend a range of fall events targeting prospective women MBAs throughout the country.

In a recent post to the Tuck Admissions Blog, Patricia Harrison, head of women’s recruiting at Tuck, outlined some of the fall events on tap planned by the Forte Foundation, a consortium of top business schools and major corporations focused on increasing the number of women business leaders. Tuck is one of Forte’s founding members.

Each fall, according to Harrison’s post, Forte hosts events in seven cities across the country called Forte Forums. “The Forums are a great networking opportunity to learn from successful women in business how an MBA enhanced their careers,” Harrison writes. They also provide an opportunity to meet admissions officers, like herself, from many different schools, Harrison adds.

The Forte Forums include a school fair and panel discussions featuring alumnae and admissions officers. The admissions officer panel especially, according to Harrison, provides valuable information to women about how to prepare an effective MBA application.

The Forte Forums will run from September 14th through October 1st. A list of this year’s forums and the cities in which they will be held appears below. For more information, click here.

Sept. 14th: Washington, DC
Sept. 15th: Atlanta, GA
Sept. 21st: San Francisco, CA
Sept. 22nd: Los Angeles, CA
Sept. 23rd: Chicago, IL
Sept. 29th: New York, NY (I)
Sept. 30th: New York, NY (II)
Oct. 1st: Boston, MA

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 3:00 pm in Events, MBA News, School: Dartmouth / Tuck

My Top 5 Surprises in Applying to Business School, by Eric Bahn

We’re pleased to share a special guest article from Beat the GMAT Founder Eric Bahn. As many of you know, beyond running a leading GMAT discussion forum, Eric has also been through the MBA admissions process. He’s been kind enough to share some of his thoughts on applying to business school with our readers. Without further ado, here’s Eric’s article.

My Top 5 Surprises in Applying to Business School

Having successfully gone through the business school admissions cycle last Fall, I wish to share a few surprises I encountered from the process. As the founder of Beat The GMAT, you would think that I would have known a lot about business school admissions by the time I applied—yeah, I thought so too. From my perspective, applying to business school was much more challenging than I had anticipated, but as a result, getting in was much more rewarding too.

Here are my top five surprises from the MBA application process:

1. It’s more time consuming than you think.

When you start your MBA applications, prepare to treat the task like a second job. It will take up a significant portion of your free time. In my case, I was devoting anywhere from 10-15 hours per week for four months. By my last count, I was required to write about 16 essays total (for 4 schools), and I wrote 5 drafts of EACH essay. For those of you who have GMAT math skills, you will see that this calculates to 80 drafts!

Be prepared to take the hit for a few months and accept that your life will not be fun while you are writing your applications.

2. You can’t reuse your essays—sorry!

I had this fantasy that I would be able to spend a lot of time on my first application and then re-use those essays again for subsequent schools. A nice thought, but not a wise strategy at all.

No two business schools are the same, and for each school you apply to you will have to craft a response that tailors a perfect fit between yourself and the unique programs that the school offers. Thus, your essay responses have to be different from school to school.

Moreover, business school admissions folks are savvy and read other schools’ essay questions. They can absolutely tell when an applicant is re-using an essay from another school’s application, and that’s a potential red flag.

3. Recommendations may matter more than your essays (or not).

This insight is surely going to stir up some controversy. Early in my business school application process, I was struck by an interview I read featuring Stanford Dean of Admissions Derrick Bolton. He states:

If you asked me ‘could I make a decision on an application without essays?’ I would say ‘absolutely’, but ‘could I make a decision without recommendations?’ ‘No way.’ To me the recommendations are more important than the essays, but the essays get more attention.

- Derrick Bolton, ‘Faculty Spotlight: Interview with Derrick Bolton,’ March 13, 2006, The Stanford Business Reporter.

I’m not sure whether this perspective is shared across all business school deans, but the principle makes sense to me. While it is possible to manipulate what your recommender writes, the recommender in theory has free reign to write a truthful profile about the applicant—especially since it’s absolutely critical that all applicants waive the right to review their recommendations when applying. Requesting to review your own recommendation may raise red flags for Adcoms.

I recently spoke with Clear Admit Co-founder Graham Richmond about Mr. Bolton’s position on the importance of recommendations. Graham reminded me that while leading schools may vary in their weighting of essays vs. recommendations vs. interviews, etc, all components of your application matter at the end of the day. It’s important to remember that business school admissions is a holistic process, and obsessing over one part of the package (like I did with recommendations) is not productive.

4. It’s not all business—be well rounded.

Back when I was applying to college, I was involved in a laundry list of extracurricular activities. As my high school guidance counselor told me, by pursuing outside activities I could present myself as a “well-rounded” person (e.g. someone who is passionate in a variety of interests, or generally an interesting person) to prospective schools.

It turns out business schools also want interesting students (surprise)! Although MBA programs tend to be realistic about the limited time that people in careers have, so demonstrating a few clear passions is sufficient.

The person who volunteers her evenings mediating rival gangs in Skid Row doesn’t necessarily have a better edge than the person who enjoys playing jazz music to senior citizens. Don’t pursue an activity simply because you think business schools will value it. Business school admissions committees tend to have very strong BS meters. Just be sure to nurture one or two outside-of-work passions.

5. You will learn a lot about yourself—really.

Applying to business school was one of the most difficult challenges I’ve had as an adult. It’s not easy to sit down and seriously examine your life. Some of the questions, like Stanford’s “What matter’s most to you and why?”, required tremendous effort to answer. I had to consult with family and friends frequently to discuss and analyze my life experiences.

Despite hating my existence for four months, I feel very fortunate to have gone through the application process. I believe I have come out of the experience more self-aware. Furthermore, the application process allowed me to reach an excruciating and ironic personal conclusion—that business school is not right for me at the moment. Despite gaining admissions into a great business school, I’ve opted instead to continue building my career for another year or two.

Hopefully, applying to business school will be easier the second time around. At least I’ll know what to expect.

Eric Bahn is the founder of Beat The GMAT (http://www.beatthegmat.com), the largest GMAT prep community on the Internet. Visit the newly re-launched Beat The GMAT site and get business school advice from top experts like Clear Admit.

2 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 10:40 am in Admissions Tips

Participate in Clear Admit’s Free MBA Admissions Strategy Webinar!

Tomorrow, Tuesday, September 1, join Clear Admit as we host another of our popular and free webinars focused on business school application strategy. Attendees can join us online as we discuss key topics in business school admissions including what MBA programs look for in candidates, the relative importance of the application components and compensating for weaknesses in your application. Participants will also have the opportunity to have questions answered by Clear Admit’s knowledgeable admissions counselors.

The webinar has a limited number of spaces, so make sure to reserve your spot early!

If interested, please send an email to seminar@clearadmit.com. Space is limited and will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, so secure your spot early. The webinar will be held at 3 p.m. EST and will run until 4 p.m.

Email us now to participate in this valuable and informative webinar! We will notify you if you have successfully secured a spot.

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 10:38 am in Admissions Tips, Events

London Business School Deadlines and Essay Topics 2009-2010

The London Business School deadlines and essay topics for the 2009-2010 admissions season have been released. The deadlines are below:

Round 1
Deadline: October 7, 2009
Notification: December 16, 2009

Round 2
Deadline: January 6, 2010
Notification: March 25, 2010

Round 3
Deadline: March 3, 2010
Notification: May 20, 2010

Round 4
Deadline: April 21, 2010
Notification: July 2, 2010

The 2009-2010 essay topics have also been published and are as follows:

Question 1 (600 words):
In what role do you see yourself working immediately after graduation? Why? How will your past and present experiences help you achieve this? How will the London Business School MBA Programme contribute to this goal? Why is this the right time for you to pursue an MBA?

Question 2 (200 words):
Where do you see your career progressing five years after graduation and what is your longer term career vision?

Question 3 (500 words):
Please describe your experience of working in and leading teams, either in your professional or personal life. Include any specific challenges you have faced. Given this experience, what role do you think you will play in your first year study group?

Question 4 (400 words):
Student involvement is an extremely important part of the London MBA experience and this is reflected in the character of students on campus. What type of student club or campus community event s will you be involved with and why? How will you contribute?

Question 5 (150 words):
Describe any significant experiences outside of your home country. What did you gain from these?

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 10:37 am in Deadlines, Essay Topics, School: London Business School

Admissions Tip: Off-Campus Information Sessions

For all those applicants who have recently opened a calendar to plot out the next few months only to realize they can’t possibly fit in campus visits on top of full time jobs and essay writing, never fear! It’s true that traveling to a school’s campus is the ideal way to learn about their MBA program, but visiting is often not a viable option for applicants who are located remotely or unsure of their level of interest in a given school. The good news is that business schools might very well come to them. Many b-schools are getting ready to hit the road and embark on worldwide tours to dispense information and recruit qualified applicants. Such events offer a great opportunity for interested students to meet with admissions staff (and sometimes with current students and/or alumni), learn about the program and ask specific questions.

Some of the top schools are already on the road, so we recommend looking into the travel schedules for programs of interest and planning accordingly. Keeping in mind that these schedules are updated and amended throughout the fall, here are some of the top programs’ itineraries for the months ahead:

Berkeley / Haas:
https://ssl.haas.berkeley.edu/Admissions/Events/index.cfm

Chicago Booth:
http://www.chicagobooth.edu/fulltime/admissions/events/

Columbia:
http://www0.gsb.columbia.edu/events

Duke / Fuqua:
https://www.fuquaworld.duke.edu/www/public/infosess_all_view.jsp

HBS:
http://www.hbs.edu/mba/admissions/events.html

Northwestern / Kellogg:
http://bit.ly/Zrg7b

Michigan / Ross:
http://www.bus.umich.edu/Admissions/Mba/forumsreceptions/RossReceptions.htm

MIT / Sloan:
http://mitsloan.mit.edu/academic/events.php

Stanford GSB:
http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/mba/outreach/info_sessions.html

NYU / Stern:
http://w4.stern.nyu.edu/admissions/cgibin/sched_events.cgi

Dartmouth / Tuck:
http://www.tuck.dartmouth.edu/admissions/events.html

UCLA / Anderson:
http://www.anderson.ucla.edu/x5525.xml

UNC / Kenan Flagler:
http://www.kenan-flagler.unc.edu/News/Events/embambainfo.cfm

UVA / Darden:
https://apply.darden.virginia.edu/admissions/events/EventsSchedule.tap?sp=103

U Penn / Wharton:
http://www.wharton.upenn.edu/mba/admissions/admission-events.cfm

Yale SOM:
http://mba.yale.edu/MBA/admissions/events.shtml

IESE:
http://www.iese.edu/aplicaciones/emba/events/events_emba.asp?lang=en

IMD:
http://www.imd.ch/programs/mba/infosessions/index.cfm

INSEAD:
http://www.insead.edu/mba/offevents/index.cfm?fuseaction=offcampus

LBS:
http://www.london.edu/programmes/infoevents/do?progSelect=MBA&locationSelect=

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 2:48 am in Admissions Tips, School: Berkeley / Haas, School: Chicago, School: Columbia, School: Dartmouth / Tuck, School: Duke / Fuqua, School: Harvard, School: IESE, School: IMD, School: INSEAD, School: London Business School, School: MIT / Sloan, School: Michigan / Ross, School: NYU Stern, School: Northwestern / Kellogg, School: Penn / Wharton, School: Stanford, School: UCLA / Anderson, School: UNC / Kenan Flagler, School: Virginia / Darden, School: Yale

Saturday, August 29, 2009

CMU / Tepper Essay Topics 2009-2010

Though its application is not due to arrive online until early September, CMU / Tepper has posted its essay topics, which vary only slightly from last year’s admissions season. The prompts (12-point font, double-spaced) are:

A. What are your short-term and long-term goals? How will a Tepper MBA help you to achieve these goals. (Please include any information regarding what steps you have taken to learn more about the Tepper School.)

B. The Tepper School’s culture relies on all members to be active contributors to our community. With your values, experiences, and interests, how will you make a unique contribution to the Tepper community? Your examples may include: classroom interaction, student activities, career development, community service, etc.

C. Please answer two of the following three questions or statements. Please clearly specify which questions you are answering. Your two answers should equal a total of two pages or less.

1. Describe an obstacle you have faced in your professional or academic life. How did you overcome this obstacle and how did it foster your development?

2. Describe a time in which your ethics were challenged. How did you deal with the situation and what did you learn from it?

3. One thing people would be surprised to know about me is…

CMU / Tepper also offers space for an “additional information” optional essay. Please click here for the 2009-2010 Tepper deadlines.

1 Comment »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 3:00 am in Essay Topics, School: CMU / Tepper

Friday, August 28, 2009

UNC / Kenan-Flagler Essay Topics 2009-2010

Recently, UNC / Kenan-Flagler released its application for September 2010 intake and with it, this year’s essay topics. Followers of MBA admissions will note that Kenan-Flagler has maintained the first three prompts from last admissions season, while including a new fourth question as well as two optional essays. The topics are below:

1. What are the 2 or 3 strengths or characteristics that have driven your career success thus far? Do you have other strengths that you would like to leverage in the future? (500 words maximum)

2. Briefly describe the career path you intend to pursue immediately after b-school. Explain why this career option appeals to you and why an MBA is appropriate at this time. (500 words maximum)

3. What personal qualities or life experiences distinguish you from other applicants? How do these qualities or experiences equip you to contribute to Kenan-Flagler? (500 words maximum)

4. Kenan-Flager has five core values: excellence, leadership, integrity, community and teamwork. If you could add one value what would it be and why? Be sure to explain how you have lived this value. (300 words maximum)

(Optional) 5. If your GMAT quantitative score is low, or if you have not had coursework in calculus, microeconomics, statistics and financial accounting, please tell us how you plan to prepare yourself for the quantitative MBA curriculum. (300 words maximum)

(Optional) 6. Is there anything else you think the Admissions Committee should know about you in order to evaluate your candidacy? (300 words maximum)

For all essays, Kenan-Flagler asks that applicants include their name and the essay number at the top of each page, with at least 11-point font and 1.5 spacing.

Please find the UNC / Kenan-Flagler deadlines here.

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 3:00 pm in Essay Topics, School: UNC / Kenan Flagler

Berkeley’s Haas School of Business Appoints Five New Professors

The Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley this week announced the appointment of five scholars to join the school’s faculty as assistant professors this fall. The appointments come even amid California’s significant budget crisis.

The new appointments include Lucas Davis, who joins the economic analysis and public policy group; William Fuchs, the newest member of the Haas finance group; Ming Hsu, who will join the school’s marketing group; Atif Mian, who joins the Fisher Center for Real Estate and Urban Economics; and Leif Nelson, who also joins the Haas marketing group.

Collectively, the academics have published nearly three dozen research papers and won numerous honors and awards. Davis brings expertise in the area of energy and environmental economics. Fuchs focuses on problems related to coordination and asymmetric information by applying game theory and dynamic contracts. Hsu’s research focuses on behavioral economics, experimental economics and neuroeconomics, which is the study of the brain in emotional responses and decision making. Mian studies links between financial markets and the macro-economy. Finally, Nelson brings expertise in consumer judgement and decision making.

Haas Dean Rich Lyons praised the recruitment efforts, spearheaded by Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Ganesh Iyer, that led to the hiring of such a diverse group of academics. “I congratulate Ganesh for his diligence and dedication to continue our tradition of research and teaching excellence,” Lyons said in a statement.

To learn more about the new faculty appointments at Haas, click here.

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 1:00 pm in MBA News, School: Berkeley / Haas

Fridays From The Frontline

Hi there, and welcome to Fridays From The Frontlines, Clear Admit’s continuing coverage of the copious bloggers of the MBA blogosphere. As August comes to a close, things are heating up in the applicant pool; more essays are completed, school choices are honed and worries over recommenders grow. For those who have successfully gained entrance into b-schools, classes have either started or will be starting very soon. Summer’s relatively easy schedule is being replaced with 80 page readings and non-stop socializing. Just another week for b-school bloggers!

Steve shared an article about women in finance and explained how he defined ‘risky.’ Xlick extolled the virtues of Clear Admit’s wiki, especially in terms of interview preparation. AtypicalHBS was struggling to stay calm and collected when communicating with a tardy recommender. Illuminati listed some of his GMAT quantitative tips while recovering from a bad back. ArdentMeerkat completed the majority of her essays and decided that, as much as she liked it, Chicago Booth wasn’t a good fit for her. Hari planned on polishing his INSEAD essays. Procrastinator modified what he planned to accomplish in terms of Round 1 applications. Rocky Balboa’s work on his Wharton essays temporarily stalled, but he wasn’t overly concerned.

McCombs ‘10 Paragon2Pieces discovered UT Austin’s Gregory Gym pool and had a good swim to ease her annoyance over a fickle car. Darden ‘10 JulyDream managed to get through the toughest part of her week and considered locations for her post-graduation life. McCombs ‘10 Metal confirmed his fall course schedule. INSEAD ‘10 OutOfMyJeans talked super heroes and identified his own version of kryptonite: waiting until the last second.

Foster ‘11 Helen remembered the first political campaign for which she worked. BU ‘11 Felish was excited about the experiences she would gain through team learning. Kellogg ‘12 Jeremy won a National Black MBA Association scholarship. Kellogg ‘11 Orlando was probably enjoying his last moments of his Hong Kong/Macau KWEST trip. Wake Forest ‘11 Omne survived his first day of official class with the help of a few donuts.

And that concludes this week’s edition of Fridays From The Frontline. It seems like summer just started a few weeks ago, but the time has flown by. Returning students have completed their internships and now look towards their post-MBA career paths while a whole new slew of applicants see each day passing with a mind fo round 1 deadlines. It’s still early, however, and Clear Admit hopes that all members of the b-school blogging community take advantage of these warm days.

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 3:10 am in Fridays from the Frontline

Thursday, August 27, 2009

BusinessWeek Reports First Decline in International Admissions to U.S. Graduate Schools Since 2004

Citing a recent report by the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS), BusinessWeek this week reported that U.S. graduate schools’ admission offers to prospective international students fell sharply this year, the first decline in five years. On average, international admits declined by 3 percent, with several countries reporting double-digit declines, according to BW.

“The declines this year were steeper than I expected,” Nathan Bell, the author of the report and the council’s director of research and policy analysis, told BW. “It is very unlikely that we will see any increase at all in first-time enrollment of international students this fall, and that will be a shift from what we’ve seen.”

The declines came amid a 4 percent overall increase in international applications. Even so, the total number of international applications was still below 2003 levels at many of the schools surveyed. International students are applying in lesser numbers due to a combination of factors, including concern about post-graduation job prospects due to a reduction in the number of H-1B visas being issued and greater difficulty obtaining student loans.

According to the BW report, international students are increasingly considering business programs in Asia and Europe as an alternative to studying in the United States. This is especially true among students from India and South Korea, whose applications to U.S. schools declined by 12 percent and 9 percent respectively in 2009. Admissions offers to students in these countries likewise fell, down 16 percent in both.

Application rates for students from some countries, however, grew this year, offsetting the overall international decline, BW reports. Applications from students in China were up 14 percent, and 22 percent more students from the Middle East and Turkey applied this year over last. Without these bright spots, the overall 3 percent decline would have been much worse, BW pointed out.

To read the complete BusinessWeek story, click here. Also, don’t miss the transcript of a recent conversation between BW’s Francesca Di Meglio and Clear Admit co-founder Graham Richmond offering tips and advice for international applicants to U.S. MBA programs.

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 1:00 pm in MBA News

Participate in Clear Admit’s Free MBA Admissions Strategy Webinar!

Next Tuesday, September 1, join Clear Admit as we host another of our popular and free webinars focused on business school application strategy. Attendees can join us online as we discuss key topics in business school admissions including what MBA programs look for in candidates, the relative importance of the application components and compensating for weaknesses in your application. Participants will also have the opportunity to have questions answered by Clear Admit’s knowledgeable admissions counselors.

The webinar has a limited number of spaces, so make sure to reserve your spot early!

Email us now to participate in this valuable and informative webinar! We will notify you if you have successfully secured a spot.

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 11:00 am in Admissions Tips, Events

Reminder: MBA Tour (September 3rd – 27th)

This September, prospective b-school applicants in the United States will have the unique opportunity to participate in a series of MBA program information sessions hosted by The MBA Tour. These events give interested individuals the chance to meet with representatives from some of the leading MBA programs in order to learn more about all aspects of their target programs.

To help prospective students gain an insider’s look into their target schools, The MBA Tour events are broken into a series of MBA panel presentations, individual school presentations and networking opportunities. Each event also includes an open fair during which attendees can mingle with and ask questions of school representatives. During these events, candidates can ask admissions officers, alumni and current students questions about program academics, opportunities and financial aid offerings.

Below is a list of the dates and locations of The MBA Tour events for September 2009:

• Houston: September 3
• Chicago: September 8
• Atlanta: September 10
• New York City: September 12
• Boston: September 13
• Washington DC: September 20
• Los Angeles: September 26
• San Francisco: September 27

To learn more about the event and to view the full event schedules, visit The MBA Tour’s website.

Interested individuals are encouraged to sign up online in order to receive half off the door price. Admission is $5 if you pre-register online, $10 at the door. MBA candidates are additionally encouraged to sign up ahead of time as space is limited.

The MBA Tour Events are a great way for individuals either considering business school or currently in the process of preparing for the upcoming admissions season to research MBA programs and demonstrate an active interest in their target schools. The list of participating schools includes Wharton, Berkeley Haas, NYU Stern, Michigan Ross, UCLA Anderson, Cornell Johnson, ESADE and many others. To register early, click here.

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 3:25 am in Events

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Clear Admit Releases Free Strategy Series Guide to GMAT Test Preparation Companies

Is applying to business school in your near future? If so, you are probably also beginning to think about the entrance exams that are part of the application process. In that case, you won’t want to miss the latest release in Clear Admit’s extensive line of publications, which provides unbiased, in-depth profiles of all the major GMAT test-prep companies in the United States and abroad. Best of all, this valuable and informative guide is free.

Hot off the presses, the Clear Admit Guide to GMAT Test Preparation Companies builds on an earlier content series posted here on the Clear Admit blog, which featured interviews with the heads of each of the 10 top GMAT test-prep companies. The 38-page guide goes into even greater detail about each firm, outlining its history, service offerings, costs, refund policies, instructor qualifications, course schedules, teaching approach and more.

As a gift to prospective MBA applicants, Clear Admit is offering a free download of this new guide – the latest in the Clear Admit Application Strategy Series.

To obtain your free copy, simply visit the purchase page of the online Clear Admit Shop. The Application Strategy Series: GMAT Test Preparation Companies Guide is listed at the top of the page. Click on the corresponding link to be guided through a brief ordering process, after which you will receive an email with a password that lets you download, save, print or read your own copy of the guide.

Again, though accessed through the Clear Admit Shop’s purchase page, this particular resource is available free of charge. Even if you are only considering an MBA, you won’t want to miss this valuable guide to the companies that can help you prepare for the entrance exam required by most top-tier programs. Check it out today!

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 1:00 pm in GMAT News, GMAT Test Prep Company Series

What’s Your GMAT Prep Approach?

With yesterday’s release of Clear Admit’s free Guide to GMAT Test Preparation Companies, we thought a poll about prepping for the test was in order for today!

Loading ...

1 Comment »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 3:00 am in Poll

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

GMAT Exam Test-Taking Volume Abroad Surpasses United States

The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT), the entrance exam required of prospective applicants by the majority of MBA programs throughout the world, is now more popular among international applicants than it is among U.S. students, according to a recent report in the Financial Times.

Several countries have seen strong growth in terms of GMAT registration volume, including China, Germany, Canada, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, according to the Graduate Management Admissions Council, which owns and administers the GMAT. “What we are seeing is incredible,” GMAC President Dave Wilson told the FT.

But Wilson also acknowledged that test-taking volume has dropped in some other markets. In India, test-taking volume has fallen by 28 percent, and in South Korea, by 30 percent. Wilson attributes this drop off to currency fluctuations that have hit these countries particularly hard, leading students to consider options more affordable than traditional two-year U.S. MBA programs. Or they are dissuaded by the cost of business school from going at all, he added.

Still, the growth of the test’s popularity in other countries was strong enough that for the first time ever, non-U.S. test takers accounted for a majority – 51 percent – of the total test-taking population for the period between January 1 and June 30, 2009.

Overall, the number of GMAT test-takers continues to climb steadily. Between June 2008 and June 2009, the total number of test-takers was 265,613, representing a 7 percent increase over the year before. According to Wilson, one of the biggest areas of growth has been among younger students. “The dramatic growth is in 21- to 22-year old text-takers,” Wilson told the FT.

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 3:30 pm in GMAT News

Trivia Tuesday: Health Sector Management at Fuqua

It’s time once again for Trivia Tuesday, our regular exploration of the special programs and opportunities that differentiate the leading business schools. This week we take a peek into the Clear Admit School Guide to Fuqua, and share an excerpt on Fuqua’s Health Sector Management program.

“Duke University began offering healthcare education in 1930 alongside the opening of the Duke Hospital. In the more than three-quarters of a century since then, the Health Sector Management program (HSM) has evolved into one of the preeminent healthcare management education programs in the nation, alongside Wharton’s Health Care Systems major. After moving first-year HSM courses to the business school in 1986, the HSM program became fully integrated into Fuqua in 1991. Today, the HSM program enrolls as much as one-fifth of each Daytime MBA class, making it the largest healthcare program affiliated with a leading business school.

Fuqua’s affiliation with Duke University and its location in the North Carolina Research Triangle area are major contributors to the strength of the HSM program. The Duke University Medical Center and Health System is a leader in biomedical research, education, and healthcare delivery, while the Research Triangle is home to approximately three dozen leading biotechnology, healthcare and pharmaceutical organizations, including well-known names such as GlaxoKlineSmith, Biogen, Novartis, Paradigm Genetics and Eli Lilly. The HSM program’s relationships with these and other area companies helps to keep students and faculty strongly connected to the rapidly changing healthcare industry while providing companies with inside access to a significant talent pool.

Students enter the HSM program from a variety of backgrounds, though most tend to have experience in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, research and development, provider systems or consulting. Though the program does not require prior health sector experience, it does look for a strong commitment to the healthcare field among all student participants.”

To continue reading about Fuqua’s Health Sector Management program, and to find out about the HSM application process, the HSM-specific curriculum, experiential opportunities offered within this program, and the course map HSM students follow, take a look at the Clear Admit School Guide to Fuqua. All 18 Clear Admit School Guides are available for immediate purchase and download on the Clear Admit School shop.

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 3:00 am in School Guides, School: Duke / Fuqua, Trivia Tuesday

Monday, August 24, 2009

BusinessWeek Taps Clear Admit Co-Founder to Advise International MBA Applicants

Citing tough times for international applicants to U.S. MBA programs – amid stricter loan requirements and reduced availability of student and post-MBA employment visas – BusinessWeek recently turned to Clear Admit co-founder Graham Richmond to sort out the situation and advise applicants on how best to navigate it.

BW hosted a live chat between Richmond and its business school reporter, Francesca Di Meglio, last week and subsequently published a transcript of the conversation. “The good news is that today’s news is much more positive than the headlines of this winter for loans, student visas and post-MBA employment visas,” Richmond offered as introduction.

He went on to field a range of questions from prospective applicants participating in the online chat as well as from BW’s Di Meglio. The questions touched on the issues of scholarships available to international students at top schools, company policies regarding H1-B visas, how top schools have responded to the cancellation of no-cosigner loan programs for international students and more.

Regarding student loans, Richmond explained how the global economic crisis caused the collapse of many existing no-cosigner loan programs (Sallie Mae, CitiAssist) that had previously been available to admitted international students, leaving many eligible to borrow less money or requiring that they obtain a U.S. co-signer to do so. Fortunately, as Richmond pointed out, many leading programs have since been able to secure new no-cosigner options for their international students. (For more information, consult Clear Admit’s International Student Loan Scorecard, a comprehensive listing of what the leading schools have on offer and how it has changed.)

Regarding H1-B visas, Richmond explained how TARP funds distributed by the U.S. government to leading MBA employers like Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Citi and Bank of America led to restrictions on their hiring of internationals. In the case of Bank of America, some internationals even had their offers rescinded. But as Richmond went on to explain, many firms returned TARP funds to the U.S. government this spring, lifting restrictions on international hiring. Furthermore, because firms hired fewer employees overall in the past cycle, the demand for H1-B visas actually fell, making it easier for employers to get working papers for the international applicants it did hire.

In general, the greatest challenge facing MBA applicants, international or otherwise, is the economy, Richmond told BW’s Di Meglio. “There are simply fewer jobs to be had and many more qualified people on the market than in past years,” he said.

For international students in particular, the biggest challenge remains gaining admission to a top-tier program, he continued. “Despite the downturn and the fact that there were fewer internationals applying this past year, there remain many more international applicants than there are spaces,” he said. This fact makes it vitally important for international applicants to fully understand the U.S. admissions process, he added.

To read the full transcript of Richmond’s online chat with BW, click here.

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 1:00 pm in General, MBA News

Cornell / Johnson Deadlines 2009-2010

The Cornell / Johnson deadlines have been released! The deadlines are as follows:

Round 1
Deadline: October 6, 2009
Notification: December 17, 2009

Round 2
Deadline: November 12, 2009
Notification: February 16, 2010

Round 3
Deadline: January 12, 2010
Notification: March 23, 2010

Round 4
Deadline: March 30, 2010
Notification: May 6, 2010

International applicants should note that they are encouraged to apply by the Round 3 deadline. To view the Cornell / Johnson essay topic analysis for this year’s essays, click here.

1 Comment »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 9:32 am in Deadlines, School: Cornell / Johnson

Admissions Tip: The Optional Essay

We realize that the questions of whether to answer an optional essay and, if so, what to say are ones that loom large for many b-school applicants at this time of year. While we’ve been offering a great deal of school-specific essay advice over the past few months, we wanted to take some time to suggest a few considerations that applicants might want to take into account when making this call.

Is it relevant?
Perhaps this goes without saying, but the only information worth sharing in an optional essay is that which will make a material difference in your candidacy. Whether you wish to comment on an exciting leadership role you’ve just taken on or explain that you were overextended extracurricularly during that one bad semester in college, make sure to think carefully about whether this information will affect and enhance the reader’s perception of your business school candidacy.

Was it requested?
Most schools do request that applicants use an optional essay to address certain issues, such as a failing grade in a degree program or the absence of a letter of recommendation from one’s current direct supervisor. In spite of the technically optional nature of the question, it’s very important to follow directions and provide this information if a school requests it.

Also along the lines of what information is requested, it’s wise to think carefully about a school’s other essay questions before deciding to use an optional essay or provide additional information, as each of these topics affords applicants a chance to introduce the information about their background and interests that they consider to be most important. Your objective should be to provide as complete a picture of your candidacy as possible within the framework of a school’s required essays (as these are a good indication of what a given program is most interested in hearing about) and to only introduce information in an optional essay that you could not have covered elsewhere without sacrificing something more essential.

Is it constructive?
Once you’ve decided that a detail is relevant to your candidacy and merits mentioning in an optional essay, the next step is to think carefully about the way this information might be perceived and make sure that the impact it makes on your chances of admission is a positive one. For instance, an essay that simply alerts the adcom to a serious medical condition might help its author stand out from other applicants, but could also leave the reader wondering whether this person could handle the demands of a rigorous academic program. On the other hand, a few details about this applicant’s strategies for achieving success in spite of some kind of disability and commitment to supporting others with a chronic illness or impairment might make him or her seem like a very valuable addition to the business school community.

Is it concise?
It’s always a good idea to keep in mind that by answering an optional essay, you are creating extra work for the person reading your file. While this should not dissuade you from addressing a topic that you have deemed important based on the considerations above, it’s very important that you demonstrate good judgment by limiting your comments to the most relevant information and keeping your response as direct and concise as possible.

We hope that these general guidelines have helped to clear up some confusion and shed some light on the optional essay issue. For more tailored feedback on your personal situation, feel free to send your resume or CV to info@clearadmit.com for a free initial consultation.

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 3:00 am in Admissions Tips, Essay Topics

Friday, August 21, 2009

Google’s Head of People Operations Welcomes Yale SOM Class of 2011

The 223 new members of the Yale School of Management class of 2011 have arrived on campus, and alumnus Laszlo Bock (MBA ’99), the vice president of people operations for Google, helped welcome them by describing his own career path and what he looks for as part of evaluating up to 7,000 resumes a day for the Silicon Valley search-engine giant.

“Twelve years ago, I was in your seat,” he said as means of introduction. “Having checked this, on average you are more experienced, more accomplished, with better grades, and better tests scores, but in every other way we are exactly alike,” he continued, drawing a laugh from the crowd.

According to Bock, his first year at SOM was a humbling one that served to teach him the value of learning to adapt to challenges and changing situations. He originally came to SOM as a means of getting out of human resources work, which he viewed as a dead end. But a few years after graduating, after a stint at McKinsey, he found himself diving right back in to the field. This time, though, he was able to use the new skills he’d learned as part of his MBA to redefine his HR role as one more central to company management.

Indeed, he today leads Google’s mission-critical effort to remain one of the most desirable and innovative workplaces in the world. It may sound like a dream job, but Bock warned the incoming SOM class that no such job exists. Instead, he advised students to find meaning in the bigger picture of their careers.

“The beautiful thing about Google is how closely the values of the company align with my own,” he said. For example, one of the most frequently asked questions he hears at the highest levels of the company is, “What is the ethical thing to do?” That’s an approach, he added, that resonates with his experience as an MBA student at SOM.

For more information about Bock, view video of him on the Yale SOM Portrait 2009-2010 website, or click here to read his alumni profile.

0 Comments »

# posted by Clear Admit @ 1:00 pm in MBA News, School: Yale

ACTIVE CONTENT

Clear Admit's Recent Posts

Facebook

Become a fan of Clear Admit on Facebook and join a vibrant MBA applicant community to engage in discussion, stay on top of deadlines, follow MBA news and win prizes!

Twitter

Follow Clear Admit on Twitter for breaking MBA news before it's blogged, just-posted interview reports in the Wiki and more!

MBA Twitter Index!

We've created the MBA Admissions Twitter Index, a directory of applicants, current MBA students and b-schools on Twitter.

Wiki

MBA Admissions Wiki
The Clear Admit Wiki is designed to allow b-school applicants to share their experiences through the application process. You can learn from others' experiences and contribute your own reports to the community. Below are the five most popular pages in the wiki:
Wharton Interview Field Reports
HBS Interview Field Reports
Kellogg Interview Field Reports
Chicago Interview Field Reports
Columbia Interview Field Reports

Discussion Boards

BusinessWeek Forums
The 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 is a link to the original interface (for those of you who didn't like the recent upgrade). Also, here are the five most recent discussions taking place in the forum:

Beat The GMAT Forums
Clear 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:

StudyLink Forums
Clear Admit manages the Applying section of the StudyLink MBA discussion boards.

GMAT Club Forums
Below are the five most recent posts to the GMAT Club message boards.

student 2 student
The student-2-student Discussion Boards are managed by Wharton. Here are the five most recent discussions.

School-Hosted Blogs

Straight from the source: aggregated posts from students and administration. Below are the seven most recent posts in school-hosted blogs.

Individuals' Blogs

A selection of the latest updates to MBA blogs compiled by Hella.
MBA Applicants

MBA Students

Bloggers by School

The following are links to bloggers at each of the schools listed.
Chicago
Columbia
Dartmouth / Tuck
Duke / Fuqua
Harvard
Kellogg
Michigan
MIT / Sloan
New York / Stern
North Carolina / Chapel Hill
Stanford
Virginia / Darden
Wharton
Yale
ESADE
IESE
INSEAD
London Business School

Community Blogs

Bshoolers.com
Community blog with MBA student and alum contributors.

Forté Foundation MBA Diaries
Video blog entries posted by women MBA students.

Owen Bloggers
Independent blog with content by Vanderbilt MBA students.

Best of Blogging

2008-2009 Top Ten: