Posted by Clear Admit on August 31, 2009, at 3:00 pm
Posted in:  Events , MBA News , School: Dartmouth / Tuck 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
Posted by Clear Admit on August 31, 2009, at 10:40 am
Posted in: Admissions Tips 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 . . . → Continue Reading
Posted by Clear Admit on August 31, 2009, at 10:38 am
Posted in: Admissions Tips , Events 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.
Posted by Clear Admit on August 31, 2009, at 10:37 am
Posted in: Deadlines , Essay Topics , School: London Business School 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?
Posted by Clear Admit on August 31, 2009, at 2:48 am
Posted 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: Michigan / Ross , School: MIT / Sloan , School: Northwestern / Kellogg , School: NYU Stern , School: Penn / Wharton , School: Stanford , School: UCLA / Anderson , School: UNC / Kenan Flagler , School: Virginia / Darden , School: Yale 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=
Posted by Clear Admit on August 29, 2009, at 3:00 am
Posted in: Essay Topics , School: CMU / Tepper 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.
Posted by Clear Admit on August 28, 2009, at 3:00 pm
Posted in: Essay Topics , School: UNC / Kenan Flagler 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.
Posted by Clear Admit on August 28, 2009, at 1:00 pm
Posted in: MBA News , School: Berkeley / Haas 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.
Posted by Clear Admit on August 28, 2009, at 3:10 am
Posted in: 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.
Posted by Clear Admit on August 27, 2009, at 1:00 pm
Posted in: MBA News 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.
Posted by Clear Admit on August 27, 2009, at 11:00 am
Posted in: Admissions Tips , Events 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!
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.
Posted by Clear Admit on August 27, 2009, at 3:25 am
Posted in: Events 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.
Posted by Clear Admit on August 26, 2009, at 1:00 pm
Posted in: GMAT News , GMAT Test Prep Company Series 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!
Posted by Clear Admit on August 26, 2009, at 3:00 am
Posted in: Poll 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!
How Do You Prepare for the GMAT Exam?
Wait, I have to take an exam? I am on a very strict studying schedule. I wake up to equations on my ceiling, I study vocabulary while I brush my teeth, and time my ability to do complex math problems while jogging. I plan on waking up, getting out of bed, getting to the test site ten minutes before the exam starts, and winging it. It worked fine for my college entrance exams, it’ll work fine now too. In addition to my independent study, I hired a tutor and enrolled in classes with a GMAT prep company. I’ve gotten old study guides and take a sample test maybe once a week, just to get used to the structure of the exam.
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