In a post to her blog yesterday, Harvard Business School (HBS) Admissions Director Dee Leopold gave college seniors some food for thought. “If you are a college senior who wants to go to HBS – but not right away – then applying in Round 3 could be a smart choice,” she wrote.
She then ticked off a list of interesting reasons why it might make sense. For starters, successful applicants will gain deferred admission, which means they will have a guaranteed spot in the class of 2014 after completing two years in the workforce. Second, HBS does not have a target or cap on the number of deferred admit spots it offers. “Last year 43 college seniors were offered deferred admission,” Leopold wrote.
From a purely pragmatic standpoint, there are also a couple of additional reasons for college seniors to consider applying in Round 3, Leopold added. One is a cheaper application fee. Currently enrolled college seniors enjoy a reduced application fee of $100. It also might make sense to take the GMAT/GRE while you’re in college and still in test-taking mode, Leopold offered. GMAT/GRE scores are good for five years, after all.
According to Leopold, there is “no downside” to applying in Round 3 if you are college senior thinking of HBS for a future date. “If you aren’t admitted, apply again in a couple of years – lots of denied college seniors are successful in the future,” she advised.
The Round 3 application deadline for HBS is April 8, 2010. For more information, click here.
