The admissions team at Harvard Business School (HBS) is rested, excited and “VERY ready” to start reviewing Round 2 applications, according to a recent blog post by the HBS admissions director.
Dee Leopold may be in her final season at the helm of HBS admissions, but her commitment to transparency and open communications with applicants shows no signs of flagging. (We hope her successor will follow her lead in this regard.)
She took to her Direct from the Director blog yesterday to give frantic applicants the skinny on what to expect as the clock ticks down to tomorrow’s 12 noon (EST) Round 2 deadline.
“We are not reading any applications until then so our ‘start’ time is right after that deadline,” she wrote. “We do not, repeat DO NOT, shut off the application system until every application in the process of submitting has been received,” she added. You should get a confirmation from the system, and as long as you are able to submit, you can rest assured that her team has received your application.
What if your recommenders haven’t gotten their letters in on time? “There are always stragglers,” Leopold writes, adding that her team will continue to accept recommendations all this week. As soon as one recommendation is in, they will begin to review your application. That said, it’s on you as the applicant to make sure both of your recommendations follow through, Leopold says. “We won’t send out any ‘incomplete’ emails,” she writes.
After tomorrow’s deadline passes, Leopold and team will determine where the applications have come in from and post a corresponding list of hub cities for interviews on Friday. Stay tuned, too, for the plan for sending out interview invites.
Best of luck as you put the finishing touches on your HBS Round 2 applications (and any others you might be working on…)! Surely you’ve already consulted Clear Admit’s HBS Essay Topic Analysis and HBS School Guide, but just in case you haven’t, it’s not too late.
