Top Business Schools Report Healthy Application Volume Increases
When GMAT test-taking volume jumped by 11 percent for the year ending last June, those watching the MBA admissions space had reason to suspect that application volume at top schools might follow suit. Recent articles from Bloomberg BusinessWeek and Poets & Quants reveal exactly that, with Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management, the University of Virginia’s Darden School and the University of Chicago’s Booth School all reporting double-digit increases in the number of students applying to their two-year, full-time MBA programs.
Bloomberg BW last week surveyed its top-10 ranked business schools, discovering that half were reporting significant increases in application volume, ending a three-year decline. Johnson led the pack, with an increase of 12 percent, followed by Darden, at 11 percent, and Chicago Booth, at 10 percent.
P&Q reports that Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business blew even those numbers out of the water: Applications to that school’s two-year MBA program swelled by 25 percent after it moved up the Bloomberg BW rankings four places, to 15th, last year. Continue reading…
Tell Us Tuesdays: Submit an MBA Interview Report from MIT / Sloan, Georgetown / McDonough, Michigan / Ross, UVA / Darden, or CMU / Tepper and Win a $10 Amazon Gift Card!
It’s nearing the middle of the week, so it’s time again for Tell Us Tuesdays, where we highlight MBA interview reports that have recently been posted to our Interview Archive! Over the past week, we have received interview reports from schools such UNC / Kenan-Flagler, UCLA / Anderson, and Wharton.
The Clear Admit team greatly appreciates all of the interview reports we’ve received this admissions season! If you’re interested in sharing your experience, we’ll be awarding a $10 Amazon gift certificate to every third applicant who submits an interview report for MIT / Sloan, Georgetown / McDonough, Michigan / Ross, UVA / Darden, or CMU / Tepper through next Tuesday, March 26th at 4 p.m. EST! All you have to do is send us your interview field report for the selected schools for inclusion in the Interview Archive and we’ll send you a $10 Amazon gift certificate. We will notify the winners by e-mail (Limit: one gift card per person).
The most helpful and informative reports usually include the following information:
- Date/Admissions Round
- Description of visit and/or interview atmosphere
- Type of interview (alum vs. adcom, blind vs. application-based)
- List of interview questions
- Commentary (What did you think of the interview? What surprised you? What didn’t surprise you? What might you conclude about the school based on this experience?)
Applicants who would like to supplement the information available on the Interview Archive can check out our Clear Admit Interview Guides, which provide school-specific insight about admissions interviews. Good luck interviewing!
Campus Chronicles: The Cold Call Chronicle
Welcome back to Campus Chronicles, our weekly perusal of the news at top business programs. This week we check in on students at the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business via their student newspaper, The Cold Call Chronicle.
A group of Darden women travelled to Washington, DC to attend the TEDxWomen conference, organized by the Paley Center for Media. Students were selected for the conference after submitting mock TED talk proposals centered on the theme of promoting women and diversity in business. The extensive lineup of speakers at the conference included Emily Bazelon, a senior editor at Slate and a contributor to the New York Times Magazine; Dr. Musimbi Kanyoro, President and CEO of the Global Fund for Women, a foundation that invests in women-led organizations worldwide; Charlotte Beers, the former Chairman and CEO of Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide and former Bush Administration official; Rosie Rios, the current Treasurer of the United States; and Eve Ensler, a Tony-Award-winning playwright and activist. Darden students unable to make the trip to Washington were still able to watch the event via live stream from the United States Institute of Peace. Continue reading…
Trivia Tuesday: Darden’s Batten Institute
Welcome to another edition of Trivia Tuesday, our weekly look at the distinguishing resources and opportunities offered by the leading business schools. This week, we’re opening up the Clear Admit Guide to the University of Virginia Darden School of Business to learn about the school’s Batten Institute.
“Darden students interested in entrepreneurship and innovation are encouraged to make use of the resources offered by the school’s Batten Institute. In addition to supporting research projects that focus on economic growth, emerging markets, sustainability and healthcare, the institute offers frequent opportunities for experiential learning and networking, along with financial support for student entrepreneurs. Continue reading…
Professor from UVA’s Darden School of Business Sends MBA Students to Prison to Teach Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship education is spreading like wildfire, with top business schools enhancing their offerings by launching new institutes, expanding curriculum components and investing more in business incubators. A professor at the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia at Charlottesville sees no reason why it should stop there. Through a program he launched last year, he’s sending Darden students armed with the case study method into prisons to teach inmates how to start small businesses.
Greg Fairchild, associate professor at Darden, studies entrepreneurship and business development in inner cities and other underserved areas and has published on topics ranging from the effects of residential segregation on entrepreneurship to the evolution of community development financial institutions (CDFIs). Last year, Fairchild and a group of students traveled to Houston to visit a nonprofit called Prison Entrepreneurship Program (PEP), which recruits MBA students from around the country to help inmates develop business plans. PEP’s goal is to reduce recidivism by equipping inmates with business and life skills they can use upon release. According to PEP’s annual report, only 5 percent of its graduates end up back in jail, compared to the 25 percent of overall inmates released from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice who return to prison within three years. Continue reading…
UVA / Darden MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 1 / Second-year student / On-campus
My interview was with a second year student and was held at the admissions’ office. Like others have posted, my interviewer did not know anything about me and did not want to see my resume. He told me upfront that he simply wanted to hear my story and I had 20-25 minutes to say whatever I wanted and he would ask questions only to clarify what I had said. It was very comfortable even though I was at first intimidated by the format and talking about myself for such a long time. Overall I think it went well. Afterwards, he asked me some softball questions; the questions were more about my thought process than about actions I took or typical behavioral questions. None of the questions were out of the blue and all related to things I had said. After, he asked me if I had any questions for him. I asked a few anecdotal questions to learn more about the school because I find that people like to talk about themselves and the UVA website has a ton of information! My interviewer provided his thoughts on the case method which was incredibly helpful and left me with an even more favorable opinion of the school than I had at the beginning of the day.
UVA / Darden MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / Adcom / on-campus
I chose to interview on grounds, first because I assumed that having face time with adcom would be beneficial and second because I wanted to visit the School and Charlottesville before deciding which MBA to attend. Both the people from admissions office and the students were incredibly friendly and willing to show me around and make sure I was prepared for the interview. Questions asked:
1. Tell me your story.
2. Why an MBA?
3. Why Darden?
4. Have you considered the Executive MBA? (I’m older than the average student)
5. Any additional question you would like to ask?
The interview questions weren’t a surprise for me. I had the feeling that they wanted to assess:
1. How passionate I was about Darden and the Case Method.
2. How motivated I was to join a class of students younger than I.
3. How appealing I was to a recruiter, despite the fact that I was making a career transition.
I got wait listed, but eventually received an offer. Surprisingly the admissions director called me on my phone to give me the good news.
Darden School of Business Admissions Director Provides Video Update on Application Process
Sara Neher, dean of admissions at the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business, shared a video this week updating applicants to the school on the admissions process, opportunities to meet with school officials around the globe and more. For Round One applicants eagerly awaiting an invitation to interview, you’ll want to check out what she has to say.
The Round One deadline at Darden was October 15th, and Neher and her team are excitedly reading applications, she shared. Invitations to interview are beginning to come out in waves, she continued. Her team started with applicants who live in the United States, hoping to give them time to make plans to travel to Charlottesville to interview sometime in the second half of November or the first half of December. But she stressed that you shouldn’t worry if you haven’t already received an invitation to interview because they will continue to be sent out until early December. Continue reading…
University of Chicago Booth School of Business Tops Economist’s Rankings
The Economist released its 10th annual ranking of full-time MBA programs yesterday, and the University of Chicago Booth School of Business seized the top spot, advancing from second position last year. According to the Economist analysis, Chicago Booth’s top ranking reflects the fact that its students find jobs in the widest range of industries and gush about the school’s career services. It also provides proof, according to the Economist, that rather than just a finance powerhouse, Chicago Booth’s is a well-rounded MBA program.
The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, ranked number one last year, fell to number two in this year’s ranking. The University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business inched up from fourth last year to third this year, and Harvard Business School and Columbia Business School rounded out the top five, coming in at fourth and fifth respectively (up from fifth and seventh last year). Continue reading…
Trivia Tuesday: First-Year Experience at UVA / Darden
Welcome back to Trivia Tuesday, in which we spotlight special elements that differentiate the leading MBA programs from their peers. Today we’re turning our focus to the Clear Admit School Guide to the University of Virginia Darden School of Business to learn about the structure of Darden’s first-year class and the way it impacts the first-year experience at the school.
“Darden’s entering class is divided into five sections of 65 to 70 students each. As at other business schools that break their classes into smaller groups, Darden’s sections are designed to represent the full professional and demographic diversity of the first-year class. Each section takes all of its core courses together and therefore shares a common set of professors.
“Given the relatively small size of each section and the intensely participatory nature of Darden’s case-based learning style, the school reassigns students to new sections partway through the first year, a practice followed by only a handful of other schools. This allows students to benefit from the ideas and perspectives of a new group of classmates during spring case discussions. Section loyalty runs deep at Darden, despite the mid-year reshuffling of the class. Inter-section athletic events and other competitions take place each year, with students’ fall sections holding their principal allegiance. In addition, alumni returning to campus often identify themselves by their section affiliation. Continue reading…
UVA / Darden Essay Topic Analysis 2012-2013
Continuing our series of posts analyzing the essay topics of top business schools, we’re now turning our attention to UVA / Darden’s essays for 2012-2013.
While Darden has kept last year’s structure of one 500-word essay and two shorter essays, the adcom has revised all three topics this year, placing slightly more of an emphasis on an applicant’s professional experiences and goals. Let’s take a closer look at each question:
Essay 1: Share your thought process as you encountered a challenging work situation or complex problem. How did this experience change your perspective? (500 words maximum)
Making a new appearance on Darden’s application, this question asks applicants to explain how they thought through and resolved a difficult professional situation or problem. There are a wide range of viable topics here, from a conflict with a colleague, to an ethical dilemma, to a particularly complicated work assignment. Regardless of the event you write about, the key to a strong response will be to provide the adcom with insight into your rationale, explaining the various issues you weighed and the reasons behind the course of action your chose. In the second part of the question, applicants are asked to take a step back and reflect on how that difficult experience has shaped their outlook, indicating that the adcom is interested in learning about the evolution of an applicant’s approach to business issues. Continue reading…
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