MBA admissions consultants

Yesterday, Manhattan GMAT posted a GMAT question on our blog. Today, they have followed up with the answer:

Construct x[4]y in stages, working up from n = 1:
x[1]y = xy

Now, to figure out x[2]y, apply the second part of the definition, using n = 1 (odd):
x[2]y = (x[1]y)x = (xy)x = xyx

Be careful to apply the right part of the definition! Track carefully where n + 1 is and where n is.

Now keep going, using the third part of the definition (with n = 2, even):
x[3]y = (x[2]y)x = (xyx)x = xyxx

(We’ll avoid even tinier exponents by simply writing xx for x2.)

Finally, the x[4]y expression will add another y to the exponent:
x[4]y = (x[3]y)y = (xyxx)y = xyyxx

Now, we are told that y is ½ and that this crazy expression xyyxx equals 2.Substituting in y = ½, you get x^(x2/4) = 2, using the “caret” (^) to indicate exponentiation.

You should recognize at this point that it’s unlikely to be most efficient to try to solve directly for x—in fact, it may not even be possible within “GMAT math.” Rather, you should glance through the answer choices and see whether you can backsolve, eliminating obviously wrong answers.

(A) x = ¼ produces an expression in which you’re raising ¼ (a proper positive fraction) to a fractional power (taking a root), which will result in a number closer to 1, but certainly not 2.
(B) same problem as in (A).
(C) x = 1 produces 1^¼ = 1, not 2.
(D) x = 2 produces exactly what we want: 2^(22/4)=2^1 = 2.

We can stop there, but you can check 4 quickly: the expression becomes 44, which is not 2.

The correct answer is D.

When you select an MBA program, you are not just choosing your learning environment, but are also committing to becoming part of a community. Each Thursday, we offer a window into life “beyond the MBA classroom” at a top business school.

Formal events are reportedly a big part of Harvard Business School social life. As the name suggests, Holidazzle is HBS’s annual holiday party, which takes place in early December. According to the HBS Students Association, it is the business school’s longest-running event, and starts with RC section dinners followed by drinks (open bar) and dancing. The Newport Ball is held each spring in tony Newport, Rhode Island, which is just a short drive from Boston. Students attending the ball enjoy dinner and dancing at a Newport mansion and typically decide to stay for the entire weekend, touring the city’s historically preserved estates, such as The Breakers, Rosecliff, and Marble House, built by titans of the gilded age.

For in-depth descriptions of social and community activities at HBS and 15 other top MBA programs, check out the mbaMission Insider’s Guides.

Each week Manhattan GMAT posts a GMAT question on our blog and follows up with the answer the next day. Are you up for the challenge?

The expression x[n]y is defined for positive values of x and y and for positive integer values of n as follows:

• x[1]y = xy
• If n is odd, x[n+1]y = (x[n]y)x
• If n is even, x[n+1]y = (x[n]y)y

If y = ½ and x[4]y = 2, then x =

(A) ¼
(B) ½
(C) 1
(D) 2
(E) 4

Many MBA applicants feel that they are purchasing a brand, but the educational experience itself is what is crucial to your future, and no one will affect your education more than your professors. Each Wednesday, we profile a standout professor as identified by students. Today, we profile Roberto Rigobon from the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Roberto Rigobon (“Applied Macro and International Economics,” “Sustainable Development and Social Entrepreneurship”) specializes in international economics, monetary economics and development economics. At an awards ceremony in 2005, Sloan students described him as someone who “epitomized the fine line between madness and genius.” Other award-related descriptions of Rigobon refer to him as “serious but hilarious,” “crazy and brilliant” and “high energy.” He teaches the wildly popular “Applied Macro and International Economics” course, which is often taken by up to 30% of Sloan students at a time. Rigobon handles as many as four sections (six hours) back to back, three days a week. He has won numerous teaching awards during his time at Sloan (including the school’s Excellence in Teaching Award in 2000, 2003, and 2005, and Teacher of the Year in 1999, 2002, and 2004) and is primarily recognized for his accessibility. As one second-year student blogged, “The door to his office was always open.”

For more information about the MIT Sloan School of Management and 15 other top-ranked MBA schools, check out the mbaMission Insider’s Guides.

While MBA hopefuls interested in finance have long considered attending Columbia Business School and NYU Stern, maybe those interested in technology should also start considering New York. In “New Tech City,” a recent study conducted by the Center for an Urban Future, the authors argue that the technology industry is growing faster in New York than anywhere else in America. In fact, from 2007 to 2011, New York City saw a 32% increase in technology venture capital deals, while the country overall showed an 11% decrease in similar deals. Second only to Silicon Valley in terms of its size as a hub for the development of new technology companies, New York’s digital community tends to focus on Internet and mobile technologies.

MBA applicants who prefer the East Coast or who want to get in on the ground floor of the country’s hottest new tech hub might consider New York City as a home base. And the New York tech community is pretty easy to find. Many start-ups are located in close proximity to one another, with the offices of such companies as Tumblr, Shelby.tv and The Levo League located between Union Square and the Flatiron District in Manhattan. New York is even home to pioneering organizations such as Women Innovate Mobile, which is the first start-up accelerator designed for women-founded companies in mobile technology. It’s always worth the time for MBA hopefuls to go beyond the stereotypes of schools or regions to dig a little deeper and find a gem that might be a perfect fit for their needs.

Mission Admission is a series of MBA admission tips; a new one is posted each Tuesday.

When you are applying to business school, leave your parents out of the process! Although this MBA admission tip may seem obvious to most candidates, those who are a part of “Gen Y” or “The Millennials” may have parents who are accustomed to helping guide their children’s choices, having done so throughout the candidates’ high school and college years. These parents naturally want to be involved in the MBA admissions process as well and are now leaving many admissions officers across the country shaking their heads.

Of course, having a parent call to confirm whether an important document was received when an applicant is perhaps traveling/working abroad and/or cannot make such a call him- or herself during work hours is certainly not the same as having a parent call to ask why his/her son or daughter hasn’t gotten an interview invitation yet. Unless the matter at hand is an entirely practical one, candidates have nothing to gain by having their parents act as their agents. On the contrary, they have everything to lose. An aggressive parent can reflect badly on an applicant for a variety of reasons, the most obvious being that it suggests that the candidate lacks maturity and perhaps even the ability to make independent judgments and decisions.

Think very carefully before you involve your parents in any aspect of the application process except sitting at home and waiting for great news—successful applicants do it all the time!

Andrew Yang and Neil Blumenthal, friends of mbaMission, were both named to Fast Company’s list of the 100 Most Creative People in Business 2012. Andrew Yang, former CEO of mbaMission’s partner GMAT firm, Manhattan GMAT, is now the founder of Venture for America (VFA)—an organization dedicated to the rebirth of American industry and enhanced American competitiveness by connecting top college talent to start-ups. (mbaMission Founder Jeremy Shinewald is a board member of VFA.) Meanwhile, Neil Blumenthal is the founder of Warby Parker, an online glasses retailer with a social mission—we featured Neil’s partner, Dave Gilboa, in our “What I Learned at…” series a few months ago.

The creative list is quite impressive—Andrew and Neil are in good company with Shaquille O’Neal, Wes Anderson and Aziz Ansari.

With this application season nearing its end, the time has come for applicants to make some choices. While many are now in the fortunate position of choosing between schools, some are suddenly confronting a different and unexpected question: “Where did I go wrong?” Each year, we extend an olive branch to those in the broader applicant pool who plan to reapply to business school in the coming year and seek to analyze their applications. Recognizing that many candidates have suffered enough in this application year, we offer to review one application for up to 20 applicants, free of charge ($500 value), hoping to provide some direction for those who plan to move forward and try again next year.

If you are interested in a free Ding Review, please send one complete application to info@mbamission.com. We will randomly select 20 applicants, and if you are chosen, we will contact you about your free session.