Candidates are often skeptical about whether or not MBA Admissions Committees will believe their stories. After all, is there really someone available to corroborate that you were the difference – that you had that innovative idea? The response to this concern is pretty simple: if it actually happened, you do not need to worry about your credibility. You just need to write about your experience with sincerity. If you can offer the details surrounding the events as part of a narrative, the story will unfold logically and truthfully and will have its desired impact. Conversely, if your story is basic and vague, it will not come across as compelling (regardless of its veracity). 

An equally important point is that you are innocent until proven guilty. The MBA Admissions Committee is not assuming that you are a liar and reading your applications seeking proof of facts that are in doubt. They are taking stories at face value, recognizing that truth is stranger than fiction and that strong candidates will standout on the strength of their experiences.   

Additionally, if you accomplished something truly remarkable, you can always ask your recommender to emphasize this in his/her letter. This does not mean that the committee is seeking proof and that if something is not highlighted in a reference that it will not be believed. Still, your recommender can play an important role in legitimizing certain accomplishments.

We are excited to unite with our friends at Manhattan GMAT to co-host a free essay writing seminar at their New York location on September 11, 2008. MBA Mission Founder/President, Jeremy Shinewald, will lead a class of MBA aspirants through an evening long program, helping them to identify unique ideas, create powerful introductions, articulate distinct goals, connect their goals to their target programs and much more. Registration for the event is limited. Please sign-up today via the following link: event registration.

Additionally, Jeremy will be hosting free one-on-one consultations at Manhattan GMAT’s Chicago Office on the evenings of September 8th and 9th (Monday/Tuesday) and at Manhattan GMAT’s New York offices on September 13 and September 14 (Saturday/Sunday). Please contact operations@manhattangmat.com to schedule your session today.

Why do so many MBAs aspire to enter private equity? Aside from the fact that the hours are generally better than investment banking, the organizations are leaner and the compensation is generally higher, it seems that the compensation is more stable as well. According to the Private Equity Analyst-Holt Compensation Study, released September 1, 2008, private equity compensation rose last year and is expected to remain strong due to the fact that private equity firms have a consistent revenue stream due management fees (not all revenue is event driven).

A few highlights of the study follow:

“Salaries for North American private equity professionals rose 5.3% to $200,000 from $190,000 year-over-year. Including bonuses, compensation rose by 25% to $375,000 from $300,000. Once carried interest is included, total compensation packages rose by 27.3% to $401,000 from $315,000. That’s an even faster rate of growth than that seen at the time of our last survey.”

“Managing general partners, senior partners and partners at buyout firms posted median compensation including salary, bonus and carried interest distributions of $1.3 million, up 18%. At venture firms, this figure was $956,500, up 37%. The more favorable environment on the buyout side can also be seen for junior investment professionals, who posted median compensation of $272,000 on the buyout side, up 40%, versus $200,000 among VCs, up 22%.”

For more information, on the study, click on the following link: Private Equity Analyst-Holt Compensation Study.

The Admissions blog wars may just be heating up, with darden upping the ante. Sara Neher, Director of Admissions at Darden has transitioned from a classic written blog to a video blog. In her first post, Ms. Neher introduces her video blog and promises that she will be posting next time with some advice on writing essays. She hints that she may even post from the road as she travels to meet alumni and prospective students. Stay tuned…
 

 Yesterday, Integrated Learning posted a 700 level GMAT question on our blog. Today, they have followed up with the answer:  

Integrated Learning  provides professional, experienced GMAT tutors throughout the United States.

Each week Integrated Learning posts a 700 level GMAT question on our blog and follows up with the answer the next day. Are you up for the challenge?  

Integrated Learning  provides professional, experienced GMAT tutors throughout the United States.

1. How has your family and/or community helped shape your development? Please include information about where you grew up, and perhaps a highlight or special memory of your youth. (750 words)

The power in this essay comes not from stating facts, but from being reflective and thinking about the events, experiences and people who have shaped your life. While this can be a brief whimsical memoir, it is important that you identify the factors that have made you who you are today. This does not need to be a chronological story, but the reader needs to gain an understanding of a set of values that are imbued in you – whether overtly or implicitly — via your experiences. Not all of this essay needs to be “sunshine”, but if you are going to approach difficult topics, it is essential that you do so without bitterness or resentment. This is the committee’s truly personal introduction to you and you want to give them a sense of the type of personality and contributor you will be on campus.

2. What experience has had the greatest impact on who you are today and why? (500 words)

This question is personal in nature, despite the fact that you can draw your experience from any realm – personal, professional, community, external political, etc. In answering this question, you would be best to identify an experience that allows you to discuss a “before and after” scenario – to illustrate tangible change in your behavior, thinking, values, etc. Although the experience itself is quite important and should be presented in such a way that the reader “feels” the impact, the change and the reflections on it will show the magnitude of the event and thus reveal its true gravity.

3.  Discuss your short-term and long-term career goals. What is your motivation for pursuing an MBA now at UCLA Anderson? (750 words)

Because Personal Statements are similar from one application to the next, we have produced the “MBA Mission Personal Statement Guide.” We offer this guide to candidates free of charge, via our online store.  Please feel free to download your copy today.

4.  Audio or text:  Select and respond to ONE of the following questions. We would like you to respond to the question by recording an audio response (up to 1 minute).  If you are unable to submit your response via audio, then please upload a written response (250 words) instead.  The supported file types for audio files are: .avi, .wav, .mp3, .wmv, .midi, .wma, .aiff, .au, .mp4

We welcome UCLA to the “unorthodoxy ‘essay’ club,” along with Chicago and NYU, which both have creative essays that essentially extend the writer blank pages. In approaching this statement, it is best not to be distracted by the audio element to start. You should contemplate your answer in a vacuum and then, once you have settled on your approach, consider how you want to present it via audio.
Of course the audio extends you some liberties that text does not. You may want to incorporate audio effects, present your “essay” in an experimental style, etc. All bets are off and any approach should be fine. Just remember, your message is more important than the effects.

A)  What does entrepreneurial spirit mean to you?

If you are choosing this “essay” you might connect the meaning of entrepreneurship to something that you have already accomplished or to a dream that has long been with you. By illustrating vision, a vision emphasized through your audio recording, you should be able to establish credibility and make believers out of the admissions committee. Clearly, you will need to convey that you are passionate about this spirit in order to succeed.

B) What global issue matters most to you and why?

Remember, this is not the place to voice your political views or air grievances. In this essay, you have the opportunity to show that you are keenly aware of the world – not preachy — and that you take personal ownership of issues that are affecting your conscience, community and beyond. So, you should not just attack a political or social issue, but must consider your personal connection with it. An excellent “essay” will show an unusually strong “relationship” with the matter and prove that you are deeply affected by its implications.

C) What is something people will find surprising about you? 

Generally, this option can be used to add “spice” to your profile and enable you to quickly differentiate yourself from others. For this essay to be effective, you need to draw a stark contrast with what is expected of you. Further, it would be best to show accomplishment in this “surprising field.” So, if you are a banker who loves Karaoke, it probably won’t do that much for you. However, if you are a banker and perform in the Opera, you will likely catch the attention of the MBA Admissions Committee as a singular individual.

Last week, we introduced our MBA Mission Insider’s Guides, brief guides which enable candidates to go beyond the stereotypes and get to know schools in depth – with a particular focus on the academic offerings that prepare students for their professional specializations (consulting, marketing, finance).

Well, we are pleased with the sales of these books so far and the subsequent feedback, but certainly don’t want candidates to miss the opportunity to benefit from our other publication series – the Complete Start to Finish Guide. So, we have reduced the price of this 42 page guide (with sections on brainstorming essay topics, essay outlining, personal statement construction, resume preparation, recommender selection and coaching and interview preparation) by $15, for the next two weeks.

Seize the day! Enjoy the guides!

For those who are interested in learning more about their target MBA programs, school newspapers can often be a vital resource. Today, Harbus, Harvard Business School’s independent student newspaper, published its first edition of the academic year, with a welcome from Dean Jay Light and a subsequent discussion of opportunities to adjust the school’s schedule and add brief classes in January 2010 (as well as discussion of student involvement in these decisions).  Additionally, there are “summer stories” from several students, who worked abroad (Malawi, Istanbul) or at interesting summer internships (Harrah’s, Pixar) and a reflection on the HBS experience from Class Day Speaker, David Rawlingson. A thorough read of Harbus this week should enable you to start to get beyond the stereotypes of the school and learn about personalities and experiences available.

Well, if you were concerned that Harvard Business School would be all work and no play, it is likely that you have not heard of the annual Priscilla Ball – that is if such an event is what you consider to be “play.” Further, you likely never guessed that you would be off to South Beach, Reykjavik or Rio for short, mostly social, minimally educational, jaunts. Well, if Boston Magazine is to be believed (“Ain’t No Party Like An HBS Party”), then this is a large part of the experience. In Brigid Sweeney’s article in the September 2008 issue, she paints a picture of a no-work and all play environment, a picture that may sell magazines but is hardly factual. Still, Ms. Sweeney’s article may provide an interesting alternative window into the experience for those aspiring to attend HBS.