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

These days, as candidates consider their strategies for the coming MBA admissions cycle, many have a logical question in mind: To how many business schools should I apply? The answer, of course, varies dramatically from applicant to applicant, but the golden rule is that you should only apply to an MBA program if you have enough time to make your application the best it can be. So, if you have time to “perfect” only three applications, then you should focus on applying to just three schools—and not consider submitting five “average” applications.

In terms of a target number—assuming that time is not a factor and you can commit yourself to all of your applications—five or six is generally optimal. With five or six applications, you can apply to a mix of reach, competitive and safe schools and can thereby truly cover your bases. Of course, each applicant has his or her own risk profile and timing to consider, but for most candidates, applying to too few schools can increase the risk of not being admitted, and applying to too many can be overkill.

When it comes to the GMAT, raw intellectual horsepower helps, but it is not everything. In this weekly blog series, Manhattan GMAT’s Stacey Koprince teaches you how to perform at your best on test day by using some common sense.

Recently, we talked about what to try if your deadlines are rapidly approaching and you do not yet have the score that you want. What if you decide to postpone your exam and possibly your B-school applications?

First, a pep talk. You made a choice; you did not “fail.” You could, for example, choose to apply this year but lower your standards in terms of where you apply. In fact, depending on your goals, this may be better than waiting a year to try to get into a “better” (or at least more highly ranked) school.

On the other hand, let us say that you are only willing to spend more than $100,000 if you can get into a certain “level” school, and your GMAT score is holding you back. In that case, postponing for a year may be the way to go. Any “helpful” friends or family members who say, “Hey, I thought you were applying to business school!” can be told, “It is actually a smarter career move for me to wait until next year.” They do not need to know that the GMAT had anything to do with that decision.

So how do you get that score?

There is no guarantee you will get a certain score. Now that you have given yourself some more time, though, put together a smart plan that will give you the best possible chance.

Take a break

If you are already burned out (and most people in this situation are), take a breather. The best thing you can do for yourself right now is clear your brain and ratchet down the stress levels. Come back to the GMAT with a fresh perspective in January.

Set up a plan

Whatever you were doing before was not working for some reason. You need to figure out why so that you can then figure out what kind of plan will work for you.

First, what was your broad study plan/pattern? Were you working on your own or with friends? With a class? With a tutor?

Second, what materials were you using and how were you using them? How were you actually studying/learning when you were not in class or with a tutor?

If you had/have a teacher or tutor, contact him or her for help with this step. Make sure to provide detailed information about how you were working on your own and any ideas you have about what was and was not working. Also ask other experts for advice—post on some forums, speak to other teachers or tutors and so on.

The article Developing a Study Plan contains a number of useful resources to help you figure out next steps. Note that the article is a two-parter. I have linked to the first part here; the second half is linked at the end of the first part.

Questions to ask yourself

• What are your strengths and weaknesses across question types, content areas and timing? See part 1 of Developing a Study Plan for an article that will help you analyze your practice tests.
• Any timing problems? (About 98% of students have timing problems!) See our earlier blog post for time management resources.
• Were you analyzing problems and your work in the way described in this article? (For examples of specific problems analyzed using the MGMAT process, see this article.)
• Know the material but make lots of careless mistakes?

I need more help

Research your options now (class? books? online materials?) and set things in motion so that you can hit the ground running in January. Then, after taking a break over the next few weeks, you can come back with a clear head, a fresh perspective and a plan—all of which are critical if you want to have a good shot at overcoming the GMAT!

Many think that because the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business casts itself as a general management program, the school has no specialties. General management, however, is a philosophy that suggests that no business problem can viewed in isolation—for example, a finance problem relates to marketing, a marketing problem relates to operations and so on. In the student club Darden Capital Management (DCM), students can apply general management principles in evaluating equities to understand the entire firm while also specializing in asset management to further their careers in this finance-industry niche.

Through DCM, first-year students pitch long and short investment ideas to second-year student fund managers who oversee $5M of Darden’s endowment, which is divided among five funds, each with its own focal area. Approximately 20 first-year students ultimately “graduate” and run these funds themselves for credit as second-year students, reporting on their investment decisions and performance to Darden’s finance board. Students who manage these funds report that they have had an advantage breaking into asset management, because this hands-on experience gives them plenty to discuss in interviews. Managing $5M will do that…

For more information on the Darden School or 15 other leading MBA programs, check out the mbaMission Insider’s Guides.

When preparing personal statements that require significant information about career progress (for Chicago Booth, Kellogg or Wharton, for example), many applicants choose to discuss their accomplishments in chronological order. Although the simplicity of this approach makes it attractive, we encourage you to consider an alternative—showcasing more recent and thus potentially stronger accomplishments first. By choosing this latter approach, you may capture your reader’s imagination more quickly and reduce the risk of being lost amid similar candidates.

Consider the examples of a software analyst who is now a project manager, managing a budget and leading a team of 20 programmers, and of an investment banking analyst who is now in his/her third year with a company and has been sent abroad to work directly with a CFO:

The Project Manager:

Chronological: “Joining ABC Technology as a software programmer, I…”

Reverse: “Scrutinizing my plan one last time, I waited to present my team’s $3.7M proposal to our client…”

The Investment Banker:

Chronological: “As an investment banking analyst at Deutsche Bank, I started…”

Reverse: “Arriving in Taipei, I was admittedly nervous to finally meet the CFO of XYZ Co. and lead my firm’s due diligence process…”

In these examples, the candidates immediately present their standout accomplishments and thrust the reader into the excitement of their stories. Although this kind of reverse introduction is not “all purpose,” it can be a feasible option in many circumstances. Still, in choosing this approach, the candidate must also be able to fluidly return to earlier moments in his/her career later in the essay—a task that requires creativity and skill.

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

As the second round of application deadlines approaches, many candidates find themselves immersed in stress, busy juggling multiple essays and constantly revising their resume. Often in the midst of all this, an alarming question suddenly springs to mind: “What if my supervisors don’t get their letters done by the deadline?”

In our opinion, the easiest way to ensure that your recommenders complete their letters on time is to present them with your own deadline—one that is a bit earlier than the school’s—when you first ask them to provide a recommendation for you. If the application to your school of choice is due on January 15th, for example, tell your recommenders that you are submitting on the 8th. (Incidentally, submitting your application early can be good for your sanity as well.) By setting this advanced deadline, you can put some additional pressure on your recommender on the 8th (if he/she has not finished the letter) and should still be able to submit on time (i.e., by the school’s official deadline).

Most people work to deadlines. Alleviate unnecessary stress by setting your recommenders’ deadlines one week early, and “enjoy” the application process a little bit more.

For more information on properly selecting, communicating with and managing your recommenders, check out our Letters of Recommendation Guide.