One of the issues with blogging is that it is challenging to understand which postings truly resonate with readers. Sure, we can view our “clicks” and understand which features are popular, but individual postings are still difficult to judge. Well, in the case of last week’s “Mission Admission”, our weekly series of MBA Admissions tips, we now have an indication of our quality. The Ivey School at the University of Western Ontario (Business Week’s 2nd ranked international MBA program) placed a link to last week’s Mission Admission on its official Facebook page for admitted and prospective students. We are pleased that our advice is being acknowledged by the schools themselves.
Mission Admission is a series of MBA admission tips; a new one is posted each Tuesday.
As more and more candidates have asked us about the competitiveness of the upcoming admissions season, we have been pretty consistent with our advice. Although it is quite likely that application volumes will continue to surge, we remain “economically agnostic”. We suggest that candidates ignore external economic events and apply when the time is right for them, professionally and personally. After all, professional economists constantly disagree about the state of the economy and its path forward. Can we really say with certainty that the economy will “bottom-out” this year and that we will therefore see a peak in application volume this year? If the economy is in even rougher shape one year from now, should candidates wait an additional year after that? How long can forces that are out of your control prolong your quest for an MBA?
We find that most candidates who are contemplating putting off their applications are not just concerned about the competitiveness of the application pool, but are also worried about the deteriorating job situation on campus. Obviously, it is challenging to predict what the fulltime job situation will be like for candidates who are applying now and will be graduating in the spring of 2011. While we would never ignore the importance of that first post-MBA job, we feel that many candidates focus exclusively on the short term rewards of the MBA and fail to consider the long-term value. With a long term view, (wherein candidates gain an enduring and transferable skill set) pursuing an MBA at the right time personally and professionally, regardless of external circumstances, is still a compelling proposition.
In a press release earlier today, Harvard Business School announced that the application to its unique “2+2” deferred admissions program for college juniors is now available online. Undergraduate candidates who apply by July 1, 2008, will find out whether they have been admitted or not by September 2008. Those who are accepted to the program will work for two years, while gaining career coaching, networking with other 2+2 students and participating in summer programming, all before claiming guaranteed places in the HBS class two years later. HBS predicts that the 2+2 component of the class will grow to 10% or 90 students, which will in turn make the existing pool of “mature” candidates even more competitive.
From time to time, we happily contribute to GMATTERS, the weekly newsletter published by our friends at Manhattan GMAT. Last week, we published the first of two pieces, special to GMATTERS, on long term planning, for candidates considering the upcoming admissions season.
For those who may not be registered to receive GMATTERS, here is a link to our piece which is now on their blog. Enjoy!
Mission Admission is a series of MBA admission tips; a new one is posted each Tuesday.
Because most schools have a three round application system and because most MBA admissions committees tell candidates to apply in the first two of three rounds, most candidates will not even consider applying in an MBA program’s final round. And, for many, this is the right decision as most of the places at top MBA programs will have been taken once second round decisions have been released. Further, the MBA admissions committees openly refer to their third rounds as “shaping rounds,” where they add particular constituents to balance the class itself. But, what about schools like UCLA and Haas, where there are four rounds. Is the third round still off-limits?
The answer is no. If a school has a four round application system, then candidates need not consider the third round to be prohibitive. When considering deadlines, candidates should avoid applying in the final round (not the third round, but, again, the final round!) whenever possible. So, the logical question is, when is it acceptable to apply in the final round, regardless of whether that round is the third or fourth round? Our answer is that virtually every candidate must have humble expectations for the final round and should apply only if they are a true outlier from a hyper-competitive pack, meaning that they can in some intangible way add distinctiveness to their respective classe. While this is a tall order, it is certainly not impossible. After all, if the MBA programs were not admitting canddiates, they would not offer a final round deadline — plain and simple.
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