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In The Economist (everyone’s favorite dry but insightful English weekly) this week, the editorial staff posits that Business Education is changing and that as a consequence, applications and enrollments are rising. In New Graduation Skills, the Economist cites Yale and Stanford as evolving curricula that are attracting students who aspire to be more than mere number crunchers. Funny, we thought that it was the return of the $25K signing bonuses that were driving applications….

As we have noted in previous posts, it would be ideal for you as a prospective candidate to have nothing but your applications to manage come July (when most applications are released). While many take their GMAT and TOEFL exams by June in order to focus on their essays starting in July, few realize that there is a tremendous opportunity to visit campuses now — both to learn about specific programs of choice and to ensure that the fall schedule is not too busy. It is difficult enough for many candidates to manage their professional, personal and community lives; the addition of five class visits in five different cities during a one- or two-month span can often be stressful and too much to manage.

Many schools (Stanford, HBS, Chicago, Kellogg, etc.) still have campus visit programs in place until the end of their respective academic years, and some offer visits throughout the summer, depending on their academic calendars. By visiting several of your schools of choice now, you will not only save yourself the stress in the fall, but you will also benefit from the visit itself.

Campus visits are not just checked boxes for the Admissions Committee, but are tremendous opportunities for you to gain an intimate understanding of various academic methodologies and academic and social environments. While your campus visits may help you choose which schools to apply to, they will also help you frame your thoughts and write far more personal essays. There is only so much that you can learn about a school via its website. Your campus visit will enable you to experience the true character of your MBA program of choice and then discuss your connection to it in a profound way. You can express a certain sincerity, if you can write about your personal interactions with professors and students as a catalyst for your decision to apply to a certain school.

Similarly, by meeting with any alumni or current students, you can gain a more intimate understanding of your school of choice. Current students in particular will have an awareness of specific programs and classes that may not hold a prominent place on their school’s websites, but may be quite appealing to you and may enable you to strengthen your case for attending a certain school. By meeting with students and alumni and visiting classes and taking thorough notes on your experience, you will have a variety of data points that will help serve as a foundation for you to persuade the Admissions Committees that their school is most suitable for you, in a way that few others will be able to do.

If you do not have connections with current students and alumni, you can politely contact current students who are heads of the clubs that are of interest to you and ask them for a few moments to discuss their school’s attributes. If you aspire to be an entrepreneur, for example, speaking with the president of the Entrepreneurship Club will enable you to quickly understand the various offerings at your school of choice and may even result in your finding an advocate for your candidacy.

We offer specific pre-application services for those interested in charting a clear course to their MBA.

At MBA Mission, we are proud to have a close relationship with ManhattanGMAT, the world’s largest GMAT-exclusive test-prep provider. Recently, ManhattanGMAT launched its own Blog and interviewed MBA Mission Founder, Jeremy Shinewald, about his thoughts on the past year in MBA admissions and how prospective candidates can gain an advantage in what is shaping up to be an even more competitive year.

The interview can be accessed via the link below:

Interview with Jeremy Shinewald, Founder of MBA Mission

While you may be like many others, worrying about your recommenders’ titles, what is far more important is that you select an individual who knows what is demanded of a recommender. Recommenders need to write very personal and intimate letters, discussing your talents, accomplishments, personality and potential. If the President of your firm can only discuss your work in vague and general terms, he/she will not help your cause. Conversely, if an Associate who is senior to you and supervises your work can offer powerful examples of the impact you have had on your company, he/she will help your cause far more.

As you contemplate those you will select, try to gather some intelligence on your potential recommenders. Has he/she written letters for anyone else? Is he/she generous with his/her time when it comes to employee feedback and review sessions? Generally speaking, is your superior a good supervisor/boss? One of the best windows into your potential process will be previous colleagues, with whom you may want to speak to discover how your supervisor managed the process. By identifying those who will be helpful and generous, you will alleviate the potential stress of missed deadlines and unpredictable letters.

While you should spend time right now doing your homework on your recommenders, another important step that you can take is getting in touch with previous supervisors with whom you have fallen out of contact. You do not want to be in a position where you are calling a former supervisor for the first time in years and asking him/her for a massive favor on a tight timeline. If you can identify a former supervisor whose time you will need, then make contact now and keep the relationship warm for the next few months. You will be far better off when the letter-writing process begins.

You need to be careful in terms of whom you ask to write on your behalf, especially when you are contemplating someone from your past. Certain individuals, such as military commanders, can often provide very valuable feedback, even if their experience with you was from years ago. Again, in the case of a former commander, you may need to locate him/her or warm that relationship up, after years of it being dormant. Under very particular circumstances, certain coaches and professors may also offer unique insight into your candidacy, but again, you may need to spend some time locating them and reestablishing your connection. Now is the time to make your connections; come September, it might be too late.

We offer specific pre-application services for those interested in charting a clear course to their MBA.

We always enjoy a good self-congratulatory press release from GMAC. According to GMAC, the overlords of the GMAT, recruiters are demanding 18% more MBAs and 7% fewer undergrads, thus proving the supremacy of the MBA. Read the press release, but take it all with a grain of salt:

Employers Target More Jobs at People with Graduate Degrees