{"id":1267,"date":"2010-03-16T10:00:23","date_gmt":"2010-03-16T16:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/?p=1267"},"modified":"2022-07-25T02:47:30","modified_gmt":"2022-07-25T06:47:30","slug":"mba-admissions-myths-destroyed-final-round-is-nothing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/mba-admissions-myths-destroyed-final-round-is-nothing\/","title":{"rendered":"MBA Admissions Myths Destroyed: Final Round Is Nothing"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of our previous admissions myths destroyed was \u201cRound 1 is Everything<\/a>.\u201d Today we take on the widely held myth that \u201cfinal round is nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Without question, gaining admission at virtually any of the top schools in the third round is more challenging. When mbaMission interviewed J.J. Cutler, Director of Admissions at UPenn-Wharton, he informed us,<\/p>\n

\u2026our ability to make decisions in the third round is different than it is in the first round. So my advice is to always use the third round as an absolutely last resort\u2026I think if you\u2019re serious, and if it\u2019s\u00a0 possible, you should apply in Round 1 or 2. Third round is\u2014and we\u2019re very clear about this on our\u00a0\u00a0 Web site\u2014just significantly less optimal for an applicant than Round 1 or Round 2.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Similarly, Northwestern Kellogg\u2019s Assistant Dean and Director of Admissions Beth Flye told mbaMission,<\/p>\n

I would strongly encourage (applicants to) apply in one of the first two rounds. Are we going to shun\u00a0 those who apply in the third round? No, not at all.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

While we don\u2019t have the space to go through each and every admissions officer comment we have on Round 3, the theme among them all is that the first and second rounds are generally preferable for a serious candidate. However, what is particularly important to note is Ms. Flye\u2019s final comment: \u201cAre we going to shun those who apply in the final round? No, not at all.\u201d There is a definite difference between a preference\u2014even a strong preference\u2014and a rule that states \u201cdon\u2019t bother applying.\u201d<\/p>\n

Indeed, Rose Martinelli, Chicago Booth\u2019s associate dean for student recruitment and admissions, recently addressed the myth of the impossible third round (R3) in a blog post, telling readers,<\/p>\n

Somewhere along the line, R3 inherited the reputation of being somewhat irrelevant in the overall admissions cycle\u2026The truth is that R3 can be a bit more competitive simply because the majority of applications and acceptances will occur in Rounds One and Two.\u00a0 However, I\u2019d like to emphasize that a good portion of our class will be admitted from R3\u2026<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Ms. Martinelli then added, \u201cR3 exists for a reason\u2026 Your dream school should be on your radar no matter what people \u2018are saying\u2019!\u201d Indeed, the third round is not a practical joke that schools are playing on applicants. By the time Round 3 rolls around, most admissions committees have been inundated with applications and are exhausted. Yet, they continue to review new candidates and they still grant acceptances. Otherwise, they would just cancel the round and start their vacations. So if you find yourself unable to apply earlier than the third round, you don\u2019t need to take a pass on the year. If you are a standout candidate, apply and see what happens\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of our previous admissions myths destroyed was \u201cRound 1 is Everything.\u201d Today we take on the widely held myth that \u201cfinal round is nothing.\u201d Without question, gaining admission at virtually any of the top schools in the third round is more challenging. When mbaMission interviewed J.J. Cutler, Director of Admissions at UPenn-Wharton, he informed … Read More  <\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,28,32,35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1267","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-admissions-myths-destroyed","category-northwestern-kellogg","category-chicago-booth","category-upenn-wharton"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMBA Admissions Myths Destroyed: Final Round Is Nothing | mbaMission - MBA Admissions Consulting<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mbamission.com\/blog\/mba-admissions-myths-destroyed-final-round-is-nothing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"MBA Admissions Myths Destroyed: Final Round Is Nothing | mbaMission - MBA Admissions Consulting\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"One of our previous admissions myths destroyed was \u201cRound 1 is Everything.\u201d Today we take on the widely held myth that \u201cfinal round is nothing.\u201d Without question, gaining admission at virtually any of the top schools in the third round is more challenging. When mbaMission interviewed J.J. 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