Wharton itself is largely mum on the topic. The latest blog post from Deputy Vice Dean Maryellen Rielly was back on September 7th and focused on the start of the new school year. As it has all fall, the Wharton website states simply that interview invitations are scheduled to go out today, Tuesday, October 31st. Some applicants have reported receiving correspondence from Wharton indicating that all candidates can expect to have received an invitation to interview or a rejection by 5 p.m. EST.
If history can serve as a guide, MBA LiveWire data from last year provides the following insights:
- The first interview invitation was reported on MBA LiveWire at 12:15 p.m. on the scheduled day (which last year was November 2nd).
- The first reported rejection came in at 12:26 p.m., and rejections following right along at the same pace as interview invitations, suggesting that Wharton did not first release interview invitations and save rejections for the end.
- Reports—both invitations and rejections—continued rapid fire through 2 p.m., after which point they slowed slightly until 3.
- From 3 p.m. on, reports trickled first to between five and six per hour, and later to just one or two per hour, but they continued steadily through the wee morning hours EST. (It could be that these applicants received word earlier in the day but didn’t report on LiveWire until later—or that Wharton spread out notifications more last year.)
- Almost all reports indicated receiving notification via email.
As you nervously bide your time in anticipation of word, remember that we have established an exclusive Wharton Chat Room where you can commiserate with fellow applicants.
And for those of you who do receive an invitation to interview, you’ll likely want to dive right into preparing for Wharton’s signature Team-Based Discussion (TBD). The following list of resources can help you prepare:
- Understanding the MBA Admissions Interview, Part III, an exclusive Clear Admit article focused on the TBD and how best to prepare
- Wharton’s own description of the TBD on the school website
- Clear Admit’s Wharton Interview Guide, with in-depth intel on the TBD
- Clear Admit’s Wharton Interview Archive, real-life, post-interview accounts reported by peer candidates who’ve been through the Wharton interview process.
As always, those of us here at Clear Admit are wishing you good luck!
