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Published: September 25, 2014
Fridays From the Frontline: Defeating Giants
Fridays From the Frontline is Clear Admit’s weekly summation of posts from the business school blogosphere. Author and journalist Michael Lewis once said that "the pleasure of rooting for Goliath is that you can expect to win. The pleasure of rooting for David is that, while you don’t know what to expect, you stand at least a chance of being inspired."  This week in the business school blogosphere, applicants face off with the giant that is the business school application process, while current students juggle the many opportunities available to them in business school. Read more
Published: September 24, 2014
Reaching Out to Host LGBT MBA Conference Next Week in San Francisco
Nonprofit organization Reaching Out will host a conference for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) business school students and prospective applicants next week in San Francisco. The Reaching Out LGBT MBA Conference expects to draw more than 1,400 students, business leaders and recruiters for three days of events, including a full afternoon of programming for prospective LGBT MBA applicants. This year’s conference will take place from October 2nd through 4th. Now in its 16th year, the Reaching Out MBA Conference was established to provides future lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender leaders from around the world the opportunity to network, learn and improve their skills and advance in the business world. From its beginnings in 1999 as a student-run conference organized by students at Harvard Business School and Yale School of Management, Reaching Out has grown into a year-round operating organization “dedicated to educating, inspiring and connecting business students to impact change in the classroom and workplace.” Read more
Published: September 24, 2014
Admissions Director Q&A: Isser Gallogly of New York University’s Stern School of Business
Isser Gallogly, assistant dean of MBA admissions at New York University’s Stern School of Business, understands the MBA and its potential for changing people’s lives first hand. “I am on my third career,” he told us in an interview. He worked in banking after college and then returned to business school to obtain an MBA as part of a career shift toward marketing. After almost a decade working for Unilever and Loreál, he decided to shift again toward education and academia. “I know how much an MBA has changed my life both personally and professionally, and helping others on that journey seemed to me to be a very gratifying job opportunity,” he said. Read more
Published: September 23, 2014
CEIBS Partners with Cornell to Launch Dual MBA-MMH Degree
The China Europe International Business School (CEIBS) and the School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University will launch a new dual Master of Management in Hospitality (MMH) and MBA degree program, the schools announced earlier this week. The first cohort of students will begin classes in fall 2015. The new program will give students the opportunity to complete both the MMH and the MBA over the course of two years. Students will earn their MMH from Cornell and their MBA from CEIBS. They will have the option of beginning at either school and completing the second year of the program at the alternate campus. Read more
Published: September 22, 2014
Stanford Graduate School of Business Welcomes New Faculty, Lectures
Seven new tenure-line faculty have joined the Stanford Graduate School of Business (GSB), and another 17 lecturers are scheduled to share their real-world experiences with students as well, the school announced earlier this month. In all, Stanford GSB has more than 250 professors, adjunct faculty, visiting faculty and lecturers teaching students in its MBA, PhD, Master of Science (MSx) and other business programs. “Our new tenure-line faculty bring a diverse set of research interests to Stanford, which will enhance our ability to contribute to the growing body of knowledge about business, management and the global economy,” Stanford GSB Dean Garth Saloner said in a statement. The many lecturers, meanwhile, help the  school pair academic rigor with best practices in the classroom, he added. Read more
Published: September 22, 2014
Columbia Business School MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 1 / Alumnus / Off-Campus
I applied for the J-term and got the interview call within 2 weeks of applying.  I scheduled the interview with an alum-most of them did not have a similar background as mine. He called me to his office so it was a formal setting. The interview started off by him discussing about my current work. We got into the details of my profile, the product, and the difficulties my sector is facing. There were a few standard questions as have been listed out in almost all other posts. 1. Why MBA? 2. Why Columbia? 3. What value can Read more
Published: September 21, 2014
ESADE Names New Dean and Other Top Management
Spain’s ESADE Business School today announced several new appointments among its top leadership team. Professor Josep Franch will be the school’s new dean, Professor Jonathan Wareham will serve as the new dean of faculty and research and Professor Francisco Longo will assume the newly created role of associate director general, the school announced. Eugenio Bieto, who was recently re-appointed as ESADE’s director general, made the new appointments among the leadership team, saying that he hopes the shifts will position the school to continue to prioritize the excellence and quality of its programs. Read more
Published: September 21, 2014
Admissions Director Q&A: Ann Richards of Cornell’s S. C. Johnson Graduate School of Management
Moving right along in our Admissions Director Q&A Series, we’ll hear this week from Ann Richards, interim director of admission and financial aid at the S.C. Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University. Richards began her career at Johnson back in 1988 as the college registrar. In 1991, she became director of financial aid, and in 1999 she became associate director of admission. After 14 years in that role, and with more than 20 years at Johnson in all, she was named senior associate director of admission last year. Since then, Christine Sneva – Johnson’s former director of admission and financial aid – has been named director of enrollment management and student services at Cornell Tech, Johnson’s one-year MBA program in New York City. Amid Sneva’s departure for Cornell Tech, Richards has ably stepped in to lead the charge at Johnson’s Ithaca campus, with oversight for the school’s one-year and two-year MBA programs there. Read more
Published: September 18, 2014
Fridays From the Frontline: Overcoming Perfectionism
Fridays From the Frontline is Clear Admit's weekly summation of posts from the business school blogosphere. Author Brene Brown once said that "perfectionism is self-destructive simply because there is no such thing as perfect. Perfection is an unattainable goal." This week, applicants seek to overcome their tendency towards perfection by submitting their applications, while current students offer sneak peeks into their respective programs. In the applicant corner, Scottgduncan submitted his Harvard application after some last-minute editing and plans to submit Kellogg and MIT Sloan soon. Also pulling that MBA trigger, Pullingthatmbatrigger just applied to Fuqua and Yale, with two more schools to go. Meanwhile, Efessays, known as Old Faithful to family and friends, gives a virtual lesson on logical fallacies to help us evaluate arguments on the writing section of the GMAT. Read more
Published: September 17, 2014
UPenn’s Wharton School Celebrates Opening of New SiriusXM Studio for Business Radio
The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania today hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the opening of a new SiriusXM satellite radio broadcast studio. The new studio will broadcast Business Radio Powered by the Wharton School, which offers direct, exclusive access to some of the world’s top business leaders and educators. Newly appointed Wharton Dean Geoffrey Garrett was joined by SiriusXM President and Chief Content Officer Scott Greenstein for today’s ribbon-cutting ceremony. Wharton first partnered with SiriusXM last fall to launch the full-time radio channel focused on business and management. Read more
Published: September 16, 2014
MIT Sloan School of Management to Host Diversity Weekend for Prospectives
Prospective MBA applicants from diverse backgrounds are invited to take part in an upcoming Diversity Weekend at the MIT Sloan School of Management. On October 2nd and 3rd, MIT Sloan will host a range of interactive sessions designed to help prospective MBA students get to know the MIT Sloan community by interacting with current students and getting a glimpse of the school’s experiential learning curriculum in action. MIT Sloan’s Diversity Weekend events begin on Thursday night, October 2nd, with a welcome reception. Following the reception, Diversity Weekend participants are also invited to take part in the school’s weekly C-Function. These informal, after-hours celebrations, organized by MIT Sloan students, are held each Thursday evening and open to the entire graduate community, faculty and staff. Read more
Published: September 15, 2014
NYU Stern School of Business Names New Head of Career Services
The New York University (NYU) Stern School of Business late last month appointed Roxanne Hori to serve as its associate dean of corporate relations, career services and leadership. Hori joins Stern from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, where she led career management and corporate partnership for many years. In her newly created role at Stern, Hori will be charged with building and managing corporate relationships to support career development for the school’s MBA students and alumni. “As new industries emerge and grow, redefining the nature of the workplace and creating new means of value, it is essential that we identify and build strong relationships with the leading companies of the 21st century,” NYU Stern Dean Peter Henry said in a statement. “Roxanne Hori, with her proven record of leadership in both corporate and university roles, is well positioned to establish crucial links among our students, alumni and corporations.” Read more
Published: September 14, 2014
Interview Updates from Harvard Business School Admissions Director
As anyone applying to Harvard Business School (HBS) knows only too well, Round 1 applications were due last Tuesday. As the HBS Admissions Committee has settled into reading applicants’ files, an antsy set of applicants has settled into wait. HBS Dean of Admissions Dee Leopold devoted a post on her Admissions Director blog on Friday to letting the expectant candidates know how the next stage of the process will unfold.   Leopold’s team will send out invitations to candidates advancing to the interview stage in two batches next month, one on October 8th and a Read more
Published: September 14, 2014
Admissions Director Q&A: Dawna Clarke of Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business
Dawna Clarke is a veteran in the MBA admissions world, where she has worked for almost 30 years. She was appointed director of MBA admissions for the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth by Dean Paul Danos in September 2005, and since then she has served as the primary point of contact for MBA applicants and worked to actively promote the Tuck MBA program to prospective students. Clarke came to Tuck from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia, where she spent 15 years, the last five as director of admissions. And before Darden, she was associate director of admissions at UNC’s Kenan-Flagler School of Business. So she knows a thing or two about what it takes to get into a top-tier MBA program. Read more
Published: September 11, 2014
Fridays From the Frontline: Tackling the Info Session
Fridays From the Frontline is Clear Admit’s weekly summation of posts from the business school blogosphere. This week, current applicants attend MBA-related events, while current students discuss the insights they've gained during business school. In the applicant corner, Texaswannabecali broke down the myriad discussions that took place at a McCombs info session. She also went to another MBA event which she describes as “handshake, smile and nod on repeat.” On the other hand, Efessays, or Old Faithful as he is known in the business, offers a virtual lesson on the essay section of the GMAT. Read more
Published: September 10, 2014
Yale School of Management Draws Together Top Business Leaders for Global Strategy Input
Led by Dean Edward Snyder, the Yale School of Management (SOM) is focused on developing and implementing a strategy that will help the school become the most distinctively global U.S. business school—one that educates its graduates to become truly effective global leaders. Earlier this week, Snyder hosted the first of a series of discussions scheduled this fall to assess the school’s progress toward this goal. Top business leaders came to the Yale SOM campus on September 8th and 9th to examine the steps the school has taken so far and what remains to be done. Participants in this first discussion included PepsiCo Chairman and CEO Indra Nooyi (SOM '80); Laszlo Bock (SOM '99), senior vice president of people operations at Google, Inc.; William Donaldson (YC '53), former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission; and International Monetary Fund Executive Director Rakesh Mohan (YC '71), among several others. Read more
Published: September 10, 2014
Admissions Director Q&A: Rupesh Bisht of the Indian School of Business
Moving right along in our Q&A Series, we turn this week to India, specifically the Indian School of Business (ISB). With campuses in Hyderabad and Mohali, ISB features an accelerated one-year Post Graduate Program (PGP) in Management, as well as a PGP for Senior Executives, a Fellow Program, a Management Program for Family Business and several additional executive education offerings. Against time zone odds, we were lucky enough to connect with Rupesh Bisht, ISB’s associate director for admissions and financial aid. An alumnus from the ISB class of 2009, “I am an experiencer of the product itself, which gives me some advantage in terms of knowing the product inside out,” he tells us. In addition to his admissions responsibilities, Bisht also oversees international marketing for ISB, as well as the school’s Young Leaders Program (YLP). Read more
Published: September 9, 2014
UVA’s Darden School of Business Takes Its Case Method on the Road
The University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business prides itself on its distinctive case method style of teaching – and it wants those who are considering applying to have a chance to experience it firsthand. So it’s hosting an event tomorrow in Philadelphia where prospective applicants will get to do just. Darden Admissions Dean Sara Neher will kick off the evening with a mini case discussion. (In addition to leading admissions, Neher is also a member of the Darden teaching faculty.) There’s no need to prepare in advance – just show up to take part in a lively discussion based on a short case written by a member of the Darden faculty. What better way to gauge whether Darden’s focus on the case method and experiential learning is right for you? Read more
Published: September 8, 2014
MBA@UNC Infographic Demonstrates ROI of MBA
MBA@UNC, the online MBA program at the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School, has created an in-depth infographic to help demonstrate the return on investment (ROI) of the MBA degree generally – as well as some specific benefits offered by online programs. The infographic notes that 96 percent of MBA graduates rate the value of their degree as outstanding, excellent or good and would recommend a graduate management education to others, citing data from the Graduate Management Admissions Council. Three out of four of those surveyed by GMAC said they could not have obtained their current job without their degree. Read more
Published: September 8, 2014
Meet Top Business Schools One-to-One on the Access MBA Tour
Meet the world’s top business schools and find the MBA program that is right for you at Access MBA’s One-to-One events across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia this fall. Highlights of the events include One-to-One meetings and workshops with the Admissions Directors of some of the world’s best MBA programs, interactive panel discussions featuring school representatives, individual MBA consulting sessions and GMAT preparation advice. Most events are free of charge for prospective MBA candidates. The Access MBA Tour travels to 65 cities per year and showcases over one hundred international business schools. The One-to-One events give Read more
Published: September 8, 2014
Trivia Tuesday: INSEAD’s Wharton Exchange Program
Welcome to this week’s Trivia Tuesday, in which we examine special offerings that differentiate the leading MBA programs from their peers. Today we’re taking a look into the Clear Admit School Guide to INSEAD in order to share with you an excerpt about the school’s exchange opportunity with the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. “Through an alliance with the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, one of the leading MBA programs in the U.S., INSEAD students can also spend one period in the city of Philadelphia taking elective courses at Wharton." Read more
Published: September 7, 2014
Haas School of Business Dean’s Series Speaker Brings Innovative Leaders to Campus
The Dean’s Speaker Series kicked off last week at the Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley, featuring Jamba Juice CEO James D. White discussing how he led the company through a turnaround to emerge as the nation’s largest fresh juice and smoothie retailer. White talked about how he led transformational change – which in his case meant shifting the business model to include more franchises than company-owned stores. Through innovative leadership, he took a company that when he joined in 2008 was facing management and profitability challenges and helped it navigate the recession and come out the other side bigger and stronger than ever. Today, Jamba Juice has 854 stores globally, 551 of which are franchises. Within the next five years, it hopes to add 500 new stores nationwide. Read more
Published: September 7, 2014
Admissions Director Q&A: Kurt Ahlm of the University of Chicago Booth School of Business
Kurt Ahlm is a 12-year veteran of the University of Chicago Booth School of Business admissions office, and he has been at the helm for the past four years. During that time, he has helped welcome a new dean, Dean Sunil Kumar, and seen the school continue its international expansion. Ahlm started his career in undergraduate admissions at Northwestern University and then spent time working as a corporate recruiter before coming to Chicago Booth. “I really liked higher education but I also liked the more professional type of atmosphere that the corporate world offered,” he says, adding that MBA admissions provides a great mix of both. Chicago Booth benefits, in turn, from his strong background in both admissions and recruiting. Read more
Published: September 4, 2014
Columbia MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Early Decision / Alumnus / Off-campus
From the list of Ambassadors that the school provided, I chose an alum that had a similar background to mine (finance/M&A in the infrastructure sector). We met at a local coffee shop (São Paulo, Brazil) and the interview was very informal. This environment was crucial to break the ice. He was more concerned if I was comfortable and enjoying the conversation rather than testing me. The interview went as follows: 1. Give me your 5-minute pitch (another version of the “walk me through your resume” question). 2. Why MBA? 3. Tell me more about your latest project and your Read more
Published: September 4, 2014
IU’s Kelley School of Business Partners with NFL for Online MBA Programs
The Indiana University (IU) Kelley School of Business has partnered with the National Football League (NFL) Players Association to offer graduate-level educational programs – including an MBA degree – tailored to the needs of current and former NFL players, the school announced earlier this week. "For more than a quarter century, the Kelley School has provided customized programs that have met the needs of many students within a variety of corporate and educational settings," Kelley School Dean Idalene Kesner said in a statement. Read more

MBA Applywire

4
November 27, 2024 12:00pm ET
Applying: Berkeley / Haas, London Business School, Northwestern / Kellogg, Stanford GSB
Intake Year: 2025
Pre-MBA Career: Eingeneer
Post-MBA Target Industry: Other
GMAT: 675
GPA: 3,5
Years of Work Experience: 4.8
Location: Chile
4
November 27, 2024 9:07am ET
Applying: Duke / Fuqua, Michigan / Ross, Northwestern / Kellogg, NYU Stern
Intake Year: 2025
Pre-MBA Career: Finance Manager
Post-MBA Target Industry: Consulting Companies: Accenture , AT Kearney , Bain , BCG , Deloitte , Ernst & Young , McKinsey , PWC
GMAT: 690
GPA: 3.79
Years of Work Experience: 2
7
November 27, 2024 9:07am ET
Applying: Carnegie Mellon / Tepper, Duke / Fuqua, Michigan / Ross, Notre Dame / Mendoza, UNC Kenan-Flagler, UVA / Darden, Vanderbilt / Owen
Intake Year: 2025
Pre-MBA Career: Banking
Post-MBA Target Industry: Consulting, Commercial Banking Companies: Accenture , AT Kearney , Bain , PWC , Bank of America
GRE: 306
GPA: 3.64
Years of Work Experience: 5
Location: Africa
Notes:

Recently wrote the GRE. It's not a super score but I will probably apply with it anyway. I am still considering retaking the test, as the next time I can take it is around the Round 2 deadline.

My educational background is in social sciences, so wasn't very quant-heavy. Looking at taking an additional quant course to back up my GRE score as the exam fee is about 10x the minimum wage in my country. Any suggestion is welcomed.
5
November 27, 2024 6:51am ET
Applying: Dartmouth / Tuck, Harvard Business School, Stanford GSB, UPenn / Wharton, Yale SOM
Intake Year: 2025
Pre-MBA Career: Program Manager, Humanitarian INGO
Post-MBA Target Industry: Entrepreneurship, Non Profit/SI
GMAT: 685
GPA: 3.27
Years of Work Experience: 4
Location: US Citizen (positioned abroad)
Notes:

Long time listener first time caller. Love the podcast! Adding my profile just because I want to be part of the community.

R2 applicant for Fall 2025 entry.

Background: mid-to-late 20s US citizen, lower-income single parent upbringing.

Work experience: currently a manager at a humanitarian INGO in active / post-conflict settings (think Afghanistan, Yemen, etc.) with several million in project budget under management and overseeing multiple teams. Will have been in emergency aid for 2 years upon matriculation, career before that was 1 year quantitative analyst ---> 1 year teaching English abroad. High impact job, recently promoted.

Academics: 3.27 cumulative. Small state school for first year with a 4.0. Transferred to an Ivy, but had to work full time to support family, had just above a 3.0 at the Ivy. I've also done a masters since at a top 5 UK (shout-out to Alex!) with distinction (3.9+ equivalent). Additionally, took Calculus this year (got an A-) to give schools a bit more reassurance on quant abilities since my quant record in college had its ups and downs, and to demonstrate respect for the rigors of the Y1 MBA curriculum.

Test: took the GMAT only once, 685 (86V 82Q 84D). First mock exam was a 625 with a terrible quant score, but brought quant up to 76th percentile with a couple months of study. Internet is too slow to take online, so only had one chance to do it in-person while I was on leave -- retake physically impossible even if I wanted to.

ECs: Very focused on social entrepreneurship. Have also been helping teach / support one of the foreign language programs at the state school I originally went to and transferred out of. Community service award as well, and mountain climber.

Post-MBA goal is social entrepreneurship that can help people in crisis contexts.

I've listened to enough Wire Taps to guess exactly what the advice will be: "You might want to cast a wider net due to the lower GPA, right now you're only targeting top schools." -- Absolutely fair call. However, what I want to do is extremely difficult and will require a ton of resources. I've selected the programs I think best fit my goals / have a strong social and entrepreneurial mission. I don't particularly mind getting dinged everywhere and reapplying next year if need be.

Long post, thanks for reading! Have a great holiday!
2
November 27, 2024 3:06am ET
Applying: Berkeley / Haas, Harvard Business School
Intake Year: 2025
Pre-MBA Career: Technology
Post-MBA Target Industry: Technology, Entrepreneurship Companies: Amazon , Apple , Microsoft
GMAT: 675
GPA: 3.2
Years of Work Experience: 5
Location: India
Post MBA Location: Bay Area / New York
Notes:

I wanted to get your thoughts on my R2 Strategy.

I've 2.5 years of work in Deloitte Strategy Consulting (promoted)
Worked at a unicorn tech startup for a year in a strategy team
Founded my own startup, after multiple side projects for an year
Currently working at another early-tech startup as a program manager

In the long and short term, I'm looking at entrepreneurship. with short-term flexible to be PM in Business Technology companies

I'm interviewed at Columbia MBAxMS, Cornell Tech MBA, USC Marshall
Waitlisted at NYU Tech MBA.

What should be my R2 strategy. Thinking to go optimistic and target dream schools.
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MBA LiveWire

November 27, 2024 1:46pm ET
Rejected at Washington U. / Olin
Round: Round 1
Received via portal November 27, 2024
GPA: 3.9
Program Type: Traditional Two-Year
Target Career: Operations Management
Application Location: Asia
November 27, 2024 12:44pm ET
Accepted to Washington U. / Olin
Round: Round 2
Received via phone November 27, 2024
GPA: 3.75
GRE: 330
Program Type: Traditional Two-Year
Target Career: Consulting
Application Location: Phoenix
Note:

Consortium and received a full-ride plus a stipend. Interviewed on November 10th and received offer today, November 27th.
I feel very optimistic for Booth and Yale results next week.
November 27, 2024 12:29pm ET
Accepted to Cornell / Johnson
Round: Round 1
Received via portal November 27, 2024
GPA: 3.94
Program Type: One Year Program
Target Career: Technology
Application Location: India
Note:

Interviewed for Cornell Tech MBA program on 13th Nov. GMAT/GRE test waiver.
November 27, 2024 10:41am ET
Accepted to NYU Stern
Round: Round 1
Received via email on November 25, 2024
GMAT: 715
Program Type: Traditional Two-Year
Target Career: Finance
Application Location: India
Note:

Interview on 7/11. Received email regarding a status update. No scholarship
November 27, 2024 10:38am ET
Accepted to Cornell / Johnson
Round: Round 1
Received via email November 27, 2024
GPA: 3.65
Program Type: One Year Program
Target Career: Entrepreneurship
Application Location: New York City
Note:

Interviewed on November 11th. Received admissions offer on November 27th. Applied for Cornell Tech MBA.
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