Berkeley / Haas MBA News

Get the latest MBA news from Berkeley / Haas.

Published: February 14, 2016

New Startup Marketplace Matches Haas MBA Students, Scientists Via Speed Dates

MBA students at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business have been taking part in speed dating of sorts with faculty and scientists at the University of California San Francisco’s School of Pharmacy. Have no fear—this is not a story about anti-fraternization policy violations or scandal. Instead, it’s a tale of creative matchmaking that gives Haas students valuable experience with early-stage science startups that need their business know-how. Read more

Published: February 11, 2016

Tops for Tech: The Best Business Schools for Careers in Technology

Here’s a fact you may not have known: Several of today’s leading technology innovators share one thing in common—a Montessori education. Yep, Google’s Larry Page and Sergei Brin, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, and SimCity creator Will Wright were all educated as children using the self-directed, hands-on, collaborative teaching model developed by Italian doctor and educator Maria Montessori. Alas, though, not a single one has an MBA—so perhaps not a very useful factoid when you’re trying to determine the best business schools for a career in technology. Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, Microsoft’s Bill Gates, Apple’s Steve Jobs, Michael Dell, Biz Stone of Twitter—none of them has an MBA either. And Facebook second-in-command Sheryl Sandberg, who does have an MBA from Harvard Business School, is famously on record recently saying the degree isn’t necessary for success in tech. Nevertheless, a growing tide of students are looking to use business school as their launch pad to successful careers in tech—and the top tech firms, including those founded by non-MBAs, are snapping them up. Read more

Published: February 7, 2016

Berkeley / Haas Interview Report: Round 2 / Alumnus / Off-campus

The following Berkeley / Haas interview report was submitted to Clear Admit by a Round 2 applicant. I interviewed with a recent Haas alum at a local restaurant. The interview was conversational and the interviewer was very friendly. It lasted about an hour. Pretty standard questions, nothing too surprising. Questions: 1. Tell me about yourself. (asked a few additional questions about college and my job along the way.) 2. Why an MBA? 3. Why Haas? 4. Do you know the defining principles? Explain how you identify with 1 or 2 of them. 5. Tell me 3 things Read more

Published: January 25, 2016

Choosing a Business School for Entrepreneurship

Typing “startups are hard” into Google returns approximately 32 million results—ranging from “Startups Are Hard in 100 Different Ways” to “15 Reasons Startups Are !@#$ing Hard.” Perhaps that has a little something to do with why more and more savvy entrepreneurs are choosing top business schools as their training ground. With expanding entrepreneurship curricula, cool campus startup accelerators and ever increasing numbers of business plan competitions—to say nothing of the all-important access to powerful networks of potential investors—the MBA is becoming the preferred path for many would-be founders. Read more

Published: December 29, 2015

ENTREPRENEURSHIP@ Haas: MBA Grads Seek Entrepreneurial Ventures in Record Numbers

The Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley shared employment statistics for its full-time MBA Class of 2015 earlier this month, revealing that a record number of graduating MBAs are actively pursuing their own ventures straight out of school. This year, 31 graduates—representing 12.5 percent of the class—are launching startups ranging from platforms for on-demand health services, global money transfer and student loans to a financial instrument designed to help fight drought and wildfires. Last year, just six grads set out to launch their own ventures immediately upon graduation. The five-fold increase in student founders, combined with another 14.5 percent of 2015 grads who took jobs at startups, “reflects the growing strength of the entrepreneurial ecosystem at Haas, UC Berkeley and the Bay Area,” according to a Haas press release. Read more

Published: December 21, 2015

Berkeley / Haas Interview Report: Round 1 / Alumnus / On-Campus

The following Berkeley / Haas interview report was submitted to Clear Admit by a Round 1 applicant who was admitted. Congratulations to them! I was paired with a recent alum (’14) with a similar background in international development. She had only reviewed my résumé, and asked me pretty standard get-to-know-you questions at the onset. We talked through my career and community leadership experience thus far, and then jumped right to “Why Haas?” She prodded specifically at which classes I wanted to take right away and which seemed like they’d be the most challenging given my non-traditional background. She Read more

Published: December 2, 2015

Haas Dean Breaks Out Guitar, Channels Paul Simon to Spur Record Fundraising

To encourage members of the UC Berkeley-Haas School of Business community to take part in a campus-wide online fundraiser last month, the school’s dean broke into song. A music video of Haas Dean Rich Lyons playing guitar and singing “I’m going to Haasland” to the tune of Paul Simon’s “Graceland” helped Haas raise a record $700,000 as part of the UC Berkeley-wide 2015 Big Give on November 19th. The Big Give is a 24-hour, campus-wide online fundraiser now in its second year, in which different schools on the UC Berkeley campus engage in friendly rivalry in an effort to best one another in terms of how much money they can drum up for their own schools. With 561 gifts in all, Haas donors this year topped last year’s total of $561,000 and came in second overall among all schools and departments, just behind the College of Engineering. Haas got an additional $22,600 in extra "Big Slice" funds for its second-place finish. In all, the Big Give elicited 8,148 gifts totaling $5.5 million. Read more

Published: November 11, 2015

Haas Joins Global Network for Advanced Management, Connecting Students Across Continents

This post has been republished in its entirety from its original source, metromba.com. UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business has become the 28th member of the Global Network for Advanced Management (GNAM), an initiative launched at Yale University School of Management that connects students and faculty to peers across the world. Launched by Yale School of Management Dean Edward Snyder in 2012, GNAM offers members the opportunity to learn and to network in a global community. Read more

Published: November 1, 2015

Admissions Tip: Submitting Additional Materials

For those of you who applied in Round 1, your applications are now submitted and you are ideally hearing from some of your target schools regarding interview invites. You should be feeling good about all the work you put in and are perhaps even a bit excited about any upcoming interview opportunities, but something is nagging at you. Ever since you clicked ‘submit’ in the online applications, you feel you now have less control over the process. As one applicant put it: “It’s like a black hole, an emptiness – you race to submit everything and have all this energy Read more

Published: October 13, 2015

UC Berkeley’s Haas School Pours New Resources into Entrepreneurship

The Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley, already one of the highest-ranked business schools in the world for entrepreneurship, is doubling down in support of students with the startup itch. Haas Dean Rich Lyons announced yesterday that the school will provide $100,000 in seed funding for Haas student startups this year, part of an umbrella effort designed to enhance offerings for both MBA and undergraduate students interested in entrepreneurship. “Our student entrepreneurs are already thriving within the Berkeley-Haas and Bay Area startup ecosystem,” Lyons said in a statement. “This new effort will continue to build on and expand that success, creating a new generation of leaders who will be mixing with alumni and giving back to the entrepreneurial ecosystem.” Read more

Published: September 15, 2015

Haas School Partners with Philanthropy University to Offer Free “Mini MBA” for Social Impact Leaders

The Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley, in partnership with UK-based charity Stars Foundation, has launched an innovative new online education platform that will provide free courses in leadership and management to hundreds of thousands of people and organizations working toward social good, the school announced earlier this month. Coined Philanthropy University, the first-of-its-kind learning platform will feature a range of dynamic online classes taught by renowned professors and social impact practitioners from around the world. It is the brainchild of Amr Al-Dabbagh, a Saudi businessman and founding chairman of the Stars Foundation, which since 2001 has been investing in organizations working to address the issues faced by disadvantaged children and their communities. Read more

Published: August 30, 2015

Haas Welcomes New Class with Multiple Week Zero Surprises

Orientation week at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business—better known as Week Zero—was chock full of surprises for the 246 incoming students in the full-time MBA Class of 2017. For starters, while working on their very first case study on Virgin America, the students got a shock when Virgin America CEO David Cush walked into the auditorium. Who better to learn from about the company’s decision to enter the airline market? Discussing the move made by Virgin Group founder Richard Branson in 2007, Cush described the decision—which was based on Branson’s belief that airlines were poorly run and flights were too expensive. Amid intense competition and despite a rocky start, the company is taking on the big airlines and adding new destination cities, he said, and has moved from the bottom quartile to the top half of airlines. Students then got to quiz Cush on the company’s culture, how it hires, its strategy for innovation and the challenges it still faces. Read more

Published: August 20, 2015

Percentage of Female MBA Students at Haas Dips Slightly, but Total Number of Women in Program Reaches New High

The Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley last year made headlines when it enrolled a record-setting 43 percent women in its incoming class, besting all other leading business schools and representing a 14-point gain over the year before, when female MBA students at Haas made up just 29 percent of the class. This year, Haas saw a slight decline in women in its incoming class—to 41 percent. But combined with the women in last year’s class, the program as a whole now counts more total women than ever before, the school points out. Overall, the full-time MBA program still hovers at almost 43 percent female, making it a frontrunner for top MBA programs. “School and student leaders say the class composition both reflects and builds on their push for gender equity,” read a recent article on the Haas website. Read more

Published: July 28, 2015

Haas-Accenture Partnership Creates New Big Data Curriculum

From financial services to retail to utilities, companies in an ever-increasing range of industries are exploring and implementing big data and analytics. To equip its MBAs with the tools they need to understand how data science stands to transform business, the Haas School at the University of California at Berkeley has forged a new partnership with global management consulting, technology and outsourcing company Accenture. Together, they have launched a multi-phase initiative designed to position big data squarely within the Haas curriculum. “Today, every company is a technology company, every company is a software company, every company is a data company,” says Gregory La Blanc, a finance and technology lecturer at Haas. “To be successful, our students need to know how to navigate the strategic landscape in a world filled with all this data.” Read more

Published: July 20, 2015

Citi CIO Debby Hopkins Named Haas’ Newest Executive Fellow

This post has been republished in its entirety from its original source metromba.com. The Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley recently named Citi Chief Innovation Officer (CIO) Debby Hopkins as Haas’ newest executive fellow. Hopkins, who is also CEO of Citi Ventures, is returning to Haas in this new role after speaking as part of the Haas Dean’s Speaker Series in 2012. “Debby is a trailblazer, continuing to question the status quo in her industry,” Haas Dean Rich Lyons said in a statement. “Her views on innovative leadership and social enterprise deeply resonate with our school's identity—we're thrilled to welcome her back.” Read more

Published: July 9, 2015

Seven Schools Join Forces for Events Focused on Women in Business School

Starting next week, seven leading business schools will host a series of events around the country designed to showcase the value of the MBA for women and the experiences of women in business school. Participating schools include Michigan’s Ross School, the Haas School at UC Berkeley, Cornell Johnson, UVA’s Darden School, Duke’s Fuqua School, NYU Stern and the Yale School of Management. Admissions representatives and alumnae from all the schools will gather for each of five events, scheduled for Chicago, Washington, DC; New York City, Boston and San Francisco. The events will each feature a panel discussion in which female alums from each school will discuss the implications and value of an MBA degree for women in business today. Participants will also have an opportunity to meet fellow prospective applicants, network with alumnae, get tips on the application process and learn more about life on campus and recruiting. Read more

Published: June 30, 2015

NYU Stern Ranked Number One in Support of LGBTQ MBA Students

Last week’s momentous Supreme Court ruling on marriage equality helped more people than ever before feel like the United States is a great place to be part of the LGBTQ community. Maybe it got you wondering about which business schools are the best places to be part of that community? As it turns out, there’s a ranking for that. And this year, New York University (NYU) Stern School of Business soared to the top, winning recognition for getting more of its student body involved to help foster an LGBTQ-inclusive campus culture than any other top business school. The MBA Ally Challenge rankings, released in June, are the culmination of a year-long competition launched by nonprofit organization Friendfactor as part of an effort to encourage straight people to become visible and active allies in their workplace and campus communities. Twenty-three schools participated this year, shattering prior records. Together, the business schools involved 9,000 students as allies—more than double last year’s participation of 4,300—and hosted more than 280 events and activities. Collectively, the schools improved LGBTQ inclusiveness on campuses by 30 percent based on measures taken at the beginning and again at the end of the school year, Friendfactor reports. Read more

Published: June 18, 2015

Berkeley Haas Center Expands Social Sector Leadership Focus

A new name and a new logo help trumpet the expanded mission of a center devoted to advancing social sector leadership at the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business. Previously known as the Center for Nonprofit and Public Leadership, the renamed Center for Social Sector Leadership (CSSL) seeks to help develop a new generation of business leaders focused on fostering social impact across the public, private and nonprofit sectors, the school reports. “The future requires collaboration between these sectors, and Berkeley-Haas is arguably the best place to define how this next generation of problem solving works,” Ben Mangan, executive director of the rechristened Center for Social Sector Leadership, said in a statement. The center focuses on training MBA students to become multi-sector leaders, helping them build skills that will serve them as corporate leaders, public advisors and members of nonprofit and social enterprise boards. Read more

Published: April 30, 2015

Business School Students Join Forces to Send Relief to Nepal

Yesterday, a student at Oxford’s Saïd Business School challenged her fellow students to donate to a fundraising campaign for victims of the Nepal earthquake, pledging to personally match every dollar raised in the next seven days, up to $20,000. Today, the school is already 24 percent toward its goal, having raised $4,875. Elsewhere around the country and the world, business school students are likewise putting their money where their mouths are. Still others are pitching in with person power and organizing know-how, helping bring much needed relief to a nation devastated by a 7.8-magnitude earthquake feared to have affected some 8 million people or more. April Chapman, who pledged to match funds raised by the students in Saïd’s Diploma in Strategy and Innovation program, said that social media posts and emails began to fly as soon as the news broke, and her cohort immediately decided that raising an immediate financial gift would be the best way to make a difference. Chapman serves as co-chair of the World Vision Innovation Fund, a faith-based humanitarian development and relief organization serving the poor in more than 100 countries. World Vision’s staff in Nepal, along with staff mobilized from other countries, are delivering temporary shelters, food, hygiene kits, water, emergency health and protection for children, according to a release from the organization. Read more

Published: March 23, 2015

Berkeley Haas MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / First-Year Student / On Campus

The following UC Berkeley Haas MBA admissions interview questions were provided by an applicant: Blind interview with a first year Haas student on campus. It was a relaxed environment and overall felt very conversational. Read more

Published: March 19, 2015

Berkeley Haas MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 1 / Alumnus / Off-campus

The following UC Berkeley Haas MBA admissions interview questions were provided by an applicant: The interview was more laid-back than most (compared to Sloan and Booth). It was a blind interview, all the alum had was my resume, and as such, the interview was based mostly off of my resume. The interview lasted almost an hour but was mostly conversational. I left with a better idea about Haas's culture and I think the goal was to determine whether or not I would fit in with the culture (know Haas's principles well and try to apply those to your as many of your responses). While the interviewer did ask follow-up questions, I wouldn't call any of them probing. At the end of the interview, I was given a good description of the alumnus's experience at Haas and he definitely did his best to sell the program. Overall it was an enjoyable experience. I was accepted. Read more

Published: March 19, 2015

Berkeley Haas MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / Alumnus / On Campus

The following UC Berkeley Haas MBA admissions interview questions were provided by an applicant: I received an invitation to Haas' February Super Saturday on-campus event back in January. The current students who facilitated the various sessions throughout the day were very outgoing, friendly and engaged. It felt like a very inclusive, collaborative campus filled with students who truly enjoyed and believed in the school and program. It was very intimate; Haas' small size is no secret, so that was no surprise. Read more

Published: March 16, 2015

Berkeley / Haas Interview Report: Round 2 / Alumnus / On Campus

The following Berkeley / Haas interview report was submitted to Clear Admit by a Round 2 applicant. Good luck to them! I received an invitation to Haas’ February Super Saturday on-campus event back in January. The current students who facilitated the various sessions throughout the day were very outgoing, friendly and engaged. It felt like a very inclusive, collaborative campus filled with students who truly enjoyed and believed in the school and program. It was very intimate; Haas’ small size is no secret, so that was no surprise. Due to the volume of students visiting for the event, we were separated into four Read more

Published: February 24, 2015

New Director Reinvigorates UC Berkeley Business Startup Accelerator

A Haas alumna and entrepreneur who has led several startups of her own has taken over as executive director of SkyDeck, the startup accelerator at the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business, the school reported this month. Caroline Winnett, MBA ’90, who served most recently as founder and CEO of a neuroscience-inspired marketing company called BrandNeuro, met with Dean Rich Lyons because she wanted to run an accelerator program at Berkeley-Haas. Voila. She got her wish, joining as executive director of SkyDeck in November 2014. Read more

Published: December 9, 2014

Construction Begins on $60 Million Student Building at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business

A magnificent new building devoted entirely to student learning and interaction is now under construction at the University of California at Berkeley’s Haas School of Business, scheduled to open in fall 2016, Berkeley Dean Rich Lyons announced last week. Called the North Academic Building, the six-story, 80,000-square-foot structure will cost $60 million, funded with private donations from alumni and friends of the school. Designed to serve as a “learning laboratory,” the new building will feature state-of-the art technology, flexible spaces, many group study areas and a large event space with views of the San Francisco Bay. The student-centric facility will hold no administrative offices. Read more

Berkeley / Haas

Class Size: 295

Women: 42%

MEdiAN GMAT: 730

MEAN GPA: 3.65

Livewire Decisionwire Interview Reports Essay Topic Analysis MBA Admissions Deadlines View Full Profile

MBA Applywire

November 20, 2024 9:42pm ET

Applying: Babson / Olin, , Carnegie Mellon / Tepper, Emory / Goizueta, Rice / Jones, Rochester / Simon, SMU Cox, UCI Merage, Washington U. / Olin

Intake Year: 2025

Pre-MBA Career: Technology - Entrepreneurship

Post-MBA Target Industry: Consulting, Technology, Entrepreneurship

GRE: 333

GPA: 2.56

Years of Work Experience: 5

Location: Lagos

Notes:

I just got rejected for WashU Olin and I have an interview invitation with Questrom. GPA continues to bother me but I addressed it in my supporting essays.

November 19, 2024 12:51pm ET

Applying: Berkeley / Haas, Cornell / Johnson, Dartmouth / Tuck, Duke / Fuqua, INSEAD, Michigan / Ross, MIT Sloan, Northwestern / Kellogg, U. Chicago Booth, UPenn / Wharton, Yale SOM

Intake Year: 2025

Pre-MBA Career: Tech in government

Post-MBA Target Industry: Consulting, Entrepreneurship Companies: Bain , McKinsey

GRE: 319

GPA: 2.9

Years of Work Experience: 7

Notes:

I got cancer when I was undergrad that's why my undergrad GPA is low. After MBA I want to work in consulting then make a social impact in Africa through entrepreneurship

November 19, 2024 12:06pm ET

Applying: Duke / Fuqua, Harvard Business School, Michigan / Ross, Northwestern / Kellogg, Stanford GSB, U. Chicago Booth, U. Washington / Foster, UNC Kenan-Flagler, UT Austin / McCombs, UVA / Darden

Pre-MBA Career: Wealth Management and Military

Post-MBA Target Industry: Consulting, Asset Management, inc. HF, Other Companies: Bain , BCG , Deloitte , McKinsey , Goldman Sachs , JP Morgan Asset Management , State Street , Vanguard

GPA: 3.80

Years of Work Experience: 7

Location: San Diego

Post MBA Location: Chicago, Seattle, Minneapolis, Charlotte

Notes:

UG Degree: BBA Financial Markets at an Accredited Institution.

Civilian Work History: 3 years as Wealth Advisor under an RIA in Minneapolis and Denver. Total AUM of ~$350-400M, served as a salaried advisor in a primary and secondary capacity. Holistic services to include investment management, estate planning, retirement planning, insurance planning, tax planning, etc.

Military History: 4 years as a supply/logistics officer heading efforts for air/ground mobility, defense contracting, supply and procurement, and fiscal budget management while located at various bases within CONUS and multiple forward deployed locations.

Professional Certifications: Obtained Certified Financial Planner designation (2022) and Series 65 (2019).

November 18, 2024 12:50am ET

Applying: Columbia, Dartmouth / Tuck, Duke / Fuqua, Emory / Goizueta, NYU Stern, UNC Kenan-Flagler, Yale SOM

Intake Year: 2025

Pre-MBA Career: Consulting

Post-MBA Target Industry: Investment Banking Companies: Bank of America , Barclays , Citibank , Credit Suisse , Goldman Sachs , JP Morgan Chase

GRE: 323

GPA: 3.32

Years of Work Experience: 7

Notes:

Education:
- Combined Major in Economics and Statistics
- CFA Charterholder (passed all three levels on the first attempt)

Professional Experience:
- Manager at a Big 4 firm Specializing in capital projects and infrastructure, with a role similar to investment banking
- Seven years of experience, mainly in financial services in Ghana

Extracurricular Activities:
- Pro bono capital-raising services for SMEs
- Aspiring to run a full advisory firm for SMEs in the future
- CFA exam coaching and tutorial classes for candidates
- Founder of a travel and tour club offering affordable trips to explore beautiful and historic scenes in Ghana

Will being 32 years old affect the attractiveness of my candidacy?

November 17, 2024 9:24am ET

Applying: Columbia, , Georgetown / McDonough, Harvard Business School, INSEAD, NYU Stern, Oxford / Saïd, Stanford GSB, UCLA Anderson, Yale SOM

Pre-MBA Career: Higher Education

Post-MBA Target Industry: Consulting, Technology, Investment Banking, Venture Capital, Private Equity, Media, Undecided Companies: Bain , BCG , McKinsey , JP Morgan , Morgan Stanley , JP Morgan Chase , Apple , Google , Microsoft , Andressen Horowitz , Charles River , Sequoia Capital , Blackstone , KKR , 21st Century Fox , Comcast , Walt Disney

GPA: 3.97

Years of Work Experience: 5

Location: Denver, Colorado

Post MBA Location: New York City

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MBA LiveWire

November 21, 2024 10:36am ET

Accepted to Cornell / Johnson

Round: Round 1

Received via phone November 21, 2024

GPA: 3.5

GMAT: 760

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Target Career: Finance

Application Location: United States

November 21, 2024 4:51am ET

Waitlisted at NYU Stern

Round: Round 1

Received via portal on November 19, 2024

GPA: 3.54

GRE: 331

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Target Career: Consulting

Application Location: Nicaragua

Note:

Waitlisted without interview. How can I flip this in my favour?

November 21, 2024 3:13am ET

Accepted to Washington U. / Olin

Round: Round 1

Received via email November 20, 2024

GPA: 3.81

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Target Career: Finance

Application Location: Los Angeles

Note:

100K scholarship!

November 20, 2024 11:49pm ET

Interview Invite to Berkeley / Haas

Round: Round 1

Received via email November 20, 2024

GMAT: 645

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Note:

Consortium

November 20, 2024 9:20pm ET

Interview Invite to Dartmouth / Tuck

Round: Round 1

Received via portal on September 04, 2024

GPA: 3.74

GRE: 311

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Target Career: Consulting

Application Location: Tampa, FL

Note:

Applied early enough to guarantee interview.

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