UPenn / Wharton MBA News

Get the latest MBA news from UPenn / Wharton.

Published: September 29, 2013

Wharton Needs to Better Showcase What’s Right with Wharton

Swirling debate picked up this week in the realm of top MBA programs, fueled by a Wall Street Journal article on Friday entitled, “What’s Wrong with Wharton?” The Journal piece hinged on a notable 12 percent drop in applications to the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School over the past four years. Against a backdrop of gains in application volume by several other top schools in the same time period, Wharton’s drop did seem to beg the question of what’s wrong. The Journal article suggests that behind the falling application volume is the fact that Wharton – with its indisputable strength in finance – didn’t shift quickly enough or significantly enough in the wake of the financial crisis to attract students more drawn to post-MBA careers in fields like technology and entrepreneurship. The Journal also called attention to Wharton’s slide in several top MBA rankings: The Philadelphia school has for the past several years consistently finished behind the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, Harvard Business School and Stanford Graduate School of Business rather than holding steady as one of the top three business schools in the world. Read more

Published: September 19, 2013

UPenn’s Wharton School Teams with Sirius XM to Launch New Business Channel

The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania has partnered with Sirius XM Radio to launch a new full-time radio channel focused on business and management, the school announced earlier this week. “Business Radio Powered by the Wharton School,” as the new channel is called, will feature around-the-clock programming on a wide range of business topics, as well as a live, call-in format giving millions of listeners access to Wharton faculty, alumni and expert guests. Expected to launch in early 2014, Business Radio will broadcast from the Wharton campus and Silicon Valley via satellite on Sirius XM channel 111, through the Sirius XM Internet Radio App on smartphones and other devices and online at siriusxm.com. Programming – targeting business owners, entrepreneurs, executives and would-be entrepreneurs – will feature Wharton professors and alumni as regular weekly hosts, as well as an array of special guests, including executives, entrepreneurs, innovators and other experts. Read more

Published: September 15, 2013

UPenn’s Wharton School Offers Free MBA Foundation Series Classes Online

The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania has added a new series of massive open online courses (MOOCs) covering many of the fundamentals of business and management that students in Wharton’s full-time MBA program learn, taught by the same professors. The first of the Wharton MBA Foundation Series, “An Introduction to Financial Accounting,” begins today. Three other courses make up the new series – introductory courses in operations management, marketing and corporate finance – and all are available via the free online platform Coursera. The new series complements five elective courses already on offer from Wharton via Coursera, including courses on sports business and healthcare. All nine are expected to draw students from around the world, and more than 695,000 students have so far enrolled in a Wharton course, Coursera reports. Read more

Published: September 9, 2013

Shifts in Global Healthcare Increase Intersection between Medicine and the MBA

Entrepreneurship, innovation and cost cutting are increasingly important amid shifts in global healthcare systems, presenting important opportunities for business schools offering healthcare-focused MBA programs, the Financial Times reports. “The healthcare system is about much more than just treating patients,” Steve Chick, head of INSEAD’s Healthcare Management Initiative, told the FT. “The coordination of care is critical and that’s where business schools can play a big role.” Read more

Published: September 5, 2013

Wharton Start-Up Expands to Lend to MBA Students at 20 Top Schools

A company launched last fall by students at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School experienced success in its pilot phase, during which it served as a lender to Wharton MBA students and recent graduates, and so this fall will launch nationally to lend to MBA students at 20 top MBA programs in the United States, the Financial Times reports. Wharton student David Klien is chief executive and co-founder of CommonBond, which last year lent $2.5 million to 40 MBA students and recent graduates from Wharton using funds raised primarily through crowdsourcing. Now, the start-up has raised more than $100 million through debt financing and selling equity. It will expand to offer low-interest loans to MBA students at business schools throughout the country, including Harvard Business School, Stanford Graduate School of Business, Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business, Columbia Business School and others. Read more

Published: August 18, 2013

UPenn’s Wharton School Unveils New MBA Website

Earlier this month, the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania launched a redesigned MBA website, featuring a new look, streamlined content and greater interactivity designed to enhance the experience for prospective applicants. Included among the new features are updated student profiles, a new events calendar and student discussion forums. “We hope that our new website provides you with clearer understanding of the Wharton Difference and how our program may be a good fit for you,” Wharton Director of Admissions and Financial Aid Ankur Kumar wrote in a post to her Notes from the Director blog. Read more

Published: July 15, 2013

Wharton School Receives Large Gift to Permanently Endow Innovation Management Institute

How can decision-makers across industries best manage the risks and rewards of innovation? Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School have been studying that subject for years, and a recent major alumni gift will permanently endow an innovation management institute where that work will continue and expand, the school announced this week. An earlier gift from Wharton alumnus William L. Mack, W’61, and his wife, Phyllis, established the Mack Center for Technological Innovation in 2001, and the couple’s 2013 gift has now transformed the center into the Mack Institute for Innovation Management, Wharton announced today. William Mack, a renowned global real estate and asset manager, was the founder and chairman of AREA Property Partners and today serves as chair of the Mack-Cali Realty Corporation board of directors and the Wharton Board of Overseers. Read more

Published: June 26, 2013

Clear Admit’s Stacey Oyler Discusses Finding the Right MBA Fit with Bloomberg BusinessWeek

In a recent article about finding the right fit in a business school program, Bloomberg BusinessWeek turned to Clear Admit Senior Admissions Counselor Stacey Oyler for some guidance. Oyler, who worked in admissions for Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business and as a recruiter for McKinsey before joining Clear Admit, encouraged prospective applicants not to let a school’s rank in the various MBA rankings overshadow other important considerations. A top-ranked school can help catch recruiters’ eyes, but the school also needs to be the best match for what you want to do, Oyler told Bloomberg BW. “It’s two years and a significant financial investment,” she said. “So take the time to think about fit just as much as rank and reputation.” Read more

Published: May 16, 2013

Wharton MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / Group Interview with Second Year Student / On Campus

The first part of the interview was a group discussion in which candidates shared an investment idea for innovation, one of Wharton’s “pillars.” The interview was completely unstructured – the two second year students who act as moderators sit in the corners of the room and take notes. For approximately 40 minutes, we all discussed our ideas and molded/sculpted one of them into a presentable and workable investment opportunity. Everyone was cordial, respectful and open. Some of the candidates were less succinct but all in all, I felt that everyone was able to get their points across. Certainly not a Read more

Published: April 16, 2013

Dean of UPenn’s Wharton School to Step Down in June 2014

The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania becomes the latest top business school to embark upon a search for a new dean, the school announced today. Dean Thomas S. Robertson, who has led the school since August 2007, will step down as of June 30, 2014. In a letter to the Wharton community, Robertson shared that he will not seek reappointment next year when his term expires but will instead return to the marketing faculty to teach and pursue his research interests. Read more

Published: April 1, 2013

Wharton | San Francisco Students to Host 2nd Annual Social Impact Conference

Later this week, students at Wharton | San Francisco, the West Coast campus of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, will host the Wharton San Francisco Social Impact Conference. The event, which will take place on April 4th, marks one of the first times students at the San Francisco campus have organized and run their own conference. The event this week builds on an inaugural conference students organized last year jointly with the Wharton Social Impact Initiative, the Baker Retailing Center and the Initiative for Global Environmental Leadership. “The half-day event was attended by more than 120 Wharton students, alumni and friends and was a great success,” wrote Raghavan Anand in a Wharton Magazine blog post. “So we decided to continue the tradition, except to organize and run it ourselves this time around,” he continued. Read more

Published: April 1, 2013

Wharton MBA Admissions Interview Questions: R2 / AdCom / Off-Campus Hub

I arrived a bit early in order to make sure that I had the directions for the location right, and thus was able to chat with my fellow team members before the discussion. All of them, even though slightly tense due to the occasion, were very nice and easy to talk to. We were then asked to join the AdCom member in our conference room, where we were seated at a round table (we were able to choose our seat). The AdCom explained that she would not interfere and only notify us when we had (if I remember well) 15 Read more

Published: March 25, 2013

Clear Admit Co-Founders Quoted in National, Local Press on Group Interviews for MBA Admissions

Clear Admit co-founders Graham Richmond and Eliot Ingram contributed to articles this week in both the national and local press, sharing their expertise in the MBA space and advising prospective applicants on how to prepare for the group interview component that some top schools are choosing to include as part of the admissions process. Richmond’s comments appeared in a Bloomberg BusinessWeek article entitled, “How to Stand Out in an MBA Group Interview.” The University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business is the latest top MBA program to require applicants to work as a group as part of the application process, joining Switzerland’s IMD and the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, Bloomberg BW notes. Though the schools are taking this step in an effort to elicit more off-the-cuff responses from applicants, there are still ways to prepare for these new exercises. Read more

Published: March 25, 2013

Wharton MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / Second-year / On-Campus

I didn’t like the new interview (team based interview) because many people didn’t participate fully. Also, many people came up with ideas that were out of this world. There were a lot of different opinions. However, in the end, we came to a solid conclusion. There was no feedback provided — whether that conclusion would hold good. Interview was usual – Why Wharton? Why MBA? Why now? Goals? Questions? What do you do in free time? Read more

Published: March 25, 2013

Wharton MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / Second-year student / On campus

Well I got dinged today 🙁 Really, really tough to swallow as Wharton was my first choice. I can’t help but wonder if it was the TBD that did me in. I did not purchase any prep package, but perhaps should have, as I may have done/said something “wrong.” If so, I really regret it and hope future candidates can learn from my experience since my group wasn’t what seemed to be the more typical super-friendly relaxed group. My topic was “innovation.” Here’s my experience: Unlike the other groups I saw around me, mine was very tense. We spent a Read more

Published: March 13, 2013

Wharton MBA Admissions Interview Questions: R2 / Adcom / Off-Campus Hub

I signed up for a group discussion with 5 other applicants. We had a 35 min talk on how to spend $1M USD in Wharton’s Global Presence. We reached consensum and even got to present our results to the Adcom Rep. Afterwards, my one-on-one interview was very casual an unstructured, the rep told me I had 10 minutes to talk about what I wanted, and so I started to give my Y MBA, Y Now and Y Wharton speech. She then asked me about my hobbies and if i had any questions for her. The time went really fast! Read more

Published: March 11, 2013

Wharton MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2/Adcom/Off campus (London)

It is useful to arrive a little early and get to know your fellow candidates. Goes without saying if there is a drinks reception prior to your scheduled interview, make sure you attend and speak to others about how theirs went. Get some paper and pen as there is often none in the venues. It will also be useful to have a watch to keep time. We were taken to a meeting room and sat round a table. The Adcom member read the prompt and explained the rules, we were meant to discuss the prompt and make a presentation in Read more

Published: March 10, 2013

Wharton MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / On campus

We were told to prepare 3 ideas in 3 different topics for a team-based discussion on campus. When we started, we all gave pitches for our ideas in a topic selected by the students in the room. These students then told us to have a discussion to come up with an idea to present to them at the end. We vetted out our ideas by establishing criterion of which idea would be best. In fact, we didnt use one idea, but fused several ideas to eventually come to a consensus on an idea. Then we separated the idea into categories Read more

Published: March 7, 2013

Wharton MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / A student / On Philly campus

We had the team-based interview, where 5 other students brought in ideas for the scenario of having a $1M grant from Wharton. We were chosen to talk about social innovation. We started discussing our different ideas and then talked about which criteria were the most important to make the highest impact. Some ideas were discarded completely, whereas other ideas were synthesized as we continued our discussion. Some students kept the conversation from moving by insisting on their idea before others. We finally agreed on an idea and prepared a presentation, but we ran out of time before we could present. Read more

Published: March 4, 2013

Wharton MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 2 / Second-year student/ On-campus

The team-based discussion included six interviewees and two admissions fellows. The fellows took notes during the entire session. First, they read the prompt and said they would only interject with timing updates – they also let us decide who would pitch first. We went around the table (not necessarily in order) and each gave an idea. I was lucky to have a great group, which led to a really good discussion. After the team-based discussion, we were called back into the room for the one-on-one. The admissions fellow said that it was a blind interview – they are not given Read more

Published: February 11, 2013

Wharton MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 1 / Second Year / On-Campus

After my group interview, I had a 1-1 interview with a second year student lasting about 10-15 minutes. The whole interview process felt very rushed as the interviewer kept looking at the clock to gauge how much time was left in our interview. I was asked the following questions with no opportunity to really talk about my background: 1. How do you think the group interview went? 2. Tell me about a time you had to convince someone at work 3. What do you want to do at Wharton? 4. What questions do you have for me? Read more

Published: December 16, 2012

Wharton MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round I/Second-year student/on-campus

This was a team-based discussion interview. After I signed up for a date on the website, I received an email with two interview prompts. On the day of the interview one of them was chosen. We went around the room every applicant sharing their ideas about the question and then we had a discussion. Towards the end we needed to summarize our discussion. The other applicants were overall friendly. After this each of us spent 10-15 minutes with one of the second-year students who were observing us. I was aksed the following questions: 1) How do you think the Read more

Published: November 25, 2012

Wharton MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 1 / Second-year student / On-campus

Overall the interview was very laid back and conversational, with fairly standard MBA interview questions. Only a few questions were actually asked, the rest of our time was spent discussing my interviewer’s background, thoughts on the program, best experiences in the program, etc. Questions were: 1. How did you feel the Team-Based Discussion went? 2. Was your behavior in the Team-Based Discussion representative of the way you typically act in group settings? 3. Tell me about a time when you worked in a group in which everyone did not agree and how did your team resolve the situation? Read more

Published: November 20, 2012

Wharton MBA Admissions Interview Questions: Round 1 / Adcom / Webex

My interview was with an adcom member via Webex (like Skype). The interviewer was very friendly and made the atmosphere relaxed and casual. He made it clear up front that the interview was blind. After that we went right into the following questions: 1. Walk me through your resume. 2. Tell me about a time you lead a team and someone was less motivated. 3. Tell me about a time you managed up. 4. Tell me about a time you persuaded someone/the team to do something. 5. Why now? Why Wharton? 6. Do you have Read more

Published: August 27, 2012

Admissions Director Q&A: Ankur Kumar of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania

~A CLEAR ADMIT EXCLUSIVE~ Ankur Kumar, a Wharton alumna, joined the school’s admissions team three and a half years ago. In 2010 she was promoted to run admissions for the MBA program. Kumar, who received her B.S. in finance from Wharton and her B.A. in economics from the College of Arts and Sciences, worked in investment banking and finance before returning to Wharton to pursue her MBA in strategic management. Upon graduation, she went into management consulting. Asked to leave management consulting to join the Wharton admissions team, Kumar jumped at the opportunity to shape the program and have an impact. “For me, this transition was really a chance to leverage the skills I enjoyed about finance and consulting and bring them to a program I feel very strongly about and that is personal to me,” she told us. In particular, her time as a Wharton student helped her appreciate the importance of having a diverse class of students who come from all over the world and bring with them a range of ways of thinking about business, she says. This is something she has pledged to keep top of mind as she brings together Wharton’s future classes. Read more

UPenn / Wharton

CLASS SIZE: 866

Women: 47%

MEAN GMAT: 732

MEAN GPA: 3.7

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

MBA Applywire

November 14, 2024 6:29am ET

Applying: Berkeley / Haas, Columbia, Cornell / Johnson, Dartmouth / Tuck, Duke / Fuqua, Georgetown / McDonough, UVA / Darden

Intake Year: 2025

Pre-MBA Career: Consulting, Capital Project Development (Renewable Energy/CCS)

Post-MBA Target Industry: Investment Banking, Venture Capital, Private Equity, Commercial Banking, Family Business, Entrepreneurship

GMAT: 664

GPA: 2.9

Years of Work Experience: 7

Notes:

Pakistani male, looking to get into the financial services industry short term, and long-term make a significant contribution to the family business or pursue entrepreneurship. Studied engineering from UT Austin for undergrad followed by three jobs (roughly 2 years each) and a nine month break in between job 2 and 3. Planning to take the GMAT again in 3 weeks to offset GPA. Goal score is 695. Mitigating circumstances around GPA are just illness and general family/self issues but doubt they will be very convincing.

November 13, 2024 11:52am ET

Applying: Berkeley / Haas, Columbia, Dartmouth / Tuck, Georgetown / McDonough, Michigan / Ross, UNC Kenan-Flagler, USC / Marshall

Intake Year: 2025

Pre-MBA Career: Real Estate Development Analyst and Acquisitions Project Manager

Post-MBA Target Industry: Private Equity, Family Business, Entrepreneurship Companies: Other

GPA: 3.44

Years of Work Experience: 3

November 13, 2024 3:41am ET

Applying: Berkeley / Haas, Cambridge / Judge, Columbia, Duke / Fuqua, Harvard Business School, MIT Sloan, Oxford / Saïd, Stanford GSB, U. Chicago Booth, UCLA Anderson, UPenn / Wharton, Yale SOM

Intake Year: 2025

Pre-MBA Career: Pharmaceutical

Post-MBA Target Industry: Consulting, Pharmaceutical Companies: AT Kearney , Bain , BCG , McKinsey , Other , Amgen , Astra Zeneca , Johnson & Johnson , Merck , Novartis , Pfizer , Roche

GRE: 329

GPA: 3.1

Years of Work Experience: 4

Location: Tokyo

Post MBA Location: US

November 12, 2024 5:15pm ET

Applying: Columbia, Harvard Business School, MIT Sloan, Stanford GSB, UPenn / Wharton

Intake Year: 2025

Pre-MBA Career: Investment Banking

Post-MBA Target Industry: Technology, Consumer Goods, Entrepreneurship Companies: Amazon , Google , IBM , Microsoft , 3M , Anheuser Busch InBev , LVMH , Mondelez

GPA: 3.6

Years of Work Experience: 2

Location: New York

Post MBA Location: New York

Notes:

I would like to attend a top business school to launch my career as a strong business leader. I am a senior dual major in Information Technology and Business Analytics. I'm involved in greek life at my school and also have founded and quickly grown my school's Finance Club. I will begin my career in investment banking but would like to gain admission to a deferred admission MBA track before I join the workforce.

November 12, 2024 3:30pm ET

Applying: Berkeley / Haas, Dartmouth / Tuck, IESE, Northwestern / Kellogg, U. Chicago Booth, Yale SOM

Intake Year: 2025

Pre-MBA Career: Financial services

Post-MBA Target Industry: Private Equity, Entrepreneurship Companies: Carlyle Group , TPG , KKR

GMAT: 645

GPA: 7/10

Years of Work Experience: 4

Location: Latam

Post MBA Location: USA

Notes:

I have been working in financial services for the past 5 years. I have been promoted in my current job (private credit).

I have been active in volunteering roles throughout my life, especially from grad school and then while working (blood drives, low income kids, and people with different abilities).

I am a father (and provider of my family) which has shaped and inspired my main post MBA goal which is to focus on early childhood development. Alternative is to continue in private markets.

Concerned about low GPA (7.4/10). Not mitigating circumstances; however, I have two bachelor degrees: one in math and one in finance (both heavily quantitative), and both from the top business school in my country.

I got a 645 in my first try at the GMAT FE; will take another shot to try and raise my score to 665-675.

Eager to hear about school selection (my top choices are Yale and Kellogg).

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MBA LiveWire

November 15, 2024 12:47am ET

Accepted to NYU Stern

Round: Round 1

Received via phone November 14, 2024

GMAT: 760

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Target Career: Finance

Note:

Interviewed at 10/22 and got offer call today. Offical offer letter and scholarship information will be updated through portal tomorrow(11/15).

November 15, 2024 12:41am ET

Interview Invite to Berkeley / Haas

Round: Round 1

Received via email on November 12, 2024

GRE: 318

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Target Career: Technology

November 15, 2024 12:19am ET

Waitlisted at NYU Stern

Round: Round 1

Received via portal November 14, 2024

GPA: 3.85

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Target Career: Finance

Application Location: Southeast Asia

November 14, 2024 11:52pm ET

Waitlisted at NYU Stern

Round: Round 1

Received via portal November 14, 2024

GRE: 331

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Target Career: Healthcare

Note:

Waitlisted after interview

November 14, 2024 10:03pm ET

Accepted to NYU Stern

Round: Round 1

Received via phone November 14, 2024

Program Type: One Year Program

Target Career: Technology

Application Location: United States

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