Admissions Tips

Browse our weekly admissions tips, or choose the category most relevant to you: researching, planning, applying, deciding.

Published: July 12, 2017

Making the Most of MBA Admissions Events? Ross Adcom Director Shares Dos and Don’ts

If you’ve met Soojin Kwon, who leads admissions at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business, you know that she doesn’t pull punches. She’s whip-smart, no nonsense, and gets right down to business, whatever the business at hand happens to be. Most recently, on her Admissions Director’s Blog, she offered advice to prospective applicants on dos and don’ts for attending MBA admissions events. In our opinion, her tips are worth heeding whether you’re applying to Ross or any other top school. Soojin Kwon, Ross managing director for full-time MBA admissions Read more

Published: July 10, 2017

MBA ApplyWire Spotlight: Applying to Business School for Consulting

With the launch of Applywire, Clear Admit’s latest tool to aid in your admissions process, we're setting this week’s spotlight on a candidate considering nine MBA programs. This week, we take a closer look at a post from an applicant considering Dartmouth / Tuck, Duke /Fuqua, Harvard Business School, Michigan / Ross, MIT / Sloan, Northwestern / Kellogg, Stanford GSB, Chicago Booth and the Wharton School. Read on for more details about the candidate’s background. Initial feedback tried to steer towards a timeline: Read more

Published: June 28, 2017

Newest AIGAC Survey Unveils Millennial Conflicts

The Association of International Graduate Admissions Consultants (AIGAC) recently released the results of its annual survey, which found that—perhaps unsurprisingly—millennials are not an easy group to pin down. Read more

Published: June 19, 2017

New GMAT Feature Offers Test-Taking Personalization

For hopeful business school students taking the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT), a significant change will be going into effect on July 11, 2017. Previously, those taking the GMAT tackled exam sections in a set order: Analytical Writing Assessment, Integrated Reasoning, Quantitative, and finally the Verbal section. The amendment made by the Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC) offers considerably greater flexibility, giving test-takers some choice in the order in which they complete these tasks. The new GMAT feature, officially titled the Select Section Order, was implemented based on research from GMAC. “GMAC is committed to continuously improving the GMAT Read more

Published: May 25, 2017

Admissions Director Soojin Kwon Shares the Skinny on Ross’s New Application Essays

Soojin Kwon, who leads MBA admissions at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business, began her most recent Director’s Blog by suggesting that things are quiet on campus right now—only to reveal big news about planned changes to its approach to essay questions this year. Soojin Kwon, Ross director of admissions The two are connected, of course. It’s the relatively quiet time—when students jet off for global immersion courses around the world or gear up for summer internships every bit as far flung—that the Admission Committee can finally catch its breath, review its process, and really examine what’s working and where there might be opportunity to change things up a little. Read more

Published: May 1, 2017

New Clear Admit Chat Series Offers Valuable Free Primer for the MBA Admissions Season

Note: You can join the chat in progress here https://www.clearadmit.com/chat/mba-admissions-series/ If you are planning to apply to business school in the coming year, listen up: We’re rolling out a brand-new series of 10 free expert-led chats that together offer a comprehensive overview of the steps successful applicants take in the MBA admissions process. Hosted by Clear Admit’s own Alex Brown—author of Becoming a Clear Admit: The Definitive Guide to MBA Admissions and former senior associate director of admissions at Wharton—each chat in the series will focus in on an individual component of the MBA admissions process. Read more

Published: April 17, 2017

MBA DecisionWire Spotlight: Chicago Booth, Northwestern / Kellogg or UPenn / Wharton for Finance

In this week’s MBA DecisionWire Spotlight, which pulls the admissions results of students and alumni as shared in Clear Admit’s DecisionWire, we round up responses to a candidate considering Northwestern / Kellogg with a scholarship, Chicago Booth or The Wharton School for finance. While the F.C. Austin scholarship from Kellogg sounded lucrative to many, several people chimed in for the other MBA programs, Chicago Booth and the Wharton School. This community member succinctly captured the potential conundrum: Read more

Published: April 11, 2017

Latest Edition of Must-Read Guide to MBA Admissions Just Released

We are pleased to announce the release of the second edition of Becoming a Clear Admit: The Definitive Guide to MBA Admissions. Its author, Clear Admit’s own Alex Brown, brings nearly 25 years of experience in the MBA admissions industry as a consultant, admissions officer, and teacher, including seven years as senior associate director of admissions at the Wharton School. Like the initial version released in August 2016, this updated version of Becoming a Clear Admit offers an insightful guide for anyone approaching the MBA admissions process, one that provides fascinating background and an in-depth overview Read more

Published: March 21, 2017

HBS Admissions Director Encourages Reapplicants

With Round 2 applicants anxiously awaiting the imminent release of decisions from Harvard Business School (HBS) today, this post from January seemed worthy of a reprise. Of course, we know you are all very hopeful that Chad Losee’s words below encouraging rejected applicants to reapply to HBS will prove moot when you get your acceptance at noon. But since that unfortunately simply can’t be the case for everyone, maybe it’s nice to be reminded that one in 10 students in HBS’s class didn’t get in on the first try? Best of luck to you all—whether you’re awaiting word from Read more

Published: March 7, 2017

Application Tip from ASU’s W. P. Carey School: How to Choose the Right Recommenders

Sponsored Content The b-school application process has several components. And while you can complete the majority of the application on your own, the letters of recommendation require a bit more time and consideration. These letters are a key opportunity to distinguish yourself from other candidates, so make sure to get the ball rolling as early as possible in the application process. Opt for Quality Selecting the right people for the job is a crucial step. While it may look impressive to see your CEO’s name on a recommendation letter, unless you worked directly with the CEO, the gaps Read more

Published: February 14, 2017

MBA Admissions Mashup: Harvard’s IFCs & Interning at Amex

Every Wednesday, we share a roundup of the latest news from MBA admissions blogs at the top business schools. This week we take a look at an internship experience at American Express, opportunities to practice newly learned skills in the field and three reasons why applying to business school is like writing a movie script. At Harvard Business School(HBS), students get the opportunity to take what they’ve learned in the classroom and put it into practice out in the real world. In a recent blog post, HBS lists four things you need to know about these Immersive Field Read more

Published: January 25, 2017

Inside the Revamped Ross Admissions Process

As you navigate the MBA application process, do you ever feel like the websites, brochures and talking points for top MBA programs have blended together? Indeed, it has become more important than ever for schools to rely on innovative ways to differentiate themselves. At the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, the carefully curated process of admissions is ever evolving. Director of Admissions Soojin Kwon is known for putting a particularly personal fingerprint on the process, posting videos and written messages to a behind-the-scenes blog throughout the year. Read more

Published: January 24, 2017

HBS Round 2 Interviews Are Almost Here

As 12 p.m. Eastern time steadily approaches, the waning moments of anxiety and anticipation for Round Two interview invites to Harvard Business School are reaching a boiling point. Earlier this week, HBS Managing Director of Admissions and Financial Aid Chad Losee sent out a reminder to all applicants over at the HBS ‘Direct from the Director‘ blog. While nerves may certainly be on high for a host of applicants, Losee reminds everyone not to worry too much if you don’t receive an invite just yet. “Remember,” he writes, “this is only a portion of the interview invites; Read more

Published: December 26, 2016

Admissions Directors Weigh in on Data Forms

In recent weeks we’ve featured a couple of admissions tips focused on the evolving nature of data forms as part of the MBA admissions process. Specifically, we’ve noticed that data forms at many schools have grown more extensive in recent years, in some cases in tandem with a move away from requiring candidates to write as many essays. To get a better understanding of this shift—and how candidates can best approach the data forms—we turned to admissions directors at several business schools to get their input. Read more

Published: December 20, 2016

MBA Admissions Mashup: The Waitlist

Every Wednesday, we share a round-up of the latest news from MBA admissions blogs at the top business schools. Last week was decision week at the top business schools. If you’re one of the lucky ones to receive an admit from one of your target schools, congratulations! However, we know (from MBA LiveWire) that sveral of you received news of being placed on the waitlist. This is why we’re featuring some advice and news on being waitlisted at McCombs and Tuck, a first-hand perspective of the One-Year MBA at Emory / Goizueta, and insight into admits at Michigan Read more

Published: December 15, 2016

Admissions Tip: Planning for Round 2

Now that the bulk of Round 1 decisions are in, we wanted to take the time and look ahead to Round 2. The advice here is relevant for both Round 1 candidates who are considering additional applications in Round 2 as well as for those looking ahead to a later round. As most applicants are targeting multiple schools and still working to narrow down their school selection for Round 2, we wanted to take some time today to stress the importance of taking a deep breath and a step back in order to formulate a general timeline for the coming weeks. Establishing a set Read more

Published: December 4, 2016

Weighing Your MBA Admissions Results

As November has transitioned to December we have now reached ‘decision season’ for R1 applicants. By the third week of December the majority of leading programs will have released MBA admissions decisions for candidates who applied during Round 1. INSEAD and London Business School were first out of the gate several days ago, and Chicago Booth is scheduled to release its decisions on Thursday, December 8, after which we will hear from a host of top schools in rapid succession. Accordingly, MBA LiveWire should witness a significant increase in activity over the next few weeks, as candidates share Read more

Published: October 31, 2016

Deadline for 2017 Forté MBALaunch Program for Women Extended to November 11th

Great news. If you are a woman planning to apply to business school next fall—for enrollment in fall 2018—there’s still time left to take advantage of a great program from the Forté Foundation designed to help you craft the strongest application possible. Forté recently announced that it is extending the deadline for applications for its 2017 Forté MBALaunch Program until November 11, 2016. MBALaunch is a comprehensive 10-month program to guide promising female MBA applicants through each step of the application process, providing both a proven roadmap and an unparalleled support network to help you gain admission to your top school. Created by the Forté Foundation, it is designed to support the organization’s mission of increasing women’s access to business education and the business world at large. Read more

Published: October 24, 2016

Impending MBA Interview? Latest Clear Admit Interview Guides Have All You Need to Prepare

The MBA interview—the nail-biting, stomach-churning, sleep-robbing, suit-demanding component of the MBA application process that ties some applicants up in knots—is upon us. But there’s no reason to fret: not with Clear Admit’s in-depth Interview Guide Series as part of your arsenal. Providing expert advice and insider tips on what to expect and how to prepare, these guides are ready and waiting to help you conquer your jitters and ace your interview. Maybe you’re among the lucky ones who has already received an interview invite from your top choice business school (Harvard Business School and U. Chicago Booth to name a couple)? We’ve also heard—via the MBA LiveWire—that invites are rolling out from places like Columbia Business School (CBS), Cambridge’s Judge School, Duke’s Fuqua School and INSEAD. Of course, with more candidates set to receive Round 1 decisions in the coming weeks, the interview invitation madness has just begun. Read more

Published: October 11, 2016

MBA Admissions Mashup: Round 1 Next Steps

Every Wednesday, we share a round-up of the latest news from MBA admissions blogs at the top business schools. MBA applicants around the world have hit submit on their Round 1 applications or are planning ahead for Round 2. Several of you have already heard back from the likes of HBS, Chicago Booth, LBS, Yale, and more. This week we’re devoting the mashup to those of you that are anxiously waiting on some news — may it be good or bad (because closure). In a week and a half Read more

Published: October 3, 2016

MBA Applicant Waitlisted?!# Now What?

Welcome back to our 10-part series, in which we share an excerpt from the recently published book Becoming a Clear Admit: The Definitive Guide to MBA Admissions, with added commentary from its author, Alex Brown. In this ninth part of the series, we look at what you can do if you end up on a school’s waitlist. Book Excerpt: What to Do if You Are Waitlisted You should follow the rules provided by the school about how to follow up. A very few schools, like Harvard and Wharton, ask for no follow up other than a signal that Read more

Published: September 18, 2016

Declare Your Love (and Explain It)

With Round One already under way for a number of programs, it’s the time of year when many applicants are working hard on their application essays and learning more about their target programs in the process of rounding out their “why are you pursuing an MBA/why [insert school name here]” discussions. Keeping this important component of the MBA admissions process in mind, we wanted to take the time today to offer some advice on how to polish this element of one’s file and get the most mileage out of this section. MBA Admissions is Personal Schools look for applicants who seem Read more

Published: August 28, 2016

Admissions Tip: 10 Basic Essay Writing Rules

Before you complete your MBA application essays, it is worth noting the context within which they will be read. The adcom will be reading many essays in a short period of time. They may not have as much time as they’d like to reflect deeply on your content and ‘connect the dots.’ They will be trying to make subjective decisions in order to make recommendations regarding whether to offer interviews or admissions, the easy call, or whether to deny, which is a final, and often more difficult, call. Given that, there are 10 basic rules that you should follow (in no particular Read more

Published: August 24, 2016

Yale SOM Class of 2018 Shows Increasing Diversity, GMAT Scores

Up, up, up might be the best way to describe the incoming class at Yale School of Management (SOM) this year. The median GMAT score jumped to 730, up from last year’s 720, and the average GMAT rose from 722 last year to 725 this year. Women make up 43 percent of the Class of 2018, up from 40 percent last year. U.S. students of color comprise 28 percent of this year’s incoming MBAs (including 13 percent underrepresented minorities), compared to 22 percent (and 10 percent URMs) a year ago. And close to half (46 percent) of the Class of 2018 hold passports from a country other than the United States. (The school changed how it defines international students this year to include U.S. dual citizens and permanent residents, believing that to be more in line with how other schools are reporting this number and with guidelines issued by the Graduate Management Admission Council, DelMonico notes.) “The group that arrived on campus is as diverse and accomplished as any we have welcomed to New Haven,” wrote Bruce DelMonico, assistant dean for admissions, in a post to the Yale SOM MBA blog last week welcoming students to orientation. Read more

Published: August 21, 2016

Savvy MBA Application Strategy: How Many Apps, Which Schools, When to Apply

You’ve decided the MBA is the next stop on your career path. What now? The smartest applicants are those who take the time to create an informed MBA application strategy—a well thought-out game plan that can help you obtain your goals as efficiently and effectively as possible. One of the first challenges you’ll face is school selection—strategically choosing which schools to target, bearing in mind the competitive mix of those schools. In recent years, MBA applicants appear to be trending downward in terms of the total number of schools to which they apply. Where applying to five to seven Read more

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 23, 2024 12:41am ET

Accepted to SMU Cox

Round: Round 1

Received via email November 22, 2024

GPA: 3.6

GRE: 331

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Target Career: Marketing

Application Location: Delta, Nigeria

November 22, 2024 11:09pm ET

Accepted to NYU Stern

Round: Round 1

Received via portal November 22, 2024

GPA: 3.65

Program Type: One Year Program

Target Career: Technology

Application Location: NY

Note:

Submitted on 9/1, interview invite on 10/8, interviewed on 10/30. No phone call but portal updated on 11/22 around 1pm est. No scholarship..

November 22, 2024 8:42pm ET

Accepted to SMU Cox

Round: Round 1

Received via phone November 22, 2024

GPA: 3.9

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Target Career: Consulting

Application Location: Mississippi

November 22, 2024 8:34pm ET

Rejected at SMU Cox

Round: Round 1

Received via portal on November 21, 2024

GPA: 3.89/4

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Target Career: Consulting

Application Location: Asia

November 22, 2024 8:33pm ET

Accepted to Georgia Tech / Scheller

Round: Round 1

Received via email November 22, 2024

GPA: 3.76

GRE: 329

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Target Career: Technology

Application Location: Pakistan

Note:

Accepted with Full GRA

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