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April Fools

Published: March 31, 2021
Stanford GSB to Eliminate Admissions Essays, Require Video Instead
Palo Alto, CA – Citing a need for the MBA admissions world to modernize its selection process, the Stanford Graduate School of Business has unveiled a substantial change for the 2021-22 admissions cycle. The school will no longer require admissions essays, including its famed ‘What matters most?’ essay. Instead, MBA applicants will need to create a TikTok video. This new component asks applicants to, “Make a first impression on your future classmates by creating a 15-second video on the TikTok platform, preferably set to music.”  Kirsten Moss, the school’s Assistant Dean of MBA Admissions and Financial Aid, offered the following Read more
Published: March 31, 2021
Kellogg School Offers Rejected Applicants Kinder, Gentler Rejection
Evanston, IL – It’s no small secret that applying to leading MBA programs is a stressful process. While some programs take a ‘rip the band-aid off’ approach by delivering admissions decisions en masse, others slowly trickle out interview invitations or calls of congratulations, as applicants painfully sit by and wait. Looking to ease the stress and lessen the sting of rejection, the Kellogg School of Management has taken a rather unorthodox approach to delivering admissions decisions. First, the school has promised a participation trophy for each applicant, to Read more
Published: March 31, 2021
ETS to Rebrand the GRE Test for Business School Applicants; Introduces ‘GreMAT’
Lawrenceville, NJ – Citing an increasing need to serve the growing population of MBA applicants, the Educational Testing Service (ETS) announced a business school-specific rebranding of their Graduate Record Examination (GRE), currently in use for virtually all disciplines of graduate education. ETS Director of Testing Products, Elaine Bennis, offered the following remarks: “While the market for business school has been experiencing significant growth, we were finding that some MBA applicants are reluctant to take the GRE, and we knew the branding needed a bit of a rethink. That’s why we are thrilled to introduce The Graduate Record Examination Management Aptitude Read more
Published: March 31, 2021
The “Association for Student Services, Employment & Success” Targets Clear Admit’s LiveWire
Washington, D.C. – Citing a multi-year study, a leading body of employers and career counselors has filed suit against Clear Admit, arguing that the firm’s LiveWire tool saps productivity amongst recent college graduates working in the professional world. The organization’s director, Martin McFly, stated: “Look, we get it. Young people love all kinds of newfangled social networks and tools, but this MBA LiveWire nonsense goes too far. Many of our members, from McKinsey to Microsoft, have reported that their staff members applying to business school are simply glued to clearadmit.com during work hours.”  Clear Admit’s co-founder, Graham Richmond, offered a Read more
Published: March 31, 2021
UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business to Offer Innovative New MBA Concentration
Berkeley, CA – One of the nation’s leading business schools, famous for its emphasis on innovation, social impact, and strategy, is innovating again. The Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley has introduced a new concentration focusing on the cannabis sector. Courses within the concentration will cover the historical, cultural, economic, political, legal, chemical, medicinal, and spiritual dimensions of cannabis as well as the cultivation of marijuana and hemp and the commercial development of the cannabis industry. Haas Professors Robert Weir and Gerald Garcia, who jointly head up the new concentration, issued the following statement: “It’s time that the management Read more
Published: March 31, 2019
HBS Reinstates Third Round of Admissions to Counter Sluggish Application Volume
Boston, MA – Harvard Business School has been forced to backtrack on a new initiative that was piloted in the 2018-19 admissions cycle: the elimination of school's third admissions round.  Admissions director Chad Losee, who just months ago touted the benefits of moving to a more simplified two-round admissions cycle, announced today that the school was bringing back the third round, effective immediately.  This means that applicants can still apply to HBS for a September 2019 start date by submitting an application before the 21st of April. Read more
Published: March 31, 2019
Leading B-Schools Make This Year’s Acceptance Calls in Reverse Alphabetical Order ‘Just for the Heck of It’
Philadelphia, PA – It’s a well-known fact that many leading schools enjoy congratulating accepted students via telephone, typically just before official admissions decisions are posted online.  Tools like Clear Admit’s MBA LiveWire have lent a great degree of transparency to this process; as applicants report their news in real time and indicate their location.  Of course, applicants often like to speculate about how exactly the admissions teams go about making these calls: Is it by region? By the person that interviewed the applicant? By amount of scholarship dollars awarded? At random? Read more
Published: March 31, 2019
Kellogg to Award Two Full Scholarships for Class of 2021
Evanston, IL — The Kellogg School of Management recently unveiled a special program to award two additional full-tuition scholarships to this year’s incoming class.  The scholarships will actually be offered up in specially marked boxes of Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes and Kellogg’s Sugar Smacks that can be purchased at the campus bookstore during DAK weekend (April 12-14).  Valued at over $140K each, these ‘cereal surprises’ are going to be a serious deal for a couple of incoming Kellogg MBAs. Kellogg’s Dean Sally Blount offered the following explanation for this unorthodox approach: “The idea actually came during a recent team-building weekend for Read more
Published: March 31, 2016
Get Your Admitted Students’ Swag—How One Program Is Getting Creative Wooing Applicants
New Haven, CT (Reuters)—Riding the wave of the Yale School of Management (SOM)’s re-acquaintance with the top 10 in U.S. News & World Report‘s Best Business School Ranking (a five-spot jump over last year), the school’s admissions committee is now going the extra mile in wooing admitted candidates. One SOM admit remarked on MBA LiveWire: “Last week, I got the email from Yale letting me know I’ve been accepted into its MBA program. I couldn’t have been more excited! Then, yesterday, I received a package in the mail. There he was—Admissions Director Bruce Delmonico—in bobblehead form! “We’re really excited about this incoming class,” Read more
Published: March 31, 2016
ETS’ Campus Badly Vandalized—All Signs Point to GMAT Bus
Princeton, NJ (Reuters)—The Educational Testing Service (ETS), makers of the GRE exam and several popular standardized tests, fell victim to vandalism on its lush, Princeton-area campus earlier this week—sustaining significant damage including to its staff-only golf course. It seems that a large vehicle, most likely a bus, drove across several acres of lawns as well as golf course fairways and greens—resulting in tens of thousands of dollars in damages. Police on the scene estimate that the bus was on the grounds for more than 90 minutes in the wee hours of Monday morning, beginning sometime between 2 and 3 a.m. Read more
Published: March 31, 2016
Clear Admit’s MBA LiveWire Killing Productivity Levels in Offices, Admissions Offices Alike
Philadelphia, PA (AP)—MBA LiveWire, Clear Admit’s live ticker of MBA admissions status updates, has been a runaway success—helping keep nervous applicants abreast of everything happening on the admissions scene. “I’m on LiveWire more than I care to admit, hitting refresh continuously to see what’s up,” said current MBA candidate Peter Shelley. “It really helps me keep my finger on the pulse and stay connected with other applicants,” he added. Admissions officers at leading schools also enjoy the handy tool. “I love being able to see what the applicant pool is doing—to feel their collective mood,” said Derrick Bolton, director Read more
Published: March 31, 2016
MIT Sloan School’s New Logo Results in Lawsuit
Cambridge, MA (Knight-Ridder)—Earlier this week, the MIT Sloan School of Management unveiled a new logo designed to bring the school’s “MIT brand” to the fore. “After extensive study and collaborative effort, the logo was designed to reflect the smart, open, grounded and inventive nature of the school,” read an official statement from the school. “One of the distinguishing ways that MIT stands apart from its peer schools is through our relationship with the Institute—a world-class research institution.” Within hours of the new logo’s debut, a lawsuit was filed by the letter ‘I’. In a tersely worded statement, the letter ‘I’ Read more

MBA Applywire

7
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?
10
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
3
November 16, 2024 5:16pm ET
Applying: ESADE, IE Business School, IESE
Intake Year: 2025
Pre-MBA Career: Tech
Post-MBA Target Industry: Technology, Pharmaceutical Companies: Apple , Facebook , Google , Microsoft , Oracle , Johnson & Johnson , Novartis , Pfizer , Roche
GMAT: 525
GPA: 2.79
Years of Work Experience: 4
Post MBA Location: Europe
Notes:

Asian, female, USA. Top 10 Undergraduate school in USA, majored in Biomedical Engineering. Worked for Salesforce, Accenture, and Microsoft within sales department. Major accomplishments within sales roles. Strong personal essays. Letters of Recommendations from direct managers. Founder and held multiple leadership positions in school clubs during Undergrad. Just a really bad test taker and cannot seem to get my scores up no matter how many times I take it specifically in the quant section. American trying to stay in Europe post MBA and only applying to European B-schools.
7
November 15, 2024 9:32am ET
Applying: Cornell / Johnson, Dartmouth / Tuck, Duke / Fuqua, Michigan / Ross, Minnesota / Carlson, UVA / Darden, Yale SOM
Pre-MBA Career: Insurance
Post-MBA Target Industry: Consulting Companies: Bain , BCG , McKinsey , Other
GMAT: 505
GPA: 3.44
Years of Work Experience: 3
Post MBA Location: Midwest, Northeast
Notes:

GMAT Note:
* The score is an unofficial practice test. I am beginning my studies for the real thing now.

Undergrad Majors:
* Economics
* Business Management

Work Experience Notes:
* Insurance experience is at a family business
* I implemented data analytics into business operations since that was not a practice beforehand.
* I help with sales, customer service, bookkeeping, and marketing.

Extracurriculars & Volunteer Activities:
* Worked as an economics research assistant during my undergrad where I consulted public and private entities
* Was part of an economics research project that won a national award for its work in community economic development
* Published 2 university-sponsored economics articles
* During my senior year, I was appointed to a university faculty committee to help plan university award ceremonies and delegate student scholarships
* Won a leadership award from my university
* Economics honor society member
* President of a student club (1 year) and a club's Senior Advisor (1 year)
* Started and led 2 initiatives that installed free smoke alarms in rural area homes (received a leadership award from the American Red Cross for this)
* Ironman triathlete
13
November 14, 2024 8:16pm ET
Applying: Berkeley / Haas, Cambridge / Judge, Columbia, Cornell / Johnson, emlyon, IESE, Imperial, INSEAD, London Business School, Manchester / AMBS, Northwestern / Kellogg, NYU Stern, UPenn / Wharton
Intake Year: 2025
Pre-MBA Career: Hospitality
Post-MBA Target Industry: Consulting, Technology, Consumer Goods, Other Companies: Amazon , Apple , Google , Coca Cola , LVMH , Nestle , Nike
GRE: 326
GPA: 3.46
Years of Work Experience: 6
Post MBA Location: Consultancy
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MBA LiveWire

November 18, 2024 8:54pm ET
Interview Invite to NYU Stern
Round: Round 1
Received via email November 18, 2024
EA: 155
Program Type: Traditional Two-Year
Target Career: Entrepreneurship
Application Location: Brazil
November 18, 2024 5:40pm ET
Rejected at MIT Sloan
Round: Round 1
Received via email on October 27, 2024
GPA: 3.93
GMAT: 720
Program Type: Traditional Two-Year
Target Career: Finance
November 18, 2024 4:47pm ET
Interview Invite to NYU Stern
Round: Round 1
Received via email November 18, 2024
GPA: 4.44/5.0
GRE: 332
Program Type: Traditional Two-Year
Target Career: Technology
Application Location: Nigeria
November 18, 2024 4:47pm ET
Interview Invite to NYU Stern
Round: Round 1
Received via email November 18, 2024
GRE: 326
Program Type: Traditional Two-Year
Note:

Applied Consortium R1
November 18, 2024 4:42pm ET
Interview Invite to NYU Stern
Round: Round 1
Received via email November 18, 2024
GPA: 3.91
GRE: 318
Program Type: Traditional Two-Year
Target Career: Consulting
Application Location: Texas
Note:

Got the invite today from round 1, don’t lose hope!
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