MBA Feature

Published: October 11, 2017

20th Annual Reaching Out LGBTQ MBA Conference Arrives in Boston

The ROMBA LGBTQ MBA and Graduate Student Conference, the largest annual gathering of LGBTQ graduate school students in the world, takes place Boston this week, running from October 12th through 14th. It is presented by Reaching Out MBA (ROMBA), a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping create the next generation of out business leaders by educating, inspiring, and connecting the student and alumni LGBTQ MBA and graduate studies communities. The 20th annual three-day conference offers thousands of attendees an incredibly unique opportunity to connect and expand their careers with a close-knit and inclusive community. Included in the ever-expanding Read more

Published: October 10, 2017

To Be Out—or Not to Be Out—in Your MBA Application?

In honor of National Coming Out Day—October 11th—we thought we’d tackle a thorny question faced by some applicants to leading business schools: To be out—or not to be out—in your MBA application? In recent years, increasing numbers of top business schools have given applicants the opportunity to disclose their sexual orientation as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer (LGBTQ) as part of their application if they so choose. But what are the pros and cons of doing so? To find out, we spoke with admissions directors at schools all over the country to get their input. The overwhelming consensus, we found, was that there are multiple positives and few, if any, negatives to sharing your sexual orientation as part of the application process provided you feel comfortable doing so. This is not to say that anyone should feel pressured to disclose anything that they are not personally comfortable sharing—just that those who feel inclined to share shouldn’t have any hesitation from an admissions standpoint. Read more

Published: October 10, 2017

Beyond Business School: Michigan Ross MBA Alum Joins Shark Tank as Guest Shark

To kick off the second half of the season 9 premiere of ABC’s Shark Tank, Rohan Oza, a ’97 University of Michigan Ross School of Business MBA, joined the panel of judges as a guest. Oza is an entrepreneur who has found incredible success in the food and beverage industry. Today, he’s dubbed as “Hollywood’s Brandfather” and is considered a global pioneer of celebrity equity deals that have transformed many consumer products into household names. Read more

Published: October 9, 2017

Social Impact MBAs: Programs That Help Students Make a Difference in the World

For years, social impact has been a growing area of emphasis at business schools. Increasingly, MBA students are stating that a well-paying career isn’t enough: They also want to make a difference. As Sherryl Kuhlman, the managing director of the Social Impact Initiative at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, told U.S. News & World Report: “Our students want to make the world go round in a different way. [They are no longer willing to] take a job they don't like so they can give their money away later. They want to merge the money and the purpose." MBA programs incorporate social impact into their programs in various ways, through global experiences, coursework, clubs, competitions, and more. MBA students may also have opportunities to team up with corporations, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations to get hands-on experience during their graduate studies. So if you’re interested in social impact, what opportunities should you look for within an MBA program? Read more

Published: October 8, 2017

Chicago Booth Professor Awarded Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics

For his contributions to behavioral economics, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences honored Richard H. Thaler with the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2017. Thaler is a professor of behavioral science and economics at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Read more

Published: October 8, 2017

Understanding the MBA Admissions Interview – Part I

With Harvard Business School (HBS) issuing its Round 1 interview invitations last week, the MBA admissions world is buzzing about one thing: INTERVIEWS. HBS, of course, is not alone. At Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business, which features applicant-initiated interviews, hopeful candidates have been traipsing back and forth to Hanover already for several weeks. With so much interview anxiety in the air—and knowing that it only stands to build from here—we’ve decided to devote this week at Clear Admit to all things interview, introducing a series we Read more

Published: October 8, 2017

LBS Alumni Gather for Worldwide Alumni Celebration in London

On September 28th, the same week that London Business School (LBS) officially opened its new Sammy Ofer Centre, LBS alumni from around the world gathered together for a Worldwide Alumni Celebration (WAC) event. This was just one of approximately 85 WAC events that take place around the globe in locations such as Madrid, Melbourne, Jakarta, Lima, and Los Angeles. The recent London WAC drew 300 alumni from multiple industries to discuss innovation in a new world environment. The London WAC event was covered in a university press release, which discussed the three main speakers who kicked it off. Read more

Published: October 5, 2017

Fridays from the Frontline: A Veteran and Family Man Chose Wharton—Here’s Why

Today’s Fridays from the Frontline comes to us from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and features a recent alumnus, George Dutile, who graduated last spring and now works in private wealth management for Goldman Sachs in New York. Dutile came to Wharton from the military with the goal of making a career transition. Check. He also came to strengthen his family, which he’d live apart from over the course of many overseas deployments with the Marine Corps Special Operations unit. Check. Read on to learn how Wharton was the place for him to achieve both Read more

Published: October 4, 2017

Social Media Dos and Don’ts MBA Applicants Need to Know

Social media can be an impossibly powerful tool. It is the president’s favorite method of communication, after all. Social media can also determine the future for MBA applicants and candidates. For better or for worse. U.S. News & World Report found that 35 percent of admissions officers interviewed do check out applicants’ social media accounts. What they find can increase a person’s chance of getting in—or diminish it. Social media sometimes says a lot about a person that may not be clear in an essay or recommendation letter. So it’s no wonder some schools opt to check it out. “To Read more

Published: October 4, 2017

Decision Day, Take Two, at Harvard Business School

Today is decision day for many still-hopeful Round 1 applicants to Harvard Business School (HBS). A first batch of interview invitations went out on Monday, and a second and final batch is due to go out today at noon ET. “For those invited to interview, the sign-ups will be immediately available,” wrote HBS Managing Director of Admissions and Financial Aid in a post to his Direct from the Director’s Blog this morning. “And don’t worry, we have managed the interview slots so there are plenty of options available today,” he assured. Availability in hub cities—Shanghai, Read more

Published: October 3, 2017

Fuqua Snaps Up Georgetown McDonough Admissions Dean Shari Hubert

Let the musical chairs continue. Last week, it was long-time Tuck School of Business Admissions Director Dawna Clarke taking over at the University of Virginia’s Darden School. This week, Shari Hubert, who has been associate dean for admissions at Georgetown’s McDonough School of Business since 2013, will take the reins at Duke’s Fuqua School of Business. “Shari stood out in an incredibly talented and competitive pool of candidates,” Russ Morgan, Fuqua senior associate dean for full-time programs, said in a statement. “Shari is a terrific fit within our culture. She is a demonstrated collaborative leader with a track record of making the people around her better. Her former colleagues at Georgetown describe her as a perennial optimist.” Read more

Published: October 3, 2017

Chicago Booth Lovebirds Give $75 Million to Their Alma Mater

The University of Chicago Booth School of Business’s coffers just grew—and its top scholars will be called by a new name—thanks to a $75 million alumni gift announced today. In recognition of the gift, students who earn highest academic honors while at Booth will be known as the Amy and Richard F. Wallman Scholars, after donors Amy Wallman, MBA’75, and Richard Wallman, MBA’74. The Wallmans’ gift will be used to support several initiatives, including scholarships for students in the full-time, evening, weekend, and executive MBA programs, as well as enhanced co-curricular programming, faculty research, and emerging priorities. Read more

Published: October 3, 2017

GMAT Tip: How to Master Critical Reading Questions

When I was a kid, all I wanted was a cool mono-syllabic last name. People would fumble through my clunky last name and inevitably layer some hybrid of odd accents in all of the wrong places. I just wanted to play lacrosse and hear “Go Capps” or “Go Carp!” Since I couldn’t change my name, I wished for a good nickname instead because let’s be honest, that can be even cooler. But you can’t pick your nickname, so I ended up getting labeled “JC” (my initials). When you go to a Catholic high school and your nickname is a shared Read more

Published: October 3, 2017

Oxford Saïd Launches New Virtual Hub

The Oxford Hub for International Virtual Education (HIVE) is the first of its kind in the United Kingdom and the second of its kind in the world. Located at the University of Oxford Saïd Business School, the new virtual classroom will use technology to connect students, faculty, and participants from around the world. It’s the latest development in the school’s digital agenda. Read more

Published: October 2, 2017

UVA Darden Opens New Facilities Overlooking Washington, D.C.

The top two floors of a 31-story building overlooking the Washington, D.C., capital region will be a new home away from home for the University of Virginia Darden School of Business. This 4,000-square-foot space—comprised of classrooms, offices, and event rooms—will afford new opportunities for the Darden School to expand its offerings in the area. Already, the school offers its Executive MBA and executive education programs in Washington, D.C., and has several staff members in the area working in admissions, executive education, and alumni career services. Read more

Published: October 1, 2017

False Report of Active Shooter Prompts USC Marshall School of Business Campus Lockdown

Reports of an active shooter prompted a midday lockdown of the USC Marshall School of Business campus on Monday, the day after the deadliest shooting in modern U.S. history left at least 59 dead and more than 500 injured at a Las Vegas country music festival. The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) responded in force to an emergency call from the Marshall School but quickly determined that the report was false. The LAPD received a 12:17 p.m. 911 call reporting a possible active shooter, and the university issued a ‘police activity/shelter in place’ alert minutes later on its Read more

Published: October 1, 2017

Admissions Director Q&A: Pascal Michels of IESE Business School

We got to know Pascal Michels, who started in his new role as head of admissions at IESE Business School this summer, as part of our Real Humans of MBA Admissions series earlier this month. Now we’re excited to feature a more in-depth interview that delves into the admissions process and team he oversees. Michels is new to admissions, but far from new at IESE. A 2010 graduate of the MBA program himself, he headed from business school to Citigroup in London, where he worked in financial management for three years. But Read more

Published: September 27, 2017

Real Humans of the NYU Stern MBA Class of 2019

New York University’s Stern School of Business got the party started this summer as the first leading business school to share a profile for its incoming Class of 2019. That profile, published in late July, revealed a 4 percent uptick in application volume over the prior year. At the same time, the school admitted significantly fewer students—822 this year as compared to 871 last year—which means that those who got in did so against greater odds. This increased selectivity may have contributed to the rising GMAT scores among those who got the Read more

Published: September 26, 2017

Live Chat with Prodigy Finance: Funding Your International MBA

This chat has ended. Are you attending business school outside of your home country and looking for a way to fund it? Join Prodigy Finance’s Zack Hirschfeld for a live online chat on how you can best finance your graduate management education abroad. Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern In the live discussion, the following questions will be covered: How can I pay for an MBA as an international student? How does the Prodigy Finance process work? How much can I borrow? What will my rate be? Do I need a co-signer or guarantor? What is Read more

MBA Applywire

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.

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

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

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.