Admissions Director Q&A
Clear Admit’s exclusive interviews with admissions directors at the world’s leading MBA programs.
Published: November 30, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Bruce DelMonico of the Yale School of Management
We are happy to welcome back Bruce DelMonico, Assistant Dean for Admissions at the Yale School of Management, for our MBA Admissions Director Q&A series. Bruce joined Yale SOM in October 2004 and has led the Admissions Office since November 2006. Before joining Yale, Bruce was an attorney focused on First Amendment, white collar, and commercial litigation. Bruce holds a BA in Honors English from Brown University, an MA in Literature from the University of Texas at Austin, and a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. Read on for his insights into MBA admissions at
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Published: October 9, 2023
Episode 314: Admissions Director Q&A with Jamie Schein of Stanford GSB
In our latest installment of our Admissions Director Q&A series, we welcome Jamie Schein, the assistant dean of MBA Admissions & Financial Aid at Stanford GSB, to the podcast to discuss all things admissions and more. Before joining Admissions & Financial Aid, she served for four years as the assistant dean and director of the Stanford GSB Career Management Center, and before that six years as the director of strategy and curricular support in the Stanford MBA Program, working with students, faculty, and staff to manage co-curricular programming and support for students in their academic
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Published: September 28, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Steve Thompson of Northwestern Kellogg
In this installment of our Admissions Director Q&A series, we welcome Steve Thompson, Senior Director of Admissions at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. As the leader of Full-Time admissions, Steve is focused on attracting the best and brightest candidates to Kellogg’s portfolio of Full-Time MBA programs. Steve has played a critical leadership role at Kellogg since January 2018, when he first joined the team as director of the Executive MBA Program. Prior to Kellogg, Steve worked at IE Business School as the Executive Director of the
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Published: September 20, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Teresa Peiro-Camaro of INSEAD
In this edition of our Admissions Director Q&A series, we welcome back Teresa Peiro-Camaro, the Associate Director of Global Admissions at INSEAD. Based in Fontainebleau, France, she leads the Admissions Office team, which oversees the admissions process for Degree Programmes and is responsible for the class composition for Executive Degrees and MBA. In this role, she is responsible for ensuring that each INSEAD cohort brings together people, cultures, and ideas to develop responsible leaders who transform business and society. Teresa and her team accompany candidates along the entire application journey, helping them to explore
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Published: September 19, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Eric Askins of UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business
In this Admissions Director Q&A, we welcome back Eric Askins, Executive Director of Admissions at the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business. Eric leads the admissions and enrollment efforts at Berkeley Haas, having spent over a decade in higher education with a mission of advancing access and opportunity. At Haas, he partners with students, faculty, and staff to recruit a diverse student body. Read on to get Eric’s insight into MBA admissions this year, including what to expect from interviews, how to put your best essay forward, and more. Eric Askins, Executive Director of
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Published: September 13, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Brent Nagamine of University of Washington Foster School of Business
In this edition of our Admissions Director Q&A series, we visit Seattle’s University of Washington Foster School of Business with Director of Admissions Brent Nagamine. Brent Nagamine, Director of Admissions, Washington Foster Brent currently oversees marketing, recruitment, selection, and scholarships for the Full-Time, Evening, and Global MBA programs. He has been working in the higher education sphere since 2013, when he graduated from the University of Washington. He started his career working in undergraduate admissions and eventually pursued his M.S.Ed from the University of Pennsylvania. After joining the
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Published: September 11, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Shelly Heinrich of Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business
In this edition of our Admissions Director Q&A series, we welcome Shelly Heinrich, associate dean of MBA admissions and director of marketing at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business. Heinrich leads the MBA Admissions team in both its marketing and operational strategy to build awareness, recruit, yield, and retain the Full-time and Flex MBA programs. She also develops the integrated marketing strategy for the team and manages the internal marketing team and external marketing firm in its execution. Heinrich is a
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Published: September 6, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Danielle Richie of UNC Kenan-Flagler
In this Admissions Director Q&A, we welcome back Danielle Richie, Director of Full-Time MBA Admissions & Recruiting at UNC’s Kenan-Flagler Business School. Danielle brings a wealth of experience and expertise to her role as the leader of the Full-Time MBA Program admissions and student recruitment team at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School. With over 15 years of professional recruiting experience in both graduate and undergraduate business programs, she is well-versed in identifying top talent and creating a diverse and talented MBA student community. Her educational background in communications with
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Published: September 4, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Bailey McChesney of Vanderbilt Owen
In this edition of our Admissions Director Q&A series, Bailey McChesney, Director of MBA Admissions at Vanderbilt University’s Owen Graduate School of Management, sheds light on the MBA admissions process and more. With over a decade of recruiting and admissions experience, Bailey focuses on the admissions side of the Vanderbilt MBA Recruiting and Admissions Team, managing the application evaluation process and incoming student onboarding. She also co-leads the MBA Recruiting & Admissions Fellows. Bailey began with Vanderbilt Business in March 2011 and has served in several roles on the Recruiting & Admissions Team, managing
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Published: August 30, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Rodrigo Malta of Texas McCombs
In this edition of our MBA Admissions Director Q&A series, we welcome back Rodrigo Malta, Managing Director of MBA Marketing, Recruiting & Admissions at the Texas McCombs School of Business. Rodrigo is originally from Brazil and immigrated to the United States during high school. He earned his MBA from the University of Texas at Austin, McCombs School of Business (2007), and his bachelor’s degree in management from Missouri State University (2000). Before and after his MBA, Rodrigo worked for Fortune 100 companies in internal audit and marketing in the telecom and technology
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Published: August 28, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Justin Aier of Boston College’s Carroll School of Management
In this Admissions Director Q&A, we welcome back Justin Aier, Assistant Dean of Graduate Recruitment & Enrollment at Boston College’s Carroll School of Management. Justin has been a part of the Carroll School Graduate Admissions team for over five years, and has taken on roles from marketing and communications to recruitment and enrollment management. His favorite part of the admissions process is personally working with applicants to determine how the BC MBA can help them achieve their academic and professional goals. Read on for his
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Published: August 23, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Leigh Britton of the University of Georgia Terry College of Business
This edition of our Admissions Director Q&A series takes us to Athens, Georgia, to learn all about the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business from Leigh Britton, Associate Director of Admissions for the Full-Time MBA and MS Business Analytics Programs. Leigh began her UGA career in 2018 as a student services coordinator working with admitted MBA and MSBA students and on the admissions committee for the MSBA program. She transitioned to full-time admissions in 2022. Leigh is a seasoned higher education professional serving multiple intuitions across 3 different states
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Published: August 21, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: David Simpson of LBS
In this installment of our Admissions Director Q&A series, David Simpson, the Recruitment and Admissions Director for the MBA and Masters in Finance (MiF) programs at London Business School, joins us to talk about admissions. David has been with the School for over 25 years, starting in admissions, moving through various roles in marketing and business development, before returning to admissions. His undergraduate degree is in business, majoring in international marketing. In his time at London Business School, he has enjoyed travelling the world to
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Published: August 17, 2023
Admission Director Q&A: J.R. McGrath of Carnegie Mellon Tepper
In this Admissions Director Q&A, we welcome back J.R. McGrath, Executive Director of Masters Admissions at the Carnegie Mellon Tepper School of Business. J.R. has been at Tepper for the past 2.5 years and accepted the role of Executive Director in October 2022. He has previously served in leadership roles at SMU Cox, TCU, and Syracuse. In addition to his professional responsibilities, JR and his wife have a young daughter that keeps them busy. J.R. also enjoys running, golf, and anything to do with Pittsburgh sports teams. Read on for his take on MBA
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Published: August 16, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Liam Kilby of Saïd Business School at Oxford University
For this installment of our Admissions Director Q&A series, we welcome Liam Kilby, Associate Director of MBA Recruitment and Admissions at Oxford University’s Saïd Business School. Liam attended the University of Sheffield, studying for a BSc in Computer Science and Mathematics. He started working in finance after leaving University and joined Barclays Global Wealth in the UK before deciding on a career pivot and a move into education several years later. He spent time working at Oxford University Press, and Cambridge University Press, before a relocation back to Oxford and
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Published: August 14, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Eddie Asbie and Vishal Gaur of Cornell Johnson
In this edition of our Admissions Director Q&A series, we welcome two members of the Cornell University Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management leadership: Eddie Asbie, Executive Director of Admissions & Scholarship for the Two-Year MBA program, and Vishal Gaur, the newly appointed Anne and Elmer Lindseth Dean and Emerson Professor of Manufacturing Management. Asbie has spent the past 18 years of his professional career in higher education, primarily within admissions, and has called Ithaca and the Johnson School his home for the last 11 years. He graduated from
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Published: August 10, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Mikale Elliott of WashU Olin
In this edition of our Admissions Director Q&A series, we welcome back Mikale Elliott, Associate Director of Recruiting at Washington University’s Olin Business School. Mikale spent her undergraduate career at the University of Missouri–Columbia studying business communication and gaining experience recruiting underrepresented minorities. After graduating, she took a non-traditional pathway working as a flight attendant for a few years. Eventually, she returned to higher education to work on an HIV prevention research project. Through all these pivots, the thing that brought her back to admissions was her passion for others from diverse backgrounds
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Published: August 9, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Stephanie Kluth of ESMT Berlin
In this edition of our Admissions Director Q&A series, we meet Stephanie Kluth, the Director of Admissions at ESMT Berlin. Stephanie has been working for ESMT since its founding in 2002 and has been heading the Admissions office since 2005. Prior to joining ESMT Berlin, Kluth worked at the Aspen Institute Berlin and the Jewish Museum Berlin. Berlin has been her home for many more years, so she knows the city inside and out. She knows every full-time MBA alumnus/a who has studied at ESMT, and she and her rescue
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Published: August 7, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Blair Mannix of The Wharton School
We welcome Blair Mannix, the Director of Admissions of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, to this installment of our Admissions Director Q&A series. Blair has over 16 years of experience in selective admissions at the University of Pennsylvania. She was made Director of MBA Admissions in 2018. In 2020, Blair was instrumental in delivering the Class of 2022 through pandemic lockdowns. She created a homegrown virtual platform, called Wharton HQ, to communicate with admitted students. Wharton HQ was home of virtual tours, webinars, FAQs, and a direct line to
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Published: August 3, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Melissa Rapp of Emory Goizueta
For this installment of our Admissions Director Q&A, we welcome back Melissa Rapp, Associate Dean of Graduate Admissions for the Goizueta Business School at Emory University. Melissa leads the teams responsible for the recruitment, evaluation, and matriculation of students across the portfolio of graduate business programs including a One-Year MBA, Two-Year MBA, Evening MBA, Executive MBA, Master of Science in Business Analytics, and Master of Analytical Finance, Master in Management, and the Master in Business for Veterans. A longtime higher education professional with more than 18 years of experience, Melissa
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Published: August 2, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Chris Healy of Manchester AMBS
In this edition of our ongoing Admissions Director Q&A series, we have Chris Healy, the Head of MBA Marketing & Recruitment at Alliance Manchester Business School (AMBS) at the University of Manchester, returning to bring us his insights into the culture at AMBS, what to expect during the MBA program, and more about their admissions. Chris has 15 years of experience in graduate management education and a passion for GME that has only grown over time. He’s implemented and developed marketing and recruitment strategies both domestically and internationally, to meet the academic and commercial
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Admissions Director Q&A: Jana Kierstead of Harvard Business School
In this edition of our Admissions Director Q&A series, we welcome Jana Kierstead, Executive Director, MBA and Doctoral Programs at Harvard Business School. Jana brings over 25 years of experience to this role, with more than 20 years dedicated to leadership in business education. In her role as the Executive Director, Jana leads a team of over 120 full-time professionals who manage the student experience from admissions and financial aid, to student life and career services. In 2013, Jana was selected to lead the School’s online learning initiative, Harvard Business School Online (formerly
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Admissions Director Q&A: Dawna Levenson of MIT Sloan
In the latest interview for our Admissions Director Q&A series, the Assistant Dean of Admissions at the MIT Sloan School of Management, Dawna Levenson, returns to delve into all things MBA admissions. As the leader of the admissions team, Dawna oversees all recruiting, evaluation, conversion, and marketing activities in support of the MBA, Sloan Fellows MBA, Master of Finance (MFin), Master of Business Analytics (MBAn), MBA Early Admission, and Master of Science in Management Studies (MSMS) programs. Prior to this role, Dawna was the Director of Admissions for five years and the Associate Director for MFin
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Admissions Director Q&A: Maria Pineda of the UMD Smith School of Business
In this Admissions Director Q&A, we get an update on MBA admissions at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. Senior Director of Admissions Maria Pineda has been with UMD Smith for over 15 years. Maria manages the recruiting efforts for Full-Time MBA and Specialty Master’s Programs. She joins us again this year to share her insights into the admissions process, what to expect during the interview, what makes a great essay, and more. Maria Pineda, Senior Director of Admissions at The University of Maryland Clear Admit: What is the one
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Admissions Director Q&A: Paula Amorim of IESE
In the latest installment of our Admissions Director Q&A, we take a deep dive into MBA admissions with Paula Amorim, the Director of Admissions of the Full-Time MBA at IESE Business School. Paula joined the Admissions team after completing her MBA at IESE in 2016 and was previously responsible for the Latin American market, based in the Sao Paulo campus. She is an Industrial engineer from the Federal University of Minas Gerais, in her hometown, Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Prior to the MBA, she dedicated her career to management consulting in local firms
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