Admissions Officers Offer Tips on Increasing Applicants Chances of Getting In

Recent white paper from Veritas Prep releases study surveying top admissions officers

One of our partners, Veritas Prep, published another stellar white paper recently. It is entitled, "Trends in MBA Admissions: Perceptions of Admissions Officers at Top 30 Business Schools." This one announces the results of an online survey, conducted during the 2008-2009 admissions cycle, of admissions officers from the top 30 business schools (as listed by BusinessWeek).

In this report, the surveyed admissions officers have clearly stated common mistakes applicants make and what characteristics they look for in an applicant.

We think the findings in this report will prove to be especially useful for applicants this year, so we wanted to highlight them for you here. Make sure you read the entire report so you know how to use these findings to your advantage on your application.

The application process:

• Careless errors (81%) ranked as the top faux pas committed by applicants. Inconsistency between institutional choice and students’ educational objectives and ambitions ranked second, and the inclusion of unrequested items and inappropriate interview conduct tied as the third most common application faux pas.
• Forty three percent said they would not prefer a larger applicant pool.
• Almost half of respondents (47%) report that the number of admits straight out of college has significantly or moderately increased compared to five years ago.

The evaluation process:

• The importance of analytical skills (50%) ranked ahead of leadership (19%) in student selection.
• Professional experience (63%) is the most important factor in student selection. Community service (6%), which traditionally ranks high, is reportedly the least important
  selection criterion.
• Seventy percent of admissions officers feel that admissions consultants help students identify the programs with which they fit best and clarify their career goals.
• Ninety-two percent of admissions officers are aware that applicants use admissions consultants more often than they did five years ago.
• Eighty percent of respondents said that institutional priorities and enrollment goals are more important than or as important as an individual applicant’s merit.
  

What they want to see:

• The biggest challenges institutions face are attracting more highly-qualified students (33%) and supporting cultural diversity (33%).
• Among desired changes that admissions officers would like to see in their applicant pool, diversity ranks number one (87%).
• Admissions officers would like to see the student application process include more face-to-face or telephone interviews in the next five years (60%). While a slight majority
  of admissions officers see the application process becoming less complex, almost half (47%) believe the application process will actually become more complex in the coming years.

Veritas says it best by stating: "Understanding what wows and irritates admissions officers at leading business schools, and tailoring the MBA application accordingly, can propel one’s candidacy from unlikely to competitive."


Veritas Prep is offering a special discount for MBA Podcaster listeners. For $150 off any Veritas class, use the discount code POD150 when registering on http://www.veritasprep.com/

Microsoft's 2nd Annual MBA Panel: Soliciting Questions from You!

UPDATE (6/25/09): The Panel was a success! Hear the event here: http://www.mbapodcaster.com/MBA_MoreInfo/BizSchoolPanelMicrosoft.asp?iEpisode=74

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As we all know, the current economic climate is prompting thousands to consider going for their MBA and in turn propelling upward the number of applications to business schools. With the increased competition, how do you gear up to get an MBA in this climate? One contribution comes from a special business school panel presented by Microsoft. The focus is a current and compelling one -- the theme is "Standing Out Among the Outstanding: Recession, Competition, and Business School Admissions"

Guests on this year's panel include:

• Cassandra Pittman Assistant Director of Marketing at INSEAD and responsible for MBA recruitment in North and South America
• Scott Shrum Director of MBA Admissions Research at Veritas Prep
• Barbara Thomas, President and CEO National Black MBA Association, the world's leading organization for black professionals
• There will also be "experts in the audience" contributing to the dialogue: Bryan Tomlinson and Edward Gali, both representing the University of Washington, Michael G. Foster School of Business

MBA Podcaster will be attending the event and bringing your questions to the panelists. So we're asking you: if you're seeking your MBA -- or considering it -- what questions would you have for this panel? Send your questions to info@mbapodcaster.com

The Business School Panel will be held at the Redmond, WA headquarters of Microsoft on June 18th, 2009, hosted by Africans at Microsoft.

This is the second annual panel put on by Africans at Microsoft. Below is a link to our podcast on the event from last year. The show covers the entire MBA process from the applications to acceptance.

2008 Business School Panel: Pursuing an MBA -- Motives, Values, and Opportunities
http://www.mbapodcaster.com/MBA_MoreInfo/BizSchoolPanelMicrosoft.asp?iEpisode=74

We had representatives from Harvard Business School, MIT Sloan, University of Washington, and the GM of Microsoft's global recruiting team. Also participating were students from Harvard, Wharton, Darden, and Cornell Business Schools.

The energy generated by the audience and the panel made for a lively, informative discussion that covered and broke the bounds of the topic. We expect no less this time!

This is a valuable topic -- how to stand out among so many outstanding candidates!

Please let us know what questions you have for this event, and likely you'll hear them answered by these elite panelists on our next podcast.

U. of Chicago GSB: Listen to a Day in the Life on Campus

We visited Chicago GSB to shadow a current student, speak with the Dean, the admission's director and other people on campus to bring listeners a "day in the life" perspective. Listen to the show on iTunes, or on our site, and get a behind the scenes look at life and times on campus:
http://www.mbapodcaster.com/DayInLife/CHICAGO_DayInLife.asp

Guest List:

• Jen LaBelle, MBA Student
• Allan Friedman, Communications Director
• Stacy Cole, Deputy Dean
• Julie Morton, Associate Dean for Career Services
• Rose Martinelli, Associate Dean for Student Recruitment and Admissions
• John Lawrence Etame, MBA Student and Member of the Chicago African Business Group
• Jeffrey Anderson, Associate Dean for LEAD Program

We are the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business. Since 1898, we have produced ideas and leaders that shape the world of business. Our rigorous, discipline-based approach to business education transforms our students into confident, effective, respected business leaders prepared to face the toughest challenges. As part of the world-renowned University of Chicago, we share the university’s core values that shape our distinctive intellectual culture. At Chicago GSB, we constantly question, test ideas, and seek proof. This extraordinarily effective approach to business leads to new ideas and innovative solutions. Six of our faculty members have won Nobel Prizes for these ideas - a record no other business school has matched.

We are proud to claim an unmatched faculty, degree and open enrollment programs offered on three continents, a global body of nearly 39,000 accomplished alumni, and strong and growing corporate relationships that provide a wealth of lifelong career opportunities. As the second-oldest business school in the world we are consistently ranked among the top business schools in surveys with an enrollment of 1,100 full-time MBA students, 1,400 evening and weekend MBA students, 480 executive MBA students and 120 PhD students. Visit University of Chicago Graduate School of Business website here.

Getting A Rejection Letter: What To Do?

There's been an uptick of MBA applications in recent years and this means more competition. As more candidates are vying for the same number of seats at business schools, more applicants are unfortunately getting rejected. Some schools encourage you to reapply while others don't. This time, we'll learn from admissions officers about the re-application process, where you can find feedback, and how you can recover from rejection and re-energize your application to get accepted next time.

Listen to our most recent show on Re-Applying to Business School After Being Rejected.

Guests include:

* Caroline Diarte Edwards, Director of Admissions, Marketing, External relations for MBA programs, INSEAD
* Monica Farrell, Assistant Director for MBA Admissions, USC Marshall School of Business
* Beth Flye, Director of Admissions and Financial Aid, Full-time MBA program, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
* Tina Mabley, Director of MBA Admissions, McCombs School of Business, University of Texas at Austin

Do you have experience with re-applying to business school? Let us know!