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  • From: CCloug
  •  
  •   Total Posts: 337
  • Posted: Oct-7
  • To: All
  • 6760 of 6893
GMAT Bus Brings Admissions Test to Prospective Business School Students in Remote Areas

The GMAT Mobile Test Center – a unique testing center on wheels operated by the Graduate Management Admissions Council, which owns the GMAT – will begin its fifth transcontinental tour later this month, visiting schools in remote areas as part of an effort to reach students who may have a hard time getting to established testing sites.

The tour will depart from Humphreys College in Stockton, California, on October 21, 2009, and conclude at Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Florida, on May 7, 2010. In the course of the eight-month tour, the GMAT Mobile Test Center will bring the GMAT exam to 32 campuses across 14 states, including several historically black colleges and Hispanic-serving institutions.

To learn more, click here.

The Clear Admit Team
http://blog.clearadmit.com
www.clearadmit.com
info@clearadmit.com
  • From: DeenaCA
  •  
  •   Total Posts: 245
  • Posted: Oct-7
  • 6761 of 6893

Hi Mike2012 and thanks for your post.

I had a question regarding reporting salaries in the applications. Would a drop in salary be a concern to adcoms even though there is a valid reason (ie. the new firm adopts a performance-based compensation system)? If so, should we explain in detail in the optional essay or is there another way to address this? Thanks.

The adcom may consider salary information as one way to determine how well you're progressing in your career, so i think that this may be worth a very concise statement in an optional essay. I would keep your response very short and just explain the adoption of a new compensation system by your firm and any predictions you might have as to your salary range.

Feel free to contact us at info@clearadmit.com for more detailed assistance with your application.

Best,

Deena

Deena Maerowitz
Clear Admit, LLC


Stay Informed with Clear Admit!
Read our Blog for daily MBA admissions tips and updates.
Follow us on Twitter for breaking b-school news.
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Visit our MBA Admissions Wiki to read and share application insights.


  • Posted: Oct-7
  • 6762 of 6893
Hi Deena,

Thanks for all the great advice you have been giving on this forum. I was hoping you could answer a couple of my questions:
I am targetting Tier 2 Schools(tepper for now Round 2)


Age:22
Gender: Male
Natioanlity: Indian
Undergrad: B.E from PUNJAB ENGINEERING COLLEGE(PEC) chandigarh - 53% (Second class -
GMAT: 710(91%)        (V-37 81%, Q-50 91 %, AWA - 5.5)
 
Working for a small manufacturing firm in OTTAWA CANADA for the last 16 months.The firm has 10 employees and no HR department
I was under the impression that -unless you graduated from the IIT's or other Tier 1 institutes of  other disciplines- the adcoms did not care which college you graduated from.But after skimming through various threads on this forums and others , My opinions have changed.
Ques 1.Am i right in assuming that the reputation of the institutes of non US applicants does matter?
 
MY institute PEC was very prestigious , regularly featured in the rankings, and had an inordinately high cutoff for acceptance.
 
My undergraduate performance(53% second division) was below par and this is causing me a lot of anxiety.
Nevertheless i have done a lot to mitigate the low GPA
Did well on the GMAT(710)
Cleared CFA level 1 exam
Continuous work progression
Ques 2Will this Suffice?
 
I cant take graded courses at university due to professional commitments
 
 
Ques 3: Does working for a small firm with 10 employees and no HR department negatively affect my odds of acceptance?
 
I am working on 2 career scripts right now
 
1 involves getting into operations management
 
in the second script i switch over to finace
 
which ever script i finally use , I will be putting forth the other as a contigency plan.( I am not sure which 1 yet)
 
Assume strong insightful essays and favorable recommendations
 
 
Thanks
Burberry
Edited Oct-7   by  burberry
  • From: CCloug
  •  
  •   Total Posts: 337
  • Posted: Oct-8
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  • 6763 of 6893
USC Marshall Essay Topic Analysis 2009-2010

As with last year, the USC Marshall essay topics require that candidates submit four essays, though applicants can select two of three options when completing their final response. Let’s take a look at the questions asked for USC for the 2009-2010 application season:

Essay 1: Describe in a brief essay (do not exceed 250 words per section – 750 words maximum):
a) your post-MBA short-term goals (immediately after graduation),
b) your post-MBA long-term goals (3-5 years after graduation), and
c) how your professional experience, when combined with an MBA degree, will enable you to achieve these goals.
This essay is similar to the career goals essay required by many of the top schools. Taking a somewhat compartmentalized approach, USC asks applicants to dedicate a 250-word response to each of three elements comprising this prompt. This being the case, applicants will need to have a fully developed and focused understanding of both their short and long-term goals before attempting to tackle this essay.  Additionally, some applicants may find it difficult to condense their career-to-date narratives and ‘why MBA/why USC’ arguments into a 250-word narrative. The key here will be remembering the importance of quality over quantity. For example, a sound strategy could be to name one or two courses and organizations with which one hopes to be involved during one’s time at USC, specifying the skills that stand to be gained and the contributions one would make during the engagement, rather than listing several courses without providing a detailed argument with regard to any of them.

To read more, click here.

The Clear Admit Team
http://blog.clearadmit.com
www.clearadmit.com
info@clearadmit.com
  • From: DeenaCA
  •  
  •   Total Posts: 245
  • Posted: Oct-8
  • 6764 of 6893

Hi Css22301 and thanks for your post.

Over the last few weeks, I finally stopped hedging and made the decision to invest in myself and my career by applying to MBA programs - but now I am feeling very late to the game.  How much does one lose by missing out on the Round 1 application deadlines?  My top choice is Darden, but I am also looking at Duke, UNC, GW and Georgetown (need to stay in the Mid-Atlantic region for family reasons).  I have 4 years of work experience in the private and nonprofit sectors and a strong academic background (3.8 undergrad GPA from top 25 school) but again, as I am late to the game I am still studying for the GMAT now. 

Is it worth trying to move up my test date to meet the first rounds?  How big a difference does the round in which you apply make?  I don't want to imply to admissions officers (particularly at my top choice schools) that I was ambivalent as to whether to apply to their program, but I also want to take the time to present the strongest application possible.   

Thoughts?

I always advise clients to apply R1  if at all possible. However, don't beat yourself up for applying R2. It's best to make sure that you're really prepared for your test, rather than rushing it. Take your time, work slowly but conscientiously and try to get those applications in by the R2 deadlines. There is much bigger difference between R1 and R3, than between R1 and R2.

Feel free to contact us for additional assistance with you applications.

Best,

Deena

Deena Maerowitz
Clear Admit, LLC

Stay Informed with Clear Admit!
Read our Blog for daily MBA admissions tips and updates.
Follow us on Twitter for breaking b-school news.
Download our Publications on MBA programs and admissions strategy.
Visit our MBA Admissions Wiki to read and share application insights.

  • Posted: Oct-8
  • 6765 of 6893
Hello to all!
I would appreciate if someone told me what the difference is between international MBA programs and global MBA?

  • From: CCloug
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  •   Total Posts: 337
  • Posted: Oct-9
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  • 6766 of 6893
Financial Times Reports Record Class Sizes at Top Business Schools, Drops at Other Schools

According to a Financial Times article last week, many top business schools are reporting record numbers of students this year, the result of higher-than-normal enrollment yields among admitted students. But still other schools are reporting drops in traditional yields. Overall, an unusual combination of factors this year seems to have made predicting class enrollment sizes far trickier than usual. 

The FT credited Edward Snyder, dean of the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, with predicting accurately that it would be unusually difficult to predict student enrollment this admission season. “This year, I think you can throw out traditional yield information,” he told the FT.

Indeed, yields at most top schools have surged this year, which is to say that higher-than-usual percentages of admitted students have chosen to enroll, resulting in record student numbers. Chicago Booth’s enrollment swelled to 592 full-time students, up from 577 last year and higher than ever before. The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, which usually enrolls between 800 and 820 students, this year welcomed 862. Harvard, Stanford, the University of Michigan’s Ross School, and INSEAD also all report record-high enrollments this fall, according to the FT report.

Click here to learn more.

The Clear Admit Team
http://blog.clearadmit.com
www.clearadmit.com
info@clearadmit.com
  • From: DeenaCA
  •  
  •   Total Posts: 245
  • Posted: Oct-9
  • 6767 of 6893

Hi Sudhanshu and thanks for your post.


Nationality - Indian
Undergrad - Grade: Fist Class. Course: Bachelors in IT from Delhi University, India,  one of the better known universities in Asia
Post Grad - Grade: Merit. Course: MSc ADMIS (Technology Strategy and Policy) from the LSE, UK
ECA Undergrad - Gen Sec of a few college bodies; founded a society which promoted live music
ECA Postgrad - Editorial board of one of the LSE publications
ECA others - Brief but indepth exposure to the NGO sector during undergrad.  I did some volunteer work in the fields of AIDS awareness and the importance of education
in certain underdeveloped areas in India
Sports (dont know how relevant this is) - Shot trap and skeet at the state level (havent done competetive shooting for a while though); Golf - won a couple of tournaments


GMAT - 700 (Q 72%, V92%)

It looks as if you've done well in terms of your academics overall adn that you were quite involved in your community during your university years. It would be helpful to know when you graduated from both programs and if you've maintained any of the extra-curricular interests you mention. As to golf and skeet shooting, these can both be items that you include on your data forms/resume, but since they're rather solitary, as opposed to team related sports, I would not suggest focusing on either of these activities in your essays. You're correct in that your quant score is low considering what the adcom will be expecting. I would certainly suggest taking it again, but only after you are sure you can raise your score. You might consider some personalized test prep focusing on the area of your quant section that needs work. I would recommend not rushing a R1 application, but you should be applying R2 at the latest.


Work ex - Founded a placement agency for the BPO sector during my gap yr (I was involved with the operations for the first year); SW development with an Indian major for a yr (post undergrad); 6 months with a financial research and consulting startup, Copal Partners, as a senior analyst (post pg); 2.5 yrs as strategy consultant with IBM India (current)
where I have had an indepth exposure to Energy & Utilties and the Financial Services sectors (mostly in the areas of business strategy, IT strategy, tech consulting and process consulting). Good career growth at IBM.

This looks solid but I'd want to know more about your leadership exprience. Have you lead teams or managed any projects throughout your career? How have you taken intiative in your work?

Looking at applying to some or all of the below:
Reach Schools - H/s/w
Others - Berkeley, Cornell, Duke, NYU, UCLA, Michigan, LBS, INSEAD, IESE

I think this list looks fine, but I'd want you to also consider your learning style, any geographic restrictions you might have, along with the strengths of the program. Most importantly, what are your short term and long term goals. You will need to define these very clearly for the adcom and explain why their program is a particularly good fit for you.

Feel free to contact us at info@clearadmit.com for more detailed assistance with your applications.

Best,

Deena

Deena Maerowitz
Clear Admit, LLC

Stay Informed with Clear Admit!
Read our Blog for daily MBA admissions tips and updates.
Follow us on Twitter for breaking b-school news.
Download our Publications on MBA programs and admissions strategy.
Visit our MBA Admissions Wiki to read and share application insights.

  • From: CCloug
  •  
  •   Total Posts: 337
  • Posted: Oct-12
  • To: All
  • 6768 of 6893
Admissions Tip: Essay Basics

We often stress that, to present oneself effectively in one’s application essays, it is critical to think carefully about what a given question is asking and what this might indicate about a specific school’s admissions priorities.  Of course, it’s also imperative to communicate clearly and appropriately regardless of the target program or particular inquiry.  Today, we’re going back to basics and offering a few broadly applicable tips on tone and style to keep in mind when drafting written materials for your applications.

1. Be Professional. While a number of schools ask fun questions and most urge applicants to be themselves rather than submitting “overly polished” materials, it’s important to remember that this is a graduate school application and you should approach your essays with a degree of formality.  You do want your unique narrative voice to come through, but even professional writers know to vary their tone based on their audience.  As such, you should avoid using slang and conversational speech patterns in your writing.

2. Emphasize Action. A common pitfall for many applicants is lapsing into the passive voice, constructing sentences about how some unseen force or agent acted upon something or someone else (e.g. “we were required to” or “the project was completed”) rather than putting their own thoughts and actions at the fore.  By making a conscious effort to write “I/he/she did x” rather than “x was done to y” you can make your comments more informative, dynamic and, often, more concise.

Click here to learn more.

The Clear Admit Team
http://blog.clearadmit.com
www.clearadmit.com
info@clearadmit.com
  • From: DeenaCA
  •  
  •   Total Posts: 245
  • Posted: Oct-12
  • 6769 of 6893

Hi AnnaBanana79 and thanks for your post.

Hello, Clear Admit Team.  I was hoping you could possibly answer a quick question.   On the applications, there is a question regarding marital status.  A few schools ask if you are Married, Single, or Divorced.  What would the consequences be of skipping this question.  I realize it is important to answer every question asked, but I really don't want to open up a can of worms regarding my Divorced status.

I would always advise you to be completely honest in your application and to answer truthfully. I'm not sure if there are special circumstances surrounding your marital status, but  simply stating you are divorced should not impact your application negatively at all.

Feel free to contact us directly at info@clearadmit.com for more guidance on your applications.

Best,

Deena

Deena Maerowitz
Clear Admit, LLC


Stay Informed with Clear Admit!
Read our Blog for daily MBA admissions tips and updates.
Follow us on Twitter for breaking b-school news.
Download our Publications on MBA programs and admissions strategy.
Visit our MBA Admissions Wiki to read and share application insights.

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