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MBA ADMISSIONS BLOG!
Looking Ahead: Applying for Admission in Fall 2009

As we approach the end of this year's admissions season, we know that many candidates are beginning to think about applying to Wharton for admission in Fall 2009. We very much appreciate your interest in the School, and we look forward to sharing with you our curriculum, community and culture.

Getting to Know Wharton

There are a variety of ways to get to know Wharton, including through our website, at our events around the world and by visiting campus. Our events include general and diversity-targeted receptions, MBA fairs, student and alumni coffee chats, meet-and-greets, and online chats, to name a few. Over the summer, we will begin to post details about events at which Wharton MBA Admissions staff, alumni or current students will be present this fall and winter. Our event calendar is continually updated, so please check back periodically to find out when Wharton will be in your city.

For those applicants interested in visiting Wharton, we host visitors every day that the office is open and offer an information session given by an admissions officer. In the fall, once classes are back in session, we allow applicants to experience Wharton further by attending a class, having lunch with current students and taking a campus tour.

Fall 2009 Application

Our application will be available online for Fall 2009 applications by late summer. However, we will post our application deadlines, as well as this year's essay questions, right here on our blog before the application goes live (generally, by mid-summer).

For those applicants eager to learn more about the MBA degree now, or to start preparing for the application process, we encourage you to check out the information about making the MBA decision and preparing a successful application on our website. You may also be interested in visiting our student2student discussion board, on which current Wharton students, alumni and admissions officers answer questions from applicants (as well as dispel myths!) about Wharton and the admissions process.

Again, thank you for your interest in Wharton, and we look forward to reading your application.

15 May 2008 04:53 PM in Application Preparation , Application Processing , Application Strategy , Events | Permalink | Comments (0)

Wharton MBA Round 1 Application Deadline is this Thursday, 11 Oct 07!

To All Round 1 Applicants:

Remember that the deadline for Round 1 is this coming Thursday, 11 Oct 07 at 5pm, Eastern Standard Time (EST) or local Philadelphia time. Beat the last minute rush and apply early in the week.

Your online application, including all supporting materials, must arrive in our office by 5pm on Thursday in order to be considered in Round 1 (Incomplete applications will be moved to Round 2. Please note: Round 2 is comparable to Round 1 in terms of admissibility, so no need to worry!)

Any hard copy materials that you need to submit in addition the online application may be sent to:

      MBA Admissions and Financial Aid
      The Wharton School
      University of Pennsylvania
      420 Jon M. Huntsman Hall
      3730 Walnut Street
      Philadelphia, PA 19104.6340
      fax: 215.898.0120
      email: mba.admissions@wharton.upenn.edu

***Check back early next week for more Round 1 details!***

07 Oct 2007 07:05 PM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Wharton MBA Online Application is Now Live!

The Admission Commitee is happy to announce that the online application for the Wharton MBA Program has just gone live! If you plan to apply for the entering Fall 2008 class, you may now begin...

Check back for our upcoming "MBA Admissions Essentials" series that will guide you in the application process.

23 Aug 2007 04:12 PM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (4)

2007-2008 Application Deadlines & Decision Release Dates

The Wharton MBA application for the entering Fall 2008 class will be available online in early to mid-August. Application essays are listed on our 12 July 07 Blog! posting below.

Application deadlines and decision release dates for the upcoming 2007-2008 recruiting season are:

                  APPLICATION DEADLINE* DECISION RELEASE DATE*
Round 1    11 Oct 2007                            20 Dec 2007
Round 2    03 Jan 2008                            27 Mar 2008
Round 3    28 Feb 2008                         15 May 2008

* applications and all supporting materials must arrive in the Wharton MBA Admissions Office by 5:00pm, Eastern Standard Time (EST) of the deadline date. Decisions will be released by 5pm on the release date.

17 Jul 2007 04:39 PM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (18) | TrackBack

Wharton MBA Admissions Committee Announces 2007-08 Application Essay Questions!

Let the 2007-08 Wharton MBA recruiting season begin! Here are the essays that were just approved today by the Adcom for individuals who plan to apply for the Entering Fall 2008 class. Our online application will go live in early to mid-August. Return here for ongoing updates...

2007-08 WHARTON MBA APPLICANT ESSAY QUESTIONS

The Admissions Committee is interested in getting to know you on both a professional and personal level. We encourage you to be introspective, candid, and succinct. Most importantly, we suggest you be yourself.

First-time Applicant Essays

All first-time applicants are required to complete four essays, with the option of a fifth essay that may be used to address extenuating circumstances. Reapplicants who applied for the Entering Fall 2006 or 2007 Class are to complete the re-applicant essays. All other reapplicants are to complete the first-time applicant essays.

REQUIRED:

1. Describe your career progress to date and your future short-term and long-term career goals. How do you expect a Wharton MBA to help you achieve these goals, and why is now the best time for you to join our program? (1,000 words)

2. Describe a failure or setback that you have experienced. What role did you play and what did you learn about yourself? (500 words)

3. Tell us about a situation in which you were an outsider. What did you learn from the experience? (500 words)

4. Please Complete One Of The Following Two Questions:

Where in your background would we find evidence of your leadership capacity and/or potential? (500 words)

Is there anything about your background or experience that you feel you have not had the opportunity to share with the Admissions Committee in your application? If yes, please explain. (500 words)

OPTIONAL:

5. If you feel there are extenuating circumstances of which the Committee should be aware, please explain them here (e.g., unexplained gaps in work experience, choice of recommenders, TOEFL waiver request, inconsistent or questionable academic performance, significant weaknesses in your application). (250 words)

Re-applicant Essays

Reapplicants are required to complete three essays, with the option of a fourth essay that may be used to address extenuating circumstances. (Please note: re-applicants essays are for Fall 2006 or Fall 2007 applicants only. Reapplicants from prior years are to complete the first-time applicant essays).

REQUIRED:

2. Tell us about a situation in which you were an outsider. What did you learn from the experience? (500 words)

3. Please Complete One Of The Following Two Questions:

Where in your background would we find evidence of your leadership capacity and/or potential? (500 words)

Is there anything about your background or experience that you feel you have not had the opportunity to share with the Admissions Committee in your application? If yes, please explain. (500 words)

OPTIONAL:

4. If you feel there are extenuating circumstances of which the Committee should be aware, please explain them here (e.g., unexplained gaps in work experience, choice of recommenders, TOEFL waiver request, inconsistent or questionable academic performance, significant weaknesses in your application). (250 words)

12 Jul 2007 02:17 PM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBack

MBA Admissions Essential #8: Recommendation Letters

If you’re like most prospective students, you’ve heard plenty of things about what kind of recommendation letter is ideal for b-school. Common urban myth maintains that the best endorsements come from individuals of a certain stature, including:

“C” people (e.g., CEOs, CFOs, CIOs);
business school alumni;
business school professors;
persons with “name recognition;”
politically well-connected individuals; and/or
business moguls. :-)

Sounds persuasive, doesn’t it? This is particularly convincing news when you are trying to distinguish yourself in a highly competitive applicant pool. The truth, however, is that recommender stature would matter IF recommendations assumed a sole or decisive role in the evaluation process and applicants were selected for who they know and not what they know.

In addition to recommendations, other equally important criteria upon which candidates are admitted into MBA programs are academic profile, demonstrated work experience, leadership, management, personal qualities (e.g., integrity, initiative, creativity – the list is as extensive as the attributes that describe human nature), and contribution to school, work, and/or community. The picture that emerges of an applicant based on these combined areas is what drives the evaluation process.

So ignore the word on the street. More important than pedigree or title is how well a recommender knows you. A supervisor who has worked closely with you for a period of time, for example, is in an excellent position to comment in detail about your current skills and future potential. A former professor who knows you from a classroom setting only may not be the best choice if he or she can speak only to your academic performance. We know about your educational background from your transcripts and test scores. What we really need is information about the less measurable elements of your profile.

Avoid the scenario in which far too many candidates find themselves: submitting a recommendation from a political figure, like the President of a country, or a highly placed executive in a well-known organization, neither of whom has worked with you, who begins his or her letter: “I don’t know Jim very well, but what I hear is that he exceptional” or “Ann is the daughter of my colleague and former army buddy. I have known her since she was an infant and can confirm that she is the model of professionalism and integrity.”

So before you act to quickly mobilize any political or business connections you have or seek out colleagues who possess a nice-sounding title, make sure these individuals know you well. A recommendation is only as good as the direct, first-hand knowledge a person has of the person being endorsed.

09 Nov 2006 09:50 AM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

MBA Admissions Essential #6: The *!@%!@ GMAT

Let’s face it: most folks either love or hate standardized tests. If you perform well on them, you tend to love them; if you perform less well on them, you tend to hate them. Those who are fond of the test frequently view the GMAT as prima facie evidence of their ability to perform well in an MBA program, either reinforcing a track record of strong performance or making up for not-so-illustrious prior academic performance. (It is these kinds of applicants you sometimes see on our student2student discussion board who use their laser-like focus to compare and fret over 10 point differences in GMAT scores. J)

Individuals who dislike the GMAT test often view it as an arbitrary and inaccurate measure of their ability to perform in grad school. A common refrain is: ‘I just don’t test well on standardized tests – my brain does not function that way;” or “Performance on standardized tests measures one’s ability to perform well on tests and not much more.”

As with many things in life, reality lies somewhere in between these two extremes of love and hate. The GMAT test, when considered along with one’s prior academic experience at the baccalaureate level and beyond, is an accurate predictor (at Wharton, at least) of how one performs in his or her first year in the MBA program. Fortunately for most applicants, there is no exact cutoff or minimum at Wharton of either of these measures. The distribution of GMATs and GPAs that reflect an ability to perform well, as reflected in each year’s incoming class, is fairly broad.

Beyond these numeric measures of preparedness for an MBA lie such qualitative measures as leadership and teamwork skills, managerial experience, initiative, ability to learn and growth from mistakes, introspection, ability to articulate clear reasons for an MBA and career goals going forward, contributions (to school, work, and community), etc. It is here that the bulk of time is spent evaluating an applicant. Although less quantifiable dimensions, they are equally important.

So whether or not you love or hate the GMAT, you may want to temper your view. At the same time that the GMAT is not the quintessential measure of an applicant’s merits, it is a useful evaluative tool in the admissions process. A healthy dose of ambivalence just might be in order…..

27 Oct 2006 02:42 PM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (10) | TrackBack

MBA Admissions Essential #5: Early Career Candidates

You are fresh out of undergraduate school or a recent graduate considering an MBA degree; you have done some preliminary research into business school. And in your search, you have likely read all the top weekly business magazines, visited b-school discussion boards, and listened to different MBA program representatives talk about how they welcome “early career” (EC) candidates – individuals with 0-3 years of work experience. Despite what you’ve heard, it somehow sounds like marketing rhetoric and you find yourself unconvinced. While MBA programs do clearly express an interest in ECs, your friends in b-school report otherwise. And a glance at MBA program websites shows class profiles that seem skewed to individuals with 4-6 years or more of work experience.

So what is the truth? The truth of the matter is that many schools are strongly interested in, and do admit, those ECs who are talented, motivated, and exhibit a track record of leadership and initiative. While these individuals may possess fewer years of formal work experience than the average candidate, many of them have gained significant skills through internships or entrepreneurial ventures. Others may have developed their talents through community service and/or extra-curricular activities. The challenge for most b-schools, in fact, is to attract such candidates. The same is true for groups like women and underrepresented minorities, whose representation in MBA programs is limited by their numbers in the applicant pipeline rather than admissions policies.

So ECs, we welcome you. We are every bit as interested in your career potential and ability to give back to your academic, work, and local communities as what you have accomplished to date. If you think you may be interested in an MBA, then we encourage you to fully explore various MBA programs, discover reasons why the degree might make sense for you, and reflect on your life and how you envision it unfolding in the future.

Once you have taken these steps, you will not only be better prepared to present a thoughtful and articulate application should you apply, but you will be better poised to take full advantage of the opportunities available to you during your time in business school. So take the time for self-reflection. And if you feel that you are now ready for an MBA, share your self-awareness and knowledge of the degree with us in a cogent manner. We adcoms are, after all, open to persuasion. J

20 Oct 2006 07:03 PM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack

MBA Admissions Essential #4: Thoughts on Consultants & Coaching

So it is time to apply to b-school. And you are worried about the competition. Your friend, Juan, has hired a consultant to help him prepare his applications to b-school. Apparently Juan has managed to find someone who knows all the “ins and outs” of applying, and has offered to help him write some “winning” essays.

Should you consider hiring your friend’s consultant? What are the advantages? What are the disadvantages? On the plus side, there’s the general knowledge that consultants have of MBA programs. Some consultants may have even worked for an admissions office and be familiar with how candidates are evaluated.

On the downside, consultants can so finely tune your essays that your own personal voice is lost. Or, even worse, your essays may read like they were written by multiple authors. Adcoms reading your application will gain no insight into the true you. And they may question the authenticity of your work, calling your integrity and admissibility into question.

While a consultant may seem like a quicker route to your MBA destination, he or she can be expensive and not without pitfalls. So, if you are to use a consultant, use him or her in an advisory capacity only - as a sounding board and someone with whom to discuss your thoughts and ideas. If you are unable to find a suitable coach or choose not to use one, do not be concerned. All the resources you need to present the best application possible are readily available.

Virtual resources to guide you in your MBA preparation include the websites of individual business schools (including our own student2student discussion board); mba.com, managed by the General Management Admissions Council (GMAC), an organization supporting business schools; and applicant and student blogs (links are posted along the side of this webpage).

You may also learn about b-schools and the application process by going on campus visits (view our visit program), attending forums where representatives of hundreds of schools around the world are interested in meeting and talking with you, as well as receptions and other events sponsored by individual schools and/or groups of schools (view a list of our events).

At the end of the day, the truth of the matter is that most MBA programs select the best applicants rather than the best applications. Spend less time on “impression management” and more time on letting us adcoms get to know the true you.

13 Oct 2006 05:49 PM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack

MBA Admissions Essentials Series to Begin September 7th!

The Wharton MBA Admissions Committee will begin a new series of MBA Admissions Essentials next week. The series is part of our ongoing effort to create a more transparent admissions process, level the playing field for applicants who have little or no previous exposure to the MBA degree, and counter the regrettably high level of misinformation we find among applicants and others.

MBA Admissions Essentials will cover key topics such as application timing, the GMAT, GPA, essays, letters or recommendation, extra-curricular actitivites and/or hobbies, wait list strategies, etc. Visit us regularly to gain the real, inside MBA perspective.

31 Aug 2006 01:38 PM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBack

The Official Word on Feedback Sessions

Did you apply to the Wharton MBA Program this year or last and get denied? Do you plan to re-apply for the entering Fall 2007 class, but would like to understand just how to improve your candidacy? If so, you are eligible to schedule a feedback session with one of our admissions officers who will review your application with you. To schedule a session, contact our office at 01 (215) 898-6183 beginning May 8, 2006. (All sessions are conducted by telephone.) Appointments fill quickly and are offered on a first come, first served basis.

Waitlist candidates are not eligible for feedback while on the waitlist. Feedback sessions will be offered in August for waitlist candidates who are denied; full details for how to schedule an August session will be provided at the time of decision.

In the meantime (or if you are unable to schedule a feedback session), please read the section on Preparing a Successful Application on our website for an inside view of the Admissions Committee evaluation methods. Please note: all reapplicants are given equal consideration in the admissions process. There is no penalty for not having had a feedback session.

For instructions on the reapplication process, please follow the procedures that will be included in next year's application (available online in August 2006). All reapplications will be reviewed within the context of the overall applicant pool at that time.

20 Apr 2006 01:08 PM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (0)

Latest Round 1 Application News

The new Wharton MBA online application has been experiencing some technical problems. We are working to quickly resolve these issues and have temporarily taken the recommender module offline. We plan to put the module online again after 7pm this evening. In the meantime, we have contacted all recommenders in the database to provide them with alternative means of submitting their recommendation letters. Recommender options include:

Fax a completed copy of the recommendation form to (215) 898-0120
Mail a copy of the completed recommendation form to the Admissions Office:
Wharton MBA Admissions and Financial Aid
420 Jon M Huntsman Hall
3730 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
E-mail a completed recommendation form as an attachment to Betty Ann Delaney (delaneyb@wharton.upenn.edu)

If you have any questions, please e-mail (wilsonb@wharton.upenn.edu) or call Bonny Wilson at (215) 898-3471.

At this point, we do not plan to change the Round 1 application deadline from this Thursday, October 13th, at 5pm EST. In the event that technical problems with the application persist, we would certainly entertain a deadline change.

We apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for your continued patience!

11 Oct 2005 06:00 PM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack

Wharton MBA Online Application Goes Live Wed, 17 Aug 05, 9am EST

WHARTON MBA APPLICANTS: SAVE THESE DATES! The Wharton MBA online application will go live this Wednesday, 17 August 05, at 9am Eastern Standard Time (EST). Applications may be submitted at any time after this date, up until the Round 1 deadline of 5pm, EST, 13 Oct 05. Applications begun, but not completed by the Round 1 deadline, will be considered in a subsequent round – once all supporting materials have been received by the admissions office.

Review of applications will begin in mid-September. Invitations to interview will be released beginning Thursday, 20 October 05 and will continue until 5pm EST on Thursday, 17 November 2005. Instructions for how to schedule an on or off-campus interview will be provided at the time of invitation. There is no particular order in which these decisions are released.

Candidates who have not received an invitation to interview by 17 November 05 will receive a final admissions decision indicating that they are no longer being considered for Fall 2006 admission.

Candidates who are offered an interview will receive their final admissions decision by 5pm EST on Thursday, 22 December 05.

15 Aug 2005 11:54 AM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Begin your Fall 2006 application essays

Interested in applying for the entering Fall 2006 Wharton MBA class? If so, you may begin working on your essays, which are listed below. The full application will be available online in August. Bonne chance!

Instructions The Admissions Committee is interested in getting to know you on both a professional and personal level. We encourage you to be introspective, candid, and succinct. Most importantly, we suggest you be yourself.

First-Time Applicant Essays (this also includes applicants for Fall 2003 entry or earlier)

Required: Describe your career progress to date and your future short-term and long-term career goals. How do you expect an MBA from Wharton to help you achieve these goals and why now? (1,000 words)
Required: Describe an impact you’ve had on an individual, group or organization. How has this experience been valuable to you or others? (500 words)
Required: Please complete two of the following three questions (500 words each):
- Describe when you were part of a team where the group process and/or intended outcome failed. What did you learn?
- Describe a situation where your values, ethics, or morals were challenged. How did you handle the situation?
- Describe a personal characteristic or something in your background that will help the Admissions Committee to know you better.
Optional: If you feel there are extenuating circumstances of which the Committee should be aware, please explain them here (e.g., unexplained gaps in work experience, choice of recommenders, inconsistent or questionable academic performance, significant weaknesses in your application).

Reapplicant Essays (for Fall 2004 or Fall 2005 applicants only; all other reapplicants are to complete the first-time applicant essays only)

Reapplicants are required to complete two essays, with the option of a third essay that may be used to address extenuating circumstances.

Required: Please describe your career progress to date and your future short-term and long-term career goals. How do you expect an MBA from Wharton to help you achieve these goals and why now? What steps have you taken to improve your candidacy since the last time you applied? (1,000 words)
Required: Please complete one of the following four questions (500 words):
- Describe an impact you’ve had on an individual, group or organization. How has this experience been valuable to you or others?
- Describe when you were part of a team where the group process and/or intended outcome failed. What did you learn?
- Describe a situation where your values, ethics, or morals were challenged. How did you handle the situation?
- Describe a personal characteristic or something in your background that will help the Admissions Committee to know you better.
Optional: If you feel there are extenuating circumstances of which the Committee should be aware, please explain them here (e.g., unexplained gaps in work experience, choice of recommenders, inconsistent or questionable academic performance, significant weaknesses in your application).

Additional Joint Wharton MBA/MA - Lauder Applicant Essays (these essays are in addition to the Wharton application essays above and are required)

Describe a cross-cultural experience in your adult life that was challenging to you. How did you meet this challenge and what did you learn from the experience? (1,000 words)
Please explain why you are currently applying to Lauder. How do you expect the Wharton/Lauder joint-degree experience to benefit you on both a professional and personal level? (1,000 words)

07 Jul 2005 11:21 AM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack

Fall 2006 Application and Deadlines

The Wharton MBA application for Fall 2006 entry will be available in August (http://mba.wharton.upenn.edu/mba/action/apply.php). Essay questions will be posted at this same site in mid-July. Fall 2006 application deadlines and expected decision release dates are:

Deadline Release Date

Round 1 13 Oct 05 22 Dec 05

Round 2 5 Jan 06 16 Mar 06

Round 3 2 Mar 06 18 May 06

Edited: corrected R1 deadline

11 Jun 2005 09:37 AM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (10) | TrackBack

Timing a school visit

If it is possible, it is always a good thing to visit schools to which you are planning to apply / attend. Most schools will have some sort of campus visit program. For some added insight into the schools you are visiting, it might be useful to organize school visits around special events going on on-campus. For Wharton we host a variety of student-led conferences. The following are a few examples:

As reported, this is a big week in MBA admissions with application deadlines for a variety of schools, as well as decision-releases from first round applications. Best of luck!

17 Jan 2005 12:00 PM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Round 2 Extensions on a Case-by-Case Basis

For those effected by the tragic events on December 26 we have decided to extend the deadline on a case-by-case basis. Please e-mail rosem@wharton.upenn.edu (Rosemarie Martinelli, Admissions Director) indicating your needs in this regard.

06 Jan 2005 12:28 AM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBack

Round 2 Deadline Fast Approaching

As we approach the Round 2 deadline (January 6, 5 PM) I thought it was appropriate to link to an entry we put together for Round 1 applicants. Admittedly the date for Round 2 is closer than the corresponding date for Round 1 when the entry was published, but some useful pointers nonetheless.

02 Jan 2005 06:37 PM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack

Traveler's Notes (School Visit Experiences)

The Traveler's Notes thread on student 2 student seems to have reemerged recently. Started in August of 2003 (and originally on businessweek's forums I think) this thread includes some wonderful details on various school visits. Feel free to add your experiences to the thread or browse through to learn about other candidates' experiences.

27 Nov 2004 06:00 AM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Round 1 is approaching (October 14) As we approach our round 1 deadline I thought I would add a few thoughts for those applying (or thinking of applying) in round 1.

Make sure your recommenders are fully aware of the deadline for the round, you do not want to have your application pushed to another round due to their hectic schedule right around the deadline. It might be a good time now to follow up with them (did they receive the e-mail the system sent to them). We do not send a reminder e-mail to them, nor does the e-mail we initially sent to your recommenders include information on the deadline.

Please take time to get familiar with our online application forms and complete them with the same care to attention and detail you will do so for your essays. Often times we hear applicants spending hours on reviewing their essays and getting feedback, only to 'rush' the data forms on the last day. Inevitably this will create problems.

Try to find one more person to read your essays and offer you some feedback. It is often useful to find someone you know to read the essays as well as someone you do not know directly (a friend of a friend). Feedback can be tremendously valuable. If you are done reviewing your essays and feel very good about them, then leave them alone for a week, then go back to them and review them one last time before submitting the application. Having time to remove yourself from the process (clear the head) and then return can you very useful.

We assume you prepare your essays in your preferred word processing package, and then copy and paste the final content to the online application system. Be aware that no formatting will copy over into our system, other than line and paragraph breaks (and CAPS).

We ask you to self-report your GMAT regardless of whether you have submitted your GMAT to our program yet or not. If you are admitted we would need the official score sent, and if it has been sent within the last two years we will still have it on file.

Fifty percent of those applying in round 1 will do so within 24 hours of the deadline (5 pm on the 14th). Remember this is the internet you are relying upon, and while we have not experienced a server issue on a deadline, it does make sense for you to plan ahead a little bit and avoid the heavy traffic that will occur right around the deadline (actually 4 pm is usually the busiest time).

Best of luck!

04 Oct 2004 08:13 AM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Goals and Focus While much of our application asks you to relate past experiences and what you have learned from those experiences, an important part of what we are interested in also includes your goals and focus going forward. I thought it might be useful to explain the rationale for us to look at your 'plan'.

Leaders typically have a vision for where they are going, so from that standpoint it clearly makes sense for us to learn that plan, and how you believe a 2 year business school experience, and at Wharton, is an effective next step in order for you to continue along your path.

A second issue also comes to play when understanding your plan. Wharton is a large business school, and along with size comes many resources in many different areas (200 electives, about 100 active student clubs etc.) and without an effective plan it is possible that you won't make the most of the two year experience at business school. The plan essentially provides you the discipline to remain focused and make the most of your business school experience and not continually get 'side tracked' by the many varied opportunities that will continually be provided.

There is no doubt that during business school, some plans will change (a consequence of being exposed to things that were not even considered when preparing for business school for sure) but if someone has committed much time and energy to a plan, then any switch will only occur in a very deliberate fashion, and not each time something new and exciting occurs on campus.

It also makes sense to continue to develop your plan such that it is something you work on over the summer before entering business school and continue to reflect upon during the entire time of the business school experience, and beyond. This should ensure that you make the most of your personal investment.

21 Sep 2004 01:37 AM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack

Recommendation Issues We have received a number of questions, on student 2 student, with regard to recommendations. The following covers those issues.

Number of recommendations
We require two recommendations, and it is certainly not the case that more is always better. Some candidates will want to have additional recommendation forms submitted, but this is only advisable if the additional recommedation comes from a different perspective and therefore can add a different component to the application. An example might include getting a recommendation from someone a candidate has worked with closely in a community service capacity, yet the recommender is not able to offer real insight into all the areas the recommendation form asks. (If the latter is the case it might therefore be a good primary recommendation.)

Who to choose?
We prefer recommendations from a professional perspective (rather than academic). Those who have worked closely with the candidate, and have supervised the candidate, would make obvious choices. We are not looking for a recommendation from the most important / influential people the candidate knows, but from those who can answer the questions asked with depth and substance.

There are instances where the candidate cannot select the obvious choices (confidentiality over leaving / not enough time in current role) or there are no obvious choices (family business / entrepreneur). In these cases then the choice of recommender should likely be explained in the optional essay so we can understand the contraints surrounding the choice. Note that as we evaluate recommendations, we are not only looking at the content and what we can learn from it, but we will also look at the judgment with respect to the choice of the recommenders. Other potential sources of recommendations are clients, business partners (objectivity may be called to question, much like using family members if working in a family business), mentors, community service supervisors etc.

We are also asked about whether using an alumni would make sense for a recommendation. The answer is yes, only if all other things are equal in terms of choosing this person over someone else. An alumni may well be able to add additional perspective over 'fit' for the program. However it is a mistake to compromise the overall quality of a recommendation in order to seek out an alumni to perform this task.

Quality of recommendations
Making the right choice in terms of who to choose as recommenders is critical in ensuring quality recommendations. We are looking for added insight over and above what we have learned from the essays (and data forms etc.). We expect each answer to also add additional perspective, depth and substance, to the application. We expect recommendations to be about 2 - 3 pages in length, if all the questions and answers we compiled into one document (note, in the online recommendation form each question has its own answer field).

How to prepare recommenders.
Bare in mind this is the part of the application a candidate has least control over. This can therefore be a little unnerving. Once selection of the recommenders is accomplished then it is wise to prepare them so they will understand the extent of the MBA application process as well as how important the recommendation is to the candidate's overall application. Make sure your recommender knows your goals and therefore why you are applying to the program. Make sure they have a copy of your CV; some candidates will also provide drafts of essays in order to provide the context to which the recommendations will be reviewed. Be careful however, if a candidate e-mails draft essays to a recommender the recommender may well decide to copy and paste some of the content directly to the recommedation which clearly will be inappropriate (we will simply assume the candidate wrote the recommendation in a case like this).

Finally you may want to tell the recommender you need the recommendation at least one week before the deadline so you can avoid the anxiety of worrying about whether your application is pushed to a later round simply because a recommender was called away on urgent business the week of the deadline, and the business is in a remote place with no access to the internet (or similar story).

13 Sep 2004 10:11 PM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Essay length? We often get asked about essay length, specifically whether it is OK to go over the number of words suggested. Recognize we do not count words (this would take longer than actually reading the essay), nor does our online system count words (and therefore does not truncate the essay at the specific limit etc.)

+/- 10% is going to be fine (and remain unnoticed). Any more than this and it may become an issue as writing succinctly is a skill that is useful in business and business school. You should also realize your readers are reading multiple essays from multiple applicants so writing long essays is not likely to be a positive.

The exceptions to the above may be if you have a more unusual background (by business school standards) and feel you have a little more to explain (about your less traditional goals, experience etc.) In this case you may need to explain the nature of your experiences in more detail, but this does not give you the license to write at will!

I don't think there is a case where it makes sense to write much less than the suggested word count as the essays are going to be an important component to your application and should be used as such.

10 Sep 2004 04:48 AM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Preparing your application the following links from our main admissions web-site have been useful for those beginning the preparation of their applications so I thought they were worth highlighting here: http://mba.wharton.upenn.edu/mba/admissions/process/prepare.php

http://mba.wharton.upenn.edu/mba/admissions/process/evaluation.php

28 Aug 2004 04:49 AM in Application Preparation | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack