Marshall (USC) MBA.PM Class of 2017 Calling all applicants!

Just went to the information session held on the LA campus last night. Anyone get the impression that the program thinks too highly of itself? I'll still be applying to the program but I left with a negative impression

I also went to the information session yesterday that was held in LA. What did you expect them to say? That they are the second best program in LA? I have been to both UCLA and USC events and they both toot their own horns, which is exactly what competitive programs do. USC also said choose the best program for you, I didn't hear them say that USC is the best and everyone else is beneath them.

At UCLA I have heard current and former students bash USC, it happens, they are rivals and the only two programs worth going to in Socal.

I wouldn't want to go to a school that thinks they are just mediocre or average.

How much time do you have to pay your deposit? I'm trying to determine when I should apply to USC without waiting too long since I applied to other programs.

I also read something on the internet that said USC will be reducing the MBA.PM classes by about 25% to promote a more competitive program. I know they were getting rid of one core but didn't think they would reduce class size as well. Anyone heard anything about this?

One of my colleagues is in the part time program and he showed me the email that had been sent out to all current students confirming this.

Essentially by cutting class size they can make the program more competitive and get rid of the bottom quarter of students who don't have competitive stats. My colleague told me to hurry and apply and I did.

Marshall is a safety school for a lot people, but it might not be much of a safety if they are cutting the class size by nearly 50 people. I think they are really serious about moving up their ranking.

Instead of waiting to apply to see if you got in anywhere else I would apply before the entering class fills up, just to be sure.

Good luck.

Yup, I'm planning on submitting my application by the end of this week or early next week. It's good to see Marshall trying to move up in the rankings and only admitting competitive applicants. It will only benefit the current students and hopefully us (granted I get accepted)

hey everyone , I got admitted to USC.PM this week and I'd appreciate some of your thoughts. Is USC making serious efforts to improve their ranking and website? USC prides itself on its brand, but the PM website and application process could really use an overhaul.

Pepperdine v. USC , is it automatic that you would choose USC? Thanks for your feedback.

Congrats on your acceptance!

A few things, while I agree with you that USC's website is awful and needs to be overhauled, do you really think prospective employers are going and checking websites? Don't judge a book by it's cover. From the email I read that went out to all PM students at USC, I know that USC is working on improving their ranking and are reviewing their coursework as well, that's a pretty good sign they want to change the way they are doing things and want to move up a few spots.

As far as I am concerned the only two programs worth going to in southern California is UCLA or USC, the rest are just there. If you are so concerned about rank, Pepperdine is ranked 50th by US News and 50th by Businessweek. Outside of Anderson and Marshall, I bet other programs will have a lot of international students, which isn't bad, but also not that great either.

I would say in California it's GSB, Hass, Anderson, and Marshall, in that order. I have no shot at the first two, a remote chance at Anderson, and luckily got in to USC.

@ Admit80. I started my MBA journey by visiting Pepperdine, LMU, Marshall, and finally Anderson and funny enough, that is how I would rank the schools from the bottom to the top in Southern California. Although Pepperdine may be $40K or so less in tuition than Marshall, Marshall's network/alumni more than make up for that gap. This is my two cents on the subject and good luck everyone.

Submitted my app to USC just a few minutes ago. Hopefully I hear back around early March and not have to wait until late March/early April.

I just got an email this morning saying I was wait listed. Nothing in the notification said what specific areas were of concern or any specific reasons why I was wait listed.

Any recommendations on what I should do next (call adcom, send in supplemental info, etc)?

Did you get a quant score of 35 and verbal of 42 on your GMAT? I'm assuming you have a switched around but if it's not, it could be the low quant score that put you on the wait list.

no, i got a relatively low score on quant. so i plan to submit some more information to talk to that weakness. i also got into another program in the area with a scholarship, so i plan to write to the fact that USC is still my first choice but I'm on a timeline for deciding because I have to submit a non-refundable deposit soon for the other program.

How were your grades in quant classes in college? It might help for you to sign up for a calculus or stats class at a community college and get an A to show that your gmat quant score isn't indicative of your actual ability.

At least you absolutely killed it on verbal

Good luck. It is tough situation when there is a big non-refundable deposit required. I taught the deposits were required towards the end of the application season. Still a bit early.

When do you apply by the way? I applied 1/12/14 and still havnt heard anything from them.

----
i applied on jan 7, 14 and just heard back this morning. i got into another MBA program that starts in March, so deposits are due soon.

Wow that’s right around the corner. At this point seems like you need to do whatever you can. Waiting around probably won’t work out. Hopefully they can give you a definite response sooner given the circumstances.