Ask University of Texas (McCombs) Admissions

Dear McCombs team,


Thank you very much for answering our questions on GmatClub forum! I have a question about consortium applicants. When does UT Austin begin reviewing applications for candidates that applied via the consortium round 1.

My Profile
-------------
Age:23
Gender:Male
Undergraduate university: VIT university(Vellore institute of technology->one Among top 10 in India)
GPA:8.11/10
Gmat: yet to take(writing in Jan2012)
Extracurricular aactivities->
->Organizer of Riviera 2010(an international sports and cultural fest)
I was a part of Organizing committee in which i was heading Guest care committee where i managed almost 6000
participants and Guests providing them accommodation ,Food and other basic facilities it was a very huge task
as i was the only head of Guest care committee and it was a huge success and was appreciated with laurels.

->Part of Electroutsav 2007(a national electronics fest)
->I was handling Special guest care committee where i did a similar kind of work as above mentioned in the
Riviera 2010

-->At school level Participated in sports(Cricket,basketball Etc)

->Work Exp-->2 Years working as Websphere administrator at Infosys Technologies Limited(India) India's Largest
Software solutions organization

->Why MBA->career progression(To be competent with the world class business leaders )

->Accomplishments->Please find above in extracurricular activities column

->Program target->International business

Hope this Information helps in assessing my profile

Questions
I have Two questions......

1.I want to know How is this school different from other business schools?

2.I have 2.5 Years Exp in a software industry and i have 86.5% in my 10th standard,88% in my high school and 81.1 in my under-graduation where do i stand in getting into this school, and with my academics what is the required Gmat score to get into this business school?

Thanks in advance

Regards
Srinath

Hi mray86,
Consortium Round 1 applicants will receive an admissions decision from McCombs the week of February 20. Consortium Round 2 applicants will receive a decision the week of March 5. All Consortium membership and Fellowship decisions will be released in mid-March. After the Consortium sends us your application, we will send applicants an email confirming receipt of your application and some information regarding next steps. Please note that the Consortium does not release applications to the schools until after each deadline (regardless of the date you applied), and that the schools typically do not receive applications from the Consortium until a few weeks after each deadline. If you have any questions about applying to Texas via the Consortium please feel free to email diversity@mccombs.utexas.edu.

Hi Srinath,
Your first question is a huge question that I could spend an hour answering. I encourage you to explore our website and our information session presentation on our Admissions page for a lot of great info. In a nutshell I think a few things that really set our program apart are:
- the flexibility and customization of the curriculum (ability to focus in over 20 different areas of study, can take courses outside the business school for MBA elective credit, dual degree program opportunities). Since you're interested in international business you may want to mix in some of our international study opportunities such as the Global Connections study tours or a study abroad.
- the high quality and accessibility of the faculty (This year McCombs was recognized by Princeton Review to have the Best Professors out of 294 top busines schools!)
- an MBA program environment that is relatively small so you get to know everyone (~260 students in each incoming class) but that is part of a very large university, allowing access to many unique and vast resources and opportunities for collaboration
- a range of hands on activities to grow your knowledge base and add to your range of experience and leadership. These include things like our MBA+ Leadership Program micro-consulting projects and workshops, academic challenges, fellows programs in areas ranging from non-profit focused to venture capital and entrepreneurship to marketing, etc.
- finally our location in the amazing, lively, innovative and entrepreneurial city of Austin, TX
We can definitely talk more specifically about any of these aspects but I encourage you to explore our website and, if possible, attend a campus visit to learn more. We have tons of campus visit opportunities listed on our website.

Regarding your second question, we do not evaluate applicant profiles prior to receiving a completed application because our review process is a very hollistic one and includes other important elements such as recommendations, essays, interview, etc. However, you can look at our most recent Class Profile on our website to have an idea of how you compare - and if you have specific questions let us know. The most recent average GMAT was 691.

Hi McCombs Admissions,

I applied in R1 and found out earlier this week that I was waitlisted. Are there any official instructions to govern how I should interact with the school while on the waitlist? Is it okay to send in an additional recommendation, new GMAT scores, classes taken, promotions, or other meaningful changes to my status?

Thanks in advance and enjoy your holiday!

Hi backliteyes,

We will accept a new resume if you’ve recently been promoted or your work situation has changed, an additional letter of recommendation if you feel that it will significantly impact your application, or a new GMAT score. In general, the best advice for our waitlisted candidates is to be patient. The Admission Committee periodically reviews the waitlist as it seeks to balance the diversity of the incoming class and we are unable to offer any concrete timeline of when you’ll have final word. There is no specific rank assigned to individuals placed on the waitlist.

Good luck, and Happy Holidays!

Hi McCombs Admissions,

As my understanding is working in a big firm is better for an MBA admission than at a smaller company (less than 200 employees).
I work for a small company and intentionally declined the opportunity to work for bigger ones because it would give me more responsibility, ability to interact and understand the management's strategic moves in improving the firm.

Apart from IT , I also work with a McCombs alumni on special projects on improving certain processes for increased revenue.


If I was working in a big firm the admissions committee knows before hand about more about me as the interviewing or working for a big firm itself sets a standard. My assumption it is harder for the admissions committee to judge the potential a candidate working in a smaller firm and his contribution.


Is my assumption correct, if so how do I working in a smaller firm compensate for it.

I appreciate your time and effort.

Merry Christmas !!!!!


Thanks,
Suresh

Beside in case competitions, business schools rarely have an opportunity to go head-to-head with one another. This is especially true if the two schools are in different regions. Such is the case with the Public Ivies, specifically The University of Texas at Austin and The University of California, Berkeley.

• Given both school’s prominence as the preeminent public school in their respective lands, can you make a prediction as to which school will triumph in the Holiday Bowl?
• How do you feel Berkeley’s resentment of Texas due to being rejected for the 2005 Rose Bowl (Texas vs. Michigan – another Public Ivy battle) will affect the outcome of the match on December 27th?
• There have been talks about having a playoff system, how you feel about the current business school ranking system based on press and academics?

Suresh,

What you did during your employment is more important than who you worked for. There are many McCombs students who worked for small firms or were entrepreneurs. Be sure to use your essays to tell the Admissions Committee the kinds of responsibilities you had, what you learned, and how you were able to make meaningful contributions to your company. If you had specific reasons for choosing the company you worked for, and if you did significant work on the side, include that in your essays as well. Your recommenders can also help convey your work ethic, leadership, and effectiveness.

Hi - I am a R2 International applicant still waiting to hear about my interview decision. Status on the website says my application is still under review. Considering that the final admissions decision deadline is the week of Feb 20 (2/24), what is a reasonable deadline to hear about my interview decision?

Thanks!

Hi rash2012,

You will receive a decision from us on the week of Feb 20.

I wanted to know more about the type of Financial service companies that come to Mcccombs , to be more specific financial consulting companies other than MBB, AT Kearney etc. Companies such as Oliver Wyman etc. I ask this cause, rather than working for general Consulting companies post MBA , I want to work specifically in financial consulting firms.

Hello,

I am applying in Round 1 for Full-Time MBA at McCombs School of Business. I have a few questions, which are listed below-

1.My undergrad did not have a GPA score. Should I submit the division or the percentage obtained over 100?
2.I have a B2 visa. Do I need to apply for F1/J1?
3.I completed my undergrad in English from University of Delhi, India. Do I need to submit a TOEFL score? If yes, What is the minimum required total score, and minimum required for each section?
4.As I might take my GMAT again in November'12, can I send my updated score before the Decision Notification deadline in December?

thanks
winds

I have 4 years of Intelligence Analysis and Management experience, but due to the sensitivity of my work I can't explain many specifics of my work. Should I depend on my recommendations to further the understanding of my accomplishments?

Looking for advice on acceptance chances at McCombs

1. I've worked in Commercial Real Estate for the past three years... mainly specializing in Retail Net Lease Investments Nationally. My team specializes in the acquisition and disposition of single tenant net leased investments (NNN) and retail shopping center investments. We partner with high net worth individuals, developers, institutional investors, REITs, and provide sale-leaseback expertise to franchisees. My group was built from the ground up within our office and I take great pride in our Entrepreneurial background. My company itself is 47 offices strong with locations throughout the USA.

2. Attended Big Ten school but low on the spectrum in terms of GPA for McCombs (2.9 on 4.0 scale)

3. Extracurricular: I'm part of many organizations... Big Brothers Big Sisters, The International Council of Shopping Centers, NAIOP, SPIRE (Stanford Professionals in Real Estate as guest), U of Iowa Alumni Association, among others.

Realistically what GMAT range do I need to be at to have a chance at McCombs? 620? 650?

Thanks,

Hello,
I'm a round1 applicant and have been put on wait list. The wait-list message clearly states not to contact admission committee till they contact you for additional information. I would like to provide an additional letter of recommendation, should I wait till the admission committee contacts me or can my recommender go ahead and submit the LOR

I'm still waiting on an interview invite too ... I'm getting nervous.

Does anyone know the best way to update the admissions committee on a GMAT retake? I want to update them on my better score post R2 deadline and I am not sure how. Is it just an email to the general admissions email address or something else?