MBAAlex120 wrote:
I mostly completely agree. Adcoms want people who have been extremely successful, have family connections and are in the right prep circles. Those people with that upbringing will continue to be successful because their network will not allow otherwise(those people are also smart and talented). So when these kids reach inevitable success, HBS can take credit. Makes sense, I would do the same.
That being said, the entire class cannot be white dudes from Greenwich, CT. People who overcame adversity bring a needed perspective to case discussions and making sure HBS does not become just a frat. But, and idk the numbers, maybe a 10 percent of the class are those folks who overcame, and like 40 percent of the applicant pool. I would say most people who didnt have a crazy resume played some sort of overcoming adversity card(whether real or not). Off those going with the adversity angle, I am sure the ones with the best stats and resumes were selected ---- not somebody who overcame the most(certainly an exception or two).
It's not all white dudes from Connecticut, certainly not, but the class does overwhelmingly consist of people -- male and female, from across the globe, with differing ethnic backgrounds -- that come from privilege and that is my broader point.
One of the key recruiting tactics for a program like HBS is to co-opt inevitable success, which you touched on. They want to identify people who are, without doubt, going to be highly successful in their careers, and then use that connection to further their own brand name, generate influence, and enhance their fundraising. Just as applicants work their their tails off to get an offer from a top school, these schools, too, are also looking for the golden ticket.
None of this is to say that adversity stories are totally useless, or that fundamental merit isn't the deciding factor among those in that pool, it is simply to say that the odds of admissions success are lower for people with that background. At a program like HBS, you're not one of 10,500 applicants competing for the 1,000 spots. More realistically, you are one of the, say, 7,500 competing for the 100 spots. The odds are just more daunting to the extent that many people from privileged backgrounds are going to be able to present with applications (schools, work experience, contacts) that those from adversity-mired backgrounds -- who typically hail from public universities, with few, if any, connections, and some pedestrian work experience from when they were just trying to make ends meet -- just cannot realistically compete with.
And I know may all sound somewhat jaded, but it's really not, it's just trying to keep a realistic perspective on the enormity of what many people are trying to do by applying to a program like HBS. Again, I think it just all goes back to be willing to put yourself out there, while having the strength to accept rejection.