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06 Apr 2015, 13:02
| FROM The MBA Manual: How to approach the applications process |
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This post is going to be a short one but it contains some important information. When you first sit down to start working on your applications (for most, this is the summer before they apply), you might not know where exactly you should start. Before you know it you’ll have 6 or 7 schools that you’re interested in applying to opening their applications and releasing their essay prompts. You’ll want to devote adequate time to each application and essay but you’ll also be eager to work on all of them. You’ll finish an application or essay but then wonder if you should go back to it and take time away from others since its one of your dream schools. In short, you’ll feel like you’re being pulled in 1,000 different directions. So, what should you do? Start early If there’s anything you take away from my blog, let it be starting everything early. I’ve mentioned the importance of starting early on research, studying, and extra-curriculars. Applications are no different. Harvard Business School is almost always the first b-school to release its essay prompts (early may), so you should think about starting to get down to business around then, especially if Harvard is a school you’re shooting for. Side note: if you’re really gunning for HBS, you might want to take a look at this book of 65 successful business school essays. I own the book and it actually helped me with my essays for all of my applications, not just Harvard. Organize your time If you start working in early May, that leaves you about 20 weeks until most of the applications will start to be due. Split those 20 weeks up into segments based on how many schools you intend on applying to. If you’ll apply to 6 schools, aim to spend a little over 3 weeks per application. If you’re going with a more ambitious 8 schools, you’ll want to pick up your pace and aim to complete an application about every 2 and a half weeks. Also, don’t be afraid to take your time and use the full amount of time you’ve delegated for yourself. There’s no bonus to finishing your first 3 applications in the first week if they aren’t your best work. Go in order! This is probably the thing that helped me the most when I was in the center of the whirlwind that is the applications process. Now, you can’t control when schools release their essays and applications, and at first you should probably just work on the applications when they come out (Harvard first, then ____, etc.). However, at some point during the summer/fall you’ll be at a point where most or all of the schools will have released their essay prompts and opened their applications, and it is at this point that you should start ordering your efforts based on when those materials will be due. For example, if it is mid-September, and you have finished Columbia (due Jan 7), and NYU (due October 15), but haven’t finished MIT (due September 23), you’ll be in trouble. Get a gauge on when each set of materials is due, mark the dates in your calendar, and check back often (these dates come faster than you think!). If you go in order and complete the applications in the order that they’re due, you’ll buy yourself the most time possible and be able to construct the best possible applications. Here were the due dates for some major programs for the 2014-2015 application cycle so you can get a better handle on which apps you’ll be focusing on first: Harvard Business School = September 9 Yale SOM = September 18 MIT = September 23 Stanford GSB = October 1 Cornell (Johnson) = October 1 UPenn (Wharton) = October 1 NYU (Stern) = October 15 Columbia = January 7 I realize that a lot of this is common sense but sometimes when you’re under some intense pressure, have several deadlines to meet, and are working on a handful of applications and a dozen essays, common sense starts to go out the window. If you follow the above directions, you will almost certainly have a smoother, more productive application writing period that yields higher quality application materials than you would if you went at things more haphazardly. Be diligent, work hard, and stick to your schedule, and you’ll have some well-polished applications to turn in come due date.  
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07 Apr 2015, 22:01
| FROM Pro GMAT: FlashCards |
Flash cards are very basic study material to get to the point information. Most of the students uses flash cards to study, but using them effectively can bring charms. The choice of making flash cards is very personal, someone would like them, or someone would not like making them. How to make: Choose the most important formulas/tricks you […]
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08 Apr 2015, 13:01
| FROM MBA Data Guru: Cornell MBA Interview Questions |
Cornell MBA Interview Questions This guide is designed to help Johnson MBA applicants to prepare for their interview, complete with a list of the most common Cornell MBA interview questions. The typical Johnson MBA interview is 30 to 50 minutes long. It can be given by either a second year student, alumni or an admissions committee member. It is even possible to get an interview with an adcom member with a second year student in training to learn how to interview. Interviews can take place on campus, off-campus or over skype. Expect the interview to be semi-blind, which means that they have seen your resume but probably nothing else. The Cornell MBA interview questions below are organized from most common question to least common, with the frequency it is asked in parenthesis. Most Common Cornell MBA Interview Questions 1) Tell me about yourself or walk me through your resume. (80%) 2) Tell me about a challenging situation at work or a work conflict. (70%) 3) Why Johnson? (70%) 4) Why get an MBA? Why now? (60%) 5) How will you contribute to Johnson? (50%) 6) What are your post MBA plans or goals? (50%) 7) Describe a time when you managed or lead other people? (50%) 8) What is your biggest weakness? (40%) 9) Why did you make XYZ transition? (20%) 10) What is your leadership style? (20%) 11) Have you applied to any other schools? What do they have in common with Johnson? (20%) 12) Is there anything else you want me to know? (20%) At the end you will have time to ask a few questions. For additional interview tips check out my MBA interview preparation guide. This guide was created using theJohnson interview reports from clear admit. MBA Data Guru - Data and analytics that will help you in the MBA admissions process |
09 Apr 2015, 06:01
| FROM Scott Duncan: Startup Lessons from An Accomplished CEO |
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What I'm reading: Negotiating with Giants  by Peter D. Johnston Written by a Harvard MBA, Negotiating with Giants takes an interesting look at how to negotiate for what you want, even with the odds stacked against you. It doesn't matter if you are gunning for a promotion with your boss, raising money for your startup, or just trying to get your library late fees waived, this book will give you the strategies you need to face any person or organization with seemingly more power than you. I had an interesting talk with the CEO of my company earlier this week. He has built several medical device companies, has been responsible for the creation of hundreds of millions of dollars of value in the medical device industry, and is directly responsible for increasing the quality of life of thousands of people, worldwide. All this, and you have probably never heard of him. What started off as a minor discussion turned into a long talk about what my post-MBA plans were. I had never really talked to him about what my career goals were, but he dropped a wealth of entrepreneurship knowledge once I explained them to him. These were the four main points: Find Solutions, Not Problems Be a problem solver, and not a problem seeker. Have you ever worked at an organization where the only thing some of your coworkers do is point out flaws in other people’s work, provide baseless criticism, and never actually PRODUCE anything? Pointing out everything that’s wrong is easy. The only way to provide real value is to solve problems when you encounter them, not just point them out. Make Decisions, Not Excuses Sometimes, especially in a startup environment, it’s better to be wrong and move forward than to agonize over a decision and stay stagnant. Nothing is learned without moving forward, and having a stack of failures behind you certainly builds experience. Hire for Heart, Train for Talent Impassioned, driven, and hard-working people will outproduce the smartest or seemingly most competent people who lack these qualities. Experience is the Best Teacher He calls it “scar tissue.” Do you remember your first big project at work? I remember spending a whole week writing and editing a report that I can now write in the 15 minutes I have in between meetings. This is because the experience that you gain allows you to quickly identify what is important and what is unimportant. This was especially valuable coming from an accomplished entrepreneur who has experienced the same success that I hope to achieve in my career. The qualities that the CEO of my company was talking about are not things that are “taught” in an MBA program – they’re built-in to a person’s character. Having MBA from a top program does not guarantee success, just like having a straight-A transcript doesn’t make you more likely to be a value-producing employee. And, just like the CEO of my company, these qualities are what business schools are looking for in applicants, not just GMAT, GPA, and other benchmarks. Sign up and never miss a post Subscribe Now!  I value your privacy and would never spam you. Unsubscribe at any time. The post Startup Lessons from An Accomplished CEO appeared first on Scott Duncan. |
15 Apr 2015, 09:01
| FROM TopDogMBA - A Reapplicant's Tail: A day in the life – part 1: GMAT |
It’s nearly a year since TopDogMBA came into being and – over 18,000 hits later – I’ve decided to share some of the application aids I created that helped me get two admits (and a waitlist) from top 10 b schools. I hope that it helps any newbies to the MBA application process, gives some […]
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15 Apr 2015, 12:01
| FROM Grant Me Admission: New design, New vision |
It’s been almost 11 months (and 160,000 views) since I started my online journey, and what a journey it has been. Over the last 11 months,…
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15 Apr 2015, 16:01
| FROM The adventures of a (provisional) MBA student: FIELD 3 – The ‘capstone’ of the RC |
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FIELD 3 is the final and third part of the FIELD portion of the RC (Required Curriculum – 1st Year), a unique part of the HBS MBA experience. And as the first year reaches its final stretch, we’re fully in the swing of setting up our micro-businesses. FIELD 3 asks you to form teams with 4 or 5 other MBA students. This is the first time this year we’ve been asked to form our own teams – giving you the opportunity to test your pitching skills and powers of persuasion with fellow classmates that your idea is viable and deserves attention. Our team is focusing on the perennial battle that many feel around exercising, and needing that ‘extra little kick’ to get out and exercise or eat healthily. So we’ve started Badger. Badger is a new service that links personal trainers and nutritionists to users remotely on demand. The idea is that people get much more motivation when they have some form of accountability to a real person, and people pay for a gym trainer just for that reason, but that’s just too unaffordable for most people. We hope that this can bridge the gap and give a real connection at a fraction of the cost, and help people to achieve what they want to achieve. We’re feeling pretty pleased that we’ve managed to get our service up and running, and we’re accepting beta testers if lovely readers want to give it a try. Just go to joinbadger.com to sign up! FIELD3 obviously isn’t exactly the same of starting a real business. The timings are pretty compressed, with due dates based around the academic calendar, and a pretty limited scope. However, it’s a great chance for many in the MBA program to try (and maybe like) something they have never tried before for whatever reason. It’s been a great experience so far, I’ve tried and learnt some completely different things, and I’m really excited to see how we get on. HBS is the only business school (to my slightly outdated knowledge) that has this sort of program required as part of the curriculum. I think this is a great feature as you get a completely diverse mix trying out starting a business, and I’ve already heard of some (FIELD has been running about 5 years now) that have gone through FIELD and completely changed their career direction because of it – an achievement in itself. I’ll keep you posted with how Badger does!  
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16 Apr 2015, 03:01
| FROM Pro GMAT: To get back what I lost |
A few days before I contacted GrantMeAdmission after reading his post and asked him that how he motivated himself to get back to work and his awesome reply forced me to go back to my study table and gather all the knowledge that I left there a few months before. I would like to put some […]
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16 Apr 2015, 05:01
| FROM Grant Me Admission: 4 GMAT Prep Hacks Everyone Should Know |
This week I am excited to have a guest blogger. Eliza Chute is an independent GMAT tutor, and she runs the helpful site https://bestgmatprepcourse.com/ (check it…
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16 Apr 2015, 05:01
| FROM Scott Duncan: Stop Wasting Time On Your Essays |
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I’m still trying to figure out all of the things I did differently this year that earned me a spot at HBS. Since I had practice writing essays from my previous attempt at applying, and I had really worked hard at defining my core reasons for applying – writing went a lot easier this year. There was no more staring out the window watching cars go by instead of writing… There was no more feeling guilty on a Saturday night after setting the whole day aside for essays…and getting nothing done. Instead, I wrote crisp and clear essays that said what I wanted them to say in just a few hours – no pain, no agonizing over perfection, and no wasted time. But looking back, I realized I used a process for writing my essays. Last year, I wrote whatever I was feeling like writing, with no plan, structure, or goal in mind. I had no idea what I was trying to communicate! Here are the steps I took to write better essays this year. As a bonus download, here is a free worksheet that will walk you through the entire process, step-by-step and in a little bit more detail than I go into in this post... Step 1: Ideate – Come up with a whole bunch of ideas Yep, that’s right. You’re not defining your “career vision”, making a dream catcher or connecting with your b-school spirit animal (mine is Charlie Munger). You’re starting this process by doing work. Good job! The idea is to come up with 50-100 ideas from EVERY aspect of your life that you can tell. Pick ones that you would tell to people you don’t know that make you sound interesting (even if you aren’t). Good ideas, bad ideas, doesn’t matter. Write them all down on a piece of paper and when you hit 50-100, move to step 2. Step 2: Eliminate – Get rid of all of the BAD ideas Now your creative juices should be flowing. You’ll know by now which of your stories are stand-out options for b-school essays, and narrow them down to the top ten. Wondering why you came up with 100 ideas just to throw 90 of them away? Well, it’s a lot easier to pick 10 GREAT ideas from 100 than is is to create 10 ideas from zero. Step 3: Refine – Tell the story with a B-School point of view Only now do you take a look at your essays and ask yourself, “Self, what does this story say about me to an admissions committee?” Are you covering the holy trinity of b-schools characteristics that you need to demonstrate in your applications?
Step 4: Outline – Build the structure of your essay Outlining essays seemed so pointless – but it’s a smaller example of what this whole writing process accomplishes: Do the work up-front to save time, frustration, and disappointment in your final product. Your outline can by design fix transitional issues in your essays before you even start writing, and gives you the high level view of what you are trying to say with your essay. The outline also helps you plan how to communicate everything you want in the usually tight word limits of b-school essays. Do it, it’s worth it. Step 5: Write If you followed steps 1-4, writing is now the easy part! The best piece of advice I have for anyone writing application essays is this: write a fixed number of words every single day. Now that you have a plan, this will be a lot easier. So there you have it. I had a much easier time writing essays by starting out with a lot of ideas rather than trying to come up with the perfect idea from the start. In case you missed it, here’s another link to the worksheet that details out this process: If you’re going through the application process now, or did in the past, let me know how you worked through your essays in the comments below: Like this post? Sign up and get free updates Subscribe Now! I value your privacy No spam, no BS. Unsubscribe at any time. The post Stop Wasting Time On Your Essays appeared first on Scott Duncan. |
16 Apr 2015, 10:01
| FROM TopDogMBA - A Reapplicant's Tail: A day in the life – part 2: my application masterplan |
It’s nearly a year since TopDogMBA came into being and – over 18,000 hits later – I’ve decided to share some of the application aids I created that helped me get two admits (and a waitlist) from top 10 b schools. I hope that it helps any newbies to the MBA application process, gives some […]
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17 Apr 2015, 09:01
| FROM TopDogMBA - A Reapplicant's Tail: A day in the life – part 3: school-by-school application plan |
It’s nearly a year since TopDogMBA came into being and – over 18,000 hits later – I’ve decided to share some of the application aids I created that helped me get two admits (and a waitlist) from top 10 b schools. I hope that it helps any newbies to the MBA application process, gives some […]
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18 Apr 2015, 21:01
| FROM Pro GMAT: An overview of my journey till now! from 540 to 720. Still Counting. |
This an overview of my journey till now! I started bloging in August last year. I had a nice list before getting started for GMAT studies. I took my first GMAT prep on 26th Feb last year and scored 540. I took my second GMATPrep after studying for 2-3 months and scored 10 points lower! I was studying according […]
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19 Apr 2015, 21:01
| FROM My MBA Journey: Headed to the Burgh |
 I was checking my phone all day. I wasn’t sure when I would receive the admission decision from Tepper. I received an acceptance from Goizueta in the early morning of the decision release date and from Kenan-Flagler the day ahead of time. It felt like a bit of a waiting game for Tepper on the release date. I received an email later in the day from Tepper and received great news. I opened a video that welcomed me to Tepper’s class of 2017. In addition to the acceptance, I was offered a Forte Fellowship. I am so excited to have these opportunities. Now comes the tough part. I have to decide which program I am going to spend the next two years with. In an effort to help with the decision, my boyfriend and I visited Pittsburgh to further explore the city a few days after the admission decision was released. Tepper’s Welcome Weekend is after the deposit deadline so we wanted to visit Pittsburgh once more before we have to make our decision. We lined up a couple of apartment viewings to see what is available in the area through Mozart Management. The staff was very helpful and even willing to show us apartments over the weekend. The apartments we viewed were pretty affordable but weren’t near a downtown area. We are hoping to find housing that is walkable to school or a downtown. Throughout the rest of the weekend we explored the various sections of the city. Pittsburgh is divided into numerous sections and they all have quite a different environment. Now it’s time to reflect and work through this decision.  
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22 Apr 2015, 10:01
| FROM Pro GMAT: Twitter is the new way of Collections. |
This week went in reviewing all the topics that I have covered in my previous study session. I reviewed all the notes that I have made and started reviewing the Quant topics. I have started with triangles and made few flash cards and they are really helping me remember the formulas and tricks. Each time I get something […]
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26 Apr 2015, 21:01
| FROM Pro GMAT: Back to the study table. Starting with 640! |
Hey, Last week I started a few new things in my life. That includes shifting from daily targets to weekly targets, 45 minutes of exercise including 15 minutes of yoga, making flash cards instead of notes. I am experimenting with my lifestyle & studies, and these changes are really helping me out. I have also made a few tweet […]
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30 Apr 2015, 04:01
| FROM Naija MBA Gal: On your marks … |
It’s been a while since I posted anything here. Very sorry for the silence but it was necessary. Here’s a rundown of what has happened since my last post: I’ve gone on a mini-vacation Gotten on an (read: several) apartment wait list (also actively searching on Zillow) had a minor surgery Freaked out over the […]
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01 May 2015, 11:01
| FROM TopDogMBA - A Reapplicant's Tail: Birthday – TopDogMBA is 1 year old! |
May 1st, 2015 – It’s one year since I started my TopDogMBA blog and what a year it’s been! I had no way of knowing when I started TopDogMBA – heavily inspired by the likes of MBAOver30 – if my re-application strategy was going to be a success, but I was determined to go all out […]
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02 May 2015, 19:01
| FROM My Journey to Business School: Preparing for Kellogg |
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I haven’t done many blogs lately since I’ve been busy preparing for Kellogg. I thought I should give you guys a quick update on what’s been happening the last few weeks. There is just so much to do! But sometimes, like now, there’s a lull – I feel like I should be doing something productive, but instead I just laze around catching up on TV shows I love and spending time with family. :D These are a few things I’ve checked off my list:
But I’ve come across some incredibly helpful blogs online, these are some: 108 Tips for new MBA Students (by Matthew Kuo – UCLA Anderson) A letter to an incoming MBA Student (by Rohan Rajiv – Kellogg Class of 2016)  
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03 May 2015, 06:01
| FROM My Journey to Business School: US Visa Application and Visa Interview Process for Indian Nationals |
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Type of Visa: You will be applying for a Non-Immigrant F-1 (Student) US Visa. Applying for a Visa: Create an account on: https://cgifederal.secure.force.com/?language=English&country=India Complete the DS-160 Form which is an online visa application form. It will be available on the above website once you register. It is a long and comprehensive form, so be prepared to set aside an hour to fill it out. Be sure to read the Guidelines for Completing the DS-160 Form carefully before starting work on the form. Once the form is submitted, you cannot make any changes to it. So double-check the form and all the details before you hit Submit. You will need your DS-160 number to schedule your VAC & Visa interview. Scheduling the VAC and Visa Interview: You will first have to schedule an appointment at a Visa Application Center (VAC) prior to your visa interview. Biometric information including fingerprints and digital photographs will be collected at the VAC. You must schedule the VAC appointment at least one day before the visa interview appointment date. What to carry to the VAC –
Reach the VAC center 30mins before your appointment time. It is useless reaching there any earlier than that as you will not be allowed in. Dress Casual. Visa Interview: I was very stressed before the interview, but in retrospect there was no reason to be! I scheduled my visa interview in Hyderabad, India. There’s a lot of waiting time involved – from the minute I reached the visa center to the moment I got out, the full process took about 2 hours. The visa interview lasted exactly 2 minutes. I was asked: Why do you want to go to the USA? May I see your i20? What is this graduate program you’re pursuing? [My i20 had “Engineering, Other” as the Graduate program listed] Did you write the GMAT or GRE? How much did you score on the GMAT? [He was mightily impressed by my GMAT score, and his tone was considerably warmer after hearing it. He bantered a bit about schools in the US and GMAT scores] What other schools did you apply to? Did you get in anywhere else? How do you plan to pay for this extremely expensive program?  And that was it. My interviewer did not look at any of the papers that I took along. I even asked him to look at the financials that were in front of him to verify my claims of being able to pay for school, but he emphasized his dislike for paperwork and mentioned he would take me at my word. However this does not mean you should be lax about taking all the required paperwork to your visa interview. The documents you will need are:
You can check your visa status by entering your DS-160 number and interview location in this page: https://ceac.state.gov/CEACStatTracker/Status.aspx?eQs=WwjqOlbeRYzCYubaSQI+RA== Once your visa is approved and your passport is stamped, you will get an email from the US Embassy stating that your passport is ready to be picked up. You can track your passport here – https://ustraveldocs.com/in/in-niv-passporttrack.asp Good luck with your visa interviews and let me know if you have any questions about the process in the comments below!  
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Hi Generic [Bot],
Here are updates for you:
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