Wharton 2012 - Calling All Applicants

Wharton MBA/MA is only one application, apparently. I'm not sure if that means that you could get rejected by Lauder and accepted to MBA (the opposite is definitely not possible).

You could, however, apply to HKS. That one is completely independent (even independent from HBS) and chances of admission aren't diminished at all. I think the same is true for Johns Hopkins.

I think I'm going to apply in round 2. I visited the school earlier this year and absolutely loved it!

Great to see the first thread starting for 2012 applicants.
I am applying to Wharton in R1. Being an international candidate, the only way I am getting to understand the school is through forums and watching some podcasts.

Wharton is often associated as a great school for candidates interested in finance, however I would like to get the inputs on this from the alums on this thread.

I personally am not to inclined towards getting into a finance or Banking career. Can someone throw light on strengths of the school on other areas like strategy, entrepreneurship, general management etc?

I have just started researching b-schools and intend to apply to Wharton in R1. best of luck everyone!

Wharton is definitely a great school for practically everything you want to do career-wise.

Strategy: a large proportion of Wharton class each year goes into Strategy Consulting at the top consulting firms.
Entrepreneurship: this is one area Wharton is actively strengthening; a bunch of amazing entrepreneurs has come out of Wharton: check out AdMob, Giant Studios, Digital Sky Technology, Freshary Shanghai, EF China, or most recently - Warby Parker, CBL Exam, etc. There are plenty of resources to explore and use.
GM: Wharton's way of thinking about business problems fits the modern world best of all top schools as W puts an emphasis on data-driven decision making; combine that with Wharton's communication program and you have a solid foundation to pursue a General Management career.

Hi there!

Very excited to be applying to Wharton -- the only US school I am applying to. I am looking to get involved in mobile technology innovation for business use in developing countries -- hoping to either be a part of a start up team, venture capital team that invests in technology innovation, or big name mobile company looking to penetrate the developing country market.

Good luck everyone!

That is great. I feel the same about mobile technologies and actually I'm applying to the b-schools 2012 class with this background behind me. It's terrific doing business in developing world.

As for me - I have the following priorities for 2012 applying:
1. HBS
2. Stanf GSB
3. Wharton


I'm not interested in finances at the moment)

Oh cool. So what are you hoping to do after your MBA? I am currently involved in Web and New Media with some limited mobile experience (for mobile, it's mainly in the fundraising, grassroots activism arena. For web, my exp spans across nonprofit, private, eCommerce, government, and education).

And btw, how many years of work experience do you have? I happen to be of a more "senior" class of applicants, being 31, so I decided to not target HBS since they are intentionally skewing towards very young applicants with limited work exp (less than 5 years, usually 1 - 3 years).

Actually, I'm 25 and I have 4 years of professional experience.

- 3 years within KPMG (finances)
- 2 months Adidas (finances)
- 8 months Weatherford (finances)
- 1 year of entrepreneurial activity [at the moment]



I really want to do smth challenging (own business, startup etc.) but few weeks ago I was having lunch with HBS alumni, who works for IB in developing country and he described me very interesting picture of being in direct investment management.

Ideally, I want to combine own business and corporate life


And you? What is the ideal picture of world around you after MBA?

I also started MBA preparation blog and looking for blog pall)) if you became interested it would be great))

Haha yeah looks like you are in the ideal range for HBS. Good luck, it sounds very exciting!

I am mainly targeting European schools, first choice (aside from Wharton) being LBS and Insead. Second choice Oxford and Cambridge. A few reasons why I'm targeting those schools: 1. I hope to move to Europe (boyfriend lives in Europe -- and the European work/life balance really appeals to me). 2. I like Europe's proximity to Africa and Asia (two of the regions I'd like to target). 3. Lower MBA cost. Also, the shorter programs also appeal to me as I already have a masters in economics and policy from Columbia.

Hopefully life after MBA means I can dedicate myself as part of a startup or venture capitalist team.

Did you take your GMAT yet? I am taking it on June 25.

What's your blog address. Mine is in the signature.

mine blog name i izvos dot com

also, i surfed through yours - you're good and have very good results

I live in Europe and targeted on USA (I want to come back home after). By the way, I admire you and your boyfriend (my last relations were destroyed by the 200 miles distance)

With regard to GMAT - actually I'm just starting preparation from this weekend (kind of admission consultants) - and consider that there is plenty of time before 2nd round application.

Speaking about Europe Bschools - I like Insead spirit (+location is great).

feeling nervous about GMAT?

xerox, could you go into more details about Wharton's communications program? Thank you!

So, Mr Unbeatable, Mr WD, this is where you've been hiding.

I am one of the Wharton/Lauder alums in Singapore to which my dear friend xerox is alluding. Everything he says is totally on point, accept for his profile picture- he was never that beautiful.

And what's with that flower anyway?

Cheers!
CP (cannedpineapples)

Aha! We haz succezz! Now two Wharton/Lauder alums are live on the forum! Canned Pineapples is one of the best sources of spot-on advice about the school. Lore has it that CP put his/her school application together in just four weeks or so, but I would just let this be a rumor and neither seek an official confirmation nor otherwise; one thing for sure - the individual is a super valuable encyclopedia of b-school admissions.

The flower is here to stay - I love it: what's not to love?