Are you a college senior who is thinking about attending a top business school in the future? Then today’s post is for you! A growing number of business schools have created programs that target younger applicants through deferred MBA admissions. Read on to learn more about this exciting alternative route to b-school.
- What are deferred MBA admissions programs?
- What do deferred MBA programs look for in applicants?
- How we approach deferred MBA admissions
- Why our clients apply via deferred MBA admissions
- Should I apply now or wait for the regular process in 2-4 years?
- Deferred MBA admissions programs options
What are deferred MBA admissions programs?
Deferred programs are for college students who haven’t held a full-time job upon application submission. The most common model for deferred MBA admissions programs is to apply as a college senior (undergrad or grad), gain an admit, and then work for two to four years before starting the program.
Throughout the deferral period, MBA program admits can access valuable networks and engage career resources within the university. Without a doubt, the most coveted deferred MBA admissions program for SBC clients is the HBS 2+2 Program.
With this model, successful admits work for two years upon college graduation, and then attend HBS for two years–hence the program name, “2+2.” Note that HBS can approve a third year of deferral if the candidate is working on something reasonable—not laying on a beach in Bali!
What do deferred MBA programs look for in applicants?
Our SBC team includes many deferred MBA program experts. In fact, it includes two former HBS Admissions Officers who helped launch the 2+2 Program. Geri, a former HBS Admissions Officer who now works on the SBC team shared, “I was closely involved when 2+2 was launching, so I remember this time well. The HBS class demographics certainly shift over a period of time, sometimes driven by HBS priorities. For example, based on faculty feedback (seeing a lack of flexibility in thinking from students who had been working for many years), the school began to experiment with admitting people with fewer years of work experience. This ultimately led to the 2+2 (deferred admit) program.”
Another former HBS Admissions Officer and SBC consultant clarified, “The main impetus for starting HBS 2+2 was to attract students who would never apply to b-school. They are looking for all the same qualities and credentials as they do for the regular pool. But, then they are also looking for scientists, engineers, techies, and entrepreneurs, to name a few. HBS really hoped they would find young people who saw the deferred admission as an opportunity to take a risk and do something a little bit off the beaten path.”
Our successful college senior applicants are those who have shown leadership and made a noteworthy impact in some way. Also, they are often outside of the typical or traditional MBA candidate profile. For example, we worked with an HBS 2+2 applicant who graduated college early to take an internship working on the heroin epidemic in Washington D.C.
In addition, deferred MBA admissions admits usually have clear career plans and already know how a business education will aid their aspirations. They don’t need to be 100% married to a job or industry, of course. But they do understand what community they want to serve or problems they want to tackle in the short term.
Deferred admissions admits think of the MBA program as a way to build and test hypotheses and access vital networks to move them forward along an already-defined path. A solid framework on where the MBA falls along with the master plan is important for success as a deferred admissions candidate.
Geri, the former HBS Admissions Officer on our SBC team, added,
“The main reservation was that students with only two years of work experience would not have enough to contribute to the classroom and that the classroom discussion (and their fellow students) would suffer because of it. Fortunately, this did not turn out to be the case. The 2+2 group of students are stand-outs—they are the type of people who can hold their own in the classroom. And interestingly, while we were concerned about integration, the 2+2’ers reported that their classmates didn’t even know they were 2+2!”
(Read: HBS 2+2 Deferred MBA Program: Get Accepted)
But it’s not a program for everyone.
On the other hand, there are some for whom deferred admissions may not be the right plan. MBA applicants who have a tougher time with admit success at the college senior level are the “explorers,” or those who still want to try different things, such as taking a few years at a broad-based employment path, to assess if the MBA is right.
