{"id":19438,"date":"2013-07-03T09:40:05","date_gmt":"2013-07-03T16:40:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/?p=19438"},"modified":"2013-07-03T13:38:28","modified_gmt":"2013-07-03T20:38:28","slug":"whats-new-in-mba-admissions-a-report-from-the-6th-annual-aigac-conference-part-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/whats-new-in-mba-admissions-a-report-from-the-6th-annual-aigac-conference-part-1\/","title":{"rendered":"What\u2019s New in MBA Admissions? A Report from the 6th Annual AIGAC Conference [Part 1]"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Georgetown-McDonough\"<\/a>Change and innovation are vital in nearly every industry today, including in graduate school admissions consulting. Five Accepted.com editors, including company president and founder Linda Abraham, attended the 6th annual conference of Association of International Graduate Admissions Consultants in Philadelphia June 12-15. We were graciously hosted by Wharton on day two, and on day one, we met with admissions directors from a dozen top MBA programs who told us about the latest changes in their own programs, from the applications process to career services. We were treated to these updates by admissions directors from Yale, Columbia, UNC, NYU, UT-Austin, Georgetown University, Tuck, Cornell, Rotman, and CEIBS (China Europe International Business School.) A subsequent post will cover our day at Wharton.<\/p>\n

Here are highlights of the day:<\/p>\n

Innovations in MBA Curriculum<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 At Georgetown\u2019s McDonough Business School<\/a>, Senior Associate Dean of Marketing Strategy & New Program Development Elizabeth Griffith said the program has strengthened its quant courses, added intensive three-week sessions during year one on economics, ethics, and policies, as well as an accounting \u201cboot camp\u201d option. McDonough is also bringing in professors from a variety of disciplines for a more multi-disciplinary approach to subjects, such as analytical problem solving, firm analysis and strategy, leadership, and social intelligence.<\/p>\n

Georgetown\u2019s international consulting project also ensures that any student who arrives without international business experience will have some to put on their resumes by graduation. The school\u2019s Washington, D.C. location is extremely appealing to students interested in government and international business: Speakers at the school include the President of the United States, prime ministers, ambassadors, and other top government officials, who address topical issues.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Meanwhile, Columbia<\/a>\u2019s MBA program is offering more integrated courses in law and business, technology, optional tutorials on math and accounting, and emotional intelligence self-assessments to build awareness. The school continues to see a \u201cstrong appetite\u201d for social entrepreneurship among students.<\/p>\n

\u2022 University of North Carolina\u2019s Kenan-Flagler Business School<\/a> is adapting to students\u2019 requests to become more efficient. Director of Admissions Sherry Wallace said the school is responding by allowing students to \u201cattend\u201d some lectures online in response to their request for more class time devoted to questions and discussions. (Attendance tracking is part of system, she noted.) UNC also has a new healthcare concentration, developed in conjunction with the Schools of Medicine, Public Health, and Law. Students can also now assess themselves on leadership abilities and map their growth, based on a customized program.<\/p>\n

The Growth of Part-Time and Virtual MBA Programs<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Part-time, evening and online programs continue to gain in popularity. Georgetown\u2019s new, three-year evening program enrolls 130 students per class and has the same curriculum as the FT program. Sixty percent of the students in this program are career switchers, with experience in government, consulting, and government contracting. McDonough\u2019s Associate Dean, Shari Hubert, said these students enjoy the same support in the career counseling department, and are a \u201cvery disciplined\u201d bunch, juggling FT work and school. The school is also offering a variety of customized Executive MBA programs.<\/p>\n

\u2022 At Cornell<\/a>, applicants can apply to a one-year accelerated program or a 16-month virtual program that has \u201cboard rooms\u201d in many cities. As one example, the school has partnered with both New York City and the Technion for an engineering program that will meet on a new campus on Roosevelt Island (the campus is expected to be ready in 2017). In May 2014, Cornell will also launch a one-year innovation program at Google\u2019s campus in New York City. Ann Richards, Cornell\u2019s Associate Dean of Admissions, said this will be \u201ccompletely different\u201d than the current one-year program: it will be technically focused, not finance-focused, feature modules, and offer credits for experiential work. It\u2019s geared for students between 25-30 who want to focus on the tech-based entrepreurship.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Beth Flye, director of admissions at MBA@UNC, UNC\u2019s online program, announced that Kenan-Flaglar has new, exclusive partnerships with 2U.com to provide an MBA program in the virtual space. Geared for FT workers, including those with more than 20 years\u2019 work experience, the first cohort of 17 students has just graduated; the next cohort will have more than 550 students. (For more information on MBA@UNC, please check out this week\u2019s podcast, Are Online MBAs the Real Thing? A Conversation with MBA@UNC\u2019s Beth Flye<\/a> )<\/p>\n

Despite the virtual nature of the program, Flye said it remains \u201cvery high touch,\u201d with lots of interaction among the students and between students and instructors. 2U.com has created what Flye calls a very sophisticated, very customized Learning Management System in which students can learn together, work on group projects, and even run clubs.<\/p>\n

\u2022 All the schools emphasized the considerable career support offered in these alternate MBA programs. In some cases, they interview applicants before the programs begin and based on what they foresee are their strengths and hiring viability, they may steer them from one type of program to another. Many schools offer virtual counseling, large networking events in major cities, and mini career fairs. Adcom directors also noted that recruiters are often particularly interested in graduates of accelerated programs, knowing these candidates have proven themselves able to successfully manage both a rigorous school workload and FT job.<\/p>\n

Keep your eyes peeled for my next post which will cover some of the other topics discussed at the conference:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Career Services<\/strong> \u2013 More Involved than Ever<\/p>\n

\u2022 The Admissions Process<\/strong>: Still Evolving<\/p>\n

\u2022 Letters of Recommendation<\/strong> \u2013 Surprisingly Controversial<\/p>\n

\"Judy<\/a> <\/em><\/em><\/p>\n

By Judy Gruen<\/a>, MBA admissions consultant since 1996 and author (with Linda Abraham) of <\/em><\/em>MBA Admission for Smarties: The No-Nonsense Guide to Acceptance at Top Business Schools<\/a>.<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Accepted.com's experienced admissions consultants<\/a> can help you create the most impressive application possible with comprehensive packages<\/a>, <\/i><\/b>or provide targeted assistance from picking perfect programs<\/a> to designing a dazzling resume<\/a>, constructing engaging essays<\/a>, or preparing for intense interview<\/a>s<\/a>\u2026and more! Accepted.com has guided thousands of applicants to acceptances at top MBA programs since 1994 \u2013 we know what works and what doesn't, so contact us<\/a> to get started now!
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on the Accepted Admissions Consulting Blog<\/a>, the official blog of Accepted.com.<\/em> <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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