{"id":37942,"date":"2017-06-25T07:30:42","date_gmt":"2017-06-25T14:30:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/?p=37942"},"modified":"2017-06-25T01:50:18","modified_gmt":"2017-06-25T08:50:18","slug":"what-harvard-business-school-is-looking-for-analytical-aptitude-and-appetite","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/what-harvard-business-school-is-looking-for-analytical-aptitude-and-appetite\/","title":{"rendered":"What Harvard Business School is Looking For: Analytical Aptitude and Appetite"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Find<\/a><\/p>\n

This is the second post in our series, <\/em>What HBS is Looking For<\/a>.<\/p>\n

So, HBS wants \u201canalytical aptitude and appetite.\u201d Hardly a surprise. You might be tempted to just skim that section of the website message.<\/p>\n

Maybe it\u2019s not as obvious as it sounds. Let\u2019s break it down.<\/p>\n

Analytical:<\/strong> This word encompasses a range of things \u2013 quantitative methods, various tools and processes such as decision trees and FMEA, mental and intellectual objectivity, an exacting attitude. Parsing the relationship between a whole and its parts. Pursuing root causes.<\/p>\n

Aptitude<\/strong>: Ability, innate and\/or learned.<\/p>\n

Appetite:<\/strong> This is the really interesting word, because it\u2019s open to interpretation. We can read it as meaning to enjoy, to savor, to be open to, to relish, to hunger for, to have capacity for. Here are some of its practical implications and nuances (in question form):<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do you use objective analysis in understanding past events, planning future actions and strategies, and making decisions?<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do you respect results and outcomes determined by objective analysis even when they don\u2019t jive with your preconceptions, ideologies, or preferences?<\/p>\n

\u2022 Does your analytic mindset allow you to be comfortable with \u2013 even relish \u2013 ambiguity and uncertainty?<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do you help your teammates understand and use analytic approaches and thinking?<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do you use language<\/em> effectively as an analytic tool, e.g., when the team is facing a muddle, are you the one who can verbally separate the threads, clarify them, and guide the team to understand their relative weight and importance?<\/p>\n

As the HBS website indicates<\/a>, for HBS, analytical aptitude is not a solitary feast (regardless of how hearty the analytic appetite). You\u2019ve got to bring your analytical chops to the table, i.e., to classroom debates and case studies, projects, etc. Therefore, to use a music analogy, you must be able not only to read and play the analytic score \u2013 but also to improvise, on the spot and with other virtuosos.<\/p>\n

The adcom will grasp your analytic aptitude<\/strong> from your transcript(s), test score(s), and resume<\/a>. But if you feel these elements don\u2019t adequately show this dimension, use other parts of the application (essay, short answers, additional info, recommendations) to amplify it.<\/p>\n

As for showing analytical appetite<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Your resume may reflect this quality, depending on your work.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Invite your recommenders to discuss this<\/a> quality and to provide examples.<\/p>\n

\u2022 In your essay<\/a>, use a story or two that demonstrates analytical appetite.<\/p>\n

And be assured, it won\u2019t hurt to let other programs you apply to appreciate your analytic aptitude and appetite!<\/p>\n

\"Register<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Cindy<\/a><\/em>Cindy Tokumitsu<\/a>\u00a0has advised hundreds of successful applicants, helping them gain acceptance to top MBA and EMBA programs in her 15+ years with Accepted. She would love to help you too. Want Cindy to help you get Accepted? Click here to get in touch!<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Work with an experienced admissions consultant<\/a> who will guide you as you mine your experiences and then craft an application that demonstrates the analytical aptitude and appetite that HBS is seeking. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Related Resources:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022 Harvard Business School 2017-18 MBA Essay Tips & Deadlines<\/a>
\n\u2022 5 Practical Lessons I Learned at HBS that Helped Me Launch My Startup<\/a>
\n\u2022 Sample Essay from an Admitted HBS Student<\/a><\/p>\n

This article<\/a>\u00a0originally appeared on\u00a0<\/i>blog.accepted.com<\/a>.<\/i><\/p>\n

Applying to a top b-school? The talented folks at Accepted have helped hundreds of applicants get accepted to their dream programs. Whether you are figuring out where to apply, writing your application essays, or prepping for your interviews, we are just a call (or click) away.<\/p>\n

Contact us, and get matched up with the consultant who will help\u00a0you\u00a0<\/i>get accepted<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This is the second post in our series, What HBS is Looking For. So, HBS wants \u201canalytical aptitude and appetite.\u201d Hardly a surprise. You might be tempted to just skim…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,939,775,113,243],"tags":[797,100,1874,796,802,49],"class_list":["post-37942","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-mba","category-accepted","category-admission-consultants","category-applications","category-blog","tag-applying-to-harvard-business-school","tag-harvard","tag-harvard-application-tips","tag-harvard-business-school","tag-harvard-business-school-admissions","tag-harvard-hbs","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37942","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37942"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37942\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37945,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37942\/revisions\/37945"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37942"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37942"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37942"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}