Admissions Tips for Chicago

Question

Hi, everyone. I just had a great conversation with a current student at Chicago. She used to work in admissions. Here are some of the tips I received:

1. GMAT score: A score that's below 630-650 will cast doubt in the admissions counselors' mind on your ability to handle the academic rigor at Chicago. On the other hand, great essays might boost your chances. Example is a woman who had a great story and a unique background and got in with a 500 score. They don't have a strict cut-off for GMAT scores. But if you have at least a 650, the GMAT seems to matter less, and they look at your essays. It seems that they don't weight your AWA score heavily since they can judge your writing ability based on your essays. 

2. Essays - Have a consistent story and theme. Furthermore, you need to give specifics about why you want to go to Chicago. Even in the creative essays, the reasons you give should tie into your story. Reveal who you are and your personality. "Don't be a jerk!" They look for people whom they want to be in class with.

The aforementioned tips came from one former admissions counselor only, and may not reflect the views of the other counselors. I hope these tips help nevertheless.

Sincerely,

Questor

kayser1soze · Answer

Hi , 

thanx for the great post. I will be applying to GSB next fall and i was wondering if you have some more tips on getting into the school - for example how much do they weight work experience/leadership potential/refences/interviews etc. My main concern is that I would have about 3 yrs of work experience, but only 1 yr will be post-graduate. This is my main concern do they look at only post-graduate exp. or they tend to view all work experience???

Questor · Answer

Dear Kayser,

My gut feeling is that they will look at all your work experience. 

I'm not an admissions officer, however, so you may want to e-mail Chicago directly for an official answer.

Sincerely,

Questor

Questor · Answer

This former admissions applicant has posted his experiences applying to Chicago here: https://mbawire.blogspot.com/2003_06_08_ ... #200409118 Scroll down the page and look on the lefthand side bar.

kayser1soze · Answer

Questor,

thanx for the great post and info!

Questor · Answer

Hi. I paid $41.70 for a six-month subscription to Vault.com. It includes surveys submitted from MBA students (past and current). Fifty-three surveys were submitted for Chicago alone. Granted, some students answered the questions in more detail than others. I did find tips on the admissions process and info on the academic environment.

Another resource is the MBA journals: https://mbazone.com

Hjort · Answer

I would consider the Vault information with a (large) grain of salt. Their reports always seemed a bit suspect to me, but I guess reasonable minds could differ on these issues. 

The best way to gauge your fit at any school would be to visit. A visit to the Hyde Park Campus is far more telling than almost any other source of information. While this might not be feasible for many potential applicants it is far better than relying in the urban legends that proliferate about different schools.

Hjort

kayser1soze · Answer

i'm backing up hjort on this one, of course i'm not saying that you wasted your money on the access fot vault, but you can also consider a campus visit which will give you a more personal touch with the school and you can decide from personal experience if GSB meets your expectations. keep us update on GSB and keep posting interesting stuff about other schools as well. i'll be visiting GSB next spring probably in april. cheerz :-D

Hjort · Answer

I would like to in turn agree with Kayser. For the sake of clarity, I am not saying that Vault is a waste of money. I am merely suggesting that one should use it with caution (like one should use virtually all sources of info. with caution).

If one is serious about attending Chicago, I would also look into that school's Grad student at large program.

Hjort

Questor · Answer

Hi. I paid both Chicago and Northwestern a visit at the end of November. Boy, are they different! To me, Chicago felt more high brow, while Northwestern felt more social. It's kind of hard to explain. At Chicago, I felt like I could sense the mental energy of the students working, or something like that. Both the current students and prospective students that I met that day impressed me. Comparing to the students at other schools that I've visited so far, Chicago students seemed to be the smartest, in my opinion. This is only a generalization, of course.

Questor · Answer

One of the current students that I talked to mentioned that the majority of the recruiters are from the finance industry.

vivek123 · Answer

Hi,

Is it true that 'Univ of Chicago GSB' needs you to have 'masters degree' & not 'bachelors degree'?

-Vivek

Questor · Answer

Before your application could be considered? You were talking about the MBA program, right? No, a B.A. will suffice.

Hjort · Answer

Please see below

Chicago:

"Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka: 
Applicants must have completed a master's degree. One year of a two-year master's program is not sufficient. The B.Com., B.A., B.Tech., B.Eng., or B.Sc., or other similar degrees alone are not acceptable."

Hjort

Questor · Answer

From Chicago GSB's website:

"The prerequisite for admission is a bachelorâ€™s degree from an accredited institution. In special cases, exceptions may be made for applicants who can meet the schoolâ€™s special eligibility criteria. (See Information for International Students). We have no admissions quotas or arbitrary cut-offs with respect to grade point averages, GMAT scores or work experience.

An international applicant is anyone who is not a U.S. citizen or U.S. permanent resident at the time of application to the GSB. International applicants should submit their application as soon as possible to allow ample time to apply for a student visa if admitted; we strongly recommend that international applicants apply by mid-January. Part-Time Program applicants must hold a work visa.

Eligibility 
To be eligible for admission, applicants must have completed the equivalent of a U.S. four-year bachelor's degree. The Graduate School of Business reserves the right to review the academic records of all international applicants and to determine whether the academic credentials presented from a non-U.S. institution qualify for consideration. Applicants holding only professional diplomas or higher certificates or members of professional associations such as the Institute of Chartered Accountants are not qualified to apply for admission unless they also hold recognized university degrees or titles."

Hjort · Answer

I think Questor and I are in agreement. Students generally need a BA/BS for admission to the GSB but the GSB does not consider some degrees that have the title "Bachelors" to satisfy the BA/BS requirement. In that condition, one would generally need an MA/MS.

Hjort

strider77 · Answer

Just my 2 cents on the Masters being required for students frm India/Bangladesh etc - Many universities in these countries offer a 3 year Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree not to be confused with a 4 year Bachelor of Engineering (BE) degree. Most US universities find it inadequate (or just unfair) to admit students with this degree into their masters programs. The "way out" for these students is as suggested and is to get a 2 year MSc degree on top of the BSc before being found eligible.

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