Ask MBA PREP COACH

The prompt:
As we review your application, what more would you like us to know as we consider your candidacy for the Harvard Business School MBA program?

The tips:

• Figure out your “throughline” – a connecting theme, plot, or characteristic. Focus on that; don’t try to do all the things. Deep, not wide.
• Demonstrate leadership, of course. If you decide to go the path of several smaller anecdotes, show leadership in various settings (work, group-related hobbies, serving on the board).
• Be personal. If you talk about work, make sure it truly helps them to get to know you, your defining characteristic, an aspect of you that is true in every setting. Start with
• context about you as a person, your struggles, etc.
• Don’t include information mentioned elsewhere. Follow the instructions. HBS advises you avoid “essays that are basically a paragraph version of your resume.”
• Move away from analytical thought; the goal is to create emotional resonance. Help them get to know you as your friends do. HBS also advises you avoid submitting “essays that aren’t about you.”

The end result:
A memorable application that demonstrates who you really are and what you bring to the table – subsequently opening the door to an interview!

Watch and listen more in depth here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTTDTzoTvhY

Main message when talking about work: it's easy to slip into jargon and acronyms that create a barrier to adcom understanding your greatness. Use universal language, and then run your response by people in your life who don’t know much about your job.

Let's look at the short answer question...

Briefly summarize your current (or most recent) job, including the nature of work, major responsibilities, and where relevant, employees under your supervision, size of budget, clients/products and results achieved.

In addition to keeping the language simple, there are a few other points you need to get across.

Show the level you are working at: typically, this is indicated by budgets and employees, but if your industry uses a different measure, share that. The point of looking for MBA hires is accessing a large body of vetted candidates. In this instance, it's flipped – INSEAD is seeing how vetted *you* are by your employer.

Results: very important! While you don’t have to go into long-winded stories here, give a bit of context around your resume highlights that are already in STAR format. Bring a bit of life into them, don’t copy and paste. Results are best when quantitative and speak to motivations of making money, saving money, and saving time.

For those who don't directly work on the revenue base, do some modeling: had you not done that “IT” thing, would it have jeopardized your organization's ability to scale? Think creatively about how to demonstrate how you added value.

Part-Time MBA vs EMBA – Which to Pick?

Choosing an MBA program isn’t easy in the best of times, and there are so many options out there it can make your head spin. Here I’ve broken down some of the key points of comparison between part-time MBA and EMBA, in order to make your decision a little bit easier.

First of all, a note about cost.
PT: It’s hard to make a side-by-side comparison here because most PT programs are flexible in term and the costs can be spread out.
EMBA: The cost of an EMBA is always higher than PT. However, when comparing EMBA costs, keep in mind that programs that meet twice per month might be more costly than those meeting once per month. Also, some programs include housing costs for the weekend.
Scholarships are rare for either program unless you are part of a particular group set aside for merit awards, and if you do get one it’s not likely to be substantial.

Do you want to “pivot”?
PT: Not as good as full-time for this, but doable with the right program. Among PT programs, Haas and Booth allow for you to quit and do an internship, whereas NYU and Kellogg require you to be employed full-time the duration of the program. It’s pretty case-by-case in terms of attending OCR events or the degree of support you will receive from career services.
EMBA: Is just not realistically set up for this. The main goal here is to gain skills you can sell to your current organization with the aim of getting promoted or achieving a C-level role. If you want to switch jobs, however, the cohort and alums can help set up interviews for you. There might, however, be some source of ongoing support like career coaching (Kellogg) or executive training. I do feel that Wharton EMBA graduates are able to pivot fairly readily, but it’s best not to go in with this expectation.

How much work experience do you have?
PT: Average is about 5 years of work experience, could be as little as 2.
EMBA: Average is 12 years, could be as little as 8 (however for Oxford EMBA, it’s 5.)

How old are you?
PT: No lower limit, the average age hovers around 30.
EMBA: Average age is around 37 for most programs, including Wharton, Booth, Duke, Kellogg, Ross, Haas and Stern. It is around 33 for Columbia, possibly because there is no part-time program at CBS. For MIT, average age is 40 and most work at the director level.

What’s your test score situation?
PT: There might be a waiver provision but in general, a test score is always required. All accept the GMAT or GRE, and all but Kellogg accept the EA (which is odd because Kellogg EMBA does not require a test score at all). Average EA for Booth is 680, to provide some indication.
EMBA: There is no test score required for NYU, Ross, Kellogg, or MIT. That being said, you must show some evidence of your quant abilities and MIT requires that you have completed courses in stats and calculus. Undergraduate courses are the best way to show this and if you have poor math grades, it’s best to take the EA. Having a CFA will also work in most cases. I like to recommend mbamath.com if it’s a borderline situation. The median EA for Booth is 155; for Wharton, 157.
Keep in mind that for both these program types, if you are overrepresented in the application pool, the competition drives up the required test score, which means you’ll need a higher test score than average.

Do you have management experience?
PT: This is always a bonus, and you should have leadership present in your profile as you would for the full-time program. If not in your job, then somewhere else such as in employee resource groups. Helping with recruitment. Even better, creating a positive impact in a community leadership role. But this is obviously less of a requirement than it would be for the EMBA.
EMBA: I have helped those without people leadership roles get into top EMBA programs (Wharton specifically) though it’s not ideal. You need at least very developed project management skills with an eye towards advancing into a people management or C-suite role.
EMBA students are seeking help with people-oriented challenges; recruitment, retention, motivation, and organizational change. Having stories and solutions to share in the classroom will position you well for the EMBA. Your work experience is a big deal in the value proposition you bring.

How mobile are you?
PT: If you choose the evening option, you will need to be local. If you work from home, it might be a good idea to relocate (preferably to the Berkeley area or downtown Chicago.) For weekend MBA programs, 75% of Booth weekend students fly in and the same option exists for Kellogg. For Haas EWMBA, 72% of the students are local. It’s a bit more similar to an FT MBA program in that it offers a cohort system.
EMBA: There is generally less travel involved for most of the programs. You will be traveling to school every other weekend in most cases, including NYU, Booth, and Wharton EMBA. For Wharton, you will stay on campus with your cohort in Philly or a hotel in SF. At MIT, you meet 2-3 times per month. For many, it’s an attractive option to meet once per month. Ross, Kellogg-Miami, and Duke WEMBA offer this.

How much time do you have?
PT: Part-time programs are not lockstep, or at least not for the entirety of the program. For example, Haas has a cohort system where you take the first 3 semesters of core curriculum in lockstep, but you can take up to 5 years to complete the program. Booth and Kellogg both also allow up to 5 years, and NYU allows 6. This can vary; the FEMBA states 3.
EMBA: Most EMBA programs are lockstep; everyone begins and ends at the same time. They range from 21 months to 24 months. Lockstep allows for deeper bonds, which makes sense because gaining a network is one of the primary goals of doing an EMBA. Schools usually state you need to allow for 20 hours on the weekends you don’t meet for classes. I will say my clients who have done the program emphasized that it was very rigorous.
Most require “time sponsorship”, in that you will need to present a business case to your seniors and have them sign off on you being gone from work. They really frown upon you using PTO for the program and sometimes will not allow it.

What do you want to get out of this?
PT: This is usually the best option for those primarily focused on building skills, climbing the ranks, and potentially pivoting. The main motivation is a well-rounded business education. It’s usually considered to be rigorous. No one is likely to fail, but it’s rigorous. For totally flexible programs, this puts in peril how valuable or deep your bonds are with classmates.
EMBA: While most of the programs are apt at delivering a well-rounded business education or “skill” building, others are more focused on leadership development (primarily Ross, Kellogg and Duke GEMBA) and are subsequently less rigorous. One of the biggest takeaways for an EMBA program should be your relationships/network. You can get the content on Coursera but not the teamwork or network experience.
Side note: Admissions puts a lot of emphasis on your letters of recommendation for EMBA because 1) you should be imparting some good “content” in class to enlarge the perspective of your colleagues, and 2) you need to be likeable and a value-add to the class from a social perspective.

Sloan Fellows – the 1-year full-time option for older adults
And last but certainly not least – the full-time option for those mid-career or beyond. If you want a total sabbatical from work for 1 year and you are past the typical age of a full-time MBA student, you might look into the Sloan Fellows programs. There is Stanford MSx in Palo Alto, SFMBA in Boston at MIT, and London Masters in (obvi) London, which has the highest average age of the 3.

It’s not great but schools kind of rely on Indians and Asians to take care of the foundation for the GMAT average (for schools that disclose, GRE as well) and when an applicant's stats are lower than the class average there would have be a very compelling and well-articulated upside (or celebrity) for them to get in despite this.

In years previous, most schools did not publish their GRE scores so it was a bit of a back door; if you were underrepresented with a lowish score it wasn't factored into rankings so no big deal as long as you have a quant score that shows you can do the math. Or have some other evidence of quant aptitude.

However now the GRE is largely published for most schools. And this strategy isn't really effective for most overrepresented applicants. It is when they want to scoop up the diversity you offer in some form, or the promise of some unique contribution you can make; this diversity/contribution so compelling they are willing to deprioritize your test score in the evaluation process.

I feel at this point, the Executive Assessment (EA) represents a similar type of opportunity - you won't find an average EA score for any the schools accepting it. If you are part of an overrepresented demographic (Indian, Asian, white male to a lesser degree) and you can't pull up your GMAT or GRE to something a bit over the average, or the GMAT, do the EA route and apply to those schools. Top schools among these include CBS, NYU, Duke, Darden, Tepper, Texas and Georgetown.

You aren’t contributing to the GMAT or GRE averages, so that is a bit of a disadvantage, but if you can put together compelling applications, to where there is enough interest in everything else you bring, AND IT ISN’T COSTING THEM ANYTHING IN TERMS OF AVERAGES (read: rankings), you have better odds. In sum, it would be better if you help pull the GMAT or GRE wagon EA is not published, but if you have a good enough EA quant, and they are really interested in you, at least it isn’t costing them anything if they pick you.

To expand your school list, IF you have B or better grades in 80% of your quant classes (stats, calculus important) then I would recommend you go for the waiver option for Ross and Cornell, (MIT if you want to dream a little and have a B or better in stats and calculus.) To note, several possibly most of the schools accepting waivers also accept the EA; waiver acceptance criteria vary from school to school (work experience, GPA, CFA, test accessibility, etc.)

One final note, as someone overrepresented, to increase your odds apply EA or Round 1. They can’t pack the whole class full of one nationality so early bird gets the worm, ceteris paribus. Your admissions chances further increase if you choose the binding option.

Check out my video for more explanation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTTDTzoTvhY&t=3s

HBS Essay Tip #1
BRAND
Figure out your “throughline” – “a connecting theme, plot, or characteristic." This is what is meant by the term "brand"
Focus on that; don’t try to do all the things.

HBS Essay Tip #2
LEADERSHIP
Demonstrate leadership, of course. If you decide to go the path of several smaller anecdotes, show leadership in various different settings (work, group-related hobbies, serving on the board)


HBS Essay Tip #3
BE PERSONAL
If you talk about work, make sure it truly helps them to get to know you, your defining characteristic, an aspect of you that is true in every setting. Start with context about you as a person, your struggles, etc.


HBS Essay Tip #4
DON’T INCLUDE INFORMATION MENTIONED ELSEWHERE
Follow the instructions. “What else would you like us to know.” HBS advises that you avoid submitting, “Essays that are basically a paragraph version of your resume.”


HBS Essay Tip #5/5
MOVE AWAY FROM ANALYTICAL THOUGHT
The goal is to create emotional resonance. Help them get to know you as your friends do. HBS advises that you avoid submitting, “Essays that aren’t about you.”

SELECTING MBA RECOMMENDERS - 3 TOP TIPS

For more discussion check out my You Tube video on this topic: https://youtu.be/YGmJBszPt6s

1 - You want a recommender who has witnessed you demonstrate those all-important attributes – teamwork, leadership, and problem solving, just to name a few. What content will they offer? Is it in line with how you want to brand yourself? The content is far more important than their status at the company.

2 - Speak with a couple of select individuals regarding your plans to attend business school and gauge their reaction. If they are enthusiastic, keep the conversation going. And if you decide someone is right for the job – make sure to ask them about work travel and vacation plans. It’s best to be in close contact around the application due date.

3 - Only bring in recommenders willing to work collaboratively. At minimum, who are willing to think jointly about the anecdotes you plan to share. Optimally, willing to have an editor review their draft for clarity; to make sure what they write is consistent with the rest of the application. You have invested a lot of time and money into this process and need transparency into the application.

Round 1 applicants, now is the time to reflect on the questions common to all letters of recommendation: strengths, as compared to those in a similar role, and a story about receiving constructive criticism.

More and more programs are moving towards the Common Letter of Recommendation. Identify the stories you want to share and outline them in STAR format for the first 2 questions, then consider ideas your recommender might include for the “anything else” area.

1. Show, don't tell - narrate a specific incident or moment in time for each question.

2. Use the STAR format for your stories, or if that doesn’t fit, at least make sure to have a beginning, middle, and end. Provide context, but pick examples that won't eat up all the words with it.

3. Pick examples that model teamwork, leadership, problem-solving, innovation, persuasion, strategic thinking, etc. – things b-schools care about.

4. Make sure each recommender really champions you. They see your uniqueness and articulate that artfully in whatever language they speak (you can translate.) Ideally, they can provide additional insightful comments about you beyond the examples.

5. Aim to evoke an emotional connection with the reader - this makes you memorable and members of adcom will fight for you. I like recommenders to speak to the candidates soft skills in the "anything else" section for this reason.

One other important point: make sure what your recommender discusses is consistent with other elements of your application. Conflicting information is a red flag and they will move on.

Are you looking to apply to the Saturday Columbia EMBA program?

The early deadline is 1/11 for CBS EMBA Saturday – followed by the final one on 2/23. If you are just starting now – and especially if you still need to sort out your test score – do prioritize application quality over tossing something together within a couple weeks.

The Saturday program kind of operates like a PT program at CBS. One of my clients got in at the age of 25 (he did have managerial experience in market research) There really isn’t any work experience or age minimum, which is UNIQUE. I can’t think of another EMBA program without a minimum. So, if you live in the NYC or Philly area, and you have steady progression at work with a solid test score, don’t let age or years of work experience stand in your way.

Admission tips

Extracurricular activities

If this is a strength of yours, lucky you, they have 3 boxes for college and 3 boxes for post-college AND an unlimited text box to talk about your hobbies. This is unlimited for a reason – it’s more fun to be around people who are interested in a variety of different things. Rather than list your hobbies, also discuss how they have shaped you and why they are meaningful to you. If you have stuff to talk about here, this can be a game changer for overrepresented applicants.

Short Answer Question

What is your immediate post-MBA professional goal? (50 characters maximum)

Have a tight focus with regards to industry, role and geography. When you have those specifics down, you have enough information to take action steps that lead to a good outcome post-MBA. They do want you to feel it was worth it when you’re slogging through those loans or reflecting on the money spent.

Essay 1

Through your resume and recommendations, we have a clear sense of your professional path to date. What are your career goals over the next three to five years and what is your long-term dream job? (500 words)

The goals need to make sense given the program format. They do offer OCR – the only one I can think of among EMBA programs – but last I checked, not summer internships so if you state IB, where you need an internship, this would be a bit of a red flag. Similar to other EMBA programs, the goal of progression within your same company or industry is ideal. Hopefully what you learn at CBS you can “apply on Monday” and progress faster. Having an altruistic-oriented long-term goal is a bonus if it makes sense with the rest of your narrative.

Essay 2

Columbia Business School’s Executive MBA will challenge you by offering a rigorous academic experience, global exposure through the international seminar, and the opportunity to immediately apply what you learn to your career. How will you approach balancing the demands of the program with your professional and personal life while you are in school? (250 words)

They want to know you are a practical person here who knows what you are in for. If you buy a new piece of clothing, you need to remove one from the closet to make room. The number one complaint among my EMBA former clients is the time demand. Get real specific in this essay about how you will make time for the program. Can you train people to take over part of your job? Can you negotiate for less work trips? Even mention things like getting a nanny, tax preparer, handyman, housekeeper and/or meal service.

Essay 3:

Tell us about your favorite book, movie or song and why it resonates with you. (250 words)

This is kind of the personality quiz. They are looking for people who are well-rounded and have an inner life beyond work (yes hard to find among hard working New Yorkers). The more your ideas come from various places, the more interesting your contributions will be inside and outside the classroom.

Optional Essay

An optional fourth essay will allow you to discuss any issues that do not fall within the purview of the required essays. This does not need to be a formal essay. You may submit bullet points. (Maximum 500 words)

Sometimes the language of this prompt indicates that they only want to hear about reasons your GPA or test score is low, why you had a gap in your work history, why your recommender isn’t a supervisor, etc. However, this is fairly general and if you have some burning information about why this program, school or format is exactly what you need, go for it. This is the only place to park CBS-specific enthusiasm. If they see that CBS uniquely matches your needs, they will be less concerned about “yield-protection” with you and hence more likely to extend an offer.

Recommendation

Take this seriously. You want to have a claim – your USP – and then concrete and specific story(ies) to back up your claim. Recommendations are always important, but especially for EMBA because they want to know how others experience you (consider: you are the product they are selling to others). Also, it’s a way to gauge the kind of classroom contributions you would make, which is a big deal for the EMBA where ideally students learn as much or more from each other as they do the professor.

Select your recommender based on the stories they can share – they are ideally an eyewitness to you solving problems, leading and being a strong team player. Prioritize this over title or status. Brainstorm with your recommender; coach and guide them. Have transparency over this part of the application. If they make statements that conflict with other parts of the application, you will be seen as too risky and likely be dinged.

Kellogg EMBA Short Answers - Tips on Goals Questions
Round 1 April deadline for Fall intake is approaching and I'll be tackling the various elements of the Kellogg EMBA application.

Essay 1 starts out with, “In the application, you shared your short-term and long-term goals” so before tackling essay tips – let’s start here first. These short answers are the basis for the your response in Essay 1 - I will write a separate article for that.

What is your short-term career goal? 150 characters (~23 words)
They only give you about 20 words and specify “career” goal because – here, you just need to state your goal job title upon completing the Kellogg EMBA. If you are a Marketing Manager now, it might be Director of Marketing; if you are Director of Marketing now, maybe VP of Sales & Marketing, for example (I mention marketing because Kellogg is the clear winner in all things marketing).

The role should require a more holistic view of the enterprise, requiring a greater understanding/appreciation of how all functions work in tandem; looking at the organization as a system. If this isn’t the case, you might ask whether or not this is the right degree for you. If you are getting into a more specialized area of tech or finance, for example, a specialized masters might make more sense.

The EMBA is really meant to help candidates climb the ranks in their current org or *at least* within their current industry – so I don’t recommend citing a goal that is a huge departure from your current function and industry; maybe function or industry but not both.

Adcom is looking to make sure you have realistic expectations. This is what is often referred to as fit: there is a good match between your aspirations and what they are suited to deliver. That you aren’t a Health Care Analytics Manager hoping to become a Hedge Fund Manager.

Also, the role you specify should be a significant enough pay bump to justify the $200K+ outlay, or at least put you on a higher earnings trajectory to create an ROI over the short to medium term.

What is your long-term career goal? 150 characters (~23 words)
Whereas the short-term goal might be a promotion within the company or an industry competitor, here you have a bit more leeway. It's best to take a “stepwise” approach – first changing the function or industry, but not both. For example, if you want to change the function/role in your short-term goal – then at this point, it's OK to change the industry.

These are not hard fast rules of course; main thing to keep in mind is, even with an MBA in hand, you need something to offer the next job. This is hard to do if you are unfamiliar with both role/function and industry.

If you have startup ambitions, make sure to park them in the long-term category unless this already speaks to the nature of your job and not a hopeful side hustle. It's very unlikely you will have time to start this during the program, given the 15-20 hour/week commitment, class meetings, residence weeks. Your free time will be well spoken for. (that said, it’s worth noting that Kellogg EMBA is less rigorous than Wharton and Booth – which are very, very demanding. If you have kids, Kellogg might be the way to go).

What drives your interest in these short- and long-term goals? 240 characters or ~44 words
Its only 44 words which again means you need to cull your response down to something very core.

Here, Kellogg wants to understand why you are putting your hand up for this – will your motivation sustain you throughout those 24 months? Will this be enough of an anchor for you to stay focused and committed? Willing to weather the sacrifice of your hobbies, family time, bowling league, etc.?

If it isn’t - you might request a deferral which is not optimal for Kellogg; a deferral is an “accounts payable” hanging out there, plus they would have to backfill your seat.

This question also allows Kellogg to get to know you a bit as a person – which is the only reason they are reading this application, at the end of the day. Kellogg loves to ask questions about values, and this might reveal a bit about yours.

Why Kellogg EMBA Essay Question

In the application, you shared your short-term and long-term goals. How will Kellogg and an Executive MBA equip you to reach those goals? What are you looking to gain or develop during your MBA experience? (450 word maximum)

You might first refer to my tips on answering short answer questions on goals.

Kellogg wants to make sure you have a clear focus – which is why the question on short term career goal and long-term career goal are only a few words. If you need more space to articulate it, it’s not specific enough. Role/industry/geography is about all you need.

Reflecting on your short term career goal, consider what might be stopping you from achieving that now. Would you be in better standing to get the goal job with an EMBA? Or, do you feel you would be out of your depth in that job without a formal education in a few things? Many feel they would be doing things inefficiently in a business-related role without the academic underpinnings and the mastermind alliance of their “small group” at Kellogg. I like the expression, “none of us is as smart as all of us.”

The ideal answer here is partly about what you need from a functional perspective: finance, strategy, marketing etc. but also points to an area of growth that might be stopping you from maximizing your leadership potential. These are usually things like fear of being visible, confidence, perfectionism, willingness to take calculated risks.

Kellogg appreciates self-awareness, maybe more than any other MBA program, because they are known for leadership development. Self-awareness forms the foundation for leadership development – without that awareness, would you be coachable? Capable of transformation? Able to leverage the program? It’s worth meditating on this question, to come up with an answer that shows self-awareness – and from there, consider how to leverage the EMBA to achieve it. Kellogg realizes that happy customers who spread good juju have set a specific mission when entering the EMBA and having this, are more likely to achieve it and feel it was a good investment.

If you feel teamwork is an area you need to develop to be an effective member of operating committee, working with your small group will be something to expand on. Set up informational interviews with current and past students to understand how this helped them grow; what goals it helped them achieve. Another example: maybe your company wants you to help with international expansion. So, you need to take Global Network in Emerging Markets to understand the dynamics of expanding to emerging markets. And also, maybe you haven’t had the opportunity to lead international team members and need to understand gain a sense of the “unknown unknowns” there to build effective teams in that new location.

My point is, show that you have researched the program in a number of settings. And, that you don’t just know about the program offerings – we don’t want to barf up the course catalog here – but instead match up the specific elements of the Kellogg EMBA that speak best to your 1) knowledge gap and 2) growth edge.

Essay 2: Community, belonging and inclusion are important values at Kellogg. Tell us about a community that’s important to you and how you contribute to or impact that community. (450 word maximum)

Kellogg has added the DEI angle to this essay this year, showing you how important it is to them. Approaching this question, consider what stories each of your recommenders could share in the first recommendation question, “

• Kellogg has a diverse student body and values students who are inclusive and encouraging of others with differing perspectives and backgrounds. Please tell us about a time when you witnessed the candidate living these values. (300 words)

Which stories are best shared by them, and which is best shared by you? So strategize along these lines – we want the admissions committee to gain new information through this essay, to learn more about you in different settings. I always like to choose more personal than professional anecdotes for the essays because everything else – resume, recommendations, interview, short answers are all work related. Also, because it’s easier to create a memorable and emotional connection with the adcom through personal or community/extracurricular examples.

What’s behind the question

Kellogg is great for marketing and great at marketing. They understand their niche: attracting those who want a friendly, social experience doing their MBA – the warm, fuzzy factor. I like to tell clients they are both the *product* and the *consumer* - realizing this, Kellogg wants to deliver on their brand promise by serving up students who are teamwork and community minded.

Also, they want to recruit students who want to be part of a community long-term: who’s doing all those alumni interviews? You, prospective student, that’s who.

As for “Tell us about a community that’s important to you and how you contribute to or impact that community” if you have some choices, think first about where you have had the most impact.

Here might be an interesting example to help you brainstorm. I had a client in Toronto who worked with a feed the hungry type organization before COVID hit. Once it hit, all their programming had to change – because it was all in-person stuff. They now delivered food to homes but had no transparency on their costs and for this reason, could not expand past a certain radius. My client did a ground-up budget for them. This gave them enough clarity on their costs to justify hiring an Executive Director; his efforts led to them expanding their reach and impact 3X. This helped them get grants based on the new ways they fulfilled their mission, as well. So, his effort really helped feed lots more hungry people in Greater Toronto, during an especially critical time.

My advice would be to start with 100 or so words stating your passion and motivation around this community – why it’s important to you – why it reflects your values. And then use the rest of the space narrating the story in chronological order (STAR: situation/problem – task – action – result) similar to what I wrote above.

• Focus on projects where you have control over the variables that culminate into a solid quantifiable result. Track everything you do and limit doing what isn’t trackable. Follow up with internal and external clients to figure out how you added value.
  
• Get involved with some kind social impact project at work, or outside of work, where it will be complete by the time you are applying.
  Contribute at your job internally (recruiting, interviewing, mentoring, and training). Track results. Did all your interns get hired and later promoted? Add that to your CV.
  
• Young employees at large organizations don’t always get free reign to take the initiative. Bump up your leadership profile by joining a nonprofit project, committee or board working on something that will complete prior to applying and create a positive quantifiable result.
  
• Strive to get some international work experience or some type of professional international exposure. Focus on how it is expanding your perspective; reflect on experiences that your future fellow MBA colleagues would benefit from and share them in your applications.
  
• Do informational interviews for your ideal post-MBA job(s); this way you speak as someone informed about your goals when you write your essays. Less risky to adcom.
  
• Strive for a GMAT score at or above the median for your target schools; above the median if you are overrepresented.
  
• Do what you can to gain extemporaneous speaking skills; lead meetings, join Toastmasters. This will help with video essays and interviews.
  
• Interview colleagues and bosses and/or write down anecdotes you can share in essays and with recommenders that show leadership, teamwork, communication skills, entrepreneurship, and impact.
  
• Find ways to demonstrate progression at work and outside of work. When have you been entrusted with more responsibility? Show people are willing to entrust you with a new intern, training the department, being on the board.
  
• Work on understanding yourself – start with assessments like Strength finders, Myers Brigg (16 personalities), Enneagram, therapy is useful. The better you understand yourself at a deep level the more you can achieve a certain emotional resonance with the admissions committee (adcom). Know yourself so you can better help them know you, trust you, campaign for you.
  
• Don’t drop all your hobbies because you might have to write about them. These little things can make you stand out. Impact at work is important but hobbies and interests are more memorable and easier to visualize; you need to seem like someone who is interesting at a cocktail party. A social value-add to the class.

See video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IneEdGeHC98&t=909s

#MBA #MBAPrep #MBAconsultant #MBAadmissions #bschool #MBAPrepCoach

I feel that in most cases, a 2-year MBA makes sense and I’ll elaborate on those reasons below. However, here are the people who could consider a one-year MBA.

• Sponsored candidates
• Family business
• Entrepreneur
• No internship needed to achieve goal
• No major career pivot

Career goals

To consider a 1-year MBA, especially one without opportunities for fieldwork/internship, it’s critical to get VERY CLEAR about your career goals. If you spend less money on an MBA program and get back to work a year earlier, this is only a “win” if you achieve what you set out to accomplish in the first place.

I work with my clients on this and help them set up informational interviews with grads who have achieved a similar post-MBA goal. You must network to find out if an internship is necessary, if it will increase the likelihood of you achieving your post-MBA goal.

For example, if you are in financial services, an internship is pretty important. For investment banking, indispensable. But I also think it is valuable to do a summer associate position, to test drive consulting, or work at a start-up or get some sense of life as a Product Manager in tech, for example. A consulting internship used to be almost in dispensable (except for INSEAD) but now as there is a bit of a talent crunch, I’m hearing about 1 year Kellogg students getting offers. This might well change in the near future.

Most candidates frankly do not have clarity regarding their goals, taking a ready/fire/aim approach hoping they will bump into their dream job in b-school. And of course, you discover a lot about yourself and your passions in the course of an MBA program. 2-year programs allow you the chance to re-recruit if the internship did not live up to your expectations. RE-RECRUITING HAPPENS OFTEN, I would venture to say it is the norm.

So, it saddens me for 1-year MBA clients to sign up for a job they haven’t tried on and be disappointed. With a one-year program usually you must look for a full-time job or do your internship at the end of the program. What if you don’t like it? Then the value proposition of an MBA has unravelled quite a bit. I like formats such as LBS and ESADE where they are customizable to your needs. LBS actually allows the possibility of 2 internships. HEC is 16 months, with 4 months of fieldwork or internship.

If you go with a shorter program, I recommend you stick with programs that offer an internship period. If applying to INSEAD, my preference is for January term unless you are absolutely certain about consulting because January term offers an 8-week internship period.

Stay true to your purposes of doing an MBA

The original intent was not to spend the least amount of money but rather the benefits – the upside – of what you hoped to get. Longer programs offer you deeper connections with classmates; the chance to do externships, study abroad, more time to explore and transform. This is likely to be your last chance to do this as an adult.

Video version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmA1Y-dBlY8&t=184s

There is a real lack of transparency when it comes to MBA admissions consulting. How will it help me? Often, candidates think it is just about the consultant telling you what to do, which schools to select or what your chances might be at HBS.

I hope this list brings you a greater understanding of what MBA admissions consultants deliver to their clients, or at least what I myself bring to the table.

Outside of this list - consider the long view. Those with applications that excite the adcom are more likely to receive scholarships (well in excess of our fees.) And, get admitted where there is a higher average salary. You can secure an MBA internship offer early on because we have laid all the groundwork during the application process (my clients get interview offers when doing research calls, sometimes.)

On that note, here are 40 reasons why I believe it can be beneficial to hire an MBA admissions coach:

1. Ask the right questions
I am highly trained in the art of asking questions that bring forward stories – stories that differentiate you and align with what the admissions committees are seeking in applicants.

2. Match what you have to what the adcom wants
Coaches get to know you well… probably better than you know yourself. From this perspective, we are able to help you show the qualities you have that the adcom cares about.

3. Identify transferable skills
For those trying to pivot in a career, coaches can help illuminate the qualities that you will bring to a new industry.

4. Identify the right schools and program
There are many different MBA programs and each has a unique set-up and culture. It can be difficult to know which is the best fit for your learning style. As a coach, I help clients find the right one for them.

5. Shut down the noise
I work with dinged applicants all of the time who leaned on friends, colleagues, and mentors who don’t understand MBA admissions. For example, encouraging you to avoid discussing weaknesses or vulnerabilities. Fatal advice.

6. Certainty> Momentum> Speed
I help my clients stay focused so that they can advance in their application with momentum and confidence. Together, we will determine the right activities for you to pursue that will get you closer to your goal of admissions.

7. Cut words, cleaner message
Many applicants are overly convoluted and wordy in their applications. I will help you cut away the excess and focus on what is actually important, so the adcom can clearly see your value.

8. Levity and emotional support
I make you laugh when you’re tired or overwhelmed. I provide consistent encouragement when you are feeling insecure and wobbly.

9. Brutal honesty
I will never lie to you to make you happy. I don’t even know how to do that. I take a stand for what is in your best and highest good, always.

10. Dedicated partner
I am a safe place to land and have a fiercely positive intent for you. My entire focus is on helping you get what you want.

11. Claim your strengths
Even particularly successful applicants are not always aware of the strengths and habits that make them successful. This can require an outside perspective from an unbiased party. As a coach, I am here to provide that perspective and help you present the case for who you are and how you fit into the school.

12. Clear professional identity
My job is to empower my clients with the words they need to describe their brand. This identity will allow you to crush your interviews, work effectively in your cohorts, and eventually succeed in a career.

13. Hit the ground running
When I work with my clients, I give them the same exercises that they do during their first week in business school. That way, they are prepared to excel when they begin their program.

14. Choose the right goals
The insight I gain from getting to know you helps identify viable goals that you can also write and speak passionately about, increasing your chances of success.

15. Get more value out of your B-school experience
Armed with clear career goals, my clients will avoid wasting time recruiting for dozens of industries and will instead be able to focus on academics, clubs, and networking.

16. Research goals
My key to success: research yourself, research your goals, and research the schools. To research your goals, I help you find the right contacts, identify the questions you need to ask, and write to them so you get a response. Even if you switch goals in b-school, you will have built the skills to embark upon that new job search effectively.

17. Research schools
From my personal network, I help my clients connect with alumni of their desired school or help them cold call other alumni who share similar interests and goals. This allows them to build their own networks and get first-hand advice.

18. Find last-minute ways to improve your profile
I spot opportunities that can be quickly implemented, improving how you are perceived by adcom.

19. Credible and memorable application campaign
I work with my clients to create consistency across all elements of their applicants: resume, essays, recommendation letters, application boxes, LinkedIn summary, and interview responses. This creates a synergistic application with a clear message that’s memorable for the adcom.

20. Tools and resources
From my personal experience, I help my clients with the resources that can make the application process less burdensome and more efficient.

21. Personal alumni network
My clients get access to my personal network and these connections help them find a passion for their program.

22. From acronyms to adcom-friendly language
Since I’ve already been through the application process, I am able to isolate industry-specific jargon and translate it into a better understood, universal language. This removes any barriers the adcom may run into when trying to understand your work and achievements.

23. Learn how to tell good stories
As we work together to outline anecdotes, you will learn how to effectively frame stories to be effective in interviews and presentations.

24. Mitigate red flags
I am able to better identify possible red flags that are not always obvious to the applicants themselves. Then, we work together to fix or mitigate their negative impacts.

25. Distinguish yourself from others
I help my clients focus on the unique attributes that help them stand out from other competitors in their profile group.

26. Strategic evaluation of potential recommenders
I guide my clients in their search for good recommenders and evaluate the different variables they need to consider using a complex model.

27. Outline essays
My clients and I outline all of their essays together so the first draft is on track for success, saving time later down the road.

28. Outline recommendation talking points
In order to get the best recommendations possible, we will work together to outline the best anecdotes to share with recommenders, eliminating potential pitfalls and allowing them to present their clients’ strengths in the best possible manner.

29. Polished final product that meets the word count
I edit all of my clients’ essays to accentuate the key objectives of each piece. Together, we will cut away what distracts from the main message. A specific focus and simplicity will make you and your application more memorable.

30. Keen intuitive observer
As an intuitive coach, I am able to tap into my clients’ strengths, patterns, and passions to help them understand their own motivations and convey them clearly.

31. Learn about your values
Being able to clearly articulate your values helps the adcom feel like they understand you, which in turn helps them trust you and root for you. In order to do this, you need to deeply understand your values and be able to articulate them.

32. Why an MBA? What next?
I help my clients identify the “gaps” in their applications and position themselves for success in their MBA programs and post-MBA jobs. This will inform them on how they can best spend their time in b-school and internships.

33. Identify the “brilliance” factor
Initially, stories are just a heap of information. I work with my clients to identify which elements of them are the “brilliance factor,” or what will best set them apart. Because essay word limits are not huge, it’s important to pare down the information to the most important parts: what was the problem, how did you think about it, and how did you approach solving it?

34. Dull description to a movie script
My clients learn how to go from a vague and generic description of themselves to presenting a unique profile with stand-out anecdotes to impress the adcom.

35. Identify transferable skills and strengths
I work with my clients to repackage their strengths and accomplishments in a way that is easily understood by recruiters. This is key for applicants that are looking to pivot in a role or industry.

36. Spot how you have added value
As a third-party observer, I am able to see the concrete results of your work that you may have missed and how your past actions have benefitted the company.

37. Identify application-killing assumptions
It’s easy to get swept up in what you think you “should do” in the application, like “I can’t be too specific or I’ll seem too specialized.” These beliefs will lead to muddled and messy applications that will limit their effectiveness.

38. Create a clear identity for the adcom
By getting to know you well, I will identify the problems that you have solved and help you convey these to the adcom by weaving them into every part of your application.

39. School communication
I aid my clients in their communication with the school in order to help them present the best version of themselves possible. This includes reviews of emails to admissions, interview preparation, and coaching on all other informal interactions.

40. Show you as multi-faceted and well-rounded
We include “fun facts” in your resume and display a sense of humor. This helps adcom see you as interesting, engaging and likable.

Creating your MBA application résumé

If I can brag a bit - MBA Career Services love my résumés.
"Don't you dare change a single word!" were the words spoken to my client who
started at Stanford GSB last fall.

The mantra: succinct, but complete

• Every single word has a purpose
• It uses universal language instead of industry jargon, to the extent possible. Break out of acronym jail.
• One page only - maximize the use of space horizontally.
• Give context: provide a one-line company description if needed.
• Give context: provide a job scope statement under your role. Number of reports, budget, role in the organization.
• Each bullet under that shows how you did the job well – not a list of responsibilities. CAR (challenge action result).
• Results: ideally, making money, saving money, or saving time. Or, how you indirectly led to those outcomes (IT system allowing bandwidth for more clients). Think about how to show the value you added. Ask people affected by your work.
• Anyone from any industry would be able to step into your resume and comprehend the value of what you have done. Use simple, direct language.
• There is space to breathe on the page. It has white space, and feels inviting.
• Include community leadership section ideally.
• Additional information section includes "fun facts" or 10-word stories about you that show humor and well-roundedness.

Struggling to achieve your ideal GMAT score and applying Round 2 MBA?

It might make sense for you to go the executive assessment (EA) path, to give you the 2 month minimum to differentiate yourself through your applications (essays, video essays, resume, data forms, recommendation stories/talking points and possibly interview prep.) Most of the EA sections bear similarity to the GMAT. One of my super overpresented candidates last cycle couldn't get past 710 on the GMAT but achieved a score in the 99th percentile for the EA with no additional prep.

UCLA Anderson recently started accepting it, adding it to the heap of other full-time programs – including Columbia, NYU, Duke, Darden, Tepper, McCombs, Georgetown, Rice, and Simon.

Between EA accepting schools (for full-time) and schools that accept waivers - you have a lot of choices.

It's extremely important to have a quality application and if you continually try to chase down a GMAT score into the month of November, you're going to miss the opportunity in front of you - influencing every other aspect of your application. Far more predictable return on investment, and I say this as someone who taught and tutored GMAT verbal for 18 years.

Please know - if your applications aren’t compelling, the test score is a moot point. I often work with (even underrepresented) applicants who have 760+ GMAT scores and were dinged in the first round. Their apps reveal the reason.

The EA is a particularly good strategy for those underrepresented. The schools are looking for a quant score that shows ability to handle the coursework. Low risk of flunking out (school financial and/or reputation juju risk.) Once you satisfy the quant criteria, they're motivated to scoop up your diversity.

Part of the reason for this - to my knowledge, none of the schools yet report the executive assessment score averages for full time in their class profile. They're not going to take a hit with the class profile if your score is a certain number.

https://www.mba.com/exams/executive-assessment/about/accepting-schools

The Myth of - I'll Just Reapply -

Around this time of year, I often speak to candidates willing to submit half-baked applications, saying, if “I don’t get in, I’ll just reapply.” This is so very misguided. Even though school adcom often say they are "re-applicant friendly" they also say, "same input, same output." If you submit the same application the following cycle, you’re basically telling the admissions committee that they were wrong before and made a mistake.

Adcom is often skeptical when you apply the following cycle - have you had “time to improve?" It’s difficult to get a totally objective fresh look with new goals or a better written application. You need to have some fundamental upgrades in your profile such as a test score bump, job promotion, and/or improved leadership profile.

So, when you submit your application, make sure it’s your best effort the first time.