Calling all Australia / New Zealand candidates

Question

Hi all you Aussies and Kiwis. Besides AGSM and MBS, global business schools are far far away but having made it to one I can definitely see its value. So this thread will help all the Aussies and Kiwis who want to get into b-schools.

yangsta8 · Answer

Hey bsd_lover.... thanks for starting the thread.

I'm applying for some of the global B-schools next year. Will probably apply for the 2nd intake of INSEAD (don't think I'll make it in time for first intake) and also at LBS. Currently living in Sydney, Australia. Would love to hear about your experiences in applying and life at LBS.

Anyone else in Sydney?

bsd_lover · Answer

Hi mate, good to hear from you. Most of my LBS specific information is posted on this thread :
the-london-business-school-2010-thread-78838.html

The good news is that there are plenty of folks at LBS from Australia. Then there are others with Australian connections (i.e. worked in Australia or studied in Australia etc.). The ANZ club is fairly active and is going to host events and high profile alumni events. INSEAD should be similar except that London's location provides better access to these people.

yangsta8 · Answer

Thanks for the link.
Yeh a mate of mine graduated about a year ago and mentioned the same thing. It sounds like a pretty good school for an Aussie to go to for that reason. Also living in London would be amazing I imagine.

Did you find that because not many of the global schools have any information sessions in Australia that it was harder to get info on the schools (other than what's on forums and on their site)? I would have loved to go to an info session, talk to alumns etc. Not just for LBS but also for INSEAD.

bsd_lover · Answer

Actually most global schools have info sessions in Australia. I personally went to the Wharton, Stanford and LBS ones. However, usually, alumni are in short supply. Wharton event had 5 alums, Stanford had about 10 but LBS took the cake. About 40 alums turned up. It was a sight to behold. Just register at the school's websites for information sessions. INSEAD even had a case presentation type session in Sydney.

yangsta8 · Answer

I should have qualified what I said, those schools don't have anything in Sydney in the upcoming 2 months. But they probably did have them leading up to the R1 deadlines, prob wouldn't make sense for them to have them after. Bit of a shame for me because I've missed it (not that the world revolves around me

) I actually received an email from INSEAD saying that they are holding a class for their exec MBA in Sydney in late November which is pretty cool. But yep, I'll subscribe and see what events come up. Outside of these sessions did you have any opportunity to speak to alumns or reach out to any of the local alum chapters?

bsd_lover · Answer

I reached out to a Chicago alum, an NYU alum and I already knew a few INSEAD and LBS alums personally. Alums are usually very friendly and try their best to help. But, To be honest all that doesn't add too much, usually alum's information is somewhat outdated; information sessions are usually just marketing spin. A class visit is the most effective information gathering session (if you can afford one).

rmurali · Answer

G'day bsd_lover,

Another Aussie here.
I'm in the IT industry. I'm looking to stay in the same industry after my MBA - How's London Business school for those looking for a tech flavour to their MBA ?

I'm quite keen on working in the startup space but my preference was working in the United States.

Do a lot of London grads end up working in the States ?

I'm weighing up whether to apply to LBS at the moment - I was just going to apply to just American universities because I feel the chances of landing a job in the tech industry are far better in the States.

Would love to hear your two cents though.

bsd_lover · Answer

LBS is great for techs going back into technology. There is a very active technology club. We also place well in the VC industry and to places like Google and Microsoft. The vast majority of student body seems to be aiming at MC and Finance, which leaves you with a great niche for yourself in the tech space (especially if you have already have a tech background). But if you want to head to silicon valley you have a better shot with Haas or Stanford purely because of location. Having said that, if you wanted to go anywhere else in the world (including Asia or back to Australia), LBS is as good a bet as any American school.Be careful of the US centric focus of the American schools. Beyond the top 3-4 US schools, LBS has a superb brand globally.

sapphireka · Answer

Hi guys! From Sydney Australia (although I'm currently on holiday in the US)

I've applied R1 for Stanford, Chicago, Columbia and HBS... Seen HBS and Columbia so far on my trip. I'm checking out Wharton today for R2 if the first 4 don't work out....

yangsta8 · Answer

Hey there sounds like a productive holiday would love to hear your thoughts on Columbia.

Did u apply for ED?

Posted from my mobile device

theK · Answer

Hi fellas,
I'm based in Melbourne, currently shuttling back and forth to Perth on assignment, and still studying the GMAT. One tough nut to crack!

Anybody else in Melb/Perth still working on their GMAT?

sapphireka - Wow, that's a high score. Congrats! Care to share some tips on your strategy and resources? Good luck on your applications!

-theK

yangsta8 · Answer

Hi theK, welcome to the Australian forums. Good to see more Aussies on!

sapphireka · Answer

Yeah I did. I'm interviewing tomorrow.... for both Columbia and Chicago Booth.

sapphireka · Answer

Haha, thanks. My big tip is to just take tests over and over, and learn the patterns for taking them. SO you can walk into the test, and just look at a question and know how to do it. For the verbal, study your idioms, and make sure you are understanding the level of 'trick' in the questions. My key resources were:
This forum,
Official Guide no 12 (too easy)
The GMAT test download from GMAC (too hard!)
Princeton Review GMAT guide

Best place to find books is at Borders or Kinokuyina.

I spent 12 minutes on the first question in the maths section and totally blew my timing. I ended up guessing a whole bunch of math at the end. So if you pace yourself better than me, you'll do fine!

yangsta8 · Answer

wow 12 mins! You must have completely smashed the rest of it to get your score still.
Congrats on your interviews. Are you interviewing in the US or in Sydney?

sapphireka · Answer

In Sydney. With Alumni. Both have chosen to interview at cafes so I expect it will be a low stress affair. Will post interview details in the relevant threads (CBS and Chicago Booth) tomorrow.

yangsta8 · Answer

Good luck with them both

bsd_lover · Answer

They actually found Booth alum in Sydney to interview you ? Interesting, they couldn't find any for me last year. Good luck, those are great schools to interview for.

sapphireka · Answer

Just one. The girl graduated from Booth last year.

Calling all Australia / New Zealand candidates

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