Calling all Yale SOM MBA Applicants: 2024 Intake Class of 2026

Your Academic Profile

Your undergraduate record and standardized test scores are both strong predictors of your performance in the MBA classroom, but they are just two data points and they do not exist in isolation. We take what is commonly called a “holistic” approach to candidate evaluation, which means that we look at all application inputs in combination and don’t assign a fixed weight to any element.

That’s one reason why, for example, we encourage applicants to focus less on our median GMAT or GRE score and look instead at the range of scores that comprise each class. The test score is not one-size-fits-all; it has different meaning depending on the rest of your application, so don’t feel as though you need to be at or above the median (by definition, half of our students aren’t!).

Similarly, when evaluating your academic history, we look at far more than just your overall GPA. The Admissions Committee will spend a good deal of time going semester-by-semester, looking at each of the courses you’ve taken and your performance in them. We also look at your major, your institution, the range of courses you’ve taken, and any trends in your performance. Your story is much more than just a GPA.

These examples I hope give some sense of the nuance with which we look at your academic background and preparation. We’ve learned a great deal over the years that has helped us refine our evaluation process. Two quick examples: First, although we care about your quantitative preparation for our program (and that’s an example of where we look at your test score and coursework in tandem to evaluate your overall level of preparation), the verbal section of the standardized test is actually more predictive of performance in our MBA program than the quantitative section; and second, when evaluating transcripts, how well you performed in college is much more predictive than where you went to school, which may be why in each MBA class of roughly 350 students, well over 100 different undergraduate institutions are represented.

In evaluating your quantitative preparation specifically, we look at your exposure to a number of different courses such as calculus, statistics, microeconomics, finance, and accounting. Successful applicants do not need to have taken all of those courses, and some have not taken any of them. But if you haven’t taken statistics and microeconomics, I would suggest doing so before starting an MBA program – ours or any other. Not only can it help in the admissions process, but it will help you in the program itself, where data-driven decision-making is a core competency and microeconomics is a common language. Also, in terms of standardized tests, applicants often ask whether we have a preference between the GMAT and GRE. We don’t - and we also will accept the new GMAT Focus and shorter version of the GRE once they’re available. We hope you will sit for whichever exam is most comfortable for you.

Finally, I would note that in addition to your test scores and transcripts, we have another data point that aids the Admissions Committee in our evaluation and that is one of the most unique features of the Yale SOM application. After submitting your application, all applicants complete our Behavioral Assessment, a non-cognitive instrument that measures a set of intra- and interpersonal competencies related to success in business school. The Behavioral Assessment consists of 130 paired statements, and you choose which of the two statements most describes you. It takes roughly 20-30 minutes to complete and there are no right or wrong answers, so there is nothing you need to do to prepare for it. I think it’s important to understand that we introduced this assessment as a way to better predict academic success for applicants who may not fully demonstrate academic preparation based on traditional metrics, such as grades and scores, but who would make strong contributions to our community. The Behavioral Assessment is meant to offer more information and give the Admissions Committee a fuller picture of each applicant. It won’t be a deciding factor in any application – we use it with a light touch, as we like to say – but it does help us broaden the scope of our evaluation and expand the range of candidates whom we can admit, which we feel is an important goal.

Best Regards,
Bruce DelMonico
Assistant Dean for Admissions