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02 Apr 2015, 10:10
| FROM The MBA Manual: Welcome to the MBA Manual! |
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I am a first generation college student. I was admitted to Stanford GSB, Yale SOM, and Cornell’s Johnson SOM from state school and with no full-time work experience. You can do the same, and I’m going to show you how. I’ve created this blog to aid you in getting admitted to your dream b-school…for free. This is not an admissions consultancy site that will demand $4K before it will even begin to help you. This is a blog made by someone who has been through the gamut and knows what it’s like to do it with too little information. Feel free to check out the extended version of why I wanted to start this site here, scroll down and read some posts, or use the icon in the top right corner (  ) and click on “categories” to get the specific info you’re looking for. Best of luck! -Ryan  
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02 Apr 2015, 13:01
| FROM The MBA Manual: Craft the Perfect Application Resume |
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The resume is an integral part of your application. It is probably one of the first things that admissions officers will use to winnow you out (or, more optimistically, keep you in). Your resume needs to pack a lot of information into a little space (1 page front and back), and it needs to look clean while it does it. The Template I’ve tried quite a few resume templates over the years, and the one that I’ve found to be the best at showing what I’ve done simply and cleanly is the Curriculum Vitae template from Microsoft Word. Check out the template below. Curriculum vitae template Now, the problem with the template is the headings it uses. They are better fit for a PhD program. We need to tailor these headings to make them more appropriate for an MBA candidate. So, what headings shall we use? EDUCATION You’ll obviously need an education section. It should look something like this (including formatting): NAME OF UNIVERSITY Name of Degree Year Concentrations Distinctions Honor Societies GPA A few quick notes:
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE This should highlight your full time work experience or, if you’re an early career candidate, your internship experience. Your experiences should be listed in order of recency (most recent at the top). The format is something like this: Company Name, Company Location Position Title Month Year – Month Year
A few quick notes:
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE Here is where you will list all of your international experience, including your volunteering abroad and study abroad experiences. If you do not have any such experience, you’ll want to read this post and start working towards getting some. City, Country Program Title and Role (if applicable) Year One sentence detailing what you did there. A quick note:
INDEPENDENT STUDY Again, if you have not yet completed an independent study, check out this post for more info. University Name, City, State “Course Name” Grade Received One sentence describing the course/project. GRADUATE COURSEWORK See this post if you have not yet completed any graduate coursework but would like more info on how to do so. University Name, City, State “Course Name” Grade Received NOTABLE RESEARCH, PAPERS, & CONFERENCES For information on conducting research, click here. Good research will lead to papers, and you should make every attempt to present your research at every conference you can (it demonstrates an ability to speak publicly and a confidence in your work while enhancing the academic clout of your resume). Thus, the three fall under one heading (it also saves precious vertical space). Title of Paper, Project, Research Awards won by paper Journal published in/ Conference presented at Year(s) worked on AWARDS I tend to do my awards in one-line format so I can fit more of them while utilizing as much space as I can. Year Award Name Some final tips:
 Turns into this.  It’s all personal preference but I just view this as cleaner and it saves a ton of precious space. Finally, I’ve included a modified MBA version of the CV template using the headings and tips mentioned above. You can download it below. MBA Curriculum vitae template  
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02 Apr 2015, 13:01
| FROM The MBA Manual: The “It” factor, Developing your story |
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I’ve had a lot of feedback on this blog so far. Many people have questioned as to if there was a secret to getting into a top-tier business school that most applicants don’t know about. They assert that there are dozens of people with amazing stats, great work experience, a stellar resume, etc., etc. and demand to know why they didn’t get in, too. The truth is, I don’t know. I never will know. I am not an admissions officer, nor do I know any, so there is no way for me to ascertain why they would accept or reject this person or that person. However, I can speculate. Based on my experience with the application process and my interactions with those admitted, f I were to try to pin down the one thing that keeps applicants with all the right numbers back, it would be the lack of a cohesive, purposeful story. The point of a business school is to mold people into the leaders of tomorrow. Business schools’ reputations are built upon the notable alumni that have graduated from there. They want you to come out of that school and go change the world. They want you to be someone who revolutionizes your field, someone who shakes up the status quo, someone who makes a difference. They want you to soar to world-renowned recognition in your area of industry; those are the people who reflect the most favorably on the school, the ones who build the brand name. Picture this. You are an admissions officers. You have 2 applications in front of you and 1 spot left in your program. The two candidates look something like this: Candidate 1:
So, when you wonder how a person with an astronomically high GMAT score and an internship at Goldman Sachs could get denied by a top-tier business school, think back to this example. Admissions is based on more than just numbers, it is based on your passions (What do you care about?), your goals (What do you want to do? Will this make a difference and/or boost the school’s reputation?), and the experiences you undertake in order to blend the two into your career. Your story weaves these elements into a narrative. It will come out in your essays and you will be asked about it in your interviews (e.g. “Why do you want to go to business school? What are your short and long term goals?” etc.). How do I form my story?
 
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02 Apr 2015, 19:01
| FROM Grant Me Admission: The GrantMeAdmission MBA Application Model |
I’ve been busy speaking to a LOT of people regarding MBA’s. With most of the decisions out, I have had the opportunity to speak with many…
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02 Apr 2015, 20:01
| FROM Grant Me Admission: The GrantMeAdmission MBA Application Model |
I’ve been busy speaking to a LOT of people regarding MBA’s. With most of the decisions out, I have had the opportunity to speak with many…
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03 Apr 2015, 07:01
| FROM Pro GMAT: Pick up the list again |
It’s been more than 2 months that I have posted here. This blog was meant to be my GMAT/MBA journey book but I was not able to continue it as I shifted my GMAT/MBA goal to next year. I have not posted anything because I was not making any progress on this lane. What I […]
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06 Apr 2015, 03:01
| FROM Grant Me Admission: Applying Again: Pre-MBA Programs, MOOC’s and the GMAT |
I LOVE life right now. Work is going great, my non-profit initiative is making great progress, and I am enjoying the fantastic California weather. However, April…
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06 Apr 2015, 13:02
| FROM The MBA Manual: How to approach the applications process |
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This post is going to be a short one but it contains some important information. When you first sit down to start working on your applications (for most, this is the summer before they apply), you might not know where exactly you should start. Before you know it you’ll have 6 or 7 schools that you’re interested in applying to opening their applications and releasing their essay prompts. You’ll want to devote adequate time to each application and essay but you’ll also be eager to work on all of them. You’ll finish an application or essay but then wonder if you should go back to it and take time away from others since its one of your dream schools. In short, you’ll feel like you’re being pulled in 1,000 different directions. So, what should you do? Start early If there’s anything you take away from my blog, let it be starting everything early. I’ve mentioned the importance of starting early on research, studying, and extra-curriculars. Applications are no different. Harvard Business School is almost always the first b-school to release its essay prompts (early may), so you should think about starting to get down to business around then, especially if Harvard is a school you’re shooting for. Side note: if you’re really gunning for HBS, you might want to take a look at this book of 65 successful business school essays. I own the book and it actually helped me with my essays for all of my applications, not just Harvard. Organize your time If you start working in early May, that leaves you about 20 weeks until most of the applications will start to be due. Split those 20 weeks up into segments based on how many schools you intend on applying to. If you’ll apply to 6 schools, aim to spend a little over 3 weeks per application. If you’re going with a more ambitious 8 schools, you’ll want to pick up your pace and aim to complete an application about every 2 and a half weeks. Also, don’t be afraid to take your time and use the full amount of time you’ve delegated for yourself. There’s no bonus to finishing your first 3 applications in the first week if they aren’t your best work. Go in order! This is probably the thing that helped me the most when I was in the center of the whirlwind that is the applications process. Now, you can’t control when schools release their essays and applications, and at first you should probably just work on the applications when they come out (Harvard first, then ____, etc.). However, at some point during the summer/fall you’ll be at a point where most or all of the schools will have released their essay prompts and opened their applications, and it is at this point that you should start ordering your efforts based on when those materials will be due. For example, if it is mid-September, and you have finished Columbia (due Jan 7), and NYU (due October 15), but haven’t finished MIT (due September 23), you’ll be in trouble. Get a gauge on when each set of materials is due, mark the dates in your calendar, and check back often (these dates come faster than you think!). If you go in order and complete the applications in the order that they’re due, you’ll buy yourself the most time possible and be able to construct the best possible applications. Here were the due dates for some major programs for the 2014-2015 application cycle so you can get a better handle on which apps you’ll be focusing on first: Harvard Business School = September 9 Yale SOM = September 18 MIT = September 23 Stanford GSB = October 1 Cornell (Johnson) = October 1 UPenn (Wharton) = October 1 NYU (Stern) = October 15 Columbia = January 7 I realize that a lot of this is common sense but sometimes when you’re under some intense pressure, have several deadlines to meet, and are working on a handful of applications and a dozen essays, common sense starts to go out the window. If you follow the above directions, you will almost certainly have a smoother, more productive application writing period that yields higher quality application materials than you would if you went at things more haphazardly. Be diligent, work hard, and stick to your schedule, and you’ll have some well-polished applications to turn in come due date.  
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07 Apr 2015, 22:01
| FROM Pro GMAT: FlashCards |
Flash cards are very basic study material to get to the point information. Most of the students uses flash cards to study, but using them effectively can bring charms. The choice of making flash cards is very personal, someone would like them, or someone would not like making them. How to make: Choose the most important formulas/tricks you […]
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08 Apr 2015, 13:01
| FROM MBA Data Guru: Cornell MBA Interview Questions |
Cornell MBA Interview Questions This guide is designed to help Johnson MBA applicants to prepare for their interview, complete with a list of the most common Cornell MBA interview questions. The typical Johnson MBA interview is 30 to 50 minutes long. It can be given by either a second year student, alumni or an admissions committee member. It is even possible to get an interview with an adcom member with a second year student in training to learn how to interview. Interviews can take place on campus, off-campus or over skype. Expect the interview to be semi-blind, which means that they have seen your resume but probably nothing else. The Cornell MBA interview questions below are organized from most common question to least common, with the frequency it is asked in parenthesis. Most Common Cornell MBA Interview Questions 1) Tell me about yourself or walk me through your resume. (80%) 2) Tell me about a challenging situation at work or a work conflict. (70%) 3) Why Johnson? (70%) 4) Why get an MBA? Why now? (60%) 5) How will you contribute to Johnson? (50%) 6) What are your post MBA plans or goals? (50%) 7) Describe a time when you managed or lead other people? (50%) 8) What is your biggest weakness? (40%) 9) Why did you make XYZ transition? (20%) 10) What is your leadership style? (20%) 11) Have you applied to any other schools? What do they have in common with Johnson? (20%) 12) Is there anything else you want me to know? (20%) At the end you will have time to ask a few questions. For additional interview tips check out my MBA interview preparation guide. This guide was created using theJohnson interview reports from clear admit. MBA Data Guru - Data and analytics that will help you in the MBA admissions process |
15 Apr 2015, 09:01
| FROM TopDogMBA - A Reapplicant's Tail: A day in the life – part 1: GMAT |
It’s nearly a year since TopDogMBA came into being and – over 18,000 hits later – I’ve decided to share some of the application aids I created that helped me get two admits (and a waitlist) from top 10 b schools. I hope that it helps any newbies to the MBA application process, gives some […]
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15 Apr 2015, 12:01
| FROM Grant Me Admission: New design, New vision |
It’s been almost 11 months (and 160,000 views) since I started my online journey, and what a journey it has been. Over the last 11 months,…
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15 Apr 2015, 16:01
| FROM The adventures of a (provisional) MBA student: FIELD 3 – The ‘capstone’ of the RC |
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FIELD 3 is the final and third part of the FIELD portion of the RC (Required Curriculum – 1st Year), a unique part of the HBS MBA experience. And as the first year reaches its final stretch, we’re fully in the swing of setting up our micro-businesses. FIELD 3 asks you to form teams with 4 or 5 other MBA students. This is the first time this year we’ve been asked to form our own teams – giving you the opportunity to test your pitching skills and powers of persuasion with fellow classmates that your idea is viable and deserves attention. Our team is focusing on the perennial battle that many feel around exercising, and needing that ‘extra little kick’ to get out and exercise or eat healthily. So we’ve started Badger. Badger is a new service that links personal trainers and nutritionists to users remotely on demand. The idea is that people get much more motivation when they have some form of accountability to a real person, and people pay for a gym trainer just for that reason, but that’s just too unaffordable for most people. We hope that this can bridge the gap and give a real connection at a fraction of the cost, and help people to achieve what they want to achieve. We’re feeling pretty pleased that we’ve managed to get our service up and running, and we’re accepting beta testers if lovely readers want to give it a try. Just go to joinbadger.com to sign up! FIELD3 obviously isn’t exactly the same of starting a real business. The timings are pretty compressed, with due dates based around the academic calendar, and a pretty limited scope. However, it’s a great chance for many in the MBA program to try (and maybe like) something they have never tried before for whatever reason. It’s been a great experience so far, I’ve tried and learnt some completely different things, and I’m really excited to see how we get on. HBS is the only business school (to my slightly outdated knowledge) that has this sort of program required as part of the curriculum. I think this is a great feature as you get a completely diverse mix trying out starting a business, and I’ve already heard of some (FIELD has been running about 5 years now) that have gone through FIELD and completely changed their career direction because of it – an achievement in itself. I’ll keep you posted with how Badger does!  
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16 Apr 2015, 03:01
| FROM Pro GMAT: To get back what I lost |
A few days before I contacted GrantMeAdmission after reading his post and asked him that how he motivated himself to get back to work and his awesome reply forced me to go back to my study table and gather all the knowledge that I left there a few months before. I would like to put some […]
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16 Apr 2015, 05:01
| FROM Grant Me Admission: 4 GMAT Prep Hacks Everyone Should Know |
This week I am excited to have a guest blogger. Eliza Chute is an independent GMAT tutor, and she runs the helpful site https://bestgmatprepcourse.com/ (check it…
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16 Apr 2015, 05:01
| FROM Scott Duncan: Stop Wasting Time On Your Essays |
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I’m still trying to figure out all of the things I did differently this year that earned me a spot at HBS. Since I had practice writing essays from my previous attempt at applying, and I had really worked hard at defining my core reasons for applying – writing went a lot easier this year. There was no more staring out the window watching cars go by instead of writing… There was no more feeling guilty on a Saturday night after setting the whole day aside for essays…and getting nothing done. Instead, I wrote crisp and clear essays that said what I wanted them to say in just a few hours – no pain, no agonizing over perfection, and no wasted time. But looking back, I realized I used a process for writing my essays. Last year, I wrote whatever I was feeling like writing, with no plan, structure, or goal in mind. I had no idea what I was trying to communicate! Here are the steps I took to write better essays this year. As a bonus download, here is a free worksheet that will walk you through the entire process, step-by-step and in a little bit more detail than I go into in this post... Step 1: Ideate – Come up with a whole bunch of ideas Yep, that’s right. You’re not defining your “career vision”, making a dream catcher or connecting with your b-school spirit animal (mine is Charlie Munger). You’re starting this process by doing work. Good job! The idea is to come up with 50-100 ideas from EVERY aspect of your life that you can tell. Pick ones that you would tell to people you don’t know that make you sound interesting (even if you aren’t). Good ideas, bad ideas, doesn’t matter. Write them all down on a piece of paper and when you hit 50-100, move to step 2. Step 2: Eliminate – Get rid of all of the BAD ideas Now your creative juices should be flowing. You’ll know by now which of your stories are stand-out options for b-school essays, and narrow them down to the top ten. Wondering why you came up with 100 ideas just to throw 90 of them away? Well, it’s a lot easier to pick 10 GREAT ideas from 100 than is is to create 10 ideas from zero. Step 3: Refine – Tell the story with a B-School point of view Only now do you take a look at your essays and ask yourself, “Self, what does this story say about me to an admissions committee?” Are you covering the holy trinity of b-schools characteristics that you need to demonstrate in your applications?
Step 4: Outline – Build the structure of your essay Outlining essays seemed so pointless – but it’s a smaller example of what this whole writing process accomplishes: Do the work up-front to save time, frustration, and disappointment in your final product. Your outline can by design fix transitional issues in your essays before you even start writing, and gives you the high level view of what you are trying to say with your essay. The outline also helps you plan how to communicate everything you want in the usually tight word limits of b-school essays. Do it, it’s worth it. Step 5: Write If you followed steps 1-4, writing is now the easy part! The best piece of advice I have for anyone writing application essays is this: write a fixed number of words every single day. Now that you have a plan, this will be a lot easier. So there you have it. I had a much easier time writing essays by starting out with a lot of ideas rather than trying to come up with the perfect idea from the start. In case you missed it, here’s another link to the worksheet that details out this process: If you’re going through the application process now, or did in the past, let me know how you worked through your essays in the comments below: Like this post? Sign up and get free updates Subscribe Now!  I value your privacy No spam, no BS. Unsubscribe at any time. The post Stop Wasting Time On Your Essays appeared first on Scott Duncan. |
16 Apr 2015, 10:01
| FROM TopDogMBA - A Reapplicant's Tail: A day in the life – part 2: my application masterplan |
It’s nearly a year since TopDogMBA came into being and – over 18,000 hits later – I’ve decided to share some of the application aids I created that helped me get two admits (and a waitlist) from top 10 b schools. I hope that it helps any newbies to the MBA application process, gives some […]
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17 Apr 2015, 09:01
| FROM TopDogMBA - A Reapplicant's Tail: A day in the life – part 3: school-by-school application plan |
It’s nearly a year since TopDogMBA came into being and – over 18,000 hits later – I’ve decided to share some of the application aids I created that helped me get two admits (and a waitlist) from top 10 b schools. I hope that it helps any newbies to the MBA application process, gives some […]
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18 Apr 2015, 21:01
| FROM Pro GMAT: An overview of my journey till now! from 540 to 720. Still Counting. |
This an overview of my journey till now! I started bloging in August last year. I had a nice list before getting started for GMAT studies. I took my first GMAT prep on 26th Feb last year and scored 540. I took my second GMATPrep after studying for 2-3 months and scored 10 points lower! I was studying according […]
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22 Apr 2015, 10:01
| FROM Pro GMAT: Twitter is the new way of Collections. |
This week went in reviewing all the topics that I have covered in my previous study session. I reviewed all the notes that I have made and started reviewing the Quant topics. I have started with triangles and made few flash cards and they are really helping me remember the formulas and tricks. Each time I get something […]
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Hi Generic [Bot],
Here are updates for you:
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Tuck at Dartmouth
AGSM at UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA RIVERSIDE
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