Explaining attending an unknown UG...

Question

I attended a small liberal arts university in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. It's called Oklahoma Wesleyan University. I am sure that very few people have heard of it, however, it's actually ranked in U.S. News under Baccalaureate Colleges as #7 in the West.

My question is this: Obviously the University goes on the resume, etc, but when it comes to a respected undergrad university, do you think being #7 in the West for Baccalaureate Colleges even really matters? There are only 6 above it (in the region) and bunches below it and those unranked, but is this something anyone will even care about? At least U.S. News has heard of it even if the adcoms haven't.

aaron22197 · Answer

I think it will matter Morris and mostly depend on how you market this information in your essays. You come from one of the best colleges in the west and this will surely strengthen your application. With that being said, In my opinion, every candidate will try to highlight the most positive aspect of his/her school or college and I think the adcoms very well know that. I think they look at how well you connect the dots between your college experience and your goals.

Good luck

Good luck

jallenmorris · Answer

Aaron, I appreciate the reply. It is also important for me to have a better ranked UG because I had leadership roles at the University. I was senior class president and leader of a College Republican group a friend of mine started the prior year, and played on the golf team a couple of years. I'll need to find some better way to highlight the "prestige" of my UG other than saying "When I attended Oklahoma Wesleyan University, the 7th best Baccalaureate College in the West region as ranked by US News, I majored in History with a minor in Political Science." :-D

aaron22197 · Answer

may be you could say...

I attended OWU, not because it is the 7th best college in the west, but because my goals were ........... and inline with the founding principles of OWU which is known for ...............blah.... something like that.........

Then you wud kill two birds with one stone.

kryzak · Answer

I would STRONGLY recommend AGAINST explaining your school's rankings, reputation, or brand name. The adcoms will know your school, and if not, they will research it.

What IS important is that you talk about WHY you chose the UG you went to. What drew you there? What opportunities did it provide? What did you make of your time there that stood out? Why does that apply to your WE and reasons for applying to B-school now?

Avoid explaining minor things like these and avoid bringing attention to insecurities about a UG's brand. Focus on the positives, the reasoning behind everything, and your thought process. Focus on your leadership, your achievements, and your extracurriculars at this school. If you can make the Adcoms understand why your UG was irresistable for you to attend, then you have succeeded.

futuredukemba · Answer

I could not agree more with kryzak. The adcoms have a ranking cheat sheet they can refer to. They will be more interested in why you made that decision. That was one of the first questions during my kellogg interview

jallenmorris · Answer

Here is my reason for choosing that UG. I grew up going to a Wesleyan church and this University is one of 5 in North America sponsored by that denomination. It is a Christian school that actively discusses Christian morals and principles. Almost all professors open class with prayer. In business classes I took, the professor would discuss business ethics from the standpoint of doing the right thing because it's ethical, but also the importance of doing the right thing as it relates to our spritual lives. About half of the students did not claim Christianity as their religion, but attended it for the education and that they lived within diving distance of it.

I also played golf for them, but that wasn't really why I went. I went because of the church and the education was a secondary.

I guess in the end it's a toss up. I'll just explain how I did like the small class sizes, focused professors, and that the professors were very good in their field. My business professor (since retired from there) had his MBA from Harvard and my history professor had his Ph.D. from LSU or Louisiana Tech. It was awesome having classes with 2 students and Dr. Wimberly. Talk about a learning experience with accountability.

FairPlay · Answer

I don't think it's necessary to bring it up whatsoever. If anything, the word count allowance on my essays was better served talking about more recent and relevant work experience.

After attending numerous MBA fairs and info sessions, it was made abundantly clear that adcoms understand that people are VERY different from the person they were back when they were doing their undergrad. (There was a thread here talking about people's regrets, and it mostly talks about things that occurred during undergrad.) There is so much personal growth that happens between then, getting a job, and the decision to pursue an MBA. That is why MBA applications give you space to explain things like a low GPA--but I don't think you need to explain your actual school choice, be it highly ranked or not. (If you went to well-known institution, it is noted on your resume, which will speak for itself without expending precious word count.)

I too went to an known undergrad school. I made no apologies or explanations for it in my essays and was accepted into my top school of choice. Another school I applied to (for an MSc, not an MBA,) after receiving my application, actually had the Director of their MBA Program   call me   to persuade me to change my application into an MBA one, and join their program instead.

It is   very   possible to promote oneself as a desirable candidate even with an unfamiliar UG degree. My inclination is to focus on other areas of your life and experience in your application.

jallenmorris · Answer

Which b-school are you headed to?

kryzak · Answer

jallen,

IF (and only if) the school provides a "personal background" essay, like UCLA, or Haas optional essay, or Kellogg's "uniqueness" essay, then I would talk about your faith and how your education in UG cemented good business ethics in your mind. That is a very valid and interesting (also personal) topic to discuss. Don't mention UG rankings or brand, just talk about your reasons for going to the school, like you did here. If there are no essays that allow you to write about it, then be prepared to talk about it in the interviews. I don't think you'll be hurt by your UG's brand if you have great WE and good GMAT/GPA.

jallenmorris · Answer

I think my UG has a better brand name than I gave it credit for. Even though it's broken down into regions, #7 in the West is not bad. I think it will truly become a non-issue with the overall application I'll be putting together for my choice of schools.

Thanks for all of the feedback!

Thanks for all of the feedback!

riverripper · Answer

I know I had to explain my UG during interviews and also explained why I wanted to go there in some essays. I think if you can work it in then it makes sense. I know I could have gotten into a much "better" undergrad. However, I wanted to go to that school from the time I was in my early teens and for very specific reasons. I would not force an explanation into the essays but if you can easily make it fit then by all means I use it.

FairPlay · Answer

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Explaining attending an unknown UG...

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