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Learn what truly sets the UC Riverside MBA apart and how it helps in your professional growth
07 May 2010, 11:59
Kudos
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I'm currently considering joining the military as an officer, as I would very much like to serve my country and gain some leadership experience before heading off to business school. I'm definitely *not* joining the military just to get into business school- although that may be what I tell my folks (very liberal types).
A little background about myself: I graduated from a top-25 university with a BS in engineering in 2008 (GPA a shade over 3.0), worked as an analyst at a large bank/credit card firm for a year, and have spent the last year working for a software company in silicon valley. I've been scoring around 750 on my practice GMATs.
-Obviously, the process for admission to HBS (or any of the top business schools) is extremely competitive and highly desirable. According to a blog, veterans make up approximately 3% of the class of 2011 at HBS, and I assume that the numbers are similar at comparable programs, which would make the total number of veterans pursuing MBAs very small (please correct me if I'm wrong). Is this because very few veterans choose to apply? Is it because admission as a veteran is extremely challenging? Or is it a combination or something else entirely?
-Are military officers are less competitive for slots at the top schools compared with civilians with more "traditional" work experience?
-What is the general profile of successful veteran applicants to top schools? Are they all elite types, such as Army Rangers, fighter pilots, Navy SEALs, and so on? Folks who have academically-demanding jobs, such as Navy Nuclear officers or Intelligence types? What kind of veteran applicants don't make it?
-Is there much of a difference in competitiveness of applicants from the different services? For example, Marine Corps officers represent about 8% of the total commissioned officers in the military, yet they represented 19% of the veterans in the HBS 2011 class.
These questions are specifically for veterans in MBA programs-
-How did you go about selecting a program? If you were still in the service, how did your superiors react- were they supportive?
-How have you found your military experience impacts your interactions with (potential) employers? How do you think they view you compared to your peers that have spent time at management consulting firms, investment firms, and so on? How do you think they view candidates with different military backgrounds?
A little background about myself: I graduated from a top-25 university with a BS in engineering in 2008 (GPA a shade over 3.0), worked as an analyst at a large bank/credit card firm for a year, and have spent the last year working for a software company in silicon valley. I've been scoring around 750 on my practice GMATs.
-Obviously, the process for admission to HBS (or any of the top business schools) is extremely competitive and highly desirable. According to a blog, veterans make up approximately 3% of the class of 2011 at HBS, and I assume that the numbers are similar at comparable programs, which would make the total number of veterans pursuing MBAs very small (please correct me if I'm wrong). Is this because very few veterans choose to apply? Is it because admission as a veteran is extremely challenging? Or is it a combination or something else entirely?
-Are military officers are less competitive for slots at the top schools compared with civilians with more "traditional" work experience?
-What is the general profile of successful veteran applicants to top schools? Are they all elite types, such as Army Rangers, fighter pilots, Navy SEALs, and so on? Folks who have academically-demanding jobs, such as Navy Nuclear officers or Intelligence types? What kind of veteran applicants don't make it?
-Is there much of a difference in competitiveness of applicants from the different services? For example, Marine Corps officers represent about 8% of the total commissioned officers in the military, yet they represented 19% of the veterans in the HBS 2011 class.
These questions are specifically for veterans in MBA programs-
-How did you go about selecting a program? If you were still in the service, how did your superiors react- were they supportive?
-How have you found your military experience impacts your interactions with (potential) employers? How do you think they view you compared to your peers that have spent time at management consulting firms, investment firms, and so on? How do you think they view candidates with different military backgrounds?
07 May 2010, 13:02
Kudos
Bookmarks
Military officers are arguably the most coveted applicants -- by adcoms and MBA recruiters alike.
The reason why the numbers may seem small is that there are relatively few applicants from the military that apply to b-school - compared to other folks (bankers, consultants, engineers, other corporate professionals).
Doesn't mean that every single military officer gets in, but they have had better success at getting in than other folks. From my memory having come across many applicants in the past, the few folks that I've seen get into all three HBS, Stanford and Wharton tended to be military guys.
As far as I know, the adcoms on the whole don't have a preference for one branch of the military over another. It's really a function of the applicant pool itself - if one year there's more Navy guys applying, there will be more Navy guys in the class that year. Having said that, I have come across quite a number of exceptional guys in the special forces units, and those doing multiple tours in a combat role.
In terms of the admissions process, the most common hurdle for military officers is academics and/or GMAT -- historically they tend to have weaker scores than average. However, if your academics and GMAT are in range (3.3 and higher, 680 and higher), then it really comes down to how well you execute your application and showcase which aspects of your leadership/team experiences in the military transcend the military (i.e. being able to show that you understand what aspects of your leadership experiences might be applicable to the civilian/corporate/b-school world, and what aspects are military-specific). In other words, what the adcoms are really looking for is that you as an individual understand what it takes and are fully prepared for the challenges of transitioning back to the civilian world. Having said that, adcoms like many civilians on the surface find those working on the front lines in a combat or intelligence role more compelling.
With recommendations and superiors: in my experience with military applicants, none of them had any issues with their superiors and most if not all were extremely supportive of their decision. HOWEVER, timing is everything - bring it up the year you intend to apply (usually close to the end of a 5 year tour), rather than revealing your intentions so early on.
As for post-MBA jobs, the veterans with MBAs network is tighter than the school networks themselves - and they transcend the schools. In other words, it's a pretty tight knit and helpful group across the top schools no matter where you go (those who go to Wharton know the guys at HBS, and who then know the guys at Darden, etc.). Whether on a trading floor at a bank, consulting firm, corporate office, etc. being a veteran can be a big asset especially if the hiring person is a veteran himself.
As for how civilians think, I don't think you'll come across anyone in the business world that does not admire, respect or value military experience, regardless of their political views. Again, the one thing that a veteran has to do is to convince the recruiter that they are ready and equipped to make that transition into civilian work as smooth as possible - that even if the recruiter himself/herself doesn't understand or appreciate the actual differences between the military and civilian world - that you are able to convince them that you do so that you can get slotted into any project group as seamlessly as any other banker/consultant/engineer who is accustomed to a corporate office environment.
The reason why the numbers may seem small is that there are relatively few applicants from the military that apply to b-school - compared to other folks (bankers, consultants, engineers, other corporate professionals).
Doesn't mean that every single military officer gets in, but they have had better success at getting in than other folks. From my memory having come across many applicants in the past, the few folks that I've seen get into all three HBS, Stanford and Wharton tended to be military guys.
As far as I know, the adcoms on the whole don't have a preference for one branch of the military over another. It's really a function of the applicant pool itself - if one year there's more Navy guys applying, there will be more Navy guys in the class that year. Having said that, I have come across quite a number of exceptional guys in the special forces units, and those doing multiple tours in a combat role.
In terms of the admissions process, the most common hurdle for military officers is academics and/or GMAT -- historically they tend to have weaker scores than average. However, if your academics and GMAT are in range (3.3 and higher, 680 and higher), then it really comes down to how well you execute your application and showcase which aspects of your leadership/team experiences in the military transcend the military (i.e. being able to show that you understand what aspects of your leadership experiences might be applicable to the civilian/corporate/b-school world, and what aspects are military-specific). In other words, what the adcoms are really looking for is that you as an individual understand what it takes and are fully prepared for the challenges of transitioning back to the civilian world. Having said that, adcoms like many civilians on the surface find those working on the front lines in a combat or intelligence role more compelling.
With recommendations and superiors: in my experience with military applicants, none of them had any issues with their superiors and most if not all were extremely supportive of their decision. HOWEVER, timing is everything - bring it up the year you intend to apply (usually close to the end of a 5 year tour), rather than revealing your intentions so early on.
As for post-MBA jobs, the veterans with MBAs network is tighter than the school networks themselves - and they transcend the schools. In other words, it's a pretty tight knit and helpful group across the top schools no matter where you go (those who go to Wharton know the guys at HBS, and who then know the guys at Darden, etc.). Whether on a trading floor at a bank, consulting firm, corporate office, etc. being a veteran can be a big asset especially if the hiring person is a veteran himself.
As for how civilians think, I don't think you'll come across anyone in the business world that does not admire, respect or value military experience, regardless of their political views. Again, the one thing that a veteran has to do is to convince the recruiter that they are ready and equipped to make that transition into civilian work as smooth as possible - that even if the recruiter himself/herself doesn't understand or appreciate the actual differences between the military and civilian world - that you are able to convince them that you do so that you can get slotted into any project group as seamlessly as any other banker/consultant/engineer who is accustomed to a corporate office environment.
