London Business School Masters in Management Q&A

There is no way of knowing for sure. If you have a GPA that high, you certainly have the intelligence needed to score above a 700. Spend a month or two studying, and you should be able to do well.




I have not interviewed yet (they are still working on scheduling it). I will post back once I am done.

Hey guys,
just looking for your opinion on whether i should consider writing the 6th optional essay for LBS mentioning rather reasoning a below par gmat score??. i have had decent academics and extracurriculars tagged along with some voluntary work too..but i m not sure whether i should write the last essay and explain it to them about my substandard gmat(650)..

Thanks in advance!!

Why not? The essay should only take you a few minutes to write.

@commdiver : but do you think this essay is meant for explaining or reasoning for such a gmat score??... Most people advice the counter

I have never heard that before. Everyone who I have ever spoken to, as well as the top business schools, always say to use the optional essay to explain a weakness in your application or to bring to light any information that you think is important.

EDIT: Have you considered just retaking the GMAT? If you spend some time studying verbal, you should be able to easily get over 700. Your quant score is already good.

@ commdiver : I did consider that option but i think giving it again and applying a month and a half down the line will make my chances almost simialr even with a better score owing to the application being submitted in the latter half of the the applicant pool.
Also if i do write this essay... would it be a wise choice to mention that i intend to appear for the gmat if the AdCom advices me to do so, or if that is the sole reason for a Red flag.

Thanks again!

As per some expert opinion that i have come across, to focus on a better application set overall with this score would be a better choice than risking a late submission when a major part of the seats are already taken in good B-schools.

In LBS' application, they actually ask whether or not you would be willing to retake the GMAT at their request, so I think mentioning it again would be fine. My optional essay was only a paragraph long. I just took wrote five or six sentences explaining some poor grades I received during my sophomore year of college.

I would not put too much thought into it. No school is going to go "Well, this guy's application is strong, but his optional essay is pretty weak, so we will deny him." The optional essay is just that an optional essay. I hope that helps

Hey guys!
I just heard back from LBS and got an interview call for MiM 2014...
It would be really appreciated if some tips/ Pointers about the interview could be shared here!

Thanks in advance!!

Congratulations Mohit!
All the very best for your interview.
Can you please share your profile?
How long did they take to get back to you?

I submitted my application a week ago, and here is my profile:
Age: 21
Location: India
GMAT: 730 (AWA 5.0, IR 8.0)
Under graduation: Computer Science Engineering
Two internships and a modest amount of leadership experience.

Cheers!,
Abhishek.

@ Abhishek : sorry for the late reply!
Well, I am an Architect from IIT Roorkee with a similar work ex as yours and decent extra curriculars.. but i had a comparitively lower gmat score.
I submitted my application in early Jan and heard from them in 8-10 days.

All the best!

Hi everyone!

Applying to this program is in 2 years for me, but i still have a question regarding the application process.
Can I apply without having finished my BA (but finishing it by june), can I apply in the first round or I have to wait until I get the official paperwork? That would mean that my transcript is not containing all my grades. Has anyone been in a similar situation?

Good luck to you all with the interviews! And congrats to the one's admitted. If you happen to interview me in the future, be nice!
(Sorry for the probably studid question, but there aren't heaps of info on the British education system in Hungary )

Hey I'm just curious about the culture within the classes. Not only is going to a program with strong academics and career prospects an important factor, but also having a tight, close knit community within the program. Can you guys provide any insights as to how the classmates interact with each other? Would you say the program is a tight knit community?

Hi Stanley,

Thank you so much for the Q&A. I am a Mexican student yet to finish BS in Sociology at a public university (Mexico's most renown) 3.7 GPA, I studied acting an worked a lot on theater production, have 2 experiences intermediary of transactions in China, internship in brokerage firm, extensive work experience as research assistant including famous researchers, created my own company of cosmetics imports (which worked for around 6 months) invented/patented a theorem on measuring geographical impact on perfect competition, ECs a summer teaching underprivileged kids, fluent in 4 languages and went to Stanford GBS' Summer Institute for General management, I am 25 though due to having studied theater, but as full-time jobs I have barely a year, GMAT 670. What do you think are my chances? I'm afraid of being above the age average.
Thanks so much,

Santiago

@santiluman, you've got really colorful experience! What sort of ideas drove you to China? I'm very curious

I personally think that you certainly have a chance but you need to convince the admission team that your career objective and path has been consistent and clear as you switch industry and positions relatively frequently. Think through your experience and dig down further the real motivation that drives you really. Once you get it into LBS, you will have more chances to talk to people or find similar peers at Media Club or Acting Club.

Welcome!

@ChenXYZ, Haha thank you very much!!
Well ideas per se didn't drive me into China, I was hired as intermediary for wholesale purchases and guide through wholesale fairs. I didn't know those kind of clubs exist at LBS, all the more reason why to apply, that is so cool!. Thanks for the tip. I should in deed explain all the motives that drove me artistically and what not, I really do think they prepared me to be in business in very useful ways. Did you study over there?

@santiluman, yep I did.

I think the core point for your essay or motivation letter is not supposed to be focused on anything artistically but business style. It also shows your potential coming with a sociology background. So why not drive yourself a little bit further? Well, I love arts very much, and in fact we have Oxford graduates with film aesthetics education or similar. I just find them even more business focused.

I personally think you should not worry too much, although I did also some when I applied then. You will have plenty of time researching your inner peace at organisation behaviour class (i.e., we did personality/character test) or finding out conjoint career path in arts and business. Also, have you considered Bocconi MS in economics and management in arts, media? This could be more specialized while LBS one is more general and best suitable for anyone interested to do arts fund.

LBS loves international experience, particularly China experience (i'm paragraphing...lol). Do let me know where you end up with ultimately!

cheers