Wharton 2013 - Calling All Applicants

Just chiming in.

I really do not think there is much to fret about until you receive final notification and I do not think it is worth any amount of energy speculating on their process, motivations, or trying to compute junk math to justify your beliefs. If it makes you feel better to feel one way or another, then disregard this post and endure for another 48 hours. I will say that checking your e-mail inbox and ApplyYourself every 5 minutes will not make you feel better and it does not change the outcome.

About myself. I'm not special. I'm no genius. I never attended an Ivy League, nor has anyone in my family. I'm neither rich nor poor. I never climbed Mt. Everest or competed in the Olympic games. I have fairly even stats compared to others: 3.6 GPA from a state school and a 680 GMAT. Not bad, but not spectacular. I'm Asian, which probably doesn't help, and I'm probably even more dull and lame personality-wise compared to my fellow Asian candidates (ha). I'm male (moar lame), I'm also well over 30 (yay...). To make things even more interesting, I was laid off repeatedly over the last few years.

But despite all that, I have applied 3 times to Wharton and I've been invited to interview on the last day on each of the previous attempts. I didn't get accepted but take what you will from it. I'm at least glad they saw to give me a chance in the past years despite my being "non-special" from any dimension however you look at it.

The Wharton admissions team have stated, year after year, that the order and timing in which you receive the interview has no bearing on your "standings". I believe that. I also believe that 80-90% of candidates would be qualified to make up their class composition. I've attended their program and I've even hired graduates to work under me as their direct manager. They're just normal people like the rest of us.

It's frustrating, sure, but it's also pure mathematics. No one is entitled to go to Wharton, nor is any hard-working, accomplished, individual more or less deserving to enter a prestigious program. There are simply more of us than they can handle, and like any overloaded program, they must turn down an overwhelming majority of their applicants. It's how life works, and even MBA graduates - Wharton included - face the same hurdle again once they are done.

And in the end, not going to Wharton or any other MBA program is NOT the end of the world. Take it from someone who has tried over and over again and failed in every attempt (over 20 times and counting). It's not the end of the world. Despite running in to many personal and professional roadblocks, many of which were just bad circumstance, I've managed to become a better person despite not going to Wharton or other programs. I used to absolutely hate the application process, but after a while, I view it as an annual fun activity in which it forces me to write better. If nothing else, I feel like I've been a far better writer and communicator after going through the process more times than I can remember.

For those who won't make it, move on, and try again next time. Getting depressed over not winning a lottery ticket, however, is not worth the self-torment and hassle.

$0.02