Calling All 2015 Consortium Applicants Thread

I want that yale interview.
Assuming a reasonable 50% chance of an admission offer from each have interview, the chance that all 4 schools reject me is 6.25%. If I get a Yale interview, that number drops to 3.125%. That change seems significant to me. So come on SOM!
#gmatmathinreallife

Posted from my mobile device

Didn't you apply to 6 Consortium schools? Your profile says so. If so, the odds are already in your favor! Besides, you can get into all of them (I hope you do!), but you can only get the fellowship at one. That's what really matters.

Having options to control your own destiny, that's what really matters.

Hahahaha...I guess. I don't disagree, necessarily. This is just my soapbox, but..........HERE IT GOES!

I think there are too many folks on this forum obsessed with "the number" of schools they get into (I get it - no one likes rejection. It feels like failure.) rather than focusing on getting into schools they actually want to go to that will help them accomplish their goals in life (and with money, at that!) Like, we're focusing on checking the boxes: "I got into all five schools I applied to!" just to say that we did it. Focusing on the number of schools one gets admitted to directly undermines the value of the schools you get admitted to, IMO.

But...no one can go to five schools. Not physically possible. You cannot enroll in multiple programs...you can only go to one. Chances are good that many who applied to the max. number of CGSM schools would never want to go to the schools they ranked No. 5 or 6 unless they failed to get in everywhere else. So, focusing on the number of schools you get into is inconsequential if you don't value the ones you applied to in the first place. (Case in point, the folks on this forum who ranked SOM No. 3 or 4 and are dying to get an interview. Like...WHY?!?! You don't really want to go there anyway.)

I just view this obsession with a "perfect scorecard" of school admit letters as a missed opportunity. So yes, getting into as many schools as possible is great and awesome and we should all hope to be so lucky and fortunate to say "He/She DID THAT." But let's not forget that we are just trying to go to business school, which is designed to create options for us. Having six schools to choose from just sounds like a headache waiting to happen, rather than 2 or 3 schools you're really invested in.

Someone really wise (*ahem*an admissions director at a top 5 school) once told me this two years ago: "If Business School is your dream, your end goal...you're doing this whole process wrong. Business School is the means to the end goal, a means to your dreams of leading a certain life. Don't get the two of those things mixed up."

Just something to remember, future CGSM family!

I think applying to six schools via the consortium hurts your chances, especially at the schools you ranked lower.

I've heard from several students/admin that they look at rankings when it comes to the final admit decisions as they want to admit folks that they have a higher chance in matriculating.
All schools care about yield and once you've get down to 4,5,6 choices, the odds are not in your favor in regard to some programs (Tuck, Haas, Ross, Darden, Yale, UCLA and NYU mainly).

With that being said, i'm sure you ranked the schools you really want to attend 1 or 2 so you should have a good chance if you fit the profile.

All the best!

I would have agreed with you except you have an assumption that works for you but not everyone.



That's certainly not true for me. I don't believe everyone only has ONE or TWO best schools for them. The schools are so similar unless your goals are super specific there are MANY schools that could help you accomplish your goals. Personally, I did not apply to any school I did not feel I would be happy to go to paying full price. THAT, was my litmus test.

It might not be for everyone else but I'm sure there are other folks that were in a similar boar. Additionally, how I felt about schools changed through the process. I was dinged at insead even though coming in that was the #1 place I wanted to go to. By the time the ding came, I was okay because I had realized their January intake would have been a much better fit for me.

I ranked ross 5 or 6 and Yale 3 or 4....but now I would go to Ross no scholarship over Yale full scholarship. I'm not trying to get a perfect scorecard - i just want to know what options are on the table. So either ding or interview, i'm not as hung up on which as I just want to move on. So yea, I'm happy I got interviewed at a bunch of schools...but 1. that doesn't mean I'm going to be accepted and 2. that doesn't mean bc I got accepted to one I'm going to stop anticipating what other choices I might have.

It's like the people that say "you got into Harvard (or other prestigious school), why do you care if you get admitted to Booth (or other lower ranked school). Not everyone applied to a school as "backup" Some really are not sure which they would pick...and want all the options on the table.

Okay, gets off soapbox too.

On an unrelated note - for those that applied to UCLA and interviewed.

Have you checked your application recently? Mine shows
1. gmat not official
2. transcripts not received
3. toefl - not received


Seeing as official scores came from CGSM, as did official transcripts and i've been America all my life...so don't need toefl.....is there anyone else in the same boat? I emailed them but have not received a response.

Did you have to resend scores and transcripts?

Again, I hear ya Angelfire213. I really do. But the truth of the matter is that you DO know where you want to go to school, no matter whether you get into all six CGSM programs (and Non-CGSM schools) or not. That's called instinct.

I recognize that people change their minds over the course of this process. (It has happened to me too, as I ranked my No. 3 school much lower than where it should've probably been, which is No. 1.) But, that doesn't change the fact that I ALWAYS knew where I likely needed/wanted to go. (FULL DISCLOSURE: I was in this process last year and got waitlisted. I know the feeling of defeat!) Had I been listening to that instinct and not the rankings or what others have said on GMAT Club, or...whatever, I would've done things differently. We all would have. That said, ranking a school No. 6 vs. No. 3 is a significant difference in this process, and not to be ignored.

And that's my point. Your No. 6 school is not where you want to go. Psychologically, ranking categories of things implies that you will NOT allow yourself to rank something really highly if your instinct tells you not to, given a significant number of things to select from (like, 5 or more.) If you go to a restaurant and there are six entrees for you to choose from, your mind will compartmentalize and naturally narrow down to 3 or fewer choices, as more than that becomes cognitively overwhelming. (Let's just say that I know a thing or two about psychology. ) You are not going to choose between Steak, Chicken, Shrimp, Filet of Sole, Pork Chops and the Vegetarian option psychologically; you will consider multiple factors in a single instant and narrow those choices down, ranking the ones you are most likely to want in the short-term AND the long-term (read: "will I be satisfied with my food select for lunch later, when it's time to eat dinner?"). And after you've eaten, you could go back and say, "dang, I wish I had ordered the pork chops instead," but chances are you'll regret not ordering your second or third-ranked choice; you're not going to wish you had ordered your 6th ranked choice (let's call it the vegetarian dish, for effect. )

Now, I'm not saying you don't really want to go to Michigan, because hell...I don't know! But...you're a leader on this forum this year, so you know better than anyone that Ross statistically doesn't favor folks who rank them lower than No. 2 (maybe No. 3, but that's pushing it), and certainly won't give folks CGSM money unless they rank Ross as their top choice (I have seen them give other folks half, non-CGSM scholarships though, presuming they have awesome GMAT scores.) If at any point in time you (I'm using the proverbial "you", not the literal one. I mean anyone, really) thought that a 6th ranked school would be where you wanted to go, you weren't listening to your instinct. Chances are, your original decision hasn't really changed that much, and you made a relatively good choice the first time.

MORAL OF THE STORY YA'LL: If you ranked a school low, trust your instinct that you made that decision for a reason, and it'll make little difference in the long run, whether or not you graduate from that school, because all schools are so similar.

Angelfire213, you're going to get a stellar MBA education with your 5 interview options from CGSM. Really, you can't go wrong. #allyoudoiswin

Weird...my app says everything was submitted, and I interviewed last week. It asks you for TOEFL?! That's strange...

I was told that they look at the rankings after they have accepted you to determine who get the fellowship. Anyone who has been through this process can comment on this? Thanks

That's weird as my interview for Darden is in Mid March.

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I have heard several sources (consortium info session, alumni, current students) say that schools are able to view your rankings during the admissions process. Officially, they do use them for the fellowship draft but I am pretty confidant that they consider them when handing out admits - its human nature .....

That is weird for a consortium candidate due to the timing of the draft. The folks I know that got the Darden fellowship found out mid march...two weeks before the decision release date

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ugh.... wish I knew that before I submitted. Nonetheless, I still got an invite from my choice 6. Hopefully I have overcome that hurdle, as I didn't get interviewed for the top 4 choices.

I think you will be fine!

I think my statement really applies to 4-5 of the 18 member schools!

Mid-March? Like, when? The draft is normally at the top of March, as per previous year's posts. I know I got an interview invite from a school the first week of March, but I figured that would be the latest they could interview folks before the draft.

GMAT17325 It says that you interviewed at Johnson, now Darden coming up. I thought that you got the invite from Tuck also? 3 of six interviews through Consortium is pretty amazing to me.