Calling all Fall 2010 Consortium Applicants (merged)

Just got back. Overall, I don't want to set expectations for the tone of the interview since every alum interviewer is going to be different, but my interviewer was great. She did the run of the mill:

- walk me through your resume
- tell me about you community involvement
- career goal
- why MBA/why now
- what have you read
- what news are you following

The question that threw me for a loop was the "what makes you special/why should you be accepted/what will you offer" - I'm happy I had this question in the Consortium interview first and not at a school

She was very helpful, and since she works literally two blocks from me, she has offered to help me with interviewing, essays, and industry knowledge about my desired career. She shared a lot about her background, career choices (she was in a field I hope to go into), talked to me about my career interests, gave me pointers on how to answer certain questions better, and a quick critique of my resume. She was very friendly and, besides having to answer certain questions for formality's sake, casual in her approach.

I am definitely thankful for applying through the Consortium and having the opportunity to interview with them first as I know I tend to sometimes stumble in interviews; this was a great precursor to a school interview (as opposed to job interview) without the pressure.

great feed back! its appreciated.

is this considered the official CGSM thread? it seems as though there should be one, even though its a little late in the game. is there a way to one of the moderators can merge this thread with a brand new one with one those "Calling all... 2010" threads except one for CGSM folks?

good idea... page updated.

Hi all, I applied Consortium Round 1 on 11/15. Hopefully this info isn't too late to help those still planning to apply and need info for their recommenders. I applied to 4 schools (NYU, Yale, Michigan, Virginia) and have already interviewed with Michigan. I'm happy to chime in for any questions someone has. Onto the recommendation questions:

Professional Recommendation Questions (1000 characters per question, except question 1 I think)
1) How long have you known the applicant and under what circumstances?

2) Please discuss any strengths you think may enhance the candidate’s performance in graduate business
studies and in a management career.

3) What weaknesses do you think may affect the candidate’s performance in graduate business studies
and in a management career?

4) Please make any additional comments which you think will help in addressing the candidacy of the
applicant.

Using the qualities listed below, how would you rate the applicant in comparison with other candidates you have
known who have applied for graduate study in business/ management?
-Analytical Ability
-Maturity
-Ethics/ Integrity
-Leadership Potential
-Personality/ Ability to get along with others
-Writing Skills
-Oral Skills
-Creativity/ Imagination
-Self‐confidence
-Initiative/ motivation/ effort
-Job Performance
-OVERALL APPRAISAL

Hey all,

I just had a pants pooping moment.

Are we have suppose to have done our interview already? Are we suppose to request the interview now, before we submit?

For some reason, I thought we could do it after we submit our applications, so it would coincide with (hopefully) the other interview schedules.

Yes and no, the priority date that the Consortium suggested interviews should be completed by is Dec. 20th. I do believe that they want the Consortium interview completed before submitting your application (which gives you until Jan 3rd - your interviewer needs to fill out a form which adds another day and places you right before the deadline). You may want to call them to see if people interview after the submission date and how long after, but my understanding is that they are all done before.

To be safe, if I were you, I'd start contacting alumni interviewers now. It took me a few contacts over the course of a couple of weeks to get an affirmative reply.

In addition to the Alumni interviewers, you can also interview at any of the Consortium schools, even if they don't have open interviewing procedures for their respective programs. I did my Consortium interview at Michigan. I see you're in SoCal and USC is on your short list, you might be able to schedule it with them too. Worth giving a call to their admissions office to inquire.

Just did. Now I've gone from stressing out over essays, to stressing out over essays AND an interview.

I didn't think I'd have to brush up on my HR skills until February. Got an interview at SC next week.

Wish me luck. Hopefully they won't look too cockeyed at me for not being a URM.

You have a solid and unique story, just be yourself. My Consortium interview was pretty straight forward with fairly generic questions they asked. Unless it's doubling as a school specific interview too, they need to make it school neutral so that everyone reviewing your application can get benefit from it. Good luck!

hey folks,

anyone interested in core essay swapping? i'd really like another pair of eyeballs on these essays.

submitted my application today!

web traffic at the site is making it impossible to get in.

Good luck to everyone. I think I am going to sit this year out even though everything is in but my essays. I realized I am not ready yet.

takes a lot to admit that, but i'm sure you'll be better off next year when you feel fully prepared, especially with a 770 GMAT!

Yes..I have like a 700 now but ...lol i actually want to win a fellowship from somewhere...i feel like a 700 isnt enough...and I need to research my programs more...there are even more opportunities than i realized...im starting to wish I applied to ML4T now...

You'll be surprised what a 700 + strong leadership/community involvement gets you as a URM. And I know people with lesser GMAT's who got Consortium fellowships and fellowships from other schools.

As far as MLT, I say still apply or at least reach out to them. Explain your story that you were going to apply to school and have now reassessed. Ask if there is a way you can at least join the waitlist for the program. There are always people who don't accept their position in the program or they drop out. You may not get in, but at least you made contact.

Hi Everyone,

I'm applying through the Consoritum in R2. I'm just making sure about the process. If they are interested each school will conduct an interview in addition to the consoritum interview...right?

Thanks!