Calling all MS Admits: Share your success story with the community

Question

Dear Admits! Congratulations on your incredible achievement of getting into your dream MS program!  We would love you to share your thoughts on the application process, what you learned, and what advice you would like to give future applicants.

The value you will bring by sharing your successful journey with the community would be worth a lot. Thanks in advance!

Links of all application debriefs 
    FinanceMan  's story of getting into  Fuqua's MS in Quantitative Management: Business Analytics  
   Toffelfabriken  's application journey to  MSc Finance at LSE, Master in Finance at ESSEC and the MSc Risk Management and Financial Engineering  
   SaiGanesh0705 's story of applying to  Duke MQM: Business Analytics and USC Marshall MSBA  
   philippi  My story of applying to  HSG SIM (St. Gallen)  
   schnaco  How I got into  Cornell: MS in Applied Economics, LBS MiM, & LSE: Management & Strategy  
   TheBanker123  My Story of getting into  my top choice program: HEC Paris  
   ishita27  Admitted to  LBS Masters in Management with 660 GMAT

Suggested Template  
   Name of the Program(s) you got into  
  A Little bit about your educational and professional background & post-MS goals 
  Experience of GMAT/GRE 
  Experience of interview 
  Factors that played key role in your success  
  Advice to future applicants 
  Anything else?

FinanceMan · Answer

-Master of Science in Quantitative Management: Business Analytics at Duke University's Fuqua School of Business

-I hold a Bachelor of Science in Biology and was in the thesis phase of my Master of Science in Molecular Genetics before switching gears. I completed my MBA in 2019. Currently I am an Assistant Vice President at a financial institution and post MS goal is to move out of operational management and into data analysis and/of something quantitative.

-GMAT was well...the GMAT.

-My interview was very laid back and Ed Anderson was awesome. He asked the typical "why this program?", "why Fuqua?", etc.

-At my current company I went in as a Customer Service Representative. Within 1 year, I was in a management role and 1 year after that I was an Assistant Vice President. Ed asked me what I felt contributed to my quick climb from an entry level role to my current role.

-My advice to future applicants is to be yourself. Do not try to misrepresent yourself in any way. Be open, be honest and let the admissions committee see how awesome you are just as yourself.

Posted from my mobile device

Narenn · Answer

Thanks  FinanceMan . Appreciate your inputs about MSQM application. Good luck!

Toffelfabriken · Answer

Name of the Program(s) you got into 
I was admitted to the MSc Finance at LSE, Master in Finance at ESSEC and the MSc Risk Management and Financial Engineering, but I chose to go to LSE.

A Little bit about your educational and professional background & post-MS goals 
When I applied, I was in the process of finishing my BSc with a major in finance. I went straight from high school to undergraduate studies and then hopped right on the MSc bus without taking time off to work, other than doing some accounting during the summers. After the MSc, I'd like to work in investment banking.

Experience of GMAT/GRE 
For this, see my GMAT debrief  here .

Experience of interview 
I was not interviewed for any of the programs I got into. If it counts, I was interviewed for the MSc in Financial Economics at Oxford Saïd (which I later got waitlisted for). It was reasonably laid back. The interviewer was pretty clear that he was not there to just ask me a ton of difficult questions. The questions were the usual "why do you want to study at Oxford?", "what do you want to do when you graduate?", "how will the program help you?" and "how will you contribute to the class?" type questions.

Factors that played key role in your success 
Since I don't have much work experience, I think my biggest success factors were my test scores and GPA. I think my 760 GMAT, 118 TOEFL and good undergraduate track record made me quite competitive.

Advice to future applicants 
Before applying to a program, make sure you've actually got a reasonable means of funding it. Tuition fees can vary widely, and scholarships are not always available. You don't want to get admitted to a program only to later realize you cannot afford it. Also, before applying to a program, take a look at the curriculum for each course to see whether it sounds like something that would actually suit you. Also, try not to stretch your GMAT studies out more than necessary. Burnout is not fun.

Anything else? 
Best of luck to all of you in the process of studying for the GMAT or applying to MSc or MBA programs.

SaiGanesh0705 · Answer

Name of the Program(s) I got into 
- MQM:Business Analytics Fuqua, USC Marshall MSBA, and waitlisted for Berkeley MFE.

A Little bit about my educational and professional background & post-MS goals 
- I have completed my Bachelors in Electronics and Communication Engineering and have a work experience of 3+ years in Research and Development in IT. From my current job it was pretty clear as to what career I want to pursue long term. My career goal after Masters would be to venture into Financial analytics clubbed with Forensics(part of my current job) and play a pivotal role in impacting decision making on the financial front.

Experience of GMAT/GRE 
- I have shared my detailed GMAT info on an another thread "Persistense: The mitochondria to crack the b school dream". Please do have a look.

Experience of interview 
- Out of the 3, only Fuqua invited my for an interview whereas Marshall gave an admit without an interview and Berkeley waitlisted me.
Fuqua interview experience - 
It was an informal sort of interview where the alumni who just passed 2 years before from the same program interviewed me. She was very polite and understanding. The questions were very standard and nobody is looking to grill you. The questions were as follows:
a. Why Fuqua?
b. Why MQM?
c. Why Masters at this point?
d. Explain about your current job.
e. What does Fuqua community mean to you?

Factors that played a key role in my success 
- Putting aside ample time to do research. Every program requires attention to detail on certain aspects. We just need to make sure those aspects are air tight. For example, a more technical course will look into your body of work and the technical knowledge you possess but on the other hand an MBA course would look into the personality and attitude. In my case I took help from MIMEssay to help me with understanding how to build a strong application and it was very fruitful.

Advice to future applicants 
- Do your research, make notes, talk to admissions people, network with alumni over linkedin and read blogs. Do all of these in a planned manner and sure it will prove to be the game changer for anybody.

philippi · Answer

Hey everyone, my name is Philipp and I got accepted into the Strategy and International Management (SIM) at St.Gallen,Switzerland.

There is one thing that I am convinced of and that I want to tell you upfront: YOU CAN DO IT!

Now, some specifics about myself: I did my BA in Business in Austria and did various internships and studies abroad (especially Latinamerica and the US) but honestly no "serious" professional experience (besides some self initiated projects). After the MA I am thinking about doing a PHD but am not sure yet, will se how my interests develop.

When it comes to my GMAT experience and advice: I did a detailed post on this topic and also uploaded a video on YouTube, check them out for some motivation and tips!

Post (mainly methodology)

https://gmatclub.com/forum/gmat-730-adv ... 27769.html

Video (mainly attitude and mindset)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuugriwffYw&feature=youtu.be

That being said, make the best of your GMAT experience and never forget: DON'T DOUBT IT, DO IT!

Philipp

schnaco · Answer

Programs 
Accepted into MS Applied Economics and Management at Cornell University, MiM at London Business School, MS in Management and Strategy at London School of Economics.
Applied to MS programs as a safety net in case I would not get into Deferred MBA programs. Was accepted into Columbia Business School and Yale School of Management, so ended up declining all those offers.

Background and Goals 
Western European, BS in Business/ Economics from Top10 public school in the US, magna cum laude. 
Hope to work in strategy/ turnaround consulting.

GMAT/ GRE 
325 (Q163, V162) GRE and 730 (Q48, V42) GMAT. Unfortunately only had a couple of weeks to study.

Interviews 
Only LBS required interview. Interviewed with alumna from the same undergrad institution as me. Very positive, friendly, and conversational. Great experience.

Factors for Success 
Decently strong LORs, strong on-campus involvement, decent and meaningful internship experience, good research done in undergrad (relevant for Cornell), good academic metrics.

Advice 
Start researching early and really know what each program is about. There is so much information online, so there really is no excuse to not be an expert on the school. Apply broadly, especially when applying to competitive schools. Have a common theme throughout your application. Make sure your goal is tied to your experiences. Be confident! If you don't believe in yourself, why should an AdCom believe in you? After all, you will be representing the school in the workplace after. Always focus on what you can bring to the classroom, not just on what you want to get out. And finally: Fall in love with the process of admissions. Learn about admission politics, attend events, try to understand differentiators between schools, listen to podcasts. I wish I had known everything I know now when I applied.

Anything else? 
If you have any questions, I'm more than happy to help. Just DM me. I'm a little hesitant to share too much personal info here, but this forum has been a great resource to me, so I am more than happy to "give back" as much as I can. Good luck!

tanu11 · Answer

could you share your profile in more detail?

TheBanker123 · Answer

Hello,

I wanted to share my story with you as this forum was very helpful throughout my application process.

I applied to HEC Paris MIF, LBS MFA, Bocconi MIF, ESSEC MIF, ESCP MiM, and IE MIF, and my number one choice was HEC Paris MSc International Finance.

My Profile:

GMAT: 710
Undergrad: Top 3 UK Business School, Accounting and Finance (65% Average)
Professional experience: 2 Summer Internships in a PE Real Estate Boutique and a M&A Boutique
Societies: Treasurer of a Society, Member of many Finance societies
International Profile: I speak 3 European Languages and I have lived in 3 Countries.
Career Goals: Work as an M&A Analyst in Europe

Result: I was recently accepted to my First Choice HEC Paris, as well as receiving other offers.

GMAT Experience:

Took 4 months to prepare, wasted 2 months on random exercises until I discovered BloombergPrep which allowed me to score a high score. Quant was the hard part for me, I had to improve from a 34/35 to a 46. It is hard but anyone can do it with the right tools to prepare.

Interview Experience:

Most of the programs only asked motivational questions, however HEC was very technical. Questions about Beta, CAPM, Valuation, brainteasers, very hard but great conversation overall.

Advice to future applicants:

Make sure that you have your career goals right: if you really want to do something, Schools will see that in your profile/essays and give you an offer. Also make sure to aim for 680+ on the GMAT in order not to be penalised by your score.

Narenn · Answer

ishita27  's Story of Getting Accepted at LBS's Masters in Management Program

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdUSVujK0Bo

Narenn · Answer

Congratulations and many thanks for posting your application experience here. asking out of curiosity - as you have decided to do a career in Finance, are you planning to get CFA certification at some point in future?

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