UCLA Anderson Riordan Fellows Program

I'm a part of Riordan Fellows, and as for the focus on minority applicants, that's not necessarily true anymore. The program is starting to trend away from that, albeit it's the main focus, but there are more and more caucasian people that go through it. It's a program that is well worth your time - we have had people fly in from all over the country to attend every month, and there's a ton of benefits that will really give you a leg up when applying.

About a 1/3 of the attendees are in process of applying to b-schools while they're in the program. Another 1/3 will be applying immediately afterwards, and the rest will be applying 2+ years after. If you're applying while in the program, you're placed in a track that's specifically geared to provide you with one-on-one MBA admissions counseling. I'm not sure if they read over essays, but they'll go over in detail what you need to do to become a competitive applicant for the schools you're applying for.

As for the benefits of the program, the biggest thing people take away from it is most likely the networking opportunity. Previous RF have attended all top-20 schools, and there's a constant flow into to the top 10 every year. It's not to say that you're guaranteed a spot, but most of the schools recognize what the RF does, and the fact that you have connections at the schools to help you understand the culture will at least give you a leg up in deciding which school is best for you and what to write about in your essays.

If you're looking to attend Anderson, or any other top school, this is really as good as it can get for seeing first hand what to expect for b-schol in my opinion. Our classes are at Anderson, we have the professors come to give us lectures and provide feedback on our HBS case studies (cold calling included), the Admissions Director talk to us over multiple sessions on what we need to do to be a strong applicant (guidance on essays, LoRs, academics, work experience, etc), multiple community service projects to show leadership, learning teams, company networking events (Bain hosted a meet-and-greet session), executive speakers from industry, GMAT prep, and etc.

There's many more tangible and intangible benefits that come from this program; I feel that it's given me an opportunity to understand what it's like in an MBA program, get a chance to network with some really cool people who've helped me to grow and broaden my skillsets to become successful in my career as well as in b-school, and I've opened MANY doors with having RF on my resume and for doing some pretty neat things outside of work.

Let me know if you have any more questions - I'll be happy to help you!

Thanks kb798,

I appreciate the feedback and the offer. They have a couple information sessions in the next few weeks (including one on Twitter!) so I am going to try to make it out to one to get a better idea.

The applications are out, and the entire admissions process is modeled after the full-time MBA process. There are 4 essay questions that you'll need to do, and I highly recommend that you get started on them right now if you haven't already. Like applying to b-schools, you'll want to spend a lot of time on it and make sure that you know why you want an MBA, why the Riordan Fellows program, and why they should take you in. There's also a case study question as well, so you should take some time to do research on the topic.

I would say the biggest thing that counts the most for the program is your letter of recommendation. A good one will be typically 2-3 pages with lots of meaningful content that your manager or whoever you ask can write about you. The questions they ask are pretty much the same for all regular b-school apps, and they'll take either q/a format or just a long essay too.

The admit rates are getting slimmer and slimmer every year, and it'll be more competitive as time goes on. If you can't get in R1, then you'll have to wait another year too.

Good luck!

From asking the adcom last year, typically they have about 120 applicants and accept about 30%.

I know this post is from 5 years ago but they have a mixer in 2 days in Los Angeles, do you believe attending that mixer would increase a person's chances of getting accepted?

I'm a current UCLA Riordan MBA Fellow. I will be happy to answer any questions you may have about the program.

To get some clarity are you asking if joining the program will increase your chances of gaining admission into Anderson or if merely attending the mixer will increase said chances?

I'm asking if attending a mixer would increase my chances of getting into the Riordan MBA Fellow program. I am currently in the process of applying to that program. Thank you very much for your quick response.

I think attending the mixer will definitely show you have a strong interest in the program to the assistant and executive directors. It gives you the opportunity to "WOW" them in person, which can be invaluable in separating you from just being another name. If you are in the area I think it is worth attending, especially since it seems you are strongly considering the program.

Do you have any idea about what these mixer entails? Is it a casual get together or a more formal event? I obviously want to make a good impression but at the same time I don't want to be in a suit and tie when everyone else is in jeans and t-shirts. Once again, thank you for your timely response. You have been really helpful.

It's not necessarily a "formal" event however I would recommend business casual dress or a suit and you should be ok. Don't wear jeans, t shirts or anything of the sort. If you are a fashion forward person like me I would definitely ton it down and just stick to simple things such as tie clips and flower lapels and conservative colors of course. The Assistant Director is extremely personable and easy to talk to. Really make sure you also venture around the room and meet the other prospective students. UCLA Anderson cares alot about this program. The current dean of Admissions to Anderson Was the Executive director of the Riordan Programs for almost 10 years.

As much as I hate to say this, the Riordan Programs are still designed for non white applicants. I applied with three of my friends. We all attend UCLA. I have a near perfect GPA (I've only made 2 A-'s in four years). I am the first person in my family to attend college and was raised by my elderly grandmother. I have relevant professional work experience and I was denied from the program. I am also white. All three of my friends are of Latin American descent. Their GPA's range from 3.1 to 3.3. They all come from relatively stable two income households and while their academic records are not stellar, they were all admitted into the program. I have a real distaste for people playing the race card, but it is pretty clear that Riordan does not accept white applicants. A few of my friends had already told me this, but after looking at their website of fellows and alums, there is not one white person. This is a shame because underprivileged white students exist in this country and should be part of programs that are designed to reach out to those who may not have the ability to succeed in the business world.

Should you already have a basic knowledge of economics/ data analysis, finance, accounting, etc before you enter this program?

Should you already have a basic knowledge of economics/ data analysis, finance, accounting, etc before you enter this program?

Hi theanomalie, kb798, or anyone who has been admitted into this program,

What do you think is considered a competitive profile? Would you mind sharing what your profile is, and what you think lead to your success of being admitted into the program?

Thanks very much!

I just graduated from Anderson's MBA program and the Riodan Fellows Program is exclusively for non-white students. Don't waste your time applying if you are white. Riordan believes that economically disadvantaged white students should be able to make it without any help.