Wailisted at DUKE in the third round....now what?

Question

Hi Guys...

if you have followed my previous postings...
I was admited at ND with 50% fellowship and T-bird also with 50% scolarship.

now, the deadline for paying the deposit is coming, and just got the decision from DUKE: wait listed!...

I guess I will have to invest the $1000 dollars, and wait for a positive answer from Duke within next month, otherwise, the second deposit deadline will be coming, and I am not sure if I will be able to afford thouwing $5K in deposits...

whats your experience on this matter??

is it worth it to pay FULL TUITION at Duke, in contrast to the 50% Fellowship at ND (I have requested a higher fellowship).

thanks for your advice.

Kevin

chriswil2005 · Answer

Yea, you certainly in a tough position, but in a much better one than those who did not get into any school. It sounds as though you really want to go to Fuqua over the others (I would agree with you on that). Both Thunderbird and ND are good schools, however I hear that Thunderbird is going bankrupt and is having faculty issues. This is just something I heard through the MBA grapevine, but if it is true that's kinda ironic for a b-school, dontcha think? ND has a great alumni network, but I view it as more regional (i.e. Midwest) compared to Duke.

My suggestion is to pick either ND or Thunderbird and pay the deposit for it if you haven't already. They are both offering similar tuition compensation, so that should not be a deciding factor. Then, work diligently to get yourself admitted off the waitlist at Duke. I don't know much about the waitlist process at Duke, but here is what I can suggest to you based on my experience (waitlisted at Chicago):

1A. call for a feedback session to gain insight to your weaknesses or other areas that need bolstering. Also, make sure they know that you want to stay on the waitlist.
1B. if feedback sessions are not available for waitlist applicants (most schools do not offer these), have an in-the-know person, such as a current MBA student or faculty, take a look at your application package instead.
2. talk to current students at Duke about your situation and gain insight from them. Also, try to talk to someone who got in off the waitlist. This is extremely valuable.
3. With all this info, craft an additional essay, addressing your weaknesses that were not addressed before, updating any new and pertinent info, and stating your continued interest to go to Duke. Say something like, "if you admit me, I promise I will enroll" somewhere in there. Also, additional letters of rec could be useful if it can help bolster a weakness or provide valuable info or another side of you that was not previously illustrated.
4. Make an appointment to visit the school again and make sure they know you are coming. They will make record of it and put it in your file. This will show continued interest. 

Again, I am unsure as to how Duke administers their waitlist, but I hope this helps!


Good Luck!

kevinw · Answer

thanks Chris

you seem very well informed about the waitlist procedures.
In fact, your recommendations are very good, just like the ones I was reading last night from the book: how to get into the top ranked MBAs..

well, i have asked an ex boss to writte me another recommendation
also emailed them and called to express my interest

preparing the essay adressing my weaknesses and trying to express my desire to assist if I get admitted.

the Campus visit thing sounds like a good idea..
i could take 1-2 days off, and go visit the campus..

so, how about you?
have you been admitted to any schools so far?

chriswil2005 · Answer

Hello Kevin. I have been accepted to Michigan and on the waitlist at Chicago. I live in Chicago and want to go into finance, so I would like to go to Chicago over Michigan (although, I think the Michigan program is fantastic). Either way, I am happy to be in somewhere.

So I am in a similar situation: in at one school, but on the waitlist at the school I want to go to more. Because of this, I had to pay the deposit at Michigan ($1000) and wait to see what happens at Chicago. I am fine with that because I would pay and extra $1000 to go to Chicago. However, some people find it hard to part with that kind of money.

I have been through Moutauks book, but the one thing it does not mention during the waitlist process, but I think it is very valuable, is to talk to students who got in off the waitlist. I talked to about 5 from Chicago and got an idea of what they did. One student put together a photo scrapbook of why she should be admitted to the GSB. She said about a week after sending it in she got admitted. This influenced me to develop a powerpoint presentation about how I would be a good fit to the GSB and what sort of things I would add to the institution. I spent a lot of time on it and I thought it was good. I also sent in the additional essay and another letter of rec, which is more than what most waitlist students did. So at this point, if I don't get in, it just wasn't meant to be :roll:

One note on letters of rec. I think they are good only if they add something to your file. If it is from a boss that will more or less write the same thing that your other recommenders wrote, then it might not add much. I opted for an administrator at the non-profit organization I volunteered at, knowing that it would add a dimension to my personality not caputred in the rest of my application.

Again, I hope this helps. Let me know if you have anymore questions. Keep me up-dated on your progress.

One note on letters of rec. I think they are good only if they add something to your file. If it is from a boss that will more or less write the same thing that your other recommenders wrote, then it might not add much. I opted for an administrator at the non-profit organization I volunteered at, knowing that it would add a dimension to my personality not caputred in the rest of my application. Again, I hope this helps. Let me know if you have anymore questions. Keep me up-dated on your progress.

kevinw · Answer

I think i will do as you said:

pay the deposit and wait.

I still have to wait for decisions on UCLA, HAAS and STANF

but I know my chances are pretty slim with a 650 GMAT, and low undergrad GPA in Argentina.

i will work with my recommender to tailor a recommendation that will change some aspects. Specially because this recommender worked with Duke Faculty to create a EMBA inside Siemens. (which I worked for a while ago in Germany)

hopefully I will get in. Although goind to DUKE at full tuition will be a big investment, compared to the fellowship I get from ND.

you can also keep me posted on your progress.
do you use any kind of IM?
i use all of them (for work and personal).

Yahoo: kevinzhenmin
ICQ: 10102499
Aol: KevinGlobalTec

Hjort · Answer

I certainly agree that it is important to remind schools that you are still alive and very interested in their program. However, I tend to be suspicious of the waitlist gimmicks some people espouse. A photo essay, for example, might work for some people but it risks making your candidacy into a joke.

chriswil2005 · Answer

I think Hjort brings up a good point. Much like the regular application process, the waitlist process is very delicate. It is just as important to remain in contact with the school during this time. You must talk to as many people as possible and gain as much insight as one can to formulate your marketing strategy to get off the waitlist. Some schools might like a photo essay, some might not. In either case, make sure that what you hand in to them adds useful info to your profile and does not waste their time.

kevinw · Answer

I feel the same way.

I am working on an essay that can address my weaknesses and provide a new perspective on my strenghs.

Also asked some contacts to write a recommendation letter for me.

Do you think it is wise to let DUKE know that other schools are asking me to pay the deposit, and if they can reach to a decision fast, they could save me from paying those deposits?

chriswil2005 · Answer

I am no expert, but I would definitely refrain from contacting the school and asking them to "hurry-up because I got a deposit due". I would think that they would look down on this. The adcoms know that many waitlisted candidates are in the same situation as you and me. Unfortunately, it is part of the waitlist game and once the dust settles, those who really want to go to one school might have to eat the deposit at another school. It sucks

kevinw · Answer

hi Chris, I guess you are right. writting the check now....$1000 flying to some schools account..... :hammer

good luck for you at Chicago...they denied me in the Third round...

greenandwise · Answer

Hey Kevin,
I think the most important thing for getting off the waitlist (for me) was understanding my weaknesses. My GPA is low (3.0 in chemistry) and my GMAT although decent (670 48Q 34Q) was not spectacular enough to alleviate my GPA issue. So I took a few classes and aced them (Finance and Accounting) to show that I was a good student and serious about my MBA. By the time I had been waitlisted I still had not finished my Finance class so after I got on the waitlist I was able to send Fuqua my A- grade in Finance and I have a feeling that helped. In addition to that I had the dean of arts and sciences at my unergraduate university speak to my intellectual capabilities and since she was also my research advisor when I was in college I believe she provided me with a credible recommender. In addition to that in my application I did not spend a lot of time in my essays on a very important project that I lead at my company so in my follow up letter I wrote about that and had another research associate who worked with me write me a letter to show. When I applied in the second round I had my boss write me a letter so I felt they had a good idea of how I wored with people vertically, but I also wanted them to know how I worked with people laterally and I felt that my co-worker could provide them with useful info in that regard.

at the end of the day I feel I got in b/c I stayed proactive. I supplied them with more useful and relevant information and in my follow-up essay I spent time telling them not only why I wanted to go to Duke but how much of an asset I would be to them. I never called the admissions committee and drop my name I just did all the things I mentioned all at once. I put together a package and I sent it in and hoped that I addressed anything that I might have missed in my original application. Ultimately it worked but I'd be a fool if I didn't acknowledge that some of that was luck. The bottom line is though, I think you should take the statement that you are on the waitlist as a positive thing, and develop a strategy to try to get off the waitlist, execute and hope that you get a little lucky too.

The best of luck to you man. I really hope it all works out for you!!! :-D

kevinw · Answer

thanks greenandwise!!

it was really clever to go through all that!!

I don't think I can take lessons now, but I can further explain that I was a TA in Fiantial Math back in the University of Buenos Aires.

i will try to put up a nice pakcage...

I was also considering hiring a consulting firm, is it worth it?

so hard........i throuwing money every where, hoping to get it back at graduation...

:cry:

greenandwise · Answer

Hey Kevin,
 Honestly I thought long and hard about hiring a consulting firm but eventually I didn't b/c I felt that I had a good handle on what my weaknesses were and how I would go about addressing them. If things had not worked out for me this time I had already picked out a consulting company and GMAT tutor I was going to use. I only applied to two schools this year and figured that this time around I'll try by myself and if I am unsuccessful, next year I'll try again with the added help. I can't give you any suggestions as to whether or not to use a consultant but it seems to me that you have gotten pretty far without them. But if you have NO IDEA why you may have been waitlisted then maybe a consultant can point out those factors and give you some hints in terms of how to tackle those weaknesses.

Wailisted at DUKE in the third round....now what?

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