hierarch

Hi Wang,

I am applying to  business school at the University of Washington (Seattle) . I am applying because my fiance just received a PhD offer there. Since I am moving and would have to change jobs anyway I figured it would be a great time to pursue my MBA. It is it okay to state in my essay I am applying because of the recent chain of events? In addition, it will be the only MBA program I apply to because frankly the other schools in the Seattle are are not ranked as a top tier school (UW is only 35). Should I state UW will be the only program I apply to? Does this hurt my chances for getting in?

I have not had many extracurricular activites since high school. How can I mitigate this point in my application and essays? I have been in accounting for the last nine years (both private and public) and the hours have been extremely demanding.  I do have great career progression, but it has been with small to medium sizes business. I was just hired as a COO/CFO of a small not-for-profit.

Any advice you can give will be greatly appreciated. Thanks for your time.

crossmoon

Mr. Wang, 能否评估一下我的背景，看是否有实力申请排名最靠前的三所学校，i.e. Harvard, Standford or Wharton？

我的背景：

GPA 3.8 from a top Chinese university (Econ major) 670 GMAT , 630 TOEFL 3 years work experience at one leading multinational enterprise in Shanghai. 应该说我的本科成绩很不错的，但是我的GMAT成绩明显比上述三所学校的平均分要低30-50分。我有多大的希望呢？

谢谢你的热心咨询！

hsWang

<B>以下是引用<I>hierarch</I>在2004-8-30 22:43:00的发言：</B>
Hi Wang,

I am applying to  business school at the University of Washington (Seattle) . I am applying because my fiance just received a PhD offer there. Since I am moving and would have to change jobs anyway I figured it would be a great time to pursue my MBA. It is it okay to state in my essay I am applying because of the recent chain of events? In addition, it will be the only MBA program I apply to because frankly the other schools in the Seattle are are not ranked as a top tier school (UW is only 35). Should I state UW will be the only program I apply to? Does this hurt my chances for getting in?

I have not had many extracurricular activites since high school. How can I mitigate this point in my application and essays? I have been in accounting for the last nine years (both private and public) and the hours have been extremely demanding.  I do have great career progression, but it has been with small to medium sizes business. I was just hired as a COO/CFO of a small not-for-profit.

Any advice you can give will be greatly appreciated. Thanks for your time.

Thanks for your inquiry.

You want to state additional reasons for pursuing an MBA at UW than just what you stated above. However, these reasons can be included in a successful story, if presented in a compelling manner.

Finally, I wouldn't be ashamed of your work experience in small to medium-sized businesses. If anything this will help differentiate you from other applicants. There is no truth to the urban myth that you have to have so-called blue chip experience to get into a good business school. I have stated this before, but still state it again here, there are 2 reasons that this myth may appear to be true: (1) the blue chip employees tend to be the cream of the crop hired out of college and (2) too many applicants with small to medium-sized business experience unsuccessfully attempt to mimic the same admissions strategies that work for the brand name/blue chip applicants.

Best of luck with your applications!

Sincerely,
H.S.Wang

hsWang

<B>以下是引用<I>crossmoon</I>在2004-8-31 11:59:00的发言：</B>

<P>Mr. Wang, 能否评估一下我的背景，看是否有实力申请排名最靠前的三所学校，i.e. Harvard, Standford or Wharton？</P>
<P>我的背景：</P>
<P>GPA 3.8 from a top Chinese university (Econ major)
670 GMAT , 630 TOEFL
3 years work experience at one leading multinational enterprise in Shanghai.

应该说我的本科成绩很不错的，但是我的GMAT成绩明显比上述三所学校的平均分要低30-50分。我有多大的希望呢？</P>
<P>谢谢你的热心咨询！</P>

Thanks for your inquiry.

I'm not surprised you have heard mixed things about your background as, sadly, there is a considerable amount of disinformation out there. Each year, we help numerous applicants whom others tell can't get into top 50 MBA programs, gain admission into top 5 and top 10 schools.  

Assuming your GMAT quant percentile is not too much, if even at all, lower than your verbal percentile, and you are not an overrepresented foreign applicant, your academic qualifications will not keep you out of any of these 3 schools. There is a considerable GMAT range for all of these schools and, internally, we don't even find it newsworthy to help an applicant with a 670 gain admission to one of these MBA programs.

Your academic qualifications only account for 35% to 40% of the admission decision at the top schools. A large amount of the decision comes down to your story (reasons why an MBA, why now, diversity, etc.), extracurricular involvements, and career progression.

While I certainly do wish you all the best of luck with your applications, if you find yourself dinged at these schools, feel free to contact me directly about our ding analysis service.

Best of luck with your applications!
H.S.Wang

hsWang

<B>以下是引用<I>gladiator</I>在2004-9-1 11:59:00的发言：</B>
Hi, I am a re-applicant to the HBS MBA program and had been put into waitlist last year.

Do I have a chance of entering this year ? Is there anything that I can do to improve my candidacy ?

Thanks in advance for your kind and precious help.

Yes, you still have a chance of being admitted.

Lst year, you was on the waitlist,and it proved you had been a pretty strong candidate and you had a pretty good story. Unfortunately, you just weren't strong enough to receive an acceptance letter. You have a chance to be admitted into HBS, so I wouldn't despair.

Here is my reminding to those waitlister. It is often out of your hands. HBS is one of a small number of schools that does not want to hear from its waitlisted applicants. Therefore, you do NOT want to send them additional letters of reference, materials, etc. The best thing you can do (as difficult as I know it is) is to sit back and wait. Don't call the admissions board and don't become a pest. Doing so will only kill your chances.

Best of luck with your re-application to HBS!

Sincerely,
H.S.Wang

[此贴子已经被作者于2004-9-1 12:18:42编辑过]

hsWang

<B>以下是引用<I>ladeng</I>在2004-9-2 12:42:00的发言：</B>
I would appreciate any assistance.

I am very interested to get into a top 3 program. Wharton, Columbia or HBS.

Shanghai Jiaotong U with 3.86 GPA

700 GMAT

I have two years of auditing experience.

My only problem is that the firm I am working for is a top 6 ,not big 4 audit firm.

I am contemplating switching job. Currently I have 2 choices.
1.) Try out a prestigous big 4 audit firm.
2.) Try my luck with I-banking in Singapore--I know some one in Lehman but still no guarantee

I am thinking of working for 2 more years before I formally apply as the average work experience for HBS is 4 years.

Thanks

Thanks for your inquiry.

Two things jumped out at me from your post.

1. The concept that you need blue chip experience is an urban legend we have been trying to kill for sometime. There's simply no truth to this and any admissions officer will tell you so much. Yes, there are a large number of b-school students from Big 4 accounting firms, bulge-bracket I banks, etc. However, in addition to employing a sizable percentage of their industry, these firms also tend to attract the best talent. Secondly, too many applicants attempt to use the same strategies that work successfully for the applicants of the highly-regarded employers and the results, therefore, shouldn't surprise you.

Your experience in a smaller, national accounting firm will help you add some additional diversity to an incoming class that a Big 4 auditor can not. Use this to your advantage and don't think you *need* to join a Big 4 to gain admission to a top business school.

Each year we help many applicants from smaller employers gain admission into the top b-schools.

2. Don't get caught up in the averages that the schools publish. There is always a deliberate distribution around the mean at the schools for their admissions profiles. In fact, HBS admitted 4% of this past year's class directly out of undergrad.

You should apply to business school when you are ready. This will depend on how selective the targeted schools are, your career progression, and your reasons for wanting an MBA. If you have enjoyed an excellent career progression after 2 years and an MBA is the next logical career step for you, then you should apply now.

We can certainly provide you with an in-depth assessment and recommendations. I can tell you here though that if you switch jobs it should only be to align your career trajectory more closely to your post-MBA career goals.

Best of luck with your future applications!

Sincerely,
H.S.Wang

hsWang

以下是引用LANDER在2004-9-3 14:46:00的发言： Hi, Mr. Wang, I have a question on sponsorship from my Firm for my full-time MBA. Does sponsorship from my firm has any material impact on the Admissions committe for a full-time MBA? The sponsorship can take any form if it helps strenghten application, such as tution assistance etc.. Can you please throw some light on this? Thanks in advance

The short answer is yes. If properly spun, it can make a positive, and possibly even material, impact on your acceptance chances and there are various themes you can optimally use to impress the admissions officers depending on your exact situation. Best of luck with your applications! Sincerely,

H.S.Wang

sharpgun

Dear Wang, can you clarify HBS' interview policy? Are interviews required to be admitted? Or do they admit some applicants without interviews? (Your above response implies that an applicant's geographic location influences interview requests.)

Thanks so much for your help. (Particularly as combing HBS' website for this info has been driving me crazy!)

hsWang

<B>以下是引用<I>sharpgun</I>在2004-9-4 15:47:00的发言：</B>

<P>Dear Wang, can you clarify HBS' interview policy? Are interviews required to be admitted? Or do they admit some applicants without interviews? (Your above response implies that an applicant's geographic location influences interview requests.) </P>
<P>Thanks so much for your help. (Particularly as combing HBS' website for this info has been driving me crazy!)
</P>

Hi and thanks for your inquiry.

There have been a few instances of applicants being admitted without conducting interviews. However, these are definitely the exceptions.

If you have already submitted your application though, there is nothing you can do at this point except wait.

Best of luck with your HBS application!

Sincerely,
H.S.Wang

hsWang

<B>以下是引用<I>beautylady</I>在2004-9-5 19:51:00的发言：</B>
Hi, Wang! I am applying to Haas for a an MBA. I have 2.7 undergrad GPA and 9 years of work experience with the last position as a Materials Manager. I have not been employed for the past 2 years due to the birth of our son and right now working on setting up a business with my husband. Who would be the best person to write a recommendation letter in this case?

Thank you!

Good question. First of all, if the rest of your candidacy is strong enough, your undergraduate GPA can certainly be mitigated. A high GMAT score will help a lot toward assuaging any concerns about your academic abilities though.

There are many different options for recommenders. Previous employers, suppliers, and clients can write strong recommendations about your career progression. Colleagues from extracurricular involvements can also write effective letters of reference. I don't have nearly enough information about you though to competently help you select your recommenders. You need to first build your candidacy, story, and themes. It is also helpful to complete the essays before selecting recommendations, assuming you have enough lead time before the application deadlines. With all these in place, you can accurately gauge your strengths and weaknesses and determine what you may need substantiated in your recommendations.

(Just a bit of insight into our proprietary methods of ensuring our clients's chances are indeed maximized at each school to which they apply.)

Don't hesitate to contact me directly if you would like expert assistance and a competitive advantage with your Haas application!

Sincerely,
H.S.Wang