The HBS deadlines and essay questions have just been released for the 2009-2010 admissions cycle. Though much remains the same, there are several notable differences over last year’s deadlines and essay topics, which we’ve summarized below:
Round 1 Deadline Set for October 1st
The Round 1 deadline is almost two weeks earlier this year, taking place on October 1st instead of October 15th. This should give HBS a bit of distance from some of their peer schools that traditionally place their deadlines towards the middle of the month - good news for applicants targeting multiple schools.
Round 1 Decisions Delivered in December
For the first time ever, HBS will be delivering Round 1 decisions in December as opposed to late January (similar to Wharton and Chicago Booth’s approach). Clear Admit applauds this decision, as it not only gives HBS applicants a faster response, but it will also allow rejected or waitlisted candidates to quickly shift to a plan B by targeting R2 deadlines in early Janaury at other schools. In previous years, the HBS R1 decisions were not available until the bulk of R2 deadlines had passed.
Round 2 Deadline Pushed Back
This season’s R2 HBS deadline is slated for January 19th - a full two weeks later than last year’s R2 date. The benefit of a later deadline in this case is that it should put less pressure on candidates to be writting their essays around the holidays. It will also mean that most candidates who have applied elsewhere in R1 will have results in hand from those schools prior to the HBS deadline for R2.
New Essay Questions
The 2009-2010 application will still require just four essays, and the required responses (essays 1 and 2) remain the same. The major change comes with essays 3 and 4, where candidates now have five topics to choose from instead of four - two of which are new for this season. One of the two new topic choices (drafting a cover letter to introduce yourself to the Admissions Board) should be familiar to those candidates who have studied MIT Sloan’s application requirements, as that program has required a cover letter for nearly15 years now. The other new question (about a difficult decision the candidate has made) is also long-time theme in the MBA admissions process (as both an essay topic and admissions interview question).
Without further ado, here are the details:
Application Deadlines
Round 1: October 1, 2009
Round 2: January 19, 2010
Round 3: April 8, 2010
Note: All deadlines are 5 p.m. EST.
Notification Dates
Round 1: December 15, 2009
Round 2: April 6, 2010
Round 3: May 13, 2009
Essay Questions
1. What are your three most substantial accomplishments and why do you view them as such? (600-word limit)
2. What have you learned from a mistake? (400-word limit)
Please respond to two of the following (400-word limit each):
1. What would you like the MBA Admissions Board to know about your undergraduate academic experience?
2. Discuss how you have engaged with a community or organization.
3. Tell us about a time when you made a difficult decision.
4. Write a cover letter to your application introducing yourself to the Admissions Board.
5. What is your career vision and why is this choice meaningful to you?
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