In a post to her blog, Harvard Business School (HBS) Director of Admissions and Financial Aid Dee Leopold reported that her office yesterday was sending out invitations to interview to about 750 round 2 applicants. The invitations, sent via email, would include detailed information about scheduling.
Leopold went on to say that she expects between 50 and 100 more invitations to go out between now and April 2nd. “These will be sent out as files are reviewed – not on a designated day or days,” she added.
Meanwhile, round 2 invitations to interview also have been trickling out from Chicago Booth and Wharton. Unlike HBS’s one-day bulk invite, those schools release invitations incrementally as the admissions committee reviews individual applications.
Chicago Booth began inviting round two applicants to interview on January 21st. Director of Admissions and Financial Aid Rose Martinelli revealed as part of an online chat on February 5th that her team was very much still engaged in the reviewing process. “We are still evaluating applications and are about 50 percent through, so it is too early to predict what our final invitation rate will be,” she said.
At this stage, if you have not heard from Chicago Booth, it does not mean anything other than that your application is still being reviewed and a decision to interview has not officially been made, she said. She also indicated that the timing of an interview neither advantages nor disadvantages a candidate. “Once we get the interview report back, your file will be distributed to one of my associate directors for the next evaluation. It’s a very iterative process,” she said.
Martinelli did mention that she’s seen an increase in the number of domestic applicants this year, not a surprise since economic conditions make it a good time to go back to school. International applications, however, have declined slightly due to the uncertainty of the market, uncertainty about the loan program and economic turmoil worldwide.
Round 2 interview invitations at Chicago Booth will continue to be extended through February 18th.
Chatter on the BusinessWeek forums reveals that some Wharton round 2 applicants began receiving invitations on January 29th. That said, many more are still anxiously awaiting word. The last day for round two interview invitations from Wharton is February 19th.
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