How do I strengthen my Business School Applications?
"How do I build a stronger MBA application?"
As an MBA admissions consultant, I often get asked this question in our Free Initial Consultations. Hope this post helps answer the most common query across business school applicants.
My viewpoint comes from advising graduate applicants since 2004, my experience in both undergraduate and graduate admissions, and being admitted to multiple top business schools during my own MBA application process.
MBA applicants are viewed from three perspectives by a business school admissions committee - academic, professional and personal.
The academic part of your profile allows for the most transparent metrics with easy comparison to your competition. These include your GPA (both Bachelor's and from potentially another Master's degree) and GMAT score. If one of these is not within the average range at your target school, I would advise you to focus on making the other metric stronger. For example, I regularly come across clients who either have a low undergraduate GPA or aren't very strong standardized test takers, and end up with a low GMAT score. In this case, you can assuage doubts on your academic abilities and thus strengthen your application through a stronger GPA/GMAT, as applicable. If either of these is a concern in your application, we also offer a Transcript Review and GMAT Consultation as part of all our Business School Admissions Packages, wherein our advice on steps to improve your academic profile is tailored to the specific courses making up your GPA or sections of the GMAT.
The professional part of your profile is composed of all your pre-MBA work experience, including full-time, part-time and internships. The point of focus here is not just a summary list of all that you have done, but how this is applicable to your business school experience and your stated post-MBA ambitions. For example, I frequently advise engineering/IT clients to demonstrate soft skills and personal attributes such as teamwork and communication through their essays and resume, while those with more creative/entrepreneurial/non-traditional backgrounds would be well-advised to showcase their analytical and quantitative abilities. Not having enough leadership experience is frequently a concern, especially for younger clients. With our help, business school applications can be appropriately positioned to demonstrate this through a combination of project and title leadership. At My MBA Admit, we start our MBA Admissions Consulting packages with an extensive discussion of your experiences and how they might be best positioned to demonstrate your strengths and mitigate any weaknesses, especially in light of the specific requirements of a particular school.
Finally, your personal profile is a combination of all the activities that help set you apart, in terms of all your life experiences, volunteer involvement and extracurricular activities. In other words, this is the most flexible section to demonstrate your comparative advantage against your competition for everything that you have done outside the requirements of work and school. Examples that past clients have shown include backpacking through Europe, a stint in the military, a lifetime of volunteering activities and independently rising up from humble origins. I often have MBA application clients say, "but we don't have enough extracurricular experience." This is why the business school application consulting approach that I have developed includes Application Strategy, Examples Selection and Positioning Guidance. In this, we identify both your positives and opportunities, review your complete profile for appropriate examples, and help you position them to mitigate a weakness or highlight a strength.
All the best with your business school applications! An MBA is truly a life-changing experience.
For a Free Initial Consultation on your profile, check us out at My MBA Admit: MBA Admissions Consulting or email us at MBAConsult@MyMBAAdmit.com.
As an MBA admissions consultant, I often get asked this question in our Free Initial Consultations. Hope this post helps answer the most common query across business school applicants.
My viewpoint comes from advising graduate applicants since 2004, my experience in both undergraduate and graduate admissions, and being admitted to multiple top business schools during my own MBA application process.
MBA applicants are viewed from three perspectives by a business school admissions committee - academic, professional and personal.
The academic part of your profile allows for the most transparent metrics with easy comparison to your competition. These include your GPA (both Bachelor's and from potentially another Master's degree) and GMAT score. If one of these is not within the average range at your target school, I would advise you to focus on making the other metric stronger. For example, I regularly come across clients who either have a low undergraduate GPA or aren't very strong standardized test takers, and end up with a low GMAT score. In this case, you can assuage doubts on your academic abilities and thus strengthen your application through a stronger GPA/GMAT, as applicable. If either of these is a concern in your application, we also offer a Transcript Review and GMAT Consultation as part of all our Business School Admissions Packages, wherein our advice on steps to improve your academic profile is tailored to the specific courses making up your GPA or sections of the GMAT.
The professional part of your profile is composed of all your pre-MBA work experience, including full-time, part-time and internships. The point of focus here is not just a summary list of all that you have done, but how this is applicable to your business school experience and your stated post-MBA ambitions. For example, I frequently advise engineering/IT clients to demonstrate soft skills and personal attributes such as teamwork and communication through their essays and resume, while those with more creative/entrepreneurial/non-traditional backgrounds would be well-advised to showcase their analytical and quantitative abilities. Not having enough leadership experience is frequently a concern, especially for younger clients. With our help, business school applications can be appropriately positioned to demonstrate this through a combination of project and title leadership. At My MBA Admit, we start our MBA Admissions Consulting packages with an extensive discussion of your experiences and how they might be best positioned to demonstrate your strengths and mitigate any weaknesses, especially in light of the specific requirements of a particular school.
Finally, your personal profile is a combination of all the activities that help set you apart, in terms of all your life experiences, volunteer involvement and extracurricular activities. In other words, this is the most flexible section to demonstrate your comparative advantage against your competition for everything that you have done outside the requirements of work and school. Examples that past clients have shown include backpacking through Europe, a stint in the military, a lifetime of volunteering activities and independently rising up from humble origins. I often have MBA application clients say, "but we don't have enough extracurricular experience." This is why the business school application consulting approach that I have developed includes Application Strategy, Examples Selection and Positioning Guidance. In this, we identify both your positives and opportunities, review your complete profile for appropriate examples, and help you position them to mitigate a weakness or highlight a strength.
All the best with your business school applications! An MBA is truly a life-changing experience.
For a Free Initial Consultation on your profile, check us out at My MBA Admit: MBA Admissions Consulting or email us at MBAConsult@MyMBAAdmit.com.
Posted by My MBA Admit at July 3, 2010 
Categories: MBA, MBA Admissions, Business Schools
Tags: MBA MBA Essays BSchools Business Schools MBA Admissions Consulting Admissions
Categories: MBA, MBA Admissions, Business Schools
Tags: MBA MBA Essays BSchools Business Schools MBA Admissions Consulting Admissions
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