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Accepted is continuing to post transcripts from recent chats and to add to its rich resources for MBA students:
Following increases of 9% last year and 12% in 2006, graduate school applications from abroad increased by an anemic 3% in 2007-08. A few highlights from the Council of Graduate School's survey:
I will be interested to see if the weak dollar doesn't turn the trend around, especially for applicants from countries with currencies tied to the euro.
And the chats keep on coming.
Recent Transcript Excerpts:
thurston (Apr 2, 2008 1:01:32 PM)
Hi Thomas, I am a R2 waitlist candidate for Wharton. First, thank you for hosting this chat. Second, I have a quick admissions question for you. Let say we have two hypothetical RE-APPLICANTS. Both have similar app packages: work experience, extra curricular, GPA, GMAT, references, interview, etc. In fact, the only difference is in a previous year one was waitlisted and the other was outright denied admissions. Both are re-applying and both have demonstrated *very similar* improvements in their application. If you MUST chose between the two, who would you admit -- and, more importantly, why?
ThomasCaleelWHARTON (Apr 2, 2008 1:01:47 PM)
Thurston, thank you for the question. It's really impossible to say outright which one.
This process is very holistic (as Dan and Amelia can attest to), and there is never "one" thing that means admit or deny.ThomasCaleelWHARTON (Apr 2, 2008 1:02:48 PM)
I do think you are concerned that being on the WL might give you some preference in the re-app process. The answer there is not really. For re-apps, we look at the learning the candidate has undergone, and how they express that in the re-app.ThomasCaleelWHARTON (Apr 2, 2008 1:03:23 PM)
By the way, simply sitting down and re-reading your original app will be very helpful should you choose to re-apply...
andrew (Apr 7, 2008 1:06:25 PM)
Zoe: has the admissions office noticed a large influx of applications this year? If so, please elaborate. Thank you.
ZoeMcLoughlinLONDON (Apr 7, 2008 1:07:16 PM)
Andrew - yes, we have noticed an increase in quantity but there are always places for good candidates, even in Stage 4.Linda Abraham (Apr 7, 2008 1:06:37 PM)
David & Helen: do you see MBA recruiting at the MBA and the MiF programs affected by the credit crunch and sub-prime mess in the US? Do your graduates have jobs?HelenGreenLONDON (Apr 7, 2008 1:08:48 PM)
Linda, recruitment has continued to be strong on campus this year with more recruiters than ever coming to meet with our students. Although the market is competitive, there are still considerable opportunities available and recruiters clearly continue to value our students’ wealth of experience and diverse backgrounds. We are seeing recruiters taking a long term view and continuing to maintain their ranks of associates from the MBA and MiF programmes.DavidMorrisLONDON (Apr 7, 2008 1:09:23 PM)
Linda, building on Helen's answer, there is also a growing number of companies from the Industry sector recruiting at the school, either coming to campus and/or posting jobs.
Upcoming Chats:
Accepted is hosting the first Michigan Ross Part-Time MBA Program chat tomorrow Tuesday April 15 at 3:00 PM PT/6:00 PM ET. If you are interested in Ross' part-time MBA program, please join Jim Hayes, Senior Associate Director of Admissions and other members of the Ross PT team in Accepted's Chat Room for an informative chat.
Most '08 MBA applicants know if they are starting b-school in the fall or not. If you fall into the "or not" category, you are facing a reapplication decision.
MBA Reapplication Tips
I am reprinting my tips for reapplicants along with a list of resources you can use as you ramp up for a successful MBA reapplication effort.
MBA Reapplication Resources:
Not sure you can objectively evaluate your past application? Demoralized by a stack of dings? To deal with your morale issues, please see:
To provide objective analysis and ensure the positive change you want to show, jump-start your reapplication effort by combining Accepted's Application Evaluation with our Start Smart MBA Mentoring(TM) service.
The drums of economic downturn have been beating loudly. Very loudly during the last few weeks. Almost like daffodils after a spring rain, articles about grads having fewer job opportunities and employers, especially in financial services, cutting college and MBA recruiting have sprouted:
Implications
If you are graduating in this market, you may need to be flexible and bring out Plan B. IT, government, and health care are still hiring and going strong. Engineering grads are in demand. Alternatively, this year may be a great time for travel or community service perhaps prior to grad school with the hope of graduating in an up economy.
But what if you are planning to apply to MBA programs this fall? I went out on a limb and gave my predictions for the upcoming MBA application season on April Fools Day, with the observation that time will tell whether that post was an April Fools Day joke or something more meaty. Commenter "It's Happening" points to the BW articles (published April 3) as proof that my predictions are coming true.
I like to be right, but there is also evidence going in the other direction. For example, MBA Tours reports that attendance at its events in Fall and Winder 07-08 increased 30%. I suspect that much of that increase took place before Bear Stearns collapsed and before the news got as bad as it has been for the last month or two. I also hear that a surge in recently employed investment bankers is taking the GMAT exam. A year or so ago, I was reading articles about these financial jocks who didn't feel it paid for them to go for their MBA. Clearly something has changed dramatically.
I still believe that if articles continue to appear about unemployed MBA's, lower average salaries for MBA grads, and more rescinded offers, potential applicants who have jobs will be reluctant to give up the security of a paycheck for the uncertainly of a tuition bills, student loans, and no income. Fewer applicants could make next year a little less competitive year and an opportune time to apply. Furthermore, the fact that 08 or even 09 could be tough hiring years says nothing about hiring for 2010. Just like last year's recruiting environment implied nothing about this year.
A potpourri :
Wharton's waitlist chat transcript from today's chat should be posted next week.
It's nail-biting time for a lot of people. The business climate is stormy. The news is gloomy. Uncertainty thunders over the horizon.
So why am I going to attempt to predict the future? Because I've lived through downturns before. The recession that followed the dotcom bust and 9/11 caused a precipitous decline in MBA hiring and consequently in MBA application volume. It's instructive.
If articles start to appear about b-school grads without jobs, application volume will decline. Sharply. If hiring remains reasonable and most grads find jobs, even they don't receive super-sized bonuses, application volume will level off and perhaps decline slightly, but you won't see the dizzying drop that business schools experienced in 2002 and 2003.
One "leading indicator" of MBA application volume is GMAT test-taking and registration volume. For the first two months of 2008, those numbers have headed north, but mainly because of sizzling interest overseas.
"The number of GMAT registrations in the United States during the first two months of calendar year 2008 increased 5.53% compared with registration volume during the comparable period in 2007. Outside the United States, registration volume increased 24.22% during the period."
"The number of GMAT tests taken in the United States during the first two months of calendar year 2008 increased 7.08% compared with testing volume during the same period in 2007. Outside the United States, testing volume increased 21.92% during the period."
If the US economy remains in the dumps, I expect US b-school application volume to soften, especially if MBAs can't find jobs. Barring 9/11-type events or a sudden increase in the dollar's value, international demand for top business programs around the world will remain strong, probably stronger outside the US than in.
Implications: US MBA applicants could find opportunities if they apply this fall and take the MBA plunge in Fall '09. I expect that outside the top 10-15 schools competition will ease and applicants could gain entry to schools they didn't have a chance at this year. I don't think the softening will be as marked in the top tier. Overseas, US applicants may find that top international schools are much easier to get into and much harder to pay for.
For international applicants, especially those coming from countries like India that are over-represented in the applicant pool, competition will remain intense, especially in the top tier schols.
For those of you wanting to accrue the benefits of a timely or even early start to your '09 MBA admissions attempt, Accepted has two services just for you:
Time will tell whether this post is genuinely prophetic or just a symptom of April Fools' Day.
BusinessWeek this week screams on p. 007 "34,000: Estimated number of jobs lost on Wall Street in the past nine months."
What if you were a holder of one of those no-longer-existing jobs and planned to apply this fall for matriculation in Fall 09? Does the layoff doom your application?
No. Not at all. Admissions committee members read BusinessWeek and a host of other periodicals that blare the same numbers, gloom, and doom. They know you are not responsible for a recession (I said it), turmoil in the credit markets, inaccurate risk management at the top of major financial institutions, and the bust that so frequently follows a boom.
But you are responsible for your reaction to the lay off. If you quickly succeed in obtaining a new position that moves you closer to your long-term goal or that allows you to take on more responsibility and show growth, that's great. But obtaining a good job may be difficult in this business climate. Keep the following in mind:
Either of these responses will allow you to show the resilience and backbone schools value. In addition, by taking these steps you will learn new skills, develop marketable talents, and demonstrate the personal qualities schools (and employers) admire.
Tomorrow's Post: My Stab at MBA Admissions Punditry.
The US News released its 2008 Grad School Rankings today. I'm going to list the top ten for business school, law school, and medical school and provide links to the ranking methodology for each category. For other graduate specialties, please visit the US News site.
Business School Rankings and methodology
1. Harvard
1. Stanford
3. Wharton
4. MIT Sloan
4. Northwestern Kellogg
4. Univ. of Chicago
7. Dartmouth Tuck
7. UC Berkeley Haas
9. Columbia
10. NYU Stern
Law School Rankings
1. Yale
2. Harvard
2. Stanford
4. Columbia
5. NYU
6. UC Berkeley
7. Univ. of Chicago
7. Penn
9. Northwestern
9. Univ. of Michigan
9. Univ. of Virginia
( I am not including a link to the law school methodology because as I am writing the link provided is a bad link.)
Medical School Rankings (Research) and Methodology
1. Harvard
2. Johns Hopkins
3. Washington U (St. Louis)
4. Penn
5. UCSF
6. Duke
6. Univ. of Washington
8. Stanford
9. UCLA
9. Yale
A few caveats: My strong recommendation is to use the rankings as a library of raw data conveniently compiled in one location and not as a tried and true guide of educational quality. They are not the latter. They are the former. To the extent you are going to use the rankings as a guide to school reputation and brand value, you must understand the methodology behind them and what they are measuring. Be cognizant of the differences between what is important to you and what is important to the rankings.
A few observations on the rankings themselves:
For more on rankings, please see:
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