Thursday, May 29, 2008

Shopping Around for Business Schools?

A nice article plugging The MBA Tour just appeared on the CNN web site, giving business school applicants an overview of the event and describes some of the benefits of attending.

One interesting note is that The MBA Tour will charge a small admittance fee for the first time this year. Despite adding the fee ($5 in advance, $10 at the door), the people who run the event are bullish on beating last year's 30% year-over-year attendance increase. At least the proceeds will go to a good cause -- they will go toward a scholarship fund established by the Tour's founder, Peter von Loesecke.

The tour doesn't yet cover every metropolitan area, but if it it comes to your town, it's worth checking out as a way to jumpstart or supplement your school research. If you do go in 2008, be on the lookout for the Veritas Prep booth near the entrance. As an ongoing sponsor of The MBA Tour, we're excited to participate once again this year!

Saturday, May 17, 2008

Recruiter Demand for MBA Grads Remains Strong

This month the Graduate Management Admission Council released a report showing that demand for business school graduate remains strong even as the economy shows signs of weakness.

The report, produced by GMAC in partnership with the MBA Career Services Council and European Foundation for Management Development, shows 6% growth in the percentage of employers making offers to MBA grads, and an 11% increase in the average number of hires by each hiring company.

The results for compensation growth also looked encouraging. Three-quarters of employers reported that they expect to increase the annual base salary of 2008 grads vs. last year's hiring class. The projected starting base salary for all business school graduates is $89,621, about 4% more than last year. Not surprisingly, consulting (over $111,000) and finance (over $110,000) offer the highest average total compensation.

What does this mean for you? Most of all, it suggests you should stay the course. No radical changes to the hiring outlook suggest that you, if you've been planning to apply for business school, don't stop now. If you haven't been planning on doing so, then these numbers probably won't change your mind.

It will be interesting to see what next year's numbers look like, and what impact the overall economy has to the number of people applying to business school in 2008-2009.

Thursday, May 15, 2008

HBS Releases Application Essays & Deadlines for Class of 2011

If anything marks the official beginning of the 2008-2009 application season, this is it: Harvard Business School just released its deadlines and application essays for the Class of 2011.

For those of you who are planning ahead, the application deadlines are mostly the same as last year, except for the Round 1 deadline, which is almost two weeks later than last year's. The deadlines are as follows:
  • Round 1: Oct. 15, 2008
  • Round 2: Jan. 6, 2009
  • Round 3: Mar. 11, 2009

Remember that you want to aim for Round 1 or Round 2. Applying after Round 2 means competing for very few open seats, so you want to do everything you can to apply no later than Jan. 6, 2009. Since the Round 1 deadline is just five months away, it's not too early to start preparing! That especially goes for the GMAT. Study until it hurts, take a GMAT prep course if you want some extra help, and then nail the GMAT and get it off of your plate. The last thing you want to do is have to cram for the GMAT while you're also trying to perfect your essays and chase after the people writing your letters of recommendation!

Looking at the HBS application essays, there are now just four required this year, compared to five last year. Two are required, and two can be chosen from a list of four questions.

Required Essays

  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)

Optional Essays (choose two)

  1. What would you like the MBA Admissions Board to know about your undergraduate academic experience? (400-word limit)
  2. Discuss how you have engaged with a community or organization. (400-word limit)
  3. What area of the world are you most curious about and why? (400-word limit)
  4. What is your career vision and why is this choice meaningful to you? (400-word limit)

Of the optional essays, many applicants will assume #1 is only meant as a "Let me explain why my undergrad GPA is low"-type essay, but also consider using this as a chance to discuss a time when you pushed yourself out of your intellectual comfort zone. Looking at #4, the "why is this choice meaningful to you" part is what is most interesting. HBS isn't looking for you to just rattle off your five-step plan for world domination. Explore why you want to do it, and why you're passionate about it. This kind of introspection is key to setting yourself apart in HBS admissions officers' eyes.

If you would like more information about applying to HBS, visit our Harvard Business School profile page. And for more information on business school application deadlines, visit our MBA admissions deadlines page.