Do you know where the ‘empty calories’ are in your MBA admissions essay?

Let me quote wikipedia: “Empty calories are a measurement of the energy present in high-energy foods with poor nutritional profiles, typically from processed carbohydrates or fats. An empty calorie has the same energy content of any other calorie but lacks accompanying nutrients such as vitamins, dietary minerals, antioxidants, amino acids, or in the case of refined grains, fiber.”
Empty calories define most fast food, sugary drinks, and popular cereals — so much so that regulators have reigned in advertising low-food-value items to children. (Food conglomerates have responded by adding back vitamins, minerals, etc. to cereals and other prepared foods.)
Why do I raise this? Because an MBA admissions essay — like any other piece of writing — is a meal for the reader. The reader’s hope and quiet prayer is that the text will deliver the informational nutrients they are looking for, with little fat or waste.
Consider something like this: “My journey to this point has been challenging, but the lessons I learned have been most meaningful — I truly have seen that a new beginning is an opportunity to start again, that life’s challenges are the best way to show one’s capability and forge memorable experiences, and that through passion and perseverance one can make a difference in the world.”
Or this: “I believe the best leaders are those who do things for the right reasons, grounded in a thorough understanding of economics, business, strategy, and innovation. I want to be a leader who is open-minded, can manage complex situations, and empowers people.”
Forget the turgid writing and cliche’s-running-amok for a moment. That can be fixed. The point is, even if fixed, there is still nothing there. From the Adcom readers’ point of view there is no nutrition in the text, nothing that tells them anything interesting or specific or memorable about these applicants and why they should be admitted to b-school. There is no data, there is no record of action, no unique insights. Just words taking up space. That is, just empty calories.
The task of MBA essays is to explain your admissions value to Adcom, and you can’t achieve this via empty text. You must present nutrition-laden text, or expect to be dinged.
This means excoriating anything and everything that tends towards vacant, weary generalizations. Cut that to create space for reader nourishment — discussion of specific well-chosen experiences that show you in action, developing unique skills and fresh non-obvious insights about yourself, about your future aspirations, and about management and leadership.

Source:-http://mbastudio.net/2010/12/do-you-know-where-the-empty-calories-are-in-your-mba-admissions-essay/

I’ve traveled the world, this is good for MBA admissions, right?’

I’d estimate that 3 out of 5 MBA applicants to top-tier schools have traveled widely, for work or for fun. It follows that in their MBA applications they cite travel as an activity they value and put it among the important experiences they have had. They think that journeying across the world speaks for itself as proof of “diversity.” Travel “broadens the mind” and all that.

This is true. But there is a lot of value to be had in travel that MBA applicants often don’t get to. Here I tip my metaphorical hat to the mother of an MBA Studio client who gave her son the following feedback — before he came to me — which absolutely dovetails with how I exhort clients to squeeze admissions value from their travel (and other) experiences. I quote:

“I don’t think you have written something meaningful enough about your travels. You have traveled widely but it looks like it doesn’t seem to have influenced you, affected your outlook about people, society.

“Perhaps write something meaningful about poverty, and yet the ingenuity of people who have very little but are innovative, creative, hard working.

“Can you think of reasons why you chose to travel to these places, culture, philosophy, history, etc.?

“Some insight into the way you and your friend chose to travel, no fuss, not staying fancy places.

“This travel was a test also in being independent, showing initiative, taking calculated risks in foreign places. (You don’t give yourself sufficient credit for these things.)”

If all mothers had this depth of insight, I’d be out of a job. But, seriously, the task here, and everywhere in MBA admissions, is to extract the full admissions value from any activity you have done, experiences you’ve had, or choices you’ve made.

Look at your experiences, look at the skill sets and character traits of middle-to-senior managers, and make the link.

In this case an applicant following this advice would be showing Adcom not just “travel,” but a nuanced outlook on foreign cultures; an appreciation of genuinely alternative value systems and social cohesion including alternative forms of innovation; a non-materialist sensibility; an ability to ride out adversity; practice at calculated risk-management, and so on. Now this is a platform a good b-school can build on, to create a senior manager for significant 21st Century organizations.

Source: http://mbastudio.net/2010/11/ive-traveled-the-world/

MBA admissions interview – the last step to success

The interview is one of the most important stages of admission procedure. Before you appear for an MBA admission interview, you must be thoroughly prepared. The first step is to prepare a list of questions that are likely to be asked from all aspects that concern your profile’s strengths and weaknesses, as mentioned in your first profile analysis. This needs to be done with the critical help of your consultant. The replies to these questions should also be drafted with care, in order to prevent any pitfalls. Another important part of MBA admissions interview is the stress factor. Interviews are known to stress an individual. Instead, you must learn to give your best even in a stressful environment. This would require mental preparation and stress management, which is also the responsibility of an MBA consultant to take care of. MBA admission interviews not only test what you know. They also test how willing an individual is to adapt which is an important trait for a leader to have.

Strengthening Your Work Experience

If you’re not already doing so, you need to start volunteering for stretch assignments and unique projects at work. Showing up for work and doing what you’re told is a good formula for staying where you are, but it won’t get you promoted and it won’t get you into business school. If you want to earn a spot in a top business school, then you have to show initiative and distinguish yourself from your peers. If you’re working in an over-represented field like investment banking or consulting you need to be even more ambitious than other candidates in going after unique projects that will set you apart. That may mean volunteering for projects that others are unable or unwilling to tackle.

If you’re a software engineer, a bio-chemist, or a derivatives trader then you probably have a number of technical accomplishments to be proud of. You need to be looking for opportunities in your current job to develop and demonstrate your management skills, interpersonal abilities, and your leadership skills. If formal opportunities don’t present themselves then you need to get creative – that could mean proposing and implementing a survey of current customers, working on a business plan for a new division, or convincing your manager to lend you to the marketing group for a few months. The point is that if you’re serious about going to a top business school, you must be scanning the horizon for every opportunity to show the admission committee that you are more than just a gear-head, quant jock, or rocket scientist – you’re a future business leader.
Many applicants understand that community service is practically a pre-requisite for admissions to business school. Armed with this knowledge, they do some volunteer work in hopes of having some community service activities to list on their application forms. But this misses the point. Just as having a job is not sufficient for earning a place in a top MBA program, neither is simply being a participant in a community service organization.

We're often asked by clients who haven’t done any volunteer work what kinds of community service activities business schools want to see. Again, this misses the point. No community service organization is better than another from an admissions officer’s standpoint. Admissions officers really just want to see that you have engaged with a community that you have a passion for serving and that the volunteer work you’ve done has importance and meaning to you. So if you’re looking for way to get involved then look for an organization that has a mission that you want to be a part of. Find an emotional connection and work on a problem that you have a passionate interest in solving. For example, if you are a first generation American who benefitted from free English language classes then you could volunteer to teach classes in that program or, better yet, work at the organizational level to raise money and expand program offerings to reach more students.

If you’re already volunteering for a community service organization, you should be looking look for opportunities to harness the energy of other people, generate results, and make a real difference. You could lead a fund raising drive, pull together a team that addresses a long-standing organizational issue, or work with board members to develop a five-year strategic plan.

So in summary, focus on maximizing the depth and breadth of experiences you gain both inside and outside of work. Not only will this make for a stronger MBA application but it will make your work significantly more interesting!
Source: http://mbaprepschool.com/how-much-work-experience-is-enough/

GMAT Tip: How often should I take practice tests?

Today’s GMAT tip comes from Kaplan. In this article, Kaplan GMAT instructor Bret Ruber provides some advice on how many practice tests you should take before the actual GMAT exam:

When it comes to taking practice tests, many GMAT testtakers fall into one of two categories. The first type is made up of students that think of practice tests as THE way to prep. These students will take practice test after practice test, sometimes taking up to four or more a week. The second group is made up of students that are afraid to take any practice tests. These students will exclaim, “I have not studied everything and will do terribly if I take a practice test.” With this mindset, these students will fail to take practice tests until perhaps the week or two before their actual exam.

So, which approach is correct? Not surprisingly, both of these mindsets are problematic. Testtakers in the former group miss opportunities to focus their practice on their problem areas. This focused practice is essential to improving one’s GMAT score and simply taking additional tests will not help students improve their understanding of content.

On the other side, testtakers who fail to take any practice tests until the last minute will not be prepared for the pressure of test day. Additionally, these students will not be used to the endurance needed to take a three and half hour exam. This means, in order to successfully prepare for test day, students must find a happy medium between these two extremes. In order to gain both test taking experience and content specific review, those prepping for the GMAT should aim to take about one practice test per week. After taking each test, preppers should review all of the problems and then make sure to work in areas in which they missed questions over the course of the week. By following this system, you will be maximizing the effectiveness of your studies and on your way to a top GMAT score.

Source: http://blog.clearadmit.com/2010/11/gmat-tip-how-often-should-i-take-practice-tests/

Wharton Admissions to Host Online Chat Tomorrow for Round Two Applicants

The University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School Admissions Office this week will host an online chat for Round Two applicants to the MBA program. The chat will take place on November 30th at 6 p.m. (EST).

“As our January 4th deadline is getting close, this chat will be your opportunity to ask questions regarding essays, recommendations and our admissions process in general,” the Admissions Office wrote in a post to the Wharton Admissions Blog.

Other prospective applicants who are not planning to apply in Round Two but who are interested in learning more about the Wharton MBA are also invited to participate. Tomorrow’s online chat will be hosted by admissions officers as well as current students. To see the upcoming chat schedule or to launch the chat, click here.

Admissions Tip: Plan of Attack

With November wrapping up this week, round two deadlines for a number of programs are just around the corner. As most applicants are targeting multiple schools and still working to narrow down their school selection, we wanted to take some time today to stress the importance of taking a deep breath and a step back and formulating a time line for the coming weeks. Establishing a set of incremental goals with regard to essay composition and recommended management at this point in the season will help you to avoid feeling overwhelmed and ensure that your aims are realistic.

One of our most important pointers pertains to the process of writing essays. The urge to make progress on multiple fronts leads many applicants to work on essays for several schools in parallel, an approach that can be problematic. One reason for this is that when one spends time immersed in three sets of essays at once, it’s easy to lose sight of the full picture he or she is presenting to any one school. While it’s important to be oneself in the application process, it’s also crucial that an applicant tailor his or her materials to each school, a process that is made harder when constantly going back and forth among responses for various programs. Another issue is that it’s easy to waste time implementing the same edits across documents for multiple schools, or to lose track of what one has changed in which essay. For these reasons, we generally recommend focusing one’s full essay-writing attention on one program at a time.

Of course, your writing and story will improve with practice, and the last application you finish will likely be your strongest: a tricky situation, given that most applicants take care of their top choice school first to ensure that they’re able to submit in the earliest possible round. With this in mind, we recommend that you build space into your timeline to allow yourself to revisit and revise each set of essays before submission.

The order in which you tackle tasks will naturally depend on the deadlines for each school. With this in mind, let’s take a look at this winter’s deadline calendar:

December 1: INSEAD R2

December 2: Haas R2

January 3: Tuck R3

January 4: MIT R2, Wharton R2, Duke R2, Cornell R3

January 5: Chicago R2, Ross R2, UCLA R2, Darden R2

January 6: Stanford R2, Yale R2

January 11: Kellogg R2, HBS R2

January 15: NYU Stern R2

January 20: Haas R3

Best of luck to all of our readers who are presently working their way through the lengthy application process! Stay tuned to this blog for additional tips, news and notes as the admissions season unfolds.

[source: http://blog.clearadmit.com/2010/11/admissions-tip-plan-of-attack-4/]

Dean Q&A: INSEAD's New Leader

Dipak Jain, INSEAD's dean-to-be, explains why he chose the European B-school as his next destination and his lofty plans for the MBA market

Dipak Jain had just finished an eight-year stint as dean of Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management (Kellogg Full-Time MBA Profile) when he got a phone call from a member of INSEAD's (INSEAD Full-Time MBA Profile) dean search committee informing him he was on their short list of candidates.At the time, Jain was on a one-year sabbatical and not in the market for a deanship, but in April he agreed to fly to Europe to learn more about the job.Ash clouds from Iceland's Eyjafjallajökull volcano prevented him from making the trip over the Atlantic, but the committee pressed him to reschedule the interview for later that spring.Once Jain finally arrived in Paris, the search committee described to him the global vision and mission of INSEAD, which has campuses in France, Singapore, and the Middle East, and an MBA class that hails from more than 80 countries.The pitch intrigued him enough to postpone his plans for a quiet life as an academic in order to accept the dean's position at INSEAD, Bloomberg Businessweek's No.1 ranked international school.

Jain will officially become dean of INSEAD in March, taking over for J. Frank Brown, who is stepping down from the position he has held since 2006. Currently Jain is a professor of enterpreneurial studies and marketing at Kellogg. He was formally introduced to the INSEAD community at the 10th anniversary celebration of the school's Singapore campus on Nov. 12, where he led a discussion on the future of management education in Asia. It's an area that Jain is deeply familiar with; during his time at Kellogg, he expanded the school's ties to Asia and also worked to help launch the Indian School of Business, now one of the leading business school in India.

Bloomberg Businessweek's Alison Damast recently spoke with Jain about his new role and INSEAD's plans to expand its presence in Asia and the Middle East. Here is an edited transcript of their conversation.
It sounds like becoming dean of another business school wasn't what you had originally planned when you left the position at Kellogg last September. What was it about INSEAD that changed your mind?

A lot of people ask me why I'd want to do this again since I've already been a dean. I tell them that very few people get a chance to become dean once, and I am going to do it twice. I took the job because I liked INSEAD's emphasis on diversity, its commitment to research, and its global model in terms of how it is trying to be a business school for the world. INSEAD is the only school in the world that has shown you can create another campus in addition to your own campus with equal vitality and energy. I thought it was very different from what I had seen in the U.S., and I believe in the vision of the school, which is to be the business school for the world.

How did your eight years as the dean of Kellogg prepare you to take on this new role?

The Kellogg experience was instrumental for me even to be considered by the committee and faculty here. Kellogg and INSEAD have a lot in common, and what I have learned at Kellogg will help me in trying to deliver on INSEAD's vision. The INSEAD program is a one-year program, and Kellogg is the only business school in the U.S. among the top schools that also offers a one-year program. It was important that I had some experience running a one-year program, because you need to believe in the product. I thought the passion I had for Kellogg and what INSEAD is aspiring to be...
[full article: http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/content/nov2010/bs20101118_711675.htm

Finding the right MBA Admissions consultants

If you are planning to pursue an MBA, then chances are you are looking out for professional help to help you get admitted to the school of your choice. You must know what to expect from MBA admissions consultants before you select one. If you get mistaken here, it is not just the money that you lose, you also lose out on a chance to make it to a top B-school. Your MBA admissions consultants should first help you realize yourself. The first process of any admission for MBA requires that you know yourself well. Only then can this knowledge manifest in your essays and interviews and other paths of presentation. Your MBA admissions consultants will not do your work. Instead he will equip you with the skills required to do it yourself and to be able to criticize your own work. He will help you with communication and will also draft reviews when required. He would not let go of you until you make it. That is the hallmark of a good consultant.

What does it take for getting Harvard MBA admissions?

The mecca of business studies is Harvard. It is a dream for every individual who wants to do an MBA, to be associated with this B school. However Harvard only takes the best of the best. Even the best, have to prep themselves up before they send in their applications. This takes a lot of introspection and Harvard MBA admissions panel places great emphasis on an individual understanding of himself or herself. Based on this introspection, a prospect is required to present essays and participate in interviews. The Harvard MBA admission procedures set very high standards and those who do make it are cut apart from the rest. That said, it should also be stated that Harvard MBA admissions and other reputed B school admissions are not just about academic achievements. They test how much a person knows and how much he is willing to learn and adapt.

Defining good MBA consulting services

The prospect of applying to a top B school is fraught with nerves and uncertainty. For a prospective student, it is very important to understand what a B school is looking for. This is where MBA consulting services come in. A good services provider will clearly explain what B schools look for. The admission procedure involves a host of things and preparing for the procedure is time consuming and hard work. Hence it needs to be done thoroughly and before the deadline. MBA consulting services help a candidate build his case, through CVs, through essays and prepare for interviews. They also help a student with discussions, SWOT analysis on timely basis. All of this is done online and good MBA consulting services providers offer to do reviews until the candidate gets it right and is accepted. A student should look for such services before decide for a guide.

MBA coaching institute - Do you need assistance from one?

The answer is YES. You are academically sound and have a splendid profile but presenting yourself is a skill, that as a student it is not possible due to lack of experience. An MBA coaching institute would have several students like you and hence it would be able to guide you with building your profile and CV, in addition to grooming you for interviews and discussions. At every stage it will assess you and let you know where you stand. This analysis is essential and a good MBA coaching institute will do it until you get your admission. The reviewing apart, an MBA coaching institute will also help you learn the skills required to write a good essay, to market yourself and present your strengths in a manner that brands you as a future leader that B schools are looking for.

Why do you need MBA coaching classes?

MBA coaching classes have immense benefits. A prospective MBA student is not aware of different procedures that various B schools have for evaluating the candidates. As such, he may not meet the expectations due to this ignorance. MBA coaching classes will help a prospect understand the procedures in order to present themselves in the best of ways. These classes will push a candidate to introspect and draft his profile. It will also include live sessions to guide the candidate with interviews and discussions. Analysis of strengths and weaknesses, the common mistakes that prospects make and many other aspects of the admission process are covered. In all MBA coaching classes help a prospect acquire skills of presentation and analysis, which are very important for a manager. In addition to these things, a good coach will help also a prospect manage stress, which is normal, during the admission process.

MBA admissions strategy - What should yours be?

An MBA is certainly a gateway to a high flying career. However it is most beneficial to pursue education at the best of the institutes. The best institutes have high standards of academics and the admission process only allows the best students to enter the portals of such B-schools. If you intend to enter and purse your MBA education one of these schools, you need to develop a flawless MBA admissions strategy. You may need expert help for this. An MBA consultant comes in at this point. A consultant can help you draft your strategy and help you identify key points that show you in the best light. Your MBA strategy will help you introspect and draft your profile in a manner that is exactly tailored to your individuality and targeted to your objectives. A consultant will also review your MBA strategy, to ensure your admission.

MBA admissions consulting - What are the benefits?

The admission process for a B school is fraught with intense competition from the best of the best. To stand out in the crowd, a prospective student must be able to show that he is different and that he has what it takes to make a good general manager. While a student may indeed have the skills, he may not be able to showcase himself in a transparent way. This is where MBA admissions consulting comes in. Right from helping students with school selection, to making essays and preparing for interviews, MBA admission consulting equips the student with the ability to present themselves in a professional and coherent manner. It does this by getting the student to introspect and face problems that seem to hinder self presentation. Indirectly, with expert MBA admission consulting a student is embarking on a life-journey of learning the most useful and important skills of self-presentation.

MBA essays – Your first priority

Essays are tools of evaluation and are part of the admission process not for just MBA but for a many other Post-Graduate courses as well. For a prospective MBA student, however, the essay is more important. An MBA essay will give a clear insight into the capabilities and motivation of a candidate. It will convey to the admission officer the objectives and goals and in turn the officer will be able to determine if the applicant has what it takes in terms of aptitude and attitude, to make him a leading general manager. An MBA essay has to be professionally written and it should be to the point, without any dilly-dallying. It also goes without saying that an MBA essay should have the right grammar and jargon. To perfect an essay, it takes a good deal of introspection and at least four drafts. Candidates usually seek the services of an expert, who is skilled and experienced in reviewing the essay until it is flawless.

Executive MBA programs - Boost your career while working

If you are already working and want to improve or facilitate growth in your field, then Executive MBA programs are right for you. Executive MBA programs are structured differently from a regular MBA program. They take advantage of the experience that a working professional has. It also helps an individual learn about his field, understand the structural processes and relate class analysis to what actually happens at work. This way an individual better understands his skills in addition to creating scope for climbing the success ladder. Executive MBA programs, though are just as rigorous as regular MBA programs, are flexible in class hours to suit the working professionals. An individual enrolled for a such a program can also choose his subjects like any other MBA course. Such courses are offered at all B schools and the best ones are known and ranked every year by BusinessWeek, Financial Times and the Economist magazines.

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