55— EXECUTIVE SUMMARY —
Most schools have more than one person read your file, guaranteeing that you will not be rejected by someone who is having a bad day.
Admissions professionals, mindful of the need to fill classes with human beings rather than data points, seek to understand who you are as well as what you have accomplished.
In addition to admissions professionals, some American schools involve students and alumni in admissions decisions, whereas most European schools also use faculty members.
This chapter describes the mechanics of how schools make their admissions decisions and who makes them. Chapter 7, “Making the Most of Your Credentials,” analyzes the criteria the schools apply, whereas this chapter is devoted to explaining the admissions process.
A school’s admissions professionals will determine whether or not to admit you based on the whole of your application folder—your job history, educational achievements, extracurricular and community involvements, honors and awards, essays, recommendations, and interview evaluation. Not every admissions officer will weight the different elements in the same way—or, for that matter, grade them in the same way—but the way the process is followed will hold true for each and every applicant to a school. And while the admissions process at different schools varies somewhat, it varies much less than might be expected—partly because admissions officers at the various schools talk with one another about what procedure each follows—but probably owing more to the desire schools have to be thorough in their evaluation of candidates. Schools go to great lengths to be sure they have given every applicant a fair chance.
Applications can be processed in either of two ways. Schools using rolling admissions evaluate applications as they are submitted, on a “first come, first served” basis. For example, if George’s application is complete on November 1 and Martha’s on November 28, the admissions officers will start the process of reviewing George’s application before they start reviewing Martha’s. They will start on George’s application when they get the chance, whether that means beginning on November 1 or December 9. In either event, the one certainty is that they will start to process George’s file before they start on Martha’s.
The process for schools using rounds, however, is quite different. These schools split the application period into multiple mini-periods. For example, a school might have deadlines on November 10, January 20, and March 30. All applications received on or before November 10 will be held, without any admissions actions being taken, until November 11 (or thereabouts). At that time, all of the applications in this batch will begin to be evaluated (a process that usually takes at least several weeks).
Please note that your application will receive no attention from admissions officers until it has been completed, meaning that everything that is required has been received by the school. Thus, if your second recommendation has not yet been submitted, the admissions staff will keep your file open until they receive the recommendation, at which time your application will be ready for evaluation.
The director of admissions is typically someone who has worked in business school admissions for some years. At the top schools, this generally means someone who has had substantial experience as a more junior admissions officer at the same school, or an equivalent amount of time in charge of admissions at a less prestigious school. He or she may not have an MBA, but in this case will probably have a human resources background.
Directors at other schools are likely to include those with similar backgrounds in human resources, and recruitment in particular, and those who have recently graduated from the school’s MBA program. All schools like to have some of the latter involved to provide a realistic flavor of the program to applicants who attend school information sessions, and also because these recent graduates have a potentially different appreciation of which applicants will fit well and contribute significantly to the program. What all the admissions officers share is dedication to their schools and a concomitant drive to admit only the most qualified group of applicants they can find.
Many American schools follow a similar procedure, known as a “blind read.” Two admissions officers are given copies of an applicant’s file and asked to categorize it. Although it is possible for a school to use more categories, for simplicity’s sake I will refer to just three: “accept,” “reject,” and “don’t know.” If both admissions officers rate the applicant as an “accept,” then no more work needs to be done: She is accepted. Similarly, if both admissions officers rate her as a “reject,” she is rejected. In some schools, the process works in the same manner except that the admissions director may quickly scan each file, including those that were rated a clear “accept” or “reject” by the two initial readers, to make sure nothing is amiss in the process.
On the other hand, if the two admissions officers disagree about her or rate her as a “don’t know,” then her file will be considered further. At this point, some schools have the admissions director make the final decision whereas others have admissions officers decide as a group.
The mix of different backgrounds and talents on the part of the admissions officers leads to occasionally spirited discussions about how to rate a given applicant, but this is generally viewed as a positive because the school is looking for a diverse group of students and wants an admissions team that is appreciative of a range of different backgrounds and talents.
Recently, the career services departments at certain schools have become involved in the admissions process. Although it is easy to find jobs for the typical applicant, such as an engineer who wishes to enter management in the same industry he has worked in for the last four years, it may be difficult to help an atypical applicant find a job. In such cases the admissions director is likely to chat with the career services director to get his or her opinion regarding the employability of such applicants. (The candidate who intends to change careers is thus well advised to make it clear that the proposed change is a realistic one that suits her talents, and is one that she will pursue vigorously and intelligently.)
Admissions officers have a lot of information about you when it comes time to make their decision. Most applicants assume that the admissions process is devoted to weighing applicants’ grade point averages, GMAT test scores, and number of years of work experience, and they thereby make a fundamental mistake. (See Chapter 7 for an in-depth discussion of the admissions criteria.) Admissions committees are made up of human beings, generally those who have chosen to work in a human resources capacity, and consequently they are particularly interested in admitting real human beings rather than a set of statistics. You will find it hard to gain admission if you are just so many data points on a page. (Applicants who can make themselves real—that is, human—are more likely to gain supporters among the admissions officers. You should therefore take every opportunity to distinguish yourself from the mass of the applicant pool and make your human qualities apparent.) It takes a lot of time and effort to accept or reject a given applicant because admissions officers try very hard to understand her, not just to glance at her test scores.
The average decision period is approximately eight to ten weeks at American schools, although this period varies according to circumstance. In years with a particularly large number of applicants, it can stretch to twelve weeks or more. The European schools generally decide more quickly; the smaller programs often make decisions within a month.
The student-involvement model of the admissions process is essentially identical to the standard American model, but with one important exception: the involvement of students in the process. Kellogg and Wharton are well known for this practice. The usual way in which schools make use of students is in interviewing applicants, although some have begun to involve them in the evaluation of files—and even in making final decisions about them.
The use of students is confined to second-year students, who are trained how to interview and/or evaluate files. There are several reasons for not using first-year students. It would be inappropriate for them to be in classes and activities with people who might have bared their souls in the admissions process. Second-year students, however, will have graduated by the time the applicants whom they interviewed or whose files they evaluated enroll, thereby eliminating such confidentiality concerns. In addition, it would be inappropriate to have students evaluating applicants before they (the students) themselves know what business school is all about.
Schools use students not just to share the workload, to get free labor, or even to deepen the involvement of these students with the school. These students are relatively fresh from the jobs they held before business school as well as actively involved in deciding which job they will take upon graduation. As a result, they are well placed to evaluate how well applicants have done in their jobs, how well employers will regard them in the future, and how well they will be able to contribute to classes and study groups.
Note: Many schools involve alumni in the interviewing process. (See Chapter 12 for a discussion of this process.)
Many European schools eschew the American practice of having admissions professionals make admissions decisions. These schools have their admissions professionals prepare the files on each candidate and then present them to the admissions committee, which is made up of professors from a variety of disciplines. The admissions officers therefore act more as advisors than decision makers.
The procedures of these schools tend otherwise to resemble those at American schools. Many, for example, use the “double blind” reader approach, in which two professors on the admissions committee read an applicant’s file and categorize it as “accept,” “reject,” or “don’t know.” Those rated by both professors as “accept” are indeed accepted; those rated as “reject” are rejected; and in cases where the two professors disagreed or marked “don’t know,” the file is handed to a third professor or, more often, the whole committee for a final decision.
(Using professors to make admissions decisions might be expected to elevate the importance of academic credentials, but this appears to be true to only the slightest extent. Whether this outcome is due to the influence of the admissions professionals in the process is unclear.)
The use of professors to make admissions decisions is quite rare at the leading American schools, hence my designation of the practice as the “European variation.”
THE ADMISSIONS DIRECTORS DISCUSS THE ADMISSIONS PROCESS
Each application is thoroughly evaluated by at least two members of the MBA Admissions Board. Due to the size of our applicant pool, we are unable to interview all candidates. Interviews are conducted by invitation only, at the discretion of the Admissions Board, after all applications have been submitted and reviewed. BRIT DEWEY, HARVARD
Our first reader summarizes the application and gives grades of one to five (one is the top grade) on academic credentials, professional experience, personal qualities (leadership, for example, and the interview are important here), and overall. The second reader also grades the application. It is then classified according to the higher of the two graders’ marks. We then review the applications as a committee, starting with those having the highest and lowest grades and working toward the middle (where the decisions are hardest). It’s an extremely thorough and extremely fair process, even though it is subjective rather than scientific. SALLY JAEGER, TUCK
The first reader comments on the application and recommends that we admit, wait-list, deny, or interview before making a decision. The second reader also makes a recommendation. If both agree, we generally do what they recommend, albeit after a brief look by the admissions committee. If they disagree, a third reader reviews the file, and then the candidate is invited to interview. After that, the case goes back to the admissions committee for a decision. PETER JOHNSON, HAAS
The first reading of the file is done by one of our trained second-year students. The second reading is conducted by an admissions officer. If both of them feel that the candidate should be rejected, the file is examined by another two or three admissions people to be sure that rejection is the right option. If, on the other hand, either of the first two readers believes that the candidate might merit admission, we invite him or her to interview. After he or she is interviewed, the admissions committee decides whether or not to offer admission. ANN W. RICHARDS, JOHNSON (CORNELL)
Each applicant is interviewed before the application is submitted. Afterward, each one is assigned to one of three account managers. So if they have questions, or have information to share later in the process, they’ll have someone specific to contact. Once the application is complete, it is read by a minimum of three people before a decision is made. SARAH E. NEHER, DARDEN
We start by printing out the application. Then, one of our sixty-plus highly trained, second-year students does the first reading of the file. He or she prepares a “case sheet” that summarizes the application, with comments on everything from the essays to the recommendations, along with the GMAT results and so on. Next, the file goes to one of our full-time admissions committee members, who reads it cover to cover and also makes notes on it. At this point the files are separated into two piles: the “invite to interview” and “do not invite” piles. I then review both piles, reading each of the “no interview” applications thoroughly. After an applicant is interviewed, the file—including the interview evaluation—is read by an admissions committee member. Then I read the entire file. The last step is that it goes to the admissions committee for a final decision. THOMAS CALEEL, WHARTON
We take a one-on-one counseling approach to applications. We create many opportunities for a dialogue with each applicant. Ideally we can work with people before they apply—to talk both about financing strategies and about how to improve their application…. Once an application is complete, our committee decides whether to invite the applicant to interview. We request either one or two interviews, depending upon how much we feel we need to evaluate the candidate. Once we have the interview information back, the file again goes to committee. Some seven to ten people will end up evaluating the candidate (since we involve people from throughout the school—academic directors, alumni, career services, program directors…). The whole process usually takes four weeks, after which applicants get our response. MARYKE STEENKEMP, ROTTERDAM
The process starts with the five-person admissions committee, which consists of faculty members and the MBA Director, evaluating people’s files. Some people are rejected at this stage; others are invited to interview. The interview is usually done at Oxford by the MBA Director or a faculty member, although we do hold interview events around the world (and will even interview by telephone if necessary). The committee makes a final decision based on the file and interview comments. ALISON OWEN, SAÏD (OXFORD)
One admissions person reads the application, and then decides whether to invite the candidate for an interview. A member of the admissions team conducts the interview. Then the file goes to the admissions committee, where at least three people will read the entire file. MARY GRANGER, ESADE (SPAIN)
The best piece of advice is that timing is everything. There are times when admissions officers are busy and have no time to talk. The worst time to contact us is when we are on the road interviewing or when we’re reading applications. ROD GARCIA, MIT
I’m outside the norm: I really love the contact with people, so I don’t mind candidates contacting us during the process. SALLY JAEGER, TUCK
We prefer that candidates communicate with us by email or through our online discussion board rather than by phone. Applicants can also go online to check their status at any time. We know that candidates can be anxious, especially as application deadlines approach, so we try to do our best to alleviate that anxiety. BRUCE DELMONICO, YALE
I don’t think there’s ever a point in the process when applicants need to call us. We are proactive in supplying them with information on-line regarding the status of their files. JAMES HAYES, MICHIGAN
A short thank-you note after meeting one of our people is fine. A convoluted, multilevel question meant to dazzle us is not. THOMAS CALEEL, WHARTON
We pride ourselves on getting to know our applicants very well. We look at the total presentation of the person. So how you behave in an interview or information session, the tone of your emails, or interactions with our customer service professionals definitely speaks to you as a person. So you want to make sure all of your interactions put you in the best light. Be professional, civil, polite, and understand that being pushy or rude is not well received. ISSER GALLOGLY, STERN (NYU)
It’s useful to stay on top of the process without being overbearing. DAVID BACH, INSTITUTO DE EMPRESA (Spain)
We’re happy to talk to applicants with questions that they can’t find the answers to on our website. KATTY OOMS SUTER, IMD (SWITZERLAND)
If an applicant faces a specific deadline by which he or she needs to respond to another school’s offer of admission, it is perfectly fine to contact us to see whether we will be offering admission. MARY GRANGER, ESADE (SPAIN)