The value of an MBA from a top school is indisputable. Therefore, you should give yourself the best chance for success by putting as much effort as possible into your applications. But first, you need to evaluate your personal strengths and weaknesses to determine which schools are your best fit.
Where to apply
From the US to Asia to Europe and other locations, you have a number of business school options. We recommend that you consider where you want to be before beginning the actual application. Schools have their own particular atmospheres, particular climates, geographies, cultures, in addition to having unique curricula, expertise, and ranking. Before simply applying to highest-ranking schools according to U. S. News and World Report or Business Week or the Financial Times, take a moment and consider the following questions.
Where would you like to spend a few years? Often the pursuit of prestige or the attempt to be accepted at the highest ranked school possible (though important in some respects), gets in the way of selecting a school that is right for you. What areas would you like to specialize in? How do you learn best? Do you prefer teamwork to working alone or vice versa? Are there individuals at a particular school with whom you are interested in interacting? What are my chances of getting in?
Take time to consider your options. For example, Joanne is interested in the following criteria: (1) class size, (2) rank, (3) curriculum, (4) length of study, (5) location (East Coast), and (6) expertise in finance. In order to measure her options in an organized fashion, she selects several business schools and inputs their characteristics in a chart.
You should weigh carefully what a school offers both academically and environmentally. This may require some degree of thought and research as to how MBA programs are related to your professional and personal inclinations.
We do not recommend applying to too many programs. The crafting of too many applications can act as a hindrance on your own ability to create customized applications for each program. In addition, every application incurs a financial cost. However, how many is too many will vary from applicant to applicant.
When to Apply
As a rule, apply as early as possible. At most schools this will increase your chances of admittance. Many schools have very few spots available for the third round of admissions.
Some schools make available the numbers of applicants they accept per round. You may want to inquire into such statistics to help you determine when is the best time to complete your applications.
If you have already submitted applications to MBA programs and were not accepted at the schools you wanted to attend, you should consider applying again. In fact, re-applicants tend to have a better chance of admittance to B-School than first time applicants. But in order to reapply successfully, you will have to reconsider how you want to present yourself to the admissions committee.
The best way to increase your chances of success is to improve your application. This could mean diversifying your work experience or preparing for and retaking the GMAT, a very important factor in MBA admissions, or it could mean choosing different individuals to write recommendations for you. If you applied late the first time, applying again and early significantly increases your likelihood of admittance.
Manhattan Review's MBA Admissions consulting team is made up exclusively of graduates from top Ivy League schools. Our team is ready to carefully guide you through the admissions process.