So recently I've finished applying to business schools after having worked for 3.5 years out of undergrad. It was actually a pretty arduous experiences to hit the books for GMATs and write essays again after so long. Now I'm just waiting to hear back about interviews and for the first time in a long time not having to worry about actually doing work for it. I figure it would be nice to pass some of this time sharing experiences with anyone else going through the admissions process as well, or maybe people having been to business school would like to share their insights, etc.
I live in Boston so schools in the East Coast: HBS, MIT/Sloan, Wharton, Duke, and Yale. I've aimed pretty high, so hopefully I get into one...
I've recently begun the process myself. I've been graduated about a year now and i've been delaying going back for my MBA. Recently though i've been hardcore studying for the GMAT's and plan on taking them soon. That's awesome you're applying at Wharton. It's normally recognized as one of the, if not, best business schools in the world. Good luck with that. I'm from the Pittsburgh area so my equivalent to that is Carnegie Mellon University (usually ranked top in the top ten) but I doubt i'd ever get in. I was an athlete/frat boy in college so my grades were always secondary to me and my GPA is nothing special at 3.4. I'd really have to ace the GMAT's for that to happen. Anyway, one part of me really wants this and the other part hates the idea of more classes and what not. I suppose it will all be worth it in the end.
My read is that the closer you ARE to undergrad, the more it counts. So for example you are 1-2 years out, you don't have much more evidence of your intellect / leadership etc., so it will count a lot. Say you're 6-7 years out, and have had lots of business success, then it'll be almost negligible because you're so far removed from it. Personally I had only a 3.25 in College, so it's good that I've waited until I've acheived substantial professional growth before I applied. And let me clarify the "only"... I went to a school where 3.25 was basically smack dab in the middle of graduates, granted I had a hard major. So it's not really seen as a plus attribute for a really high tier b-school.
Cool we have some discussion going. Yeah I visited Wharton and it was really nice. GREAT facilities and obvious great brand. I'm supposed to hear back about interview invites starting today... so fingers crossed. CMU is definitely got a great reputation, I considered applying there but as you'll find out each app is very time consuming so I had to prioritize to more local schools. I wouldn't be that concerned about your GPA... 3.4 isn't anything to scoff at and is probably within the 50% median band of their admits. As I mentioned above the only risk is that you're not too far removed from undergrad so it might count a little more, depending on what work experience you've had. In terms of GMATs. I will say for anyone that's interested that the "Kaplan 800" (or something like that) is hands down the best book to buy. I bought like 4, but that one was by FAR the best. There's no "lessons", just examples, and you learn through working on problems, which I really liked.
I'd worry less about brand and more about what you want to get out of the experience, what you want to do post graduate, etc. With Wharton, obviously, you'll have a big step up in finance. Not that you can't do a bazillion things, but know that it is one of their strengths. Whereas if you wanted to start up a tech company or something, you can do that with a Wharton MBA, too, but another school might be best for you. i'm sure you know all this. i went to wharton undergrad and thus, am not going to get an MBA....too much money...
I agree with you. My career path after MBA is going to be in general management, and Wharton should be good a good resource for that. Interestingly enough I have a co-worker that went to undergrad at Wharton who is also a little equivocal about their experience...
Is everyone planning on going back Full time? I'm hoping to go back for Spring '09 to start my MBA. Florida has a 16 month program that has classes one weekend every month, which will allow me to keep my current job (read: Tution Reimbursement), and not have to move.
Wow, what a coincidence. I'm considering the exact same thing, at Florida starting next year. Although I'm not sure if I'd try it full time or not. Obviously full time would be ideal but I need to pay the bills.
I'm doing a somewhat similar program at Rice right now. They have an executive program that is all day Friday and Saturday every other week. I'm in an evening program, which is 2 nights a week, every week, for 22 months, plus some weekends. My initial reaction to this description of the Florida program is that it seems very light -- 16 months is short and 1 weekend a month is infrequent. I find I miss out on a lot of the MBA education by being in the evening program. Participation in clubs and other extra-curriculars is quite important, but neigh impossible. And, I currently face the quintiple time demands of school, work, family, job search, and BBS posting.
I did the same thing with the UT-Austin MBA program up here in Dallas. Be thankful that at least you're on campus. We had the same format and everything, but if we wanted to interview, we had to drive/fly down to Austin for all the career fairs, information sessions, and interviews. It does take something out of the grad school experience, but I loved the program, my classmates, and my ability to remain employed while pursing my MBA at UT-Austin.
my GPA didn't even break 3.0 (2.98...), so that's why i ask. i'm really kicking myself for not... i don't know.... going to class more the 1/2 the time while at SWT, but there's nothing i can do about that now. i graduated 2.5 years ago, btw. i'm still at least 2 years away before i make the jump to b-school, seeing as though my professional career isn't anything that i would consider substantial enough to get me into a good one. i do have an interview tomorrow with a very large commercial RE brokerage firm, and would absolutely love it if i got the position, was able to work for 2-3 years, and then use that experience to apply to a few top tier business programs far enough removed from my poor undergrad days. let's keep this discussion going.
Overrated. Seriously, making money is definitely important. But there's no guarantee you come out of a top tier school and end up a millionaire. And there's nothing to say you can't go to a "second tier" school and make millions. As similar as all these top schools are, they are different. They have different cultures, different strengths, etc. I'm just saying, emphasize fit as opposed to brand or ranking, assuming you have some choices.
I would say that the school is extremely important. The three main things that you get out of an MBA is a network, status, and being at a target school. You have to think about these three things when you apply to business school otherwise you may be wasting a lot of money.
