The MBA Admissions Studio » MBA Interviews

‘Never let an MBA Admissions Committee assume anything – because we always guess wrong’

Avi Gordon — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 17:41:00 +0000

MBA Podcaster’s MBA Pod TV provides this 10-min take-out from Q&A at a recent Forte Foundation-hosted MBA Admission Directors Panel: . In the video, Pat Harrison refers to one of the key mistakes applicants make in MBA admissions: they leave Adcom to make connections and assumptions in joining the dots (as to their prior education [...]

Business jargon will sell a book, but it won’t sell you to Adcom

Avi Gordon — Thu, 20 May 2010 15:12:17 +0000

I try to keep this MBA Admissions blog fresh and personal (like an MBA essay should be!) and don’t just rehash or repost keyword-rich MBA admissions news. In this spirit I offer you a bit of whimsey from The Wall Street Journal “Speakeasy” where Teddy Wayne explains how his job as an MBA essay editor [...]

Super Bowl advertisements and soul of the MBA admissions applicant

Avi Gordon — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 13:20:07 +0000

It’s Super Bowl time. For me this mostly means Augusta (and Spring!) is just around the corner. But the football is always watchable and, as everyone knows, it’s as much all about the half-time show and of course the ads – which I believe for Super Bowl XLIV cost more that $2.5m for a 30-second [...]

The iPad launch and the evolution of the MBA applicant ‘type’

Avi Gordon — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 18:28:52 +0000

Last time I spoke about applying for an MBA like Steve Jobs would, by which of course I mean not ‘as if’ you were Jobs, but going about it in the way he would — staying true to yourself and your motivations. Anyway, speak of the devil, the Apple iPad is out and I, like [...]

Making messages stick: an MBA Studio ‘bible’ gets some airtime

Avi Gordon — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:30:18 +0000

I have integrated every aspect of it into MBA Studio's client offerings ever since. It's not the only resource I use of course (and my own MBA Admissions Strategy, which predates it, has many of the same principles.) But Made to Stick is unsurpassed in focusing on one single thing: getting a message across. Formulating it so that the reader reads it, understands it, remembers it.

HBS Adcom is answering applicants’ questions every day until the R1 deadline. Answers so far…

Avi Gordon — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 19:39:09 +0000

Deidre Leopold, Harvard Business School’s Managing Director of Admissions and Financial Aid is answering applicant questions at the rate of two a day on the HBS ‘From The Director‘ blog, until Harvard’s Round 1 deadline on October 1. The following are the questions that have been selected so far, and HBS Adcom’s answers: September 25, [...]

‘Blink’ in MBA essays, resumes, interviews, and emails to Adcom

Avi Gordon — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 12:05:50 +0000

“Blink,” by New Yorker writer and celebrity author Malcolm Gladwell (Little, Brown & Co, 2005), is a book about first impressions, the first few seconds during which we appraise information and make instant judgments. Gladwell says these conclusions oftentimes produce better, more accurate, conclusions than those made by way of exhaustive analysis. One example he [...]

Getting distinctiveness into your MBA application even if you think you have none

Avi Gordon — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 15:34:04 +0000

One of the biggest problems I have as an MBA admissions adviser – friend, coach, confidant, drill sergeant, etc., to applicants trying to crack top-tier schools – is explaining to clients that “good is nice, great is nicer,” but neither will get you into a top-tier MBA program. Only “good + special” will get you [...]

The recession adds weight to the voice of Career Services in MBA Admissions

Avi Gordon — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 16:52:25 +0000

Future employability, career placement and likely starting salary have always been a consideration in MBA admissions, but these considerations are increasing in the recession. Career Services are having a say in who is gets admitted to business schools.

What does the “MBA Oath” mean for MBA admissions? Ways to broaden your ethical platform, for a start

Avi Gordon — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 17:51:38 +0000

This year, in the wake of the financial meltdown and global recession, much of which (rightly or wrongly) is blamed on MBAs, the accent is squarely on business ethics and long-term sustainability of decisions. These issues have been on the rise for a while, but their sudden prominence is demonstrated in the emergence and rapid spread of the "MBA Oath.

Adcom members’ backgrounds and personalities – who are they really?

Avi Gordon — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 18:41:13 +0000

As an MBA applicant one of the things to get straight is who you are talking to, in general, when you write your essays. This doesn’t mean you should be looking to target or “game” your essays in a narrow sense. But getting your head around who is on the other end is a crucial [...]

Harvard Business School essays (2009-10) add a cover letter just like MIT Sloan’s

Avi Gordon — Fri, 22 May 2009 10:05:28 +0000

Harvard has released their new essay questions, and deadlines for 2009-10, adding a cover letter essay (optional) which MIT Sloan’s has as a standard request for years. Still only four essays are required for HBS, and the first two compulsory questions remain the same: 1. What are your three most substantial accomplishments and why do [...]

Duke-Fuqua admissions tips that carry weight for any application

Avi Gordon — Tue, 19 May 2009 16:42:49 +0000

Business Week this week interviews Duke Adcom Director Liz Riley Hargrove. The principles shared are common to all good schools, but also give a current sense of what Fuqua is “looking for.” As BW summarize it: “applicants with a propensity for teamwork who are ‘leaders of consequence.’” Admissions-relevant highlights are extracted here: Can you describe [...]

Some great interview advice between the lines in “Harvard is my hump”

Avi Gordon — Fri, 08 May 2009 16:34:08 +0000

For better or worse most Adcoms like idealism. They don't want naivete, but they do like world-changing visions. If you are not a dreamer at 25, you'll never be, and they are not looking to put the HBS brand on money-grabbing cynics. See Gina Valeria Chua's Harvard Business School admissions story.

Best MBA blog awards 2008-09

Avi Gordon — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 17:59:29 +0000

Clear Admit has released its 2008-2009 MBA blog awards see here. It is a good guide to what’s out there, particularly from MBA students and current MBA applicants. There’s some great on-the-ground advice in there, and lots of shoulders to cry on. Good stuff! Top 10 Applicant Blogs 1. TienyChesney – mbaveggie.blogspot.com 2. D.G. – [...]

16 Reasons to Choose the MBA Admissions Studio as your MBA application partner

Avi Gordon — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 12:35:01 +0000

These are the reasons to choose us for your MBA applications support and admissions coaching: Verified past successes: Our admission rate for all applicants to all schools is close to perfect (over 96%). On average our clients tell us we improved their prospects by 3x. But don’t just take our word for it – where [...]