Admissions Tip: Volunteer Experience
It’s the time of year when MBA applicants aiming for fall 2018 intake are beginning to think about the admissions process, which is why we wanted to focus this week’s admissions tip on one element of the application that candidates often underestimate: volunteer experience.
In order to understand why this category is important, candidates should keep in mind that the adcom is responsible for crafting a dynamic class each year. The aim is to admit individuals who will support a vibrant campus community and step into leadership positions. In other words, as admissions officers consider each applicant, they ask themselves “what’s in it for our school?” An applicant who has previously demonstrated a talent for writing, for example, by contributing to a nonprofit’s newsletter, will really catch the adcom’s attention if she also expresses her intent to contribute to a specific publication on campus.
Schools are also interested in admitting well-rounded candidates, not simply candidates that have performed well at work and in their academics, but have expanded their involvement in other activities. They seek students with good values and those who volunteer in their community demonstrate their good citizenship.
Volunteering is of course a great way to expand one’s extracurricular involvement. While, many applicants participate in the occasional fundraising walk or an annual corporate outreach day; those who demonstrate ongoing involvement in one cause or organization will be of special interest to the admissions committee, especially if it is related to their current or future career. A candidate who has contributed over a longer period is likely to have developed his or her responsibilities beyond ladling soup or stuffing envelopes. What’s more, this can be a particularly important opportunity for applicants who are currently living and working outside of their home countries; for example, an Indian applicant who works and volunteers in Africa will stand out as being particularly engaged and well adapted to his or her foreign environment.
It is also important to be involved in something about which you are passionate. Passion will help in a couple of ways, it will mean that you will commit more time to the endeavor, it will also mean that you will be more likely to take on a leadership role. Thus, if you are passionate about animal welfare then volunteering at an animal shelter, or lobbying in Washington, DC to help shape future legislation, will be far more interesting to the adcom than if you intermittently volunteer at a soup kitchen.
Candidates who are older or younger than the average applicant should recognize that their extracurricular involvement is particularly important. A younger applicant who lacks leadership responsibilities at work might demonstrate his talent for motivating others outside of the office. Meanwhile, older applicants can use their extracurricular involvement to reassure the adcom that, despite family responsibilities or distance in age from one’s classmates, the broader life of the community remains important to them.
The majority of candidates who apply to top schools are admissible, they have good work experience and strong academic numbers. Oftentimes it is what they do during their volunteer experiences and extra-curricular activities that help separate strong applicants. If you feel this aspect of your candidacy is relatively weak, then increase your involvement now. While it is never too late, you should also recognize that the adcom will be skeptical of a candidate who has no tradition for volunteering, but starts 6 months before the application is due. Remember that it is important that your volunteer work appears to be genuine.
Lastly, applicants will have a much easier time writing their application essays if they have a variety of experiences from which to draw. While applicants can certainly respond to most essay prompts by reflecting on their professional experiences, relying exclusively on one’s work is a mistake. With each essay, the applicant should aim to share a different side of him or herself—submitting five essays about electrical engineering or investment banking is not the most effective way to do this.
We hope that this sheds some light on the opportunities and value that activities outside of work provide with respect to one’s b-school candidacy and applications.
This article has been edited and republished with permissions from Clear Admit.
MBA Admissions Tip: Going Beyond School Websites
As the 2016-17 MBA application season draws to a close, we now turn our attention towards admissions advice for those targeting 2018 entrance to business school. To celebrate this move, we are hosting a series of 10 chats that will be hosted on alternating Wednesdays at 10 a.m., beginning this Wednesday, May 10th. In the meantime, for today’s admissions tip, we focus on how to reach out to the b-schools in which you are interested beyond just visiting the school websites.
Communicating with b-school insiders can be beneficial for a number of reasons: In addition to researching a business school and your potential fit, you’ll also generate material for your essays, demonstrate your interest in the program, and perhaps even make an ally or two. In your efforts to go beyond the schools’ websites and promotional materials, we recommend reaching out to individuals in a few key groups:
Current Students
People who are currently enrolled in a given program can obviously provide the clearest picture of the present state of the school community. They are often more capable of evoking their school’s overall culture than brochures put out by the admissions offices and can describe to prospective students the ins and outs of academic and extracurricular options. In addition to reaching out to friends and acquaintances who are studying at a given school, it’s also wise to get in touch with the leaders of clubs and programs in which you are interested (their contact information is generally available through the website). This will help you to understand the impact you could make while on campus and provide a sounding board for the ideas you plan to share with a certain student group or organization.
Alumni
While students offer a great view of the program itself, a school’s alumni can often provide the best perspective on just how far an MBA from a given program can get you in a certain field. Meeting with alumni working in your target post-MBA industry (tracking them down either through your own network or school-sponsored events) may help you anticipate the program’s strengths and weaknesses in setting you on the right professional course. You might also gain some valuable insight that will help you to refine your career goals and better understand what short-term position would best prepare you for your long-term plan.
Faculty
The professors at business school tend to be a bit less accessible than students and alumni, but if you’ve identified someone whose research interests match yours or sat in on a class that you found particularly intriguing, there’s no harm in sending a note to let the faculty member know that you find his or her work appealing and would like to speak if possible. The individuals responsible for designing and teaching the curriculum can offer great insight into the specific skills and lessons you would learn from one class to the next and help you to refine your understanding of the ways that an MBA would bridge the gap between your current skills and those you will need to achieve your goals.
Aspirants to the Class of 2020 should consider each of these options in the months ahead. Not only are many individuals quite pleased to discuss their experiences with prospective students, admissions committees also like thoroughly informed applicants (of course in all cases, patience and manners are of great importance).
For more tailored guidance on what sort of programs you might consider, please fill out this form for a free initial consultation with our partners over at Veritas Prep. As experts in the field for more than a decade, Veritas Prep is uniquely equipped to help you become a ‘Clear Admit’ at your dream school. Also, consider reading the Clear Admit School Guides. If you’re just getting started, save time navigating schools’ websites by downloading our free School Snapshots for objective overviews of top programs.
This article has been edited and republished with permissions from Clear Admit.
Foster School Offers Tips for their TMMBA Admissions Essay
Writing an admissions essay is never easy. And it can be especially daunting for students applying to unique MBA programs such as the Technology Management MBA program at the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business. That’s why executive director Tracy Gojdics decided to share some of her top tips on how to approach this portion of your admissions essay.
Gojdics provided her advice in a short video on the Foster School website. In the video, she reminds students that the essay is a chance for self-reflection and an opportunity for the Admissions team to get to know you better. She also offered the following tips.
Admissions Tip: Reapplying to Business School
With many MBA programs getting close to being ready to release their final round decisions, the application season will soon be coming to a close. While we would like to hope that today’s topic isn’t apropos for too many of our readers, we wanted to offer some advice to applicants who’ve been rejected from their preferred programs and are planning on reapplying next season. While it’s important to take some time to deal with the disappointment, it’s never too early to begin thinking about the next season, and there are a number of steps you can take to improve your candidacy and move toward a stronger application.
What MBA Admissions Directors Really Look For
For anyone familiar with the academic admissions, regardless of what kind school they may be applying, there are always changes to the process. And for MBA admissions directors, the new criteria for who they want next is also part of the changes.
Admissions Tip: Background Checks
With a slew of schools releasing their R1 notifications just before the holidays, we know that many of our readers will be asking about the background checks conducted by leading programs. Here are some quick facts to help explain the process:
