Comparing The U.S. News Full-Time and Online MBA Rankings
When it comes to business school rankings, U.S. News & World Report issues one of the most comprehensive annual lists. The annual rankings includes separate lists for the “Best Business Schools” and the “Best Online MBA Programs,” but deciding which format is right for you can still be tricky. Continue reading…
Admissions Tip: Clearing Up the Background Check
With a slew of schools releasing their R1 notifications, 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:
1. What are background checks?
Background checks involve the verification of information that a candidate has provided in his or her MBA applications. Although the process varies from school to school, it usually includes checking that an applicant attended the undergraduate (or graduate) school(s) that he or she claims to have attended, received the grades indicated and earned the GMAT score reported. It also involves the verification of the candidate’s employment history, job titles, starting and ending dates and salary/bonus information. Finally, some background checks involve contacting recommenders to verify their support and confirming applicant involvement in community activities.
2. Do all schools conduct background checks?
When do they do this? How do they have time? Many of the leading MBA programs like to verify the information that has been provided by applicants. This is typically done only for those applicants who are admitted, since there is no sense in expending resources to verify information for applicants who do not make the cut. Most background checks occur in the spring – after decisions for most rounds have been released and students begin sending in their deposits. In many cases, the schools outsource this function to a professional risk consulting firm like Kroll.
3. Why bother with background checks? Don’t the schools trust me?
The purpose of background checks is to protect all stakeholders of the MBA program (students, faculty, staff, alumni) from those who would falsify their backgrounds to gain an unfair advantage in the admissions process. Some schools opt to investigate the backgrounds of a relatively small sample of randomly selected admits, hoping that the mere possibility of a check will give applicants incentive to be as honest as possible. In a way, this measure therefore serves to increase the adcom’s trust in its applicants.
4. What about very minor discrepancies?
It’s natural for admitted applicants to get anxious at this point in the process, wondering whether their offer of admission might be rescinded if, for instance, the “start date” for an old job is one week earlier than the start date that HR reports during the background check. The good news is that most schools report any discrepancies back to the applicant and give them a chance to explain a plausible mistake. Having said that, it of course makes sense to do your best to verify all of your information before applying to school, so that you can be certain that the data you report is accurate. Should any potential issues come to mind after submitting, you might consider preemptively contacting the adcom if the error is serious enough.
5. Won’t the background checking process alert my employer to the fact that I am applying to b-school?
Since the process typically takes place long after you’ve been admitted, this ideally won’t be an issue, as most applicants give their employers ample notice and take some time off before school. Having said that, the schools still try to conduct the checks in a discrete fashion, consulting with your HR department to verify your dates of employment and salary – but not necessarily revealing that you are heading to business school.
6. How can I ensure a smooth background check?
While the obvious answer is to be honest in your applications, it’s also important that you don’t fudge anything out of laziness (a common occurrence). Dig up those old W-2 forms or check with former employers in order to present the committee with the most accurate information you can.
Stay up to date with all of our latest MBA admissions tips here.
This article has been edited and republished with permissions from our sister site, Clear Admit.
The Secret to Writing a Successful MBA Career Goals Essay in 2018
The MBA application essay is still the most feared part of most applications. Whether you have to write 1,000 words or just 500, saying everything you need to say in a concise, intelligent, and appropriate manner isn’t easy for everyone. In fact, it can be incredibly frustrating. And while every school asks different essay questions, there’s one question you’re almost guaranteed to see, “What are your short-term and long-term post-MBA career coals and how will School X help you achieve these goals?”
The career goals essay is one of the most common and also most difficult essay questions. On the surface, it seems simple, but there’s a lot of work required if you want to wow the admissions committee (adcom). It all starts with the question.
Breaking Down the MBA Career Goals Essay
Before you can write your career goals essay, you have to break it down into digestible and answerable pieces. There are six pieces to the career goals essay that you’ll need to consider before you begin writing.
1. Where are you now?
Before you can talk about your goals, you have to know where you are now and so does the adcom. This means that your essay will need to concisely describe your current position so that you can better explain your goals.
2. What are you short-term goals?
Short-term and long-term goals are not the same. Short-term goals refer to your immediate plans after graduation. Is there a particular industry where you want to work? Do you have a job or promotion in mind? Where do you see yourself in the immediate months post-MBA?
3. What are your long-term goals?
Long-term goals take a little more thought. You might not be as specific about companies or job titles when talking about your long-term goals, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have a plan. Think about where you want the MBA to take you in ten or twenty years.
4. Why will an MBA help?
Next, you need to discuss how an MBA will help you achieve both your short-term and long-term goals. You’ll need to discuss technical skills, analytical skills, focus areas, and more.
5. Why is the School vital?
You need to make your essay personal. Not just any MBA should work for your goals. You need to explain specifically why School X is vital to your success. Get as specific as possible.
6. Why now?
Finally, you need to discuss why NOW is the best time to get your MBA and pursue your goals. Make a case for why this year, this class, and this moment are vital to your life.
Writing the MBA Career Goals Essay
Now that you know all the components of the essay, it’s time to start writing. To successfully answer the question, there are a few things that you need to keep in mind.
Be Specific
You need to be as specific as possible when answering each of the six parts of the question. MBA adcoms want to see that you have a specific direction in mind and that you have valid reasons for your choices. If possible, you should be able to specify your preferred industry, job function, skills, ideal company, and more.
For example: Talk about how you want to move into a career in Finance and gain a job at Goldman Sachs. Then, talk about how the MBA will help you gain technical skills in Finance and Accounting as well as analytical skills in Corporate Strategy and Strategic Planning. Finally, discuss how the case competitions at School X, as well as the MBA Finance Club, will prepare you for this career field.
Be Realistic
Adcoms want you to dream big, but they also want you to be realistic. There’s nothing impressive about an MBA career goals essay that describes a future path that is unreachable or illogical. Unrealistic goals will not serve to demonstrate that you’re ready for an MBA. Instead, you need to walk the fine line between thinking big and demonstrating that your career path has been well thought out and planned. Look up hiring trends, services, organizations, market status, and competitive concerns within your desired industry and companies.
For example: It’s okay to talk about your goals of managing a billion dollars, but you should indicate that this is a long-term goal, and you have a plan to reach it. Go step-by-step to illustrate that you know what it takes to reach your high aspirations by first talking about starting as a Finance Manager and slowly working your way up over twenty years.
Be Genuine
Adcoms can smell BS. You have to convince them that you are genuine in your interest of not just the MBA but of earning an MBA from School X. Take time to do your research and dig deep for those specific offerings from the program that will best serve you and your goals. If you can name specific classes, on-campus impressions, or information you’ve learned from alumni to demonstrate your genuine desire for an MBA, you’ll be in a much better place.
For example: Set up an interview to talk with an adcom or alumni before you write your essay. Then, during that interview, ask questions that will give you the information you need to beef up your essay. If you can talk about how an alum took the same career path and succeeded, you not only demonstrate your interest but your keen intellect.
Be Clear
Finally, make sure you write an essay that is clear and easy to read. Don’t worry about crafting the next great American novel. Instead, focus on answering the question as simply as possible and including all the necessary pieces. This is not a creativity contest. Instead, create a simple outline that you can fill out to answer the six components of the essay.
For example: You should write out the six questions (career analysis, short-term goals, long-term goals, why MBA, why School, why now) and come up with your answers separately. Then, once you have the outline and all the pieces, compile them together into a cohesive story. Don’t try anything fancy.
Stay up to date with more of MetroMBA’s vital essay and admissions tips here.
Admissions Tip: Round 1 Rejection Reflections
Last week a number of programs, including Wharton, Michigan Ross, and MIT Sloan, sent out interview invites to their Round 1 candidates. These invitations came on the heels of similar updates from the likes of Harvard Business School and Chicago Booth. As a result, many candidates are now diligently preparing for interviews, having made it to the next phase of a competitive admissions process.
Rejected Without Interview
Of course, we recognize that not all applicants are so fortunate. And since we’ve published a great deal of content on interview prep of late, we’re turning the tables and dedicating this week’s admissions tip to those of you who haven’t moved forward.
The interview invite stage for Round 1 is the first signal as to your potential for attending a leading business school, and for a few, it can be a rude awakening.
If you have not yet received any good news, despite submitting applications in Round 1, you’ll want to read this post very carefully.
Reconfiguring Following Rejection
If there is any good news when it comes to being rejected in the first round, it’s that it’s still early in the application season, and not too late to readjust your strategy and target appropriate programs for Round 2. Round 2 application deadlines generally fall in the first couple of weeks of January, which leaves a little more than two months to prepare a new set of applications. It is also often the case, that your first applications are not the strongest. You learn through this process, and could potentially submit stronger applications for Round 2. Or it might be the case that you need to re-evaluate your goals, and then target a new set of programs that are appropriate for those goals. You could also adjust the competitiveness of the programs you target. So if you struck at all of your R1 targets, you may need to shift your target to slightly lower ranked programs.
Rejection Reflection
You also might want to take a hard look at what the schools which chose not to interview you, might have found lacking. If it’s your GMAT score, you have two months to try to remedy it. If you failed to make a compelling case for the degree or to properly showcase your experience in your essays, it might be a good time to get a fresh perspective from a third party on your materials. If your recommendations may have been lacking, speak with your writers or seek out new colleagues who might be able to better support your candidacy.
Of course, if there isn’t something as tangible as a poor test score, shoddy essays, or subpar letters of recommendation, you may need to take a longer view. For instance, if you lack professional experience, leadership accomplishments, or outside activities, it might make sense to delay your MBA ambitions, and reapply in a following year. Reapplicants are generally looked upon favourably in the admissions process.
MBA Motivations
Finally, you might want to reassess whether the MBA is the right next step for you. Perhaps the admissions committees are doing you a favor, and nudging you in a different direction.
Chin Up!
There’s no doubt that receiving negative results can be painful, but it’s how you handle the situation that will determine your future. Don’t lose site of the fact that news of rejection(s) is actually useful feedback in a process that can be quite opaque. Take the feedback to heart, regroup, reassess, and devise a plan to help you reach your goals.
This article has been edited and republished with permissions from Clear Admit.
Finding Your Ideal Marketing MBA in Denver
Earning an MBA degree is one of the best things a professional can do at any level of their career to develop a rock solid foundation of business knowledge. This generalized education not only provides students with the facts and figures they need to start or run a business, but also with the ability to be effective managers and leaders.
While many students pursuing an MBA can appreciate the open-ended nature of the degree as it keeps a number of postgraduate opportunities open to them, others may look for a more focused direction. Luckily, many MBA programs offer concentrations or majors for the degree, providing students with industry-specific training without sacrificing the strong foundational knowledge offered by an MBA.
With a strong local economy and average salary significantly above the national average, the Denver metro area has been rated the fourth best city in the country for starting a new business. Whether you are an executive looking to expand their leadership opportunities or still early in your career, Denver could be the perfect place to earn a degree and grow in your career. And with the many specialization opportunities available at Denver business schools, students with interest in a field like marketing have numerous opportunities to expand their education.
Colorado State University College of Business
The Colorado State University College of Business offers an online graduate certificate in Marketing Management for students enrolled in any of the school’s MBA programs. In addition to earning an MBA and the core courses for the degree, CSU students can pursue an additional nine credits with a particular focus in marketing.
All of the courses are taught by faculty at the College of Business’ Department of Marketing and are offered online to offer students full flexibility. The curriculum for the certificate includes courses such as: marketing Strategy and Planning, Marketing Management, Consumer Behavior, and Strategic Selling for Business Customers.
University of Colorado – Denver Business School
Students at the University of Colorado Denver Business School can use their elective credits of their MBA degree to specialize in marketing. At UC Denver, the Marketing specialization provides students with the necessary skills and ability to manage a firm and build profitable, long-term relationships. And although marketing may seem a broad focus for a degree, students can consult with the university’s marketing faculty to help narrow their focus and select the electives best suited to their career goals.
Students will take their MBA core courses in addition to 12 elective credits for Marketing specialization courses. Subjects in the marketing specialization may include topics like: Marketing Management, Buyer Behavior, Customer Relationship Management, Services Marketing, and more.
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University of Colorado, Boulder – Leeds School of Business
At the UC Boulder Leeds School of Business, students can choose marketing as an area of expertise for their MBA degree. This program will help students prepare for a role in an ever-changing global marketplace, allowing MBA graduates to better navigate the unique challenges of markets and entrepreneurship throughout the world. By focusing their MBA in marketing, UC Boulder students will develop the necessary skills to serve in a variety of ways within the industry, from marketing management to new product development, or consulting.
The UC Boulder Marketing MBA offers a number of elective options that can help students further customize their focus in marketing, from courses like Market Intelligence, Pricing Strategy & Tactics, Integrated Marketing Communications, and Entrepreneurial Marketing.
University of Denver – Daniels College of Business
The Daniels College of Business MBA, ranked among the top 10 most innovative MBA programs in the country by Inc. Magazine earlier this year, is uniquely structured around four core business challenges. Categorized as an enterprise, social good, corporate and global challenge, students simultaneously take classes and work on the challenges, having the chance to apply immediately what they’ve learned.
Included in the Denver MBA’s structure are six electives, four of which can be focused in a particular area to comprise a concentration. For those interested in concentrating in marketing, Daniels provides the hands-on learning in subjects like Digital Marketing and Brand Management that will give students the skills they need to achieve success in the industry.
Finding The Best Toronto Accelerated MBA Programs
One-Year or Accelerated MBA programs give students the opportunity to gain the strong business foundation of an MBA education in half the time as a traditional MBA. Students in accelerated MBA programs can also reduce the overall cost of their degree while also minimizing the amount of time spent without earning a full-time income.
Last summer, we took a look at some of the city’s best accelerated program offerings. However, we have updated our overview, including more of our favorite Toronto school’s with uniquely exciting accelerated programs.
The Toronto Accelerated MBA Programs You Need To Know
Schulich School of Business – York University
The Accelerated MBA at York University’s Schulich School of Business gives students the chance to dive straight into the second year of their degree program. With the option to pursue the degree either full or part-time, students can complete the Schulich MBA in as little as eight months. The program is reserved for students who have completed either a BBA or BCom degree in Canada within the past ten years that is similar in structure to the BBA at Schulich, but students without this requirement may still be eligible for some form of accelerated degree.
DeGroote School of Business – McMaster University
The Accelerated MBA at the McMaster University DeGroote School of Business can be completed in as little as eight months if pursued on a full-time basis. Students in the accelerated program are exempt from first year MBA courses and will only pay half the tuition of the two-year program. The accelerated program is designed for students who earned an undergraduate business degree in the last ten years, maintained at least a B average in the final two years of their undergraduate degree, and have at least one year of professional work experience.
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Ivey Business School – Western University Canada
The One-Year accelerated MBA program at the Ivey Business School at Western University Canada is designed for ambitious students who want to further develop their leadership ability and accelerate their career. The Ivey MBA gives students real-world experiences through global learning opportunities and projects that provide hands-on business practice. The Ivey curriculum is centered around a unique case study method, which uses over 300 cases each year to allow students to practice real business challenges.
Rotman School of Management – University of Toronto
For advanced business school students with more professional experience, the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto offers a uniquely inviting One-Year Executive MBA; perfect for upper level managers looking to further develop their skills in management, decision-making and leadership. Within 13 months, the EMBA will provide students with hands-on leadership experience designed to change the way MBAs approach business and make decisions. The degree is also designed work around a student’s career, providing the opportunity for students to constantly be applying their education outside of the classroom.
Ted Rogers School of Management – Ryerson University
At Ryerson University’s Ted Rogers School of Management, students can select from a number of different formats in which to pursue their MBA. Students with a BBA, BCom or equivalent degree and at least two years of North American work experience have the option to earn their MBA in just 12 months. The Ted Rogers MBA program is centered around experiential learning, with events like Integrative Week/Weekend, allowing student work to be critiqued by industry professionals. Students will also be required to complete their final semester centered around real-world application of theory and analysis learned in the classroom through a capstone project and internship.
