The job description questions are direct and seek straightforward information. The reflective essays are where you show introspection and self-awareness – critical traits for global leaders. INSEAD also requires a video component, through which you can demonstrate your communication style in a spoken format. The school places a high value on verbal and interpersonal skills. After all, leading across cultures requires the ability to clearly communicate complex ideas in real time.

Above all, motivation is a theme that runs through INSEAD’s essays. The required essays are explicitly labeled “motivation” essays. Keep this concept front and center as you write. INSEAD doesn’t just want to know what you’ve done, it wants to understand why. What drives your decisions, your goals, and your growth? Think of the application’s written and video components as tools to showcase not only your communication skills but also your emotional intelligence, self-awareness, and purpose.

Ready to dive in? Let’s go.

Job Description #1

Provide a summary of your career since graduating from university, explaining the rationale behind your key decisions and career progression. Include a description of your current (or most recent) role, covering the scope of your work, major responsibilities, employees under your supervision, budget size, clients/products, and any notable results achieved. (500 words)

Job Description #2 

Describe your short and long-term career aspirations, including your target geography, industry, and function. How do you plan to bridge the gap between your current position and these goals, and how will INSEAD help you achieve them? (300 words)

These prompts are clear-cut, so be careful not to overthink your responses. INSEAD is looking for straightforward, concise answers when it asks you to (1) outline your career path to date and the reasoning behind your choices, (2) clearly describe your current job, (3) present your post-MBA career goals, and (4) explain INSEAD’s role in your achievement of those goals. The word limits are tight, so stick to simple, direct responses. There’s no need for deep introspection or extensive research; just answer the questions clearly.

Motivation Essay #1

Give a candid description of yourself as a person and a leader, emphasising the strengths and weaknesses you recognise in yourself. Explain how you are actively working on your development, sharing key experiences that have shaped you, providing specific examples where relevant. (500 words) 

This prompt is INSEAD’s way of asking, “Who are you, really?” Focus less on what you do professionally and more on your personality, values, and growth. This essay will reveal your level of self-awareness. How well do you understand your own motivations, behaviors, and blind spots?

Note that INSEAD asks for both strengths and weaknesses, plural. Make sure you address both. And don’t fall into the common trap of disguising a strength as a weakness (“I’m too detail-oriented!”). Be honest and authentic. A personal weakness – say, a tendency to avoid conflict – is valid as long as you’re actively working on it and can show growth.

Use brief, real-life examples to back up your points. Think about how a friend or mentor would describe you. What life events or turning points have had a lasting impact on how you view yourself and the world?

Your Essay #1 might overlap with your Essay #2, so think strategically. Review both prompts first, and map out your ideas to avoid repeating content.

Motivation Essay #2

Describe a highly stressful situation you faced and how you managed it. What did this experience teach you about yourself and your interactions with others? (400 words)  

This is INSEAD’s version of the failure essay. The school’s adcom is not concerned with the nature of the event itself; instead, they want to know how you think under pressure, interact with others, and most importantly, reflect on and learn from setbacks.

Don’t sugarcoat the situation. Be honest about what went wrong, what you felt, and how you responded. What did this experience teach you about yourself? What did you learn about teamwork, leadership, or communication?

A strong essay will demonstrate not only resilience but also humility and insight. Show that you’re someone who doesn’t just bounce back – you grow forward.

Motivation Essay #3

Is there anything else that was not covered in your application that you would like to share with the admissions committee? (Maximum 300 words)

This essay gives you the opportunity to share important information that adds depth or context to your application. You might choose to address a gap in your career or academic record, a significant personal or professional challenge, or a life event that has shaped your perspective or ambitions. You could also provide additional context that would help the adcom better understand your background or decisions.

Use this space thoughtfully, and avoid repeating content that appears elsewhere in your application, especially in your other essays. Instead, focus on providing new insights that will give the adcom a fuller picture of who you are, how you’ve grown, and what you will bring to INSEAD. There is no expectation that you disclose something dramatic – what matters most is that your response is authentic, relevant, and helps INSEAD understand your candidacy more clearly.

Video

After submitting your online application, you will receive an email from Kira Talent with a unique link to complete a video and written assessment. You must complete this step within 48 hours of your application deadline.

You will be asked four video questions. For each, you will have 45 seconds to prepare and 60 seconds to respond. The final question is written, with five minutes to submit your answer. The full assessment takes approximately 15–20 minutes.

The video interview is required; your application won’t be considered complete without it. And because you won’t know what the questions are in advance, you’ll need to be ready for anything. There are no do-overs.

This component is about more than just content, it’s also about presentation. INSEAD wants to see how you think and speak on your feet. The goal is to present yourself as thoughtful, clear, and confident rather than rehearsed or robotic. Think job interview: polished but authentic.

Practice helps. Try recording yourself answering random questions. Watch the footage and ask yourself these questions: Did I make my point? Did I speak clearly and with energy? Would I want to work with me?

INSEAD application deadlines 

Source: INSEAD website

**Disclaimer: Information is subject to change. Please check with INSEAD directly to verify its essay questions, instructions, and deadlines.***

INSEAD class profile

Here’s a look at a typical INSEAD MBA class (data taken from the INSEAD website).

Admits: 900-950 (two intakes, January and August)

Average age: 29

Age range: 23-35

Range of years of work experience: 3-8

Work or home countries: 75

Different nationalities: 90

Women: 38%

Primary student backgrounds

• Management consulting
• Financial services
• Corporate sectors 
• Technology/Media/Telecom

Related Resources

• Get into INSEAD, the Business School for the World, podcast Episode 520
• Best Strategy for Optional and Open-Ended Essay Questions
• Should I Use AI for My MBA (Grad/College) Applications?

The post INSEAD MBA Essay Tips and Deadlines [2026-2027], Class Profile appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

Here’s a look at eight MBA programs with especially strong consulting tracks and impressive placement rates at elite consulting firms.

1. INSEAD

With campuses in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, INSEAD offers a unique global perspective that is highly valued in consulting. The one-year MBA program is intensive, allowing students to quickly transition into the workforce. INSEAD’s strong network with leading consulting firms and its diverse cohort further enhance its standing in the industry. With 55% of the Class of 2024 hired into management consulting, INSEAD is a great option for individuals interested in this career path and looking for a global MBA program. 

2. Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University

Kellogg is renowned for its collaborative culture and strength in marketing and strategy, which are critical in consulting. The school’s emphasis on teamwork and strategic thinking aligns well with the demands of top consulting firms. Kellogg also boasts a robust consulting club and high placement rates at McKinsey, Bain, and BCG. Of Kellogg’s Class of 2024, a full 35% accepted jobs in the consulting field. 

3. Chicago Booth School of Business

Chicago Booth’s data-driven approach and analytical rigor make it an excellent choice for future consultants. The school’s emphasis on empirical research and quantitative analysis prepares students for the analytical challenges of consulting. Chicago Booth also benefits from a strong consulting club and an extensive alumni network in the industry. With 33.8% of the Class of 2024 entering jobs in consulting, Booth is an excellent program for prospective MBAs interested in this professional path. 

4. MIT Sloan School of Management

MIT Sloan’s focus on innovation and analytical problem-solving makes it a strong contender for aspiring consultants. The school’s curriculum includes a variety of consulting-focused courses, and Sloan’s Action Learning Labs provide hands-on consulting experience. The program’s graduates are well prepared for the strategic and analytical demands of working at the leading consulting firms. Of MIT Sloan’s Class of 2024, 32.1% accepted consulting roles. 

5. Columbia Business School

Columbia Business School’s location in New York City provides students with unparalleled access to major consulting firms. The program offers a strong consulting track and has a high placement rate at top consulting firms. In addition, its connections make it a prime choice for aspiring consultants, as proven by the 30.6% of its Class of 2024 who entered consulting roles. 

6. The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania

Wharton is known for its analytical rigor and strong finance program, which translates well into consulting. The school has a strong track record of placing graduates at McKinsey, Bain, and BCG. Wharton offers a dedicated consulting major and numerous consulting-focused electives. With 25.2% of its Class of 2024 accepting positions in consulting, Wharton is a great choice for candidates interested in the big three firms. 

7. Harvard Business School

Harvard Business School (HBS) consistently tops the various MBA program rankings and offers a strong pipeline to elite consulting firms. It boasts a robust consulting club, extensive alumni network, and a curriculum that uses the case study method exclusively – an approach that prepares students particularly well for the rigorous problem-solving component of consulting positions by simulating real-world problems. The latest HBS employment report backs this up, revealing that 18.0% of the Class of 2024 entered consulting. 

8. Stanford Graduate School of Business

The Stanford Graduate School of Business (GSB) emphasizes leadership and innovation, which are highly valued in consulting roles. The program’s smaller class size ensures that students receive personalized attention and forge strong relationships with faculty, which can be beneficial in securing career placements in consulting. In 2024, the GSB saw 14% of its graduates go into the consulting field. 

For aspiring MBAs who aim to break into elite consulting firms, an MBA from a top business school can be a powerful springboard. The leading programs offer unparalleled recruiting access, consulting-focused resources, and strong alumni connections, while equipping students with the analytical, strategic, and leadership skills needed to thrive in the industry. Ultimately, choosing the right MBA program means weighing each one’s consulting track record, resources, and network against your personal career ambitions.

Related Resources

• How to Write a Winning MBA Goals Essay: Tips to Clarify and Communicate Your Career Vision
• MBA Admissions Advice for Career Changers
• When the MBA Optional Essay Is No Longer Optional

The post Top MBA Programs for Consulting Careers appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

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Show Summary

In this episode of Admissions Straight Talk, Linda Abraham interviews admissions directors from MBA programs outside the United States to find out if there are any common threads among them. The guests on the show include representatives from Oxford Saïd Business School, INSEAD, NYU Abu Dhabi, and HEC Paris. The interviews cover various topics such as program overviews, admissions processes, and common applicant mistakes. The interviews also touch on language requirements, the role of the video interview in the evaluation process, and the importance of holistic review in admissions decisions. Overall, this interview provides valuable insights into the unique aspects of these MBA programs and shed light on the similarities and differences among them.

Show Notes

Welcome to the 572nd episode of Admissions Straight Talk. Thanks for tuning in. Before I turn  to today’s show, I have a question for you. Are you ready to apply to your Dream MBA programs? Are you competitive at your target schools? Accepted’s MBA admissions quiz can give you a quick reality check. Just go to accepted.com/mbaquiz, complete the quiz, and you’ll not only get an assessment, but tips on how to improve your qualifications. Plus, it’s all free. .

If you are a regular listener, you know that during most episodes of Admissions Straight Talk, I interview a guest, frequently, an admissions director or dean. Usually, our guests are leaders at a US graduate program. However, within the last couple of years, I have had the privilege of interviewing several deans or directors from programs outside the United States. Today we’re going to take specific excerpts from four of those episodes and let you determine if there are some common threads and of course, how they differ.

Today’s episode is a collection of their answers to admissions questions as well as insight into their programs. The guests on this program are:

• Hannah Griffiths, MBA Recruitment and Admissions Director at Oxford Saïd Business School
• Teresa Peiro, Associate Global Director of Admissions and Financial Aid at INSEAD
• Dr. Robert Salomon, Dean of Stern at NYU Abu Dhabi
• Sara Vanos, Executive Director of Marketing and Admissions at HEC Paris.

I’ve asked some questions of almost every admissions director I’ve spoken to, so the responses that you’re going to see, again, represent a sample. In any case. Let’s start with Hannah Griffith of Oxford Saïd Business School. 

Oxford Saïd Business School

While Saïd is a fairly new and very innovative MBA program, Oxford is the oldest university in the English-speaking world, and Hannah provides the following:  An overview of the Oxford Saïd MBA program, focusing on its more distinctive elements; insights into the program’s admissions process, and a review of common misconceptions about Oxford Saïd.

Can you give us an overview of the Oxford Saïd MBA program for those listeners who aren’t that familiar with it, focusing on its more distinctive elements? [2:32]

[HG] Yes, absolutely. So the Saïd Business School is a business school that is embedded within Oxford University. Our MBA program is a one-year MBA program, and given that the business school is embedded within a world-class university, that does impact the MBA experience in a number of different ways. One of those ways being that the students can expect, in the one-year program, a lot of academic rigor. Our program is an intensive one-year MBA, it aims to include everything that a candidate would maybe anticipate finding on a two-year program, but packed into a 12-month period.

The main aim of the business school and of the MBA program is to prepare our students to be responsible business leaders and individuals who, as they move through their career in the future, are prepared to tackle world scale problems, challenges, and to really see business as a vehicle to drive change. And be that within the organizations that they work in, the sectors that they choose to work in, in their communities, and sometimes on a larger scale in the countries that they choose to be based in.

In addition to academic rigor, there are some other things to highlight that students could anticipate finding on the Oxford MBA, an incredibly diverse cohort. So our student body is largely international, our current class is 94% international, with 71 different nationalities represented across the class. And diversity of thought is something that’s very important to us on the Oxford MBA, as well. So we have a very broad range of different sector backgrounds represented in our cohort, that also means that students can expect a diverse range of career outcomes, and also a global alumni network that will be very far-reaching in terms of its depth and breadth, as well.

And obviously access to the greater Oxford community network, correct? [4:58]

[HG] Yes, absolutely. Which largely comes via their college membership while they’re with us in Oxford, but in terms of that alumni network, absolutely. They gain the benefit of having a network that they will have via the business school, and then obviously, another network that comes via the university as well.

What don’t people know about Oxford Saïd that you would like them to know, or what’s a common misconception about Oxford Saïd that you’d like to correct? [5:19]

[HG] That’s a really great question. So I would say that the school is probably best known for its focus on social impact, and its focus on entrepreneurship. So students who research the business school, and research the MBA, those are the two main areas that will stand out to them, in terms of what the school focuses on. So I would say probably a misconception, as a result of that, is that the MBA at Oxford isn’t for you if you are a finance professional, or a consulting professional, or somebody who’s maybe looking to move into one of those two sectors after the program. And actually, the reality in terms of the makeup of our cohort and in terms of the sectors that our students go on to work in after the MBA, those two sectors are actually quite well represented. So about 45% of our class will come from those sectors, in advance of doing the MBA, and about 50% of our class will go on to work in those spaces after the program.

There is large numbers of, or large aspects of the program, in terms of the curriculum itself, but also in terms of the co-curriculars that are designed to support students who are looking to move into those spaces. So obviously, in terms of the core courses themselves, there’s a large number of those that are finance-focused. So for students who are maybe looking to pivot into that space, there is the opportunity to really study those subjects in depth on the MBA. One of our most popular co-curriculars on the Oxford MBA is our Finance Lab, which students, again who are interested in either accelerating their career in finance, or moving into the space, really, really benefit from. Similarly, with students who are looking to maybe pivot into consulting, I mentioned the strategic consulting project already that they can do in the summer semester. Our career development center also run a consulting development program throughout the academic year, to support students who are looking to move into that space.

And certainly, in terms again of the finance focus, we have some world renowned finance faculty at the business school as well. So I would say that’s probably the more common misconception, is that maybe if you are somebody who isn’t interested or doesn’t have experience of social impact or entrepreneurship, that maybe Saïd is not for you, and the case is actually quite the opposite. We do have a focus on both of those areas, but we equally have a focus on finance consulting, and a number of other industries as well.

Let’s move to admissions. Saïd asks for a transcript, test score, a one-page resume, two references, a supporting statement, and then an online assessment before it starts evaluating the application, and deciding whom to interview. What happens after the applicant hits submit, and takes the online assessment? [7:58]

[HG] I’m sure there are lots of people who actually wonder this. It’s a really good question. So once the applications come through to us, they are processed by members of our team, that usually can take kind of the two to three week period, depending on what stage of the application process we are at. And once they have been processed, their application will then be reviewed by the admissions committee. It will be reviewed twice, by two individual members of that committee, and it will then be reviewed a final time by the more senior members of that admissions committee, before a decision is made on whether or not that candidate will move through to interview.

The applications at Oxford are really, really viewed holistically, so there’s not a particular component of the application that holds more weight than others when we are reviewing the applications. But all of the different components are taken into account, and we’re really trying to get a sense from someone’s application of who they are as an individual, and what they could add to the cohort if they were to be admitted. So yeah, essentially that’s it. That process, in terms of review, usually again takes between two to four weeks, depending on the stage deadline that we are at. Students will then be informed if they have been selected to move through to interview and then that process will run usually, again, for about three to four weeks before students will learn if they have been successful, and have been admitted to the program.

What else are you looking for? [9:53]

[HG] Yeah, really good question, and definitely I would say to anybody who has that concern, particularly in relation to GPA, which people will reference often. Do not let that be a barrier to applying for an MBA, and also try not to spend too much energy worrying about it, because the GPA is the one component of the application that candidates can’t influence. It’s the score that they have. They’ve completed their degree, and so essentially, if they have a concern around that area, I would say the best mindset to have is, how you can focus on the other components that you can still control, and make sure that they’re really strong so that they essentially outweigh any concerns that you might have about your GPA.

I would take a similar approach with the GMAT, to be honest. So, it is an important aspect of the application, but essentially what we’re looking to see via your GMAT score, is that you are somebody that would be able to cope with the academic rigor of the program, particularly with the quantitative element of the program. But there is a broader range of scores represented across our class than candidates would often anticipate, and students who come through with a lower GMAT score are people who demonstrate strength in other areas of the application. So that’s sometimes via the work experience that they’ve had across their career to date, they’re individuals who are able to show us that they’ve enjoyed good career progression, and that they’ve maybe had good international exposure across their career to date, that they’ve had leadership opportunities that they’ve been able to embrace. The personal statement that they can write really allows them to give us a sense of their individual story. So again, we’re really looking for authenticity, to try to get a sense of who somebody is via the application.

And then similarly, through the online assessment, which I think is a really key component of the application in terms of showing the committee a little bit more of your personality. It gives us a sense of your communication style, of the experience you have that you might be able to draw on, and share with your classmates if you were part of the program. And all of those things are of equal importance to us when we are deciding whether or not it’s somebody who we would want to put through to interview, and ultimately admit to the class.

Why do you need both the online assessment and the interview? [12:05]

[HG] Yeah, really good question. And sometimes candidates do assume, I think because we have the online assessment, that it has replaced the interview, so it’s good to clarify that it definitely hasn’t. The online assessment is brief, in terms of the amount of information students can provide. So it involves them video recording answers to three questions, but those answers are 90 seconds or 60 seconds in length. So it gives us a taste, maybe, of what that individual might be like, but probably doesn’t give us enough of a sense of their personality, and how they might be within the cohort.

The interview also allows us the opportunity to just explore some of the other components of the application in a little bit more detail, so particularly, the career plan is something that we will talk to candidates a lot about at the interview. And also, as I said, really just trying to get a sense of who they are and of what they might add to the cohort.

And similarly for candidates, I think the interview is a really important part of the process, because it’s their opportunity to maybe learn a little bit more about whether they think the business school is the right place for them. We’re very aware that a lot of candidates who apply to the Oxford MBA are applying to a number of other business schools as well, and so the interview processes and opportunity for them to try to get a sense of, “Okay, is this a business school where I would fit? Is this a program where I can really benefit, in terms of my future aims, and the career outcomes that I’m looking to achieve?” And so the interview, I would say, is maybe more conversational sometimes than candidates would expect, and it does really give them that opportunity to make sure that the business school might be the right place for them, as well.

INSEAD MBA Program

For a different perspective. Let’s hear from INSEAD’s Teresa Peiro. Here are the topics she addresses: an overview of INSEAD’s MBA program, INSEAD’s language requirements, and what INSEAD is looking for in MBA applicants.

To start, can you give us an overview of INSEAD’s MBA program for those listeners who aren’t that familiar with it? [14:03]

[TP] Yes, of course. Our MBA program is a 10-month program that brings together around a hundred nationalities per cohort. You can either start in January, or in the August intake. It’s a very intense program. It’s shorter, but our participants make the most out of it, and we commonly hear all of our alumni saying that it was the best years of their lives.

INSEAD has three full campuses, and several partnerships with both US programs, in CEIBS, in China. How do most students take advantage of that geographic diversity? I mean, it’s already intense, right? If it was 10 months in Fontainebleau the whole time, that would already be intense. But if you have all this, other options, how do they do it? [14:37]

[TP] Indeed. So our applicants have to make a decision of which will be their home campus. So what is their core courses, they will have to stay in their home campus. After that, when the electives start, they can either change campuses, so if someone starts in Singapore, they can go to Fontainebleau, and vice versa. And then we offer different partnerships, as you mentioned, with different schools in the US and China. So what happens is that they can go to that school, while they’re in that school, they’re like full students from the welcoming school, and they spend their period there, and then they come back to INSEAD. 

Where are the three campuses, again? [15:36]

[TP] So we have three campuses: Fontainebleau, Singapore, and Abu Dhabi. And we opened, pre-COVID, a San Francisco hub.

Where are the partnerships? [15:54]

[TP] The partnerships are with Kellogg and Wharton, in the US, and with CEIBS in China.

When you talk about your home campus, how much time are you required to spend there? What do most students do? [16:02]

[TP] It depends more, per class, so there’s not statistically, something consistent. They have to stay for the core courses for the first period, they have to stay where they decided to apply to. Because we consider that that part is the most intense of the program, because they have all of these classes and all the exams, and it’s like the core, and they have to stay focused where they are. And then, switch campuses.

So it’s super interesting because now for example, for instance, we welcomed those who started in Singapore, and they arrived to Fontainebleau, and it’s like they discover a new school, it’s like a new campus. And they get to see other participants that started here in the program, and they have moved, or those who came with them. So I find it very vibrant, the campus exchange moment, because the campus is full of suitcases, and they’re coming in and out. And they see new faces, and you see how, “Oh, I connected with you when we were applicants, and now I see you here.” It’s a good sense of community.

In terms of the partnership schools, is the 10 months divided into semesters? Or, you mentioned periods, how does that work? [17:10]

[TP] There are periods of two months. Five plus P0. P0 starts before they arrive to campus. So we’ve got P0, and five periods.

Could you review the language requirements, both at entry and graduation, for INSEAD participants? That’s a very distinctive aspect of the program. [17:35]

[TP] Yes. And you know what? It’s one very near to my heart. So as you know, or maybe you don’t. INSEAD was founded by Georges Doriot, who was a French Harvard professor. At the beginning, all courses were taught in those three languages. So German, English and French, which were the languages in Europe. We’ve been adapting to the different times. English has to be validated, either by your native language, or by other means of assessment. We need to ensure that every MBA or every student in is going to be able to follow the class, and make the most out of the program. So English has to be validated. If it’s your native language, we will not question it, but then you will have to validate the second language for INSEAD reasons.

How do you validate? [18:38]

[TP] So if English is not your native language, you have to validate it. So there are different criteria. Most common are, you need to have, your whole degree has to be taught in English, and it has to be specified in your transcripts. Or, through TOEFL, PTE, or IELTS.

And if English is your native language, and your second language is French, for example, or Spanish. [18:58]

[TP] There are other tests, they are local. So there are national tests that we accept – many of them, but there are many different experiences. For example, a TOEFL is only two years, and each test has a different experience and date. So we will look at that very closely for your second language, if English is your native language. And for instance, if you for example, hold your bachelor’s in Spanish, it would be validated, too. The second language is like a C1, so it’s fluent that we require, and it’s an admissions requirement.

Now for the third language, it’s an exit language, so you need it to graduate. And we do not give the diploma if you have not validated your third language. Knowing that, the level that we require is much lower. It’s an A1. When I’m talking to candidates or prospects, I always, always encourage them to get that language policy cleared before they start, because the program is very intense. And they prefer to invest their time with other things than learning the language. But for us, it’s like in our DNA, and this open mindedness and being able to make the most of this super international exposure, we want you to have these three languages with you upon graduation.

Would your entry-level requirement be that the person has speaking comprehension and speaking ability, and some writing ability, or fluent writing ability? And the exit requirement, what would that be? I realize there are stricter requirements, I’m just trying to make it a little bit easier to grasp. [20:43]

[TP] The second language is quite strict. You have to go through the three levels to be a C1, which is fluent. You have to be able to write. 

The exit language, which is A2, is more of a little bit of everything. So not very complicated sentences. You don’t have to be able to write a proper essay, but you would be able to write an email.

Now, INSEAD clearly lists its admissions criteria, and your website says their ability to contribute, academic capacity, international motivation, leadership potential. I’m sure you know this, you don’t need me to tell them to you. Where are you most likely to see those qualities in the different elements of the INSEAD application? [21:32]

[TP] It’s interesting, because when I’m running, I run application workshops very often. And I always, my first slide is with this, four pictures of these four admissions criteria. And I always tell them, “Whatever information you share with us, be sure that it falls in one of these buckets.” And a follow-up, of course is, “But what’s more important?” “No. I said it’s holistic,” and I’m always saying the same. I’m always sharing with people, “At INSEAD, we’re human beings behind admissions process. There are people reading applications.” And people are like, they begin this conspiracy theories like, “Oh, so you put our CVs in a scan, and they give you like…” “No. It’s nothing like that. It’s all about holistic, and we try to see everything.”

So we have a lot of essays, which we are aware, we know that we ask for many essays compared to other schools. But we really want to know. And it’s not only about us deciding if you are a good candidate for INSEAD or not, but if this is what you want, this is what you need to get wherever you want to go. So these four criteria, and that’s why we are so clear about it, they need to be covered in your application. It’s interesting because, as I think we’ll talk to the Kira video, but the pre-selection decision is purely based on what we’ve received in the application form. And we need to be sure that those four criteria are met.

Do you typically find, I would assume that academic capacity, you typically find in the transcript and the test score? [23:22]

[TP] Yes.

International motivation would probably show up in your resume and your activities, as well as the essays. [23:29]

[TP] International motivation is my favorite because it’s who we are. So international motivation is about us being sure that you’re not only going to be comfortable with such diversity in the class, but they’re going to embrace it. And that you’re going to be, and you know how much you’re going to learn from this diversity, and you’re going to make the most out of it. So we need to be sure of this, and how do we see it?

So the most common, and where most of our candidates really check those boxes is because they’ve gone through international experiences before, themselves. Either studying, either working abroad, and we do believe that this aspect in your life, it’s a big experience that makes you who you are, in a way. You’ve gone abroad, you’ve gone to a different culture, you had to adapt, you had to make some compromises, you learned so many things about it. 

So we get that from previous experiences. Also, in other cases, we have candidates that didn’t have the opportunity of living abroad, or having this experience. So we ask them to tell us how they’ve been in an international environment, and how they felt about it. So either you’re working in a country where there are many people from different nationalities, either you work in a very international company, and you have to… I was going to say deal, but you have to collaborate, and you have to interact with other nationalities from other countries. So that’s what we are looking for. So we do ask, in the essays, “What has been your experience?” And we also ask a detailed list of the international experiences you’ve had in the past.

In advising clients, we sometimes talk about multicultural exposure. So as you say, some applicants might live in a diverse country, in many different cultures, within their own country. It’s not homogenous, it’s a heterogeneous culture. [25:21]

[TP] And nowadays, most of the countries are like that. That’s why companies are always looking for people who are thriving in these kinds of societies.

And the ability to contribute, I would assume, also will come really throughout the application. [25:47]

[TP] The ability to contribute and leadership potential come a lot, also, through the essays.

The question is, “What is it that you bring to the class?” You want to be sure that when you raise your hand, you’re going to share experiences, share what you know, ask the correct questions. And those questions and those contributions are going to come from your past experience.

You mentioned the video a second ago. What is the role of the video interview in the evaluation process? [26:18]

[TP] We are very happy with the video. We love the video. And our message to candidates is always, “Be yourself.” So when I’m presenting these application workshops, I put a picture of Salvador Dali, who is one of our most well-known artists in Spain, because he was genuine. He was himself, and he wasn’t shy to show who he was. And it’s about that. I’m always telling, “We are not expecting you to be a BBC reporter, unless you were a BBC reporter.”

So don’t try to use those fancy words, or things that you think that are… But be yourself. So what we’re looking for here, the role is to see who you are, in a way, and communication skills. The video will reassure us a lot also on the English level, and the fluidity when people speak. I understand it’s stressful, so we always recommend candidates, there’s a practice part in the platform. I always say, “Practice, practice, practice.” There are four questions, and you’ve got 45 seconds to prepare, and 60 to respond. I strongly recommend candidates that they use those 45 seconds to work on their structure. What is it that they want to say? And then, be yourself. I always tell the story that we had a candidate who was a professional break-dancer, and he just went to the floor, and he danced. Amazing.

We loved it. It’s a great story. And this is because sometimes, and I understand the, “Oh, instead, I’m going to try to use fancy words.” No, because you’re going to lose the point of the video, which is, we want to hear you.

And that’s why we’ve got four questions. And I always say that we read applications to try to look into it and accept you, not to reject you. That’s why it’s important that you are yourself, because for the writing, we already have your essays.

Stern at NYU Abu Dhabi

Dr. Robert Salomon, as I mentioned, is the inaugural Dean of Stern at NYU Abu Dhabi, the newest program among the four. He answers questions about the program’s 12-month structure, NYU AD’s admissions process, and why Abu Dhabi, and why now? Let’s start with an overview of NYU’s Abu Dhabi MBA program. Can you please provide us with one? [28:41]

[RS] We are opening here a full-time MBA program. It’s going to be a 12-month accelerated MBA program that will run from January through December. And the first class will start in January of 2025.

You’re really just getting going. You’re not going to have a class this year, you’re just getting going for the following year, really. [29:22]

[RS] Right. We’ll start a year from January. Although the website is now live, the application is available, it can be downloaded, people can start it, and we are accepting applications now. The first deadline comes up January 15th, but people can start applying now.

It takes a while to put together a good application, so that makes a lot of sense. Is this program aimed for people in the Middle East, who want a US MBA? Or is it aimed for people anywhere in the world, who want to focus on business in the Middle East? What’s the goal of the program? [29:47] 

[RS] The program is for anybody in the world, and what we would like, however, is that people who are interested in the region, people who are interested in the potential of building a career in Abu Dhabi, in the UAE, places like Dubai or the broader region. So we’re happy to consider applications from anybody, anywhere, but we are hopefully going to be preparing people for careers in the region.

Now, that said, what people get in the classroom here isn’t going to be very different from what they get in the classroom in New York or in MBA programs elsewhere. They’re going to be prepared to be business leaders, and business managers, so they’re going to get the same kinds of core courses that they get in New York. We are bringing the same robust MBA program that we offer in New York, here to Abu Dhabi. And we hope that this program will be appealing to people the world over, not just in the region, but also beyond.

Will the professors be traveling from New York City to Abu Dhabi, or will there be online courses? Part of the robustness of the NYU program is the faculty. [31:00]

[RS] Yeah. And this will be an in-person program. At the moment, we don’t have any plans for online content. And just as we have a top-notch faculty, world-class faculty in New York, we will be building a faculty here in Abu Dhabi as well. So we will be hiring to the standards that we have in New York, the kind of faculty that we have in New York. Now, saying that there is from time to time, every once in a while, faculty might come over here and there to teach a specific course if they have a specific expertise, and they will offer that course here in Abu Dhabi.

In addition to that, we also have a module of the entire program. One module, or about two and a half months of the program, will take place in New York City. So students will be in New York during the summer months, I think it’s from the end of May to mid-August. They’ll be taking classes in New York and they will be taught by our faculty, our renowned faculty in New York City.

Will the program focus at all on the business of energy, since it’s going to be located in the Middle East, and specifically in the Persian Gulf? [32:15]

[RS] That won’t be a specific focus of this program. We will have several specializations in this program. So the specializations we intend to offer at the beginning include finance, leadership and strategy, technology innovation, and entrepreneurship/ marketing. And potentially, we’re also considering sustainability. So if anything, yeah, I mean there might be sort of a slight energy focus. But on the next wave of energy, sort of how do we transition into the next energy regime, away from fossil fuels, away from petroleum-based energy.

They’re preparing for a future without oil, without fossil fuels, and they are diversifying their economy now in order, so that once that day arrives when the last barrel of oil rolls off the assembly line, or however we want to describe that analogy, that they have other industries that are here, and vibrant, that can sustain the economy.

You mentioned that there are going to be roughly three months or two modules of the program in New York City. Can I ask why? [33:40]

[RS] Well we are a NYU program. We are NYU Stern, as well, and one of the reasons that we want to bring students to New York City is so that they get to know and make connections to the home university. So that’s part of it. So they get to know New York, they get to know NYU, they get to know NYU Stern.

The other piece of this is that this is a global degree program. This is a program that is preparing students to participate in the global economy. And what better way than to have them learn about the global economy, than to be not just in one singular place, but to also have a global experience. And for those in this program, that means not just being in Abu Dhabi, but also going somewhere else. And we have a campus in New York, with an outstanding faculty, a world-class faculty there. So why not bring the students there?

And that’s part of, if you look at many of our other programs at NYU Stern, they also have global components. And those global components are meant to prepare people for the realities, the business realities, of the world that they live in.

Also, New York City is one of the capitals of business in the world. [34:59]

Yeah, absolutely.

Are there any language requirements for NYU AD? Is Arabic something that’s encouraged, or required? [35:09]

[RS] No. All languages are encouraged. I think if you have the opportunity to learn another language, the answer should always be yes. I mean, that’s an amazing gift, and an amazing thing to be able to speak multiple languages. But there is no requirement at Stern at NYU Abu Dhabi, for people to speak anything other than English. And English, spoken widely, here in the UAE. Just about everybody speaks English, all the signs are in English, and the classes will be in English as well.

Okay, great. I noticed that NYU AD, like NYU Stern in New York City, NYU Stern in Abu Dhabi accepts many tests, and also offers a test waiver option. Who should seek a test waiver, and who shouldn’t seek a test waiver, in your opinion? [35:46]

[RS] I want to preface this by saying when it comes to admissions, I’m not an expert. I come from the program side. So I’ve been a scholar, I’m a professor, I’m a researcher. That’s my background. And I’ve come from running programs. I’ve been running different kinds of MBA programs for Stern, and master’s programs, and executive programs for Stern for quite a while. So I’m really familiar with the programmatic side.

I’m less knowledgeable when it comes to admissions kinds of things, but let me just try and answer the question as best I can, with the caveat that I may not… I mean, generally I think the answer I’m going to give you is accurate, but I want to just caveat it with, that I might be making some mistakes on the margins.

So when it comes to test waivers, the kinds of folks who should be seeking test waivers, I would say, are those who feel like they are well-equipped in the areas that are associated with an MBA degree. And what areas are those? I would say, if you have a STEM degree, if you already have a degree in engineering, where you can demonstrate… And you did very, very well in school, in your engineering program, and you can demonstrate that you performed very well, especially in your math classes. That would be the kind of individual who might want to request a test waiver. If you went to an undergraduate business program, and you’ve already demonstrated through your completion of that program that you can handle the rigors of an MBA program, because you already have the qualifications, and you did very, very well in your undergraduate business program. Those are the kinds of folks that should or could potentially be requesting a test waiver or might be granted a test waiver.

So basically, if you have sort of a STEM-y background, and your degree is from a widely respected, accredited university, and you’ve performed very, very well in the classroom, especially in your math-based classes. Those are the kinds of folks who typically qualify for test waivers.

What would you have liked me to ask you? [38:19]

[RS] I think one of the questions that I was thinking about in preparation for this is, why here and why now?

I mean, I think part of it is that if you think about Abu Dhabi, and again, going back to something that I mentioned before. Abu Dhabi is increasingly becoming a world capital that’s connected to other world capitals, and it’s connected to other world capitals more each and every day. It’s becoming more, as you mentioned, it’s becoming more of a finance capital. It’s becoming more of a sustainability capital. It’s becoming more of a business capital. It’s becoming more of a consumer products capital. It’s becoming a technology capital, it’s becoming a FinTech capital.

All of these things that the UAE, and Abu Dhabi in particular is investing in, because they see the need to diversify away their economy away from fossil fuels and towards a more knowledge-based, services-based economy. For us, when we were researching and thinking about this as a location, when you speak to companies and you talk to them and you say, “What is it that you need in order to accomplish these goals that you have?” We hear the same answers over and over and over again, which is, “We need people who have managerial skills.” You talk to even private or public employers here in the region, they say, “There is a need for people with managerial skills to help us with that transition, to be a part of that, to help propel it.” Ultimately, these are the folks who are going to become the leaders in this region, and they are going to be a part of that transition away from an energy fossil fuels based economy, towards this new knowledge-based, services-based economy.

So when we were thinking about it, what better location than to do that, right here? We already have a campus here. We’ve already built a stellar faculty here. We’ve been operating here for more than a decade, we know the market, and so we feel like now is the right time to be the first ones, the first top US business school to offer a full-time MBA in the region.

There’s tremendous talent here, too. There’s a lot of young people who have an incredible desire to upskill, too. So that was also part of it. So the employers are asking for it, on the demand side for our graduates, and on the supply side, the prospective applicants, the students really want it, because they see the need to upskill as well.

HEC Paris MBA

Finally, we have the most recent guest on Admissions Straight Talk,  HEC’s Sara Vanos, and she shares:

• An overview of the program
• An insider perspective of the admissions process
• What she feels are the most common applicant mistakes. 

I’d like to start with some general questions about HEC Paris, and then get more specific and focused on admissions for the full-time MBA program. Can you start by just giving us a very high level overview of HEC’s three MBA programs? [40:57]

[SV] Sure, I’d be happy to. So we have our full-time MBA program, which is a 16-month program, which can be residential. So we have on-campus housing, or you can live off campus. So that’s in our Jouy-en-Josas campus, which is quite close to Paris. You can do specialization, you can do electives, plus your core, plus all kinds of other sort of surprises and leadership activities. So that would be our full-time MBA.

Then we have our executive MBA, that can take anywhere from 15 to 21 months, because it’s part-time. It’s either modular or block, so you come on campus every two months, or you can do every other weekend in Paris. It’s typically for more senior professionals, so the average age is 40, usually some management experience. And then we have anything from directors to CEOs to CFOs in that program. So, a very senior crowd.

And then we have TRIUM, which is one of our flagship partnership programs. So it’s in partnership with LSC and also NYU, even slightly more senior profiles that join that program. And it’s really exciting, because it takes place in modules all over the world.

How long is that program? [42:27]

[SV] So usually that one is just almost 20 months.

Let’s zoom in on the full-time MBA program’s more notable and distinctive elements. Can you describe them? You’ve hinted at them a little bit. By the way, I once visited HEC Paris. It is gorgeous. Absolutely gorgeous. [42:34]

[SV] Yes, one, I agree. So I commute from Paris every day to go on campus, so it’s actually really easy to reach. And like you said, it’s beautiful. So it’s a wooded, private acres of a forest, tennis courts, a chateau of its own, and of course our other programs. But the one that we’ll zoom in on now is the MBA. So, a beautiful campus with a possibility to live on campus, which is kind of interesting and different because a lot of MBA programs, you’re kind of spread out everywhere. So we feel that having this on-campus housing really builds the community from day one, because you’re with about 80% of the students living in our residential housing, you can easily attend club activities, different community events. So you really foster that connection from day one.

If we start with kind of the curriculum or notable things there, I think the 16 months is really unique. So typically, you’re looking at an MBA, where do I do it? How long, my ROI, et cetera. So we’ve kind of found the sweet spot. So you can either do 12 or 16 months, depending on your intake. So it can be a little shorter than the longer programs, but you get all of the benefits of the longer programs. So electives, specialization, participation in our MBA Olympics, New Horizons, which is broadening your horizons and figuring out kind of how to anticipate trends. So that’s unique.

We have a pretty smaller class than, I would say, some of the larger class sizes. So usually, an average of about 300 students coming in two intakes, and you can start in September or January. So that’s also unique.

I think if we say, maybe one takeaway from these things I’ve kind of thrown out there, would be flexibility and customization. So I know that’s what a lot of people look for in their program. So whether it’s program length, how to specialize what you take, so we have these specializations, which electives. Where you live, if you live on campus, all of that really offers the flexibility to have a great experience.

What do you look for besides stats? You’ve mentioned a little bit, maybe you can just give a little more on that. [44:46]

[SV] So typically, we will assess everyone. So we’ll start by looking at their CV. So that’s one of the criteria. We’ll look at the GMAT, GRA test. These are things that kind of all follow and compliment each other. We look at previous academic backgrounds. So, which school did you go to? What did you study? And again, we try to tie all of this back to the motivation, so there’s a motivational paragraph where you get to explain what’s next, why an MBA? So we’re kind of trying to look holistically, as discussed. We looked at extracurriculars.

We also look at languages. So we think it can be interesting, even if you’ve just started to learn a language, if your goal is to work in France, it can be helpful if you’ve already started learning. It’s not necessary, but we do look at that in terms of, again, motivation, career desires, and outcomes.

We look at the essays, so we read all of the essays, and then discuss them. So sometimes things can jump out. Some of them are kind of creative. So I would say in there, depending on the essay topic, we’re looking for different things. The additional essay is something that maybe only 10 to 20% of students use, but it’s extremely interesting, because it’s where you can add anything that we might not have known about you. And it’s often where we learn something extremely interesting. So I would say that’s something to look at.

Where we also evaluate, but it’s at a later state, would be the interviews. So, how did it go with your alumni interviewer? How did the alumni interviewer rate your presentation? Because you have to make a presentation, the communication skills and motivation, et cetera. I think those are all of the main buckets, if I’m thinking through them.

There’s none that’s weighted super heavily. They’re all kind of pairing together, and matching together. And even if someone didn’t have the perfect application, because we discuss each and every profile in a jury of several members, there are other things that can come into play. So for example, our marketing or recruitment managers try to have a call or meet everyone that comes in the program. So it can be very interesting, because often they’ll add complimentary information that can boost, almost, if somebody forgot something and the marketing and recruitment manager knows they can also talk about their conversation, talk about things like that. So I think that’s also somewhere that can add value.

What’s the most common mistake that you see applicants making in the application process? [47:02]

[SV] Yeah, it’s a funny one. Usually we let it go, because it’s so common, but a lot of people will cut and paste essays, and keep the other schools that they’re applying to. It’s okay, because we know that they’re applying to multiple schools. But sometimes people will say, “I’m applying to HEC only,” and then they will cut and paste an essay and a CV where they cite another school. It’s the most common one. I think, for the admissions team, we are rather used to it. We know that it can happen. We know, “Okay, it’s an oversight. Maybe the person is not super detail-oriented,” but where it can have a larger impact is our alumni will have access to the application of the person who’s applied and moved into an interview round. So for, I would say our alumni, it’s a more big mistake because they want people who are diehard HEC, they want them to love HEC, to only be thinking about HEC. So, common.

Easy though, I think, for applicants to take a quick double check. Put a PDF of your application file, look the whole thing through, and just look for these very small but easy to fix things, I would say.

Yeah, and this is one of the things that comes up repeatedly from admission directors. My suggestion for applicants is, if you are adapting essays from another school, don’t cut and paste, number one. But if you are adapting essays from another school, when you start that process… Not at the end, when you start, do a find and replace. That way you will not miss it. Just do it at the beginning. Okay? Do it then, and it’s taken care of, you won’t be making the mistake that Sara just mentioned.

After listening to this episode, did you detect some common themes? 

What are the differences with US programs, like language requirements for some? Now it’s your chance, your opportunity to apply to programs that fit your goals, your needs, your finances, and your wants. And that is likely to want you. If you’d like help in presenting the best of the authentic you to any of these, or other top MBA programs in the United States or in Europe, or the EU, I should say. Please contact Accepted for guidance in presenting your best self, and polishing that gem of an application.

Relevant Links:

• Accepted’s MBA Calculator Quiz
• HEC Paris MBA Essay Tips and Deadlines [2022 – 2023] & Podcast Episode 565 with  Sara Vanos
• INSEAD MBA Essay Tips & Deadlines [2022 – 2023]
• NYU Stern MBA Essay Tips and Deadlines [2023-2024], Class Profile
• Oxford Saïd MBA Essay Tips and Deadlines [2022 – 2023] 

Relevant shows:

• How to Get into HEC Paris MBA?, podcast Episode 565
• Stern at NYU Abu Dhabi: A Full-Time MBA in the Middle East, podcast Episode 549
• How to Get Accepted to Oxford Said Business School, podcast Episode 457
• Get Into INSEAD, the Business School for the World, podcast Episode 520 

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The post So You Want to Do an MBA Outside the U.S. [Episode 572] appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

So, you’re considering an EMBA?

Congratulations on considering this next step in your educational and professional journey!

Yes, the road to an Executive MBA (EMBA) can be complicated and unwieldy – especially if you’ve been out of the academic loop for a long time. But on the positive side, I have worked with so many clients who have found the application process illuminating as they reflect on their careers, their lives, and their goals.

This ultimate guide for EMBA applicants covers these topics:

• What is an Executive MBA?
• Top EMBA programs
• Top EMBA program stats
• Five key qualifying factors that EMBA adcoms look for
• Getting going: Applying to EMBA programs
• Differentiating and distinguishing yourself: Essays are key
• Your EMBA recommendations
• Your EMBA interview

What is an Executive MBA? 

Essentially, all MBA programs are graduate programs in business administration for professionals who seek knowledge, skills, a credential, and/or a network to advance in their careers and maximize their business performance.

Executive MBA (EMBA) programs are MBA programs targeted to seasoned managers and entrepreneurs, typically in their mid-30s to late-40s (depending on the program), whose rise to senior manager level is imminent, who are already in senior management, or whose entrepreneurial venture is set to “scale” to a level requiring formal management expertise.

Almost all EMBA programs are part-time programs, but they vary in terms of desired or required length of experience. While their coursework covers the same topics as that of traditional MBA programs, it’s developed and presented with a higher-level perspective. 

A great benefit of EMBA programs is the chance to network and form relationships with peers from a variety of industries and functions at a career moment when a fresh perspective is highly valuable. These programs previously didn’t target career changers, but now they are increasingly used for that purpose and are adapting their career services and curricula accordingly.

Like everything in life, EMBA programs have their pros:

• Students can apply their learnings immediately at work.
• The breadth of exposure is valuable at a pivotal professional moment.
• The degree is a valuable credential. Having it on your resume will enhance your stature in the eyes of future employers, customers, and business partners.
• Having the degree could open the door to faster and/or higher-level promotions, thereby enhance your earning power.
• These programs facilitate moves from a technical management role to a general management role.
• There’s less focus on the GMAT, because many top EMBA programs don’t require applicants to take it.
• Because most EMBA programs are part-time, you can keep your job and salary.
• You likely won’t need to relocate, because many EMBA programs have classes only on the weekends.

And EMBA programs have their cons:

• There’s the challenge of simultaneously handling school, a demanding career, and personal/family responsibilities.
• There’s usually no formal recruiting for EMBA career changers.
• These programs tend to be expensive, so it’s important to accurately assess their potential value for you personally and understand your motivations for pursuing the degree if you are self-funding it.
• If your company is providing the funding, there is the ethical and perhaps contractual requirement to stay at that company for a given period.

MBA versus EMBA

Let’s say you are in your early to mid-30s; you are in middle management and have C-suite ambitions. You also have a fairly strong technical background. Should you apply for an MBA or an EMBA?

The answer, as with many things, is “it depends.” If you are in your early 30s and are in a middle management position, you might be better off with a full-time MBA. As someone in your mid-30s, you are at the upper limit of the age range for full-time MBA students, but you might still be considered too young for an EMBA, particularly if your positions have all been in middle management. You need to learn what the different programs are looking for in applicants to determine whether you qualify. Many EMBA programs prefer managerial experience, so it is important to keep that in mind. It also can depend on whether or not you are interested in changing industries or job functions to get to a C-suite eventually. A full-time MBA can advantage you if you are a career switcher, but if you are continuing on with your current organization or job function, an EMBA might make more sense.

Types of EMBA programs

While most full-time MBA programs have a similar duration and cycle, EMBA programs come in all types and sizes. 

Most EMBA programs offer multiple options for program schedules and formats, have satellite campuses, target geographically dispersed students, provide some form of global opportunities (which in turn often involve multiprogram collaborations), accept and provide options for self-funding, welcome entrepreneurs, and partner with EMBA programs in other countries. Given the increasing number of EMBA programs that offer spread-out schedules for their on-campus segments, applicants can pursue programs beyond their immediate locale. 

Here are two examples: The Kellogg EMBA program has a Miami, Florida, campus in addition to its home base in Evanston, which is outside Chicago, Illinois. The Miami program meets once a month, Thursday through Sunday, and the Evanston program meets twice a month, usually Friday and Saturday, each with different class schedules and “intensive weeks.” Another example is the Booth EMBA, located in London, Hong Kong, and Chicago. Students can apply to any location but are able to take classes at the other campuses during “international session weeks.” 

Another trend to note is that international EMBA programs are partnering up to provide a global education. Consider these examples:

• OneMBA is an international EMBA consortium that includes the Miami Herbert Business School in the United States as well as business programs in Mexico, Brazil, and China. 
• The EMBA-Global is a partnership between Columbia University and London Business School.
• The TRIUM Global EMBA is collectively offered by the London School of Economics and Political Science, New York University Stern School of Business, and HEC Paris School of Management.

And these are just three of many!

While it is exciting to have so many appealing options to choose from, this variety also means it’s important to (a) do up-front research to understand exactly which programs are the right fit for you and why and (b) articulate in your essays (and interviews) your fit for each particular program.

There is one more option, and it’s both narrow and highly competitive. These are full-time, one-year, executive-level programs, such as those offered by London Business School, MIT Sloan (Sloan Fellows MBA), and the Stanford Graduate School of Business (the MSx Program). The University of Southern California Marshall School of Business offers a similar program: the International Business Education and Research (IBEAR) MBA for mid-career professionals. Of course, the full-time nature of these programs undercuts their feasibility for the vast majority of prospective EMBA applicants, but for those who can take a year for an intensive, immersive, transformative experience, these programs are all outstanding. They are highly selective, feature an extremely accomplished global student body, and seek to train leaders who will shape their domains. They are also extremely attractive to international students, who find it more difficult (and expensive) to travel back and forth from their home countries to attend class. 

Top EMBA programs

Let’s zoom in on several top EMBA programs to see what their commonalities are and also what gives them their unique “personalities.” Understanding these points is critical to creating your most effective application – one that shows your fit with both the overarching purpose of the EMBA and with the specific program’s culture and values.

I’ll focus on five schools – three U.S. programs and two global/European programs. Keep a couple of points of context in mind: (1) The U.S.-based programs have many international students, address global business issues, and sometimes have overseas components, but they remain fundamentally U.S.-centric. (2) The two European programs, while based in the United Kingdom and continental Europe, are not Europe focused but truly globally focused.

Wharton EMBA 

This competitive EMBA program has three modalities: Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Global. The Wharton MBA for Executives is known for its flexible, comprehensive program, outstanding global network, and engaged alumni. With a basic schedule of every other weekend, the Philly and San Francisco programs attract top talent in each region. Both have highly diverse student bodies, which tend to be favored by dominant local industries/sectors (e.g., many finance and pharma professionals on the East Coast; many IT and healthcare professionals on the West Coast). Entrepreneurs have a strong presence in both programs, and particularly in California. The new Global Cohort offers blended learning with virtual synchronous classes every other week on Thursday evenings and Friday and Saturday mornings, along with five in-person residencies on either U.S. campus as well as in other locations around the globe. 

Wharton EMBA students tend to form close relationships with each other and to stay involved through the school’s many lifelong learning opportunities (including Global Forums).

Kellogg EMBA 

The Kellogg EMBA program is renowned for its emphasis on management training, and the program seeks candidates who already have some “seasoning” as managers. Kellogg is where they go to master the art and science of management. They acquire the know-how to manage complex organizations, navigate change, supervise people, handle uncertainty, and guide their career trajectories. 

The program offers two campuses: one outside Chicago (Evansville, Illinois), whose students meet twice monthly, and one in Miami, Florida, whose students meet once monthly and represent a unique international mix, thanks to the school’s close connection to Latin America. 

Kellogg EMBA students are functionally diverse, with strong representation from healthcare, finance, tech, consumer products, and, interestingly, government/nonprofit. 

MIT EMBA 

The MIT EMBA seeks experienced managers and entrepreneurs who have intellectual agility, inspire with vision, navigate change, execute for impact, and work skillfully with others. Beyond teaching requisite management and leadership skills, the program aims to provide a transformative experience for its students. As a result, MIT Sloan admits applicants who will be open to and able to take full advantage of the cutting-edge resources it offers in management, innovation, decision-making, and sustainability. Not to be confused with the MIT Sloan Fellows program, the EMBA is a 20-month program designed for mid-career working professionals. The Sloan Fellows program, as explained earlier, is also geared to mid-career professionals, but it is a full-time, one-year program. 

INSEAD Global EMBA 

To meet the needs and interests of hard-working, rapidly advancing business professionals from all over the world, the INSEAD Global EMBA (GEMBA) program has created a modular approach that is executed across three global campuses: France (Fontainebleau, outside Paris), Singapore, and Abu Dhabi. One of its four admissions criteria is International Outlook. This means more than overseas experience; it means a multicultural, global perspective. This criterion mirrors the International Outlook element of the GEMBA program – implemented through both program structure and classroom approach. 

Although classes are in English, native English speakers must demonstrate basic proficiency in a second language to graduate. However, most INSEAD GEMBA students speak at least two languages and often more even before they start. 

Overall, the program attracts a cosmopolitan, cultivated student body. Most students attending this program have often lived in multiple countries and speak multiple languages.

London Business School EMBA

With a deep focus on the practice of leadership and management, the LBS EMBA program is targeted to people preparing to advance to senior management in an established company, or to lead their own growing venture. Its two campuses are in London and Dubai; it is fully global in terms of student nationality, and it features international experiential opportunities, adapted, of course, to any limitations imposed by the recent pandemic. 

The LBS EMBA has a keen, practical focus on career management. It offers one of the most intensive and comprehensive career development approaches in the EMBA realm, with four major components: executive coaching, professional development, career development, and career coaching. 

Top EMBA program stats

EMBA program	Class size	Avg. age	Avg. work experience (years)
Chicago Booth	209	38	14
Columbia Business School (Friday/Saturday class)	214 (in 4 clusters)	33	10
Cornell Johnson EMBA (Metro NY class)	70-75	36	13
IMD Executive MBA	N/A	40	16
London Business School EMBA	45		13
Michigan Ross EMBA	116 (Ann Arbor + Los Angeles)	39	15
MIT Sloan Fellows	113	N/A	14.5
MIT Sloan Executive MBA	113	41	17
Northwestern Kellogg	N/A	39	15
NYU Stern	N/A	37	13
Stanford MSx	~85	N/A	12.9
UC Berkeley Haas EMBA	75	40 (median)	16 (median)
UCLA Anderson	150	N/A	15
UVA Darden Executive MBA	123	35	12.4
Wharton EMBA	278	37	13
Yale SOM Executive MBA	76	37	14

Five key qualifying factors that EMBA adcoms look for

As you explore your options and decide which programs you’ll apply to, keep in mind several “qualifying” factors that EMBA admissions committees want to see in you as an applicant. These factors will put you in the running for admission and make you a fitting candidate. I’ll elaborate on these qualities via five important questions.

Five questions to address in your EMBA application

1. Are your goals credible, and do they contain the right blend of feasibility and ambition?
2. Do you have the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in the EMBA academic program?
3. Will you contribute to the program (professionally and/or personally, during and after)?
4. Do you have the right level and amount of experience to fit the program (both its student body and its coursework)?
5. Do you understand the demands of studying while employed, and do you have a workable plan for fitting the EMBA into your life?

Throughout the application, but primarily through the essay(s), address these key questions: 

Are your goals credible, and do they contain the right blend of feasibility and ambition?

Appropriate goals will place you within senior or executive management, given that, presumably, you are already at the mid-management level or higher (or in a comparable position). If you are an entrepreneur/business owner, your goals should clarify not only your plans for the business but also how you envision your role evolving and broadening as the business grows.  

Most, if not all, EMBA applications require a goals essay or a similar Statement of Purpose/Intent. Be prepared to discuss your immediate/short-term, intermediate, and long-term goals. Not all goals essays ask for this breakdown, but many do – and even if a question doesn’t ask for it, it will hardly hurt to present such a progression, appropriately, for context. Having it clarified in your mind also helps you contextualize the phase you are addressing in the essay.

Do you have the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in the EMBA academic program?

Even if your goals are credible and appropriate, you will need a fundamental familiarity with business operations, plus quantitative skills to handle the coursework. Undergrad and/or grad transcripts will cover the quant aspect. 

But EMBA applicants who come from non-business sectors – education, government, clinical medicine, and nonprofit – have a higher burden to make the case (a) that they need business training specifically to achieve their goals and (b) that they understand and will make productive use of graduate-level business education. You can ask your recommenders to address these pointe and make sure to work them into your essays. 

If you lack quant coursework, I suggest taking a reputable online college course or two – and earn an A, obviously! Also, if you are taking a standardized test (not all EMBA programs require them), a relatively high quant score will mitigate this gap. 

Will you contribute to the program (professionally and/or personally, during and after)?

This is a three-pronged query: (1) Does the quality of your experience make it a potentially rich and valuable resource for you to draw from as a student in the classroom and on learning teams? (2) Do you have something to say (i.e., do you draw insight and meaning from that experience, and can you communicate it effectively)? (3) Are you a team player/collaborator? 

EMBA programs are learning communities and thus require willing contribution from students. While your recommendations can and should shed light on your prospective contributions both as a student and a graduate of the program, your essays will be the primary vehicle to communicate this information. 

Do you have the right level and amount of experience to fit the program (both its student body and its coursework)?

EMBA programs and their various subprograms/options are usually looking for specific amounts and levels of experience. And these two factors – amount and level – are interrelated. 

As for amount, some EMBA programs are open to “younger” applicants, those in their early 30s, while some have more stringent experience requirements or preferences, seeking candidates with a specified minimum duration of experience (overall or management experience). Look at the average ages and experience levels in each school’s student profile, and also probe programs’ websites for a “what we look for” type of section, usually found under the admissions tab, to glean the preferences of specific schools in this regard.

As for level, or quality, this should always include that you are a high performer – that you excel among accomplished peers. Aside from that, “quality” is open-ended, and the definition will vary greatly from person to person. It combines being impressive in some way and standing out in some way. For one person, it might be guiding a team or department through organizational or industry volatility; for another, it might be innovative leadership in a matrix organization; for yet another, it could be starting up a business or a division in a developing region. Examine your experience and determine what is most impressive, interesting, meaningful, and illuminating about it. That will reflect its quality.

Do you understand the demands of studying while employed, and do you have a workable plan for fitting the EMBA into your life?

Some EMBA applications (Columbia’s, for example) have an essay question specifically on this point. The last thing the adcoms want is for someone to leave the program before completing it or to attend without being a full participant in the learning community. And it’s very easy to underestimate the demands of studying and contributing while maintaining one’s professional and personal responsibilities. Whether in an essay or during your interview, demonstrate your time management skills, show that you have juggled multiple responsibilities effectively, and/or describe a concrete plan for incorporating school into your other responsibilities.

What are your career service needs? 

Given today’s volatile business climate, almost everyone in the professional world must continuously evaluate their career path, whether they are planning an imminent change or not. It’s an ongoing part of being a business professional. EMBA applicants who aren’t planning a career change still know that their well-laid plans can blow apart in an instant. And increasingly, applicants are pursuing an EMBA specifically to facilitate a career transition. 

To address this trend, EMBA programs have beefed up their EMBA career services and now offer career counseling and other related resources. 

These services and resources include various types of career coaching, self-assessments, and alumni networking and events. While career services are now common among EMBA programs, the line is often drawn at regular recruiting (a major draw of regular MBA programs). 

Before putting all the effort into applying, if this factor is important to you, look closely at what each program offers, and gauge carefully whether the available resources are sufficient for what you need.

Getting going: Applying to EMBA programs

The fun begins! Once you decide to go ahead with applying to EMBA programs, I suggest maintaining a steady momentum, if possible. Staying engaged will enhance the quality of your application and also enable you to – yes – enjoy the process, because you will be taking concrete steps toward an exciting experience and impactful career growth.

Here are some specific preparation steps EMBA applicants should take:

1. Plan to request scheduling accommodations at work for your EMBA.

You will likely need a company sponsorship letter (more about this later) agreeing to time accommodations, even if the company isn’t offering financial sponsorship. For some applicants, this is a “slam dunk,” because their company regularly sponsors EMBA applicants. For others, it takes some strategy and convincing. If you’re in the latter category, start strategizing and planning now to make your case to the decision-maker at your firm. I’ve seen people finish their entire application and then hit a red light at this very stage. Many EMBA websites have advice for applicants on how to make the case to their employers for the needed schedule adjustments.

2. Sketch out concrete plans to carve out time for school in your schedule.

Even if you plan to attend a weekend-only program, and even if you are without major personal obligations, you still can’t just add hours to a week on top of your current schedule without any change (and maintain excellence). Moreover, this accommodation might take some sensitive planning, given that it almost certainly involves other people. (Sometimes this can be a “plus” for subordinates; if you must delegate more, they gain the opportunity to shoulder higher-level responsibilities.) For your own sake and for the sake of your application (because you might have to explain this in an essay or interview), start this planning now.

3. Make sure that you and your recommenders are on the same page about your future.

If you’re planning to stay with your current company during your studies and after you complete your MBA, your company needs to be included in any discussion of your goals. Sometimes, recommenders comment on your future career (either on their own initiative or in response to a question). It’s not great if your ideas and your recommender’s ideas about your career differ!

4. Identify elements of your work that differentiate you and will allow you to contribute distinctively to class discussions.

Your current work scenario and your work situation over the next one to two years are what you will directly bring to the EMBA table. Look at your experience from the perspective of someone outside it; what would be most interesting and relevant? Plan to integrate those points into your application, in your essays, resume, and interview.

5. Review the standardized test requirements of your target EMBA programs, and start requesting undergrad (and grad, if any) transcripts.

The transcripts are straightforward. As for the test, the one most commonly used for EMBA programs is the Executive Assessment (EA), which is a shorter test than the GMAT and GRE. Happily, many top-notch EMBA programs require no standardized test, including those at MIT Sloan, Kellogg, NYU, and Michigan Ross. If your target programs do require an exam, definitely try some practice tests and dedicate the prep time necessary to get a good score, especially if you have a low undergrad GPA or you are really rusty at tests. Check the average or median scores for your target programs to get a sense of where you fit in that range and/or how much you must prepare to achieve a satisfactory score for your unique situation.

A word on company sponsorship requirements/expectations

EMBA programs usually require that applicants’ employers sponsor their candidates’ time in the EMBA program (because, for example, many require occasional Fridays off). But sponsorship can range from paying 100% of someone’s tuition (rare) to accommodating the individual’s need to take time away from work (almost universal). 

EMBA programs that require a candidate’s employer to provide a statement of support and accommodation for the applicant’s EMBA plans take this factor seriously. MIT Sloan’s extensive resources on sponsorship exemplify this point; the program offers in-depth information and support for both applicants and sponsoring companies.

Financial sponsorship can be a competitive plus for applicants, because it underscores their value and high potential in the organization’s eyes. But not having it is not a negative factor.

If you’re an entrepreneur, you basically sponsor yourself. Therefore, you must indicate how you’ll accommodate the time requirements of the degree program within the context of your organization. Fortunately, many EMBA program websites provide guidance on this point for entrepreneurs.

Sometimes, regularly employed applicants who are eligible for financial sponsorship prefer to self-fund because they do not want to be beholden to their organization but instead free to pursue other options. Even time sponsored can create an obligation on the applicant’s part. If that’s not desired, EMBA programs (such as Columbia University’s) that offer a Saturday- or weekend-only option might be appealing.

Differentiating and distinguishing yourself: Essays are key

After determining your schools of interest and your qualifications for those schools comes the biggest challenge: differentiating and distinguishing yourself. You must convey your uniqueness and value as an applicant in a way that is relevant to the EMBA program. Essentially, you must give the adcom reasons to select you from among other highly qualified, accomplished peers in similar industry, functional, and demographic groups.

While some differentiating factors might be apparent from your resume (e.g., if you work in an industry or function that is relatively underrepresented), the essays are where you can most vividly portray your distinctiveness.

There are three key avenues for differentiating yourself: 

1. Distinctive factual points

These are the unique facts of your experience, such as industry niche, pertinent experience (e.g., managing through a global merger), special challenges (e.g., dealing with heavily regulated industries), or an unusual organizational structure.

How do you determine whether an aspect of your experience is a differentiating factor? Dig past the topsoil. For example, it’s likely for any top EMBA program that a good percentage of applicants will come from the consulting industry, so that might not seem like much of a differentiator. But if you delve deeper into your consulting experience for the specifics (e.g., you consult on IT strategy for the defense sector), you’ll find details that are differentiating.

To get the most mileage out of a differentiating factor, don’t just include the factor in your essays, but provide illustrative detail about it and an anecdote to truly show how it is special, different, and relevant. (Let the reader really see it!)

2. Your individual perspective

Individual perspective is inherently differentiating. In most essays, you will reflect on your experiences to some extent. When discussing them, go beyond just highlighting the facts and accomplishments to also address the key learning, growth, and/or insight you gained from each change or important event (without relying on buzzwords). Also, clarify the decision process you underwent when taking career steps. Your individual view is naturally unique, even if the experience(s) you describe might seem commonplace. Do keep such perspective relevant; for maximum impact, it should align with your decision-making vis-à-vis your career path and/or goals.

3. Your goals

Your goals essay will be the backbone of your application. (Rather than a specific goals essay, some EMBA applications request a Statement of Purpose or Statement of Intent, which will typically include some discussion of your goals as well.) 

Depending on the wording of your target program’s goals essay question, for each phase of your goals addressed, discuss the following:

(a) What you expect to do at that level 

(b) How you hope to grow

(c) What you hope to accomplish (for the company and/or industry and/or market and/or consumers and/or community, and so on). This is about external, real-world impact.

This last point (c) is most important, because it’s what will get the adcom rooting for you. 

Provide specifics: titles or positions, markets, likely number of people to manage, budget size or P&L responsibility, and so on. Also describe how each given step builds on your previous experience.

How do you make your goals do “extra duty” by differentiating you? The best way is through the vision for what you want to achieve, what impact you want to have – see our earlier point (c). While other candidates might present similar goals, only you will present your specific vision. For example, if your goal is to become a senior manager at a major pharmaceutical firm, don’t just explain why this is a logical and likely step. Get the reader excited about what you want to make happen in that role. 

In summary, for powerful goals essays, keep three short words in mind: what, how, and why.

For more advice on how to write your school-specific EMBA application essays, click here!

Your EMBA recommendations

EMBA recommendations tend to be on the shorter side, considering that they are written by very busy people fairly high up the ladder. 

Here are a few tips for getting the most out of your recommendations overall:

• Select people who really know you and can write meaningfully about your performance and contributions. Your direct supervisor is a better choice in most cases than a higher-level exec with a fancier title.
• Give your recommenders a link to the program, especially to the program’s website page that discusses the desired attributes the adcom looks for in applicants. This will help your recommender identify the most relevant points to discuss that will enhance your profile for that program. (At this level, they should not be saying things like “hard worker”!)
• Give your recommenders a copy of your resume. This will serve to remind them where you were before (or have been since) your tenure with them and refresh their memory with respect to your quantifiable accomplishments. 
• Be available to answer any questions they might have about your plans for the program, the application process, and so on.
• Remind them of your deadlines, submission instructions, and any other helpful details. 

If you are currently working for one of your recommenders, that recommender might discuss your career development plan within the company, anticipated future roles/positions, and why you are targeted for those positions. (As noted earlier, these must be consistent with your stated goals!) You should be shown to be a high-performing, high-impact contributor who stands out from your accomplished peers.

If you are an entrepreneur, you obviously won’t have supervisors or superiors. Depending on your business, you could call on company peers, business partners, customers, and those with whom you have similar relationships as your recommenders. I have even seen some of my entrepreneur clients (who were accepted at top EMBA programs) use immediate subordinates. Although this wouldn’t be my ideal approach, it can work if done credibly, which means not just that the recommender is credible but also that they present a candidacy that conveys credibility and integrity.

Your EMBA interview

It’s probably been quite a while since you’ve had an interview – as the interviewee. Therefore, unfamiliarity with the situation could trigger nerves, even though overall, your interpersonal skills are top-notch. Moreover, if you’re applying to only one or two programs, each interview holds great weight – there’s no room for error!

These factors make it all the more important to prep and practice for your EMBA interview. Consider signing up for our Interview Assistance here.

At what point in the EMBA admissions process will you interview? 

This factor will affect your approach to and preparation for your interview. If you interview before submitting your application (as some programs request), don’t just jump into it without thinking through your “story” and your goals. What you write later in the application must align with what you say initially. If you interview after submitting, you’re immersed in your story, thanks to the app writing process. Be careful not to sound like you’re reciting your application. Your challenge here is to be fresh and engaged.

Is your interview blind or not? 

In a blind interview, your interviewer has not read your application, though they might have possibly seen your resume. For blind interviews, you’re essentially a blank slate to the interviewer. Your challenge is to impart a vivid, appealing impression that will leave the interviewer enthusiastic about you and your candidacy. If you’ve completed your application, you can use examples and stories from it, because they will be new to the interviewer. For non-blind interviews, expect questions that probe more deeply into topics you presented in your application, and try to not repeat examples from your essays. Make sure you have some new stories/anecdotes to offer. 

What types of questions should you prepare for?

You should be ready for anything. Still, there are certain types of questions that often are asked.

• Open questions such as “So, tell me about yourself” and “Please walk me through your resume” are common as openers. Actually, I suggest always preparing a “Tell me about yourself” reply – it requires you to identify key points about your candidacy, which helps you strategize overall. It’s a great interview prep exercise.
• Because EMBA programs are part-time, expect a question about how you will balance school with your work and life. Be specific. 
• For questions such as “What is your leadership style?” and “What are your strengths and weaknesses as a manager?” don’t just offer a response, but also give a brief example of how the qualities manifest in practice. Find examples and stories that show you in a high-level role and/or dealing with high-stakes issues.
• There might be behavioral questions, such as “Describe a time when [X happened].” These essentially require you to offer a story in response. Answer with enough detail to make your story meaningful and interesting but not too long. Ideally, select stories that reflect higher-level, higher-stakes situations.
• Goals questions are also common. Be consistent with what you have presented (or intend to present) in your application, and indicate why you want to pursue that path. Ensure that your motivation is clear. 
• You might also be asked to explain why you chose the program and/or why you need an MBA. Let your enthusiasm for the program show! Cite program details and connect the program to your goals and professional growth needs. If it’s a non-blind interview, bring in some fresh points not mentioned in your essay.

Beyond these, there are often questions about your industry, your function, your work culture, and similar kinds of topics.

With these factors in mind, strategize before your interview: Think about your candidacy and what further points you want to make. Then, during the interview, try to weave those points into your discussion. Use your social and emotional IQ to nudge the interview toward dialogue, rather than just interrogation-style Q&A. Most EMBA interviews are probing, but also enjoyable, conversations; you will do best if you look forward to an interesting exchange!

You can prepare for your EMBA interview by teaming up with me or another of Accepted’s consultants. Just a few mock interviews with a pro will give you the tools you need to walk into your interview with confidence, poise, and plenty of ammunition to launch a compelling dialogue with your interviewer.

Last but not least…

If our discussion of EMBA interviews has gotten you thinking that you could use some guidance and support in making your case as compelling as possible, you are wise. That is exactly why I am here! For roughly ten years, I’ve helped many EMBA applicants gain admission to the most competitive and coveted EMBA programs all over the world. If you would like my or my colleagues’ support in your EMBA journey, please get in touch!

Esmeralda Cardenal has advised hundreds of successful applicants, helping them gain acceptance to top MBA and EMBA programs in her more than ten years with Accepted. She is also former associate director and director of admissions at both the Yale School of Management and Michigan State Broad. Want Esmeralda to help you get Accepted? Click here to get in touch!

Related Resources:

• Ace the EMBA: Expert Advice for the Rising Executive, a free guide
• Why Is This Successful Leader Investing in an Oxford Said Executive MBA?, podcast Episode 454
• Cornell Johnson EMBA Program: Four Options for the Largest EMBA Program in the United States, podcast Episode 543

The post EMBA: The Ultimate Guide for Applicants appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

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There is tons of advice on Accepted.com and on previous episodes of Admissions Straight Talk, about what you should do when you’re applying to top MBA programs. But what about common mistakes? What about the things that you shouldn’t be doing? What are the errors that applicants like you all too frequently make on applications? 

Today you’re going to hear different admissions committee directors from around the world talk about what they think are the most common mistakes in MBA applications, and you’re invited to listen in.

Welcome to the 538th episode of Admissions Straight Talk. Before I turn to those mistakes I mentioned a second ago, I have a question for you: Are you ready to apply to your dream MBA programs? Are you competitive at your target schools? Accepted’s MBA admissions quiz can give you a quick reality check. And you’ll not only gett an assessment; you’ll also get tips on how to improve your qualifications. Plus, it’s all free. 

If you’re a regular listener to Admissions Straight Talk, you know that during most episodes of AST I interview a guest. Occasionally, I do a solo show. Frequently, the guests are admissions directors. I also have many times asked my guests, “What are the most common mistakes that you see when you’re reviewing applications?”

Today’s episode is a collection of guests’ answers to the questions, what are the most common mistakes you have seen during the MBA application process? What are the most common mistakes that you see when reviewing applications? All featured guests are admissions directors at top MBA programs sharing what you should not do when you are applying. 

The two most common mistakes were in broad categories, 

1. Lack of authenticity, a sense that you’re not really revealing yourself. 
2. And number two, sloppiness, which can come in many forms and you can learn about those forms through the admissions directors’ comments. 

There are nuances and details that the admissions committee directors provide in their comments, and you want to hear from them in their words what they are – so don’t go anywhere. Don’t just think that the two items I listed, you’re done for the day.

In addition, there were some other errors that don’t fit into those two categories and still are common and damaging to applicant’s chances. For example, one would be to not adjust in your resume for business school, but give in the technical resume that you have used in getting jobs. That’s not going to work when you’re applying to an MBA program. 

But again, you’re going to want to hear what changes you need to make and you’re going to want to hear it from the admissions’ director’s mouth. In short, to make sure that your applications shine like gems, first, remove the impurities. Those impurities are the common errors discussed in the rest of this episode. I’ve arranged the episodes in alphabetical order by school name. 

Teresa Peiro, Associate Director of Global Admissions for Degree Programs at INSEAD [3:22]

Linda Abraham: Our first speaker is INSEAD’s Teresa Peiro, Associate Director of Global Admissions for Degree Programs. 

Now, you’ve been doing this for a few years, what’s the most common mistake you see in the application?

TP: I would say lack of motivation. We know that the application process is long and it takes time, and our recruitment team is always saying  focus on the essays, focus on what you’re writing. You need to prepare. So a sloppy application is a no go.

TP: Essays that aren’t well-structured, essays that are not well-prepared, things that are mismatching, lack of consistency, that would be a killer.

And that translates to you as lack of motivation.

TP: And this is a big investment and it’s not only about money, but it’s also who you’re going to… This INSEAD will follow you for the rest of your life. We tend to say that you’ll never travel alone, for instance. So it’s something that we want to be sure that you’re really going to enjoy. I always say that we are looking for motivated candidates, engaged students, proud alumni. Candidates know that pre-selection is purely based on your application form. So it’s like your business card.

Linda Abraham: If you’re getting the impression that INSEAD really wants to understand what makes you tick, I think you’re right. It’s not the only school, but I think she’s very clear about it.

Taya Sapp, Senior Associate Director of Admission at Michigan Ross [4:53]

Linda Abraham: Taya Sapp, Senior Associate Director of Admissions at Michigan Ross, sees underestimating the importance of your resume as the biggest mistake. Learn why in this clip.

TS: I think honestly, one of them is kind of overlooking the importance of the resume. That’s the first thing I look at when I open an application, and it’s the snapshot of your whole professional career. And so I think it’s really important, and I’ve seen a lot of people kind of just assume I already have that done. I don’t need to worry about that. Let me focus on the essays. And I think it’s important to think this should not be the same resume that you might’ve just applied for your current job with and what that looks like, because it might include a lot of technical jargon that is only appropriate for your particular career path. It might not have as much, I mean, hopefully it has impact, but I think earlier in our careers, we’re more often thinking about what our responsibilities are and need to be shifting into the impact. I do see a lot of resumes that it doesn’t seem like people have stopped and really spent time on thinking about how they want to be representing their professional career and what that looks like. So that’s what I think.

Linda: I frequently tell applicants who want to start early, get your resume done, and focus on your accomplishments, not your responsibilities, that kind of stuff. So that’s a great, great input, I think. 

Dawna Levenson, Assistant Dean of Admissions at MIT Sloan [6:23]

Linda Abraham: Dawna Levenson takes a somewhat different tack. Do you want to write something shocking in your application? Something provocative for MIT Sloan? Well, Dawna, Assistant Dean of Admissions, reveals why that’s a bad idea, along with another critical error.

DL: So the most common mistake is trying to stand out in an inappropriate way. Provocative is the best word I can use on your video or perhaps in your cover letter where you talk about subject matter that has a shock factor tied to it. You use unprofessional, inappropriate language. It happens, every year there’s a handful of them. Aside from just not following instructions. I believe are very reasonable if we ask for a cover letter to be 300 words, we are not word counters. If it’s 310-ish, no big deal. If you submit a five-page essay, it raises a red flag for us.

Danielle Richie, Director of Full-Time MBA Admissions and Student Recruitment [7:14]

Linda Abraham: UNC Kenan-Flagler’s Danielle Richie, Director of Full-Time MBA Admissions and Student Recruitment, returns to the theme of authenticity and failing to reveal the human non-professional side of you in her comments. 

Linda: What are the most common mistakes that you see applicants make during the application process?

DR: Not being themselves. So I think that’s one of the first things. And then also, I mentioned that human component earlier, and I feel like that’s another thing. Everyone has a professional side. Yes, but there’s that personal side to who you are, and I feel like sometimes that’s lacking in an application, and it would be great to fully see and know a candidate throughout the application process. So bringing in that human side, bringing in that EQ is really important.

DR: So if you have extracurriculars, I mentioned earlier, I’m a soccer referee, most people wouldn’t understand what goes into that, the trainings, the thought process, that’s absolutely something I would put on my resume and talk to because in any given game, you can make between 300 and 350 decisions. And so that’s a great talking point to bring up and for someone to think on their feet. So when you have extracurriculars, maybe you’re part of a team, maybe you have volunteer experience, those types of things the committee would love to know about and see how you are outside of work too, because there’s so much more than just your job title in your career.

Rodrigo Malta, Managing Director of MBA Recruitment and Admissions at UT Austin [8:49]

Linda Abraham: UT Austin’s Rodrigo Malta, Managing Director of MBA Recruitment and Admissions, provides three common errors that he says he sees year after year. Don’t make them.

RM: I know that your listeners are awesome and they’re not going to make these mistakes because they’re listening to this podcast. So the first one seems really simple, but it’s not answering the essay prompt. So as you build your application and you focus on those essays, it is really important for you to engage with individuals within your community. If you have an opportunity to work with an admissions consultant, awesome as well. But always ask yourself and those that are reviewing your essays, if you’re appropriately answering the essay prompt.

RM: I know that applicants have a lot to share, right? And they want to share everything with us. Remember that there are a lot of different application components and opportunities for you to share who you are. The essays are a great asset to your application, but it’s only going to be one that you’re going to be able to capitalize on if you answer that essay prompt. So that’s kind of number one. And I have two other ones, if I can sneak them in, is that okay, Linda?

Linda: Absolutely. Go for it. This is great.

RM: So the second one, it’s also around essays, and it seems really basic. So I can see some of our listeners maybe rolling their eyes whenever they listen to this, but mentioning the wrong school name in the application, it’s a big no no. That happens more often than you think. So make sure to double, triple check the materials that you’re submitting with your application that you’re listing out the right school name. And the second one is a kind of a new nuance that we’ve been seeing, I would say as of the past three to five years, which is discrepancies between your resume that you submit with the application and any information that you have that have out on LinkedIn.

RM: So as part of the application here at Texas McCombs, applicants can submit their LinkedIn if they have a LinkedIn profile. If you are going to submit your LinkedIn profile with your application, and that piece of it is optional, the resume is not optional. To submit your LinkedIn profile, make sure that the LinkedIn profile matches the resume on the jobs that you’ve had, on the dates, et cetera. Because if there are discrepancies between both of them, you may raise questions from the admissions committee and you don’t want the admissions committee to have questions. You want to answer any questions that we have. So those discrepancies between resume and LinkedIn can be a little bit tricky sometimes. So be on the look for that.

Linda: Those are great insights and great input. The first two I’ve heard before, and actually I’ve many times been asked, what are schools looking for? And my first answer is they’re looking for the answer to their question. That’s why they asked the question, – they want the answer.

Amber Janke, Director of MBA Recruitment and Admissions at UW Foster [12:01]

Linda Abraham: Amber Janke, Director of MBA Recruitment and Admissions at UW Foster, shared two common mistakes and returns to the theme of insincerity, and shares a second common failing in applications.

AJ: I have a couple that I want to share. One is not being authentic in your application. I think sometimes people believe as though the admissions committee wants to hear just one thing or a certain thing. And really what we’re trying to do is get to know each individual applicant, authentically. We want to know who you are. We want to know what your goals are, your dreams are. We want to know truly who you are and what your experiences have been. And time and time again, I’ll talk with an applicant for an info interview and they say, “My friends are telling me I shouldn’t share this very lofty goal.” And I’m like, “Well, you should think about what you really want to achieve. Certainly have a plan B, but if that’s really what you want to achieve, you’re going to want to share that as part of your application.”

AJ: So that is one thing, people feeling as though they can’t be authentic in their application, and I would encourage you to do so because if you aren’t authentic, we’ll be able to see that in an interview. So that’s really important. The second really is just not doing research on the program ahead of time. We know you want an MBA, but why do you want to Foster MBA? We’re a small program, we can help you achieve certain things, and we want to know that people really want to be part of this type of program. But you got to do the research on your end as well. It’s not just about the MBA, it’s about what you are looking for in an MBA experience and doing some of the research ahead of time to learn if you think a program might be a right fit for you.

AJ: You don’t have to have figured it out yet. That’s totally fine. That’s part of the MBA application process. But start to do some of the work on your end to really understand about not just why you want an MBA, but why you want an MBA from Foster or maybe another program.

Linda: I sometimes talk to applicants and they’ll say something like, “I want to work for Microsoft.” Or, “I want to work for Amazon.” Or they’ll name some other company and some other school. Would your response to that be that’s a good reason, or would it be why do you want to work for Amazon? Or why do you want to work for Microsoft?

AJ: I mean, certainly those are part of people’s goals that they might have certain companies or roles in mind. But an MBA program is not just about what you do immediately post MBA, it’s about what the experience is for the two years that you’re here. It’s about what you want to gain, how you want to learn, how you want to grow for five years, 10 years down the line. Plus.

Linda: It’s your professional life.

AJ: Exactly. For your professional life.

Linda Abraham: So remember NOT to do the things discussed in this episode. And before you submit an application, make sure that you’ve crossed the T’s and dotted the I’s, both literally and figuratively. And of course, make sure that your application reflects the best side of you, but the real you. 

If you’d like help in presenting the best of the authentic you, please contact Accepted for guidance and presenting your best self and polishing that gem of an application. Discover how Accepted’s experts can help you and take advantage of an initial free consultation.

Related Resources:

• MBA Admissions quiz
• Five Fatal Flaws to Avoid in Your MBA Application Essays
• School Specific MBA Essay Guides

Related Episodes:

• Get Into INSEAD, the Business School for the World – podcast Episode 520
• University of Michigan’s Ross MBA Program: Everything You Need to Know – podcast Episode 479
• How to Get Accepted to MIT Sloan MBA – podcast Episode 498
• How to Get Accepted to UNC Kenan-Flagler Full-Time MBA Program – podcast Episode 496
• Get Accepted to UT Austin McCombs – podcast Episode 452
• Get Accepted to UW’s Foster School of Business – podcast Episode 461

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The post Admissions Directors Reveal the Most Common Mistakes Applicants Make [Episode 538] appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

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In this episode the Associate Global Director of Admissions & Financial Aid at INSEAD discusses the school’s unique language requirement, the role of the GRE/GMAT in admissions, and what to include in the optional essay. [SHOW SUMMARY]

Are you a citizen of the world? Is it your goal to be a leader in international business? Then you should consider the Business School for the World: INSEAD. 

An interview with INSEAD’s Teresa Peiro, Associate Director of Global Admissions, Degree Programmes. [SHOW NOTES]

Welcome to the 520th episode of Admission Straight Talk, Accepted podcast. Thanks for tuning in. Sometimes I am asked, “Is the MBA worth it?” And my answer is, “It depends on your individual circumstances.” But I’ve got good news. We’ve developed a tool that will help you evaluate whether an MBA is worth it for you and your individual circumstances and by how much. Check how much you’re likely to benefit – or not – from the MBA. And using it won’t set you back even one cent. It’s free.

It gives me great pleasure to have for the first time on Admissions Straight Talk. Teresa Piero, Associate Director of Global Admissions and Financial Aid at INSEAD, the Business School for the World. Teresa worked in marketing for several years before joining INSEAD in 2011. She focused more on MBA programs initially, but in 2021 became the Associate Director of Global Admissions and oversees the entire admissions process for all INSEAD degree programs on all campuses including the EMBA, which is going to be our focus today. 

Teresa, welcome to Admissions Straight Talk. [1:52]

Thank you very much, Linda, for having me here today.

My pleasure. Now can you give us just a start, an overview of INSEAD’s MBA program for those listeners who aren’t that familiar with it? [1:57]

Yes, of course. Linda, our MBA program is a 10-month program that brings together around 100 nationalities per cohort. You can either start in January or in the August intake. It’s a very intense program. It’s shorter, but our participants make the most out of it and we commonly hear all of our alumni saying that it was the best year of their lives.

How do most students take advantage of that geographic diversity? If it was 10 months in Fontainebleau the whole time, that would already be intense. But if you have all these other options, how do they do it? [2:40]

Indeed. So, our applicants have to make a decision of which will be their home campus. So what are the core courses? They will have to stay in their home campus. After that when the electives start, they can either change campuses, so if someone starts in Singapore, they can go to Fontainebleau and vice versa. And then we offer different partnerships, as you mentioned, with different schools in the US and China. So what happens is that they can go to that school while they’re, say, in that school, they are full students from the welcoming school and they spend their period there and then they come back to INSEAD-

So, where are the three campuses again? I know it’s Fontainebleau, Singapore, and the third one- [3:31] 

There are three campuses. Fontainebleau, Singapore, and Abu Dhabi. And we opened pre COVID San Francisco hub.

So it’s not considered a full campus yet, is it? [3:43]

No, it’s a hub.

Where are the partnerships? [3:49]

The partnerships are with Kellogg and Wharton in the US and with SIPS in China.

When you talk about your home campus, how much time are you required to spend there? What do most students do? Or is there a most? [3:56]

So there’s not statistically something consistent. They have to stay for the core courses. So for the first period they have to stay where they decided to apply to.

Because we consider that part the most intense part of the program, because they have all of these classes and all these exams and it’s like the core and they have to stay focused where they are. And then switch campuses. So it’s super interesting because now for example, for instance, we welcomed those who started in Singapore and they arrived to Fontainebleau and it’s like they discover a new school. It’s like a new campus and they get to see other participants that have started here in the program and they have moved or those who came with them. So I find it very vibrant, the campus exchange moment, because the campus is full of suitcases and they’re coming in and out, and they see new faces and you see, “Oh, I’m connected with you when we were applicants and now I see you here,” and it’s a good sense of community.

In terms of the partnership schools, is the 10 months, is it divided into semesters or you’ve mentioned periods? How does that work? [5:07]

There are periods of two months.

Five plus P Zero, which P Zero starts before they arrive to campus. So we’ve got P Zero and five periods.

Could you review the language requirements both at entry and graduation for INSEAD participants? That’s a very distinctive aspect of the program. [5:29]

Yes. And you know that is one very near to my heart. So as you know, or maybe you don’t, INSEAD was founded by George Doriot, who was a French Harvard professor.

I didn’t know that. [5:49]

The courses at the beginning, they were taught in those three languages. So German, English, and French, which were the languages in Europe.

We’ve been adapting to the different times. English has to be validated either by your native language or by other means of assessment. We need to ensure that every MBA or every student attending INSEAD is going to be able to follow the class and make the most out of the program. So English has to be validated. If it’s your native language, we will not question it, but then you will have to validate the second language for entry reasons.

So if English isn’t your native language, you have to validate it. So there are different criteria. Most common you need to have, your whole degree has to be taught in English and it has to be specified in your transcripts or through TOEFL iBT.

And if English is your native language and your second language is French, for example, or Spanish- [6:53]

There are other tests. There are local, so there are national tests that we accept many of them, but there are many different experiences. So, we’ll look at that very closely for your second language, if English is your native language. And for instance, if you for example, have completed your bachelor’s in Spanish, it would be validated too.

The second language is like a C1, so it’s fluency that we require, and it’s an admissions requirement. Now for the third language, it is an exit language, so you need it to graduate. And we do not give the diploma if you have not validated your third panel. Knowing that the level that we require is much lower. It’s an A1. When I’m talking to candidates or prospects, I always, always encourage them to get that language policy cleared before they start because the program is very intense. And they prefer to invest their time in other things than learning the language. But for us it’s like in our DNA, and this open mindedness and being able to make the most of this super international exposure, we wanted to have these three languages with you.

Upon graduation.

So I mean, in lay terms, if you want to use that, would your entry level requirement be that the person obviously have speaking and comprehension and speaking ability and some writing ability or fluent writing ability? And the exit requirement, what would that be in terms of, again, just a very approximate? I realize there are stricter requirements. I’m just trying to make it a little bit easier to grasp. [8:32]

No, of course. No, the second language is quite strict. You have to go through three levels and it’s a C1, which is fluent.

You have to be able to write. [9:08]

You have to be able to write. Yes.

The exit language, which is A2, is more of a little bit of everything. So, not very complicated sentences and not that you don’t have to be able to write a proper essay, but you would be able to write an email.

Very helpful. Now on one hand, you emphasize the program is intense since and it’s only 10 months. And that is, could be… I mean, it definitely is a plus on one hand. There’s lower opportunity costs, it’s very efficient, but also some applicants might be worried, “What about my internship? I want to change career paths.” Nobody goes for an MBA to do the same thing that on the way out that they did on the way in. How do you address that? [9:25]

Of course. So if you start in the August intake, it’s like the real 10 months because you graduate in July. However, if you start in the January intake, you finish in December and you do have time for an internship. When I’m speaking to candidates and to prospects, “Please make this a sound decision because whether you start in January and August should not only be based on your own timing, but also think about the internship.” So those who really want an internship will start in January.

Giving the option for those who fast track or know exactly where they want to go after versus those who really want to make the most and get an internship.

Do students or participants in INSEAD ever, who start, let’s say in the September intake, do they ever do the internship immediately following graduation? Is that ever done or not too common? [10:36]

I would have to ask. I’m not that sure.

What don’t people know about INSEAD that you would like them to know? What’s a common misconception, perhaps? [10:50]

Misconception. That shorter is lighter. 

It’s not easier. And then I also hear the other side, some other students that of course that all the MBA community they after, they all have friends who went to different schools and then they come back and can tell you, “Well sometimes we went for two years.” They had some extra downtime. And actually it’s very interesting because that was the reason why the 10 month was created because our founder could see that sometimes the second year was a lighter pace. So he decided to put it all together and make it more intense.

Our campus is like 24 hours open and you can see how they are making all of it. And I was talking to some students before today, and they’re like, “The way that we click all together,” because you also have this pressure of time. It’s going to go so quickly. And we’re always telling them, “You have to make the most.” And you hear them like, “In one week. I had relationships with people that I thought I had known for years.”

INSEAD clearly lists its admissions criteria and your website says they are: ability to contribute, academic capacity, international motivation, and leadership potential. I’m sure you know this, you don’t need me to tell them to you. Where are you most likely to see those qualities and the different elements of the INSEAD application? [12:05]

So it’s interesting because when I’m running, I run application workshops very often, always my first slide is with this, four pictures of these four initial criteria. And I always tell them, “Whatever you share with us, be sure that it falls in one of these buckets.”

That’s great advice. [12:48]

Follow up questions like, “But what’s more important?” No. The INSEAD is holistic, and I’m always saying the same. I’m always sharing with people, “At INSEAD, we are human beings behind the admissions process.” There are people reading applications and people are like, they begin this conspiracy theories like, “Oh, so you put our CV in a scan and they give you like…” No, it’s nothing like that. It’s all about holistic and we try to see everything.

So we have a lot of essays, which we are aware. We know that we ask for many essays compared to other schools, but we really want to know. And it’s not only about us deciding if you are a good candidate for INSEAD or not, but if this is what you want, this is what you need to get wherever you want to go. So these four criteria, and that’s why we are so clear about it, they need to be covered in your application. It’s interesting because I think we’ll talk about the Kira video, but the pre-selection decision is purely based on what we’ve received in the application form. And we need to be sure that those four criteria are met.

I would assume that academic capacity you typically find in the transcript and the test score? [13:53]

Yes.

International motivation would probably show up in my guess both in your resume and your activities as well as the essays. [14:02]

International motivation is my favorite..

Because it’s who we are. So, international motivation is about us being sure that you’re not only going to be comfortable with such diversity in the class, but they’re going to embrace it and that they’re going to be… And you know how much you’re going to learn from this diversity, and you’re going to make the most out of it. So we need to be sure of this. And how do we see it? So the most common, and where most of our candidates really check those boxes is because they’ve gone through international experiences before themselves, either studying, either working abroad. And we do believe that this aspect in your life, it’s a big experience that makes you who you are, in a way. You’ve gone abroad, you’ve gone to a different culture, you had to adapt. You had to make some compromises. You learned so many things about it. And you had to melt in. You had to-

You had to adapt, I think it’s the key thing. [15:06]

So, we get that from previous experiences. Also, in other cases, we have candidates that didn’t have the opportunity of living abroad or having this experience. So we also ask them to tell us how they’ve been in an international environment and how they felt about it. So, either you are working in a country where there are many people from different nationalities, either you work in a very international company and you have to… I was going to say deal, but you have to collaborate and you have to interact with other nationalities from other countries. So that’s what we are looking. So we do ask in the essays, “What has been your experience?” And we also ask a detailed list of your international experiences you’ve had in the past.

Some applicants, they might live in a diverse country, right? And many different cultures within their own country. It’s not homogenous. It’s a heterogeneous culture. [15:57]

And nowadays most of the countries are like that. That’s why companies are always looking for people who are thriving in these kinds of societies.

And ability to contribute I would assume also will come really through throughout the application, really. [16:19]

Ability to contribute and leadership potential come a lot also through the essays.

What is it? And the question is like, “What is it that you bring to the class?” We want to be sure when you raise the hand, you’re going to share experiences, share what you know, ask the correct questions. And where those questions and those contributions are going to come from your past experience.

Now you mentioned the video a second ago. What is the role of the video interview in the evaluation process? [16:26]

We are very happy with the video. We love the video. And our message to candidates is always like, be yourself. So when I’m presenting this application workshop, I put a picture of Salvador Dali, who is one of our most well-known artists in Spain, because he was genuine, he was himself and he wasn’t shy to show who he was. And it’s about that. I’m always telling, we are not expecting you to be a BBC reporter unless you were a BBC reporter.

So don’t try to use those fancy words or things that you think that are, but be yourself. So what we’re looking here, the role is to see who you are in a way, and communication skills. The video will reassure us a lot also on the English level and the fluidity when people speak. I understand it’s stressful so we always recommend candidates, there’s like a practice part in the platform. I always say, “Practice, practice, practice.” There are four questions, and you’ve got 45 seconds to prepare and 60 to respond. I strongly recommend to candidates, that they use those 45 seconds to work on their structure. What is it that they want to say? And then be yourself. I always tell the story that we had a candidate who was a professional break dancer, and he just went on the floor and he danced. Amazing.

That’s great. Great. That’s a great story. [18:18]

It’s a great story. And this is because sometimes, and I understand look, “Oh, instead I’m going to try to use fancy words.” No, because you’re going to lose the point of the video, which is what we want to hear YOU.

He must have had something before and after to convince you that he knew English and then he showed you who he was. [18:41]

That’s why we’ve got four questions and they are not… I always say that we read applications to try to look into it and accept you, not to reject you.

And so that’s why it’s important that you are yourself because for the writing, we already have your essays.

We also had someone who was doing the Kira interview, and his cat came like this. And he was so impressive how the candidate just did like that with the cat and he continued speaking.

But everything, we were all home. So we all could have, we’re human beings and that’s an important message for me. We’re human beings looking for human beings.

I’ve been trying to tell that to candidates for years, that the admissions people are not automatons, they’re human beings. [20:08]

No, no. But I also see it impress us. And they really want it, but like, but we want to accept you for the correct reasons and for who you are.

Just show who you are.

What’s the INSEAD interview like? [20:38]

Okay, so INSEAD interviews are purely run by our alumni. So, staff is not involved in the interviews. We do the matching. So we decide. So the missions officers will match the candidate with two interviewers for our MBA program. They’re purely by geographic and/or industry. And then our alumni interviewers, they will run the interview in their own style knowing that we do give them some tips. We don’t tell them what we want, what they shouldn’t do, what they should not do. But then each one has their own style, as I mentioned.

So, some of our alumni interviewers prefer to organize the interview in a much more formal setup. So they will invite them to their meeting, to their offices. Others prefer a quiet cafe. But at the end of the day, who’s been selected means that those criteria are checked. And what we are looking for is the fit with the school and the program. And our interviewers are thinking, “Would I like to have this person in my class? Would I want to have this person in my group?”

So the interview is really just be about almost fit with the community, if you will? [21:42]

Almost fit with the community. And also, is this person motivated? Does this person really want to do an MBA program? Why does this person want to come to INSEAD?

Do they have those four criteria? [21:59]

The four criteria are, but it’s also about the soft skill motivation. Is the motivation there? So sometimes we’ll hear this person was not passionate about INSEAD. So it’s more about passion, I would say.

And because our interviewers, they are volunteers and I always tell candidates, “They’re volunteers. They’re doing this in a way of giving back to us, to the school.” And because someone was there for the interview, they want to be there for someone else’s interview.

What’s the most common mistake you see in the application? And it can be plural too. [22:02]

I would say lack of motivation. We know that our application process is long and it takes time. And we’re always telling, our recruitment team is always like, “Focus on the essays, focus on what you’re writing. You need to prepare.” So a sloppy application is a no-go. Essays that aren’t well structured, essays that are not well prepared, or things that are mismatching, lack of consistency, that would be a killer.

And does that translate to you as lack of motivation? [23:13]

Yes.

And this is a big investment and it’s not only about money, but it’s also who you’re going to be. This INSEAD will follow you for the rest of your life. We tend to say that you’ll never travel alone, for instance. So it’s something that you really, we want to be sure that you are really going because you’re really going to enjoy and you’re looking for. I always say that we are looking for motivated candidates, engaged students, proud alumni.

And they know. Candidates know that pre-selection is purely based on your application form. So it’s like your business card.

Does INSEAD have any preference between the GMAT and the GRE? Any plans to go test optional? [24:05]

Test optional is a no-go.

We are finding GRE and GMAT as good. Both as good predictors.

Because there was a time when I think there was a preference for the GMAT, but at this point…[24:29]

At this point, no. And we see the numbers of GRE takers increasing.

And we understand that there are two different tests and they test differently. So, candidates should do some research before they prepare and they should sit the tests that fits better themselves, where they’re going to perform better.

But there’s no different expectations in terms of percentile? You should be 85% on the GRE and 75% on the GMAT? That’s no more, no longer the case? [24:50]

We’re moving away from giving a strict score. It’s very difficult to get this into the candidates’ brains.

Because you hear so many, I’m sure you do too, right? Like, “Oh, I only have a 720. Am I going to get in?”

And now my latest sentence is like, “A GMAT score doesn’t define who you are.

But sometimes they’re so terrified. I met someone who told me, “I’m not going to apply for scholarships because I’ve got a 660 and I’m never going to get a scholarship with a 660.” I’m like, “And what’s the connection? Can you please share with me?”

It’s not looked at in a vacuum. [25:43]

Yeah. We’re looking for… It’s not only what score you took on that day, but also what you’ve done before. Where are you working? So the academic capacity, we are broadening what we’re looking at. So your academic past background, the past background is also very important.

Linda, I had an event on Saturday, and I said, “GMAT score doesn’t define you.” I even said that I was going to get it at a tool here, like GMAT score does define who you’re. So I will show them like, this is how true this is. And afterwards we’re having a discussion, “I have this score. Am I going to get in?”

You weren’t hearing what I was saying. We just need to be sure because it wouldn’t be fair to the candidate, but they’re not going to be academically following the program and that’s what we need to be sure about. And it’s one of those four admissions criteria.

I’m glad you’re emphasizing that. Thank you. [26:57]

In my application workshops, I repeat this sentence three times. Next time I’m going to ask everyone to stand up and we’re going to repeat it all together.

So let’s say I’m in the midst of preparing an application for the January 2024 intake, and there’s a deadline April 18th and June 27th, and this interview should air before the deadline. What advice would you give someone in the midst of preparing an application for an upcoming deadline? Let’s say if it’s April 18th, it’s really close or the June 27th deadline. [27:15]

In the midst. I always say that applicants should aim an application deadline not because they think of those myths that they have around the application. Because then you’ve got also those myths like, if I reply to round X, I’m going to have higher chances of being accepted than in round Y. That’s not true. Apply when you, you’re ready. When you’re ready. You need to have your score. You’ve taken your GMAT or your GRE. Your applications should be towards finalizing, like proofreading more than beginning to write because it does take a lot of time.

And once you have this, the sooner the better but only because about them, because onboarding takes time. Some places you need to get visas, they have to remove transatlantic, they have to sort their lives before they come to Fontaine or Singapore. So the onboarding is better on them. And we always tell, “Be kind to yourself, so don’t try to rush it.”

But you need onboarding time.

I also just realized this show will actually air after the April 18th deadline. So we’re really talking about the June 27th deadline in terms of the January 2024 intake. And obviously there’s another deadline for the September 25, 2025 deadline. [28:47]

My advice too when I’m speaking to candidates that are thinking of applying, now what I say like, take a white piece of paper and you make a circle and you write INSEAD MBA. And with the four admissions criteria in your there, you begin to write what do you want INSEAD to know about you? And you write. You write. When you fill that paper and you go and with some friends and you come back and you continue writing, and the next day you wake up and you continue writing in your brainstorm. And then you look at the application form and you look at your essays. And in each line that you wrote in that brainstorm, you put which essay you’re going to write this. And I always tell them, “If there are things that don’t fit in any other essays, you highlight it in yellow.” I like office supplies a lot, so.

And then you write. Then you get it proofread, then you read it again. Then with those that weren’t highlighted in yellow, that’s your optional essay. 

That’s great advice. [29:48]

But of course, because sometimes they go into it, “Okay, I’m going to reply to this essay.” Yes, but you have to read because somehow they’re connected and it depends how you want to tell your story. And it’s important. INSEAD will love your story and we want to understand who you are. I always say that when I’m looking on a file, I create someone and I add layers, who you are, where do you live, your previous experience, what do you want to do next? And that’s a good way to just don’t bias your application responses with what you thing we want to hear, but what you really want to tell us and what you want INSEAD to know about you.

I have something, a very similar system, but where I say, “Write down everything you want an individual school to know about you, look at their criteria, what do you want them to know about you? And then write down their questions.” Very, very… So I say do use a spreadsheet, but that’s basically because they all love spreadsheets, but- [30:02]

I’m taking those out of their comfort zone already.

And I’ll also say some use a mind map, which is more similar, but digital. But the idea is first, figure out what you want them to know, and then figure out where you can take those things that you want them to know in the application based on the questions. And the good news is that INSEAD does ask more questions than normal, so there’s more opportunity for them to tell their story. Yes, it takes more effort, takes more work, but there is that opportunity there. [31:05]

But we also see that once they’re accepted, they appreciate the time that they’ve spent thinking about… Because for us, it has to be a sound decision. You just don’t apply. And just like, “Okay, I want this school, because of these reasons.” Oh, another cater is when someone has copied and pasted their essays and you can see because they left the other schools.

That’s a killer. No, that is a… Yeah, it definitely shows a lack of motivation and attention to detail. [31:29]

It’s super sloppy. Right?

Let’s say instead of applying for this upcoming cycle or a close deadline, I’m planning ahead. Okay. I want to apply in fall 2023 for the September 2024 intake. Right. So we’re really… I know the dates are, the year’s dates are nuts. 

Any planned changes for the application? Are you at all concerned about Chat GPT? [32:03]

No.

Planning ahead. No major changes are seen for… We would never do a major change from one application to another.

So if someone wants to start ahead, download the application, look at the essays. If we were to change, maybe we would change one or we would do a minor change, but not nothing yet very major.

What would you advise the applicant planning ahead to be doing now? [32:40]

Doing research. When they come to our campus, I’m so grateful. This is what you have to do. Go visit the schools. Do you feel you belong there? Talk to students. I think that they should spend much more time looking at the school. We are always welcoming to come and see it. We organize, for example, in-house events. Every two months we get to organize a master class. We have a chat where I tell them about all of these things. And we discuss like today an application, how to prepare your application.

We have also someone from my colleagues from careers sharing the career outcomes and what’s the career journey. We’ve got also people from student life sharing how is a day in an MBA program? And last but not least, we have students coming, in and it’s an open question and answer. It’s like an open mic. They just raise a question, and they ask and they reply. So for example, I think that the best thing they could do, organize to come and join us one of those. Come and meet us.

Where can listeners and potential applicants, or potential participants,learn more about INSEAD’s MBA program? [34:05]

The best recommendation would be our INSEAD.edu, our website where you can find everything and reach out to us. We’re always very happy to help you. 

Relevant Links:

• INSEAD MBA Admissions
• Accepted’s MBA ROI Calculator
• INSEAD Essay Tips

Relevant shows:

• How to Get Accepted to MIT Sloan MBA [Episode 498]
• How an MBA Can Help Entrepreneurs [Episode 492]
• Approaching Your MBA Application [Episode 487]
• Empowering International Students with the Financing for Grad Ed [Episode 475]

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The post Get Into INSEAD, the Business School for the World [Episode 520] appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

Applying to a European MBA program isn’t quite the same as applying to an American program. The programs themselves often have a different focus than U.S. schools, and adcoms therefore look out for different skills and qualifications. I’d like to direct you to the following resources on our website – blog posts that focus specifically on how to answer specific questions on specific European b-school applications. Please check them out and be in touch if you have any questions!

School-Specific Tips for European B-Schools:

• Cambridge Judge MBA Essay Tips
  
  
• ESADE MBA Essay Tips
  
  
• HEC Paris MBA Essay Tips
  
  
• IMD MBA Essay Tips
  
  
• INSEAD MBA Essay Tips
  
  
• London Business School MBA Essay Tips
  
  
• London Business School MiF Essay Questions and Tips
  
  
• London Business School MiM Essay Questions and Tips
  
  
• Oxford Said MBA Essay Tips

For more advice, I recommend you check out these podcasts that feature interviews with adcom members from top European b-schools – it’s always good to get advice from the source itself!

• How to Get Into HEC Paris MBA Program
  
  
• How an MBA Can Help Entrepreneurs, an interview with Inge Kerkloh-Devif, Senior Executive Director and Senior Vice President of the HEC Paris Innovation & Entrepreneurship Center
  
  
• How to Get Accepted to Oxford Said Business School
  
  
• Why Is This Successful Leader Investing In an Oxford Said Executive MBA?
  
  
• What Prospective MBAs Need to Know About Applying to INSEAD
  
  
• What to Expect From the MBA Experience at Cambridge Judge Business School
  
  
• This London Business School MBA’s Startup Is Protecting Your Online Privacy
  
  
• How the ESADE MBA Program Aspires to Make a Positive Impact
  
  
• Early Career Management and European MBA Programs with Jamie Wright
  
  
• All About the Grenoble DBA (Doctorate in Business Administration)

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The post Tips for Applying to European Business Schools appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

The Financial Times has released its global rankings of the best MBA programs and has considerably shuffled the deck. Several top-ranked programs fell several notches, while others rose considerably. For the first time since 2011, Wharton has returned to its status as #1 in FT’s list. 

Other programs that made giant strides in the rankings include Columbia Business School (ranked 8th in 2020), and Kellogg (Northwestern), now #5 (11th place in 2020). One reason for such huge fluctuations was that five of the top U.S. programs (Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, MIT, and Columbia) were not listed at all last year at all, skewing that year’s results. 

Other highly rated programs that suffered serious tumbles in the rankings include London Business School, Tuck (Dartmouth), and UVA Darden. In fact, 69 of the 91 schools ranked fell in the rankings, many of them by double digits.  

Compared with last year, many of these schools’ rankings looked like riders on a roller coaster, with some plunging far below and others rising by as much as 20 points to unprecedented heights. 

As we have cautioned before, it’s vital to keep these rankings in perspective. They are based on many variables that have little or nothing to do with the quality of the curricula per se.

Do you see yourself in one of these top programs? Find out how working one-on-one with one of our Admissions Consultants can help get you ACCEPTED!

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Related Resources:

• Top 10 or Bust: Dispelling 2 MBA Myths
• Top MBA Programs Get STEM-Certified to Attract Int’l Students
• B-School Selectivity Index: Discover the Schools Where You are a Competitive Applicant

The post Financial Times Ranks Wharton as #1 in 2022 Rankings appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

Looking for the best possible admissions advice?

How about admissions advice from the admission committee members themselves?

Linda Abraham, founder of Accepted and host of the Admissions Straight Talk Podcast has a collection of highly enlightening interviews with directors of admissions and adcom members of top business schools!

Listen in as Linda asks her adcom guests pointed and to-the-point questions about the schools, the admissions process, how to get in, and…how to get rejected.

Listen, enjoy, and apply successfully!

For a varied menu of thought-provoking and informative conversations with business leaders, entrepreneurs, MBA students, and more, check out the Admissions Straight Talk Podcast:

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The post From the Mouths of MBA Adcom Members: How to Get Accepted appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

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Discover INSEAD’s unique one-year MBA [Show summary]

Virginie Fougea, Global Director of Admissions and Financial Aid at INSEAD, shares what’s new for the school’s MBA program and what prospective applicants with global business ambitions should know.

Do you aspire to do business internationally? Consider INSEAD! [Show notes]

Are you a citizen of the world? Do you aspire to be one? Do you have global business ambitions? Then you should be interested in the business school for the world, INSEAD. Its Global Director of Admissions and Financial Aid, Virginie Fougea, is our guest today.

Can you give an overview of the INSEAD MBA program for those listeners who aren’t that familiar with it, focusing on its more distinctive elements? [1:29]

INSEAD was started in 1960. We welcomed our first class around those years. Since the very beginning, we have had very international classes. We have a number of Europeans represented, but also people from outside Europe. Now we have, for example, 92 different nationalities in the current classes, so that is definitely in the DNA of the school. We have a campus in Fontainebleau in France, which is 60 kilometers south of Paris, as well as the campus in Singapore. We have a hub in San Francisco, that is the newest one, and we also have a campus in Abu Dhabi. The idea was to allow people to be on the ground, and not just talk about how to do business in Asia without having put a foot in the continent.

We have an MBA, MiM (Master in Management), Executive MBA, and Executive Master in Finance. For the MBA, we welcome two classes. One in September that starts in the end of August/beginning of September, and one starts in January every year. We welcome roughly 500 students, total per class, with 300 in Fontainebleau and 200 in Singapore.

It used to be really easy for students to move among the campuses, and most students did not attend the entire program in one campus. How have COVID travel restrictions affected that? [3:14]

It did affect some people during their studies. Those who were in the 2020 classes last year, obviously all the borders were closed and you couldn’t reorganize your plans. Those people obviously had to stay on the location where they were. However, quite a number of people decided, when the countries were closing down their borders, to go back home. We had a few people doing that. Others decided to stay in Fontainebleau or in Singapore and keep sharing their apartments with their roommates. To be very honest, now with the quarantine and the fact that the countries have reorganized the travel and the possibility to enter the different countries, we are able to have all our students in person on both our campuses in Fontainebleau and Singapore. For example, we just had the Master in Management students who just all went to Singapore all together. They spent the first part of the program in France, in Fontainebleau, and they all moved — the 90 of them moved — to Singapore for the rest of their program as planned. That’s the idea with the MiM is that they stay together. Obviously they had to plan the quarantine, and we facilitated all the visas and made sure that everyone could join.

What don’t people know about INSEAD that you would like them to know? What’s a common misconception? [5:11]

The first one I hear when I speak with prospective applicants is, “Do I absolutely need a 700 GMAT?” My answer is always, “Well, if you want one, a 700 GMAT for yourself, then go for it.” But if it’s just purely for INSEAD, maybe a 700 is fine, but maybe you want us all to be realistic. What is the score that will make you happy and that will make you feel, “I did well,” because not everyone is comfortable taking a standardized test. Not everyone is good at math, and not everyone is a native English speaker and can fully read and write in English. Depending on all this, we are happy with any score that is more or less above or somewhere close to 600. Anything above is a competitive score for us.

Another misconception is that INSEAD is a great school for consultants, but if you’re interested in finance, it may not be such a great choice. [6:27]

That’s a very good one. One thing that was really interesting, with the Lehman Brothers and all that in 2008, INSEAD managed to have one of the biggest cohorts or groups of people going into the finance sector, post-financial crisis, ahead of schools that had a higher reputation in the domain, in the sector. But we do hear that. To be very honest, I don’t mind; it’s not a reputation that hurts to have. I think it just needs to be put into perspective because an MBA with a fast pace like INSEAD’s intense MBA is very much appreciated by a consulting company. So I’m happy if the consulting companies find talent at INSEAD that are ready for their next mission. Why not? This is not something I would fight against. It’s perfectly fine if they find the talent here. It’s perfectly fine if people want to give it a try. It’s a good way of keeping the learning and the momentum post-MBA going, to go to a consulting firm where you’re put into different roles, in different sectors, different companies for short missions or longer. It makes sense. Why not?

INSEAD is very strong in general management, and its placement in consulting is fantastic, but it doesn’t mean that it can’t be good in finance, entrepreneurship, or other areas. There’s no conflict. Sometimes it’s thought that if you have strength in one area, you can’t be strong in others, and that’s just not true. [8:32]

That’s true. That’s also kind of limiting a career to a post-MBA job. We all work for 20, 30, 40 years, right? You don’t do an MBA just to join a consulting firm for two years post-MBA. You do an MBA because you want to gain access to your network. You want to gain access to continuing education. There are many different reasons. Some people do it for acquiring new skills. Others to change sectors. Others to change location. There’re so many different reasons for doing an MBA that limiting it to just a post-study job is a little bit narrow. We see in the statistics that 20 years post-MBA, more than 80% of graduates have had a stint with entrepreneurship. If you try entrepreneurial ventures at some point in your career, it might not be just right after MBA; it can be 10 years down the road or 20 or 25.

Watch: Get Accepted to INSEAD [Webinar] >>

How has COVID affected the student experience on campus? Are they in class? Is it a hybrid model? What about the kind of informal interactions activities that students had enjoyed pre-COVID? [10:22]

Very early on, we decided to try as much as possible to remain open and to welcome people in person. We welcomed the MiMs on the 1st of September 2020 and the MBAs a couple of weeks after, at the end of September, in person. Obviously at the same time, some people had to be in quarantine, or started in person but then had to move online because they wanted to self-isolate themselves, or for any reason had to be online. We gave the opportunity to everyone who wanted to connect remotely at any point of time. We always have both people who log in and people who are in the classroom. It requires a lot of attention and effort from the faculty. All the faculty assistants have been amazing at facilitating the Zoom sessions and at the same time through the in-person classroom experience.

Whether you call it hybrid or asynchronous, we are all used to this, but whatever the new terminology, what I do know is that the bottom line is we want people in person as much as possible, respecting the fact that some will have to be online at some point, and that it might be just two weeks away and then coming back. We realize that. That is the bottom line.

Then to your question about what has changed, obviously it changed the delivery format, with a lot more content online. Also the recruitment activities obviously moved online, or the vast majority at least. A lot has moved online in format, but also in content. The content was adjusted to fit the new world and new opportunities. So the faculty developed new content to be relevant to what was happening currently in the world.

Are students meeting online or offline for club activities and extracurricular activities, or does that depend upon the location and the level of shutdown at a particular point in time? [13:03]

That will depend. Indeed, the student clubs are still meeting whenever possible in person. However, they also leverage what turned out to be good opportunities because we have seen, for example, the entrepreneurship club or the African club have managed to have guest speakers online that they would have never been able to bring on campus otherwise. That was really interesting to see that the quality of the speakers was mentioned more often from within the student population. They could have access to people that otherwise would have had to travel all the way to Fontainebleau or Singapore and who appreciated not having to commute.

You were last on Admissions Straight Talk in November 2018 for Episode 285. It was a really informative discussion of the different elements of INSEAD’s application: the essays, the CVs, the letters of rec, and the video interview. Has anything changed in the application or your evaluation process in the last two and a half years? [14:28]

Yes and no. No, in that the first essay remains the same, and the number of questions are the same, but it did change a little bit in what we see in terms of expectations and what people are writing to us, and applicants’ expectations.

We see more and more people being interested in or discussing their sense of purpose or how they could make an impact on their family, on their company, on their community. The reason why we did not change the essays and rarely change them is because we’re pretty transparent. We answer questions from a lot of prospective applicants all the time. We’re pretty transparent because at the end of the day, we want to offer a chance for people to join INSEAD. It’s not a process where we feel, “Who can we eliminate?” It’s the contrary. People can showcase who they are and why they think INSEAD matches their values, what they would like to achieve in the future, not just post-MBA, as we just discussed. Hence, the questions can remain the same as long as people have this understanding that it’s about them.

Since we are all different, we all think differently. We all have different value sets. As long as you have an opportunity to explain those passions, those motivations, then that makes a unique essay, right? That’s the way we go about it. Also, the application journey, we view it as part of a starting point. It starts a little bit with the marketing activities and those first initial contacts, but it also, together with the application form, is a career journey that people start. This self-introspection and reflection. Why do they want an MBA at this point in their career? Why this school rather than the other one? For that reason, the essays can remain pretty much the same.

Wasn’t two and a half years ago also a time when there was a little bit of a rebranding at INSEAD, when INSEAD started to focus more on the greater social good in its mission? [18:02]

Yes, the “Be a force for good” motto. I think that’s a very good point. Maybe it’s linked. I think this is more of a generational expectation. My kids are 25 and 23 and have the same sort of expectations for themselves, and when they are looking for a company to recruit them, they look at the values of the company. I must admit that when I started my career, I was not paying too much attention to the values of a company, and barely the gender diversity within the company. I was probably looking a little bit for some role models, but not so much. This generation pays a lot of attention to this sort of information.

Is the admissions interview at INSEAD entirely virtual now? Do you see them going back to being in person when we get beyond this? [19:32]

Yes. Since the very beginning of this pandemic, yes. I think we will let people decide. Pre-COVID, we were more or less requiring face to face interviews because not everyone was at ease with a conversation like we are having at the moment, and we didn’t want to jeopardize people’s chances by putting the computer between them and their interview work. I think now people have figured that out and can be very persuasive and can have this kind of contact and the right level of body language, which is also part of an interview. I think people have got that now. So it remains to be confirmed.

Thanks to the wide network, most of the time we could find alumni within the country where the applicants were based. However, you’re very right. Sometimes that wasn’t possible. The interview selections done by the admissions officers on my team are not random. It’s a match. It’s purposeful that two people have been selected to interview a specific profile. Sometimes we didn’t have the opportunity to have the right profile of interviewer in the country, so we were struggling a little bit. That could stay with us, the online interview, the virtual interview, for countries where we have less alumni.

What’s the most common mistake you see applicants making? [19:28]

Some people are over-prepared. When I say over-prepared, I mean that you try to scratch the surface and dig further to try to understand who the person is behind that, but we just get canned answers and pretty, prepared, emphatic speeches that could fit any school. It makes us ask, well, have you done your due diligence? Do you know what INSEAD is all about? It’s more of this sort of common mistake, when we read essays that are very, very dry in a way where you don’t really get to know the person.

With the virtual interviews, it can be a little trap for some people when it’s as if people are reading a script. We tend to limit our gestures when we are on the computer obviously, and we kind of look a little bit stiffer than in person, and if people are over-prepared, then even more so.

In light of the pandemic and the crazy end to last year’s admission cycle, are you reading applications with a slightly different perspective, looking or weighing differently certain qualities and attributes than you did before the pandemic? [23:06]

I think this pandemic offers an opportunity to push our limits, to stretch ourselves a bit further, a little bit more, and to work on our resilience. These are things that they can showcase in an application form. From my perspective, when we select people, we also look at some sort of resilience because you learn from your failures. I’m convinced that we learn more through failures than achievements, and building your resilience is very important and can be very beneficial when it comes to recruitment and the interviews and being denied an interview for the job you thought was your dream job, but then you give it a try again, or you prepare again. But you get the feedback, you accept the feedback, and you use this resilience that I’m referring to, and initiative, and adaptability.

Watch: How to Answer MBA Application and Interview Questions about COVID-19 and Other Major Events of 2020 >>

One of the things I think that COVID has triggered, at least in the United States, is a move to go test-optional. Does INSEAD have any plans to go in that direction? [24:59]

Not at all. Let me be very honest with you: If we were to recruit from a very predominant market like France, or where everyone had similar type of undergrad studies and GPAs, yes, we could apply a template and a pattern and know that above a certain GPA, the likelihood that you get a good GMAT score is very high. If you graduate from a well-known school in the US and you score a certain GPA, I can predict your GMAT. Sorry to be blunt, but it’s very true.

Consider the diversity we recruit from, the number of languages that are spoken. It’s only 20% of the class that will have English as their native language. When you bear that in mind, your ability to speak English becomes important, hence the verbal section of the GMAT. That cannot be found anywhere else in the GPA from your undergrad studies, except if you have studied in an English-speaking institution, but that’s not the case for the majority of our students. Similarly, the way you teach math in an anglophone country is very different from the way you teach math in a francophone country or in Spain or in other countries in the world where we recruit from. So for that reason, we will need a standardized test. Again, not to eliminate people or to make a cutoff, but just because otherwise we have no understanding, as you rightly pointed out. We don’t have enough elements to be able to fully and fairly assess future academic capacity.

What advice would you give to someone in the midst of preparing for an application for your January 2022 intake? In other words, that would be your June 18th or your July 30th deadline. [27:41]

We will have places for the last round. However, if people are heavily dependent and relying on scholarship, then round four is a little bit risky because we will have fewer scholarship offerings for that round. Also, it can be a little bit stretched. We have an onboarding online module that is happening before the start of the program. The program is one year, but we kind of start two months or three months before by releasing some material. This material is not mandatory, but highly recommended. So if people are admitted with the last round, sometimes, if they’re not taking days off and they plan to work until the start of the program, they find it very difficult to complete the material. We have things like CV preparation, how to prepare a winning CV, mock interviews. We have a number of activities with the career development center. They’re quite important. We also have a management course. We also have a coaching program that starts before. People can complete it in one week, by locking themselves in their bedroom for a week. It can be completed in a week, but it’s recommended you do it approximately a couple of hours per week, over a window of two months, for example. So that’s much better and more beneficial.

Round four has a little bit of this disadvantage, unless people are ready to quit their jobs the moment they hear about the final decision, and they already have the finances sorted and they’re ready to come to Fontainebleau, and they don’t need a visa, or are ready to go to Singapore because they already have an entry pass for Singapore, for example. Bearing that in mind, the selection will be the same and the quality we’re looking for will be the same.

What advice would you give to someone thinking ahead to a fall 2022 matriculation or later? Any suggestions for them? [30:15]

First of all, well done, because it’s something that takes a couple of months or more, maybe even a couple of years to decide to do an MBA. The GMAT prep, we covered that. The essays, it’s important to dedicate time. But it’s also informing the people you will ask for recommendations. It’s not doing you any favors to write to the person, “Can you please recommend me for this program?” 24 hours before the application deadline. It’s usually recommended that you explain your thought process, explain “why an MBA,” and then maybe what you would like to showcase, and then the person can write a meaningful letter of recommendation. Otherwise, it’s a missed opportunity. We see answers like, “I cannot comment on this.” I always feel that’s a pity, and we just disregard the letter of recommendation. It’s a waste of a recommendation.

What would you have liked me to ask you? [31:46]

Maybe a question on the size of the class, and of future classes. We had a smaller class in September 2020, and we had a bigger class in January 2021. So what we decided to do for next year is go back to normal class size. The idea was that when we reduced the class size for the September 2020 intake, we didn’t know, first of all, what to expect. We all had heard about clusters and social distancing, but technically, logistically, how do you make that happen? So the dean had a number of town halls and forums with the incoming students asking them, what do you expect? What would you recommend we do? And a number of people requested the possibility to defer, which we agreed to. So we welcomed 300-plus in September 2020, and we increased the January class to accommodate the deferrals.

Where can listeners and potential applicants learn more about INSEAD’s MBA program? [33:27]

We’ll be happy to stay in touch with any prospective applicants. People can always check the website at insead.edu.

Related links:

• INSEAD’s website
• INSEAD MBA Essay Tips and Deadlines
• What is INSEAD Looking For?
• Get Accepted to INSEAD, an on-demand webinar
• Accepted’s MBA Admissions Consulting Services

Related shows:

• What It’s Like to Apply for a Master’s in Finance or MBA in 2021
• What to Expect From the MBA Experience at Cambridge Judge Business School
• How the ESADE MBA Program Aspires to Make a Positive Impact
• Applying to Wharton Lauder? Do Your Research!
• What’s New at INSEAD?

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The post What Prospective MBAs Need to Know About Applying to INSEAD [Episode 417] appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

Our recent masterclass, Get Accepted to INSEAD, laid out a clear game plan for applicants looking to gain acceptance to the Business School for the World. If your career aspirations lean global, it’s a can’t-miss session for you! It’s now available for free, on-demand viewing.

Watch the masterclass:

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The post Expert Guidance on Getting into INSEAD appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

Wondering if you have what it takes to get accepted to INSEAD?

This blog post examines INSEAD MBA’s 4 admission criteria and how you can demonstrate them in your application. 

What is INSEAD looking for?

• Ability to contribute
  
• International motivation
  
• Academic capacity
  
• Leadership potential

INSEAD MBA criterion #1: Ability to contribute

The adcom gives, as its first admission criterion, “ability to contribute.” I take the liberty to add: ability to contribute as a person of quality and substance. All the criteria involve factors such as insight, growth, connection with people and cross-cultural facility, motivation.

This criterion is based on INSEAD’s culture of interaction: among students (from around the world), between students and alumni, and between students and professors. Therefore, INSEAD seeks students who bring something distinctive and meaningful to the program – it’s not just what you’ve done and plan to do – but what you have to say about it, what you’ve learned from it, how it informs your perspective, and how you may grow in the future – and your willingness to put that learning and growth at the service of your classmates and others.

This criterion also therefore mentions participation – show how you have been an active member of your various communities: school, work, neighborhood, family, social group, etc., formally and/or informally. INSEAD is interested in long-term contribution, so, if you have already been an active alum for your undergrad (or grad) program, spotlight that participation in the application. Nothing will be more credible than an actual track record of contribution!

Let’s finally examine the list of desired qualities this criterion cites at the end (on the school’s website); try to reflect these qualities in your essays and other application elements (some may naturally be more prominent than others):

• Mature: You can show maturity in numerous ways: frank self-evaluation, willingness to listen to and acknowledge the validity of opinions you may not agree with, willingness to ask for help, ability to see multiple sides of an issue, acceptance of and ability to handle ambiguity, willingness to resist short-term gratification for longer-term goals, etc.
  
  
• Energetic: It’s not a matter of running marathons. It’s a matter of being engaged. (A curious person is inherently energetic, mentally and intellectually.) You can exemplify this quality in many ways, e.g. pursuing new learning opportunities (whether or not related to your goals and career), initiating relationships and interactions, asking questions, exploring new ideas, geographic areas, languages, sports, recipes…
  
  
• Highly motivated: A close cousin of energetic. For those things of interest and/or passion and/or concern and/or curiosity to you, you feel an inherent drive to address, explore, achieve.
  
  
• Well-rounded: You have a range of interests, skills, acquaintances. You lead a balanced life: aside from your busy job, you socialize, and you engage in activities of interest. You also balance reflection and action. Each well-rounded person reflects this quality in his unique way; there is no one formula for it.
  
  
• Possess strong communication and interpersonal skills: Without these skills, how can you contribute? These skills are the vehicle for your contribution, nothing less. It is imperative to illustrate your communication and interpersonal skills in your INSEAD application.

Looking for more INSEAD info? Register for our upcoming webinar, Get Accepted to INSEAD.

INSEAD MBA criterion #2: International motivation

Sure, international experience is a big plus for an INSEAD applicant. But the website says that they seek candidates with international motivation which, in their eyes, means having “perceptive insights into the complexities of business in an international setting.” It also involves “adaptability and flexibility in multicultural environments” – which you can hardly achieve without some insight, so these elements naturally interconnect. The final component of international motivation is goals that have a global dimension.

So, meeting this criterion involves more than working in multiple countries, continents, or galaxies. “International” should be an element of focus, reflection, and growth.

What if you don’t have international experience? You can still possess international motivation if you’ve had global exposure (an example might be leading or serving on a virtual global team). It can even be in non-work form. (If you’ve had neither global experience nor global exposure, INSEAD might not be the school for you…)

To summarize, the three key elements sought by the adcom – whether you have global experience, global exposure, or both – under this criterion are:

• “Perceptive insights” about international business
  
  
• Adaptability across cultures
  
  
• Global goals

What does that mean for you?

Global experience and/or global exposure is simply a qualifying point. To make yourself shine among INSEAD applicants, go further. Offer vivid, thoughtful, sharp insights from your experiences. Those insights don’t have to be cosmic in scale. They do have to address “complexities of business in an international setting” in some way, shape, or form. Your insights should show that you are thoughtful, synthesize your experience and distill meaning from it, and are open to learning as you grow professionally.

Also, through example and anecdote, demonstrate your ability to adapt across cultures – and beware the pitfall of using stereotypes when doing so (the Japanese are indirect, the Israelis are blunt, the Indians are culturally conservative) – hint: stop when you find yourself saying “the French,” “the Chinese,” “the Saudis.” Very likely a simplistic stereotype is about to burst forth.

Here are some specific ways to incorporate this criterion into your application:

• If you DO have international work experience, present anecdotes and examples from it in your essays, make sure to portray your cultural adaptability and flexibility, and include insight you gained from this experience.
  
  
• If you DO NOT have international work experience, make certain to detail your international exposure, include insights gained, and show how this exposure involved your cultural flexibility.
  
  
• In the goals discussion, of course mention the global aspect, but go one step further, e.g., not just “become CIO of global pharma company” but add details about what that global aspect really entails for pharma, what are the specific global-related challenges and/or opportunities in the future, etc. Show awareness of global trends for your target industry, function, etc.
  
  
• Make sure your resume maximizes global-related experience.
  
  
• Go into the interview with (a) a good grasp of current economic and geopolitical realities to add context for anecdotes and discussion points when possible, (b) a fresh recollection of your global experiences (professional and personal), and (c) thorough understanding of INSEAD’s global culture and how you fit into it.
  
  
• INSEAD includes its language requirements within its discussion of international motivation, so when you describe actual cross-cultural interactions (in essays and/or interview), if relevant include language component.

INSEAD MBA criterion #3: Academic capacity

The operative word in this criterion is capacity. This word conveys the adcom’s perspective on the academic component of the application: it’s dynamic, focusing on how you can grow and perform and achieve academically going forward. The only way for the adcom to determine this is to draw conclusions based on your existing academic record. (Professional accomplishment does not indicate academic capacity, sorry to say.)

There are two core components of that academic record:

• Undergraduate record
  
  
• Standardized test

INSEAD now accepts both the GMAT and the GRE. Unlike many programs, INSEAD recommends score levels: for the GMAT, at least 70-75% for both quant and verbal sections and 6 for the IR; for the GRE, at least 80% for both verbal and quant.

Evaluating your undergraduate record

The case of the undergraduate record is a bit more nuanced. The adcom looks at both the performance (grades, GPA) and competitiveness of the school. So, a 3.5 isn’t just a 3.5; it’s 3.5 relative to the rigor of the undergrad school and program. There are additional considerations in evaluating your undergrad record that are relevant for academic capacity, including:

• How did your GPA trend? Even if it’s great, if it drops a lot in the last year or semester, it’s not a great signal for academic capacity – and vice versa, a rising trend over 4 years even if the overall GPA is so-so, is helpful.
  
  
• How did you do in your quant courses? Those grades should be solid at least. There should be no doubt about academic capacity in quant.
  
  
• Did you work during school? (If so, make sure the adcom knows it.) The ability to perform well (or even pretty well) while working indicates academic capacity.
  
  
• Did you earn a graduate degree? The rigors of graduate work plus the tenacity graduate level study requires show academic capacity, even though a grad degree is not required.
  
  
• How competitive and challenging was your undergrad program and school? And how does your GPA relate to that?

Evaluating your academic capacity

With these factors in mind, evaluate your own academic capacity, trying to see it from the adcom’s view:

• First, evaluate the GMAT score and how it breaks down. What story or impression will the adcom see behind the numbers and percentiles?
  
  
• Second, evaluate your undergrad record thoroughly. Again, what will the adcom see behind the grades and the course names? Does it see broad or narrow interests? A global perspective? Growth? Curiosity? What’s the story and the academic personality that emerge?
  
  
• Third, combine the insights from these two evaluations. What’s the holistic academic picture that develops and what does it tell the adcom about your academic capacity?This evaluation process may simply clarify that everything is fine on the academic front and you can focus your application efforts into other topics and considerations. Or, it may reveal that, while you are qualified for INSEAD academically, there is room to strengthen the impression of academic capacity. In that case, look for opportunities in the essays, resume, and (fingers-crossed) interview to fill in that gap through the examples, anecdotes, and details you include.

INSEAD MBA criterion #4: Leadership potential

INSEAD is not unique among MBA programs in desiring leadership potential in applicants. All do. It is unique in how it characterizes leadership and leadership potential.

The adcom has a two-pronged view of leadership:

• factual (what you did, your experience that reflects leadership) and
  
  
• qualitative (the values, character, and vision that inform your leadership, and its nature, impact and significance).

So, in this framework it’s not enough just to have impact or to drive change – it’s what kind of impact and why you pursue it; what specific change – from what to what and why.

Let’s focus for a moment on the word “potential.” The adcom doesn’t just say “leadership” for the criterion. Potential is forward focused. You may have led a big project to success, but if your application indicates that you aren’t reflective, engaged, and interested in growth, your potential – future – leadership may be limited. So, this criterion must resonate with the other elements of your application to show (ideally) a mature, open, curious, intellectually agile, personally reflective nature. Such a nature will, when leading, provide quality leadership.

Demonstrating leadership potential

How do you show that you meet this criterion?

• First, obviously, present experiences (through example, anecdote, and resume points) that clearly portray your leadership roles to date. These may be formal (where you were a designated leader AND met the responsibilities of the role) or informal (where you identified the need for and stepped in to tactfully provide leadership in a given situation, e.g. resolving a conflict among teammates). In presenting these experiences, keep “quality” on the radar screen and strive to weave in aspects of the experience that include this dimension.
  
  
• Second, through essays, resume, interview, etc., discuss experiences that convey elements of leadership. For example, you might have maturely handled an ethical challenge that didn’t necessarily involve leadership, but still showed qualities, such as courage, moral compass, willingness to prioritize values, etc., that one wants in a leader. There are an infinite variety of such elements – they include things like ability to motivate and/or inspire people, ability to persuade, willingness to take a stand for a value or an idea, ability and/or willingness to make tough decisions and forthrightly address the consequences, openness to appropriate risk-taking, etc. Bring them to the foreground when you describe an experience in an essay. In the resume, sometimes you can work it in contextually.
  
  
• Third, I’ll mention a factor too little used by applicants IMHO. When a good opportunity presents itself, mention (in essays and/or interview), a leader you admire and from whose example of leadership you are learning and growing. It may be someone you know at work, or a figure out in “the world.” No need to go on at length about such exemplars – but devoting a couple of lines in an essay or a sentence or two in an interview to such a mention is a great way to show leadership potential: you are thinking about leadership, you resourcefully gain insight from prevailing circumstances and apply it to your own situation, and you have the grace to elevate another.

Follow these steps and you are on your way to showing the INSEAD adcom that you are a great fit for the program.

For personalized assistance that will help you get accepted to INSEAD, check out our MBA Application Packages. I am always thrilled when I get an “I’m in at INSEAD!” email. I welcome the chance to help you show you belong at INSEAD and receive such an email from you in the future.

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Related Resources:

• Leadership in Admissions, a free guide
• 4 Ways to Display Teamwork in Application Essays
• INSEAD MBA Essay Tips & Deadlines

The post What is INSEAD Looking For? appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

Harvard Business School has taken the top spot away from Stanford Graduate School of Business in the Financial Times 2020 global MBA ranking. 

Although the Financial Times ranking is designed to favor non-U.S. programs, 15 of the top 25 MBA programs are based in the U.S. This result comes despite the decline in applications to U.S. MBA programs – now in its sixth straight year.

The 2020 top 5 schools have not changed since last year, although their rankings have. Following Harvard are: #2 – University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School (up 2 spots); #3 – Stanford Graduate School of Business (down 2 spots); #4 – INSEAD (down 1 spot); and #5 CEIBs in Shanghai, China (unchanged). 

Volatile rankings

Financial Times global ranking methodology is based on 20 different metrics, including some that are inclined to favor non-U.S. schools. Some metrics that add to a school’s position include the percentage of students, faculty, and trustees who possess passports from a country where the school is not located, whether students and alumni worked in foreign countries, whether students had international class experience, and whether the school has a requirement to learn an additional language before graduation. 

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A new metric was added this year – Corporate Social Responsibility. This metric has a weight of 3%, and is based on the percentage of teaching hours from core courses devoted to CSR, ethics, social, and environmental issues.  

The FT’s most heavily weighted metric is salary data (40%). its use of “purchasing power parity”, or PPP  favor schools whose grads go to work in countries with lower cost of living. This hurts U.S. schools since most grads of U.S. MBA programs want to live and work in the U.S. 

The ranking does not take incoming student quality into account. GMAT and GRE scores, as well as undergraduate GPA’s, are ignored. 

<< Watch: Linda Abraham and Marco De Novellis of BusinessBecause discuss the value of MBA rankings >>

FT’s ranking is known to be volatile, which reduces its credibility because there are few year-to-year changes at schools that explain big changes in the rankings. This means that there were big winners and big losers again this year. 

Twenty-seven of the 91 returning b-schools had double-digit increases or decreases in their standings. Fully half of the MBA programs ranked by FT five years ago (39 of 78) have felt double-digit changes, and 23 of those changes have been adjustments in 20 or more spots.

Top 25 International MBA Programs

2020 Rank	School	2019 Rank	Y-O-Y Change
1	Harvard	2	+1
2	UPenn Wharton	4	+2
3	Stanford GSB	1	-2
4	INSEAD	3	-1
5	CEIBS	5	---
6	MIT Sloan	8	+2
7	London	6	-1
8	Columbia	9	+1
9	HEC Paris	19	+10
10	Chicago Booth	7	-3
11	Northwestern Kellogg	14	+3
12	UC-Berkeley Haas	10	-2
13	IESE	12	-1
14	Yale SOM	11	-3
15	Nat’l Univ. of Singapore	17	+2
16	Dartmouth Tuck	15	-1
17	Duke Fuqua	19	+3
18	Virginia Darden	23	+5
19	Cambridge Judge	16	-3
19	Hong Kong UST	18	-1
21	Oxford Said	13	-8
22	New York Stern	25	+3
23	Cornell Johnson	27	+4
24	ESADE	21	-3
25	IMD	22	-3
25	UCLA Anderson	26	+1

Do you see yourself in one of these top international programs? Find out how working one-on-one with one of our Admissions Consultants can help get you ACCEPTED!

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Related Resources:

• Navigate the MBA Application Maze: 9 Tips to Acceptance, a free guide
• Top MBA Programs Get STEM-Certified to Attract Int’l Students
• B-School Selectivity Index: Discover the Schools Where You are a Competitive Applicant

The post Financial Times Ranks Harvard as #1 in 2020 Global MBA Ranking appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

INSEAD is the “Business School For The World.” But is it the business school for you? 

If you’re an internationally-minded leader, you could be on your way to a first-class international MBA program – but first, you need to show the admissions committee that you belong. To help you understand what the INSEAD adcom is looking for, we’ve created a unique, one-hour webinar just for INSEAD applicants: Get Accepted to INSEAD. 

Accepted’s founder, Linda Abraham, will share proven strategies for your application and guide you through each section of the INSEAD application package. You’ll learn how to make the most of your strengths, mitigate weaknesses, and show you belong at INSEAD. And because we know you’re busy, we’ve packed it all into just one hour.

The webinar is free, but you must register.

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The post How to Get Accepted to INSEAD? appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

According to their website, INSEAD will be opening the INSEAD San Francisco Hub for Business Innovation in 2020. The downtown San Francisco facility will join campuses in Europe (Fontainebleau), Asia (Singapore), and the Middle East (Abu Dhabi), ensuring INSEAD’s position as a global program.

Students at INSEAD’s San Francisco program will benefit from INSEAD’s decades of working with international executives and organizations around the world. The inaugural programs will be Transition to General Management, International Directors Programme, Integrating Performance and Progress, Blue Ocean Strategy, Leading Digital Transformation and Innovation, and The Future of AI. The Hub will also hold specially designed programs for U.S. and international companies.

More about the new hub

INSEAD sees the Hub as more than just an educational center. It will be a place for establishing new contacts through events organized in conjunction with corporate partners, alumni, and visiting faculty.

According to INSEAD Dean, Ilian Mihov, “From our origins in postwar Europe, INSEAD has distinguished itself in bringing together diverse people and perspectives to drive learning and build bridges as we develop responsible business leaders. Coming to North America opens an important new chapter in this journey. We are deeply grateful to our many alumni donors who made possible the transformation of this historic building into a state-of-the-art facility for learning and exchange.”

Peter Zemsky, Dean of Innovation oversaw the development of INSEAD’s San Francisco Hub for Business Innovation. “As tech innovation goes global, business leaders everywhere need to rapidly transform their strategies and organizations. At the same time, tech leaders need to adapt to the drastically shifting expectations about the impact of their products on societies worldwide. INSEAD is uniquely placed to facilitate this learning through our global faculty and network.”

More about INSEAD

INSEAD has had many firsts in their 60-year history:

• First international business school outside the U.S.; it opened in 1959
• First business school to offer a one-year MBA program
• First business school to offer executive education based on the needs of individual companies
• First business school with complete campuses on multiple continents
• First and only business school to have a “triple first” in rankings – MBA, Executive MBA (Tsinghua-INSEAD EMBA), and Single School Executive MBA (INSEAD GEMBA) in the Financial Times ranking in 2016.

Are you thinking of applying to INSEAD’s new program? We can help! Explore our MBA Admissions Consulting & Editing Services and work one-on-one with an advisor who will help you GET ACCEPTED!

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Related Resources:

• What’s New at INSEAD, a podcast episode
• What INSEAD is Looking For
• INSEAD MBA Essay Tips & Deadlines [2019 – 2020]

The post INSEAD Announces Opening of First Permanent North American Facility appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

Rank	School	Final Score	Launched Business in 3 Months	% of Faculty who Teach Entrepreneurship	Award Money Available*
1	Washington University in St. Louis (Olin)	100	20.67%	27.00%	$987,500
2	Stanford Graduate School of Business	72.54	15.67%	16.39%	$100,000
3	Babson College	71.3	16.63%	20.00%	$132,500
4	University of Michigan (Ross)	70.21	17.33%	17.20%	$523,500
5	ESADE	60.14	4.61%	6.00%	$0
6	MIT (Sloan)	52.99	6.80%	15.66%	$270,000
7	CEIBS	51.08	4.93%	4.41%	$9,000
8	University of Minnesota (Carlson)	50.65	7.67%	6.40%	$500,000
9	University of California-Los Angeles (Anderson)	47.17	3.13%	7.74%	$41,000
10	University of California-Berkeley (Haas)	46.86	6.05%	13.56%	$100,000
11	Rice University (Jones)	46.52	6.00%	17.00%	$2,942,150
12	Harvard Business School	45.99	7.33%	12.70%	$700,000
13	University of Chicago (Booth)	45.76	3.13%	11.76%	$700,000
14	Carnegie Mellon University (Tepper)	45.68	6.67%	1.00%	$60,000
15	INSEAD	43.62	4.33%	10.75%	$145,029
16	Indiana University (Kelley)	43.42	1.53%	19.23%	$20,000
17	Northwestern University (Kellogg)	42.6	1.90%	4.52%	$100,000
18	Yale School of Management	38.17	4.13%	12.08%	$100,000
19	University of Texas-Austin (McCombs)	34.02	2.73%	11.00%	$100,000
20	Columbia Business School	33.6	4.27%	21.93%	$250,000
21	University of Virginia (Darden)	28.47	4.53%	15.38%	$50,000
22	UNC-Chapel Hill (Kenan-Flagler)	28.18	1.67%	20.00%	$49,500
23	University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)	28.01	4.97%	11.68%	$135,000
24	Georgetown University (McDonnough)	26.63	3.00%	7.81%	$189,500
25	New York University (Stern)	24.2	1.65%	14.00%	$275,000
26	University of Southern California (Marshall)	24.07	0.50%	6.05%	$300,000
27	Emory University (Goizueta)	20.31	1.07%	0.00%	$8,500

* Total award money available to full-time MBAs through new venture and startup competitions during the 2018-2019 academic year.

Are you a budding entrepreneur who needs to round out their skill set with an entrepreneurial-focused MBA? Let us at Accepted help you put together your strongest application to show these top programs what you’ve got. Contact us today for a free consultation on how we can work together to get you accepted to the perfect program for you!

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Related Resources:

• MBA Applicants: Make Your Work Experience Work for You, a free guide
• B-School Selectivity Index: Discover the Schools Where You Are Competitive
• A Bain Consultant-Turned Wharton MBA Starts Her Own Business, a podcast episode

The post Top MBA Programs for Entrepreneurs appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

Chicago’s Booth School of Business remaining at the top of The Economist’s ranking of the world’s top MBA programs for the second year in a row is only one of a few stable things in this year’s ranking, according to the Poets & Quants website. This is the seventh time Booth has taken the top spot in The Economist ranking in the past nine years.

This year’s ranking shakeup is widespread. Nineteen of the top 100 MBA programs faced leaps or falls of at least 10 spots since last year. Seven schools have dropped out of the ranking completely, leaving room for seven new schools.

The biggest winners and losers

HEC Paris made the biggest gain in the Top 10. It jumped 10 places to #3, behind just Chicago Booth (#1) and Harvard Business School (#2).

UVA Darden (#9 in 2018) and Columbia Business School (#10 in 2018) are no longer found in the Top 10 (they’ve dropped to 16th and 15th, respectively).

University of Maryland (#81 in 2019) and Northeastern University (#82 in 2019) are no longer ranked in the Top 100.

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Why are these rankings so volatile?

The Economist looks at 21 different metrics to determine their rankings. This is the most metrics of any ranking. They place heavy emphasis on compensation and career placement, including salaries, pre-MBA versus post-MBA pay increases, and the percent of grads who find jobs through the career management center. These comprise 45% of the methodology.

The Economist also relies quite a bit on student satisfaction, which is determined by an annual survey of current MBA students and recent alumni. These survey results comprise 20% of the ranking and are composed of:

• New career opportunities (35%)
• Personal development/educational experiences (35%)
• Increasing salary (20%)
• Potential to network (10%)

The Economist’s Top 25 MBA programs

2019 Rank	School	YOY Change	2018 Rank
1	Chicago Booth	-	1
2	Harvard Business School	+1	3
3	HEC Paris	+10	13
4	Northwestern Kellogg	-2	2
5	UPenn Wharton	-1	4
6	UCLA Anderson	+2	8
7	UC Berkeley Haas	+4	11
8	Stanford GSB	-3	5
9	Michigan Ross	-2	7
10	IESE	-4	6
11	Duke Fuqua	+4	15
12	Dartmouth Tuck	-	12
13	SDA Bocconi	+11	24
14	Cornell Johnson	+6	20
15	Columbia	-5	10
16	Virginia Darden	-7	9
17	New York University Stern	-	17
18	USC Marshall	+10	28
19	MIT Sloan	-3	16
20	Washington Foster	+2	22
21	Yale SOM	-7	14
22	INSEAD	-3	19
23	Georgia Tech Scheller	+8	31
24	Warwick	-6	18
25	London Business School	+2	27

Is a top MBA program in your future? Learn what these rankings mean for you and how you can secure your spot at your top choice b-school when you work one-on-one with an expert Accepted advisor. Explore our MBA Admissions Services for more information on how we can help you get ACCEPTED.

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Related Resources:

• Are You a Competitive Applicant at Your Dream School? [The MBA Selectivity Index]
• Do MBA Rankings Matter?
• Are You a Good Fit for Your Target MBA Programs?

The post Big Changes in Economist 2019 MBA Rankings appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

One of the top European business schools has this year joined the MIM market. Enter stage right INSEAD with its new Master in Management. Currently accepting applications for its 2020 intake, INSEAD’s entry into the pre-experience market is a signal that there’s not only a demand for this early career degree, but there’s much traditionally MBA and EMBA focused schools can gain from having the recent graduate student segment on their campuses.

Although the INSEAD MIM offers a different course offering and structure than its more established MBA, as one would expect, they are looking to recruit students who value their values and who have ambitious goals. INSEAD is known as ‘The Business School for the World’, and in their MIMs they’re hoping to find business students who have an interest in the world around them, and a desire to contribute to it. As one might expect, they’ve put an emphasis on the internationalism of the programme, which offers “…a truly global experience…with international classmates…[and the chance to] travel across continents…”. They are looking to build a “dynamic and diverse student body” and want to see students who thrive in such an environment. Unsurprisingly, international motivation is one of the key admissions criteria, along with academic performance and ability to contribute.

The application requires three ‘getting to know you’ essays, all of which have a word limit. Do take careful note of the guidance provided about this:

“Respecting this word limit is an important exercise to see how you express your ideas in a concise way…”

Don’t let the limited word count give you a false sense of ease – it’s much trickier to give an overview of your career ambitions in 100 words than it is in 500, so clarity and brevity are key.

INSEAD Master’s in Management application essays

INSEAD MIM essay #1

How would you introduce yourself? (Maximum 200 words)

This has the potential to be a fun question as it’s your chance to tell the admissions committee what’s unique and interesting about you and to display your personality. This question gives you the opportunity to introduce who you are outside of what’s on your CV, so make sure not to repeat what they already know about you from the application form. Think about approaching this as you might do a speed dating event where you have only a few minutes to convince the person sitting across from you that you’re interesting, well-rounded, and with a lot to contribute to the conversation (no pressure!).

INSEAD MIM essay #2

Tell us what you have been doing since graduating from secondary education and what motivated your choices? (Maximum 200 words)

This is a tricky question as it requires you to reflect on what you’ve been doing since starting your university studies. The admissions committee will want to understand the thought process behind the decisions you’ve made during this time, and the drivers that have propelled you to pursue your path. Make sure not to use this question as a space to rehash your entire CV, but rather an opportunity to explain the reasoning behind pivotal choices. Have your decisions been strategic and part of a bigger plan? Have you been good at taking up opportunities as they come? Your answer will help the admission committee be able to connect the dots and understand you better.

INSEAD MIM essay #3

Share your short and long-term career aspirations with a MIM from INSEAD. (Maximum 100 words)

INSEAD is clear about the type of leader they’re looking for. They want “…leaders who transform business and society” and consider MIMs “the next generation of well-rounded, agile-thinking and innovative individuals who are ready to make a positive impact in today’s society.” When presenting your career goals, think about whether you are or want to be this person, and if so, how you will go about doing that. With only 100 words to use this answer needs to be succinct. Use the space to indicate your target companies/industries and roles, the motivation behind these ambitions, and the impact you hope to have. Make sure to provide thoughts on how specifically the INSEAD MIM will support your goals – this could include specific courses, extracurricular activities, or something around the community/network. But remember, be specific.

INSEAD MIM essay #4 (optional)

Is there anything else that was not covered in your application that you would like to share with the Admissions Committee?

Use this question only if you have vital information about your candidacy that you haven’t been able to include elsewhere in your application. Examples of acceptable material include providing context for low grades/test score or a gap in your education history. Steer clear of using this space to reiterate how passionate you are about the INSEAD MIM or how you’re the perfect fit. If you’ve done your job well through the rest of the application, they’ll already know this.

Programme Director Thibault Seguret and Global Director of Admissions & Financial Aid Virginie Fougea make it clear they want you, the applicant, to “be yourself”. So they’re looking for genuine, personal, unmanufactured insights into who you are as a person and what you’ll bring to your MIM class and the INSEAD community. Don’t write what you think the admissions committee wants to hear, write what is truthful – your truth – and give them a taster to who you are, and who you want to be with the help of the INSEAD MIM degree.

Unsure of how to illustrate your narrative or make sure it has the impact you want it to have? Get in touch with one of our admissions consultants to discuss how they can help you tell your story.

For professional guidance with your INSEAD MIM application, check out Accepted’s MIM Application Packages, which include advising, editing, interview coaching, and a resume edit for the INSEAD MIM application.

INSEAD MIM 2019 – 20 application deadlines for September 2020 intake

Round 1	October 9, 2019
Round 2	December 11, 2019
Round 3	February 12, 2020
Round 4	April 15, 2020
Round 5	June 3, 2020

***Disclaimer: Information is subject to change. Please check with individual programs to verify the essay questions, instructions and deadlines.***

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Related Resources:

• 5 Fatal Flaws to Avoid in Your Application Essays, a free guide
• Early Career Management and European MBA Programs with Jamie Wright, a podcast episode
• INSEAD Announces New 10-Month Master’s in Management (MIM) Program

The post INSEAD Master’s in Management (MIM) Essay Questions, Tips & Deadlines [2019 – 2020] appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

Forbes has released its 2019 rankings of full-time MBA programs in the U.S. and one-year programs internationally. These rankings are based on responses from more than 100 schools and 17,500 alumni around the world. Graduates’ earnings in their first five years after graduation from business school were compared to their opportunity cost, which gave Forbes a five-year MBA gain – the basis for the final rank.

The alumni survey reveals that an MBA from one of the top schools continues to be very valuable, and pays for itself in approximately four years. Alumni from the class of 2014 at the top 25 U.S. programs boosted their salaries from an average of $73,000 before their MBA to $193,000 last year. Salaries have gone up on average 10% each year since graduation.

Top 10 U.S. business schools

Rank	School	Location	5-Year MBA Gain	Years to Payback	Pre-MBA Salary	2018 Salary	Tuition	GMAT
1	Chicago Booth	Chicago, IL	$94.4K	3.9	$83K	$245K	$149K	730
2	Stanford	Palo Alto, C	$90.8K	4.2	$86K	$250K	$144K	732
3	Northwestern Kellogg	Evanston, IL	$89.6K	3.9	$76K	$215K	$150K	740
4	Harvard Business School	Boston, MA	$86.5K	4.1	$88K	$230K	$161K	730
5	Pennsylvania Wharton	Philadelphia, PA	$84.7K	4.1	$92K	$230K	$158K	732
6	Dartmouth Tuck	Hanover, NH	$82.7K	4	$84K	$233K	$153K	720
7	Columbia Business School	New York, NY	$80.9K	4.1	$82K	$230K	$160K	740
8	MIT Sloan	Cambridge, MA	$80.9K	4.1	$80K	$215K	$154K	730
9	Cornell Johnson	Ithaca, NY	$78.3K	4	$68K	$195K	$142K	700
10	Michigan Ross	Ann Arbor, MI	$78K	3.9	$72K	$180K	$140K	720

Top 10 one-year international programs

Rank	School	Location	5-Year MBA Gain	Years to Payback	Pre-MBA Salary	2018 Salary	Tuition	GMAT
1	IMD	Lausanne, Switzerland	$168.9K	2.7	$82K	$200K	$85K	680
2	INSEAD	Fountainebleau, France; Singapore	$154.7K	2.6	$79K	$195K	$90K	710
3	Cambridge Judge	Cambridge, United Kingdom	$153K	2.4	$67K	$183K	$65K	700
4	SDA Bocconi	Milan, Italy	$135.5K	2.5	$60K	$165K	$57K	665
5	Oxford Said	Oxford, United Kingdom	$127.3K	2.8	$76K	$177K	$71K	690
6	IE Business School	Madrid, Spain	$104.3K	3.2	$58K	$149K	$79K	686
7	Indian School of Business	Hyderabad, India	$90.5K	2.4	$15K	$62K	$37K	710
8	Warwick	Coventry, United Kingdom	$83.8K	2.9	$53K	$139K	$48K	660
9	Mannheim	Mannheim, Germany	$83K	3	$51K	$125K	$42K	680
10	ESMT Berlin	Berlin, Germany	$86.2K	3.4	$49K	$118K	$49K	650

Do you need help choosing the best business school for you? Get matched with an Accepted advisor today who will guide you through the process of finding, applying to, and getting accepted to the ideal MBA program for you. Explore our MBA Admissions Consulting for more information.

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Related Resources:

• Navigate the MBA Application Maze: 9 Tips to Acceptance, a free guide
• A Conversation About Today’s MBA Marketplace, a podcast episode
• Do MBA Rankings Matter?

The post Forbes 2019 Best Business Schools: Booth Tops the List appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.

INSEAD has announced an innovative 10-month, full-time MiM program, designed to develop the next generation of leaders in business to be able to successfully navigate the rapidly evolving business environment.

According to Urs Peyer, Dean of Degree Programmes at INSEAD, “By engaging talented young people, the MiM will contribute to the INSEAD mission to develop responsible business leaders who transform business and society. Our current master’s programmes are designed for experienced global professionals – from MBAs and participants in our Executive Master’s in Finance to senior executives in our Executive MBA and Executive Master’s in Change. The MiM will make the INSEAD educational offering complete by equipping a new group of post-graduate, pre-experience learners with the most relevant knowledge and skills to succeed in today’s complex world and move it in new and exciting directions.”

Jamie Wright, Accepted consultant and former Admissions Director for Early Career Programmes at London Business School, agrees and looks at the development from the vantage point of a former competitor. “The launch of the MiM at INSEAD is yet another signal of the important role pre-experience programmes play in graduate management education today. Top business schools such as INSEAD see the value of the degree both to employers, who are courting these candidates, and to their communities, who are keen to bring to campus the ideas and enthusiasm of this next generation of business leaders.”

INSEAD MiM program features

Advantages of the INSEAD MiM program include:

• Study at a top-ranked business school – INSEAD is one of the leading business schools in the world. Their master’s programs are always ranked among the top international programs.
• Practical applications – Besides getting an excellent foundation through the core courses, students will gain practical experience through company visits, and business trips in Asia and Europe. Digital electives will enhance the students’ ability to succeed in the digital age.
• In-demand skills – Graduates will come away with a skillset that includes integrated problem solving, effective communications, and project management, in addition to coding. These skills are highly sought after by today’s employers.
• International exposure – The MiM program will take place on campuses in France and Singapore, and will include travel to Abu Dhabi, China, or the U.S. This will increase the cross-cultural knowledge that is essential in today’s international business environment.
• Access to employers – The INSEAD Career Development Center will assist students in realizing their career goals and being successful.

INSEAD MiM program requirements

The first cohort will begin the INSEAD MiM program in September 2020. The GMAT/GRE is a required part of the application process, which also includes:

• Online application
• Video interview
• Skype or in-person interview

To learn more about INSEAD

Check out our treasure trove of INSEAD resources for more information about INSEAD and tips for gaining admissions to this top international business school. For one-on-one advising, explore our Catalog of Admissions Services.

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Related Resources:

• Leadership in Admissions, a free guide
• What INSEAD is Looking For, a blog series
• Early Career Management and European MBA Programs, a podcast episode

The post INSEAD Announces New 10-Month Master’s in Management (MiM) Program appeared first on Accepted Admissions Blog.