The Kellogg School of Management

In addition to their traditional Part-Time MBA Program, Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern is now offering an Accelerated Part-Time Option. This new option caters to those who have fulfilled certain requirements as undergrads or graduates and can jump straight to the more advanced courses needed for an MBA.

The Accelerated Option provides flexibility: Students can choose the Saturday or evening program, and can take up to three courses a quarter. Working at their own pace, they can complete the degree in anywhere from one-and-a-quarter to five years.

Regarding the requisite courses for the Accelerated Option, Accounting is required, in addition to at least five other courses in Economics, Statistics, Organizational Behavior, Operations, Finance, and Marketing. Students must have earned a B or better in these courses to be eligible. To check your eligibility, take a look at the core course summaries, or complete the course template and see if your courses qualify.

My Take:

Dean Blount of Kellogg had previously announced her intention to grow Kellogg’s 12-month, full-time MBA program after a strategic review revealed it is an “underappreciated asset” at the renowned school. This accelerated, part-time program has strong similarities to the full-time 12-month program, which also requires that participants have an academic foundation in business.

Furthermore, Dean Blount also acknowledged that “we are preparing for a world where the best students may not want [the two-year, full-time MBA] and they have options.”  The flexible Accelerated Option is just one more way in which Kellogg intends to compete in a world where students — including part-time students—have options. Kellogg clearly wants to offer programs that provide students with the options they seek.

By Linda Abraham, president and founder of Accepted.com and co-author of the new, definitive book on MBA admissions, MBA Admission for Smarties: The No-Nonsense Guide to Acceptance at Top Business Schools.

The Kellogg School of Management

Linda Darragh has been appointed executive director of the Levy Institute for Entrepreneurial Practice and the Heizer Center for Private Equity and Venture Capital at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. Darragh had worked at Kellogg, as part of its entrepreneurship team, from 1999 to 2005. She then worked at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business as director of entrepreneurship programs, “where she has been instrumental in furthering the teaching and practice of entrepreneurship at Booth, in Chicago and beyond.”

As head of these initiatives, Darragh will also lead the Kellogg Innovation and Entrepreneurship Initiative (KIEI), “which will combine and deepen the strength of our centers of excellence related to innovation, growth and new business formation,” according to Dean Sally Blount.  The Darragh appointment and the establishment of KIEI represent the implementation of Kellogg’s previously announced intention to focus on four specific areas of management education:

1. Markets, customers and growth, a historic strength at the school
2. Innovation and entrepreneurship.
3. Architectures of collaboration—AKA teamwork, another Kellogg strength.
4. Private enterprise and public policy

Implications for applicants:

Applicants applying to Kellogg need to understand the dean’s intentions and how these changes and foci will help them achieve their educational and professional goals. If you are an applicant to Kellogg and interested in entrepreneurship, you should research the work of these two centers and see if they are relevant to your interests. If yes, then show how you can use the center’s work and Kellogg’s emphasis on innovation and entrepreneurship to your advantage. How do you intend to contribute to innovation and entrepreneurship at Kellogg?

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As you can see the changes are somewhere between slight and miniscule.  Larger jumps and changes occurred outside the top 10, but the statistical significance of these changes becomes questionable due to fewer responses farther down the list.

And how “reliable” are these rankings? Wait a bit. We’ll be writing more on that.

By Linda Abraham, president and founder of Accepted.com and co-author of the new, definitive book on MBA admissions, MBA Admission for Smarties: The No-Nonsense Guide to Acceptance at Top Business Schools.

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Accepted.com ~ Helping You Write Your Best

Linda Abraham: What are the most common pitfalls of prospective students in the application process, and how would you advise candidates to best avoid them?

Jennifer Hayes: Very good question. I’ve been at Kellogg for eight years now, so I’ve seen a lot of applications, and I’ve seen a lot of things that aren’t in the best interest of the applicant. I do think that the biggest pitfall is that people do their research on Kellogg, they understand what’s important to us as an institution, and then they frame their experiences, their accomplishments, and the things that are important to them around that. Those are things that are important to us and those are things that you will experience if you’re here. However, you don’t necessarily have to frame your experience around that. We really want to understand what has motivated you, what’s been valuable to you, and what’s been most important to you in your life and in your career.

I would really encourage people to set aside that they’re applying to Kellogg and who we stand for as an institution, and really just think internally; really reflect on themselves when they’re starting to answer the application questions. You will look more genuine and more authentic. If you’re really talking about yourself, your values, and your motivations, you will look more diverse and unique as an applicant, instead of trying to do maybe what everyone else is doing by just reviewing the website and telling us those are important to you.

For the full Q&A, please view the Kellogg transcript or listen to the audio file. You can also read up on Kellogg news and advice at our Kellogg B-School Zone and the Northwestern Kellogg 2012 MBA Application Questions, Deadlines, Tips blog post.

NOTE: Kellogg’s next deadline is Tuesday, January 10th…so hurry!

To automatically receive notices about these MBA admissions chats and other MBA admissions events, please subscribe to our MBA event list. To listen to the Q&A recordings on-the-go, please subscribe to the Accepted Admissions Podcast.

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Here are a few posts, articles, and resources that proved particularly popular:

Top Ten Most Visited Accepted Admissions Blog Posts of 2011

1. Harvard Business School 2012 Essay Questions, Deadlines, Tips
2. INSEAD 2012 MBA Application Questions, Deadlines, Tips
3. London Business School 2012 MBA Application Questions, Deadlines, Tips
4. 2011 Rankings: BW’s Best Undergraduate Business Schools
5. NYU Stern 2012 MBA Application Questions, Deadlines, Tips
6. Kellogg 2012 MBA Application Questions, Deadlines, Tips
7. Columbia 2012 MBA Application Questions, Deadlines, Tips
8. 2012 Common Application Essay Tips
9. Stanford GSB 2012 MBA Application Questions, Deadlines, Tips
10. Chicago Booth 2012 MBA Application Questions, Deadlines, Tips

5 Most Downloaded Special Reports of 2011

1. 5 Fatal Flaws to Avoid
2. From Example to Exemplary
3. Best MBA Programs: A Guide to Selecting the Right One
4. Leadership in Admissions
5. MBA Rankings: What You Need to Know

5 Most Popular Articles

1. Writing Your Grad School Personal Statement
2. Go for the Goals in Your Statement of Purpose
3. Tips for Writing Letters of Recommendation
4. MBA Admissions: Low GMAT or GPA
5. The Letters of Rec Too?!?

6 Most Viewed Webinars

1. AMCAS Essays for Acceptance
2. Law School Personal Statements with Pizzazz
3. Highlighting Your Strengths in the Common Application
4. MBA Reality Check: Evaluate Your Profile for Acceptance
5. 4 Essentials in an Executive MBA Application
6. The Art of a Gripping MBA Goals Essay

5 Most Visited Chats Pages:

1. Duke NUS Medical School Admissions Q&A
2. Consortium 2011 MBA Application Strategies (2012 version is here.)
3. 2011 London Business School MBA/MiF Admissions Chat (2012 version is here)
4. 2012 INSEAD MBA Admissions Q&A 
5. 2011 Columbia MBA Admissions Q&A

With the year drawing to a close, I have a request. We moved to a new blogging platform in September, and since then, you folks have really stopped asking us questions. On the old blog, we frequently received profile evaluation requests and “what are my chances?” questions on school tip posts. We welcome them! And miss them in our new abode.  Don’t be shy. If you have a question or would like your profile evaluated, just ask.

And what’s the mostest of the mostest at Accepted? The absolute best? YOU! Our readers, followers, circlers, fans, friends, participants, and most of all, our clients. Thanks for a wonderful 2011.

By Linda Abraham, founder and president of Accepted.com, co-author of MBA Admission for Smarties: The No-Nonsense Guide to Acceptance at Top Business Schools.

Applicants, learn the 5 fatal flaws to avoid in your application essay, statement of purpose, personal statement, or secondary essay with our FREE special report, 5 Fatal Flaws.

Poets and Quants (“GMAT Scores Slip At Many Top Schools”) did an analysis of the median GMAT score at the top 25 US business schools and discovered that median scores are slowly dropping. MIT Sloan, Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, Carnegie-Mellon’s Tepper School, North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School, and the University of Southern California’s Marshall School all reported a 10-point drop in their median GMAT scores.

Poets and Quants analysis also reveals that a larger percentage of students were accepted to some b-schools this year than in 2010. USC’s Marshall School accepted 38% of applicants, in comparison with 22% last year, Georgetown’s McDonough School accepted 49% of its applicants, up from 42% last year, and Michigan’s Ross School accepted 32% of its applicants, up from 25% last year.

Implications for MBA applicants:

This is an excellent year to apply to business school.

While you still can’t slap together a mediocre application and expect to get accepted to a top-tier MBA program, if you know why you want an MBA and where you would like to get it, now is the time to apply. If you are competitive at your target schools, invest the time in your MBA essays, work with your recommenders, and submit for the round 2 deadlines.

You may also want to apply to an additional “reach” school or two. However, don’t get too cocky. This data does not imply that all your target programs should be “reaches” or that the GMAT no longer matters.

There is just a little less competition to enter the MBA class of 2014, especially for those not coming from super-competitive cohorts in the applicant pool.

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Look no further – the MBA book of all books is here, MBA Admission for Smarties: The No-Nonsense Guide to Acceptance at Top Business Schools, written by Accepted.com founder, Linda Abraham, and editor Judy Gruen. And now, for a very limited time only (Monday, Dec. 5 – Tuesday, Dec. 6) you can purchase this must-have book for $10 OFF the cover price by using coupon code SMARTIES at checkout. That’s almost 2/3 off the list price!

In MBA Admission for Smarties you will learn how to:

• Determine “fit” with a program.
• Establish your post-MBA goals and present them in a compelling goals essay.
• Write dazzling, memorable application essays.
• Secure winning letters of recommendation.
• Optimize your MBA application resume.

…and much, much more!

So what are you waiting for?

Be smart. Buy MBA Admission for Smarties now!

(Non-U.S. residents should buy MBA Admission for Smarties from Amazon.com where international shipping is available. Sorry – no coupon available to ship outside the U.S.)

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Register now to reserve your spot for the Kellogg Admissions Q&A!

What time is that for me? Click on the link to find out the exact time for your location.

Accepted.com ~ Helping You Write Your Best