Episodes
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In this week's MBA Admissions podcast we began by discussing the activity of MBA LiveWire; the last couple of weeks has seen significant activity as the majority of the top MBA programs have released their round 1 decisions. For this upcoming week Texas / McCombs is one of the few remaining top programs that is scheduled to release its Round 1 decisions.
Graham highlighted five admissions tips that have been published on the Clear Admit site this week. These include tips about scholarship offers, their impact on final decisions and whether they are negotiable. For Round 2 candidates, the admissions tips focused on resume preparation, career goals and building business school connections.
We then discussed two Real Humans stories, focused on MBA students at Texas / McCombs and Dartmouth / Tuck. This then turned into a conversation on how to seek out willing students and alumni with whom to connect.
Graham then presented the Class of 2024 career placement report from Dartmouth / Tuck. Overall, Tuck’s placement statistics remain impressive considering the market conditions. There has been a greater emphasis on placement within the North-East and Mid-Atlantic regions.
For this week, for the candidate profile review portion of the show, Alex selected two ApplyWire entries and one DecisionWire entry:
This week’s first MBA admissions candidate has a very interesting personal profile and has degrees from outstanding academic institutions in Europe. They also have a lot of entrepreneurial experience, over several years. We do worry about their quant profile, which is illustrated by their sub-par GRE score.
This week’s second MBA candidate is planning to apply in two years’ time, so is thinking ahead. They will want to retake their GRE, to improve their current 317 score. They have the opportunity to develop a very decent profile over the next couple of years.
The final MBA candidate is deciding between UPenn / Wharton and Chicago / Booth. Booth is offering them additional scholarship, but we wonder if that is enough to influence their final decision.
This episode was recorded in Paris, France and Cornwall, England. It was produced and engineered by the fabulous Dennis Crowley in Philadelphia, USA. Thanks to all of you who’ve been joining us and please remember to rate and review this show wherever you listen!
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In this week's MBA Admissions podcast we began by discussing the activity on MBA LiveWire; several top MBA programs will be releasing their Round 1 decisions this week, including Harvard, UPenn / Wharton, Northwestern / Kellogg, MIT / Sloan, Dartmouth / Tuck, Berkeley / Haas, UVA / Darden, Duke / Fuqua, UCLA / Anderson, Georgetown / McDonough, UNC / Kenan Flagler, Notre Dame / Mendoza, Vanderbilt / Owen, Rice / Jones, Johns Hopkins / Carey and Arizona / Carey. Washington / Olin is releasing Round 2 decisions and Oxford / Said is releasing Stage 3 decisions.
Graham noted a recently published story on Clear Admit that focuses on four students at Dartmouth / Tuck who are focused on healthcare. Graham then highlighted two admissions tips, the first tip focuses on how to reflect on negative admissions results, and the second explores the role of the video essay in the admissions process.
We then discussed two Real Humans stories, focused on MBA students at UC Irvine / Merage and Berkeley / Haas.
Graham then presented the second career placement report of the season, from NYU / Stern. While overall, the placement statistics are in line with last season, one potentially troubling statistic is the lower percentage of students reporting accepting a job, three months from graduation. This is a stat we will be looking at closely for subsequent career reports.
For this week, for the candidate profile review portion of the show, Alex selected three ApplyWire entries:
This week’s first MBA admissions candidate has a really interesting profile, which includes doing NGO work in conflict zones. We believe this is the type of candidate that top MBA programs really aspire to enroll. Their GPA is going to be slightly lower than the median for top MBA programs, but they have completed a masters degree and a calculus course, which helps compensate.
This week’s second MBA candidate is planning a second round strategy, based on the results from their Round 1 programs. They have received a few interview invites and are now considering whether to aim higher, or go with more safety programs.
The final MBA candidate is from Africa, has five years of work experience and a very decent GPA. But their GRE score is very low; we really hope they are able to prepare more and retake the test.
This episode was recorded in Paris, France and Cornwall, England. It was produced and engineered by the fabulous Dennis Crowley in Philadelphia, USA. Thanks to all of you who’ve been joining us and please remember to rate and review this show wherever you listen!
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Missing episodes?
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Whether you’re curious about Stanford GSB’s iconic essay question, tips for nailing your application, or the unique benefits of an MBA on the West Coast, you’re in for a treat in this episode of the Clear Admit MBA Admissions Podcast. Assistant Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid Erin Nixon provides a behind-the-scenes look at MBA admissions at Stanford, digging into what to expect in the interview, how to approach the application essays and more.
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In this week's MBA Admissions podcast we began by discussing the activity of MBA LiveWire; upcoming this week several top MBA programs will be releasing their Round 1 decisions including Stanford, Chicago / Booth, Yale SOM, Michigan / Ross, Cornell / Johnson, CMU / Tepper, Emory / Goizueta, Boston College / Carroll and Georgia / Terry. INSEAD is scheduled to release its Round 2 interview invites.
Graham highlighted the upcoming webinar series for Masters in Management programs, which will be held this week on December 3rd and 4th, and include Chicago / Booth, Georgetown / McDonough, Michigan / Ross, Duke / Fuqua, Emory / Goizueta and Notre Dame / Mendoza. Signups are still available: https://bit.ly/camim24
Graham then shared four admissions tips. The first two tips focus on those who applied in Round 1, helping candidates decide between different offers, and what to do if you are placed on a wait list at your target MBA program. The second two tips focus on those who are applying in Round 2, helping candidates identify target programs, and choosing their recommenders.
We then discussed two Real Humans stories, focused on MBA students at UCLA / Anderson and Washington / Foster.
Graham then presented the first career placement report of the Class of 2024 season, from UVA / Darden. Frankly, their placement statistics, which were very similar to last season, look quite impressive given the potential challenges in the hiring market we've been hearing about (with tech layoffs and a slowing of consulting hiring).
Finally, Graham previewed a podcast episode he recently conducted with Erin Nixon, the Assistant Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid at Stanford GSB. This will be published this week, so watch this space!
For this week, for the candidate profile review portion of the show, Alex selected three ApplyWire entries:
This week’s first MBA admissions candidate has significant work experience in the media and entertainment space and has now come to the realization that an MBA may well be a good next step. We think she will have interesting opportunities if her quant profile is strong.
This week’s second MBA candidate is targeting next season and has a GMAT score of 770. They also have very decent tech-focused work experience, and we think they should also have great options next season.
The final MBA candidate is from Ghana and is an older candidate at 32. We discussed some of the challenges that older MBA applicants might face in the admissions process, and how to overcome those challenges.
This episode was recorded in Paris, France and Cornwall, England. It was produced and engineered by the fabulous Dennis Crowley in Philadelphia, USA. Thanks to all of you who’ve been joining us and please remember to rate and review this show wherever you listen!
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In this week's MBA Admissions podcast we began by discussing the activity of MBA LiveWire; a few MBA programs are still rolling out Round 1 interview invites; several candidates are eager to hear from Northwestern / Kellogg and Stanford. Upcoming this week, London Business School is scheduled to release its Round 1 decisions, and Michigan State / Broad has its Round 2 deadline.
Graham highlighted the upcoming webinar series for Masters in Management programs, which are held on December 3rd and 4th, and includes Chicago / Booth, Georgetown / McDonough, Michigan / Ross, Duke / Fuqua, Emory / Goizueta, Indiana / Kelley, CMU Tepper, and Notre Dame / Mendoza. Signups are here: https://bit.ly/camim24 Graham also noted the Clear Admit survey that’s in the field, and focuses on issues related to building relationships with MBA program participants. The survey is here: https://bit.ly/casurveyfall24
Graham then highlighted two admissions tips. The first tip focuses on background checks that MBA programs undertake for their admissions candidates, and the second tip lists all the Round 2 MBA deadlines; January is a very busy month for those targeting Round 2.
We then discussed three Real Humans stories, focused on MBA students at Johns Hopkins / Carey, SMU / Cox and Columbia. Finally, Graham highlighted a podcast episode he recently conducted with the new Admissions leader at Stanford. This should be published very shortly.
For this week, for the candidate profile review portion of the show, Alex selected two ApplyWire entries and one DecisionWire entry:
This week’s first MBA admissions candidate is an American applicant who wants to apply to leading European MBA programs, to build a career in Europe. They appear to have a strong career in technical sales, but we worry about their overall academic profile.
This week’s second MBA candidate is working in their family business, which led to a discussion on how to source their recommenders. They certainly cannot use family members. They have only recently started preparing for the GMAT, but we like their overall profile.
The final MBA candidate has offers from IESE, IE Business and ESADE. They are considering whether they should attend one of these programs or reapply next season and include a few more programs.
This episode was recorded in Estoril, Portugal and Cornwall, England. It was produced and engineered by the fabulous Dennis Crowley in Philadelphia, USA. Thanks to all of you who’ve been joining us and please remember to rate and review this show wherever you listen!
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In this week's MBA Admissions podcast we began by discussing the activity of MBA LiveWire; Duke / Fuqua released its Round 1 interview invites last week, along with other programs that continue to roll out these decisions. Upcoming this week, IESE, SMU / Cox, Georgia Tech / Scheller and Imperial College are scheduled to release their Round 1 decisions.
Graham highlighted the upcoming webinar series for Masters in Management programs, which begins on December 3, and includes Duke / Fuqua, Emory / Goizueta and Notre Dame / Mendoza. Signups are here: https://bit.ly/camim24 Graham also noted the Clear Admit survey that’s in the field, and focuses on issues related to building relationships with MBA program participants. The survey is here: https://bit.ly/casurveyfall24
Graham discussed a presentation he is helping to put together for an upcoming GMAC conference, which addresses how MBA admissions adcom are using Gen AI in their admissions process. There is no doubt that admissions workflows will be impacted with this exciting technology shift. We then discussed the introduction of Clear Admit’s incentive scheme to encourage more community activity on the Wires platforms. This season, we are seeing a higher level of engagement, which is very exciting.
Graham then highlighted a recently published focus on two Stern MBAs who are veterans, in honor of veterans’ day. Finally, we discussed three Real Humans stories, focused on MBA students at UPenn / Wharton, Maryland / Smith and Cambridge / Judge.
For this week, for the candidate profile review portion of the show, Alex selected three ApplyWire entries:
This week’s first MBA admissions candidate is a reapplicant from last season. She has a strong focus on the education sector, which ties well with her long-term goal. She has a super GPA of 3.82, but her GRE score is a little less prominent at 323.
This week’s second MBA candidate is a deferred-admissions candidate. They have a perfect GRE score of 340 and appear to have all the pre-conditions for a strong profile. They are targeting all the top 7 MBA programs; we think they can shorten that list.
The final MBA candidate has a perfect GPA of 4.0. They work in audit in Florida, and are planning to apply next season, with three years of experience. They also have decent activities outside of work. We discussed their application strategy and things they can do now, to improve their overall profile.
This episode was recorded in Paris, France and Cornwall, England. It was produced and engineered by the fabulous Dennis Crowley in Philadelphia, USA. Thanks to all of you who’ve been joining us and please remember to rate and review this show wherever you listen!
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We dig into the Georgetown McDonough Flex MBA Online, addressing its structure, student experience, and unique advantages. The McDonough Flex MBA Online is a part-time program, now offered in either an in-person or online format. It is designed to be flexible, as candidates can complete the program over the course of 24 to 60 months.
Joining host Graham Richmond, two special guests from the McDonough community shed light on myriad facets of the online MBA. We welcome Anne Kilby, who serves as Associate Dean of MBA Admissions for the Full-Time MBA, Flex MBA, and Flex MBA Online programs. We also welcome current McDonough MBA candidate, Shriya Khonde, for an inside look at the Georgetown McDonough Flex MBA Online. -
In this week's MBA Admissions podcast we began by discussing the U.S. election, and the potential impacts of a new Trump administration.
Graham highlighted the webinar series for deferred admissions candidates, which continues on Wednesday, November 13 with Berkeley / Haas, CMU / Tepper, UVA / Darden and Stanford. Signups are here: https://bit.ly/cadefermba Graham also noted the upcoming webinar series for Masters in Management programs, which begins on December 3, signups are here: https://bit.ly/camim24
Graham then shared a recently published report from Forte Foundation, which illustrates the continued efforts of the MBA industry to move to gender parity. Graham then noted three admissions tips, two focused on the MBA interview process (questions to ask your interviewer, and thank you notes), and the third focused on potential admissions mistakes to avoid.
We then discussed four Real Humans stories, focused on MBA students at Yale SOM, IESE, Northwestern / Kellogg and NYU / Stern, and two MBA Class of 2026 profiles, from Columbia and Northwestern / Kellogg.
We then discussed activity on MBA LiveWire; for this upcoming week, Michigan State / Broad, INSEAD, Minnesota / Carlson and Ohio State / Fisher are scheduled to release Round 1 decisions.
For this week, for the candidate profile review portion of the show, Alex selected three ApplyWire entries:
This week’s first MBA admissions candidate is from South Asia and has a GMAT score of 720. We are worried about the impact of their low GPA. They do appear to have interesting work experience and additional activities, so we are hoping adcom can look past their GPA.
This week’s second MBA candidate is a military candidate with a super GPA from a military academy. We are concerned that their lower GRE score is not truly reflective of their overall profile.
The final MBA candidate has a 331 GRE score and a 3.98 GPA! They also appear to have interesting work experience and several significant activities outside of work. They are aiming high with their target programs, but this makes sense.
This episode was recorded in Paris, France and Cornwall, England. It was produced and engineered by the fabulous Dennis Crowley in Philadelphia, USA. Thanks to all of you who’ve been joining us and please remember to rate and review this show wherever you listen!
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In this week's MBA Admissions podcast we began by discussing the activity on MBA LiveWire; last week, MIT / Sloan and Duke / Fuqua released their Round 1 interview invites; other leading programs are still rolling out their interview invites, including Stanford and Berkeley / Haas. In the upcoming week, INSEAD has an application deadline, and Oxford / Said and Washington / Olin are scheduled to release final decisions from earlier rounds.Graham highlighted the upcoming webinars series scheduled for deferred admissions candidates, which begins on Wednesday with Columbia Business School, Harvard Business School, Chicago / Booth and Yale SOM, signups are here: https://bit.ly/cadefermbaWe then dedicated the remainder of this podcast episode to Wharton’s team-based discussion interview. Wharton has recently released its interview invites for Round 1, so we thought it would be appropriate to share our deep understanding of this unique interview process.We discuss the history of the team-based discussion interview, as well as why Wharton has adopted this methodology; it is an attempt to mimic the learning-team experience at Wharton. We highlight some issues with that thinking.We discuss the specific topic of this season’s team-based discussion interview, and then detail approaches in order for candidates to be most effective in the interview. We also discuss the brief one-on-one interview that occurs after the team-based interview is complete.This episode was recorded in Paris, France and Cornwall, England. It was produced and engineered by the fabulous Dennis Crowley in Philadelphia, USA. Thanks to all of you who’ve been joining us and please remember to rate and review this show wherever you listen!
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Flexibility is becoming a highly sought-after feature in today’s MBA landscape, and Indiana Kelley has just taken a big step forward by launching their new +Flex option. With this, full-time MBA students now have the choice to complete their second year either online or in person. This opens up endless possibilities, whether students want to travel, work remotely, or stay on campus in Bloomington for a more immersive experience. Learn more about this option with special guests, Emily Stern, Director of Student Services and Global Programs, and John Hill, Faculty Chair of the MBA Program.
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In this week's MBA Admissions podcast we began by discussing the activity on MBA LiveWire; UPenn / Wharton released its interview invites for Round 1 last week, while Chicago / Booth released deny decisions for those who it did not invite for an interview. Several other top MBA programs continue to roll out interview invite decisions. For this upcoming week, Cornell / Johnson is scheduled to release its interview invite decisions for Round 1, while Irvine / Merage, Oxford / Said, Maryland / Smith and Washington / Olin all have application deadlines. Georgetown / McDonough is scheduled to release its Early Action round decisions.
Graham highlighted the upcoming webinars series scheduled for deferred admissions candidates, which begins on November 6 with Columbia, Harvard, Chicago / Booth and Yale SOM, signups are here: https://bit.ly/cadefermba Graham also noted the upcoming webinar series for Masters in Management programs, which begins on December 3, signups are here: https://bit.ly/camim24
Graham then highlighted a recently published story that covers the history of the “M7” group of MBA programs, as well as an admissions tip on some of the more unusual interview practices at top MBA programs. Graham then noted three Real Humans stories, focused on MBA students at Emory / Goizueta, Vanderbilt / Owen and Boston College / Carroll.
For this week, for the candidate profile review portion of the show, Alex selected three ApplyWire entries.
This week’s first MBA admissions candidate is from Italy, now living in Spain. They appear to have a very solid career history and outside activities. They also have a master’s degree in economics. Unfortunately, they were not able to perform well on the GRE test, so have requested test waivers. We think this will harm their MBA options, overall.
This week’s second MBA candidate applied to all their programs in Round 1 and appears to have a decent profile, overall. This includes a 3.64 GPA, 324 GRE and 5 years of work experience. They already have an interview invite at Dartmouth / Tuck.
The final MBA candidate is from Brazil, and appears to have a very good profile overall, but has taken the Executive Assessment test, instead of the GMAT or GRE. Like our first candidate this week, we think this may negatively impact their overall options.
This episode was recorded in Paris, France and Cornwall, England. It was produced and engineered by the fabulous Dennis Crowley in Philadelphia, USA. Thanks to all of you who’ve been joining us and please remember to rate and review this show wherever you listen!
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In this week's MBA Admissions podcast we began by discussing the activity on MBA LiveWire; UVA / Darden released its Early Action round decisions, last week, Michigan / Ross also released its interview invites, and several other top MBA programs continue to roll out interview invite decisions. Round 1 application deadlines for this upcoming week include Johns Hopkins / Carey. They are also scheduled to release their Early Action round decisions. UPenn / Wharton is scheduled to release its Round 1 interview invites.
Graham highlighted this week’s Real Humans webinar on Wednesday, which will include students from Dartmouth / Tuck, Columbia, UVA / Darden and Duke / Fuqua, signups are here: https://bit.ly/rhlive1024 In November and December Clear Admit will be hosting webinars for deferred enrolment candidates, as well as events for candidates applying to Masters in Management programs.
Graham then highlighted two recently published admissions tips focused on the seven hardest MBA interview questions, and group interviews. The latter tip focuses on Wharton’s team-based interview, which is an unusual format, relative to other top MBA programs. Graham then noted three Real Humans stories, focused on MBA students at Georgetown / McDonough, Chicago / Booth and Florida / Warrington.
We then discussed Texas / McComb’s recently published Class of 2026 profile. They managed to increase their class size from 241 students to 255. The actual profile of the class is quite similar to the prior year’s class profile, which included an average GMAT score of 704, and GRE score of 321.
For this week, for the candidate profile review portion of the show, Alex selected three ApplyWire entries:
This week’s first MBA admissions candidate has applied to 12 MBA programs in Round 1, which is an extraordinary effort. They appear to have very decent work experience and outside of work activities. They also have a strong GPA. We do wonder if their GMAT score of 655 is their weak point.
This week’s second MBA candidate has recently graduated from their undergraduate degree. They are now a software engineer. They are looking to apply for their MBA in several years’ time, so they are planning ahead. We offered general advice in terms of what to do over the next several years.
The final MBA candidate is targeting Round 2 and has still to complete the GMAT or GRE. They appear to have good work experience, but we worry that their undergraduate record is going to be a real weakness. They want to transition into Investment Banking and are targeting the very top programs. They may need to adjust some of their target programs.
This episode was recorded in Paris, France and Cornwall, England. It was produced and engineered by the fabulous Dennis Crowley in Philadelphia, USA. Thanks to all of you who’ve been joining us and please remember to rate and review this show wherever you listen!
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In this week's MBA Admissions podcast we began by discussing the activity on MBA LiveWire; Columbia released Round 1 interview invites last week, and several other top MBA programs continue to roll out interview invite decisions. Round 1 application deadlines for this upcoming week include Rice / Jones, The Consortium, Texas / McCombs, Arizona / Carey, Boston / Carroll, Indiana / Kelley and Notre Dame / Mendoza. NYU / Stern has its Round 2 deadline this week. Imperial College is scheduled to release interview invites for its Round 1 candidates and Duke / Fuqua is scheduled to release its final decisions for its Early Action candidates.
Graham mentioned this week’s webinar focused on MBA programs on the West Coast, including Berkeley / Haas, Stanford, UCLA / Anderson, Washington / Foster and UC / Irvine. Signups are here: https://bit.ly/westcoastmba Clear Admit is also hosting a Real Humans webinar on October 24th, which will include students from Dartmouth / Tuck, Columbia, UVA / Darden and Duke / Fuqua, signups are here: https://bit.ly/rhlive1024 In November and December Clear Admit will be hosting webinars for deferred enrolment candidates, as well as events for candidates applying to Masters in Management programs.
Graham then highlighted a recently published admissions tip focused on the five MBA interview questions you need to ace. These are the most common MBA interview questions that most top MBA programs will be asking. Graham then noted three Real Humans stories, focused on MBA students at UNC / Kenan Flagler, IMD and Indiana / Kelley.
We then discussed three recently published class profiles, from Berkeley / Haas, Stanford and Washington / Olin. All these class profiles look very good. It is interesting to note that Stanford’s median GRE score is the same as the median GRE score at Washington / Olin. We discussed why this may be the case. Haas’s stats appear to be impressive for a program that sits just outside the leading M7 MBA programs, much like NYU / Stern’s stats that we covered last week.
For this week, for the candidate profile review portion of the show, Alex selected three ApplyWire entries:
This week’s first MBA admissions candidate is from Africa and has a GRE of 332. They also have a graduate degree. They appear to have very solid work experience and are active outside of work. They are targeting Sloan in Round 1, and then additional programs in Round 2.
This week’s second MBA candidate is from the US military and has a very strong GMAT of 715. We do worry about their 2.9 GPA, for which they did provide some mitigating circumstances. They also have a high GPA in their graduate degree which may help.
The final MBA candidate for this week has six years of consulting experience and is also active in their community. They have a GRE score of 294, which may really harm their options. They plan to retake the test and apply in Round 2. They might also consider undertaking some additional coursework.
This episode was recorded in Los Angeles, California and Cornwall, England. It was produced and engineered by the fabulous Dennis Crowley in Philadelphia, USA. Thanks to all of you who’ve been joining us and please remember to rate and review this show wherever you listen!
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In this week's MBA Admissions podcast we began by discussing the activity on MBA LiveWire; Harvard released all its Round 1 interview invites last week, as several other top MBA programs continue to roll out interview invite decisions. Round 1 application deadlines for this upcoming week include Michigan State / Broad, UNC / Kenan Flagler, Vanderbilt / Owen and Georgia / Terry. Cambridge / Judge has its Round 2 deadline this week. IESE and London Business School are scheduled to release interview invites for their Round 1 candidates and Oxford / Said is scheduled to release its final decisions for its Stage 1 candidates.
Graham highlighted the upcoming webinar focused on MBA programs from the West Coast, including Berkeley / Haas, Stanford, UCLA / Anderson, Washington / Foster and UC / Irvine. Signups are here: https://bit.ly/westcoastmba Clear Admit is also hosting a Real Humans webinar on October 24th, which will include students from Dartmouth / Tuck, Columbia, UVA / Darden and Duke / Fuqua.
Graham then mentioned two recently published admissions tips focused the value of the MBA degree, and interview etiquette. The latter tip will be the first in series focused on interview preparation. Graham then noted three Real Humans stories, focused on MBA students at CMU / Tepper, Duke / Fuqua and Ohio State / Fisher.
We then discussed three recently published class profiles, from NYU / Stern, Chicago / Booth and UPenn / Wharton. Like prior profiles for this season, application volumes were up, and the profile of the incoming classes remains strong. Stern’s stats are especially impressive for a program that sits just outside the leading M7 MBA programs.
For this week, for the candidate profile review portion of the show, Alex selected three ApplyWire entries:
This week’s first MBA admissions candidate is from Africa and appears to have an outstanding profile. They have a GPA of 3.88 and a GRE score of 329. They are also a first-generation college graduate with a solid finance experience.
This week’s second MBA candidate has built their career around affordable housing. That is their long-term goal and they were once homeless. They also have strong numbers, including a 330 GRE score.
The final MBA candidate for this week is from India and works in tech-related sales. They are targeting Round 2, which might not be ideal. They are also considering retaking the GRE, their current score is 318. A higher score will certainly help their overall profile.
This episode was recorded in Paris, France and Cornwall, England. It was produced and engineered by the fabulous Dennis Crowley in Philadelphia, USA. Thanks to all of you who’ve been joining us and please remember to rate and review this show wherever you listen!
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We continue our popular Admissions Director Q&A series with Emily Brierley, Head of Cambridge MBA Recruitment and Admissions at the Cambridge University’s Judge Business School. Emily has been with Cambridge Judge since 2016 and became a core part of the MBA Recruitment and Admissions team by 2018. She started out in operations and candidate management before taking on her current leadership role in August 2021. You might recognize her from a short episode from the GMAC conference this summer, but in this episode, we're going to dive deeper into the admissions process at Cambridge Judge and get Emily’s expert insights on what it takes to succeed as a candidate.
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In this week's MBA Admissions podcast we began by discussing the activity on MBA LiveWire; we are starting to see interview invites released for Round 1 for programs like Yale SOM, Berkeley / Haas, and Northwestern / Kellogg. Upcoming this week, we have several Round 1 deadlines including MIT / Sloan, Duke / Fuqua, UCLA / Anderson, CMU / Tepper, USC / Marshall, Washington / Foster, Washington / Olin, Maryland / Smith, SMU / Cox, Minnesota / Carlson, UVA / Darden, Emory / Goizueta and Georgia Tech / Scheller. Oxford / Said has its Stage 2 deadline, too.
Graham highlighted the upcoming webinar focused on MBA programs from the West Coast, including Berkeley / Haas, Stanford, UCLA / Anderson, Washington / Foster and UC / Irvine. Signups are here: https://bit.ly/westcoastmba
Graham then highlighted two recently published admissions tips focused on letters of support, and different types of MBA admissions interviews. Graham then noted two Real Humans stories, focused on MBA students at Cornell / Johnson and London Business School.
We then discussed three recently published class profiles, from Harvard, MIT / Sloan and Dartmouth / Tuck. Like prior profiles for this season, application volumes are up, and the profile of the incoming classes remains strong. This did, however, lead to a discussion regarding median GMAT scores versus GRE scores.
Finally, Graham noted a recently published podcast he hosted with David Simpson of London Business School.
For this week, for the candidate profile review portion of the show, Alex selected three ApplyWire entries:
This week’s first MBA admissions candidate has an outstanding academic profile, with a 3.85 GPA and 750 GMAT score. They have a health care focus, and as part of their school selection, they need to consider their partner’s continuing career.
This week’s second MBA candidate has a 720 GMAT and a 329 GRE, which led to a conversation as to which is better. They have a strong technical focus, which includes their own entrepreneurial experience.
The final MBA candidate for this week is a reapplicant for USC / Marshall. They have improved their GRE score, and other elements of their profile should also be improved. We suggest they also apply to UCLA / Anderson.
This episode was recorded in Paris, France and Cornwall, England. It was produced and engineered by the fabulous Dennis Crowley in Philadelphia, USA. Thanks to all of you who’ve been joining us and please remember to rate and review this show wherever you listen!
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In his 25+ years at London Business School (LBS), David Simpson, Recruitment and Admissions Director for the MBA and Masters in Finance, has worked across a range of roles in admissions, marketing, and business development. Recently, he sat down for a special episode of the Clear Admit MBA Admissions Podcast, hosted by Graham Richmond, to share his journey, insights, and tips for prospective students as part of our Admissions Director Q&A series. This in-depth conversation offers listeners a rare peek behind the curtain of LBS admissions.
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In this week's MBA Admissions podcast we began by discussing the activity on MBA LiveWire; we are starting to see interview invites released for Round 1 for programs like Yale SOM and Northwestern / Kellogg. Upcoming this week, we have several Round 1 deadlines including Toronto / Rotman, Imperial College, Dartmouth / Tuck and IESE.
The Clear Admit “Inside the MBA Admissions Process” event series concludes this week, on Wednesday, and includes Duke / Fuqua, CMU / Tepper, Columbia, Texas / McCombs and Georgetown / McDonough. Signups are here: https://bit.ly/insidemba
Graham also highlighted the upcoming webinar focused on MBA programs from the West Coast, including Berkeley / Haas, Stanford, UCLA / Anderson, UC / Irvine, and UW Foster. Signups are here: bit.ly/westcoastmba
We then discussed two recently published MBA rankings, from LinkedIn and Bloomberg / BusinessWeek. While we understand the importance of rankings for candidates’ research, we discussed the integrity of these rankings, relative to the reality of the marketplace of top MBA programs.
Graham highlighted a recently published admissions tip focused the optional essay, which, for most MBA programs, is truly optional and should be tackled with caution.
Graham then noted the recently published Adcom Q&A from Stanford. This included a conversation about how to address Stanford’s first essay prompt, which is Alex’s favorite MBA admissions essay. Graham then highlighted the beginning of Clear Admit’s Real Humans series that focuses on current students. This series kicked off with a focus on Rice / Jones and Michigan State / Broad.
We then discussed two recently published MBA class of 2026 profiles, from Yale SOM and UVA / Darden. Both programs appear to have very decent class profiles overall. Yale’s does stand out with its academic numbers.
For this week, for the candidate profile review portion of the show, Alex selected three ApplyWire entries:
This week’s first MBA admissions candidate is a senior at university and looking to apply for deferred admissions. They have some decent internships in the health care space. They have also undertaken some entrepreneurial work. They still need to take the GMAT and need to aim very high.
This week’s second MBA candidate is applying from India and is applying in Round 1. They do appear to have a very strong profile, overall, with a GMAT score of 760 and several promotions at work.
The final MBA candidate for this week is a London-based software engineer, originally from South Korea, who has worked for some major tech companies. They have a strong GRE score of 330, and are looking to transition to product management, before working at their family business.
This episode was recorded in Paris, France and Cornwall, England. It was produced and engineered by the fabulous Dennis Crowley in Philadelphia, USA. Thanks to all of you who’ve been joining us and please remember to rate and review this show wherever you listen!
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In this week's MBA Admissions podcast we began by discussing the activity on MBA LiveWire; we have a couple of MBA admissions deadlines upcoming this week, for NYU / Stern and Chicago / Booth.
The Clear Admit “Inside the MBA Admissions Process” event series continues this week and next week. Our second event, on Wednesday, includes Dartmouth / Tuck, Berkeley / Haas, Yale SOM, UNC / Kenan Flagler, and NYU / Stern. Signups are here: https://bit.ly/insidemba
Graham highlighted a recently published admissions tip focused on understanding the importance of the word count requirements for the MBA admissions essays. Graham then noted a Clear Admit story on the rise of Master’s in Management programs in the United States, as well as an Adcom Q&A from Rice / Jones.
We then discussed two recently published class profiles. Both Michigan / Ross and Cornell / Johnson reported strong profiles for their incoming classes, following the early trend we are seeing for this season’s new MBA candidates.
Finally, Graham noted a recently published podcast he hosted with UNC / Kenan Flagler, which focuses on their renowned Investment Management program. One of the student co-hosts on the podcast used to be a Wire Taps listener when they were applying to top MBA programs!
For this week, for the candidate profile review portion of the show, Alex selected three ApplyWire entries:
This week’s first MBA admissions candidate is from Southern Europe and has worked extensively in the hospitality sector. They have a strong undergraduate GPA, but their GRE is 319. They are taking MBA Math.
This week’s second MBA candidate has a very strong focus on technology in the energy sector. They have a PhD and a GMAT score of 750. They also have 10 years of experience. They have a very specific goal focus, but we wonder if they need to broaden their list of target programs.
The final MBA candidate for this week is planning to use the MBA to transition to their family business, to create a tech-focused vertical. They also have significant work experience of nine years, and they have a decent GRE score of 327. Their GPA is likely their weakest element, at 3.12.
This episode was recorded in Paris, France and Cornwall, England. It was produced and engineered by the fabulous Dennis Crowley in Philadelphia, USA. Thanks to all of you who’ve been joining us and please remember to rate and review this show wherever you listen!
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For those looking to pursue a career in investment management, UNC Kenan-Flagler offers a comprehensive, immersive experience that prepares students to compete at the highest levels—whether through its robust curriculum, real-world learning opportunities, or powerful alumni network. The Alpha Challenge, PRIME course, and a host of other initiatives provide a springboard for students to succeed, regardless of their prior experience. Hear from special guests Pramita Saha, the Executive Director for the Center for Excellence in Investment Management, and Jesús Fernandez, second-year MBA student and President of the school's Investment Management Club, for a deep dive into investment management opportunities at UNC Kenan-Flagler.
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