UCLA Anderson MBA: Upcoming Information Sessions

UCLA Anderson MBA Admissions Team informed on its blog that it will be hosting two admission events in March on the Anderson campus:

* Tuesday, March 10th, from 5:00 - 7:00 PM Register here
* Thursday, March 19th, from 5:00 - 7:00 PM Register here

The Admissions Team asked the prospective students not to miss this great opportunity to visit the Anderson campus and meet with the representatives of the MBA Program.

During the Special Diversity Information Session future aspirants can

• * Learn about what UCLA has to offer
• * Review the application process
• * Discuss career and financial opportunities
• * Meet with members of our Latino and African American Student Management Associations

Blog Post Link: A Special Diversity Information Session

Tuck School of Business: Online Chats

Karen Marks, Tuck associate director of admissions announced on Tuck admissions blog that as admissions committee wraps up its review of the January round and look towards April, it will conduct three admissions chats this Friday, March 6th. The chats will be held at 9, 12 and 4pm EST.

He informed,"Unlike previous chats, you do not need an access code to join. Instead, simply click here up to 10-minutes prior the scheduled chat time. Once there, click on 'online chats' and follow the directions for joining the chat."

He further added that these chats are a great opportunity for aspirants to get immediate answers to their burning questions, be they about admissions, life at Tuck or business school in a general sense. He said,"Tuck participants will include several admissions officers, as well as students and partners. The chats are a good way to get a feel for what your peers are wondering, and also to learn more about Tuck."

Link: More Chats - Friday, March 6th
To participate: Tuck Online Chats

HBS Round 3 Deadlines: Queries answered

In her post on HBS Admissions Blog, HBS Director of Admissions and Financial Aid, Dee Leopold answered the queries that has been enquired by many round 3 applicants

She said," The March 11 deadline is coming up soon and we've been getting inquiries from candidates trying hard to get applications ready for submission in this final round." Dee further informed, "In trying to balance fairness with flexibility, here's where we come out:

• * No extensions on the GMAT - you need to be able to submit your score in order to submit the application. We don't need to receive the official score report by March 11. If you re-take the GMAT after the March 11 deadline, we cannot consider the new score.
• * Written applications - must be submitted online by March 11 - maybe not 5pm Boston time on the dot, but certainly on that date.
• * Recommendations - a little more flexibility here. We'll accept online recommendations through Monday, March 16."

She added,"we understand and appreciate the uncertainty in the world right now. We are trying to be responsive while making sure we have time to carefully consider all applications and get decisions out on time."

Blogpost Link: http://www.hbs.edu/mba/admissions/blog.html

New Loan Program for Students Studying Overseas

The Financial Times today reported that at least $500m will be made available in student loans for MBA students studying overseas through an arrangement between GMAC and the financial community. The scheme will begin in the 2009/10 academic year.

This step will help alleviate the problem experienced by many students this year who were unable to get loans at competitive rates because of the credit crunch. The whole move will definitely help Non-US students applying to US business schools have been particularly hard hit because they are not eligible for federal loans.

The report said, "GMAC, the Graduate Management Admission Council, is working with Kevin Moehn of Moehn Management, which has been established to bring lending organisations together to facilitate student loans. Mr Moehn was executive vice president of Sallie Mae, which was responsible for developing student loan programmes in the US."

The report suggests that the pilot could provide at least $500 million in loans to students accepted at some 40 business schools in the US and Europe. Report also says."The lending scheme is not dependent on any particular bank or group of banks and students who borrow under the programme will not be required to secure co-signers. Business schools involved in the programme will not be liable for individual loan defaults."

“Our role has been to act as a ‘convening authority,’ bringing together business school administrators, lending organisations and other resources to help develop a solution to this challenge,” says David Wilson, president and chief executive of GMAC. He further added, “Schools greatly value the talent and diversity that international students add to the classroom and we all want to ensure that these students and future world leaders continue to have access to graduate business education.”

Source FT: International students get Loan Aid
Read in detail: GMAC Press Release

Wharton: Round 2 On-Campus Admissions Interview Openings

The post on Wharton's MBA Blog informed that Wharton recently had a few additional time slots open up in their on-campus interview schedule.

According to a post on Wharton’s MBA Blog, “If you are still interested in coming to Philadelphia for an interview, we have added times on 06 March 2009, 09 March 2009 and 11 March 2009."

Link: http://adcomblog.wharton.upenn.edu/

IIM-B extends placement for second week

The global financial slowdown, perhaps for the first time in recent years, has forced premier B-school IIM-B to extend the placement process for the second week, which otherwise would have been completed in the first week itself. Industry sources say this is the problem with most other IIMs as there is not much of demand for the elite management graduates this year.

The gravity of the problem can be understood from the fact that while earlier recruiting companies were in a hurry to come for the placement at the earliest to take away the best of the students, now the placement committee is preferring to wait for the ‘preferred’ companies (recruiters) till they come for the placement as they are showing no sign of hurry.

“I am glad they are coming to us even in such a bad time. This year, definitely, there is not much demand in the market. In the absence of clear visibility on when the placement process will get over, we are prepared for an open-ended placement till the entire batch gets placed,” Prof Sourav Mukherji, chairperson (placement), IIM-B told Business Standard.

He said everybody is trying in his own way in bringing the best companies for the placement. The final placement in IIM-B started on Friday last week. According to sources in the placement cell, so far about 60 companies (including about 15-20 companies that attended the lateral placement happened in January-February this year) have participated in the process. There was, however, no comment on the number of students who have got offers as of now.

Most recruiting companies are going for campus interviews to the IIMs as they don’t want their relationship with the premium B-schools to be affected. “We went there this year, as we don’t want to damage our relationship,” said Nandita Gurjar, Senior vice-president and group head of HR, at Infosys Technologies.

According to industry sources, there has been a very little or even no increase in salary offered to most of the IIM students this year. This has not, however, dampened the spirit of the students, as they understand this is a temporary phenomenon.

Source: Business Standard

UCLA Anderson: MBA Admissions Interview Tips

UCLA Anderson MBA Admissions Team provided on its blog MBA Admission Interview Tips that will help applicants who have been invited for UCLA MBA Admissions interview.

Quoting from the UCLA Anderson's The MBA Insider's blog:

" PURPOSE

Interviews are not the decisive factor in admission but serve as additional information that is included in the review of your application. In most cases, interviews are fairly consistent with the application.

STRUCTURE

Interviews are blind, which reduces bias so that your interviewer has no preconceived ideas of your ability or personality based on your written application.

Interviews are largely behavioral. Discussion may enter on specific examples or detailed descriptions of events, projects or experience that demonstrate how situations you’ve faced in the past have been handled and what you learned from them. Behavioral interviewing assumes that past performance predicts future behavior.

No advance preparation is required. Questions are straightforward and cover topics such as why you seek an MBA, why you feel you are a good fit for UCLA Anderson (vice versa), what your career goals are, how you spend your spare time, what you value, about what you are passionate, etc. You will not be asked analyze a case study or demonstrate your mastery of particular subjects.

All interviews carry equal weight. There is no advantage to interviewing on-campus or with an admissions staff member. Alumni are terrific interviewers and, like admissions staff, are interested in admitting the best applicants to the program. Arrange the type of interview that is most convenient for you.

GENERAL TIPS

Interviews are a dialogue or exchange between two people. Steer away from pre-rehearsed speech and over reliance on your résumé. We are interested in getting to know you as an individual, so follow the queues of the interviewer.

The exact length of the interview does not indicate how well the interview went. While we schedule 30 minute interviews, they may vary a bit.Deviations from the schedule are random and unrelated to an individual candidate.

Do not expect the interviewer to give you feedback – literally or figuratively. Be careful to avoid any interpretation of verbal or non-verbal communication, as both may mislead you.

Interviews are not a popularity contest.The interviewer is assessing your fit for the UCLA Anderson MBA program, not whether or not the two of you would make good or best friends."

To sum up, Applicants will be interviewed blind. The schools advises the applicants to be their true self and honest during the interview. One should focus on the best aspects of his or her personality than try to be someone else other than yourself in order to impress the interviewer.

Link: Tips on UCLA Anderson MBA Admissions Interview