Business School Running Commentary - Part 2 - Background and Application Process

This is the second post leading up to starting my part-time MBA program this fall. I cannot link content here yet but the first is titled "Business School Running Commentary" for those interested. This post is in response to one of the comments regarding more of my background and decision making process.

The decision to pursue a master’s degree was never a tough one for me. While I had a business background in undergrad (finance) I always had the idea to attend business school after a few years in the real world. The question I most thought about was therefore not if, but when.

I will be entering a program with a few more years of work experience than most. Since graduation I have been reading and self-studying a great deal about the different industry verticals that make up finance and ultimately decided on pursuing a change in career to financial consulting. I have always wanted to be someone who can be resourceful to others while developing a skill set that is applicable across many industries.

All About Rankings

For the longest time, I was in the camp of “if you don’t go to a top 10 program, there is really no value in getting an MBA.” My opinion changed slightly when I was no longer primarily interested in the prestige and network, and moreso interested in the coursework itself. By evaluating which companies recruit from which schools, depending on your industry of choice, it can also affect your viewpoint on which programs are your own top 10 instead of relying on rankings from BusinessWeek and the like.

Full-Time, Part-Time, or Executive MBA?

Many top tier schools offer options in addition to the traditional two year, full-time programs. While prestige or rankings can vary greatly compared to their FT counterparts, I think this is a trend that will continue, to the benefit of many. Tuition is another story I won’t get into here, but cost is certainly a consideration as well.

I chose to pursue a part-time program for a number of reasons. Removing myself completely from the workforce was not appealing because I have bills to pay and immediate family stuff that are a priority for my attention in addition to school. The idea of being able to apply class work immediately in my daily work life was also appealing to really see some benefit during the program.

Lastly, I chose part-time over an executive program because I was more interested in what I consider a “traditional” academic setting with a subject matter expert delivering the content to a class of students rather than a group of established senior level classmates simply debating various topics in a bastardized case study fashion. Unreasonably harsh assessment and likely short-sighted, but that is my impression in comparing the two after numerous conversations with current MBA students, alums, and admissions folks. Networking with senior level individuals during and immediately after the program, while obviously important, is not a top priority for me.

The Application Process

I studied for the GMAT using a lot of the freely available software and mobile flashcard applications from the leading common sources. I did not sign up for a live class, though that likely could have improved my score a bit. I was relatively satisfied that I landed in the middle of the range of the top 3 programs I had in mind, so that was a relief.

I took considerable time in writing the “why me, why MBA, and why now?” essay and believed I had a pretty unique case, which I tailored a little bit for each program. I visited the schools open house sessions and sat in on classes so I had some extra content to include or show how I could relate to the programs. I also did some brief research on notable alums of each program, though I did not use any of that in my essays or later in the interviews with admissions.

Another benefit in having more work experience is that I have some very strong relationships at my current job that I knew I could count on for strong letters of recommendation. I did not pressure anyone or attempt to steer the direction of their submissions, I simply asked them to be as honest as possible. Without any shortcomings, why would I need the degree in the first place?

Decision Dates

One of the happiest days of recent memory is the first letter of acceptance I received once the decisions started to make their way to my email inbox. Knowing you have at least one in the bag is a great feeling, particularly when it is one of the top programs you’ve chosen to apply. The waiting period for the rest of the decisions was frankly agonizing, but I know I made it worse on myself by checking the websites and decision dates hundreds of times per week. The dates were circled on my calendar. I brought it up to family and friends often. I was probably pretty annoying to be around during this 2-3 week stretch whenever the topic of grad school came up.

Decisions in hand, I officially accepted and received my official university email address and instructions to get my grad student profile set up. What a huge sigh of relief.

What’s Next?

The program officially kicks off in about 5 months. Between now and then, I have some pre-work to do covering basic topics of finance, accounting, economics, statistics and other core subject areas. The packets came through and indicated all of this would take about 20-30 hours for those with a business background, and closer to 50 hours for those from a different background. I haven’t touched any of this yet but have everything saved in a google drive for a rainy day.

I may set up a meeting with the program officers to cover some of my goals and talk through some course and elective planning. I mentioned at the start that I have a goal in changing careers to financial consulting, so that would also be a great time to touch base with career services to line up everything I can to be a highly presentable candidate when the time is right. I may also ask about meeting some current students approaching graduation for their take on the program and some tips on do’s and don’ts for us incoming candidates.

Let me know if you all have any questions or want more detail on any of the areas I covered above. I’m happy to reply either in the comments here or private messages if you would rather not have remarks posted for all of the world to see.