I was wondering what your thoughts about networking in relations to business school admissions were. Obviously networking isn't going to be as effective in getting something similar to an "interview" in investment banking roles, per se, but I can imagine how asking alumni for advice would be very helpful in tailoring an application.
Have you guys heard of any networking success stories in relation to business school?
good question...I think unless you know someone pretty important at the school your networking efforts will only result in advice and nothing more. I think schools are pretty set on having many people involved in evaluating a candidate1
bump
I Know someone who did that,,,,
granted he took a boatload of easy classes to boast that gpa aka gamble, but hell his brown nosing initiatives went pretty far
I'd say you're right on in terms of getting ideas for applications. I had coffee with tons of alumni of the schools I applied to, and talking with them helped both with learning about the school and with crafting the application.
In one case, I had my interview with a school, didn't think it went well, was talking to a friend at the school, and he went out of his way to contact the admissions office, talk to adcom and write a letter on my behalf. I don't know whether the call and letter helped at all, but I got in a couple days later and it was a very nice gesture.
If you know prominent alumni, and can get them to write a letter of rec, that is probably the ultimate slam dunk. But in order to get a letter of rec, you would likely need to develop a longer term relationship with them (i.e., working for them for a year+ or family friend). If you don't have these kind of connections currently, I'd say the yield on pursuing them would be pretty low. That is, unless, bschool is still 2-3 years out for you.
Moral of the story, there is generally no downside to connecting with new people and sharing experiences, whether it be business school related or otherwise. If you can benefit from their resources or advice, excellent. If not, at least you have another data point to influence your decision. Just remember to offer to pay for coffee and repay the favor, either directly or indirectly to the next class of hopefuls.
Talking to alums allows you to get a better feel for the school's culture and various programs, which in turn will clarify your thinking during the application process. This will improve the quality of your essays. Also, visits are helpful as well and show that you have a genuine interest in the school. But networking does not help your chances of getting in. What does help, however, is if you get a rec from a well-known alum who goes to bat for you and speaks very well of you.
Echo everything here. Networking with alums is a great tool to craft your essay and is really valuable in interviews when they ask you "Why and MBA and why this school?" You can get pick specific stories or experiences shared by your networking contacts to answer this. School's love students that take a proactive approach to the application and show genuine interest in getting to know the school, rather than shotgunning all the M7 applications to see which one they into.
Recommendations / networking to get MBA (Originally Posted: 01/17/2008)
Let's say you are friends with someone who is a few years older then you...think VP/MD at a BB... and they went to lets say a top tier place like Harvard/Yale/Princeton... with a 700 gmat....good experience ....analyst work few years... good eassays....would the fact that you knew someone help you get in more? ...any feedback appreciated
I feel that it could help you get an interview depending on who they know well. But getting the job is up to you
I think it depends on the nature of your "friendship"
Put it this way - the only way they can really help you is by writing you a recommendation, and the only way they can write you a good recommendation is if they really know you well, can speak to your strengths and weaknesses, point to specific examples of teamwork, leadership, etc. All of the top business schools ask very detailed questions of your recommenders (I assume, to filter out BS recs). I am applying to business schools this year, and chose not to use a family friend who went to HBS as a recommender because he just doesn't know me well enough to do it well. Yes, I probably could have written it for him, but it would have been mostly lies and I wasn't comfortable with that.
vadim371-he's asking about MBA admission, not a job
Contact will count if he or she actively contributes- meaning give back to the school.
RainMkr - Fair point, if they have a building named after them on campus then that overrides what I said above. If they just went to the school and/or contribute minorly, then I think it helps a little but not enough to cover a weak rec if they don't know you well.
What "friend" do you have with an MBA from Princeton...
Harvard MBA has got nothing on Princeton MBA. You realize it is literally impossible to get into Princeton's MBA program.
also, when you hear Yale grouped with Harvard in a conversation about MBA....you know the guy's clueless...
Network: does it work to get into a top MBA program (Originally Posted: 02/21/2011)
How much can a good connection help to get into a top B school? Networking is huge to get in IB or any job in general what about b school?
Depends what kind of connection it is. It can be very helpful, especially because MBA admissions are based more upon the entire application package. A good recommendation/favor can go a long way.
I had someone from booth go to bat for me and have me contact someone outside the normal process. I am an URM and they only deal with URM but it was his adviser when he was there. Not sure yet if it helped
If you can get an alum to contact the dean of admissions or any adcom and seriously go to bat for you, it can have a significant impact. It helped me with Columbia & NYU.
Oh my gosh... You just made me cry. I want to get into Stern but got rejected for undergrad. I screwed around too much in high school. Hoping Fordham wants me.. Didn't even dream about Booth...
As a veteran, it definitely helped me a ton. The vet clubs often have a direct link to the Adcom, and not networking with them would have been a very poor decision.
If you know someone who pulls weight, go for it.
I would say it might at some level. If you visited one weekend, especially during a URM or women's event hosted by adcom by the school, then it's likely you can make an excellent impression on the head adcom and have a slight edge.
Networking is always helpful. Let us put it this way, people who did get into top B-schools, as I observed, averagely have much more connections with alumni, current students and admission than those who didn't.
First post.
Thats a new one.
rbkchoi, booth is the mba program so i would have been blown away if you got in without even going to undergrad. Get a grip.
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