In General
• HARVARD: Our mission is to educate leaders who will make a difference in the world. We are trying to assemble a class of talented leaders with different backgrounds and perspectives but common qualities. Some of these qualities are intellectual curiosity, initiative, sense of purpose, energy, personal maturity, the ability to work with others in a community, and a moral compass that points true north. DEE LEOPOLD
• CHICAGO: We look at the whole package. We want to see who you are, where you’re going, and why. The why’s are more important than the what’s. We look for performance over pedigree; passions and motivations over accomplishments. We look for leaders, in a team context, who inspire, motivate, and mentor. We want people who respect and enjoy others and still get the job done. We look for collaborators who aim to make the whole unit, not just themselves, great. We want people who are comfortable in multicultural environments and in a variety of socioeconomic contexts. Finally, we recognize that those who do well at Chicago are self-directed and intellectually curious, people who push themselves to keep learning. ROSE MARTINELLI
• STANFORD: We always say we look for academic achievement, leadership potential, and, also, bringing an element of diversity to the program. But what we really search for is “wow.” There is academic wow, professional wow, diversity wow—and, of course, all sorts of wow we don’t want. SHARON HOFFMAN
• COLUMBIA: We are looking for people with professional promise. We assess this by looking at the applicant’s résumé and recommendations. We do need to ensure that people will get through the program, so we look for competitive undergraduate schools and grade point averages, and meld these with the applicant’s GMAT score. Some of our competitors are more focused on GPAs and GMAT scores. LINDA MEEHAN
• ANDERSON/UCLA: We look for responsible people who take risks and enjoy taking the lead. Intelligence, a strong commitment to achievement, and positive interpersonal skills are highly valued. We have an interest in individuals who have a comfort level interacting and communicating with a wide range of people. Breadth in academic background and life experiences often facilitates discourse among diverse groups. LINDA BALDWIN
• MICHIGAN: We believe that getting an MBA is a rigorous two-year effort. We want candidates who demonstrate a good understanding of themselves, know why they want an MBA, and understand how important it is to find the program that’s right for them. Our approach to management education is based on action learning, tying theory to practice. We want students who understand and appreciate that and want it to be a major part of their MBA experience. . . . (Also,) we don’t want to admit people we won’t be able to place upon completion of the program. When we have questions about whether someone will be placeable, we discuss the case with the Office of Career Development. JAMES HAYES
• YALE: Our program is definitely mission-driven. Our mission is to educate leaders for both business and society, so we look for applicants who want to make a real difference in whatever realm they’re aiming for. (There’s a misconception that we are somehow just public-sector-oriented, but 95 percent of our graduates go into the for-profit sector.) We like applicants who see how the different sectors interact and affect each other. ANNE COYLE
• SLOAN/MIT: We use a competency model—and look for very specific competencies. To use an iceberg analogy, we look at the above-the-water-line attribute of demonstrated success. This can be seen through grades, work experience, and so on. We also look beneath the water line, at personal attributes. These innate qualities are visible essentially from the essays and the overall pattern of experience presented. The above-the-line attributes are the obvious things, which can be easily influenced by one’s education. The below-the-line attributes are less obvious, and are not readily changed by education. ROD GARCIA
• DUKE: As a school, we have a mission to create “leaders of consequence.” We’re looking for a diverse group who can come together well, but the people we select are those who want to make a difference in the world. Creating a better world is beyond the capability of government—it will take business playing a major role, and we want people who welcome this challenge and will try to solve the world’s problems. DAN MCCLEARY
• DARDEN: Darden’s mission statement is to develop leaders in the world of practical affairs, so it’s important to find leadership experience and potential in our candidates. We look for leadership in three realms. First, we look for leadership in the workplace.
We examine your work experience, advancement and career potential, innovation, and teamwork experience. In general, we want to see that you’ve exceeded expectations. Second, we look for leadership in the community. This may come through volunteerism or membership (or board participation) in organizations. It may also be a matter of articulating what you want to do with an MBA, even if you haven’t had the opportunity for substantial community involvement yet. We want to see that your end goal is not just about yourself. This is partly because of our use of the case method. Given that this is a small community, everyone needs to be equally engaged for people to get the maximum benefit from the program. Third, we look for leadership in the classroom. Once again, this is partly due to our use of the case method. We look for candidates with high intelligence and communication skills (which is why we require an interview as part of the application). SARAH E. NEHER
• WHARTON: We’re looking for intellectual curiosity, a demonstrated record of achievement, and passion. We want people who are going to make a difference. We get many valedictorians applying, but it’s not simply a matter of brain power. THOMAS CALEEL
• STERN/NYU: The three main things for us are academics, career, and fit. Can you do the school work, can you do the work work, and are you going to be successful in the Stern environment? . . . We say that we’re “downtown, down-to-earth, and down to business,” so we like people who are doers, who know what it takes to make things happen. ISSER GALLOGLY
• JUDGE/CAMBRIDGE: We look for curious people—people who know they don’t know it all. This often means they’re exceptionally good listeners. Their curiosity also causes them to ask the right questions. We want people with ambition and drive, but not egocentric types. Our students are often very competitive but also collaborative, wanting to excel for themselves and for others around them. We also want well-rounded people rather than those who have excelled in only one regard and failed to develop other important parts of themselves. DR. SIMON LEARMOUNT
• INSTITUTO DE EMPRESA (Spain): We want our students to be entrepreneurial and to create value, not just for themselves and their companies, but for society as a whole. DAVID BACH
• ROTTERDAM: We want to produce executives with broader social awareness, who are adaptive, who are critical/conceptual thinkers, who make informed decisions, and who can implement. KIRT WOOD
• CRANFIELD (UK): We essentially look for three things: firstly, maturity and experience—we want our students to be able to contribute to the learning of their fellow students; secondly, career progression and success—we expect our graduates to operate at senior management levels; and thirdly, a willingness to be a team player and develop people skills—our philosophy is that without these attributes you are unlikely to succeed in a senior management position. Finally, we are attracted to the applicant with an unusual background; a diverse and innovative cohort is what we seek. SÉAN RICKARD
• IMD (Switzerland): We have five major criteria:
1. Prior business experience. In a class of ninety, everybody has to contribute. (We aim for the best combination of ninety people, not the ninety best people, by the way.)
2. Willingness to take a certain amount of risk. In today’s business environment, the ability to innovate is essential.
3. Burning desire to lead. It isn’t essential that people want to be business leaders; they could be leaders in politics, nonprofits, or other fields, but the entire program is focused on leadership. (We offer our MBAs the opportunity to take one-on-one coaching to help them understand and improve their leadership style and skills.)
4. Clear sense of their goals. Unlike the American schools, ours is a short program (just ten months), so there isn’t time to consider what sort of job to seek, how to go about finding it, and so on, all prior to actually carrying out the effort. We encourage our students to build on their prior careers.
5. International work experience and/or interest. Only about 5 percent of students are Swiss, so people need to appreciate and value how international the experience is. KATTY OOMS SUTER
• INSEAD (Paris): We look for four things in addition to career success. This has become a very international, not just European program, with the opening of our Singapore campus and our linkup with Wharton, with its two U.S. locations. Consequently, we want to see an international perspective. You need to show cultural sensitivity; not everyone, after all, is comfortable working in a multicultural environment.
We look for the appropriate personality, someone who works well as a leader and as a team player. So much of the work here is group work, and the groups are so diverse that you need to be ready to learn from a range of different people.
You need two languages to be admitted, although not necessarily to apply. Before you can start the program you need to prove your second language ability. To graduate, you need a third language. Instruction is in English, so you obviously need fluent English. (A TOEFL score of 260 is required if English is not your native language.)
To gauge academic ability, one of the things we look at is the GMAT score. (Our average is about 690.) We look at it in the context of the whole application. It’s the only common measure available to us, which is particularly important for us, given that we have such a diverse group of applicants, schooled in every conceivable school system. Of course, we also look at other things, such as the applicant’s undergraduate performance and the quality of his or her undergraduate institution.
A good candidate is probably great in one area and at least good in the other three. If you’re really weak in one of the areas, it is probably enough to eliminate you. JOELLE DU LAC
• SẠD/OXFORD: Candidates should have a good undergraduate degree (3.5 GPA), good GMAT (our average score is 685), good career progression, and a TOEFL score of 109 minimum (for the non-English native speakers). Also, we look for candidates that fit in the school and can bring something unique to the class. ANNA FARRÚS
• MANCHESTER: We won’t rule out anybody because of one factor. We look first to make sure the person can do our program, then we look at motivation and character and whether our quite different program is right for them. So we start with the undergraduate record and GMAT, then we go on to the essays and recommendations and such. You do not need to be Einstein to complete an MBA—the threshold is quite low. So we look at other things: progress on the job, motivation for doing an MBA, career plans. ANDREW DYSON
• LONDON: We want people who are extremely intelligent, who are very motivated, and who can see that it’s to their benefit to work in groups, however difficult that may be. We put a lot of emphasis on group work. So we aren’t necessarily looking for somebody who’ll come in with highly polished group skills, because that’s something we help people with, but we want people to
whom this challenge is not just absolutely frightful. STEPHEN CHADWICK OTHER FACTORS
Value of Legacy Status
• While being a legacy has no impact on the evaluation process, we ask the question on our application so that we can be sensitive in our communication with alumni about the admissions status of their children. DEE LEOPOLD, HARVARD
• Legacy status does not earn someone a spot in the class; it’s not a free ticket. Only in the case of two equally qualified applicants would it make a difference to a decision. It does merit closer attention, however, and a rejection is likely to be handled with a telephone call rather than an email. In other words, there is a more personal dimension to how we handle things. ROD GARCIA, MIT
• There is no admissions benefit to being a legacy here. PETER JOHNSON, HAAS
• (We consider legacies to be applicants whose parents attended Columbia Business School.) For us, the value of legacies is that they know the program, the school, and the city, and choose to seek us out. The fact that a parent attended the Business School isn’t going to open the door for you, but it does mean something because your parents are part of this community. However, you need to be qualified to be in this program: you need to be able to get through the program and seize the opportunities here, while contributing to it. LINDA MEEHAN, COLUMBIA
• You need to know we’re a Quaker university and we value the idea of performance over pedigree. You have to earn your spot here. We admit the 800 best and brightest candidates from around the world. THOMAS CALEEL, WHARTON
• None whatsoever. However, parents who’ve been through the Cambridge system tend to value it and encourage their sons and daughters to give it a go. DR. SIMON LEARMOUNT, JUDGE (CAMBRIDGE)
• Legacy status has no value at all in our admissions process. KIRT WOOD, ROTTERDAM
• There is no such thing as a legacy here. There is no room for someone with lesser abilities in a class of ninety. The others in the class would immediately identify someone who didn’t fit and question how he was admitted. KATTY OOMS SUTER, IMD (SWITZERLAND)
Articulation of Future Goals/Career Focus
• Past experience is crucial to formulating future goals. A general sense of where one is headed is very important; a specific one, not at all. Candidates should have a sense of where they see themselves in the future—in general management/consulting, in technology, in finance, or what have you. To think about this and put a plan together is very useful. However, we’re more concerned with the thought process than the result—with how it fits together. SALLY JAEGER, TUCK
• Most people don’t know precisely where they’re headed; instead, they have general ideas. Of course, it’s easier in many respects if they know exactly where they’re headed—for one thing, knowing that makes it easier to get there. MICHELE ROGERS, KELLOGG
• People who lack direction worry us if their history reflects bad decision-making to this point. For example, someone who has changed schools and majors multiple times and had three jobs in four years may be applying to business school on a whim. Plus, two years at business school provides less time for career exploration than you’d imagine. ANN W.RICHARDS, JOHNSON (CORNELL)
• If you intend to change careers, do your homework. A person who has practiced law for several years and wants to get out of it because he’s sick of the effort and the long hours looks like a fool when he says that he wants to go into investment banking. Use your college networks to contact people in your desired field; pursue informational interviews with people in it. ANN W.
RICHARDS, JOHNSON (CORNELL)
• We are the only school that doesn’t dwell too much on the specifics of your goals. It’s not a competency we look for. You certainly need to exhibit thoughtfulness in your cover letters and have a realistic sense of what your skills and ambitions are, but we know people change their lives, and therefore their goals will change, too. Rarely do people go through our program without changing their goals, due to the people they meet and opportunities they didn’t expect. ROD GARCIA, MIT
• A large portion of the people graduating from Columbia end up being career changers, whether or not that’s what they intended when they applied. Obviously, we don’t hold them to what they wrote about their goals in their applications. What we’re really trying to evaluate is how well you know yourself. How well can you articulate that what you’ve achieved so far has laid a foundation for your next steps? Are you realistic about who you are and what you’ve accomplished—and what you’ll be able to achieve with that background? We’re not trying to determine whether you know exactly what you’re going to do. But the last thing we want to do is to bring people into an MBA program who have no knowledge of who they are and whether they can actually achieve what they want to do. LINDA MEEHAN, COLUMBIA
• The two-page essay about your career should be effortless. The essay about Stern should only be hard because they’ve done so much research that they may have too much to say. Lots of people haven’t thought it through: they haven’t done enough homework on their career, themselves, or the school. It shows, and it does hurt them. I don’t consider that I’d be doing them a favor by admitting them before they are ready for the program. ISSER GALLOGLY, STERN (NYU)
• We want to understand the reasoning behind peoples’ goals. We understand that in 65 percent of cases these goals will change, that while at Cambridge they’ll realize they have additional options available. So we want to understand the underlying motivations more than the specific goals. . . . The quality of their thinking matters more than having a clearly delineated career path to McKinsey or J. P. Morgan. DR. SIMON LEARMOUNT, JUDGE (CAMBRIDGE)
• It is very important to know and be able to articulate why one wants to do an MBA. This does not mean that candidates have to have a specific plan of what they want to do after the MBA, but they need to understand the sort of skills they are going to get out of the program and how these skills will help them in their future careers. ANNA FARRÚS, SẠD (OXFORD)
• Essential. For instance, if you tell me you’re targeting consulting, I’m going to ask how you’re going to get your job. “Who do you know?” “What are the steps you’re going to take to accomplish that?” KIRT WOOD, ROTTERDAM
• A candidate with clear career goals shows good motivation for the MBA Program. . . . Of course, an MBA may also mean undergoing a thorough personal and professional change; you might enter the program with certain career plans and end it with completely different perspectives. Hence, together with clear objectives, candidates must also show a certain open-mindedness and flexibility. ROSSANA CAMERA, BOCCONI (ITALY)
• If someone hasn’t a clue where he’s headed, we’ll be uncertain as to why he wants to do an MBA. ALISON OWEN, SẠD