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Choosing a business schoolMBA Rankings: How to choose the bestbusiness school for youAs an admissions consultant, one of the things I do almost every day is helpcandidates narrow down where they want to apply to business school.That doesn't mean I choose target schools out of a hat or tell my applicants wherethey have to apply; what it often means is that students will come to us with a list of10-to-12 potential schools, and I’ll help them honestly evaluate the schools on twocriteria:1. Is the school a good fit?2. Is the school a stretch school, a safety school, or a moderate school?But where those lists of “potential schools” come from? And how can applicants do abetter job of choosing target MBA programs?Generally, when an applicant comes in with a list of potential b-schools, what I see isa top 10 list of the best business schools, as put out by US News, or Financial Times,or Bloomberg, or someone else. People know that those are great schools – so theyassume that they must be great schools for them.Ask the right questionsI'm not going to tell you that rankings don't matter, or that you shouldn't care at allabout acceptance rates, or anything like that. Obviously, rankings do matter – there isa difference between an MBA program ranked top and one ranked at twentieth. Butabove a certain ranking level, what you really need to be looking at is how well youwill do at a certain school.That's much easier to do that when you start out by thinking about your needs,rather than by looking at school rankings. What kind of environment do you do well in – do you prefer a big city like NewYork with a lot going on at all times? Or would you prefer a quieter environmentwhere you can make school, studying, and extracurricular activities your focus?8

What is your learning style? Would you do well in a school that uses case studiesextensively, or do you prefer a more diverse teaching style? Are you looking for aspecific concentration, learning path, or dual-degree option? What are your post-MBA career goals? Where do the people in your desiredindustry or role graduate from? What do they do after business school? Where dothey work?Thinking about the experiences you want to have during and after business schoolwill help you build a list of criteria. Once you know what you're looking for in an MBAprogram, you can go back to that list of the top 10 or 20 business schools, and startgetting rid of schools that won't meet your criteria.Business school is a huge investment of time and money. You should absolutely wantto go to the best-ranked school that you can – but if the school won't help you reachyour goals for after you've earned your MBA, then regardless of how highly it'sranked, it's not the right school for you.9

Europe vs the USWhen you're looking at business schools and trying to decide where to apply, theincredible number of options can be overwhelming. There are thousands of MBAprograms in the world, and even if you narrow your search to the top 10 or 15%,you're still looking at plenty of great schools in the US and Europe alone.It's a lot to take in. But as with every other part of the b-school application process,the key is to take a breath and start thinking systematically about your needs, wants,and goals.Here are the three most important factors to consider when deciding whether topursue an MBA program at a business school in Europe or the US:1. Length and costBusiness schools in Europe tend toward shorter programs, typically ranging from 10to 18 months. While year-long programs do exist in the US, top MBA programsheavily favor the two-year format.The difference in program length has a significant effect on cost and on the degree'sreturn on investment. Shorter programs typically have a much lower price tag, andget students back into the workforce a year or so earlier than their two-year programcounterparts.This can mean a difference in total program cost of upwards of 50,000, in somecases over 100,000. The 12- to 15-month timeline is also increasingly attractive toMBA applicants who are hoping to jump back into the workforce without too muchdisruption to their network and earning time.However, post-graduation salaries can also differ significantly between countries, soit's important to take the long view on where you want to work and what you wantto do before making your decision. Business school is a significant investment, butwhile initial cost is important, it's not the only – or even the most important – thingto consider when choosing where you want to get your MBA.2. Global exposureTop business schools in the US frequently tout their commitment to diversity, andactively work to provide their students with global work and study opportunities.10

However, the sheer size of the country means that, practically speaking, internationaltrips outside of North America are a significant undertaking.Most top business schools in the US have a one-to-two-week global experience as amandatory or highly recommended part of their MBA curriculum. Some schools haveestablished international campuses or developed partnerships with business schoolsin other countries (like the Kellogg-HKUST Executive MBA program) to give theirstudents the option of longer international study experiences.For most European schools, international diversity is a given. Top MBA programstypically have upwards of 85% or 90% international students, compared to the 30 to40% seen in American schools. The faculty tends to be similarly diverse, bringing withthem a broader cross-cultural perspective to the topics they cover and theirapproaches to teaching the material.The end result is that graduates from European MBA programs often have much moreexperience working in international teams, and dealing with cultural and languagebarriers as well. If you hope to work in Europe or Asia, you should strongly considerseeking a degree from a school in those regions – your connections and experienceswill be much more closely aligned with what European and Asian employers arelooking for.3. Local environmentLooking at broad differences between regions can be helpful in order to give you anoverall idea of where to focus your school search. But if you're looking for a career ina specific industry, you need to consider the reputation of the city and the specificschools you are looking into.If you want to go into something broad – strategy, consulting, finance – region isn't asimportant. But if you want to get into a more specialized niche, like real estate orfashion, you need to go where the business is. So if you want to get into luxury brandmanagement, you need to be in New York (Columbia, NYU Stern), Paris (HEC Paris) orMilan (SDA Bocconi or MIP Politecnico di Milano).Similarly, if you're looking for a tech startup scene, look at schools like Stanford GSBand MIT Sloan, where there is a hub of innovation in the surrounding area.When you're thinking about where to go to business school, you have to think big andthink small. Understand the impact that the local environment will have on you, interms of resources, exposure, networking, internship opportunities, and more. Onceyou've got a clear sense of what you want to get out of an MBA program, you'll knowwhere you need to be.11

GMAT vs GREWith the GRE becoming more widely accepted at top MBA programs throughout theUS, more MBA applicants see it as a viable business school admission test. In fact,Kaplan's 2015 admissions officers survey found that 90% of business schools acrossthe US and Great Britain now accept both the GRE and the GMAT.The situation has changed a lot over the last decade. As recently as 2009, anotherKaplan survey indicated that the GRE test was accepted by less than a quarter of allbusiness schools in the US and Great Britain.Yet more and more schools have begun allowing applicants to submit GRE scores,particularly after an influential August 2014 post from Harvard Business Schooladmissions director Dee Leopold: “not only do we accept both tests, but we areagnostic about our preference,” he said.Of course, while increasing GRE acceptance is great news for applicants who hadalready taken that test, or who felt more comfortable with the GRE's format andcontent, it has also introduced another tricky question into the MBA applicationprocess: Should you take the GRE or the GMAT to get into business school?Step 1: Know your scoresIn order to decide which test will give you the greatest shot at getting in to yourtarget b-schools, you have to get a sense of what your scores would be on each test.To do that, you will need to take a full-length practice test for both the GMAT and theGRE. Yes, it is time-consuming. Yes, it can be mentally and emotionally exhaustingworking your way through two separate long, challenging exams. But it's a concreteway to get a complete picture of both what your score potential is, and how you reactto the format of each test.Step 2: Know the testsThe GMAT and the GRE are very similar in their broad details. Both tests takebetween 3.5 and 4 hours to complete, both are presented in a computer adaptiveformat, and both aim to assess your verbal, quantitative, and writing skills through anumber of different question types.However, there are also several important differences between the tests.12

Broadly speaking, the GRE tends to emphasize verbal and written analytical skills,whereas the GMAT places more emphasis on quantitative skills. The GRE requirestwo essays, where the GMAT requires only one. The GMAT also features a 12question Integrated Reasoning section, focusing on data analysis, which is not presenton the GRE. Finally, the GRE allows students to choose which test score they will sendto an institution, while the GMAT sends all non-cancelled scores for the past fiveyears.Step 3: Know yourselfThese two tests are very important in the evaluation of your candidacy so it is in yourbest interest to choose the test where you can perform at your best. The good newsabout how admissions committees evaluate these tests is that they take your uniquecircumstances into account.Once you've taken a practice GMAT and GRE, consider your scores in the context ofyour full application: your resume, your undergraduate transcripts, your workexperience and internships. Try to get a full perspective of the strengths andweaknesses of your MBA application. Then, consider which test seems like it will dothe best job of minimizing your weaknesses and shoring up your strengths.For example, the GRE verbal section is often considered to be very challenging forinternational students. If you are an international applicant who can show plenty ofevidence of strong quantitative skills and background, managing to achieve a highGRE verbal score will go a long way toward demonstrating that you have the languageskills needed to do well in an academically rigorous program.The GRE is also a smart choice for students who are thinking about applying to dualdegree programs, many of which actually require the GRE over the GMAT.Similarly, if you have been working in a field without much of a quantitativecomponent, and especially if you received your undergraduate degree in humanitiesor another field without much of a quantitative aspect, a high GMAT quant scorecould boost your chances of being admitted.And finally, if you are a very strong test-taker – one who is likely to score in the95th percentile or higher on either test – I would ultimately recommend that you takethe GMAT, particularly if you come from a more traditional business schoolbackground. Although for the most part the two tests are considered equally, at thehighest score levels I think you are still more likely to see an acceptance bump withan excellent GMAT score.13

Essays and interviewsHow to write the MBA admissions essaythat will get you into HarvardWriting a phenomenal MBA essay is not an easy task, but I've helped hundreds ofstudents write essays that get them admitted. Here's how they did it:1. Think about what the admissions committee wantsEvery good essay is written with an audience in mind. Generally, admissions committeesare looking for the following qualities in applicants:Leadership - Demonstrate it through examples of innovation and entrepreneurship,through management experience and through taking initiative to solve significantorganizational problems.Teamwork - Business school is a highly collaborative environment. Admissions committeemembers are looking for students with good interpersonal skills, who can get along wellwith others even when they have very different backgrounds.Intelligence (both academic and emotional) - The admissions process isn't an essaywriting contest any more than it’s a contest to get the best GMAT score. However, it isimportant that your essay is coherent, persuasive, and reflective of an ability tocommunicate well in writing. You don't have to be Tolstoy, but your writing should be ableto showcase the depth of your thought and self-awareness.2. Know your target school's brandEvery business school has a unique brand that reflects how they want to be perceived inthe broader market. Before you choose the topics and examples you'll use in your essay,be sure to understand your target's school's brand.Duke University's Fuqua School of Business has a brand that is heavily focused onteamwork and character. If you want to get in to Fuqua, your essay needs to show thatyou understand and support the school's cultural values.If you’re applying to Harvard, you should understand that their brand focuses onleadership; at Stanford, they value entrepreneurial candidates; and the London14

Business School brand focuses on finance.3. Understand the question behind the questionIn one of its MBA application essay prompts, Columbia Business School asks: CBSMatters, a key element of the School's culture allows the people in your cluster to learnmore about you on a personal level. What will your cluster-mates be pleasantlysurprised to learn about you?On a surface level, you want to make sure you answer the actual question: what issomething that people will be pleasantly surprised to learn about you?But what they are really asking about is differentiation. Columbia values diversity. Thequestion behind the question is “What is different about you? What unique orinteresting perspective will you bring to the school to enrich the Columbia experiencefor your peers?”Think about your hobbies, your passions, the experiences that have shaped you, andlook for an example that really points to something that makes you, you.4. Choose the right examplesMany students are tempted to recycle information from their resume, but the essay is achance to show the admissions committee a different side to you.Stanford has an MBA essay prompt that reads simply, What matters most to you, andwhy?For this essay, it's very important that you focus on the “why”. What are the aspirationsand motivations behind the things that are most important to you? Look for stories andexamples that give your reader a real sense of who you are and what defines you. Themore clear and specific you can make your example, and the more you can hone itdown to a single moment or event that illustrates what matters most to you, the moreit will resonate with your audience.If the essay reads like it could have been written by anyone, you need to do some morework to make sure that your authentic voice and your personal brand comes through.15

5. Rein it inMBA application essays come with a fairly rigid word count limit. One of the mistakesI have seen students make is to try to cram way too much into that limited space.Don't be overly ambitious – painting a precise picture of a single example is farpreferable than throwing in several vague anecdotes. Keep your focus clear andnarrow, and your essay will be far more effective.6. Be strategicCommunicate a clear sense of your personal brand and be strategic about the storiesyou tell in your essay, so that your reader comes away from it with the exact messageyou want to convey.If you have a strong history as a collaborative person, the examples you choose foryour essay should reflect that strength.7. Give yourself timeA phenomenal MBA essay is not written in a day, or even a week. Start early - at leasteight weeks before your deadline - and don't skimp on any step of the followingwriting process: Create an outline – Yes, even for a 500-word essay. You won't write a focused andeffective essay by simply sitting down at the computer and writing whatevercomes to mind. Brainstorm, then make a plan to work from. Get to the point – Don't waste time on fluff or an overabundance of examples.Keep the essay focused on the main story you want to tell. Highlight the “so what?” – This is your takeaway, the message you want readers tocome away from your essay with. Don't leave them guessing; make it clear whyyou chose the example you did, and what it says about you. Get feedback – DON'T ask 50 different people to read your essay; you'll bedrowning in contradictory feedback. Choose a few trusted people to give you theirthoughts on the piece. For the best feedback, ask them specific questions abouthow well you accomplished certain goals or conveyed certain messages. Set it aside – Give yourself some time to process the feedback and think aboutyour message before you go back to the essay. It's always better to edit with fresheyes. Revise, revise, and revise some more – Hone your message, incorporate yourfeedback, and cut the essay down to size. Between every round of revision, set theessay aside for a while so you can come at it again with a fresh perspective.16

Example Admission gton-university-s http://business.gwu.edu/homepage/privacy-policy/ worldwideZarana Shah, George Washington University Schoolof BusinessSchool: George Washington University School of BusinessLocation: USACourse length: 2 YearsCost: 102,000FT Ranking: 86Average GMAT: 646Discuss why you are interested in pursuing an MBA at this point inyour career (250 words), why GW -- and the specific program to whichyou have applied -- is the best fit for your MBA experience (250words), and discuss how you will leverage both your professional andacademic experiences thus far to achieve your post-MBA career goals(250 words). Dual/joint degree applicants should answer each topicwith your specific degree experience in mind.Graduation year: 2017Nation

Introduction The road to business school is long, winding, and full of obstacles along the way. You [ve got the dreaded GMAT or the GRE.You [ve got to choose your target business schools from thousands of options worldwide.You [ve got to write your MBA application essays, tailoring them to each school. You [ve got to get recommendation letters.You [ve got to go through some tricky