NEW AND NOT IMPROVED HBS ESSAYS –HMMMM, OPTIONAL 3 AND 4 ARE DEEPLY ODDBALL, MORE IN LATER POSTS

Essays for the Class of 2013

As an opportunity to present your distinctive qualities, your essays are an important part of your MBA application. You will be asked to submit your personal statements online with the balance of your application materials. Essays should be single-spaced. Please limit your response to the length indicated.

All applicants must submit answers to four essay questions. The first two questions are required of all applicants. The remaining two essays should be in response to your choice of the next five sub-questions.

Joint program applicants for the Harvard Medical School, Harvard School of Dental Medicine, Harvard Law School, and Harvard Kennedy School must provide an additional essay.

Essays: NEW STUFF IN RED

• What are your three most substantial accomplishments and why do you view them as such? (600-word limit)
• What have you learned from a mistake? (400-word limit)
• Please respond to two of the following (400-word limit each):
  1. What would you like the MBA Admissions Board to know about your undergraduate academic experience?
  2. What is your career vision and why is this choice meaningful to you?
  3. Tell us about a time in your professional experience when you were frustrated or disappointed.
  4. When you join the HBS Class of 2013, how will you introduce yourself to your new classmates? [OH BROTHER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

VERSUS LAST YEAR :

Essays: [ELIMINATED QUESTIONS STRUCK OUT]

• What are your three most substantial accomplishments and why do you view them as such? (600-word limit)
• What have you learned from a mistake? (400-word limit)
• Please respond to two of the following (400-word limit each):
  1. What would you like the MBA Admissions Board to know about your undergraduate academic experience?
  2. Discuss how you have engaged with a community or organization.
  3. Tell us about a time when you made a difficult decision.
  4. Write a cover letter to your application introducing yourself to the Admissions Board.
  5. What is your career vision and why is this choice meaningful to you?

  Joint degree applicants:

• How do you expect the joint degree experience to benefit you on both a professional and a personal level? (400-word limit)

Recommender Questions for the Class of 2013

Recommendations must be completed online. The form includes the following three essay response questions, along with other types of questions.

• Please comment on the context of your interaction with the applicant. How long have you known the applicant and in what connection? If applicable, briefly describe the applicant’s role in your organization. (250-word limit)
• Please describe the most important piece of constructive feedback you have given the applicant. Please detail the circumstances and the applicant’s response. (250-word limit)
• Please make additional statements about the applicant’s performance, potential, or personal qualities you believe would be helpful to the MBA Admissions Board. (250-word limit)

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HBS ZEN WAITLIST DING LETTER.

SEVERAL PEOPLE, NO KIDDING, HAVE GOTTEN THIS LETTER AND ASKED ME WHAT IT MEANS. AND HOW COME EILEEN HAS REVERTED TO LEAVING OFF THE DATES AGAIN (LETTER MINIMILISM]

IT MEANS YOU ARE DINGED –NADA, OFF WL, UNDER BUS, REJECTED, GO AWAY, DONT COME BACK, SO LONG, SEE YA NEXT YEAR (HOPE NOT).

IN SHORT, YOU HAVE NOT BEEN ACCEPTED TO HBS AND ARE NO LONGER ON THE WL, YOU HAVE BEEN RELEASED:

IT’S NOT YOU, IT’S HBS. 

Dear Mr. or Mrs Waitlist:

Later on today you will be receiving official notification of your release from our waitlist. While this outcome is likely not what you had been hoping for, we want to thank you for being on our waitlist this year, and for the patience you have shown during your time with us.

We know that being on the waitlist is certainly difficult. The anxiety you experienced with the uncertainty in timing is something that we fully acknowledge. We communicated these same words when we released our waitlist last year, and we stand by them as they are sincere in their sentiment. We hope our monthly updates and desire to be transparent in our process was somewhat helpful in mitigating this anxiety. Regardless, while this is probably not much comfort right now, please know that every candidate on our waitlist was important to us, and your cooperation with our process was truly appreciated.

It has been a pleasure getting to know you, Waitlister, and we wish you the best in the coming year. Thank you for your interest in our MBA program.

Sincerely,

Eileen Chang
MBA Admissions
Harvard Business School
Soldiers Field Road
Dillon House
Boston, MA 02163

HMMMM, NEED A LAWYER AND FORTUNE TELLER TO UNDERSTAND THIS BUT IT SOUNDS LIKE, AS TO WAITLISTERS:

1. THOSE WHO APPLIED R1 AND 2 AND THEN WERE INTERVIEWED DURING R 1 AND 2 AND PUT ON WL–WELL, THEY HAVE BEEN NOTIFIED IN PAST COUPLA WEEKS.

2. THOSE WHO APPLIED IN R1 AND R2 AND WERE PUT ON WL WITHOUT INTERVIEW, AND THEN INTERVIEWED DURING ROUND 3–THEY WILL FIND OUT W. THE ROUND 3 KIDS.

May 11, 2010Hello Everyone:It’s Eileen Chang from the MBA Admissions Board at HBS. As we are in the final stages of admitting the Class of 2012, I’d like to provide you with another update on where we stand with the waitlist. Round 3 decisions will be released this Thursday, May 13. Over these past two weeks, we have made close to 40 offers of admission between those on the waitlist from the first two rounds, and those interviewed during round 3 who will find out their decision on Thursday. At this time, we anticipate extending up to 10 more offers of admission to those on the waitlist. Additionally, we will reach out to approximately 20 more of you to ask you to remain with us through the summer in case a last-minute spot opens up in the class. Finally, we will also be releasing candidates from the waitlist this Thursday. As I mentioned earlier this month, we know that many of you are anxious for resolution on your application, and the majority of you should expect to hear a decision on your application by this Thursday, May 13. Thank you for your patience with our process, and please contact my colleague, Dana Scalisi, or myself if you have any questions. Sincerely, Eileen Chang MBA Admissions Harvard Business School Soldiers Field Road Dillon House Boston, MA 02163

hmmmm, thanks for that link. It shows the following, based on authors analysis of class cards etc. for class of 2011 (note that is class that entered THIS PAST FALL, that note was written in July 2009). Maybe some mil dude accepted to class of 2012 could update this info, wld make interesting comparison (altho R3 results not in yet)

Now let’s look at source of commissioning (all 31 were officers):CLASS OF 2011 FROM BLOGGER

• US Military Academy: 7 (23%)
• US Naval Academy: 6 (19%)
• US Air Force Academy: 1 (4%)
• US Coast Guard Academy: 1 (4%)
• Non-service academy: 16 (52%)

That strikes me as correct–altho I gotta say, in prior years, service academy admits to HBS were higher, like 40 guys (classes graduating 2002 etc. ) Not sure about Non-service numbers.

The dirty secret about military admits fr. service academies is that the most impt factor is GPA (not SF, SEALS etc) and extra currics, altho that can be military related, e.g. stuff they love is essays about organizing stuff for mil. families, or starting local charity to get shoes, school supplies etc. to locals in tuff areas (Bosnia, Iraq). They also go working w. enlisted guys fr. mixed backgrounds in terms of education, race, even gender, e.g. leading diff. peeps in dif ways. They have a hard time w. war stories, and gung-ho attitude, etc. They really care for reflection, in that regard mil apps not that diff than others.  As to you:

29 at matriculation (Fall 2012)–HUH, ARE YOU PILOT OF SOME OTHER GIG THAT REQ. LONGER THAN 5 YR POST ACAD. COMMITMENT? ARE YOU STILL IN MIL???

White–WELL, THEY TAKE WHITE GUYS, WHEN PUSHED

Male–SEE LAST NOTE

Service Academy

3.10 in History with Engineering minor–MARGINAL–ALTO ACAD GRADES ARE TUFFER THAN E.G. HARVARD COLLEGE WHERE 3.10 GPA REQUIRES ACTUALLY INSULTING PROFS.

680 GMAT (42 Q, 44 V, 6 AWA)–OK FOR HBS, THEY DONT CARE THAT MUCH FOR GMATS, STANFORD GOES FOR BIG GMATS THE WAY CERTAIN GUYS GO FOR BIG _______. BUT THEY OFTEN SETTLE FOR LESS.

D-1 athlete all four years; Do schools even care about sports?–SURE, BUT NOT SO MUCH YOUR ATHLETIC SKILLS VERSUS LEADERSHIP, BEING CAPTAIN OF TEAM, ETC. ETC. LESSONS LEARNED, HOW YOU HELPED TEAM, BLAH, BLAH

AGE AND GPA ARE REAL ????  ESP. AGE? WHAT IS UP W. THAT???

HBS TO TAKE 50 KIDS OFF WL IN NEXT TWO WEEKS. 

SK IS DUBIOUS, AND BELIEVES THIS NUMBER ALSO INCLUDES THE 10 OR SO KIDS (OR MORE) THEY TOOK LAST WEEK.

ANYONE WHO GOT IN OFF HBS WL LAST WEEK, PLEASE CHECK IN.

May 3, 2010

Hello Everyone:

It’s Eileen Chang from the MBA Admissions Board at HBS with the May

update on our Admissions process.

At this point, we have received all applications that will be considered

for the Class of 2012. We have already begun actively reviewing our

waitlist candidates and have started making decisions on many of these

applications. We also began interviewing round 3 candidates this week,

so we are in the final stretch of finalizing the class.
 

We expect there to be a lot of movement on our waitlist these next two

weeks and anticipate making approximately 50 offers of admission between

now and the round 3 notification date of May 13. We know that many of

you are anxious for resolution on your application, and the majority of

you should expect to hear a decision on your application by May 13.
 

Heading into June, the waitlist will be significantly smaller. The

waitlist at that time will serve to hold a group of candidates who could

be available to matriculate in case last minute (early July)

cancellations occur.
 

It is critical to keep your contact information updated, especially

since many of you are traveling now and over the next few weeks. If

there is a change to your phone number, email address, or mailing

address, please email my colleague, Dana Scalisi….blah, blah blah

Sincerely,
 

Eileen Chang

MBA Admissions

Harvard Business School

Soldiers Field Road

Dillon House

Boston, MA 02163