Monday, December 29, 2008

Project MBA - GMATerr......

This blog will focus on the GMAT experience. GMAT score = 740. I consider it a good score but not outstanding. So I am not sure how much my experience will help others. but here it is anyway....

I used several resources: The official guide, Manhattan GMAT, Kaplan800, Princeton and GMATprep. Without doubt, spend the due diligence in studying the Official guide. Make sure to not only answer their prep questions but also to read the answer explanation. In addition, I found the Manhattan GMAT series to be very helpful. I found several tricks there to solve problems more quickly. You are the best judge of how much preparation you need. In my case, I had already studied previously for the GRE. So I was used to the concept of rapid fire CAD based exams.

During the week before my GMAT, I practiced the Kaplan800 and the GMATprep computer based exams. The GMATprep is the official practice exam CD from GMAC. My Kaplan800 scores were in the 750-760 range and my GMATprep scores were in the 760-780 range. So obviously, I did not fare well to my expectations on the D-day. I think I was a bit nervous during the initial half-hour simply because I had high expectations for myself. Perhaps that is why I ended up with 740.

Most Adcoms say that GMAT does not make or break the case, which I think (and would like to believe) is true. Also, as a friend once said, a 740 score will help keep the focus off of the academic credentials (like a check in the box). So, I can focus on the rest of the application (extracurricular, goals, essays, recommendations).

Project MBA - the school selection

I figure that I will write blogs that each focus on one aspect of the admissions process. I hope that readers will comment on my experiences and share their thoughts. I will start with the school selection.

In March/April this year, I visited several schools - Chicago, Columbia, Wharton, MIT and NYU. I had researched several more schools but my short-list was quite straightforward. I wanted to focus on a top 10 MBA school that is strong in both finance and entrepreneurship. It was a great experience visiting these schools. Most of my MBA friends had told me to look for the right "fit". I initially didn't understand what they meant. I have had two masters degrees in Engineering and school selection then was usually limited to a) does it have a strong program in the research area I am interested in, b) what is it's ranking and c) can it provide me tuition aid. Rarely did the student body, career services or other factors play a role. When I visited the business schools, I found out what "fit" really meant. Each school I visited obviously had a strong MBA program and I wouldn't have gone wrong with any one of them. But there were some peripheral qualities about each school that I could see and appreciate.

Among all schools, I fell in love immediately with Chicago. Man, what a building it is - the Harper Center. Also, I liked the concept of GSB Live event which I attended in April. (Anyone considering Chicago - PLZ attend the GSB Live (or is it Booth Live now?) event - you will not regret it.) GSB Live is/was a day-long event that started early in the morning (8.30 am I think). The first half-hour was networking and breakfast. Then, for an hour or so, the admissions officers (Eddie and Rose who is the admissions director) talked about the Chicago MBA and other stuff that typically goes with an admissions event. After that, four or five current students hosted a panel for an hour where they talked about their personal experiences and what they liked/disliked about Chicago MBA. This was one of the best parts especially because there are no admissions office personnel in the auditorium during this hour. There was a lot of candid exchange that was beneficial. Then, there was a tour of the facility (Harper Center is one of the best educational buildings I have ever set foot on, and I have visited countless educational institutions - business schools and otherwise. The facilities at the Harper Center are mind-boggling and I could see myself spending days and nights in that building be it studying, networking or simply hanging out with classmates), followed by a lunch with students where again, I got to chat informally with my potential peers. In the afternoon, I attended a statistics class. Because statistics is generally boring, the lecturer was monotonous and the class was a continuation of a previous lecture, I wasn't too impressed. But I spoke with students after class who mentioned that the professor who taught it wasn't one of their best faculty (in terms of teaching skills). They did mention that overall, Chicago faculty were among the best (in the subsequent months, every Chicago alum/student I talked to reiterated that fact). After class, the official GSB Live event was done but they had one more thing on the agenda - LPF. Liquidity Preference Function (LPF) is a social hour event where students get to grab a beer and chill out after a long week of classes. As part of GSB Live, we had free passes to this event, and I car-pooled with other prospectives to the bar where the event was held. It was great to see the camaraderie between students. As I rode the plane that night back to New England, there was only one thing in my mind - Chicago - I will be baaack..

During the summer, I began the process of downselecting schools. I researched the programs and contacted my network of current students and alums to learn their experiences. After GSB Live, Chicago was my top choice. I spent quite a great deal of time looking at what resources I could use for my career goals (I will talk about them in a separate blog). I liked especially the New Venture Challenge and the PE/VC lab at Chicago. These seemed to fit right in with what I expected to get out of an MBA program. I also liked the Spring Internship program at Columbia and MIT's focus on innovation. Rightly so or not, I decided to not spread my energy in too many directions and focus my efforts on one school that I really loved. And that school was Chicago. My expectations for an MBA degree is to help me transition from engineering to entrepreneurship. I want to spend some time in the early stage VC industry to learn about how start-ups are vetted and funded, and then start my own business/start-up. Chicago's academic training (classes, clubs, labs, etc) supported such a goal. Add to that the excellent facilities, the faculty and the collaborative nature of the student body, it is not hard to see why Chicago is my top (and only) choice for a business school.

Sunday, December 21, 2008

The quest continues.....

This is my first blog. I applied Round 1 to Chicago Booth and was wait-listed on December 18th. Inspired by fellow B-school aspiring bloggers, I decided to start this blog to share my thoughts going forward.

I have never blogged before so I am not sure how this will work out. But I hope that by writing about my thoughts and plans, I will succeed in maintaining my focus. This will be an interesting Winter for sure.......

By the way, congratulations to the B-school bloggers who got into their schools of choice.