Applying in Round 3 for Schools with 4 Rounds?

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ricecracker: Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts; Posts: 28; Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2012 10:30 pm

by ricecracker » Sat Oct 20, 2012 11:02 pm

Hey Guys,

Sorry if this has been asked before, but is it worthwhile to apply in round 3 for schools with 4 rounds of applications, such as Cornell or Haas? Is round 3 still competitive at these schools, or is it not much different than schools which only offer 3 rounds of applications, in which case the chances of being admitted are substantially lower in the 3rd round?

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Source: Beat The GMAT — The Application Process | Sat Oct 20, 2012 11:02 pm

machichi: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 174; Joined: Wed May 02, 2012 7:57 pmFollowed by: 17 members; Location: San Francisco; Thanked: 35 times; GMAT Score:730

by machichi » Sun Oct 21, 2012 10:13 am

I think round 3 is comparable to round 2 in these situations, meaning you're not disadvantaged by applying then. The only thing is that most consultants seem to recommend applying earlier if you are an overrepresented applicant type. So round 3 still works at schools with a 4th round but the schools might be more open to candidates in earlier rounds. It probably depends every year on the number of apps in each round, too.

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olimpic: Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts; Posts: 28; Joined: Wed May 02, 2012 10:37 am; Thanked: 1 times

by olimpic » Mon Oct 22, 2012 7:57 am

I agree, it's probably easier to get admitted in round 3 where you also have a round 4, since the school saved more slots after the first 2 rounds for 2 more rounds.

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Marc@AcceptU: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 332; Joined: Thu Aug 23, 2012 3:13 pmFollowed by: 41 members; Location: Boston; Thanked: 43 times

by Marc@AcceptU » Mon Oct 22, 2012 11:07 am

Our advice is to apply in the round in which you can submit your strongest application. With that said, the earlier, the better is generally the rule of thumb.

Marc Zawel
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ricecracker: Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts; Posts: 28; Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2012 10:30 pm

by ricecracker » Mon Oct 22, 2012 9:39 pm

Thanks for the feedback guys. My general takeaway is, while it would be better to apply in round 1 or 2, applying in round 3 at these 4 round schools isn't quite as prohibitive compared to round 3 applications of schools who only have 3 rounds.

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ksc1940: Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts; Posts: 68; Joined: Wed Oct 19, 2011 2:27 pmFollowed by: 2 members; Thanked: 2 times

by ksc1940 » Sun Oct 28, 2012 7:24 pm

I'm in the exact same situation as well. Debating on whether i should apply to haas round 2 or wait for round 3. I'm currently working on columbia as well, but i think i can squeeze in haas. It seems like at haas, round 3 is at a slight disadvantage to round 2 since it's such a small class.

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ricecracker: Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts; Posts: 28; Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2012 10:30 pm

by ricecracker » Tue Oct 30, 2012 11:25 pm

ksc1940, I completely agree. Haas is the main "4 round school" I'm looking at but there does seem to be a slight disadvantage there. It's difficult for me to imagine my chances at a disadvantage, given that the school already has the bar set quite high (especially undergrad GPA), and, as you mentioned, has a small class size.

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PinkBox: Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts; Posts: 46; Joined: Mon Feb 23, 2009 11:28 am; Thanked: 4 times

by PinkBox » Fri Nov 02, 2012 4:33 pm

I would just apply in the round in which my application is good enough. My philosophy is don't apply too early if you need more time to put the last touches on your application just for the sake of applying in the earlier rounds and don't apply too late (ie last round) just because you are scared that your application "is not perfect" and maybe having more time would help.

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ivyctor2010: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 254; Joined: Thu Aug 23, 2012 9:42 amFollowed by: 13 members; Thanked: 46 times; GMAT Score:740

by ivyctor2010 » Fri Nov 02, 2012 4:57 pm

If you put in a strong application even later rounds should do fine, doing justice to all aspects of application is a must though. Essays must be brilliant, recommendations should have touched upon all your positive points, factual details all to the best of your knowledge. But earlier the better still.

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