-
Target Test Prep's 2024 GMAT Focus Edition prep is discounted for the BTG community!
Redeem
Use Your Network to Help You Get Into B-School
While everyone agrees the network you build during business school is one of the top benefits of earning an MBA degree, the best time to start networking is long before you apply.
Keep in mind that your ideal network should include a mix of mentors, colleagues, and people who can connect you to an array of professional opportunities. If you've laid the groundwork and have already cultivated meaningful relationships with current students and alumni, these connections can grease the wheels for your successful MBA application.
First, get in contact with current students and alumni in your MBA network and enlist their help in researching programs. Nothing compares with hearing firsthand accounts that offer a realistic view of the businessschool experience that go beyond the brand messages of school websites and admissions events. Have conversations about why they decided to go to business school, why they chose the program they did, what were the highlights or surprises of their experience, and what they wish they had known when starting this process.
Ideally, you will tap into your contacts who work in the same industry you hope to upon graduating. These individuals can offer advice based on their own jobs and career paths, and explain how the MBA degree has helped advance their career goals. By talking to actual MBAs, you can get a clearer picture of whether a particular program's culture is a good match for you, and to figure out how well the school is positioned to help you succeed.
Sometimes, these conversations will prove enlightening by steering you in a different direction from your initial top-choice school. Talking to as many students and alumni as you can will not only help you narrow down your choices of where to apply, but will provide insight you can parlay into more convincing MBA essays and use to improve your admissions interviews, especially if conducted with second-year students or alums.
When you complete your essays, it can be very helpful to have a student or alumnusgive them a thorough review, as these individuals have an intimate understanding of the application process and probably answered the same questions themselves just a few years ago. Make sure they are not just reassuring you that all is well, but are actually giving you some quality feedback.
Do be aware of the danger of having too many cooks in the kitchen. Two or three people doing the reviewing is usually the right amount.
Some schools welcome informal recommendations from students. If you are friends with a student or alumnusfrom one of your target schools, by all means let them put in a good word for you. Just don't overdo it.
This type of endorsement works best if it is expressed directly to someone in admissions in a very casual way, where it seems like you had no hand in it. However, if the person can truly comment on your abilities, it's perfectly appropriateand beneficialto ask an alumnusfrom your desired school to write your required letter of recommendation.
Visiting the campus in person is one of the best ways to get a true feeling of what attending the program would be like. After going on the official tour, crash with a student friend for the weekend and really live the businessschool life. Going to the local pub can be just as helpful as sitting in on a class to get a flavor for the people and culture of the school, with the added benefit of giving you experiences that will help you better articulate your fit with the program in your essays and interviews.
Business schools will often say the MBA admissions process is more art than science, and the more inside information you can leverage from students and alumni, the better your chances of acceptance at the businessschool of your dreams.
This post originally appeared on Stacys Strictly Business MBA Blog on U.S.News.com
Image credit: Flickr user Andrs Garca (CC BY-NC 2.0)
***
If you are looking for guidance on your MBA application, Stacy Blackman Consulting can help with hourly and comprehensive consulting services. Contact us to learn more.
Recent Articles
Archive
- June 2024
- May 2024
- April 2024
- March 2024
- February 2024
- January 2024
- December 2023
- November 2023
- October 2023
- September 2023
- July 2023
- June 2023
- May 2023
- April 2023
- March 2023
- February 2023
- January 2023
- December 2022
- November 2022
- October 2022
- September 2022
- August 2022
- July 2022
- June 2022
- May 2022
- April 2022
- March 2022
- February 2022
- January 2022
- December 2021
- November 2021
- October 2021
- September 2021
- August 2021
- July 2021
- June 2021
- May 2021
- April 2021
- March 2021
- February 2021
- January 2021
- December 2020
- November 2020
- October 2020
- September 2020
- August 2020
- July 2020
- June 2020
- May 2020
- April 2020
- March 2020
- February 2020
- January 2020
- December 2019
- November 2019
- October 2019
- September 2019
- August 2019
- July 2019
- June 2019
- May 2019
- April 2019
- March 2019
- February 2019
- January 2019
- December 2018
- November 2018
- October 2018
- September 2018
- August 2018
- July 2018
- June 2018
- May 2018
- April 2018
- March 2018
- February 2018
- January 2018
- December 2017
- November 2017
- October 2017
- September 2017
- August 2017
- July 2017
- June 2017
- May 2017
- April 2017
- March 2017
- February 2017
- January 2017
- December 2016
- November 2016
- October 2016
- September 2016
- August 2016
- July 2016
- June 2016
- May 2016
- April 2016
- March 2016
- February 2016
- January 2016
- December 2015
- November 2015
- October 2015
- September 2015
- August 2015
- July 2015
- June 2015
- May 2015
- April 2015
- March 2015
- February 2015
- January 2015
- December 2014
- November 2014
- October 2014
- September 2014
- August 2014
- July 2014
- June 2014
- May 2014
- April 2014
- March 2014
- February 2014
- January 2014
- December 2013
- November 2013
- October 2013
- September 2013
- August 2013
- July 2013
- June 2013
- May 2013
- April 2013
- March 2013
- February 2013
- January 2013
- December 2012
- November 2012
- October 2012
- September 2012
- August 2012
- July 2012
- June 2012
- May 2012
- April 2012
- March 2012
- February 2012
- January 2012
- December 2011
- November 2011
- October 2011
- September 2011
- August 2011
- July 2011
- June 2011
- May 2011
- April 2011
- March 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- December 2010
- November 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- August 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- April 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009