How do you calculate "work experience"?

[urbanist]

So we always talk about the average work experience of the B-school admits.
I am just wondering, do we actually refer to the no. of years of work experience *at the time of application* (e.g. Oct), or do we refer to the time of actually being enrolled?

I started working in Aug 2010 (so about 1.5 years from that point till now), and I plan to apply Round 1 in the coming year. Would I be considered "3 years" (if I attend the sch in Sep 2013) or just "2 years" (till the time I apply)?

I was always confused about this and would be grateful if someone could shed some light on this.

Many thanks!

[EricAllen]

Great question. It's at the time of matriculation. If you are applying in 2012 for matriculation/enroll in 2013, you will be considered as having ~3yrs experience.

Maybe a little light for some programs, but it's all about the quality of the W/E! Best of luck and I hope that helps.

[FutureWorks]

It should be three years. Generally most of the applicants have a good 4-5 years of work experience. Although it is not just the work experience that counts but also what you did there like-what were your achievements, what initiative you took, what changes you drove in your workplace etc. So to leverage this if you can show that in 6 years you have demonstrated the skills business schools are looking for you could put in a strong set of essays. Hence the quality of your work, your academics and beyond academics will play an important role in determining your candidature