Clearly, one of the key components of any MBA application is the academic information submitted by an applicant. With that in mind, I would like to share a few tips for your consideration regarding this part of the process:
1. Accept the fact that transcripts and test score reports are very important to the admissions committee.
While hopefully not the only consideration, you have to accept the importance of academics in the application evaluation process. At some institutions academics are so important that the admissions committee does a preliminary review of an applicant’s GPA and test scores, and denies applicants then and there, without going any further. Where you can, you should find out where this type of evaluation is done. If your academic credentials are less competitive, it will help you manage expectations when it comes to the likelihood of your being admitted to a highly selective business school. One other piece of advice here: If an MBA admissions committee starts with an evaluation or your academic credentials, and might deny your admission before looking at anything else in your application, you may want to consider how much you really want to be a student there. It begs the question: “Are they really interested in me as a person, or are they only interested in grades and numbers?”
2. Be ready to discuss your transcript if it is less competitive.
Perhaps there are some extenuating circumstances that contributed to your GPA being lower then you would like. These might include a medical situation you experienced, the loss of a loved one, a financial or personal crisis, etc. It is perfectly acceptable to explain this to the admissions committee. This topic could be asked in a regular essay, or in an optional essay. By all means, explain what happened, but do not make excuses, or sound like you are looking for pity. Just state the facts. If there are no opportunities to address the situation in an essay, then send a letter with the explanation.
3. Consider taking a few graduate level business courses to help demonstrate your academic ability.
If your GPA is lower, a great way to impress the admissions committee is to take one or two graduate-level courses and do very well. This shows that you mean business, that you realize you need to demonstrate academic ability, and that you are trying to show what you are now capable of doing. You may find such opportunities at Harvard CORe or MBA Math, for example.
4. Take the GMAT or GRE a second time if necessary.
Oftentimes, applicants will indicate that they are not good test-takers, which is definitely true in many instances. But they take their GMAT or GRE only once. If you take a test the first time, and do not receive the score you hoped for, or the score you believe will help make your application more competitive, take the test again. If your score improves, that is the score that will be used when your application is evaluated. If the score does not improve, or even drops, at least you showed that you put forth an extra effort and gave it a second try.
5. Your academic credentials may put you at a competitive disadvantage, but that has nothing to do with ultimate success in grad school and beyond.
Remember: There is no correlation whatsoever between your GPA and test scores and success in grad school/life. On more than one occasion I admitted applicants whose GPA was below a 2.0, or whose test scores were well below average. That is because I came to believe that these individuals possessed what it really takes to succeed: persistence and determination. This was evidenced in other parts of their application(s). Do not allow yourself to feel second rate because you are not as likely to get into a top-ten graduate school. Ultimately, it is not where you went for an MBA, but who you are and what you bring to the table that is far more important.
6. You are far better off applying to business schools that you believe will evaluate your application in its entirety.
As I have suggested countless times to thousands of prospective graduate students over the years, your choice of an MBA program is largely about finding a match between you and the b-school. It would seem to me that you would look for a program that values students as human beings, and evaluates their applicant pool accordingly. How applications are evaluated says a lot about how students will be treated. Make sure you really feel comfortable being part of the student body, the school, and the alumni network. Make sure you know what current students and recent graduates really think about their experience. Make certain you are going to feel “at home” there. Over the long haul, that is what you will remember.
7. Do not be angry or resentful if you are not admitted to a top program.
While it will hurt, it is not personal. There are literally hundreds of outstanding MBA programs out there. And at the risk of sounding philosophical, things do tend to have a way of working out for the best. You can wait a year and reapply – the chances of being admitted on the second attempt go up considerably – or you can move on, and enroll where you have been admitted. And if you practice persistence and determination, you will graduate with flying colors, and be ready to embark on the next successful chapter of your professional career.
Dr. Don Martin is Consultant at Residence at Spring
