The chat will take place in the Accepted chat room.

During our most recent MBA admissions chat, we hosted a busy event with the Consortium. Here are a few excerpts from the transcript.

Linda Abraham (Oct 20, 2009 7:05:14 PM)
To all the school reps, does the applicant ranking influence the evaluation of the application?

WendyHuberUVA (Oct 20, 2009 7:06:22 PM)
Linda, applicants should apply as if the schools do not see the ranking. Rankings are only looked at when we are deciding fellowships, they are not used in the admission decision.

JacquelynnDayROCHESTER (Oct 20, 2009 7:09:08 PM)
Linda: While we do consider an individual's rankings, we look at the application as a whole, therefore we encourage students to focus on submitting an overall competitive application

RTorres (Oct 20, 2009 7:05:50 PM)
What happens with applicants that apply to the Consortium and to the specific MBA programs at schools when they are not accepted into the fellowship? How are their MBA applications handled? Are they still considered by the schools?

ErinNicklesburgWISCONSIN (Oct 20, 2009 7:07:59 PM)
RTorres: Each applicant is evaluated independently by each school in terms of both admission and Fellowship decision. An offer of admission does not indicate a guaranteed Fellowship offer, as they are separate. The admission offer will stand regardless of the Fellowship offer. If a Fellowship offer is not given, the applicant will go into the general merit-based aid pool.

AmyPR (Oct 20, 2009 7:12:34 PM)
What is the difference between the November application date and the January application date? Do chances of acceptance increase one date vs. the other?

LaurieShunneyCORNELL (Oct 20, 2009 7:15:21 PM)
AmyPR- Competitiveness for admission and scholarship may increase in later rounds. In general, we recommend submitting the strongest application possible. If you are prepared to apply during the November round, it may help.

• Tepper
• Darden
• Emory
• NYU Stern
• Wisconsin
• Yale SOM
• Washington
• Rochester
• Kelley
• Cornell
• Marshall

If you are interested in the Consortium, its missions, simplified application process, and fellowships, be sure to participate in the chat in Accepted's chat room.

I also want to let you know that we posted the transcript of last week's NYU Stern Admissions Director Chat with Anika Davis Pratt, Assistant Dean of MBA Admissions & Financial Aid; Isser Gallogly, Executive Director of MBA Admission; Paula Steisel Goldfarb, Senior Director of MBA Admissions & Financial Aid; and Emily Zwanziger, NYU Stern Class of 2010. Check it out in full, but for now, here are a few excerpts.:

naman (Oct 14, 2009 11:13:19 AM)
Isser: Stern MBA is traditionally renowned for finance, probably due to its location in NY. This is also supported in the recruitment profile for the last few years. How competitively are Stern MBAs (in other areas, specifically, consulting) viewed by the recruiters when compared with other top business schools?

IsserGalloglyNYU (Oct 14, 2009 11:17:16 AM)
Naman - Stern is great across the board. In consulting, we had recruiters from Bain, McKinsey, BCG, Deloitte & Booz plus many others hire students. In fact, McKinsey and BCG were two of our top recruiters this year for the class as a whole.

IsserGalloglyNYU (Oct 14, 2009 11:19:31 AM)
Naman- Another reason we do so well in Consulting is the students IQ+EQ. Not only are our students really smart, but they have superior interpersonal skills. Part of the reason we do the interview process the way we do is to get people with great EQ (emotional intelligence quotient). Recruiters really notice and appreciate that aspect of our students.

lcpink12 (Oct 14, 2009 11:18:58 AM)
Anika: What % of students does a term abroad on exchange? How much does this affect recruiting/interviewing on campus?

AnikaPrattNYU (Oct 14, 2009 11:24:16 AM)
LcPink12: Over 300 full-time and part-time students participate in our international programs each year. This includes semester exchange, our popular Doing Business in (DBi) program, and short-term opportunities in the summer. About 60 participated in semester exchange, 250 participated in the DBi trips, and 9 participated in short-term study. Students typically choose their semester to go abroad based on the recruiting schedule for their career of interest. If you want to immerse yourself fully in NYC, the DBi program is ideal because it is a one to two week format.

Linda Abraham (Oct 14, 2009 11:20:04 AM)
Isser what is unique about NYU's interview process that hones in on EQ?

IsserGalloglyNYU (Oct 14, 2009 11:29:04 AM)
Linda-There are a few things that are unique about our interview process. It is by invitation only - we only ask to meet you if we are very serious about you after reviewing the application. About 60% of those interviewed are admitted, about 30% of those who apply are selected to interview. The interviews are almost always here in NYC at Stern and conducted by a trained admissions professional. You have 30 minutes to make your case in person to the committee. The interview is not blind. The interviewer will have studied your application and ask you deeper and more specific questions. While you are at Stern, you may visit a class and have lunch with a student (depending on the time of year). If you apply to Stern, save some vacation days and money to fly here for your interview. We take the interview very seriously and it's a unique part of our process.

AnikaPrattNYU (Oct 14, 2009 11:29:09 AM)
Naman: NYU Stern is a great place to be if you want a career change into Consulting. Typically, over half of our incoming class plans on making a career change. At Stern, programs like the Industry Mentoring Initiative (IMI) partner with lead consulting firms and senior executives to mentor students changing careers into consulting. In addition, our student club - the MCA - has a rigorous casing training and prep leading up to consulting interviews -- just to mention a couple of the great resources here at Stern.

If you are interested in NYU Stern, review the chat transcript. The Stern representatives provide meaty, specific answers to a broad range of applicant questions.

You will find in the special report articles on:

• Applying while or after a layoff.
• The series "MBA in Finance: Forget It?"
• The disappearance and reappearance of financial aid options.
• The wisdom of applying during times of financial uncertainty.

Please feel free to download and share Applying to Business School in Times of Crisis.

Please also use the comments to share your thoughts on the topics discussed in this special report.

• Save $100 on any editing or consulting purchase totaling $1,000 or more. This special ends Thursday March 12. Don't miss it.
• Indiana Kelley MBA admissions chat with Jim Holmen on Thursday March 12 at 10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/5:00 PM GMT. Please join us tomorrow to learn about Kelley!
• MBA Interview Feedback Database. It's growing. Lots of new entries from a variety of schools. Please contribute to its growth and share your interview experience. Doing so enrolls you in the It's a 10! contest too. 
• We are receiving entries for the Beautiful B-School Photo Contest. Please remember when you visit the business schools to take pictures and submit your best ones. You could win up to a $200 Amazon gift certificate.
• Vote for me, Accepted's founder, in the Leading Moms in Business. Thanks to those of you who voted, I'm "on fire" according to the meter, but so are others. If you haven't voted and would like to do so, please vote for me by March 31.
• Darden Transcript is now online. A few excerpts:

eva (Feb 26, 2009 12:10:34 PM)
Sara: MBA admissions are mostly based on experiences. What do you think about the students who want to continue to the graduate school right after their undergrad? They basically will not have any work experience at all. Can such student still be considered? Can they still apply for an MBA in Darden?

SaraNeherDARDEN (Feb 26, 2009 12:13:15 PM)
Eva, We do have some students who come directly from undergrad. Admission to business school is based on your leadership ability and potential, your intelligence, and your work experience. The first two you can have at any age. The third, a college applicant can have via internships, strong extra-curricular activities, etc. Plus - there is no downside to applying. If you don't get in now, we will give you feedback over the summer on how to improve your chances in the future.

ThirdRoundApplicant (Feb 26, 2009 12:14:58 PM)
Sara: I am already pointing out a weakness in the additional comments section and word limit is 150 words. I would feel very limited in explaining my reasons to apply in Round 3. Is there any other way I can accomplish this?

SaraNeherDARDEN (Feb 26, 2009 12:16:05 PM)
3rd Round, the "Additional Comments" section should be used with bullet points -it is not an essay. Just tell us what we need to know in the most concise way possible. A few sentences are sufficient.

Dan (Feb 26, 2009 12:20:44 PM)
Sara: How is the current economical situation affecting graduates? I guess job offers are not as good in salaries and numbers as previous years.

SaraNeherDARDEN (Feb 26, 2009 12:23:14 PM)
Dan, it is really too early to tell about salaries and offers for this year, but our second years are doing quite well in the job market. We had all of the top banks (that are left) and all of the top consulting firms, plus even stronger showings from previous years, in manufacturing and marketing. Great jobs are out there, companies are just slower to confirm this year - offers are still coming in now! For more information, consult our employment report on our career development center website.

As a member of the Association of International Graduate Admissions Consultants (AIGAC), we are conducting a survey to help us better understand MBA applicants’ goals and needs.  If you are or will be an MBA applicant, we invite you to share your priorities and views on the MBA application process. 

This online survey should take just 10 minutes to complete.  We would love to receive as many responses as possible before the closing date of Friday, March 20, 2009 - and AIGAC will be giving away an iPod Touch and two iPod Shuffles as a token of our gratitude! 

Thanks in advance for your participation!

Simply click here to begin. 

Looking ahead to 2009, we plan to make this web site and our services even better. We will roll out changes on the site throughout 2009.

We are currently wrestling with a question:  Whether or not to continue publishing recent posts from this blog on the Accepted.com home page.  What do you think?

We would really appreciate your taking a minute to answer a quick, 3-question survey and help us design this site in a way that suits you -- or at least a majority of you. Thank you very much for your time.

Best wishes for a Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous New Year!

Frankly, don't pay too much attention to the absolute ranking or even slight movement. Take advantage of BW's rich, informative database and fantastic resources for applicants. Then choose what's important to you and do your own ranking.

Top 30 U.S. Programs
1 University of Chicago
2 Harvard University
3 Northwestern University (Kellogg)
4 University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)
5 University of Michigan (Ross)
6 Stanford University
7 Columbia University
8 Duke University (Fuqua)
9 MIT (Sloan)
10 UC Berkeley (Haas)
11 Cornell University (Johnson)
12 Dartmouth (Tuck)
13 NYU (Stern)
14 UCLA (Anderson)
15 Indiana University (Kelley)
16 University of Virginia (Darden)
17 UNC - Chapel Hill (Kenan-Flagler)
18 Southern Methodist (Cox)
19 Carnegie Mellon (Tepper)
20 University of Notre Dame (Mendoza)
21 Texas - Austin
22 Brigham Young (Marriott)
23 Emory University (Goizueta)
24 Yale University
25 University of Southern California (Marshall)
26 University of Maryland (Smith)
27 University of Washington (Foster)
28 Washington University (Olin)
29 Georgia Tech
30 Vanderbilt University (Owen)

Top 10 Non-U.S. MBA Programs
1 Queens University
2 IE Business School
3 INSEAD
4 Western Ontario (Ivey)
5 London Business School
6 ESADE
7 IMD
8 Toronto (Rotman)
9 IESE
10 Oxford (Saîd)

BW bases its rankings on employer and student surveys as well as school research output or "intellectual capital."  This year for the first time, in a nod to the economic crisis, it is also including a ranking based on ROI and years to recoup the MBA investment. Not surprisingly, European schools, which tend to be one-year programs, are at the top of the chart. More surprising: HBS ranks 50 out of 50 in this chart. I guess assumptions matter.

• Assistant Dean at Arizona State University's W P Carey School of Management.
• Director of Admissions and Financial Aid at Cornell's Johnson School
• Director of MBA Student Affairs and Enrollment Management at the University of Michigan (where she also earned her MBA).

Twenty-six graduate admissions consultants representing 15 consultancies from six countries and four continents gathered to improve skills, talk shop, and share best practices on Wednesday and Thursday of this week. I am proud to say that seven Accepted editors participated in the conference, the largest contingent from any consultancy.

On Wednesday morning we toured Chicago GSB, met with Rose Martinelli -- who addressed us and took questions -- and other Chicago staff. In the afternoon, we traveled to the other end of Chicago, and met with Kellogg staff, a student in Kellogg’s 1Y program, and then heard from Beth Flye.

On Thursday we had three presentations. I served on a panel discussing “Best Practices in Admissions Consulting.” Later that morning, directors of admission from Anderson, Haas, Kenan-Flagler, London Business School, and Tuck, participated in a panel discussion hosted by AIGAC. In the afternoon we had a chance to speak to additional admissions directors including representatives of Michigan Ross, Georgetown, Cornell, Indiana Kelley, Haas, Anderson, Tuck, Kenan Flagler, INSEAD, and Yale. It was a wonderful learning experience for all who attended.

OK. Enough about us.

A few points of interest to you:

• Chicago plans to release the 2009 questions in roughly two weeks. There will be changes in the questions. The PowerPoint question will return.
• Kellogg plans to release its question in two weeks.
• We discussed the current high interest in CSR. The panelists emphasized that interest in CSR has to be substantiated by previous behavior. They also emphasized that while idealism is wonderful, they are teaching business skills. Show that your goal requires what they teach.
• Although HBS has made the goals essay optional and other schools may move away from it, these panelists stressed the importance of goals. While acknowledging that goals do change, they unanimously believed that direction and a good reason for pursuing an MBA are valuable. Furthermore, if you don’t know what to do after your MBA and are in “self discovery” mode, you will suffer from stimulation overload and an inability to prioritize among the many activities and recruiting events that begin as soon as classes start.
• Christie St. John of Tuck emphasized the importance of refreshing or acquiring quant skills before you arrive on campus. The others agreed. If you haven’t had or aren’t comfortable with accounting, calculus, and statistics, take courses either at a local community college or online.
• We asked about trends: Their response: Increased applications last year and this year.

A couple of pictures:

Accepted Editors at the AIGAC Conference (from left to right) Linda Abraham, Cydney Foote, Sonia Michaels, Sachin Waikar, Tanis Kmetyk, Robbie Walker, Katherine Kidd (non-staff ), and Judy Gruen.

The Best Practices in Admissions Consulting Panel and Discussion with (from left to right) Jeremy Shinewald, Linda Abraham,  Anna Ivey, Chioma Isiadinso, and Maxx Duffy.

Kelley is located in Bloomington, Indiana, about an hour south of the nearest airport in Indianapolis. The MBA program is housed in the new Godfrey Center, in the heart of the campus. Roughly 440 students attend Kelley.

New students are assigned to 3-5 member study teams with whom they work the entire first semester. The Integrated Core, team-taught, covers content from every business discipline. One grade is given for the entire semester’s work, and includes class participation and professional conduct components. Collaboration and presentations are heavily stressed throughout the curriculum. LPCD (Leadership, Professional and Career Development) sessions are held weekly throughout the first semester. In the second year, the LDI (Leadership Development Institute) is required, and emphasizes training and coaching to further develop leadership skills.

Electives begin the second semester of the first year to help students acquire the deeper knowledge needed for a successful internship experience. Majors and minors are offered in Finance, Marketing, Management (Strategy, International Business, Consulting), Entrepreneurship & Corporate Innovation, Supply Chain & Operations, Accounting and a “design your own” option. Kelley also offers a certificate in Social Entrepreneurship: Nonprofit and Public Benefit Organizations.

Marketing and Entrepreneurship & Corporate Innovation are Kelley strengths.

The Johnson Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation has several cross-campus initiatives and collaborations with such other departments as Medical Life Sciences, Law, Science and Music. It offers MBA students internship programs and intensive immersion projects.

A unique feature of Kelley’s MBA is its Academy Program. For one week each semester, all classes and activities stop, and students focus on this activity designed to customize their degree plan. Academies are faculty-driven and allow students to gain practical training and skills through a variety of activities, such as full-immersion visits to companies in major cities, mini-internships commissioned by corporate partners, and consulting projects. A primary objective is to facilitate student access to a network that fits her or his career path. There are 8 academies: Business Marketing, Consulting, Consumer Marketing, Corporate Finance, Entrepreneurial Management, Investment Banking, Investment Management, and Supply Chain & Global Management, plus one in Life Sciences that students may elect to participate in as an addition. Students are placed in Academies based on their “top 3” ranking and faculty input.

Students are encouraged to participate in at least one international experience trip. The Kelley International Perspective is student initiated and organized, and includes a classroom component as well as a 10-day visit to the specific country.

Talking with the students, many of them stressed the school’s collaborative culture and the usefulness of the Academy experience, especially for the practical skills and knowledge they gained. Placement services are ranked high, though those interested in investment banking indicated a need to be more pro-active in seeking out opportunities outside the Midwest.

The Admissions Director says the average GMAT score for 2008 is 670, and that a strong GPA is important. Admitted students have an average 5 years of professional experience, with 2-3 years the minimum. The school looks for candidates who have a passion for business and a diversity of experiences. Communication skills are paramount for those who want to stand out from a crowded cohort and/or for those with a checkered past. An interview before submitting an application is an excellent way to demonstrate such skills.