1. Kellogg
2. Chicago Booth
3. Wharton
4. Columbia
5. USC Marshall

BusinessWeek also published its part-time MBA program rankings and its rankings of executive education programs. Its methodology in all three cases focuses on "end-user satisfaction."

The articles and videos accompanying the rankings are recommended if you are considering an EMBA or part-time MBA program. Like everything and everyone else, these programs were hit hard by the Great Recession.

A few highlights from the lead article:

• EMBA student satisfaction has plummeted as students increasingly foot the bill and expect career placement services commensurate with those offered their full-time MBA colleagues.
• Of the 83 EMBA programs suveyed, only the University of Texas at Austin's McCombs School of Business boosted student satisfaction since the last survey.
• "Nearly half of all EMBA programs and part-time programs" reported a decline in application volume in 2009.
• 80% of participating part-time programs experienced a decline in student satisfaction.

The Top 10 per Aspen:

1. York (Schulich)
2. Michigan Ross
3. Yale SOM
4. Stanford GSB
5. Notre Dame (Mendoza)
6. UC Berkeley (Haas)
7. RSM Erasmus
8. NYU Stern
9. IE Business School
10. Columbia

If you are not the least bit interested in the topics Aspen is highlighting, then this ranking is irrelevant to you. However, if you are interested in sustainable development or social entrepreneurship, then you will want to review the profiles contained in Beyond Grey Pinstripes.

• Cornell Chatter, an Accepted.com online Q&A session, on Monday, October 12, 2009 at 10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/5:00 PM GMT when Randall Sawyer, Director of Admissions, along with other staff members will answer your important questions. Use this outstanding opportunity to ask questions about Cornell’s close-knit student life, admission policies, and programs. Join us on October 12th!
• NYU Stern Admissions Directors' Online Chat On Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 9:00 AM PT/12:00 PM ET/ 4:00 PM GMT, Stern’s impressive adcom team, including Anika Pratt, Assistant Dean, MBA Admissions and Financial Aid; Isser Gallogly, Executive Director, MBA Admissions; and Paula Goldfarb, Senior Director, MBA Admissions and Financial Aid will be available to answer your questions. From NYU's flexible core curriculum, to its exclusive NYC connections, this is your opportunity to find out everything you wanted to know about the NYU Stern MBA.

Both chats will take place in Accepted's chat room.

We also posted last week's Columbia Admissions Q&A with Linda Meehan, Assistant Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid at Columbia Business School. Here is an excerpt:

jonathan (Oct 1, 2009 12:08:16 PM)
Is there any chance Columbia will have a no co-signer loan program for Fall 2010? And is this affecting the volume of non-U.S. applicants?

LindaMeehanCOLUMBIA (Oct 1, 2009 12:08:56 PM)
Columbia continues to explore opportunities for an international non-cosigned loan. Our applications last year increased 15% overall, with an increase both domestically and internationally. Columbia Business School continues to be among the top most international schools, both in terms of its educational offerings and its international diversity. No, this is not affecting the volume of non-U.S applicants. Given that our acceptance rate is exceptionally low, making it one of the most selective schools in the world, we are unable to admit everyone whom we'd like to welcome to our program.

GS (Oct 1, 2009 12:26:02 PM)
Linda: If you are switching careers, then how do you convince the admission committee that you are a strong candidate for MBA? Since you have no relevant experience, and your current field is no where near the business field. What exactly does the Columbia admission committee look for in an application?

LindaMeehanCOLUMBIA (Oct 1, 2009 12:27:47 PM)
GS, most students will probably switch careers. In the evaluation process, we are evaluating how well you know yourself and how your skills and talents will apply to your future goals. Also, we look to determine how Columbia Business School will help you to achieve them. We are evaluating how well you know yourself and how realistic you are about what may be achievable. Also, your job is not to 'convince' us, your job is to 'inform' us.

If you are interested in Columbia, take a few minutes to review the transcript.

We also have posted the transcript from the Notre Dame Mendoza MBA Admissions Q&A with Brian Lohr, Director of MBA Admissions, and other members of the Notre Dame staff:

Ghouse (Sep 24, 2009 12:09:30 PM)
John: Hello - I am looking to specialize in Entrepreneurship and VC. What prospects or career lines do student, with these concentrations, get into after graduations? Do you know off-hand any companies that visited campus looking for these concentrations?

JohnRooneyNOTREDAME (Sep 24, 2009 12:13:34 PM)
Ghouse - Entrepreneurship students go into three main areas: 1)Companies that value entrepreneurship (P&G, J&J, IBM are a few that come to campus. 2) They start their own ventures/businesses. 3) They work with start-ups (this is the smallest segment since start-ups look for more functional support vs. MBA graduates. The Gigot Center for Entrepreneurship is the center of this activity and the recently opened ND Innovation Park is an area of growth--be sure to check out the Gigot Center and ND Innovation Park on the web.

phoenix27 (Sep 24, 2009 12:15:48 PM)
Brian: Has your school had an increase in applications or decrease of applications since the recession?

BrianLohrNOTREDAME (Sep 24, 2009 12:16:31 PM)
Phoenix, we had a 33% increase in our domestic applications last year.

You can review the full Notre Dame Mendoza Q&A transcript by clicking on the link.

A few items to keep in mind:

• Columbia's Linda Meehan, Assistant Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid for Columbia's MBA program, will be available to answer your questions tomorrow, Thursday Oct. 1 at 10AM PT/1PM ET/5PM GMT during our Columbia MBA admissions chat.  She will be joined by Nandeeta Seth, a current CBS MBA student. The chat will take place in Accepted's chat room. I invite you to join us, share your questions, and benefit from our guests' answers.
  
• Columbia's Early Decision Deadline is one of those that's fast approaching. It is Wednesday October 7. Please, before you submit, review the tips I posted last week . 
• The MBA Interview Feedback Database has interview feedback from recent Columbia MBA admissions interviews including 2010 ED applicants. If you want to prepare for your interview, check out this resource. Then please share your interview experience so the database can continue to grow.

So what are my thoughts at the end of a hectic week?

• Accepted's editors have noted a rash of bloopers in applicant essays. While these malapropisms (and too many others to list) can make for hilarious reading, they will not add to your chances of acceptance. Please note.

"Message" and "massage" are very different nouns. A "hands-on massage" is not the same as a "hands-on message."

"Morale" and "morals" or "moral" are also very different. "My team's morals sunk lower than low after she addressed us." creates a very different image than "My team's morale sunk lower than low after she addressed us."

Your essays need proofing!

• I listened this morning to the entire MBA Podcaster episode "What Not To Do On Your Application: MBA Application Pitfalls & How To Avoid Them." Please, please, please before you submit your applications, listen to this show with Liz Riley Hargrove, Associate Dean of Admissions, Fuqua School of Business, Duke University; Rose Martinelli, Associate Dean of Student Recruitment and Admissions, University of Chicago Booth School of Business; Graham Richmond, CEO, ClearAdmit; Kellee Scott, Senior Associate Director of MBA Admissions at USC's Marshall School of Business; and myself. It is excellent and could prevent you from making some serious mistakes.

• I received a lovely note last night from a current client. He wrote:

"Natalie has been absolutely terrific! My essays are really coming along -- I really don't know what I'd do without her.

Thanks for all your help. Regardless of what happens with my B-school applications, I honestly think that accepted.com provides a tremendously valuable service. I'd even venture to say that the vast majority of applicants who do not use accepted.com are putting themselves at a terrible disadvantage. (You and Natalie have made me a believer!)

• In addition, I also received several, outstanding feedback reports from clients using other Accepted editors' services.

I don't think it will surprise any of you -- I strongly believe that the overwhelming majority of applicants can benefit from having their applications and essays reviewed before they submit them. You are much better off if we find your mistakes than if the admissions committee does.

At this point in time, with the earliest deadlines less than a week away, we still have some availability, but it is very limited before Oct. 1. If you have any plans to use Accepted's services, please either purchase or register ASAP.

Best of luck to all Round 1 Applicants!

For the US, the top 10 is:

1. Stanford
2. Dartmouth (Tuck)
3. Harvard
4. Chicago (Booth)
5. Pennsylvania (Wharton)
6. Columbia
7. Cornell (Johnson)
8. Northwestern (Kellogg)
9. Virginia (Darden)
10. Yale

The lead article associated with the rankings has additional noteworthy data-points:

• Although most graduates at top MBA programs see a significant return on the MBA investment, rising tuition and pre-MBA salaries mean that breaking even (not to mention profiting financially) takes a little longer than it has in the past.
• "Europe is home to the seven best business schools when it comes to a return on your investment, led by top-ranked INSEAD, whose graduates had a five-year gain of $192,000."
• Forbes plans to publish its Best Business Schools report annually in the future, instead of biannually as it has in the past.
• Excellent piece on "How to Get Into Business School" by Matt Symonds.

The rankings also includes articles about the individual programs including a worthwhile piece on entrepreneurship at INSEAD.

If you're curious about my views on rankings, please see The Rankings.

Columbia has released its 2010 MBA essay questions, which are identical to last years; I've tweaked my comments (in red) a little.

In addition to learning about your professional aspirations, the Admissions Committee hopes to gain an understanding of your interests, values and motivations through these essays. How you answer these essays is at your discretion, there are no right answers and we encourage you to answer each question thoughtfully.

Dual Degree applicants: Please address the following questions within your response to Essay 1: How will the Dual Degree enhance your short-term or long-term goals?

Reapplicants: If you have applied to Columbia Business School within the past year, you are required to submit only the reapplication essay. If your last application was more than one year ago, you must answer essays 1, 2, and 3.

Essay 1

What are your short-term and long-term post-MBA goals? How will Columbia Business School help you achieve these goals? (Recommended 750 word limit)

This is a forward-looking goals question. While you should include events and experiences that contributed to the development of your goals, the bulk of the essay should be about the future. What do you want to do immediately after completing your MBA? 5 years later? How will Columbia's program help you achieve your goals? Which of Columbia's strengths and programs are critical to your success? And be specific!

Essay 2

Master Classes are the epitome of bridging the gap between theory and practice at Columbia Business School. (View link below) Please provide an example from your own life in which practical experience taught you more than theory alone. (Recommended 500 word limit)

View with Real Player:  

I also recommend you read the section of CBS' web site about Columbia's Masters Classes.

To me, the masters classes are CBS's attempt to integrate the various business functions and add a real general management element to a program that tended to keep those business silos distinct. To respond to the question you need to bring an example from your life when you applied theory successfully. Ideally, you would want to use an example where you used management principles to guide your team, office, company, or club in solving a problem or completing a project.

Essay 3

Please provide an example of a team failure of which you've been a part. If given a second chance, what would you do differently? (Recommended 500 word limit)

When have you been part of a team that came in last. Or that came in second when it should have come in first? Or that failed to close the deal? Or did finish the project, but over budget and late so that your firm lost the client?

And more importantly, what have you learned from the experience? How would you attempt to change the outcome if you had the chance? When would you seize the initiative? When would you encourage others? When would you sit quietly and let someone with complementary strengths take center stage.

While the particular incident you choose should complement other elements of your application and ideally discuss some interest, activity, or experience not discussed in other essays, the key part of this question is the second one.

For more assistance, please see:

• Admissions Tip from Dr. Pausch 's Last Lecture (Part 2)
• Flaws Make You Real
• Personal Statement Tip: Our Response Defines Us
• Personal Statement Tip: Failure Questions

Optional Essay

Is there any further information that you wish to provide to the Admissions Committee? (Please use this space to provide an explanation of any areas of concern in your academic record or your personal history.)

Obviously you could use this optional essay question to address a weakness in your application, but in my mind, it is also open-ended enough to allow you to discuss a diversity element in your personal background or simply some unique area of interest. Also, tucking a weakness explanation somewhere else would allow you to end the application with a strength and not a flaw.

If you would like help with your Columbia MBA application, please consider Accepted.com's MBA essay editing and admissions consulting or a Columbia Comprehensive Package. And if you purchase before July 31, 2009, you can save 15% on MBA comprehensive packages and essay editing services.

Columbia September 2010 MBA Deadlines

Columbia Business School uses a rolling admissions process. Applications are reviewed in the order in which they are received, and decisions can be rendered at any point during the review period. It is always to your benefit to apply before the posted deadline.

* Decision period begins when a complete application goes under review.

** Applicants who wish to be considered for a merit-based fellowship must submit a complete application by 11:59PM EST on January 6, 2009. Fellowship recipients for the September class are announced between January and May.

Source: Columbia S-Term 2010 MBA Deadlines (http://www4.gsb.columbia.edu/mba/learnmore/options)
Source: Columbia S-Term 2010 MBA Essay Questions (http://www4.gsb.columbia.edu/mba/learnmore/applynow)
Related: Columbia Business School Comprehensive Packages (http://www.accepted.com/services/servicesdetails.aspx?serviceid=237)
Related: Columbia Business School MBA B-School Zone (http://www.accepted.com/mba/Columbia.aspx)

Certain terms came up in almost every presentation. Co-author with me of MBA BlastOff: 45 Terrific Tips to Launch Your MBA Application to Acceptance and MBA I.V.: Mainline to Top MBA Programs MBA Interview Questions and Tips, Maxx Duffy, has a useful term for words that tend to be overused in admissions because they represent important values: "umbrella words." As a consequence of this overuse, qualities like leadership are best broken down and demonstrated than talked about in their umbrella form.

Similar treatment is appropriate for umbrella-words-in-training -- the terms that came up over and over again in connection with almost every school at the conference. It's important for you to know how to relate to the latest and greatest buzz on the MBA scene. Merely parroting it won't do. Like the school representatives, you need to go deeper. Let's examine the most common of these terms:

• Experiential learning. Almost every school touts its experiential learning opportunities. So don't write or talk about "experiential learning." Discuss how each school's particular experiential program is right for you. Reveal how Haas@Work will help you achieve your goals in your Haas application; or why Stern's Industry Mentoring Initiative is the perfect program for you because you are a career changer committed to a particular direction; or how Columbia's Master Classes represent the ideal opportunity to put theory into practice, a process you have enjoyed on a previous, specific occasion. Understand the nuances and points of difference between these programs to show that you have done your homework and really belong at your target schools.
• Sustainability. Green is the color of the day, and I'm not just talking about Twitter avatars in sympathy with Iranian demonstrators. Don't write vaguely about "sustainability." Will you participate in INDEAVOR, The Energy Club, The Africa Initiative, or all the above at INSEAD to further your interest in renewable energy and entrepreneurship? Which of the almost twenty courses that study sustainability at Darden are you most interested in? How will you take advantage of the Batten Institute's resources as you dive into sustainable development in emerging markets?
• Global. Global everything was everywhere at the conference. Ross sends roughly 50% of its MAP projects outside the US to roughly 30 countries. Yale has a required International Experience in its core and hosts a Global Leadership in Healthcare Conference with other professional schools at Yale. Which aspects of your target schools' global offerings are relevant to your goals and interests? If they are relevant, don't talk about study abroad or international projects; talk about the particular programs that are attractive to you, and why they appeal.
• Flexibility. Several programs emphasized the increased flexibility of their programs. Both Tuck and Columbia have decreased the number of required courses and introduced mini-courses or seminars. Stern gives you a wide range of options in terms of designing your program. Yale allows you to take almost all second-year electives outside of SOM. How does your school's flexibility assist you in reaching your MBA goals? What level of flexibility is important to you?

These terms reflect important concepts in graduate business education today, but if you write about them superficially, you will appear .... superficial. Don't reflect merely the shallow buzz in your application. Study and understand the points of difference by scouring school web sites and attending presentations. Just as the AIGAC presentations went beyond the superficial to the substantive, so will your receptions and presentations.  

Ensure your applications reveal a profound grasp of the distinctive currents among outstanding MBA programs, like those that presented to and hosted AIGAC last week. 

In listening to a podcast on an entirely unrelated topic, I started thinking about the essential components of a strong personal statement, statement of purpose, or MBA goals essay. Basically, the adcoms want a map of where you've been, where you are, and where you're going for the statement of purpose and the goals essay. For personal statement your readers want to know your current location and how you got here; clear plans for the future are secondary and usually not required.

MAP has however a double meaning for those of you writing statements of purpose and goals essays. It stands for Motivation, Aspiration, and Perspiration.

• Motivation: What makes you tick? Why have you made the decisions you have made? Why do you want to go into your chosen field?
• Aspiration: Where are you headed? What do you aspire to immediately after you complete your degree and sometimes long term. HBS asks for "vision."
• Perspiration: When in the past have you sweated to achieve? When have you dedicated yourself to a cause or goal? When have you worked hard to have impact and contribute? 

If you write your statement of purpose or MBA goals essay, check it for MAP. If it has these three critical elements, you have started down the right path.  

If you would like us to check whether you have MAP in your essay or you want us to work with you so you take the right road, please explore Accepted's services.

The First Prize ($200 Amazon Gift Certificate) goes to Simon Lau for a magnificent shot of Columbia’s dormitory.

Columbia

Second Prize ($100 gift certificate) to Ninad Gujar for a stunning photo of fall foliage near Tuck.

Fall Foliage near Tuck

Third Prize ($50 gift certificate): A tie between Bizwiz for Kellogg and Sargsyan Gor for Stanford.

Kellogg

Stanford

Thank you again to all the hard-working judges:

• Eric Bahn, founder of BeatTheGMAT forum.
• Elissa Ellis-Sangster, executive director at Forte Foundation.
• Happy Librarian, author of  MBA Dream blog.
• MissionMBA, author of My Journey to a B-School... blog.
• MBAVeggie, author of The Journey of a Fall 2009 Columbia Incoming Student.
• Trystwithmba, author of B School Bound –> Aim, Be, Yay !
• Omne, author of Omne's MBA Journal
• The GMAT Club Team
• Maybe MBA, author of To MBA Or Not
• Tiny Dancer, author of Tiny Dancer’s MBA Blog
• Maverick, author of En Route to MBA

It may take a little longer than usual for us to add all the photos to our b-school zones pages and post the winner's page because we are busy working on a site facelift.  In the meantime, you can admire these beauties here.

Thanks again to all participants -- winners, honorable mentions, and judges.

2010 applicants, start taking your b-school pics for next year's contest.