According to Elizabeth Seger, Assistant Director of Admissions at the University of Michigan Law School, "Our guidelines for personal statements have not changed in light of economic changes, nor do we plan to make any changes to our application." She adds, "If an applicant wishes to discuss long-term goals, we certainly find it helpful, but it isn't essential."  

Do you have questions about Kellogg? Then join us in an admissions chat with Northwestern Kellogg’s Director of Admissions, Beth Flye, and other Kellogg representatives on Thursday, November 5, 2009 at 10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/6:00 PM GMT. The Kellogg team can answer all your questions about their admissions practices and its famed general management program. Learn about the program that provides a global perspective on values, leadership, and social responsibility in an environment emphasizing experiential learning and teamwork.

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.

The Aspen Institute published last week its biannual ranking of MBA programs, "Beyond Grey Pinstripes." This ranking ignores admissions criteria and abandons ROI. Through surveys of 149 participating schools, it attempts to rank the programs according to their "social impact management" or addressing of social, environmental or ethical topics. The goal: "spotlight innovative full-time MBA programs that are integrating issues of social and environmental stewardship into curricula and research."

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.

We have had and will continue to host MBA events. Tomorrow Thursday Sept. 10 at 10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/5:00 PM GMT, Accepted.com is hosting a chat for Michigan's Ross School of Business. Admissions Director Soojin will be available to answer your questions in the Accepted.com chat room. If you seek an MBA program that gives you the opportunity to learn by doing, you should explore Michigan's rich array of experiential learning programs. And if you know you want to apply to Ross, come to the chat to have your questions answered.

On deck: London Business School on September 16.

Turning to chats past, we already posted the transcript form last week's Yale School of Management chat with:

• Bruce Delmonico, Director of Admissions
• Michelle Vitali, Associate Director of Admissions

It was a very informative chat and will teach you a lot about Yale's MBA program, but you can judge for yourself. Here is an excerpt:

Tconigl1 (Sep 2, 2009 12:10:27 PM)
Do members of your career services sit on the admissions committee?

MichelleVitaliYALE (Sep 2, 2009 12:11:35 PM)
Tconigl1, we do have career services folks who sit on the admissions policy committee.

MichelleVitaliYALE (Sep 2, 2009 12:18:25 PM)
This year about 4% of our class is from Europe, although we would love to increase that number. About 5-7% of our students pursue international jobs post MBA, but that number will likely increase. We just hired a relationship manager in the career development office who is focused on international positions.

aspirant (Sep 2, 2009 12:18:35 PM)
Michelle: How will you convert the average grade 7.0 (out of 10) to the GPA? Is it equivalent to 3.0? Do you have minimum requirement for the GPA?

MichelleVitaliYALE (Sep 2, 2009 12:19:29 PM)
Aspirant, You don't need to convert your GPA. Just enter it into the application as 7/10.

Linda Abraham (Sep 2, 2009 12:19:54 PM)
Bruce, are you looking at the raw GRE score or the percentile? If the latter, what would you like to see, while acknowledging that the score is just one element in the application and is not viewed in a vacuum?

BruceDelMonicoYALE (Sep 2, 2009 12:22:06 PM)
Linda, the same raw score on each test may indicate something different. We look more at the percentile to get a sense of the applicant than the raw score. One advantage of the GRE (other than it's cheaper) is that it's more widely used across graduate programs so it has broader applicability. Conversely, it doesn't have universally acceptance among business schools, so that's a drawback. And certainly for applicants who have taken the GRE, we want to make sure they're serious about business school and aren't just throwing their hat in the ring lightly.

For more great insight into the Yale MBA Admissions process, please click on the link.

MICHIGAN ROSS 2010 MBA ESSAY QUESTIONS

The application is identical to last year's application, and I have only tweaked my suggestions from last year.

Although Ross' questions may appear superficial or generic, don't be fooled. Ross does not want generic answers. Your answers need to connect to Ross' multi-disciplinary action projects and commitment to action-based learning. You need to show the admissions readers why you belong at Ross, not at Top B-School.

The remainder of my tips are in red below. Since the questions haven't changed, neither have my tips. Or at least, not by much.

Required Questions:

You must answer the following four questions:

Long Answers: (500 word max)

1) Briefly describe your short-term and long-term career goals. Why is an MBA the best choice at this point in your career? What and/or who influenced your decision to apply to Ross?

2) Describe your most significant professional accomplishment. Elaborate on the leadership skills you displayed, the actions you took and the impact you had on your organization.

Clearly your most significant professional accomplishment should reveal leadership and show how you have had impact on your company. What challenges did you face as a leader? How did you handle them? If you can, quantify the impact of your accomplishment.

Short Answers: (300 word max)

3)  If you were not pursuing the career goals you described in Question 1, what profession would you pursue instead? (for example, teacher, musician, athlete, architect, etc.) How will this alternate interest contribute to your effectiveness in solving multi-disciplinary problems?

Maybe you are someone who struggled with your career choices. You had a close second before you chose your current professional goal. Then you should have a relatively easy time answering this question.

If you always seemed pretty directed and haven't wavered since you decided against being a firefighter in first grade, then you may have a little more difficulty with this question. In the latter case, use the question to reveal another side of you. Perhaps you would be a professional basketball player and your team skills would be relevant at Ross. Or you would work as a serial entrepreneur and bring your entrepreneurial pizzazz to Ross.

4. Describe your experience during a challenging time in your life. Explain how you grew personally, either despite this challenge or because of it.

Challenge comes in so many shapes and sizes that it is very difficult to give general advice on this one. You have to be on the other side of the challenge to know how you grew as a result. You may have conquered the challenge. You may not have entirely overcome it, but you will be changed and usually strengthened by having faced it. Describe the challenge, how you handled it, and how you grew as a result.

For most applicants, this will be a non-professional essay. 

Optional Question:

Is there anything else you think the  Admissions Committee should know about you to evaluate your candidacy?

Do not use this essay like a storage room, my son's bedroom closet, or even a large salad: a place to put everything.  Focus on one facet of your life or an experience that is important to you,  reveals the human being you are, and isn't described in other parts of the application. Write about it here.

You can of course also use this essay to "explain" a weakness, but I hate to end your application on that note if it can be avoided. So weigh your options. If you have something to explain, do so. If you can tuck the explanation somewhere else in the application, more power to you. If the  best place for the explanation is this last essay, so be it.

If you would like help with your Michigan Ross MBA application, please consider Accepted.com's MBA essay editing and admissions consulting or a Michigan Ross Comprehensive Package, a package of editing and consulting specific to Ross.

MICHIGAN ROSS 2010 MBA ESSAY DEADLINES

We encourage you to apply in the first two rounds since these are the only rounds in which applicants are considered for scholarships. In addition, only students admitted from the first two rounds will be able to attend Go Blue Rendezvous, our admitted student weekend in April. We also recommend international students apply in Round 1 or Round 2 because of visa requirements and to ensure consideration for scholarships. Deadlines follow: