Within twelve hours I heard the same question from three clients, so I suppose this question may be on the minds of more than three. The question that may be plaguing you too, is this: “Now that I’ve submitted my applications, what should I do?”
Well, you’re not done yet…
The following are a list of suggestions of what you can do until those interview invitations come pouring in.
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Continue to learn about each school by speaking with faculty, alumni and students.
The more information you have the better. Be conscious of their limited time, so be thoughtful with the questions you ask. In addition, you may wind up with an unsolicited endorsement of your candidacy.
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Conduct more research on your intended goal in anticipation of an MBA interview invitation.
If, for instance, your intended goal is consulting, read The McKinsey Way or BCG on Strategy. If you are an up and coming entrepreneur, Back of the Napkin or anything by Peter Drucker or Guy Kawasaki. If you are transitioning into marketing, check out Communities Dominate Brands or Marketing Strategy: A Decision-Focused Approach.
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Attend any events the school may be having (including virtual events).
Stay involved. Show your interest.
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Make up for any gaps you may have in your application.
Go through your resume and transcript to determine if you’re running low on quantitative skills, volunteer work, etc. It may not be too late to make some improvements. Plus, if you end up reapplying next year, you’ll be glad you started on this process early.
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Boost your work experience.
Create new opportunities to add revenue, decrease costs, increase efficiency, increase market share, increase shareholder value, increase safety, increase satisfaction (customer or employee) at work.
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Use your leadership skills with any opportunity you can imagine.
At work and in your personal life – there’s always room for growth in this area.
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If you haven’t been doing so yet, begin reading business press.
You need to understand the jargon, the acumen, and what drives business today.
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Now sit back and relax!
Schools receive the largest number of apps in the second round and if they use student readers, the students are on vacation until sometime in January leaving a big bottleneck in the review process. Learn to be patient – a must-have in this process.
Explore our MBA Admissions Consulting & Editing Services for more information on how we can help you GET ACCEPTED.
By Natalie Grinblatt Epstein, former admissions dean/director at three top business schools. Natalie has reviewed over 70,000 applications, interviewed over 2,500 candidates, and has trained nearly 700 admissions directors and alumni volunteers to select outstanding candidates for admission. Her clients gain admission to top programs including Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, MIT, Cornell, Columbia, Berkeley, and NYU. Natalie holds an MBA from Michigan Ross. Want Natalie to help you get Accepted? Click here to get in touch!
Related Resources:
• How to Ace Your Interviews, a free guide
• Everything You Need to Know About Preparing for Your MBA Interview
• The Morphing and Multiplying MBA Interview
