大家有没有开始准备明年MBA的第一轮申请啦？！（2）

Wed May 1, 2013 1:24 pm

Tip 4: Don’t let recommendations bea last-minute affair  

Many candidates who start the application process close to the deadlinesfind that they do not have a good choice of recommendation writers. Perhaps adirect supervisor will be upset to think you might be leaving your job, so youdon’t feel you can ask them for an MBA application recommendation. Perhaps youhave not performed excellently and so a direct supervisor would not recommendyou highly. Perhaps you are now in a new job and you don’t know your directsupervisor well. Perhaps you have lost touch with a prior supervisor who couldhave recommended you and given insights about your recent performance.  

There are manyother variations. But the take-away is that if you think early on about who canwrite excellent recommendations for you and take steps to ensure they will beready and willing to do so, you will be in much better shape when the MBAapplications are released.

Tip 5: If you want to get a jumpstart on the MBA admissions process, the earlier you begin visiting schools, the better. Hopefully you will have given thought to your long-term goals and have your updated resume, just in case you meet during a campus visit members of the admissions committee orproactive students and they take an interest in your candidacy.  

If you begin visiting business schools early on rather than just weeksbefore the deadlines, you can keep your schedule less packed as the admissionsdeadlines approach. This helps reduce the pressure you feel as you arepreparing your applications. Likewise, a school visit can potentially shiftgreatly your perceptions of where you might be most happy in a business school.The culture of a school and the feel of the student body can matter.  

During your visit, you will inevitably garner details that you can bringinto your MBA essays to give them greater depth and help persuade the committeeyou are convinced the school is ideal for you.

If you live/work far away from a target school and the time or expense of gettingto the school is formidable, most schools should understand if you do not visitin person. However, even if the target school is far away but you are making agreat salary, the business school might prefer that you take the time out of yourbusy schedule to visit. While it may not technically be held against you, inthat case it can serve as a plus for similar candidates who took the time.Visiting expresses deep interest.

But don’t become highly worried if you simply cannot visit because ofthe distance or cost. For those candidates who cannot go in person to visit various schools, begin yourprocess early of meeting with alumni members close to you or of schedulingvirtual visits with current students. As with on-campus visits, this caninfluence your perceptions and school choices and demonstrate your interest inthe schools. You will also gain valuable details to write about in your MBAadmissions essays. And if you visit with alumni or students early, it willdecrease the number of things on which you must focus as your deadlinesapproach.

Tip 6: Make sure your extracurricular activities make the cut.

The ideal type of activities is reallycandidate-dependent. It depends on your prior experiences, your passions, yourcareer interest… Your activities should be, in part, expressions of these. Mygeneral advice about what sorts of activities can most enhance a candidacywould vary based on a candidate’s overall record and also whether a candidateis two years or two months away from applying. Look at your record of pastinterests and future goals. Consider engaging in more activities that canaugment the record that is already there.

For instance, if you are a member of a Toastmasters Club and you haveenjoyed helping with projects over the past few years, seek to move into aleadership role. If you have been participating as a mentor with a job trainingnonprofit, think about trying to lead efforts to get more companies to sendtheir skilled professionals to participate as mentors. Be a proactive organizer or key participant invarious extracurricular activities to demonstrate you are showing great skillsthrough your extracurricular activities as well as through your professionalones.

Wed May 1, 2013 1:46 pm

Tip 7: Formulate and refine yourcareer goals

Many candidates stress about the long-term and short-term goals theyneed to write about in business school applications. It is true, the vastmajority of MBA applications ask you about your long-term and short-term careergoals. It is also true that many candidates either want to use their MBAeducation to change careers or to figure out what they really want to do for acareer. Regardless of whether you already have a well-defined career vision,you need to have a solid, compelling answer regarding your short-term andlong-term goals.  

If you are one of the lucky applicants who does have a strong vision,begin to articulate it in writing and develop your ideas early on in theadmissions process. This can help you enter the essay-writing phase of the MBAadmissions process in a much less anxious state.

For those of you who are less clear about your career, take time tothink about your passions and interests. But, also give thought to whatstrategically might be well-received by the committee.  

When writing aboutcareer goals, you should be able to show some relationship between the skillsyou have been developing and the skills you need in that career, even if thelong-term career represents a shift of industry.

Equally important,as you refine your ideas, think about what can allow you to be distinct as youpresent your long-term goal. Will the admissions committee see your careertrajectory as sensible and achievable? Will the admissions committee believeyou can make a meaningful impact through your career goals?

基本每个商学院都会问你的长期和短期的目标是什么。可以谈谈你已经有的一些技能，并且希望在商学院学习什么新的技能来帮助你达到长期目标。