Ask Jon Frank- P69-Q&A:WHY MBA? 7 OVERLOOKED REASONS TO GET AN MBA

JonFrank

Question:

Well, I’ve heard back from most of my R1 apps, and I got waitlisted at my dream schools. But, I also got accepted into my safety schools. So, what do I do?

Answer:

Oooo, I LOVE this question. Believe it or not, this is the first time we’ve gotten this question from someone who isn’t a client! Time to do a bit of strategy…

What  should you do? Well, if you ask me (and you are), you go to the best school you can get into! You’ve got some (presumably) good schools that want you to attend right now, so put down your deposit at the best safety school you got into.  CONGRATS!  YOU’RE DONE!

Now, you can try to do better.  Send a note to your dream school and tell them the whoooole story.  ”Gosh, I got into all these great programs, like A, B, and C.  But I gotta tell ya, I’d rather go to YOUR school.”

Now, tell ‘em all the COOL stuff that you’ve done since you applied the first time. “This isn’t just me again, this is the ‘NEW AND IMPROVED’ me. And this is why you should take me off the waitlist and offer me a spot…”

Now, keep in touch with them, until the bitter end… that’s right, peeps, all the way to September 1.   “Yep, you remember me!  I’m enrolled now at School C because it’s a great school, but say the word and I can STILL come to your school.  Just say the word, and I guarantee I will go.  Not too late for me, no sir.”

What’s the key here? Use your offer as leverage.  ”See?  I am good enough for ALL these other great schools.  All I need now is YOU to let me in, you can COUNT on me! Put me in, Coach!” Believe it or not, those acceptances to your safety schools are part of your appeal. It’s just like the market: demand increases desirability. Demand for you is going up, so maybe your dream schools will take a second look at you and say, “Hey, this dude’s more badass than we originally thought!”

And, worse comes to worst, you’re STILL in one of your safety schools, so you’re not standing out in the cold with no place to go in the fall.

–Jon Frank

G750

Hi Jon, did you know anything about the requirement of Toefl listening score for a top 10 or top 5 school? I heard rumors that most top schools require minimum 26 for listening and I only scored 25... wanna make sure whether I need to retake to jump the bar. Thanks for the advice!

JonFrank

Hi Jon, did you know anything about the requirement of Toefl listening score for a top 10 or top 5 school? I heard rumors that most top schools require minimum 26 for listening and I only scored 25... wanna make sure whether I need to retake to jump the bar. Thanks for the advice!

-- by 会员 G750 (2013/2/5 11:21:32)

Basically there is no "hard cutoff" score for the sections at all, and one point here and there is not likely to make a difference, so I would say that if your overall TOEFL score is good, then congratulations, you are done with the TOEFL!

JonFrank

Question:

I am really into the idea of going into a European MBA program, but I want to work in the U.S. after that. Does going to a Euro b-school hurt my chances of getting a job in the States?

Answer:

Aw yeah, another great question, and a VERY important one to folks looking into the European MBA programs. They worry that people in the U.S. won’t have heard of their Euro program or won’t have as much cred in the market, even though their school might be the highest-ranked program on the globe. So, let’s discuss.

In all likelihood, going to a Euro b-school won’t HURT your chances, but that’s not really the issue here. What it does bring up is the wisdom of the plan itself. Except for some specific cases, it doesn’t make all that much sense to do your schooling on one continent when you want to work on another, at least in the cause of Europe to the States. Looking at INSEAD, for example, only about 10% of their graduates go to the U.S. to work afterwards. So, as you can see, it’s TOTALLY possible, but I don’t know if it makes much sense (unless maybe you got into a much better school in Europe).

Now, this will also depends on your background. If you are American, it’s likely going to be waaaay easier to return home and find a job. If you are not, on the other hand (especially if you’re not European, either), finding an employer and then getting a visa, etc. is likely to make things more difficult for your short- and long-term plans, which will also weigh heavy on the minds of the adcom at your prospective European programs.

Plus, there are the advantages of being in/around the countries where you’re going to work while you’re in b-school. First, it’ll be WAY easier to find a usable internship opportunity if you don’t have to go globetrotting to get there. Send, and perhaps more importantly, you’ll be on the ground meeting people and building your professional network. If only 10% of your fellow students plan on going to the States to do business after graduation, how much useful networking can you do with them? Now, if you’re going to the U.S. to do INTERNATIONAL business and want to have contacts abroad, the networking thing could still work out for you.

So, the answer to the question really depends on your short- and long-term goals, but taking this particular path won’t necessarily hurt you.

–Jon Frank

JonFrank

Question:

The acceptance letters are coming in! I’ve got a question, though. When I’m looking at which b-school to attend, should I take the price of a program into account?

Answer:

This is what I like to call a “first-world” problem. Congrats on all of the offers, it’s a conundrum that PLENTY of your fellow applicants wish they were facing. Now, there’s a very simple and straightforward answer to your question, so let’s drop it on you.

Should price play a role in your choice? Absolutely not. Ignore costs. First of all, all schools preeetty much cost the same. Are some more expensive than others? Of course. But in the top 30 or so, their relative tuitions are preeeeeeety close to one another.  So what are we arguing about? $5K? Nah, forget all that.

Now, the question behind the question – are you getting offered money to go to any of these programs? What if you get a scholarship? That’s “real money,” right? So, you know what you do? IGNORE IT. You’re getting a scholarship because you’re likely overqualified for that particular program. Like the 12th ranked school is offering you money, but you got accepted without scholarship to the 2nd ranked school. Do you want to be a first-tier student at a second-tier program? Nah, dude.

So when it comes to the scholarships helping to make your choices, ignore them. You’ll make back that $10K or whatever in a year (or six months) if you go to a great school. “But Jon, they offered me a free ride!” So what?! That’s just $60K. You’ll make it back in TWO years if you go to a great school, not a bad one.

Picking up a pattern here? Ignore money, go to the best school you can get into.

By the way, good chance you get MORE money than you think (even if they’re slow to offer it). Just because it didn’t come in your offer, you may get money later. Just sit tight and go to the best school you can get into, man. I got $5K every semester, but didn’t find out until later, from HBS.

Long term, an extra $20K here or there won’t make a difference. You’ll make 10x that much, even 100x that much, if you go to a GREAT school instead of a good one.

–Jon Frank

G750

Jon, thanks for the sharing. I like your idea of "go to the best school you can get into". Compared to your opinion of ignoring the money side of the application, how do you think of the time cost? For example, if one gets in a top 20 school but s/he has a shot for a top 10 school if reapply in the next year, how do you view the one-year time cost versus the difference in the long-term return between a top 10 and a top 20 school? Thanks!

wangcaroline

Hi, Jon,

How do you think about U of Southern California? what repects this school is good at and bad at in your opintion honestly? Thanks.

JonFrank

Jon, thanks for the sharing. I like your idea of "go to the best school you can get into". Compared to your opinion of ignoring the money side of the application, how do you think of the time cost? For example, if one gets in a top 20 school but s/he has a shot for a top 10 school if reapply in the next year, how do you view the one-year time cost versus the difference in the long-term return between a top 10 and a top 20 school? Thanks!

-- by 会员 G750 (2013/2/28 11:32:02)

A good question. In the long run, cost is pretty irrelevant if you are gonna go to a much better school. For example if you have the choice between HBS and a second tier school, you go to HBS even if you can go to the second tier school for free. Why? Because the investment just pays off better - you get much higher salaries, higher signing bonuses, higher bonuses, better contacts etc. Money only matters when it between two schools of the same level. So if Haas gives you a full tuition scholarship, but Columbia doesn't it might be better to go to Haas (up to you really). As for the difference between a one year program and a two - you just have to do the calculation to figure out what is worth it for you. Figure out costs, opportunity costs, etc. and you will see if it is worth it for you specifically.
---Jon Frank

JonFrank

Hi, Jon,

How do you think about U of Southern California? what repects this school is good at and bad at in your opintion honestly? Thanks.

-- by 会员 wangcaroline (2013/2/28 16:17:43)

Very good program indeed! But everything depends on your needs, goals and options, so I can't really evaluate how good it is for YOU without speaking to you first Also has beautiful weather!


Jon Frank

JonFrank

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: when you’re applying to business school, you MUST write your application essays yourself. As in, develop your own ideas and put ‘em on paper. Do NOT hire someone to write them for you. Do NOT lift ‘em off some shady site on the interwebs. You won’t get the results you’re hoping for. Especially if what you’re hoping for is an admit to b-school.

Need some convincing? Try this one for size:

A recent article in Bloomberg Businessweek reported that 63 MBA applicants at Penn State and UCLA were rejected this past application round due to plagiarized essays. 63! And 50 cases of plagiarism are also suspected at Northeastern. Even more, those numbers are expected to increase in the next round.

The adcoms are not dummies, folks, and they’re getting savvier every day. So… don’t be a dummy?

Now, you may think to yourself, “But I’m a terrible writer,” or “My English isn’t good enough.” Neither of those are reasons to steal someone else’s stuff. At the end of the day, the most important thing for the adcom is that you’re genuine, and that you demonstrate your abilities, your successes, how you think, and your drive to accomplish your future goals. None of that will come through if you don’t write your essay yourself. You can only do that with your own, personal, specific voice.

Getting into b-school isn’t easy, but it’s not supposed to be. So, don’t try and take the easy way out. Because that’s only going to get you kicked out of the running, like those 63+ other boneheads.

By the way, need some help writing those essays? Start here: The Admissionado MBA Essay Writing Guide.

Jon Frank
HBS 2005