Services MBA Medical Law Grad College Resume Bookstore Blog Home Page Contact Us Shopping Cart Services MBA Medical Law Grad College Resume Bookstore Blog Shopping Cart Home Page Contact Us University of Virginia Darden School of Business Zone
home   -   contact usFree Newsletter
Services and Prices
Bookstore
MBA
    -MBA Services
    -MBA Services FAQ
    -MBA Bookstore
    -MBA Admissions
    -B-School Zones
    -MBA Interview Feedback
    -Sample Essays
    -Chat Transcripts
    -Links of Interest
    -MBA/EMBA/PT Forums
    -MBA Podcast
Med School
Law School
Grad School
College
Resume Advice
About Us
Newsletter
Chat
Press Room
Affiliates



MBA BlastOff: 45 Terrific Tips to Launch Your MBA Application to Acceptance.

The Techie`s Guide to MBA Admissions


MBA I.V.: Mainline to Top MBA Programs MBA Interview Questions and Tips

The Nine Mistakes You Don`t Want to Make on an MBA Waitlist

Submit a Stellar Application

Best Practices for
MBA Admissions

The Finance Professional`s Guide to MBA Admissions Success

Create a Better Sequel: How to Reapply Right to Business School

Great Application Essays for Business School

UVA Darden

Darden Business School 2009 Application Packages

MBA Admissions Consulting
MBA Essay Editing
MBA Interview Services
MBA Wait List Letter

MBA Admissions: Brownie Points for Visits?

School visits. They are time-consulting and expensive. And they contribute to global warming. 

Furthermore, Dee Leopold in The Director's Blog at HBS' web site makes clear that HBS does not weigh a visit as a factor in an admissions decision.  The Wharton adcom blog made a similar statement a few years ago. 

Is personally visiting the campuses of your target schools a waste of time and effort? Absolutely not.

I am not disputing Harvard's or Wharton's statements that they don't award brownie points for visiting. However,  whether or not  your target programs award brownie points, a visit does mean you will have a better chance of being admitted -- not because of imaginary points, but because you will be a better informed applicant. You will know more about the school and its culture. You will know more about why it appeals to you, why its style matches yours, and how it supports your goals.

As Dee suggestions in her post, to profit the most from your trip, visit when class is in session. Then take a tour, meet with students, participate in the info session, and attend a class. In short, take advantage of whatever is offered.

What if you simply can't visit your target schools?  If you live far away, don't worry about it. You still need to demonstrate a deep understanding of the school's culture and program, but the school won't hold your lack of visit against you. Even schools (e.g. Tuck and Darden ) that really value a visit as a sign of serious interest understand that international applicants can't necessarily come.  Other schools explicitly ask what you have done to learn about their program, for example Haas queries "What steps have you taken to learn about the Berkeley MBA program?"

What steps should you take on the road to an MBA acceptance?

  • Scour the schools' web sites.
  • Attend the many receptions and events held by the schools.
  • Participate in MBA Tour events.
  • Talk to current students and/or recent alumni.
  • Read current student blogs to get a feel for campus life.
Here is a list of upcoming MBA Tour events in the US, but the Tour is international so check their website if you are outside the US.

September 2 : Chicago
September 4: Houston
September 6: New York
September 7: Washington, D.C.
September 9: Atlanta
September 11: Boston
September 13: San Francisco
September 14: Los Angeles

Finding the Right MBA Program for YOU

A new client asked me to help him with his MBA application essays to Stanford, Carnegie-Mellon, and MIT Sloan. Although he has several years' work experience, including in the financial services industry, his GMAT scores (he took it three times) and lack of demonstrated leadership simply will not make him competitive for these schools.

Like most of our clients, this gentleman is smart and ambitious. But like too many of our clients, he did not at first consider many other outstanding MBA programs where he has a far better chance of gaining acceptance. While Accepted.com editors have helped countless applicants gain acceptance to the most fabled names in the MBA pantheon (Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, etc.) even with less than average stats, we encourage our clients to look for the programs that are the best match for them. This isn’t just about scores and grades – it’s about matching an applicant with a school’s personality, academic strengths and flexibility, career placement opportunities, and other factors.  

For example, the client I'm talking about wanted strong a general management program with entrepreneurship, but until I mentioned them he hadn't considered Darden, Michigan, Duke, University of Texas, and University of North Carolina – each of them excellent general management programs. Additionally, he didn't want to move to a cold climate, making most of these schools well suited to his personal preferences as well.

If an MBA is your goal, look beyond the "Hollywood" names and give careful consideration to the other top-25 schools that really might be a good fit for your strengths and career aspirations, and where you’ll have a better chance of getting in. Fortunately, it’s never been easier to do your homework. Here are a few of the many wonderful information tools to help you learn about various schools and what each one has to offer.

  1. Don't focus on a school's overall ranking as much as on its category ranking. Your dream school may be in the top 25 overall, but in the top 5 in entrepreneurship, so if entrepreneurship is your goal, that school is worth investigating.
  2. Look at where the graduating MBAs end up in the workplace. Are many of them flowing to the field of your choice?
  3. If your formal business educational background is skimpy, choose a school with a more structured core curriculum. Already a CPA? Look for a more flexible curriculum.
  4. Check out what student bloggers are saying about the schools and their programs at the Hella - MBA Student Blog site. This site will give you information that’s about as current as you can get for your target schools.
  5. Check the web sites of the MBA programs you are interested in to see if they have their own newspaper or blog. For a list of MBA program forums/blogs, go to this ever-growing resource page on Accepted.com (the MBA blogs are about halfway down the page).

You are investing considerable time, effort, and money into your MBA education, so take the time to learn as much as you can about each school’s strengths,  curriculum, personality, environment, and even location. You may be surprised to discover there are more “dream schools” out there than you thought. 

By Judy Gruen, who would be delighted to help you find and get accepted to your dream school.


Additional Posts about UVA Darden

UVA Darden RSS Feed

Average 2007 GMAT: 688
Average 2007 Acceptance Rate: 29%
Average 2007 GPA: 3.3
Class Size: 318
2009 application deadlines: Oct. 28, 2008, Jan. 7, 2009, Mar. 4, 2009
University Of Virginia MBA Admissions

Darden MBA Application Tips


DateRatingCourse
02/20085.00Real-Estate
12/20074.00General Management
02/20074.00Finance
01/20073.71General Management
12/20064.20Marketing
All Entries

DateTitle
1/7/2004 International MBA Admissions Chat
9/16/2003 Darden MBA Admissions Chat
11/18/2002UVA Darden with Dawna Clarke
1/16/2002 Darden Chat


The following editors have had clients accepted to this school:
Linda Abraham
Paul Bodine
Cindy Tokumitsu
Jennifer Bloom
Sonia Michaels
Alison Condie Jaenicke
Cydney Foote
Tanis Kmetyk
Matt Rigney
Sachin Waikar





McAfee Secure sites help keep you safe from identity theft, credit card fraud, spyware, spam, viruses and online scams
News
INSEAD Chat
Guest: Cassandra Pittman, INSEAD Assistant Director of Marketing for INSEAD’s North American Office
Date: September 11, 2008
Time: 10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/ 5:00 PM GMT
Place: Chat Room
BW Application Tips Chat
Guest: Paul Bodine, Accepted.com Senior Editor
Date: Thursday, Sept. 11, 2008
Time: 9:00 AM PT/12:00 PM ET/ 4:00 PM GMT
Place: Business Week Chat Room
Wharton Chat
Guest: Jackie Zavitz, Sen. Dir. of Admissions
Wharton adcom. members
Date: September 15, 2008
Time: 10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/ 5:00 PM GMT
Place: Chat Room
Yale School of Management Chat
Guest: Bruce DelMonico, Dir. of Admissions
Date: September 25, 2008
Time: 10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/ 5:00 PM GMT
Place: Chat Room
Columbia Chat
Guest:Linda Meehan, Dir. of Admissions
Other CBS adcom members
Date: October 2, 2008
Time: 10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/ 5:00 PM GMT
Place: Chat Room
Anderson Admissions
Guest: Mae Shores, Asst. Dean & Dir.of Admissions & Fin. Aid
Date: October 6, 2008
Time: 10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/ 5:00 PM GMT
Place: Chat Room
MIT Magic
Guest: Jennifer Burke Barba, Asst. Dir. Of Admissions
Date: October 7, 2008
Time: 10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/ 5:00 PM GMT
Place: Chat Room
MBA Mojo Contest
  • Do you have it?
  • Find out & win great prizes!

  • Client Testimonial
    "I do owe a large measure of this success [accepted at Fuqua and Darden] to Cindy`s help and encouragement. "


     
     
     Receive our free newsletter