I'm trying to keep my mind off the decisions. They will come at some point in the future. At this point, I can't do anything more for Haas. I've spoken to a ton of people there, including an admission director, all of which I felt went well. I sent 2 updates. I sent 2 more recommendations. I retook the GMAT and improved my score from 700 to 710. Most importantly, I went out to visit and interview. I'm done. It's out of my hands. That's the problem. Most of us bschool applicants are type-A, control freaks. So sitting tight and waiting for the mysterious decision to pop up is brutal. At least I have an acceptance so I'm going to a school I'm excited to attend. Now to just finalize the decision of where and begin planning for the move.
The waitlist decision at Michigan surprised me a bit. I'm still confused. I hadn't thought a whole lot about Duke and Michigan, even as I completed my application. Since then I've met more students and alums and both schools are more appealing. It might be because I still have a chance of admission. Let's face it, after receiving so many dings over the past 2 years it's nice to have positive news. That positive news does make evaluate each of the options to the fullest...well at this point, I only have one admit so I shouldn't worry about these things.
I'm thrilled by my current spot in the admissions process but I'm very eager for April 1st to roll around. By then I'll hear from Haas and Duke begin to move on with next steps. Hopefully I'll hear a final decision from each...we'll see.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Duke Interview
Prior to be waitlisted to a second school this year, I interviewed with Duke. At first I was rather indifferent to the whole scenario. With one acceptance and a waitlist at my top choice, I wasn't thrilled to prep for yet another interview. I went through the motions, reviewed my story, researched Duke a bit more and donned a suit again this application season.
The interview was much different than any I've had during the two year bschool application experience. It was with an alum in my city. She graduated a while ago but has kept in touch. We began by talking about her experience, where she is in her career, how she got there and where she hopes to go. From there the conversation just continued across a number of topics, from the culture at Duke to her other graduate pursuits to her recent interview to reunions and stories from Fuqua. Through it all there were very few questions about me. Although I had prepared for the why Duke, why MBA, leadership experiences, etc, none were really asked. I worked in some of my knowledge about the program and what I hope to accomplish after graduating but that's about it. The whole experience was longer than most interviews, though I'm still struggling to call it an interview.
Overall, it was a positive experience. It may sound a bit greedy but after applying to so many schools, I really want another acceptance. To a certain extent it would validate my efforts. It would prove I haven't shot too high for my MBA program. However, if I'm accepted to Haas, I assume all this will be insignificant.
The interview was much different than any I've had during the two year bschool application experience. It was with an alum in my city. She graduated a while ago but has kept in touch. We began by talking about her experience, where she is in her career, how she got there and where she hopes to go. From there the conversation just continued across a number of topics, from the culture at Duke to her other graduate pursuits to her recent interview to reunions and stories from Fuqua. Through it all there were very few questions about me. Although I had prepared for the why Duke, why MBA, leadership experiences, etc, none were really asked. I worked in some of my knowledge about the program and what I hope to accomplish after graduating but that's about it. The whole experience was longer than most interviews, though I'm still struggling to call it an interview.
Overall, it was a positive experience. It may sound a bit greedy but after applying to so many schools, I really want another acceptance. To a certain extent it would validate my efforts. It would prove I haven't shot too high for my MBA program. However, if I'm accepted to Haas, I assume all this will be insignificant.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Wait Listed AGAIN
Ross sent their decisions, although I never did receive an email from them. I didn't have an interview there, which honestly surprised me. It worked out well because I was traveling nearly every weekend in February but I was a bit surprised it was the only school I wasn't interviewed by this year. Needless to say, I was expecting the worst. By being waitlist my indifference to Michigan turned to a bit more interest. My reaction seemed to be, "huh, I wonder...that's wierd...what do I do now..." And I'm still in that position. Haas is still my top choice but who knows what will happen there. Since I was waitlisted at Haas, I do have a lot of the waitlist material ready to go so hitting the waitlist wouldn't really be an issue. The biggest issue of course is my desire to end this process and focus on ONE school.
So what would you do? Accept the waitlist spot at Michigan and just see what happens or reject them (which has a certain ring to it) and focus on Haas/UCLA? Hopefully a little distance, and some insightful comments from you out there, will help illuminate the right decision for me.
So what would you do? Accept the waitlist spot at Michigan and just see what happens or reject them (which has a certain ring to it) and focus on Haas/UCLA? Hopefully a little distance, and some insightful comments from you out there, will help illuminate the right decision for me.
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