Round 3 Applications

[tomcanfieldjr]

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone could comment on the differences in application rounds? I know there is much debate between rounds 1 and 2, and that generally you want to avoid round 3. I also know that the deadlines for scholarships are during round 2, but that does not really concern me.

In my case, I'm slightly behind the 8 ball if you will. I just took the GMAT for the first time on Monday, scoring a 640. My goal is 700 or at least 680-690. With my profile, this would give me a good shot at the schools I'm looking at. Initially, I was aiming for round 2 which is coming up in January. Unfortunately, I'm not going to be able to retake the GMAT until early January. (I'm taking an accounting course right now that is occupying a fair amount of time, so I want to wait until it finishes before I get back into the GMAT preparation.) So now I'm looking at round 3 which is in March.

The question is, is it worth it to apply during round 3? With my profile, I am not going to be a slam dunk applicant, so I'm trying to maximize the potential of getting accepted. Would it be smarter to just wait for the following round 1? I was planning on attending business school in the fall of 2010, so it would really kill me to have to wait around until 2011, but if my chance for admission is greater, then I can wait.

Any thoughts?

[mbamission]

Hello Tom,

I do think that you would be in a much better position if you applied either in round 2 of this application season or round 1 of next year’s application season. Especially if you think that you won’t be a "slam dunk" candidate, I’d recommend trying to retake the GMAT in early January or wait until round 1 for next year. I would hate for you to apply in round 3 and get rejected. If that happens, you would be in a difficult position, as a reapplicant, in which you would have to show the AdComs how your candidacy has improved since the first time you applied, but not much time will have passed between spring 2010 and the fall of 2010 (round 1 deadlines). If you can manage to study for the GMAT while finishing the accounting class, I would recommend trying to do that so that you can apply in January since you don’t want to wait another year before going to business school.

Sincerely,
Akiba Smith-Francis

MBA Mission
646-485-8844
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Blog: www.mbamission.com/blog
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[tomcanfieldjr]

Thanks Akiba, I appreciate the response.

Assuming I shoot for round 2 this year, do you think I would have enough time to get my application together? Right now, I have about 5 schools that I want to apply to. I think I can handle getting all my essays done, but getting the recommendations may be tougher, considering A) I haven't approached my superiors about it yet, nor do they even know I'm considering business school, and B) they only have about a month and a half to get them done. How does this process work? Are the people who write the recommendations responsible for submitting them?

[mbamission]

Hello Tom,

It is going to be a big push for you to finish 5 applications for the round 2 deadlines. I would reach out to the people writing your recommendations ASAP. Before Thanksgiving definitely. Of course, explain your interest in business school and ask them whether they would be willing to write recommendations. Check how many recommendations you will need. Some schools require two, while others require three. Then I would provide them detailed instructions for how to complete the recommendations as well as due dates (maybe some fake deadlines a few days before the real deadlines just to be safe) as well as your professional accomplishments to help jog their memories. They might not remember the great project you worked on eight months ago or two years ago.

Another good resource are your most recent performance evaluations so that they can review your strengths and weaknesses. Once they work on one recommendation, they will be able to use many of the answers for the other schools’ recommendations. They won’t have to start from scratch, so that should help in terms of asking them to work on five applications. You also might spread the wealth a bit, asking more people than you need so that some people to work on only two or three applications, but of course you should start with the people who know you the best and can be strong advocates for you. Lastly, yes, the recommenders are responsible for submitting the recommendations. Good luck!

Sincerely,

Akiba Smith-Francis
MBA Mission
646-485-8844
Website: www.mbamission.com
Blog: www.mbamission.com/blog
MBA Mission Insider’s Guides: www.mbamission.com/store.php (12 individual school titles)
Free Consultation: www.mbamission.com/consult.php
Twitter: http://twitter.com/MBAMission