Waitlist Quandry: HKS-HBS Joint Program

[davestanley83]

Hi Awesome Admissions Consultants,

I hope this message finds you well.

I'm writing with two questions on which I would love your advice. I applied this year to only three schools - Stanford GSB, Harvard Business School, and the Kennedy School MPP Program - as these were the three that most inspired me, and for which I knew I would strongly consider foregoing some exciting work opportunities.

Thus far, here are the results:

Stanford GSB - Declined Admission, No Interview
Havard Kennedy School - Accepted, Supposed To Accept/Decline by May 1st
Harvard Business School - Waitlisted (Had Interview on March 3rd), Will Get Another Update From HBS on Waitlist Status on May 3rd

I applied to the joint HKS-HBS dual degree program (MPP/MBA), and thus my questions pertain to strategy on how to tackle this next phase in the process.

1) Easier Question: Kennedy expects me reply to them about accepting/declining by May 1st, but I'm not going to hear an update from HBS until May 3rd. I'm assuming I should go ahead and ask the Kennedy School to push back my "deposit date" as far as they are willing to do so.

Does that sound right to you?

The HBS waitlist lasts until the end of the July, and though I imagine HKS won't push back until then, I could see them giving me another 2-4 weeks to get HBS sorted out.

2) Tougher Question: Is there any reason to believe that my chances of getting off the wait list (and into HBS) are greater if I accept the HKS offer? Obviously, I won't make my decision simply based on that (there are many other factors to consider), but here is my rationale...

If I accept HKS, I am basically communicating to HBS that I will participate in the joint degree program if admitted to HBS. In that case, I would no longer be part of the Class of 2012 at HBS, but the Class of 2013 (since joint students do their first year at HKS, second year at HBS, and third year at both).

Is there any compelling reason to believe that HBS would be more likely to admit me off the wait list if they knew (based on my accepting the HKS offer) that they would then be accepting a student for the Class of 2013, not the Class of 2012?

Any advice on this would be greatly appreciated. As I wait to hear back from HBS on the wait list front, I will be thinking seriously about the merits of just doing the MPP at Kennedy. That said, I'm curious to know how waitlisted candidates who apply to joint degree programs may be facing a slightly different logic than those who have just applied to MBA programs.

Thank you!

Sincerely,

David Stanley

E-Mail: davestanley83@gmail.com

[mbamission]

Hello David,

Congratulations on your admission to the Kennedy School! I would do exactly what you’re thinking of and ask the school to give you until May 3rd to respond since you’re waiting to hear back from HBS since you are on the waitlist. Hopefully they will give you two additional days.

I agree with you that the Kennedy School will probably not give you until July to respond to them, so you will have to give them an answer in early May. I do not think that your acceptance to the Kennedy School will necessarily help your chances of getting off the HBS waitlist.

However, if you do start at the Kennedy School and get off of the waitlist for HBS in June then I’m fairly confident that you can still participate in the joint degree program. I actually did a joint degree between KSG and HBS and started my first year at KSG and then went to HBS, so I’m pretty sure that you’d still be able to attend both schools if you are accepted off of the HBS waitlist in the summer. When you are making your decision about the Kennedy School, I would assume that you will not get off of the waitlist for HBS and decide whether you want to attend the Kennedy School as your only graduate program. Best of luck to you in getting off of the HBS waitlist!

Sincerely,

Akiba Smith-Francis

MBA Mission
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[davestanley83]

Hi Akiba,

Thanks for such a quick response.

This makes total sense. And in fact, after writing this post, it occurred to me that HBS must surely also have a separate logic for shaping the Class of 2013 - which factors in 2+2 candidates, a small number of deferrals, joint degree students, etc. Think patience is key here, as I used to tell all of my anxious, waitlisted candidates when I used to conduct admissions at Teach For America. There's certainly no downside to waiting it out, and I'll consider it icing on the cake if HBS is yet another option for me to consider for next year.

Thanks again for helpful thoughts!

Best,

David

[mbamission]

Hi David,

I had another thought for you. If you are not accepted to HBS this year, you will still be able to apply next year as a KSG student and if you are admitted, you will still be able to do the joint degree program in three years. Best of luck to you!

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

[davestanley83]

Hi Akiba,

So interesting - I hadn't heard that before, nor had I seen it anywhere on the FAQ list for either school.

Did you know anyone who did that during your time at HKS/HBS?

I'm assuming the best way to confirm that this is possible is by calling/e-mailing HKS admissions, but let me know if you have any further advice on how to get clarity on this.

Also, I assume if I'm free to apply to HBS again after a year at HKS (for a joint degree), I'd also be free to apply to other business schools that have joint degree options with HKS, which include...

Amos Tuck School at Dartmouth College
Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University
MIT Sloan School of Management
Stanford Business School
Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania

Does that sound right to you?

Many thanks again for your advice - it's been exceptionally helpful.

Best,

David

[mbamission]

Hi David,

I don’t personally know of anyone who was rejected from HBS, started at KSG and then successfully applied to HBS. But that doesn’t mean it’s not possible. People rarely talk about the fact that they were rejected once and then accepted as a reapplicant. But reapplicants definitely get accepted. I have worked with people who were accepted as reapplicants.

I do know people who have done joint degree programs with KSG and a business school other than HBS, so you’re right, that should be another possibility for you. I’d double check to make sure that the schools you’re interested in have a joint program, otherwise you might end up having to do two complete degrees, graduating in 4 years instead of three. 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