We’ve updated and revised the SnarkStrategies Guide for Stanford with the 2013 questions… which are really the 2012 questions. Unlike many schools, Stanford doesn’t radically overhaul their application every year. They’re looking for similar qualities, year in and year out, and they don’t need to revamp their essays each year in order to find the [...]
Learn More...EssaySnark’s 2013 Bschool Essay Question Predictions
May 10, 2013 by 3 Comments
It’s May. Creeping up to the middle of the month. That means, bschools are gonna start releasing their new essay questions soon. Harvard is usually the first one out of the gate with questions. Then comes Columbia. Most other schools wait till June, and then it all happens in a flurry. A few slowpokes (Stern [...]
Learn More...($) “What are my chances at Stanford?”
May 1, 2013 by
We had a Brave Supplicant ask us about getting into Stanford. This was someone who went through the Comprehensive Profile Review, so we had something to work with – it is only through that process that we can determine whether someone should even be bothering saying the name “Stanford GSB.” This BSer gave us enough...
MBA Essay Questions: Stanford
☆ 2013 Stanford MBA Essay Questions are out! And they’re exactly the same as last year, with one teensy tiny change: Three essays: What matters most to you, and why? What do you want to do—REALLY—and why Stanford? Choose one: Tell us about a time in the last three years when you built or developed [...]
Learn More...“What about the Stanford Sloan Master’s?”
March 20, 2013 by Leave a Comment
We had a question posed recently: Essaysnark, I’m curious to hear about your thoughts on the Stanford Sloan’s MSc in Management program. Based on what I’ve read, its students learn the same subjects from the same professors as the Stanford FT MBA’s students. Plus it requires a GMAT score. Seems to be pretty selective and [...]
Learn More...Likes attract.
February 25, 2013 by 4 Comments
Or maybe a better way to phrase it: There are pairs of business schools that are clearly correlated, in terms of their attractiveness to the Brave Supplicants of the world. Continuing our recent data derby, let’s isolate a few of the obvious with a series of charts today. We’ll start with the basics: Nothing surprising [...]
Learn More...($) Myths around bschool and age.
December 13, 2012 by
We almost don’t need to write this post – we could just point you to this post from the Stanford blog archive: Just because applicants with less work experience are welcome doesn’t mean applicants with more experience are unwelcome. While that was published quite some time ago — 2007, to be exact — everything in...
Essay advice from the one who matters most
September 20, 2012 by Leave a Comment
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Learn More...Planning your multi-school strategy Part 3
August 6, 2012 by
Recently we talked about how to chunk out your approach and which schools you should write essays for first. Today let’s look at planning your strategy across the entire admissions season. We said the other day that you should not need to apply to more than 3 schools, and that applying to more than 5...
The real reason you were rejected.
July 19, 2012 by
This is an excerpt from the SnarkStrategies Guide to Reapplying to Bschool. If your application to bschool was rejected, one of these things is true: 1. You aimed too high. If you only applied to the best of the best, then maybe you were being unrealistic? To be totally blunt and possibly unfair: Maybe you [...]
Learn More...“I got into two great schools. Should I try again for Stanford?”
May 21, 2012 by
We answered a question on BTG the other day and thought it would be worth repeating here. The Brave Supplicant is in the admirable position of holding acceptances to two Really Good Schools – Columbia and LBS. Yet this BSer really wants to go to Stanford. We can appreciate that! Stanford is an amazing place....
Pissing off the BSers
May 15, 2012 by
Those of you who’ve been coming around these parts for awhile know we tell it like it is. We try to shoot straight. Bschool admissions is competitive. What’s the point in shining you on and telling you that you have a good shot of making it into Harvard if you really don’t? The main reason [...]
Learn More...The real reason you were rejected (simplified).
April 24, 2012 by
Let’s break it down further. If you weren’t accepted to bschool this past season, there are only two possibilities: Either: a) your profile isn’t strong enough, or b) your presentation of your profile wasn’t strong enough To grossly oversimplify, either your GMAT (or GPA) isn’t good enough, or your essays weren’t. Or both. That’s it. [...]
Learn More...The changes to Kellogg’s programs Part 3
April 20, 2012 by
>Completing our diatribe about Kellogg’s shift from the traditional two-year MBA to an increased focus on the 1Y, what this move says to us about them is essentially one of two things: Either Kellogg is acknowledging that they’re not quite at the level of a Harvard or a Stanford, programs which turn away gobs of [...]
Learn More...If you didn’t make it in
April 2, 2012 by
Round 2 is wrapping up. And this is not what you expected. Columbia came back fast with the first slap across the face. Way back in February, HBS passed you up for an interview invite. Eventually, Wharton did too. Stanford was totally silent, and then you finally got confirmation this week of what you’d started [...]
Learn More...Academic recommendations
March 14, 2012 by
Jumping back from all the post-admit decision-making debates to the other end of the process now…. You already know that you need to get letters of recommendation for your application to business school. Most schools require two; some want three. (You should not submit more than they ask for, by the way.) You also know,...
“School X, or School Y with $$$?” (Part who knows)
March 9, 2012 by
This question often comes up in these conversations: “What if I just call up School X and ask them if they can match the funds that School Y is offering?” Typically we think this is getting a little greedy. But you can do it if you like. However, it’s rare that School X, being a...
“School X, or School Y with $$$??” (Part 1)
March 1, 2012 by
We’ve had this post half-written since December and never managed to finish it off, but we’re getting so many requests for it that we decided to put the margaritas away (what else do you think EssaySnark is doing now that deadlines are done?) and publish the thing. A couple BSers asked about this scenario recently....
More on plagiarism.
February 15, 2012 by
If you didn’t see our post yesterday, you should go back and catch up. We are talking about plagiarism. And how admissions teams now have a tool to detect it. Yesterday we mentioned that a couple BSers who apparently don’t follow us on Twitter had gotten all dramatic about this issue in posting comments on [...]
Learn More...Plagiarism.
February 14, 2012 by
We know that none of you would ever cheat. You’d never lie on your application to graduate school. You’d never write your own letter of recommendation. You’d never copy an essay that you found on a website. So this post is definitely not for any of you. We just figured we’d point to some recent [...]
Learn More...Timing of interview invites
February 6, 2012 by
To follow on our rant from Friday: IN MOST CASES, THE TIMING OF WHEN YOU GET INVITED TO INTERVIEW DOES NOT MATTER. The only case where there is a tiny bit of info to be gleaned from the timing of your interview invite is at Columbia — but even then, there’s only a little you [...]
Learn More...Shortened admissions cycles and what you can do about them
February 3, 2012 by
We know you’re impatient. It seems like ages ago since you submitted those Round 2 apps. Shakespeare said: “Expectation is the root of all heartache.” Some schools are issuing interview invites… But not fast enough! you think. You’re getting antsy. You start wondering, Shouldn’t I hear back by now? Earth to Brave Supplicant: The only [...]
Learn More..."Should I try again?" (this time, something helpful)
January 17, 2012 by
>Yesterday, we laid out the situation: “I got into Vanilla School but I was rejected from Cherry School. Should I reapply to Cherry next year?” Here’s some hopefully helpful advice. Most top schools are open to reapplicants — but you need to figure out why Cherry School said no to you. Do you need to [...]
Learn More...Don’t be a dolt.
December 27, 2011 by
If there’s one thing that annoys this here EssaySnark, it’s the entitled.* (Here comes another “truth bomb” — thanks DanV.) If a bschool does not admit you, it is not their fault. It is YOUR fault. In our experience over many years of doing this bschool admissions gig, those who work hard — not just [...]
Learn More...What is “readiness” (part 3!) – or, 5 Reasons Why You’re a Schmuck
December 21, 2011 by
Funny thing. We wrote a blahg post nearly 1.5 yrs ago on “readiness” (Part 1) — but then never wrote the Part 2. And now we can’t quite recall what we had in mind for that second part. (EDIT: We did write the Part 2… dunno why we thought we hadn’t… so apparently this post [...]
Learn More...Different goals for each school is not a good idea
December 15, 2011 by
You know that you need to be specific with your career goals. And you know that you need to tailor your pitch to each bschool separately. Why not take that to the extreme and create a specific set of career goals for each bschool? Alas, Brave Supplicant, this is a very bad idea. If you [...]
Learn More...Advice from the adcom: Letters of Recommendation
December 7, 2011 by
>EssaySnark has previously laid out some parameters of how to pick your recommenders for your application to business school. That post is from November 2010, so it’s likely you’ve not seen it before. Go read it now. Today, we’ll let the admissions offices themselves offer advice on what those recommendations should say. This post is...
