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Read up.

March 14, 2014 by EssaySnark Leave a Comment

If you’re thinking of applying to bschool – and especially if you’ve already been accepted for the fall and are waiting for the months to pass until the adventure actually begins – we hope you understand how much READING will be involved.

You’ll have cases to prepare and textbooks to study and plenty of business and world news to stay on top of. From Day One of classes, you will be behind in the amount of reading that you need to get through.

To that extent, this post is to encourage you to get into the habit of actively reading NOW.

If you don’t already have a Kindle or iPad or other ereader device, consider getting one. As far as we know, few schools are distributing cases and other class material electronically (yet), but even if they’re not, there will be plenty of stuff that you’ll be able to access on a portable device. This will be a godsend when you are in a mode of cramming in productivity to every extra moment; you’ll be early to a meeting and hanging around waiting for someone at a coffee shop, and bam! you can pull out your ereader and make the most of the 5 minutes you found suddenly free. Set up your favorite RSS app and get the news sent to you, and get in the habit of staying current.

You should be reading leading news from a reputable source – we like The New York Times and BBC; there are others. Everyone in finance reads the Wall St. Journal. Seek out sources that you trust. You can get by for now with merely watching The Jon Stewart Show but that’s a slim diet indeed; actually READING the news is what we’re recommending here. (Hint: This will serve you well in interviews, too; some schools are known to ask about current events, and the financial industry recruiters definitely will want to see that you keep up with what’s going on in their world.)

In addition, read up on your target industry, and get into the “mode” of business. Pretty much everyone reads the Berkshire annual letter when it comes out, which it just recently did. Have you?

Tip: If, when reading Buffett’s report, you find yourself squirming due to unfamiliarity with the terms he’s using, or you skim over much of it – or you outright give up after a couple pages… be warned. You will face this and worse in the bschool classroom. His writing is reasonably jargon-free and he uses a conversational tone (he’s even funny in spots) but it’s still a technical document describing the performance of his companies. You must get comfortable with this stuff if you are going to have even half a chance of surviving at bschool. We strongly recommend that you study that document, researching terms that are unknown, working with the material until you’re sure you understand it. This will serve you better than probably any pre-MBA advice we can offer.

Moving on.

Many people say they want to get a job at Google after they complete their MBA. If you’re one of those, then we’re assuming you read this?

Actually, everyone should read that. The title is “How to Get a Job at Google”. It’s made the rounds recently and many recruiters have been talking about it. The main premise is that GPA and test scores aren’t the key elements that Google is focusing on in hiring anymore – they matter, but Google recognizes that they don’t tell the whole story and they’re not predictive of productivity nor success in the workplace. Instead, Google is focusing more on humility, and “emergent leadership” – do you have that?

If you want an MBA, that means you want to change your life. It also means you’re in for some hard work in school – which is where a big part of that change is going to come from. Why not get started now?

We’ll leave you with a quote from one of our all-time favorite authors:

“The more you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”
-Dr. Seuss

Filed Under: for further reading Tagged With: finance, recruiting

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From a BSer January 2020:
"love the guide books!"


CLASS OF 2023 MBA APPLICATION STRATEGY GUIDES

     
    The 2020 Berkeley-Haas MBA Application Guide - updated for the Class of 2023 application!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Berkeley Haas - refreshed and updated, with brainstorming exercises and structured maps to help you focus your stories!
   
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SnarkStrategies Guide for NYU - discusses your requirements for the Class of 2023 essays!
   
    The 2020-2021 Columbia MBA Application Guide
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    The 2020 Harvard MBA Application Guide - completely overhauled and updated for the coronavirus era!
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    The 2020-2021 Duke Essay Guide - covers the 25 Random Things essay and all the rest too!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Duke Fuqua - up to date for the current season!
   
    The 2020-2021 MIT Essay Guide covers the org chart, the contacts for two references, and additional tips for the cover letter and 'introduce yourself' video -- and everything else you need to know!
SnarkStrategies Guide for MIT Sloan MBA - totally revised for the Class of 2023!
   
    The 2020-2021 Tuck Essay Guide has been refreshed with latest insights and advice for your essays about "investing generously" and "why Tuck"!
SnarkStrategies Guide for the Dartmouth Tuck MBA - completely overhauled for 2020, to help you demonstrate how you are nice, aware, etc stuff!
   
    The Yale SOM MBA Application Guide for Class of 2023 candidates!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Yale SOM - updated for 2020-2021
   
    The 2020-2021 Chicago Booth MBA Application Guide - ready to go to support your Class of 2023 essay strategy!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Chicago Booth for this year's MBA app!
   
    The 2020 Wharton MBA Application Guide - even more advice on how to get to a win with those essays!
SnarkStrategies Guide for The Wharton School - with new tips for 2020!
   
    The 2020 Kellogg Essay Guide - with a full methodology to identify your 'lasting impact' and your 'values' -- plus tips on 2020 world events and applicability to your essays!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Kellogg MBA - updated and revised for the new realities of 2020!    
      The 2020 Stanford MBA Application Guide - for "what matters most" in your MBA application!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Stanford GSB for the Class of 2023
   
    The 2020-2021 UCLA Anderson MBA Application Guide - updated for Class of 2023 on "impact"!
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What were we snarking about at this time in past years?

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  • 2020: ($) "Will applying in Round 3 weaken my application next season?"
  • 2017: Success Story! Research and the right school targets bring results!
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