This post is old. We used to feel the advice we're discussing here was really off base - but in the new era of hypercompetitive MBA admissions, it might for some people make sense to pursue a strategy that has such an element. (Maybe.)
We’ve now had several Brave Supplicants repeating to us this bit of advice that is apparently floating out there somewhere on the BSerWebs: “Don’t apply to your favorite school in Round 1.” Or the variation of that is, “Don’t apply to the most competitive school in Round 1.” The rationale behind this is, you need…