EssaySnark

  • about
  • contact
  • help
  • sign up
  • login
CLICK FOR MORE!
  • Essay Questions
    • Harvard
    • Stanford
    • Wharton
    • Chicago Booth
    • Kellogg
    • MIT Sloan
    • Tuck
    • NYU Stern
    • Columbia
    • Yale SOM
    • Berkeley Haas
    • UVA Darden
    • Duke Fuqua
    • Michigan Ross
    • UCLA Anderson
    • Cornell
  • Strategy Guides
    • MBA Interviewing Guide
    • Getting Off the Waitlist
    • Applying in Round 3 mini-guide
    • Applying to European Business Schools
    • School-Specific MBA Application Guides
      • Columbia 2020 MBA Strategy Guide
      • Harvard 2020 MBA Strategy Guide
      • Kellogg 2020 MBA Strategy Guide
      • MIT Sloan 2020 MBA Strategy Guide
      • Chicago Booth 2020 MBA Strategy Guide
      • *MORE SCHOOL-SPECIFIC GUIDES HERE*
  • MBA Consulting
    • Free essay reviews
    • What stage are you in?
    • Military MBA
    • BIPOC Program
    • Testimonials & Reviews
    • Guest Posts
  • My SnarkCenter
    • My Strategy Guides
    • My Favorite Posts
    • Discounts & Offers

Schools with standardized Letter of Recommendation questions

August 4, 2014 by EssaySnark

Letters of Recommendation is a category of MBA apps that is seeing a lot of shifting around. This post was first published in 2014. THINGS HAVE CHANGED and they continually change on this topic. Please check out our latest posts on recommendations here.

Oh, adcoms, adcoms. They try hard, but sometimes their best efforts just miss the mark. Case in point: This year’s new development with Letters of Recommendation. Here’s the deal: Now that the schools have reduced the number of essays that they require, it’s made it easier for Brave Supplicants to apply to more schools. Fewer…


While much of the blahg is available completely for free, the content here is reserved for members with full blahg access only ($9.95/month for six months, cancel anytime). Please login to view this content or purchase a membership.

Filed Under: recommendations

« Previous: Weekly Blahg Comment Contest Winners!
Next: ($) Standardized LOR questions and your MBA application strategy »

So who the heck is EssaySnark, anyway?!

We're the snarky experts in MBA admissions!

Sometimes amused and often appalled by what candidates write in their MBA applications to top bschools, EssaySnark created this little blahg to share common mistakes. Learn from them and avoid making admissions directors laugh (or want to hurl) when they read your essays. If you are hoping to have your essay reviewed anonymously on the blahg for free, submit it for consideration.

Want EssaySnark's personal assistance with your MBA applications? Start with our menu of consulting services and please read the Help FAQ to learn how we operate. Still have questions after doing all that? Email Team EssaySnark at gethelpnow at essaysnark dot com.

Good luck on your apps, Brave Supplicant!

Here's what others have said about this:

  1. FPHAWK says

    August 4, 2014 at 1:59 pm

    Does Essaysnark think that there is more collaboration going on at these schools? Do they collaborate on admit/deny decisions to protect their yield?

    • essaysnark says

      August 4, 2014 at 2:50 pm

      Yes the adcoms talk with each other but not about admit decisions, as far as we know (might even be illegal to do that). We do know that certain applicants have been discussed after the fact, over cocktails at happy hour! But yield protection is not the reason why.

  2. vasilescu says

    August 4, 2014 at 4:16 pm

    What if a reccomender writes a bit more than the 300 words limit?

    I mean, for us as applicants, word limits are pretty damn important, but what if a reccomender wants to cover a bit more (maybe because he/she too thinks that 300 words might be pretty darn few to cover what he wants to say and he/she doesn’t have time to do multiple revisions, compressions etc, as we do?)

    How would a school see an answer of .. 500 words to a 300 words question?…

    • essaysnark says

      August 4, 2014 at 4:27 pm

      Shouldn’t be a problem except that some schools’ recommender systems prevent too much text from being entered so we can’t say that it will always be fine due to those technical limits that may crop up. The adcoms are fine with recommenders going overlimit though, they should just be reasonable.

      • vasilescu says

        August 4, 2014 at 4:34 pm

        Yeah, I forgat that the systems might have an automated limit to word input.. makes sense..

        Thank you!

        • FPHAWK says

          August 4, 2014 at 4:48 pm

          Pretty sure HBS allowed for a .docx or .pdf to be uploaded this year. No problem if recommender goes over.

          • essaysnark says

            August 4, 2014 at 6:18 pm

            Yes, most schools allow uploads like that, but there’s always the outlier that causes problems.

  3. kaplanmj says

    August 4, 2014 at 7:59 pm

    I have seen it mentioned on another admissions consultants website that Darden and Yale also went to these standardized questions, but I can’t confirm that looking through Yale’s application or on their website.

    • essaysnark says

      August 4, 2014 at 9:29 pm

      That would be a shame in both cases.

Sign up for the 'Snark via email

Enter your address to get weekday blahg posts by email.

UPCOMING MBA APP DEADLINES

  • INSEAD Jan '22 Intake Rd 2
    in 0 weeks, 3 days, 17 hours
  • (expected) HBS Class of 2024 app requirements released
    in 2 weeks, 2 days, 18 hours
  • Columbia Class of 2023 final deadline - EXTENDED!!!!
    in 1 month, 1 week, 4 days, 22 hours
  • INSEAD Jan '22 Intake Rd 3
    in 1 month, 4 weeks, 0 days, 17 hours
  • (expected) Columbia J-Term/ED app to open
    in 1 month, 4 weeks, 0 days, 18 hours
   
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!
   
    The 2020-2021 NYU Stern MBA Application Guide that covers the main essay, the EQ Endorsement and Pick Six!
SnarkStrategies Guide for NYU - discusses your requirements for the Class of 2023 essays!
   
    The 2020-2021 Columbia MBA Application Guide
SnarkStrategies Guide for Columbia Business School for 2020-2021 applications
   
    The 2020 Harvard MBA Application Guide - completely overhauled and updated for the coronavirus era!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Harvard Business School!
   
    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"!
SnarkStrategies Guide for 
UCLA
   
   

Brave Supplicants' latest reviews on The 'Snark


Apr 19, 2021
by 2020-21 r1 candidate on Waitlist Assist
Please get this if you have the resources!

I would recommend EssaySnark to every waitlisted candidate! I was waitlisted by one of HSW in R1 this... Read more

Feb 11, 2021
by hopeful on MBA Interview Prep: Custom Practice Questions
Helpful

Just wanted to say thank you for these questions! A lot of them were really tailored to my profile, ... Read more

Apr 10, 2020
by George on EssaySnark
Great Starting Point

I thought getting over the GRE/GMAT hurdle was fairly straightforward--disciplined study then test execution... Read more






Not sure where to begin with EssaySnark?
Our Snark Selector
will tell you!



What were we snarking about at this time in past years?

  • 2020: ($) Coronavirus and the MBA: Which MBA programs are more likely to (possibly) resume oncampus instruction?
  • 2019: The secret to how to get into HBS
  • 2018: ($) International Re-applicants to U.S. schools who still haven't made it in
  • 2018: ($) Deciding between the U.S. and a good school at home
  • 2017: Success Story! Beyond bschool to the next big thing!
  • 2017: International student headed to the US for school? DO NOT BREAK THE LAW.
  • 2016: ($) If you thought you'd go to law school and now...
  • 2016: The other likely driver of increased MBA app volumes
  • 2015: To the adcoms: Nobody wants a deadline on a Thurs or Fri.
  • 2013: Success Story! From an oversubscribed pool, a no-name school and below average GPA!
My Tweets

See the Top U.S. Business Schools on a Map!


EssaySnark is currently available! We're accepting new clients! Standard turnarounds apply. If you're in a hurry, Speedy Review is available!

EssaySnark® is a registered trademark. All content copyright © 2010–2021 Snarkolicious Press · Privacy Policy

Where should you start with EssaySnark?

Which EssaySnark service is right for you? Answer a few questions to find out!

This field must be set to Everyone - then in the Settings -> HTML -> After Fields screen there's JavaScript to hide it.
Sending