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 Reapplicant Guide
    • Pitching Entrepreneurship as Your Post-MBA Career
    • Applying to European Business Schools
    • School-Specific MBA Application Guides
      • Harvard 2022 MBA Strategy Guide
      • Stanford 2022 MBA Strategy Guide
      • Wharton 2022 MBA Strategy Guide
      • Kellogg 2022 MBA Strategy Guide
      • Chicago Booth 2022 MBA Strategy Guide
      • Columbia 2022 MBA Strategy Guide
      • *MORE SCHOOL-SPECIFIC GUIDES HERE*
  • MBA Consulting
    • Free essay reviews
    • What stage are you in?
    • Military MBA
    • Testimonials & Reviews
  • My SnarkCenter
    • My Strategy Guides
    • My Favorite Posts

($) In the middle of applying to bschool, you get this fabulous new job opportunity…

February 12, 2018 by EssaySnark 2 Comments

After doing a Comprehensive Profile Review for a high-potential but early-career BSer in the Fall last season, they disappeared on us (which often happens – and which is totally fine) and then resurfaced in February after Round 2 interview invites started coming out, with this question:

Hi EssaySnark,

So I took a lot of your advice, bought the strategy guides and applied to Stern and Yale SOM R2, keeping the 5 others that I think would be good fits for R1 next year if either school doesn’t work out this round. I got an interview invite from Yale now, and I’m wondering whether you have any advice re: a career decision I’m being faced with. I know you’re not a career coach so feel free to tell me to shove off ? Anyway, right now, my boss and his boss are moving to a different organization and have given me the option to go along with them. I have a great relationship with these 2 people and they wrote my r2 recommendations. However, the work I’ll be doing is managing a team of email marketing experts, reducing my current direct reports from 6 to 2. On the other hand, my current org has offered me the chance to report directly to the CEO and lead a marketing initiative across 5 cities, with 5 direct reports. But, I will have to work on the relationship building recommendation thing between now and september. Which is the better for my MBA apps, do you think? (Btw, I’m more than happy to pay for advice, so let me know if we can maybe consult on this and I can pay or something?)

Thanks a ton!
R

So first of all: No, we’re not technically a “career coach” but an awful lot of what we do involves helping people evaluating their career goals (which is a huge part of your application process to lots of schools, right?). So we can offer at least a little sumthin sumthin on this topic.

Here’s what we said to this BSer:

Hey R. – CONGRATS ON THE YALE INVITE!! Super exciting!! It’s also exciting to hear about the career options you’ve got in front of you.

On the career options, regardless of whether you’re applying to bschool or not but ESPECIALLY since you’re applying to bschool (!!!), the best way to look at it is, which path do you feel will let you get closer to where you want to go through the MBA? Or another perspective is, which will let you have a greater impact? If you’re planning on headed to bschool in the fall then you’ll want to evaluate which choice will let you do more in the short time you have available – and also, which will give you more autonomy, or resources, or free rein to pursue your projects in a way that you can drive real results, in case you’re not successful with these two apps you have in play right now. Where will you be able to build more skills? Which will let you prove yourself more, by doing bigger/better things? It’s not really that important to have direct reports, in the context of your apps. What’s much more important is where can you grow more, and how will you be able to show evidence of that?

You didn’t say when you’d be starting if you stay where you’re at and report to the CEO, so the question about having a strong recommendation is important, but assuming that that transition would happen soon, then that’s enough time (probably) to have that be solid – but you probably also need to inform him that you’re applying to school now, if you haven’t done so already. We have a bunch posts on similar questions on the blahg in case you haven’t checked those out before.

Hope this helps, at least a little bit – and please write back with an update on everything! This is exciting stuff!!! 🙂

EssaySnark

 

Also just for the record, in case anybody gets the wrong idea based on this question: It’s not “better” to have a letter of recommendation for your bschool apps to come from the CEO of the company. In this case, the BSer is going to be directly working for the CEO, in which case, that’s great. But that is not an inherent advantage, based on the job title. So just don’t get confused by such things. It’s always more important to get a recommendation from someone who knows you best. For reapplicants, getting a recommendation from a new person is sometimes advisable, and sometimes you can go back to your original recommender and ask for a new recommendation (just make sure that they don’t submit the same rec as they had the first time!! it needs to have new/different content on your performance subsequent to your original app).

Anyway, if you’re currently considering some new opportunity, then yes, it definitely needs to be evaluated carefully! But don’t overfocus on “what will help my MBA apps.” That thinking is a little too narrow. Instead, ask yourself, “What will let me get where I want to go? What will challenge me? What is going to offer greater chance for bigger and better things?”

That will let you maximize your opportunities, not just with this whole MBA admit thing, but in life.

Filed Under: switching jobs before applying

« Previous: You may be too young to remember…
Next: ($) “Request for help: No extracurricular after college” »

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. Jackstack says

    February 12, 2018 at 8:17 pm

    FYI – the name of the BSer wasn’t redacted in this post, which I know you generally like to do. Feel free to delete this comment, just wanted to let you know.

    Reply
    • essaysnark says

      February 13, 2018 at 5:58 pm

      Thanks for the catch!

      Reply

Tell us what you think. Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Sign up for the 'Snark via email

Enter your address to get weekday blahg posts by email.

UPCOMING MBA APP DEADLINES

  • INSEAD Jan '24 intake Rd 1
    in 1 month, 1 week, 2 days
  • INSEAD Round 4
    in 1 month, 1 week, 2 days
  • INSEAD Jan '24 Intake Rd 2
    in 2 months, 2 weeks, 6 days
  • INSEAD Jan '24 Intake Rd 3
    in 4 months, 4 weeks, 1 day
  • INSEAD Jan '24 Intake Rd 4
    in 6 months, 1 week, 3 days
   
   

CLASS OF 2025 MBA APPLICATION STRATEGY GUIDES

From a former BSer:
"love the guide books!"




    The 2022 Stanford MBA Application Guide - for "what matters most" in your MBA application!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Stanford GSB for the Class of 2025
   
    The 2022 Harvard MBA Application Guide - updated for the Class of 2025!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Harvard Business School!
   
  The 2022 Wharton MBA Application Guide - even more advice on how to get to a win with those essays!
SnarkStrategies Guide for The Wharton School - with clear guidance for the 2022 essays!
   
  The 2022-2023 Columbia MBA Application Guide
SnarkStrategies Guide for Columbia Business School for 2022-2023 applications
   
    The 2022 MIT Essay Guide covers the org chart, the cover letter and 'introduce yourself' video, plus the new optional short-answer question on "the world you come from" -- and everything else you need to know!
SnarkStrategies Guide for MIT Sloan MBA - totally revised for the Class of 2025!
   
    The 2022 Kellogg Essay Guide - with a full methodology to identify your 'lasting impact' and your 'values'
SnarkStrategies Guide for Kellogg MBA - revised for 2022!
   
    The 2022 UVA Darden MBA Application Guide gives insights on the essays, Early Action, the possibility of a test waiver, and everything else going on here!
SnarkStrategies Guide for the Darden MBA - updated for the Class of 2025 requirements!
   
   
The Yale SOM MBA Application Guide for Class of 2025 candidates!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Yale SOM - updated for 2022
   
    The 2022 Berkeley-Haas MBA Application Guide - updated for the Class of 2025 application!
SnarkStrategies Guide for Berkeley Haas - refreshed and updated, with brainstorming exercises and structured maps to help you focus your stories!
   
    The 2022-2023 NYU Stern MBA Application Guide that covers the essays, the EQ Endorsement and test strategies!
SnarkStrategies Guide for NYU - discusses your requirements for the Class of 2025 essays!
       
   
   
Get started now - without doing any work! The Comprehensive Profile Review will help you start your strategy for your MBA applications.


EssaySnark® is a registered trademark. All content copyright © 2010–2023 Snarkolicious Press · Privacy Policy