Question: Do I need to do a self-initiated interview at Tuck?

Answer: Yes - a self-initiated interview is critical to your candidacy. The admissions office uses the self-initiated interview process as a way to #1 - gauge your interest in Tuck and #2 - evaluate your interpersonal skills.

If you're a domestic applicant, you absolutely must visit Tuck and schedule a self-initiated interview before your application deadline. If you don't visit Tuck, the odds of getting invited to interview are extremely low (<5%). Not visiting Tuck essentially tells admissions that you're not that interested in attending the program.

If you're an international applicant, it is understandable that you may not be able to travel to Tuck for a self-initiated interview.  If you can't visit Tuck before your application is due, make sure that you attend an admissions event in your home country or connect with some current students or alumni so that you can show sincere enthusiasm for the school.

For more information on the interview process and questions, check out the links below:
Tuck Interview Insights & Questions
The Tuck Interview: What to Wear and Other Common Questions
Connect with a Tuck Alum

Great Resources for Women and Minority MBA Applicants

Photo Source: CGSM

Ascent: Leading Multicultural Women
ASCENT is a national, not-for-profit organization committed to the professional development and corporate career advancement of multicultural women.

Forté Foundation
Forté Foundation is a consortium of major corporations and top business schools that has become a powerful change agent in educating and directing talented women toward leadership roles in business whose mission is to substantially increase the number of women business leaders by increasing the flow of women into key educational gateways and business networks. The Organization offers dozens of resources to female prospective MBAs.

Consortium for Graduate Study in Management
The Consortium for Graduate Study in Management is the country’s preeminent organization for promoting diversity and inclusion in American business. Through an annual competition, The Consortium awards merit-based, full-tuition fellowships to America’s best and brightest candidates.

Management Leadership for Tomorrow
Management Leadership for Tomorrow delivers programming that puts minorities on the fast-track to success at every stage of their careers: from College through MBA and the Executive levels. MLT is a leading source of minority talent for top graduate business schools and for many of the nation's premier corporations including Citi, Goldman Sachs, Google, McKinsey & Co, PepsiCo and Target.

Tips: What Not to Do When Applying to Business School

As the co-chair of a couple clubs at Tuck, I often get e-mails from prospective students inquiring about the school or a club they're interested in. Most people ask really great questions and I'm really happy to help them in any way I can. However, every now and again, a propsective student does something that is either a) a big no no or b) slightly ridiculous. I've decided to post a few of these as lessons in what not to do.


What Not to Do:

#1 - Accidentally writing the wrong school name in your e-mail/essay or addressing a letter to the wrong person. This will get you ding'ed anywhere - whether applying to school or a job. Enough said.

#2 - Not conveying sincere interest for the school. A few months ago I received an e-mail that started off like this: "After careful consideration I recently decided to include Tuck in my MBA application process." So basically what you just told me is that you weren't originally considering Tuck and that it's probably not your top choice? #ding

#3 - Expecting a current student or admissions officer to tell you why you should attend the school. Sample bad e-mail: "I would like a first person's account of what is unique about the program, and how it can help me fulfill my aspirations." You wouldn't send a potential employer an e-mail that says "Dear Goldman Sachs, please tell me what is unique about your company and how you can help me fulfill my aspirations." so what makes candidates think this is an appropriate strategy for reaching out to a MBA program?

That said, current students and admissions officers are definitely willing to help answer any questions you may have about the program. However, it's all on you to know why you want to get an MBA and why you're interested in a school (even if you're not 100% certain that you're going to apply there yet).

#4 - Trying to show how smart you are by asking unnecessarily complex questions. People will generally assume you are intelligent. Acting 'smarter than thou' does not win you points.

#5 - Claiming to know a current student or admissions officer better than you really do in your interview. Odds are relatively high that the interviewer will reach out to the current students / admissions officers you claim to know in your interview for more information, so be honest. One time an applicant exaggerated how well he knew a current student we'll call "Guy X" during an interview. Ironically (and unknown to him) the applicant was interviewing with "Guy X's" girlfriend. #badtimetoexaggerate

#6 - Not following up. If a current student does an informational call with you or e-mails extensively with you, follow up with them and let you know when you interview/apply. If a current student tells you to 'keep them posted', this generally means that they really like you and might (unknown to you) put in a good word for you with admissions. If you don't follow up with the current student, you lose this opportunity.

#7 - Asking your interviewer to recommend you. If you have to ask, the answer is probably no.

Do you have what it takes to get into a great school?

In this article Sanford “Sandy” Kreisberg, founder of MBA admissions consulting firm HBSGuru, analyzes profiles of typical MBA applicants and assesses their odds of getting into several top MBA programs. Great read for anyone trying to answer the question: "Do I have what it takes to get into a great school?"

How to Get Great Letters of Recommendation

"I can't begin to tell you how many situations a recommender has derailed an applicant's dreams by procrastinating or doing a shoddy job" points out Chioma Isiadinso author of The Best Business School Admissions Secrets. Clearly after all the hard work that's gone into your application, the last thing you want is to get dinged for a bad letter of recommendation. So what can you do to prevent this from happening?

Choose recommenders that know you well - Ideally your recommenders should be your immediate manager (when possible) or a prior manager that can speak to your leadership skills and progression. Don't choose the CEO or someone else with a fancy title in hopes of impressing the admissions office. This technique will backfire on you. The admissions office wants to read a letter of recommendation from someone that knows you well and has worked closely with you.

*If you choose someone that's written your annual review before, you should have a good idea (based on past reviews) of how they regard you as a leader and what they will be most inclined to write about.

Choose recommenders that will CHAMPION you - As Ms. Isiadinso points out in the above video, you need to think of yourself as a brand and choose a recommender that's willing to be a brand champion for you. Run the other way and find a new recommender if your potential recommender says: he's too busy, doesn't understand why you want to get an MBA or just generally doesn't come across as supportive. This type of person is not going to champion you in your letter of recommendation.

Prime your recommenders with your successes - Not everyone is a natural for writing letters of recommendation. Take the time to set up a meeting with your recommender early on and discuss what you'll be writing about in your application essays and what you think your key successes are as a leader. If it's been a while since you worked with your recommender, this is especially important. Even if you recommender thinks you are a rock star, the precise details of your accomplishments may be a little hazy in his mind and need refreshing. The last thing you want is a vague or generic letter of recommendation that doesn't back up any of the 'key messages' in your essays.

Give your recommenders sufficient time to write your letter of recommendation - Depending on how many schools you're applying to and how busy your recommenders are, you'll want to give them 1-6 months to write the recommendations. It's also helpful to follow up with them as the deadline approaches to make sure everything is submitted on time.

Standing Out From Other Applications - A High GMAT Score Isn't Enough

In the eternal quest to beat the GMAT, it's easy to get caught up in the GMAT hype and think it's the end all and be all of your application. It's not. While it's important to have a GMAT score that falls in the competitive range for your target school, scoring the elusive 800 isn't going to be what gets you accepted. However, putting together a well-rounded application that makes you stand out from the heap of other applications will.

So how can you make yourself 'stand out yet fit in'? If you don't know the answer to this question then I highly recommend that you use an admissions consultant.

While I was in the very early stages of my MBA application process, a friend of mine at Stanford GSB told me that he had used an admissions consultant and that he highly recommended that I use one as well. At first, I was skeptical to say the least. Admissions consultants are known to charge a pretty price tag - would I really get my money's worth out of this service? Nevertheless, I decided to get a basic package with Stacy Blackman Consulting and it was worth every penny.

When I first met with my admissions consultant, I felt confident about my candidacy but wasn't quite sure which experiences to highlight in my essays to really make me standout. Thankfully my admissions consultant did a phenomenal job in helping me determine which experiences to highlight in my essays for each school. With her guidance, I was able to put together a knock out application that got me into my top choice.

In summary, if you're not sure how to make yourself standout from the competition, invest in an admissions consultant. (Unless you think you'll need a lot of editing help, a 4-5 hour package will generally do.) I personally recommend Stacy Blackman, but I've also heard Maureen Phalen at the Admissions Advisory Group is excellent as well!

Best of luck!

Which MBA? It's all about fit.

If you're early on in the MBA process and still trying to figure out where you want to apply, the best piece of advice I can give you is:

Visit EVERY program you're seriously considering.

Yup, that's right. You heard me.

At the end of the day there are a lot of great MBA programs and frankly you'll get a great education at any of the top schools. That said, the MBA experience, especially first year, is intense. As the cliche goes, 'it's like drinking water from a fire hose'. Given the intensity of the program, it's really important to choose a place where you fit and will feel at home.

In early fall '09, prior to beginning the application process, I visited MBA programs that intrigued me. Tuck, just so happened to be the first visit on my list. Prior to visiting Tuck, I wasn't sure I was even going to apply here. However, that completely changed as soon as I stepped on campus. I fell in love with the New England charm of Dartmouth and was captivated by the classroom experience and the camaraderie of the students. I knew this was the place for me. Two years later, I can hands down say coming to Tuck is one of the best decisions I've ever made.

Given that you're about to make a $160k investment in yourself, it's entirely worth the extra time and money to visit each program. As soon as you visit a school, you'll know whether it's for you. And, as an added bonus, if you decide to apply you'll have plenty of great material to help flesh out your essay on Why MBA / Why School X.