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Posts by Lauren Wakal

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Lauren Wakal has been covering the MBA admissions space for more than a decade, from in-depth business school profiles to weekly breaking news and more.
Published: August 3, 2023
Weekly Refresh: Latest MBA Essay Questions, Analyzed – Plus Deadlines & Rec Forms
Welcome to Weekly Refresh, a roundup of admissions advice and updates on the Clear Admit site. In this edition, we round up the essays, recommendation questions and deadlines from the week of July 31st, 2023. Essay Tips Drafting your application essays? See the latest of our experts’ advice in our Essay Topic Analysis. The following schools recently released their essays—click for our advice: Oxford / Saïd UCLA Anderson Deadlines Released See the admissions deadlines that have rolled out: London Business School Oxford / Saïd Read more
Published: July 27, 2023
Weekly Refresh: Latest MBA Essay Questions, Analyzed – Plus Deadlines & Rec Forms
Welcome to Weekly Refresh, a roundup of admissions advice and updates on the Clear Admit site. In this edition, we round up the essays, recommendation questions and deadlines from the week of July 24th, 2023. Essay Tips Drafting your application essays? See the latest of our experts’ advice in our Essay Topic Analysis. The following schools recently released their essays—click for our advice: ASU Carey Cambridge / Judge Rice / Jones Yale SOM Deadlines Released See the admissions deadlines that have rolled out: Read more
Published: July 20, 2023
From Pharma to Consulting with the Emory Goizueta MBA
Sponsored Content The Emory Goizueta Full-Time MBA program not only supports your vision for the future, but challenges you to dream bigger. When Connor Marshall matriculated into the full-time MBA program in 2021, she had a clear plan within the pharma industry. However, with access to the community, knowledge and support of Emory Goizueta, she discovered more possibilities—not only within herself, but also for her career. Read on for Connor’s journey and how Goizueta empowered her to switch careers. Connor Marshall, Emory Goizueta MBA ‘23 Age: 27 Hometown: Charleston, SC Undergraduate Institution and Major: Boston College, Psychology and Biology Graduate Read more
Published: July 20, 2023
Weekly Refresh: Latest MBA Essay Questions, Analyzed – Plus Deadlines & Rec Forms
Welcome to Weekly Refresh, a roundup of admissions advice and updates on the Clear Admit site. In this edition, we round up the essays, recommendation questions and deadlines from the week of July 17th, 2023. Essay Tips Drafting your application essays? See the latest of our experts’ advice in our Essay Topic Analysis. The following schools recently released their essays—click for our advice: INSEAD Minnesota / Carlson U. Chicago / Booth Deadlines Released See the admissions deadlines that have rolled out: Cambridge Judge Read more
Published: July 18, 2023
Admissions Tip: Writing Your MBA Application Resume
Your MBA application résumé is a key component of your written submission – and a great place to start when crafting your overall positioning strategy. The exercise of condensing your entire work and educational history forces you to distill your candidacy into a concise document, focusing on key strengths and themes. This document, combined with a summary of your post-MBA career goals, are cornerstone elements of your application that you’ll want to share with your recommendation writers early in your application process. With that in mind, here are a few simple tips to get you started: MBA Résumé Read more
Published: July 16, 2023
MBA Wire Taps 300—300 Episodes! Military candidate, low GRE. Looking ahead, career switch. Chemical engineer, clean tech
Before pressing play on our 300th podcast episode, take a look back at the Clear Admit podcast recording journey with us as we celebrate this milestone. The first Clear Admit podcast episode aired March 7, 2018, and since then we’ve had 302,000 listeners! The 10 episodes with the most listens thus far are: 7 Hardest MBA Interview Questions and How to Answer Them Admissions Director Q&A with Harvard Business School’s Chad Losee Keith Bevans of Bain & Company Discusses Consulting, Recruiting and More Clear Admit’s 12-Step Program for Read more
Published: July 13, 2023
Weekly Refresh: Latest MBA Essay Questions, Analyzed – Plus Deadlines & Rec Forms
Welcome to Weekly Refresh, a roundup of admissions advice and updates on the Clear Admit site. In this edition, we round up the essays, recommendation questions and deadlines from the week of July 10th, 2023. Essay Tips Drafting your application essays? See the latest of our experts’ advice in our Essay Topic Analysis. The following schools recently released their essays—click for our advice: Dartmouth / Tuck Duke / Fuqua Georgetown / McDonough Northwestern / Kellogg Deadlines Released See the admissions deadlines Read more
Published: July 6, 2023
Weekly Refresh: Latest MBA Essay Questions, Analyzed – Plus Deadlines & Rec Forms
Welcome to Weekly Refresh, a roundup of admissions advice and updates on the Clear Admit site. In this edition, we round up the essays, recommendation questions and deadlines from the week of June 26th, 2023. Essay Tips Drafting your application essays? See the latest of our experts’ advice in our Essay Topic Analysis. The following schools recently released their essays—click for our advice: Washington / Foster Deadlines Released See the admissions deadlines that have rolled out: Cornell / Johnson Dartmouth / Tuck You can also bookmark our deadlines Read more
Published: July 2, 2023
Early & Round 1 MBA Deadlines 2023-2024
To help you stay organized, we’ve compiled a chart of the earliest deadlines, including Early Action and Round 1, of the top business schools in one place. For schools that have announced their essay topic(s), you’ll find links to our corresponding Essay Topic Analysis in the “Essay(s) Released” column. We will continue to update this table as more Round 1 MBA deadlines and essay topics are announced. Deadlines are for Round 1 (unless otherwise noted). Last updated: October 2, 2023 School Deadline Decision Essay(s) Released? Application Live? Cambridge / Judge 8/29/2023 Yes Read more
Published: June 29, 2023
Weekly Refresh: Latest MBA Essay Questions, Analyzed – Plus Deadlines & Rec Forms
Welcome to Weekly Refresh, a roundup of admissions advice and updates on the Clear Admit site. In this edition, we round up the essays, recommendation questions and deadlines from the week of June 26th, 2023. Essay Tips Drafting your application essays? See the latest of our experts’ advice in our Essay Topic Analysis. The following schools recently released their essays—click for our advice: Indiana / Kelley London Business School Michigan / Ross MIT Sloan Deadlines Released See the admissions deadlines that Read more
Published: June 28, 2023
U.S. Supreme Court Votes to End Affirmative Action in Admissions
Building a diverse cohort in U.S. higher education will now require a modified approach as the Supreme Court ruled to exclude a key factor in applicants’ history—race. For decades, the goal of affirmative action has been to give equal access to the opportunities enjoyed by the majority population to defined minority groups. Higher education presents such an opportunity, but the Supreme Court ruled that related admissions policies violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. The two cases brought before the Supreme Court were by Students for Fair Admissions, Inc., one v. President and Read more
Published: June 25, 2023
The Week Ahead: MBA Decisions, June 26-30, 2023
Welcome back to the series, The Week Ahead, in which we provide a brief rundown of what is happening in MBA admissions this week! Final decisions for the season. Final decisions continue as we get closer to the end of the cycle. Wednesday, June 28, Northwestern / Kellogg is scheduled to release its Future Leaders deferred enrollment decisions. Thursday, June 29, UPenn / Wharton is scheduled to release its Moelis Advance Access deferred enrollment decisions. Friday, June 30, USC / Marshall is scheduled to release its Round 4 decisions. How “The Wires” Can Help Visit MBA LiveWire for the latest “buzz” Read more
Published: June 22, 2023
Weekly Refresh: Latest MBA Essay Questions, Analyzed – Plus Deadlines
Welcome to Weekly Refresh, a roundup of admissions advice and updates on the Clear Admit site. In this edition, we round up the essays and deadlines from the week of June 19th, 2023. Essay Tips Drafting your application essays? See the latest of our experts’ advice in our Essay Topic Analysis. The following schools recently released their essays—click for our advice: Berkeley / Haas NYU Stern The Ohio State / Fisher UT Austin / McCombs Wharton Deadlines Released See the admissions deadlines that Read more
Published: June 20, 2023
Defining Your Post-MBA Career Goals
Having clear and realistic post-MBA career goals is essential to the business school application process. Though essay prompts tend to vary year to year, the two things that nearly every prospective student can count on being asked are “What are your short-term and long-term post-MBA goals?” and “How will Business School X help you achieve these goals?” Even if this sort of question doesn’t appear in the essay portion of the application, rest assured that you’ll be asked this question in the data forms and/or during your interview. Identifying clear post-MBA career goals will help in everything from Read more
Published: June 20, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Nathan Eisenberg of Michigan Ross
Dig into MBA admissions at the University of Michigan – Stephen M. Ross School of Business with Senior Associate Director of Admissions, Nathan Eisenberg, M.S., in this edition of our Admissions Director Q&A series. Nathan was raised in the Ann Arbor area of Michigan and earned his undergraduate degree at Eastern Michigan University and graduate degree at Northwestern University. Prior to Michigan Ross, he spent 11 years in admissions at other universities in New York and Illinois ranging from undergraduate admissions, continuing education, and specialized Master’s degrees. He loves the Michigan Ross Read more
Published: June 18, 2023
The Week Ahead: MBA Decisions, June 19-23, 2023
Welcome back to the series, The Week Ahead, in which we provide a brief rundown of what is happening in MBA admissions this week! Final rounds continue. Final rounds continue as we get closer to the end of the cycle. Monday, June 19, IESE is scheduled to release its Round 4 decisions. Thursday, June 22, Berkeley / Haas is scheduled to release decisions for its Accelerated Access program for deferred admissions. How “The Wires” Can Help Visit MBA LiveWire for the latest “buzz” about MBA admissions, including interview invitations and decision notifications.  There are 5 Ways MBA LiveWire Helps You Navigate Read more
Published: June 15, 2023
Weekly Refresh: Latest MBA Essay Questions, Analyzed – Plus Deadlines
Welcome to Weekly Refresh, a roundup of admissions advice and updates on the Clear Admit site. In this edition, we’re catching up with essay tips and deadlines for schools that have released info thus far for the 2023-2024 admissions cycle. Essay Tips Drafting your application essays? See the latest of our experts’ advice in our Essay Topic Analysis. The following schools recently released their essays—click for our advice: Columbia Business School Harvard Business School Stanford GSB Deadlines Released See the admissions deadlines that have rolled Read more
Published: June 11, 2023
The Week Ahead: MBA Decisions, June 12-16, 2023
Welcome back to the series, The Week Ahead, in which we provide a brief rundown of what is happening in MBA admissions this week! Final rounds continue. Final rounds continue as we get closer to the end of the cycle. Tuesday, June 13, Chicago / Booth is scheduled to release its Chicago Booth Scholars admissions decisions. How “The Wires” Can Help Visit MBA LiveWire for the latest “buzz” about MBA admissions, including interview invitations and decision notifications.  There are 5 Ways MBA LiveWire Helps You Navigate Admissions. Access MBA ApplyWire to explore the application strategies of fellow candidates. Add your plan and Read more
Published: June 7, 2023
Search for Head of MBA Admissions Continues at Stanford GSB
During the 2022-2023 admissions season, several MBA admissions representatives left their posts–Kristen Moss, the Assistant Dean of MBA Admissions & Financial Aid at Stanford GSB, was one of them. After five years in the role, Moss announced her departure between Round 1 & Round 2 last year. She stayed with the program through 2022, and the leading business school is still searching for a permanent replacement. As Stanford GSB continues to search for a new admissions lead, the school shared that Jamie Schein, MBA ‘91, Assistant Dean & Director of the Career Read more
Published: June 4, 2023
The Week Ahead: MBA Decisions, June 5-9, 2023
Welcome back to the series, The Week Ahead, in which we provide a brief rundown of what is happening in MBA admissions this week! Final rounds continue. Final rounds continue as we get closer to the end of the cycle. Wednesday, June 7, UVA / Darden is scheduled to release its decisions for its Future Year Scholars program. Thursday, June 8, Texas / McCombs is scheduled to release its Round 4 decisions. MIT / Sloan is scheduled to release its decisions for its Early Admission program. Friday, June 9, LBS is scheduled to release its Round 3 decisions. How “The Read more
Published: June 1, 2023
Fridays from the Frontline: Inside Student-Led Treks at Tuck–Exploring Old and New in Japan
As the Dartmouth Tuck community celebrated Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, two students reflected on their trek to Japan earlier this year. Read on for their experiences in this edition of Fridays from the Frontline, Inside Student-Led Treks at Tuck: Exploring Old and New in Japan By Fiona Bowen T’24 and Charlie Jersey T’24 T’24s Fiona Bowen and Charlie Jersey reflect on their time in Japan alongside 70 Tuck classmates. Five Japanese students led the trek to Tokyo, Kyoto, and Hiroshima. Fiona Bowen T’24 For this year’s spring break, a group of Read more
Published: May 31, 2023
ETS Trims the GRE—Fewer Questions, Less Time
On the heels of a new GMAT format, Educational Testing Service (ETS) has announced a shortened version of the GRE General Test starting September 22 of this year. The changes to the GRE translate to a graduate admissions exam that can be completed in under two hours–about half the time of the current version. “The changes we’re announcing today underscore the emphasis we place on keeping our customers at the center of all that we do,” said ETS CEO Amit Sevak in the press release. “As we continue to introduce product innovations, we’re committed Read more
Published: May 28, 2023
The Week Ahead: MBA Decisions & Deadlines, May 29-June 1, 2023
Welcome back to the series, The Week Ahead, in which we provide a brief rundown of what is happening in MBA admissions this week! Late Round Decisions Keep Rolling Final rounds continue as we get closer to the end of the cycle. Wednesday, May 31, Georgetown / McDonough is scheduled to release its Round 4 decisions. Thursday, June 1,  NYU / Stern has its Initial Notification deadline for Round 4. Cornell / Johnson has its Final Notification for its April round. CMU / Tepper has its decision deadline for its Future Leaders Deferred MBA Admissions Program. How “The Wires” Can Read more
Published: May 24, 2023
Admissions Director Q&A: Coni Zingarelli of Rice Business
In this Admissions Director Q&A, we hear from Coni Zingarelli, the executive director of recruiting, admissions and student financial services at Rice Business. Previously, she served in roles with Temple Fox and UCI Merage. She is passionate about helping students find the right graduate program to further their personal and professional aspirations. Coni spent the first 12 years of her career in the hospitality industry working in San Francisco, New York and Los Angeles. She earned her MBA from UCI Merage and her B.A. from the Pennsylvania State University. Now that Coni has spent Read more
Published: May 21, 2023
The Week Ahead: MBA Decisions, May 22-26, 2023
Welcome back to the series, The Week Ahead, in which we provide a brief rundown of what is happening in MBA admissions this week! Decisions for Late Round Applicants Continue Late round news rolls out as we get closer to the end of the cycle. Monday, May 22, UNC / Kenan-Flagler is scheduled to release its Round 4 decisions. Tuesday, May 23, Stanford GSB is scheduled to release its Round 3 decisions. Thursday, May 25, Chicago / Booth is scheduled to release its Round 3 decisions. Michigan / Ross is scheduled to release its Round 4 decisions. How “The Wires” Read more

MBA Livewire

May 8, 2026 10:47am ET
Accepted from Waitlist to Duke / Fuqua
Round: Round 3
Received via phone May 8, 2026
Standardized Test: GRE
GPA: 3.9
GRE: 311
Program Type: Traditional Two-Year
Application Location: New Jersey
Note:

Waitlisted R3 and accepted in R4 with $! quant was low - completed MBA math, sent 2 updates, talked to current students, sent an additional LoR, showed my genuine interest in Fuqua. Super excited!
Juno Member: Not yet
May 8, 2026 10:15am ET
Accepted from Waitlist to Duke / Fuqua
Round: Round 4
Received via phone May 8, 2026
Standardized Test: Executive Assessment (EA)
GPA: 3.13
EA: 160
Program Type: Traditional Two-Year
Post MBA Career: Consulting, Manufacturing/Automotive/Aerospace
Application Location: Connecticut
Note:

Military applicant. Waitlisted in Round 2 with a 317 GRE and I took the EA while on the waitlist.
Juno Member: Not yet
May 8, 2026 4:06am ET
Accepted from Waitlist to Chicago Booth
Round: Round 2
Received via email May 8, 2026
Standardized Test: GRE
GPA: 4.01/4.5
GRE: 325
Program Type: Traditional Two-Year
Post MBA Career: Consulting, Energy, Finance
Target Career: Consulting
Application Location: South Korea, 서울특별시
Juno Member: Yes
May 8, 2026 1:28am ET
Interview Invite to Cornell / Johnson
Round: Round 3
Received via email May 7, 2026
Standardized Test: GRE
GPA: 3.9
GRE: 327
Program Type: Traditional Two-Year
Post MBA Career: Technology
Application Location: CA
Juno Member: Not yet
May 7, 2026 8:13pm ET
Rejected at Berkeley / Haas
Round: Round 3
Received via email May 7, 2026
Standardized Test: GMAT
GPA: 3.74
GMAT: 615
Program Type: Traditional Two-Year
Post MBA Career: Healthcare
Application Location: Bay Area, California
Note:

Recommended to transfer application to EWMBA
Juno Member: Not yet
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