Admissions Tips

Browse our weekly admissions tips, or choose the category most relevant to you: researching, planning, applying, deciding.

Published: September 16, 2018

Visiting the UVA Darden Campus as an MBA Applicant

Sponsored Content Visiting the UVA Darden School of Business campus is a great way to get to know the business school and gain valuable insight into the MBA program. It can also be advantageous to the application process, but only if you go about your visit in the right way. Without the right planning, your campus visit can amount to little more than a short vacation. Dawna Clarke, the Executive Director of Admissions and Financial Aid at UVA Darden So, how do you make sure that you get the most mileage possible out of a trip Read more

Published: September 16, 2018

How Can You Make the Most of an Upcoming Campus Visit?

Sponsored Content While visiting campus isn’t required by most business schools, it’s still an excellent idea. An MBA campus visit will not only give you a better idea of what life would be like as a student of that school, but it also can provide you with valuable application material and demonstrate your interest in a particular program. There’s a reason why most business schools recommend a visit before you apply. The truth of the matter is that on paper and online, most MBA programs look and feel the same. They offer similar courses, experiential experiences, clubs, recruiting, career services, Read more

Published: September 5, 2018

Podcast Episode 20: Should You Apply in Round 1 or Round 2?

In the MBA admissions world, this week holds some of the first application deadlines for candidates looking to apply to business school for the 2019-20 academic year. Completed applications for early action at IESE were due in by Tuesday, Harvard Business School (HBS) Round 1 applications were due yesterday, and the deadline for the new Early Action round at UVA’s Darden School is tomorrow. Applications for the earliest rounds at Oxford’s Saïd Business School and Cambridge’s Judge Business School are also due tomorrow. Things are Read more

Published: September 3, 2018

Clear Admit Webinar Series Recap – “How to Ace Round One Applications”

Are you planning on applying in Round One? Clear Admit’s experts are here to give you advice and tips to be successful at navigating the admissions process. We’ve just completed both parts of our two-part webinar series available online – and we highly recommend that you watch and listen to it as it provides valuable insight into acing your Round One applications! The webinar covers: Identifying your target schools How to correctly fill in data forms The best advice for preparing your references for the recommendation forms Final touches to the application Preparing for the interview Making the decision on where to enroll Read more

Published: August 28, 2018

Podcast Episode 19: 10 Tips for Tackling the MBA Written Application

With Round 1 deadlines looming, we know many of you are hard at work crafting essays, filling out data forms, and perfecting your resumes. Before you do anything else, check out the latest episode in the Clear Admit MBA Admissions Podcast series, which tackles the written components of the MBA application head on. Clear Admit’s Alex Brown Our guest this week is Clear Admit’s own Alex Brown, who worked for several years as part of the admissions team at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. He’s also the author of Becoming a Clear Admit: The Read more

Published: August 15, 2018

HBS Adcom Director Shares More Application Tips in Blog Series

HBS Managing Director of Admissions and Financial Aid Chad Losee Earlier this summer, Harvard Business School (HBS) Managing Director of Admissions and Financial Aid Chad Losee let us know that he would be starting a summer blog series filled with application tips. He planned to share from his personal experience and tackle different elements of the application in each blog. The goal: to clear up any misconceptions applicants may have. As promised, he kicked off the series in early July, devoting one of his first posts to providing clear, no-nonsense advice about how to complete the Read more

Published: August 13, 2018

Clear Admit and Tuck School of Business Host Webinar – “A Walk Through the Tuck Application”

Are you planning on applying to The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth this admissions season? If so, it may be helpful to know that they have made some exciting innovations to the application process. We’ve just made the “A Walk Through the Tuck Application” webinar we conducted with Kristin Roth, Tuck’s Associate Director of Admissions, available online – and we highly recommend that you give it a listen as it brings valuable insight into applying to tuck! The webinar covered: What a Tuck MBA Candidate looks like How to navigate the application process at Tuck The best advice for taking on the Read more

Published: August 12, 2018

Savvy MBA Application Strategy: How Many Apps, Which Schools, When to Apply

You’ve decided the MBA is the next stop on your career path. What now? The smartest applicants are those who take the time to create an informed MBA application strategy—a well thought-out game plan that can help you obtain your goals as efficiently and effectively as possible. One of the first challenges you’ll face is school selection—strategically choosing which schools to target, bearing in mind the competitive mix of those schools. In recent years, MBA applicants appear to be trending downward in terms of the total number of schools to which they apply. Research we have undertaken on data Read more

Published: August 5, 2018

Admissions Tip: Applying to Business School as a Younger Applicant

As many of our readers know, it has become increasingly common for younger individuals to apply to MBA programs. Whereas the average age and years of work experience at the leading business schools has traditionally hovered at around 28 and five respectively, many programs are now carefully considering the more youthful end of the applicant pool. Of course, the fact that admissions officers are taking a closer look at younger applicants does not mean that getting accepted to a top program is easy for this group. In fact, it may be difficult for younger applicants to present themselves as fully Read more

Published: July 18, 2018

Michigan Ross Adcom Shares New Twists in 2018 MBA Application

The Michigan Ross School of Business MBA application for fall 2018 is now live! MBA candidates can start applying ASAP, and for the most part, it’s the same as last year. However, there are a few notable changes and things that applicants should be aware of before they start the application process. Soojin Kwon, managing director full-time MBA admissions and program, outlined the changes and a few other general tips in a post on the Ross MBA Admissions blog earlier this week. Here’s what you need to know. Read more

Published: July 16, 2018

HBS Adcom Director Launches Application Tips Blog Series

Clear Admit had the pleasure of sitting down with Harvard Business School (HBS) Managing Director of Admissions and Financial Aid Chad Losee a few weeks ago when we were in Boston for the annual Graduate Management Admission Council conference. Losee shared then his plans to launch an Application Tips series on his blog. True to his word, he kicked things off earlier this month. HBS Managing Director of Admissions and Financial Aid Chad Losee “When July hits, I know from personal experience that applying starts to feel ‘real’ when you are planning to apply to HBS in Round Read more

Published: July 16, 2018

Summer Reading: 10 Not-to-Miss Biographies of Great Business Leaders

For successful admits in the most recent MBA admissions cycle, the date to arrive on campus at business school is fast approaching. If you’re looking for ways to spend your remaining summer leisure time, check out this list of not-to-miss business tycoon biographies. From tech titans like Elon Musk and the late Steve Jobs to the Oracle of Omaha and cosmetics empire entrepreneur Mary Kay Ash, the titles below promise to provide inspiring insights for soon-to-be MBA students of every stripe. 10 Not-to-Miss Biographies of Great Business Leaders Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator Read more

Published: July 9, 2018

MBA ApplyWire Spotlight: Trouble with Tests

As new MBA applicants look for admissions assessments, many are posting to Clear Admit’s ApplyWire, a platform for feedback from our community of top-tier applicants to help inform your final choice of schools and approach to admissions. In this edition of MBA ApplyWire Spotlight, we take a closer look at two recent posts from new candidates for the Class of 2021. We start with a candidate who wants to retake the GRE: Read more

Published: July 5, 2018

Fridays from the Frontline: Preparing for the MBA Experience – 3 Things I Wish I Had Done With My Summer

Fridays from the Frontline For MBA students-to-be, the summer heat can sometimes go hand in hand with some leisure time. While the summer months are certainly useful for students of all stripes to unwind and decompress, this time leading up to the first year of business school also presents a critical opportunity for incoming MBA students to set themselves up for success in and outside the classroom. With that in mind, the Forté Read more

Published: July 4, 2018

Ready for Your MBA? Register for Free to Meet Top B-Schools at The MBA Tour This July!

Summer is in full swing! While you may be enjoying the time to travel, hit the beach and spend time with family and friends, it’s also the best time to prepare for your MBA admissions journey. As such, we wanted to let you know that our friends from The MBA Tour are hosting their U.S. Tour throughout July. If your located close to one of the following events, don’t miss out on this great opportunity to meet with admissions directors from Columbia, MIT, UC Berkeley, Chicago Booth, IE, Northwestern Kellogg and more top business schools. You’ll be able to attend admissions panels, Read more

Published: June 25, 2018

Tuck School of Business to Host Free Webinar on August 8th – “A Walk Through the Tuck Application”

The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth has made some exciting innovations to the application process. Join Clear Admit and Tuck for a free webinar taking you on an in depth, exclusive walk through the Tuck MBA Application. Whether you’re planning on applying or just beginning to consider an MBA and wonder if Tuck is a good fit for your aspirations, this is your opportunity to gain valuable insight into applying to Tuck. Bring your questions! Kristin Roth, Associate Director of Admissions with the Tuck MBA Admissions Team will host the event, following an introduction by Read more

Published: June 17, 2018

Kellogg Admissions Director Shares Insights on 2019 MBA Application

Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management is one of several leading business schools to release its 2019-2020 MBA application online within the last week. At Kellogg, deadlines for the upcoming admission season are as follow: September 19, 2018 January 9, 2019 April 10, 2019 To help you get started, Director of Admissions Melissa Rapp provided insight into the 2019 MBA application along with some great advice on how to prepare. We’ve shared some of the most pertinent details below. Written Essay Questions Remain Unchanged The Kellogg written essay questions remain the same this year as last. Applicants will need to Read more

Published: June 12, 2018

Leading Business School Admissions Directors Share Pro Tips for Applicants in Unique May Events

Admissions directors from seven leading business schools convened last month for MBA admissions events in San Francisco and Washington, DC, giving prospective applicants an unusual opportunity to learn more about how to navigate the admissions process directly from the people who know best. Clear Admit Editor-in-Chief Jeanette Brown peppered representatives from Berkeley’s Haas School of Business, Cornell’s Johnson Graduate School of Management, Duke’s Fuqua School, Michigan’s Ross School, NYU Stern School, UVA’s Darden School, and the Yale School of Read more

Published: June 11, 2018

These Four Attributes Will Help You Get into Tuck’s MBA Program

Nice guys finish last? Not so if you’re an applicant to the MBA program at Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business. Tuck’s admissions director yesterday outlined new, simplified criteria for evaluating MBA applicants—part of the school’s continuing commitment to being as open and transparent in its admissions process as possible. When it comes right down to it, Tuck wants students who are a combination of the following four attributes: nice, smart, accomplished, and aware. As part of a news story on the school’s website outlining the new evaluation criteria, Tuck Executive Director of Admissions and Read more

Published: May 29, 2018

Get and Give Inside Advice for Great Business School Campus Visits

We’re hard at work on our next new applicant resource—the Clear Admit VisitArchive—which is designed to help MBA candidates learn more about their target schools by reading about the campus visit experience of others. Though VisitArchive is still only in beta testing—look for an official launch later in the 2018-2019 admissions cycle—we have already received great responses from early users sharing tips guaranteed to inform future visits. For example, one visitor who took an Uber to Georgetown’s McDonough School campus offered this advice: “On a hot day, do not let them drop you at the main gate. It’s a Read more

Published: May 21, 2018

MBA ApplyWire Spotlight: Profile Feedback for Business School Admissions

As a new crop of applicants set their sights on the 2018-2019 admissions season, many are wisely turning to Clear Admit’s ApplyWire, a tool that supports MBA application strategy. As an applicant, by posting the business schools you are considering applying to, along with a little information about your credentials and goals, you can get feedback from our community of top-tier applicants to help inform your final choice of schools. In this edition of MBA ApplyWire Spotlight, we take a closer look at two recent posts from new candidates for the Class of 2021. We start with a consultant who has a lengthy list of schools: Clear Admit’s resident admissions expert (and newlywed!), Alex Brown, kicked off the feedback: Read more

Published: May 13, 2018

Admissions Tip: Time-Saving Tools for School Targeting

A critical key to success in the MBA admissions process is targeting the right MBA programs for application. When commencing the MBA admissions process, it can be difficult to immediately identify which programs might be most suitable and where you might be most competitive. A quick survey of MBA rankings may provide clues – and our own tiered ranking system provides additional guidance in terms of which programs are similar from a competitive standpoint – but beyond those basic resources, Clear Admit also has two unique tools to help you quickly arrive at your list of target MBA programs: MBA Read more

Published: May 9, 2018

Meet Leading Admissions Directors, Clear Admit Editor-in-Chief at May 16th Event in Washington, DC

Admissions directors from seven leading business schools will convene for a second multi-school MBA admissions event on Wednesday, May 16th, in Washington, DC. Moderated by Clear Admit Editor-in-Chief Jeanette Brown, the DC event will feature representatives from Berkeley’s Haas School of Business, Cornell’s S.C. Johnson Graduate School of Management, Duke’s Fuqua School, Michigan’s Ross School, NYU Stern School, UVA’s Darden School, and Yale School of Management (SOM). The first event, which took place in San Francisco on May 10th, filled up completely. Dozens of alumni from participating programs now working in the Bay Area were also on hand to share their first-hand experiences as students with participants. Read more

Published: May 6, 2018

Admissions Tip: Round 3 Results

With the MBA programs releasing their final round notifications in the upcoming weeks, the 2017-2018 admissions season is coming to a close for the vast majority of MBA aspirants. We’d like to offer our congratulations to all those who have gained admission to one of more of their target schools and wish good luck to waitlisted applicants whose fate is presently a bit less certain. For all those who submitted their applications in the final round and received an unfavorable decision, we’d like to share a few tips that we hope will make the process of facing rejection as productive Read more

Published: May 3, 2018

Our Latest Podcast: Reapplying to Business School

If your dream of attending a top-tier business school was dashed by a rejection this year, we know how hard that can be. To work so tirelessly toward a goal that you don’t achieve can be spirit-crushing. And yet, we’re here to tell you that it does happen. You are not alone. We’re also here to tell you that you might want to think about reapplying. Did you know—one out of every 10 students in most Harvard Business School MBA classes applied more than once and was rejected the first time. That’s right. On average, a tenth of the HBS Read more

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MBA Applywire

July 25, 2026 3:08pm ET

Applying: Other, Boston / Questrom, Miami / Herbert, NYU Stern, Vanderbilt / Owen

Intake Year: 2027

Pre-MBA Career: Real Estate Journalist and Newsletter Editor

Post MBA Career: Consumer Goods, Energy, Finance, Asset Management, Commercial Banking, Venture Capital, Manufacturing, Real Estate, Technology

GPA: 3.6

Years of Work Experience: 4

Location: New York City

Post MBA Location: New York, Philadelphia, Boston, San Diego or Miami

Notes:

I've worked for 2 online real estate trade publications for the past 4 years. I'm currently a Senior Associate Editor.

I have a nuanced knowledge of many niche industry topics and trends, alongside a solid grasp of economics and finance concepts.

I majored in philosophy with minors in journalism and history.

The other school I'd like to apply to is Fordham's Gabelli School of Business.

July 24, 2026 12:23am ET

Applying: Carnegie Mellon / Tepper, Cornell / Johnson, Dartmouth / Tuck, Duke / Fuqua, Emory / Goizueta, HEC Paris, Indiana / Kelley, Michigan / Ross, NYU Stern, UVA / Darden, Vanderbilt / Owen

Intake Year: 2027

Pre-MBA Career: Audit & Assurance

Post MBA Career: EY, Accounting Firms, Professional Services

GMAT: 655

GPA: 3.14

Years of Work Experience: 5

Post MBA Location: Strategy Consulting

July 23, 2026 11:52pm ET

Applying: Chicago Booth, Columbia Business School, NYU Stern, USC / Marshall, UVA / Darden

Intake Year: 2027

Pre-MBA Career: Finance, General Management

Post MBA Career: Private Equity, Management Consulting, Venture Capital, Finance

GMAT: 720

GPA: 9/10

Years of Work Experience: 3.5

Location: delhi

Post MBA Location: US

Notes:

I completed my UG in 2021 post which I worked as a Financial Due Diligence Analyst at KPMG for 2 years. I did my PGP from Indian School of Business in 2023-24 post which I joined a startup as a Founder's Office Associate. I am currently working at PwC in Office of India Advisory Leader.
I wish to pursue a 2 year FT-MBA program and move to Venture capital post-MBA.

July 23, 2026 9:05am ET

Applying: Carnegie Mellon / Tepper, Cornell / Johnson, Michigan / Ross, NYU Stern, UCLA Anderson, USC / Marshall, UT Austin / McCombs, Washington / Foster

Intake Year: 2027

Pre-MBA Career: Consulting experience at ZS Associates

Post MBA Career: Healthcare, Consulting

GPA: 8.93

Years of Work Experience: 6

Location: India

Post MBA Location: Healthcare consultant

Notes:

Tier I institute, NIT Biotechnology, have research experience in biotechnology.
Have research experience in entrepreneurship at Isb. Looking for a fee waiver

July 23, 2026 2:48am ET

Applying: Carnegie Mellon / Tepper

Intake Year: 2027

Pre-MBA Career: Military

Post MBA Career: Consulting, BCG, Deloitte, McKinsey, Management Consulting

GPA: 3.5

Years of Work Experience: 5

Location: US

Post MBA Location: Pittsburgh

Notes:

GMAT Waiver
4.0 GPA - Graduate Business Analytics Certification (12 credits)
3.5 GPA - Service Academy

View or Submit Entries

MBA LiveWire

July 23, 2026 9:34pm ET

Accepted to Johns Hopkins / Carey

Round: Rolling Admissions

Received via portal on July 19, 2026

Standardized Test: Granted Waiver

GPA: 3.6

Post MBA Career: Healthcare

Application Location: Baltimore, MD

Note:

Applied 7/13, decision received 7/20.

Juno Member: Not yet

July 23, 2026 2:40am ET

Enrolled at Harvard Business School

Round: Round 2

Received via email

Standardized Test: I haven't taken any of the standardized tests yet.

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Post MBA Career: Consulting, Ernst & Young

Application Location: Malaysia, Machang

Note:

I am waiting the Decision

Juno Member: Yes

July 22, 2026 6:24pm ET

Accepted to Columbia Business School

Round: Round 1

Received via email July 22, 2026

Standardized Test: GRE

GPA: 3.6

GRE: 330

Program Type: January Intake

Post MBA Career: Healthcare

Application Location: Washington DC

Juno Member: Not yet

July 22, 2026 2:04pm ET

Applying to All Schools

Round: Rolling Admissions

Received via email

Standardized Test: Granted Waiver

GPA: 3.37

Program Type: Traditional Two-Year

Post MBA Career: Finance, FinTech, Mastercard, Paypal, Visa, Technology, Amazon

Application Location: Nigeria

Juno Member: Not yet

July 22, 2026 12:54pm ET

Accepted to Columbia Business School

Round: Round 1

Received via email July 22, 2026

Standardized Test: GRE

GRE: 321

Program Type: January Intake

Post MBA Career: Consumer Goods, Food

Application Location: New York (but I'm from overseas)

Note:

16th June Applied/2nd July Invite/12th July Interview/22nd July Admit Letter

Juno Member: Not yet

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