B-Schooled: Get Your MBA Admit

If you're interested in the University of Texas Austin McCombs School of Business, this is a can't-miss episode! Erika interviews Rodrigo Malta, Managing Director, MBA Recruiting and Admissions at McCombs, who gives extremely insightful advice and information for aspiring MBAs.

A Tuck MBA who previously worked with Tuck admissions shares insight about the program; about the benefits of Dartmouth's Hanover, New Hampshire, campus location; and about what Tuck applicants can do to set themselves apart.

Erika talks once again with Anthony Penna, a fellow SBC admissions consultant who spent 10 years with the Wharton School in Career Management and as Associate Director of Admissions for the full-time MBA program. In this episode, Anthony shares insights about the strengths and unique aspects of Wharton's program that every applicant should know. (In episode 42 Anthony covered details about the Tea...

Cooper is on the younger side of the MBA applicant pool and applied to a handful of programs in Round 2 of the 2020-21 application season. He knew going into the process that in addition to his age, he'd after to overcome his GPA, GMAT score, non-feeder college program status and being in an overrepresented demographic bucket. In this interview, he shares his application experience and what he thi...

This episode covers who you should ask to write your recommendations if you work for a family business, lead a startup, or can't risk asking your direct manager (or possibly anyone at your current firm).

This episode focuses on smart MBA interview-prep strategies, and also covers which tactics are a waste of time or could backfire and negatively affect your performance.

Yesterday, Harvard Business School was the first MBA program to release its 2021-22 Round 1 interview invites and dings, meaning that thousands of MBA hopefuls around the world have just received news they didn't want to hear. This episode is for anyone who experiences a business school rejection this year and isn't sure what it means about their candidacy or what their options are now.

In this episode, our host Erika interviews her 2020-21 client Jenny, who found a way to differentiate herself from the rest of the financial services pack and gained admission to both CBS and Wharton.

This episode focuses on a few important things to keep in mind for MBA hopefuls who are applying in Round 2 of the 2021-22 application year.

Round 1 of the 2021-22 MBA application cycle is soon drawing to a close, and along with those deadlines comes a surge in self-sabotaging applicant behavior. This episode covers 3 things you should do before submitting, as well as 3 mistakes you should avoid making after your materials are in.

B-Schooled's host Erika interviews her 2020-21 Round 2 client Maddy, who was accepted to HBS, Stanford GSB, Berkeley Haas and Yale School of Management, and chose to attend Stanford. Erika and Maddy will discuss Maddy's background, her application highlights and her interview experience at each program.

Is there an advantage to applying for business school in Round 1? If your MBA materials aren't ready in the fall, is it significantly harder to be accepted in Round 2 after the new year? This episode focuses on the differences between Round 1 and Round 2, whether or not there is an advantage to applying in either round, and what the single most important factor should be in choosing when to apply.

Sometimes "Why do you need an MBA now?" is an essay question that programs ask directly, but more often than not it's something applicants should end up covering in an essay response even if there isn't a question about it. Questions around the timing of an applicant's MBA pursuit could also be asked in an interview. This episode covers common reasons why applicants need an MBA now versus earlier...

This episode talks about how to use the STAR method to organize your thoughts for powerful resume bullets, essays or interview responses. STAR stands for Situation, Task, Action and Result, and if you follow this structure when telling a story or explaining an accomplishment, it will help you get straight to the point and focus on the information that matters most to the admissions committee.

In order to stand out from your MBA competition, you need to take a step back and assess your candidacy from the admissions committee's point of view. This episode explains what they're looking for, how to differentiate yourself if you're in an over-represented demographic or industry bucket, and generally what types of themes successful applicants focus on in their essays.

This episode builds upon the advice covered in episode 16 ("MBA your resume") on how to create an MBA resume that best positions and differentiates your candidacy.

Our host Erika Olson interviews her recent SBC admissions consulting client Mike, who is about to head to Columbia Business School (CBS) after applying to MBA programs during the intense 2020-21 application year that saw record-high application numbers due to COVID. Mike talks about his background, the strengths and weaknesses in his candidacy, how he approached his essays, and how his CBS intervi...

Being able to tell a clear story about your career to date is a critical part of your MBA candidacy. This episode covers what to do if you've worked for several employers within a relatively short timeframe, especially if your career moves don't immediately make sense "on paper." We'll also cover what to do if you've been laid off or fired for a job, or if you worked somewhere for less than a year...

In this follow-up to episode 56, which gave a general overview of European MBA programs, Cathy, an INSEAD graduate and one of Stacy Blackman Consulting's European MBA experts, answers frequently asked questions about MBA programs outside of the US. Topics include the differences between European and US-based MBA experiences, the visa process, the interview process, recruiting information, and more...

This episode covers 5 MBA applicant pitfalls – as in, traits, attitudes or approaches that some MBA applicants take that can ultimately derail their chances of success.

Harvard Business School's essay is open-ended and has no word limit. This episode focuses on how MBA candidates should approach both the content and the length of their response.

This episode covers exactly why extracurriculars are so critical to your MBA candidacy. It also gives advice on what to do if you're light on extracurriculars, volunteer work and community service, from either your college years, your post-graduation years, or both. Our host Erika will discuss if it's worth it to try and beef up this aspect of your MBA candidacy if you plan to apply to business sc...

In this episode, Chandler Arnold, a Stanford MBA, SBC consultant and social-impact executive, shares advice for those in social-impact careers who are thinking about pursuing an MBA, and discusses what some of the top programs are doing in the social impact space. He also explains SBC's first-of-its-kind MBA Social Impact Accelerator, designed specifically for applicants with nonprofit or social i...

The 2021-2022 MBA application season is officially upon us, with several top business schools having already posted their deadlines, as well as a few programs confirming what their essays will be this year. Now that Round 1 is underway, what should you be doing? How exactly should you begin working on your MBA materials? This episode outlines some of the to do's it makes sense to tackle sooner rat...

The 2020-21 MBA application year saw double-digit increases in the number of students applying to business school, driven by uncertainty in the market and job losses due to COVID. Will this year be just as brutally competitive? Our host Erika discusses trends that the Stacy Blackman Consulting team has observed so far as the 2021-22 application cycle kicks off.