How to Go to Business School for Free

If you have trouble reading this e-mail, go to http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/newsletter/index.html

SEARCH SITE Advanced Search

September 09, 2008
MBA Express

NEWS  THIS WEEK'S TOP STORY How to Go to Business School for Free Getting a free ride at business school takes a bit of work and planning. Here are some tips to give it your best shot -Plus: Full-Tuition Fellowships from Top B-Schools   MORE TOP STORIES GMAT Cheating Scandal: Drawing to a Close The B-school dreams of nearly 100 GMAT test-takers have been shattered, with GMAC cancelling their test scores in what is likely the final chapter in one of the worst b-school cheating scandals in recent memory The Best Places to Launch a Career To lure and keep young talent when cash is tight, companies of all stripes are appealing to Gen Yers' ambitions for speedy advancement—and their desire to do good while doing well LIVE CHAT Live Chat: Application Tips Admissions consultant and author Paul Bodine will answer questions online on Sept. 11 at noon ET  B-SCHOOL FORUMS Visit BW Online's interactive forums for wide-ranging discussions about management education. Search through over 1,359,000 posts for topics that interest you. Join in today! Here are a few samples of recent messages: Getting into B-School: MBA or Not??? From: AW123 To: ALL All- After much thought, I am having trouble making up my mind. I just received an offer to stay on with the middle market PE fund that I work for in a permanent position (after only 1 year - 3 prior years of IB experience with boutique) and was given the same compensation package as a recent HBS grad that was hired last year. I am worried that if I don't go back to school, my future options will be limited if I wanted to switch funds or career paths. However, I also worry that I could go back and be in the same (or even worse position) coming out of an MBA program (top 5) depending on where the market is. Anyone have any thoughts or advice? Thanks. ------------ From: AW123 To: All Specifically looking for thoughts on how hard it is to move laterally in the PE world with 3-4 years of PE experience on top of 3 years of IB experience... ------------ From: gt6254b To: AW123 Depending on if your work hours give you the time; you might be a good candidate for a top Part-Time MBA. I was in a similar situation, although in consulting / technology. After a few years of working, I was priced out of a MBA and being challenged enough to keep things interesting. As much as I wanted to go back to school and optimize my long-term earning potential, it just wasn't possible to walk away from a 200+ k salary. Fast forward 5 years... I am 30, basically making the same cash, and the job is mundane. I'm sick of traveling and I want out of consulting and tech. I am starting a Part-Time program at Chicago GSB this month. I am excited, but I wish I had done it a few years ago. I should have been investing in my future even though the present was going well. I will be missing out on the internship and the recruiting process won't quite be the same as if I had gone full-time, but I didn't have to step away from life or walk away from a post-MBA or better salary. ------------ From: jinjja012 To: AW123 When it comes to a career, you need to think long term. Chances are good that you will not be with your current firm 5 years from now. You can't base your career on a single job or a firm. Just ask the ex employees of Bear Sterns and Lehman. Will a top 5 MBA help you in the long run? Probably. Will not having an MBA impact your career negatively? Maybe Will you regret it if you waited another 5 years before you get your MBA? Probably ---------------------------------------------------------- Getting into B-School: High Paying Jobs From: brontobuffy To: All Hello. this may seem like a shallow post, but here goes. A lot of you report making serious salaries before entering MBA programs and Iwas wondering what jobs you all have that you are making this kind of money? I recently finished my undergrad in business and i would like to get on a track to making big dollars before entering MBA program. thanks for any responses :) ------------ From: potojr To: brontobuffy Banking and management consulting. The same jobs pay best after MBA as well, so one can infer MBA is actually useless :) ------------ From: SuperMBAFan02 To: potojr Although to be fair, you may hit a ceiling in those fields if you're not incredibly bright. I know in management consulting, it's typically a requirement to go back to school at some point. With banking I know you can do very well without the education. But those I know are the type where they are bright enough as is. ------------ From: junkbondswap To: SuperMBAFan02 I've worked in MM PE over the course of the past 3 years (since graduation in 05') and the compensation has been excellent (and continues to be ) despite the lack of available financing and the bid/ask issues. Top compensation can be found in investment banking (IB), management consulting (MC), hedge funds (hf), venture capital (VC), private equity (PE). Unfortunately for you no one is hiring as deal flow has slowed to a trickle and companies continue to cut back on spending. Good luck and stay positive.  B-SCHOOL BLOGS View over 4,500 blogs in our MBA Blogs community today! Share your journey, meet new friends, and expand your network. Connect with MBA students, applicants and alumni from Columbia, Kellogg, Notre Dame, and more! Become a blogger today! Here's an excerpt: Arab Vs. American Culture By modeh85 Comments: 0 Stars: 0 Today I was thinking about the differences in housing arrangements between arabs and Americans. Traditionally Arabs stay at home until they get married where the male would purchase a home and move in with his new wife. I am a 23 year old male making decent money for a BS graduate soon to be a MBA graduate and I still live at home. Plenty of people frown on this but I find it to be "the right thing." A couple of reason that I find it to be the right thing to is because I see the people my age struggling to make their rent. They also save little to nothing on a monthly basis and they rarely get to travel. These same people who follow the American style of living are the ones who have lower credit scores and rely on their job to be able to live for most of their life. I see this as being employee minded rather then being employer minded in a lot of cases. People who follow the Arab mentality and live at home seem to be able to save a lot more money, eat a lot healthier, and live a lot higher standard of living. For me personally I have been able to save of my total gross pay, I have traveled at least 10 times this year, and been able to concentrate on my MBA a lot more. Off course living at home comes at a cost, I come home and I see that my parents left me bills on my drawer that need to be paid. $400 for this $250 for that and $70 for that. At the end of the month I probably pay the same as the person who lives alone but I have a sense of security. I am able to not worry about the my credit as much and I am able to concentrate on my self and my future a lot more. I am starting my own business and will be able to rely on my company for my income rather then my job. I know that a lot of parents cant wait for their kids to graduate and get a job and get out of the house but my parents want us to stay home and stay around them until we get married. They also use us to pay for some of their bills which means that they are able to save more money for their retirement which is comforting. At the end of the day a lot of people are not given the opportunity to live at home like I am but for those who have that opportunity think twice before you move out. Living alone does come with a sense of freedom but living at home comes with a sense of security. FOR THE FULL VERSION  WORDS OF WISDOM Admissions Directors Admissions directors offer advice on choosing references ------------------------------------------- Letters of recommendation are meant to provide additional information to the Admissions Committee on who the candidates are. As applications are evaluated holistically at our school, references are taken very seriously in making the final admission decision. Candidates may come across as solid in terms of previous academic performance, GMAT as well as work experience. The Committee will examine the references to find out if it reinforces the same impression that we get from the overall profile of the candidate. We are more interested to read letters of recommendation which are written by people who know you fairly well either academically or professionally and able to identify your abilities, development areas as well as management potential to recommend you. References that provide specific examples of your character, skills and accomplishments and reinforce your motivation for attending b-schools and how you will fit into the particular schools you are applying to. It is important to explain to your referees about the MBA education and the offerings of the b-schools you are applying to as well as your motivation to study at those particular schools. Remind the referees of those activities and projects, which you have achieved successfully. Finally, you should choose someone who you can trust to deliver a thoroughly written letter of recommendation on you. --Connie Tai, RSM Select people who know you well, whether it be professionally or academically. Don't just get a reference for the sake of getting a reference. --Reena Lichtenfeld, USC (Darla Moore) The most meaningful references come from current or previous supervisors - people who have had the opportunity to both observe and evaluate your performance and social skills in a work environment. I am frequently asked if it is appropriate to submit more than the required number of references. One or two extra references are fine, as long as all of the references are strong. In other words, don't think that more is necessarily better - two strong letters go a lot further than four mediocre ones. --Laura Parks, University of Florida It is best to choose someone with whom you have worked directly. Do not pick friends or just colleagues, but someone you reported to long enough so that this reference can comment on what you have accomplished and what you can achieve. Also get a reference from someone who is external to the organization (i.e., a client). --Admissions Team, Theseus International Management Institute This newsletter is a FREE service provided by BusinessWeek.com. To sign up for other newsletters, cancel delivery, change delivery options or change your e-mail address, please go to our Newsletter Preferences page. If you need other assistance, please contact Customer Service or contact: Wanda Cooper BusinessWeek Customer Rights Communications Data Services 1995 G Avenue Red Oak, IA 51566 Phone: 1-800-635-1200 View our corporate privacy policy here. To learn more about how BusinessWeek.com applies this policy, you can contact our Marketing Department. Copyright 2008, by The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. All rights reserved. Terms of Use | Privacy Notice

B-School Insider Dear Reader: Free is good. Especially when the alternative is, say, 50 grand a year in tuition. That's the idea behind this week's lead story, "How to Go to B-School for Free." It's a quick tutorial on how to position yourself to snag one of those full-tuition fellowships at a top MBA program. Cheating, on the other hand, is not good. That's the word from the Graduate Management Admission Council, which on Monday sent letters to business schools detailing which applicants were having their GMAT scores cancelled as a result of using a web site which allegedly posted live exam questions. Associate Editor Louis Lavelle discusses the move in a post from BusinessWeek's "Getting In" business schools blog. And don't miss our online chat with author and admissions consultant Paul Bodine on Thursday, Sept. 11 at noon ET. It's your chance to ask questions and hear from an expert. Until next week, Phil Mintz B-Schools Channel Editor E-MAIL A FRIEND  |  GET RSS  |  NEWSLETTERS B-SCHOOLS NEW ON MBA INSIDER >> Tips for Georgetown's MBA Applicants The director of admissions for the McDonough School of Business' full-time MBA program discusses the application process HEC Montreal Admissions Q&A The admissions director of one of Canada's top-ranked MBA programs talks about what it takes to get in IE Business School Admissions Q&A Lisa Bevill provides advice on the admissions process at Spain's famous international business school in Madrid Indiana University: A Virtual Tour Indiana University's Kelley School of Business was ranked No. 18 in the 2006 BusinessWeek rankings MBA Insider Subscribers Only Advertisement B-SCHOOLS MULTIMEDIA MBA >> New HIV Estimates Edward H. Kaplan, the William N. and Marie A. Beach Professor of Management Sciences at the Yale School of Management, professor of public health at the Yale School of Medicine, and professor of engineering at the Yale School of Engineering and Applied Science, was on the team that conducted the study, which was published in the August 6 issue of Journal of the American Medical Association. What’s Your Problem? Trouble at the office? In surveys, blogs, polls, and social media, BusinessWeek collaborated with readers to identify problems at work. Together we found answers.  IN YOUR FACE: DETROIT AT THE CONVENTIONS Reader Williambanzai7 Writes: "If they convince Washington to go along with this, I will make sure no one in my family and circle of friend ever buys an American car again." Tell Us: Do U.S. Automakers Deserve $25 Billion in Subsidized Loans?     Tools & Features MBA Insider Check out this feature-rich area for advice and tools that will help you choose the right B-school -- and develop a strategy for getting accepted Full-Time MBA Rankings & Profiles BusinessWeek's Top 30 U.S. programs and Top 10 international programs. Plus, scan in-depth profiles of more than 300 full-time programs around the world The Best Undergraduate B-Schools Undergrad business programs are getting MBA-like respect, and competition to get into them is hotter than ever. Here's how the top schools stack up B-School Calendar BusinessWeek.com's scheduling tool will give you an idea of upcoming events at B-schools in the U.S. and around the world. You'll find information on admissions receptions, application deadlines, networking events, alumni events, conferences, and much more. EMBA Rankings & Profiles BusinessWeek's biennial Executive MBA rankings grade 25 programs worldwide. Plus, you'll find profiles of nearly 200 programs Exec Ed Rankings & Profiles Here are BusinessWeek's top 20 Executive Education programs. Plus, profiles of more than 100 programs worldwide Advertisement   FEATURED SPECIAL REPORT >> Graduating into a Recession Slide Shows Survivors' Stories Commencement Speakers It's Looking Grim for New Grads Recession-time MBAs face tough choices—and more modest earnings over their lifetimes Scant Pay Growth for Business Grads Recession Grads' Survival Tips Job Searchers Face a New Reality Job Hunting Tips Graduation Talks Accentuate the Positive READER COMMENTS > MORE SPECIAL REPORTS >  BW MALL   SPONSORED LINKS Find Online MBA Schools  Compare top ranked Online MBA programs. Flexible Options for working adults. Free information. Online Executive Certificates from Notre Dame  Master the Art of Negotiation and Leadership Skills – Download FREE information Now! Manhattan Review -Worldwide Online/In-Person Class  Max your potential with a 770! Most effective GMAT & MBA prep. Unique interactive online GMAT courses & popular in-person crash/long courses. Members scored 99% with actual B-school teaching experience. Thousands of happy customers. Admission Essay Help  Get in! Frank and helpful feedback on both content and grammar Study accredited UK postgraduate degrees  Earn an industry focused accredited masters degree in 1 year full-time or 3 years online. Ranked 2nd in UK for employability by FT. Aberdeen Business School offers courses in business, information and law. We are based in the oil capital of Europe. Buy a link now!