How to Prepare For Your MBA as an Undergraduate Student

Are you already considering pursuing an MBA as an undergraduate student? There is no better time to start thinking about a graduate education in business than while you are wrapping up your undergraduate education. This time in your life will afford you the most flexibility with regards to making the decisions that may successfully set you up for the rest of your business career. The most important thing to keep in mind as you think through your business school strategy is to be flexible. Do not plan so rigidly that you are incapable of adapting to the natural shifts, changes and ad hoc opportunities that life offers. Be focused throughout your career journey, but make sure you are also affording yourself some flexibility. Career Trajectory Thinking through how best to achieve your future career goals, and if business school makes sense as a part of this, are natural first steps for most undergrads. Really think through whether or not pursuing an MBA is something you would eventually like to do, and if it will have the desired impact on your career. I would caution, however, against pursuing career paths that you generally have little interest in simply to maximize your positioning for a top-tier MBA. College  is an exploratory time where you should start to filter through industries and functions that excite you the better you can narrow your career focus early on, the less wasted time you will ultimately have in your post-undergrad career. GPA Your GPA is one of few aspects of your profile that you really cannot alter or improve after graduation. So, while youre still in undergrad, it is important to bank some equity in your future application with a high GPA. Don’t fall for the myth that your grades do not matter after undergrad once you enter the workforce your GPA can follow you (positively or negatively) throughout your career. GMAT Take the GMAT! Take the GMAT! Take the GMAT while you are still in undergrad! Commonly held wisdom suggest that if you are already in study mode as a student, it will be much easier for you to excel on this exam, so find some time to focus on your prepare early. Once you enter the working world, it is often difficult to find time to dedicate yourself to comprehensive GMAT prep. Extra-Curricular Activities College  is also a  great time to explore activities that interest you on campus. Aligning your passions with leadership and teamwork opportunities be that in athletics, volunteering, or professional or social clubs can really distinguish you as a future candidate. These experiences also provide great essay fodder and strong interpersonal anecdotes that definitely help  differentiate applicants as a whole. Take advantage of the tips above to get ahead of the curve as an undergraduate student so that you can breeze through your MBA application process in the future. Applying to business school? Call us at 1-800-925-7737 and speak with an MBA admissions expert today, or take our free MBA Admissions Profile Evaluation  for personalized advice for your unique application situation! As always, be sure to find us on Facebook, YouTube, Google+  and Twitter. Dozie A.  is a Veritas Prep Head Consultant for the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. His specialties include consulting, marketing, and low GPA/GMAT applicants. You can read more articles by him  here.

6 To-Dos if Waitlisted and Upcoming MBA Waitlist Chats

Maverick of the En Route to MBA blog gives excellent advice to waitlisted MBA applicants in his recent post Waitlist - Admit How? based on his experience getting accepted from the Carey waitlist. (Congrats Maverick!) Maverick refers to a waitlist appointment in his post. If you are lucky enough to be waitlisted at a school that provides feedback to waitlisted applicants, then by all means, follow the advice you receive. Review your application for weaknesses, discuss how you can address them during your appointment, and follow the meeting with appropriate action. However, many if not most, top schools do not provide such feedback. They rely on you to do your own self-assessment and act on it. In that case: Follow the instructions provided by the school. Review adcom blogs and chat transcripts for additional tips for waitlisted applicants. Accepted has 25 chat transcripts devoted to MBA waitlist topics going back to 2000, including several so far this year. In addition, you may find tips for waitlisted applicants in recent general MBA admissions transcripts. If you believe there is a weakness in your application, let the school know what you have done to improve in that area. Have you raised your GMAT score? Have you taken a class in math or writing to prepare for b-school and address a weakness? Have you taken a leadership position in community service, which you had neglected since college? Inform the school of recent positive developments like a promotion, new project, published article, community service initiative or success, etc. The schools want to admit dynamic, growing individuals. Show fit and interest provided the school is interested in hearing from you. Be considerate of the adcoms time. Send in relevant, meaningful, and succinct information. You are not paid by the word to write, and they arent paid by the word to read. If you send in reams of garbage a cross between spam and junk mail you will earn yourself a ding. We are hosting several chats devoted to the MBA waitlist in the next several weeks: Accepteds MBA waitlist chatis this Thursday March 19 at 10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/5:00 PM GMT. Natalie Grinblatt Epstein will join me in responding to questions. Natalie served previously as Director of Admissions at Michigans Ross School of Business, Cornells Johnson School of Business, and Arizona StatesW. P. Carey School of Business. Cornell MBA Waitlist Chat with Randall Sawyer on March 25, 2009 at10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/5:00 PM GMT. Michigan Ross MBA Waitlist ChatwithSoojin Kwon Koh on March 30, 2009 at10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/5:00 PM GMT . MIT Sloan MBA Waitlist Chatwith Jennifer Burke Barba on April 7 at10:00 AM PT/1:00 PM ET/5:00 PM GMT. Please feel free to join us on Thursday if you are on an MBA waitlist and for the school-specific chats if you are waitlisted at any of these programs. You can obtain more detailed advice inThe Nine Mistakes You Don`t Want to Make on an MBA Waitlist,our bestselling ebook ever. And of course, Accepteds experienced staff is available to help you one-on-one with your MBA waitlist strategy and correspondence.