On Monday, April 13, mbaMission Founder/President Jeremy Shinewald hosted a webinar with admissions directors from Columbia Business School (CBS), Northwestern Kellogg, MIT Sloan, and the Yale School of Management (SOM) to discuss the rapidly changing dynamics of the MBA application landscape in light of the current coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic.
Our thanks go out to these experienced officers, who shared their expectations for the upcoming admissions season:
- Amanda Carlson, Assistant Dean of Admissions at Columbia Business School
- Bruce DelMonico, Assistant Dean for Admissions at the Yale School of Management
- Dawna Levenson, Assistant Dean of Admissions at the MIT Sloan School of Management
- Kate Smith, Assistant Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid at the Northwestern Kellogg School of Management
By the end of the session, we could tell that the remainder of this year’s application season will be rife with opportunities for aspiring MBAs. We encourage you to watch the full recording of the webinar below or on our YouTube channel to get the inside scoop on everything the admissions directors shared.
Here are a few highlights of the session:
- During the webinar, Northwestern Kellogg Assistant Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid Kate Smith broke the news that the school will be waiving GMAT, GRE, TOEFL, and IELTS test requirements for Round 3 applicants. She also shared that—in a truly unprecedented move—Northwestern Kellogg would consider appeals from applicants who had been rejected in earlier application rounds and would reassess some of these candidates for acceptance into the next Northwestern Kellogg class.
- MIT Sloan Assistant Dean of Admissions Dawna Levenson also expressed a willingness to “reconsider” applicants from previous rounds, commenting that MIT Sloan had rejected many qualified earlier applicants because the pool had been particularly strong in Round 1. She also explained that MIT Sloan will extend the deadline for its third round and issue “conditional admits” that will depend on the applicants’ future performance on the GRE/GMAT, though the target score(s) have not yet been determined.
- Amanda Carlson, the assistant dean of admissions at CBS, was unequivocal in asserting that anyone who has been laid off or furloughed is at absolutely no disadvantage whatsoever and encouraged such individuals to consider applying—even relaying an anecdote about her own experience during a past recession. She also reassured us that scholarship funding would continue to be available throughout CBS’s rolling admissions process. In addition, candidates can submit their application and be evaluated before their GMAT or GRE scores are available, with final decisions being rendered later, once those test scores have been received.
- Bruce DelMonico, the assistant dean for admissions at the Yale SOM, relayed that the program has added a new “Round 3 Extended” with a deadline of May 27—in effect, a kind of Round 4. In addition, scholarship funds are available in this extended round, and given the fluidity of the situation, some funds that had been distributed earlier could be redeployed. He also shared that testing requirements would be waived for applicants to the Yale SOM’s Silver Scholars Program who have a GPA of 3.7 or higher (note that this is a direct admissions program for college seniors rather than a deferred admissions program). DelMonico added that the testing waiver for candidates with high GPAs might be extended to others but admitted, “We are not there yet.”
Each and every one of our panelists sounded an optimistic tone, agreeing that now is a remarkable time to pursue an MBA. The world has enormous problems to solve, and those who gain additional education now will be well equipped and uniquely positioned to help find the solutions.
If you have any questions about your MBA candidacy in Round 3 or the upcoming application season, be sure to sign up for a free 30-minute consultation to get personalized advice from one of mbaMission’s admissions experts!
Do you have more questions for MBA admissions directors? We are hosting another Admissions Panel (with CBS, Darden, Kellogg, MIT Sloan, and Yale SOM) on May 21, as part of our free “Your Dream MBA” six-part webinar series. Click here to register!
