A very, very serious presentation.
“You must unlearn what you have learned.”
-Yoda
-A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.
The Next Forty Minutes…
Myth #1: “Admissionado can get me into bschool
because Jon has an HBS MBA from HBS.” • Jon Frank
– Brown University, undergraduate
– Real Estate Finance with ING, start-up, then Harvard Business School
– Three years as a real estate executive in Chicago
– Own and manage multifamily properties in Chicago
• Raj Patil
– Went to Brown University, undergraduate
– Film work pre-film school (worked with Michael Phillips, Neil Moritz:
Taxi Driver, the Sting, Fast and Furious; story development…)
– Film post-film school (editing, sound editing, directing…storytelling)
And then in 2007, Admissionado was born.
• Admissionado is elite, and essay-focused.
• We have solved the whooooole thing.
It’s kinda like the Matrix.
• We have editors, non-profit people,
former adcom, MBAs, writers, and of
course, us. The way we see it, there are
no competitors.
• But don’t get me wrong, we will make
you WORK. Just ask anyone in the
room who’s worked with us...
Myth #1: “Admissionado can get me into bschool
because Jon has an MBA from HBS.”
Myth #2. “I am going to learn a lot in my classes
at business school." What do you get from an Elite B-School?
• To Fill Gaps in Your Background.
• To Gain Leadership Experience.
• To Get Promoted.
• To Gain a Western Perspective.
• To have FUN.
• To meet people. It’s not what you learn in
the class, it’s what you learn from the dude
sitting next to you in class.
Myth 2A: I want to go to bschool for freedom.
I want to learn new things, meet new people,
and find myself. Who knows what I’m gonna
do after school…
– Recruiting starts in October. You have
four weeks to find yourself.
– Loans anyone?
Myth #2. “I am going to learn a lot in my classes
at business school."
Many applicants hope that the world will open up to them when they graduate;
but in fact, the opposite is the case. The world gets much smaller once you
arrive at bschool.
“Hey Freddie, at bschool,
we are Under Pressure!”
Myth #3. “Fit is important, when considering schools.
I like finance—so I should likely go to CBS.”
• The Golden Rule: Go to the best school you can get into.
– Network
– Getting a job
– Mileage in 30 years
• A case study: raising money in the film business.
• Do not choose a school based on a scholarship.
• If top ten (or even 15) isnt right for you, THEN start
to look at other factors:
– Geography
– Specialized programs
• But mostly, just go to the best school you can get into. “Fit” is a myth!
Myth #4. “Schools want me to change the world.”
• What do the best applications do?
– They connect your past experiences to your future goals.
– They show that you have thought through your plan, and have
researched it.
– They show that you are going to get a J-O-B.
I mean, don’t get me wrong—that’s good too. But…
The most important thing schools want to know, is that you can get a job. Change the world if you must. And please make money. But for God’s sake, please get a job.
Myth 5: “Bschool applicants make many different
tyAdmissionados of mistakes in their essays.”
• 95% of aaaaall the apps we see make two main mistakes.
– Jargon
– I convinced my lead designer to utilize a unique hardiboard construction that allowed
load limits to support up to eighteen thousand tons of dispersed force, far more than
OSHA guidelines allowed. When we withstood CAD 5 testing, I knew we succeeded.
• Would a 14 year old get what you’re saying? A dentist? My grandmother?
• If not, redo it…
– TELLING, not SHOWING.
– TELLING: I earned the buy-in of senior management.
– SHOWING: I reached out to the CFO and COO each in three separate private meetings.
– The resume is a great place to tell us what you did. But in the essays, you need to show
us HOW you have done it,
* Not really Jon’s
grandmother.
Myth #6. “Essay questions matter.”
• Ignore essay questions.
• The entire game is predicated on your putting your
best foot forward. You have 4 stories that NEED to
be told. It doesn’t matter what the essay questions
are—tell these four stories. At all costs.
• Don’t let the wording of topic of any one question
force you to use your seventh or eighth best story in
an app
• The same is actually true with interviews. But we
are getting ahead of ourselves…
The exception that proves the rule: admittedly, some
essay questions DO require their own unique strategies.
• Of course we can get as specific as you’d like…
– For a failure essay, the bigger the better.
Think…bellyflop.
– For a risk essay, it only works if you make
it perfectly clear that the risk youre taking
is HUGE. Spell out what happens if you
DON’T take the risk—that’s the key.
– For a creative essay (Stern, Cornell, Booth)
you have two choices: be creative in the
content, or in the format. Or…both.
Myth #7. “There is no place for storytelling and
drama in MBA applications.”
• An example: walk across the room.
• Three Key Ingredients:
– OBJECTIVE
– OBSTACLES
– STAKES
• Your readers are on autopilot. But THESE three items
create an itch, and create tension.
• After all, you only have 5-7 minutes.
Myth #8. “The guy with the best accomplishments
has the best chance of getting in.”
Person A
• Has built 8 buildings
• Applying to HBS
Person B
• Has built 12 buildings
• Applying to HBS
Person A
• Career changer—spent
four years in unrelated field
• American-born Chinese,
built the building in Dubai
Person B
• Inherited prominent family
business
• All buildings are in home
town.
Myth #9. “Beyond my essays, there isn’t really
THAT much I can do to improve my application.”
• Letter of Recommendation Strategy
– 70/30 rule
– Do not write for them, or even micromanage. Just send the basics…
– Without specifics, you are sunk.
– Watch out for tone.
• Wait-List Strategy
– Check in every 3 or 4 weeks, only with updates
– Feel free to find additional recommenders
– Follow the directions carefully
Myth #7A. “MBA interviews are hard.”
• Interview Prep
– First, prep the obvious questions. Plenty of sites have
plenty of lists. Figure there are 25 of em—90% of the time,
that is ALL you’ll be asked.
– Go in with YOUR stories. Ignore the questions—this will
be genius especially if you run out of stories to tell, or get
stumped
– MBAs like to talk. Let em talk…
– Back-up plans. This year is the FIRST year that we are
hearing this being asked. Same with how to finance your
MBA’s by the way.
Myth #9. “Beyond my essays, there isnt really
THAT much I can do to improve my application.”
Myth #10. “$200K, and Jon’s saying I may not even
learn anything there? Maybe it’s not worth it...”
• It IS worth it. With my MBA I have:
– Found investors for my RE deals
– Made some of the best, closest friends of my life
– Learned from my peers about different ways of seeing
the world
– Earned the credibility to get ALL of my jobs post-MBA,
get investors to buy my buildings, and launch this company.
As yourselves, would you be here if I didn’t have an MBA.
And in a way, you’re my investors.
–As always, we are here to help.
Top Related