Taking on Tepper Admissions

The competition to get into the Carnegie Mellon University Tepper School of Business in Pittsburgh got tougher last year. The average GMAT score rose from 690 to 700. Now that applications are on the rise (see BW Online, 12/7/05, "First-Round Frenzy"), applicants are scrambling for advice on how stand out to the admissions committee.

Laurie Stewart (LStewartCMU) is the executive director of master's admissions at the Tepper School. She and second-year student Mary Boone (MaryBoone) recently fielded questions from B-schools channel editor Francesca Di Meglio (FrancescaBW) and audience members about getting off the wait list, why some students were rejected for unethical behavior, and how to set the right tone in your essay. Here's an edited transcript of the chat event (see BW Online, "Web Chat Calendar "):

biharmba: What is the typical turnaround time once an application is submitted?
LStewartCMU: We have a schedule that is published in our viewbook. The first-round decisions are going to be released on Monday, Jan. 16. We just had an application deadline for second round this monday, Jan. 9, and those decisions will be released on March 13. We notify everyone by e-mail when decisions are ready to view online.

FrancescaBW: I have a question from someone who was unable to attend the chat: What advice would you give to an applicant who has about two years of work experience in the IT services industry in India?
LStewartCMU: We welcome applicants from all experience levels in our MBA program. Most of our MBA students fall in a range of having two to eight years of experience, so this level of experience would be right in that range. We also have some really exceptional candidates with less than two years of experience.

FrancescaBW: What kind of advice do you have for students who want to demonstrate the type of leadership and experience they have in an essay on your application?
LStewartCMU: It's really helpful to have specific examples from the candidate's own experience -- situations where they've led projects or people. Applicants should try to tie together how that experience has helped prepare them for the MBA and establish their goals.

FrancescaBW: Mary, do you have any advice on writing the essays that you could offer from the student perspective?
MaryBoone: Sure, I would say that you can also draw from extracurricular leadership, but definitely need to show how this experience has helped you come to the decision to earn an MBA.

FrancescaBW: Here's another question from someone who couldn't join us today: I am an international applicant to the Tepper School. Does Tepper help in getting loans if an applicant does not have a co-signer? What are the other options?
LStewartCMU: We review all of the admitted students at the Tepper School for scholarship opportunities. We do not have a loan available for candidates who don't have a co-signer. We've found that many of our international students may qualify for loans if they have three years of credit history in the U.S., and we provide links to some resources through the financial aid section on our Web site.

FrancescaBW: Can you tell us a little bit about what the workload is like for first-year students?
MaryBoone: It's a heavy load...The first semester consists of all core classes, and I spent every day (including weekends) doing homework. The core curriculum helps you understand the direction you want to take in terms of concentrations. I have to admit that the second year is lighter and much more concentrated on your specific interests. Nowadays, I usually can take a break from homework on Saturdays.

Yuliana: What would you consider as the niche expertise of the Carnegie Mellon MBA compared to other B-school programs?
LStewartCMU: One thing that all students get in our program is this fundamental education in analytical decision-making. We provide analytical tools that help our students be more effective decision-makers, whatever career they choose. The other unique aspect of the Carnegie Mellon community is that students, once they embark on their electives, have many options and flexibility to customize the program. There are 12 different areas of concentration, nine tracks, and great opportunities to take advantage of the wider CMU community. Mary, for instance, is in the Management of Innovation and Product Development track.
MaryBoone: The opportunity for cross-collaboration across the campus is available, but it is definitely up to the student to take advantage of it. I just finished an industrial-design course in the design school, which was an amazing opportunity to gain exposure in another discipline.

ananga73: Is there an uptick in applications this year? And how do the current-applicant GMAT scores compare to previous years?
LStewartCMU: Both in our first and second round, we've experienced an increase in application volume over last year. As of now, we're up about 12%, and the average GMAT scores for the pool is also increasing. It is up about 10 points on average.

Ido7: How many of your students don't come from a technology background? How does Tepper help these students enter the world of high-tech business?
LStewartCMU: About half of our students come from technical backgrounds. The Tepper MBA program is known to be a place where companies can find students with strong technical skills. No matter what path you follow, you're exposed to many opportunities to gain technical skills through course work, seminars on campus, presentations by industry professionals, projects, club activities, etc.

Ido7: How many of your students work in Silicon Valley after graduating?
LStewartCMU: Many of them are in the Bay Area. Nearly 20% of the class of 2005 had job offers on the West Coast. The Tepper name is well-known there, and we have an active alumni chapter, from both Tepper and the wider university. Just this week, there were a whole series of activities in the Bay Area. Providing opportunities for our students to network in the Bay Area, members of our career center and current students visited 10 to15 companies. There was also an alumni event.

ananga73: Does Tepper have a long wait list? What is the probability that a wait-listed applicant gets admitted?
LStewartCMU: We do maintain a wait list, and this past year we offered admission to about 40 students who had initially been placed on the wait list. Because of our small class size, if an applicant has strong potential and we're not sure if we'll have space, then we'll delay the decision until later in the process.

biharmba: What advice would you give to those who are presently wait-listed?
LStewartCMU: We provide a way for them to update us about any changes in their candidacy. And we're really interested in knowing about any changes in their academic or professional profile. We reconsider applicants who are on the waiting list with applicants from each subsequent application round. It's good to stay in touch with us.

egonzal79: What do you recommend to applicants who are not admitted for this coming academic year?
LStewartCMU: We do welcome reapplicants every year to our program. I conduct feedback appointments in the summer. We do have candidates who are successful when they reapply. Last year, it was about one-third.

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