GMAT Tip of the Week: Carving Out A High Score

As we enter the final weekend of the Vancouver Winter Olympics, plenty of drama remains. Will Canada clinch the ice hockey gold medal on its home ice? Will it do so against the rival Americans? Will Lindsey Vonn withstand the pain of another injury - this time a broken finger to go with her badly bruised shin -- to add another medal to her haul? Will Bob Costas ever look older than 29? Will Bode Miller summon the magic one more time to erase his Torino disappointment with an unexpected (or perhaps just delayed... we expected this from him in 2006) display of overall alpine mastery?

As Vonn and Miller attempt to add to their legacies, they will need to employ a strategy that you should be thinking about as you gear up for your peak performance on the GMAT. The last race for each is the slalom, an event in which skiers are required to navigate a series of gates making quick side-to-side turns while keeping their momentum focused as straight downhill as possible. A daunting challenge, to be sure -- just like those of you taking the GMAT, these skiers must be aware that losing time on any one gate (or question) can be catastrophic, and must also keep in mind that, upon the successful navigation of one challenge, another will be approaching just as quickly.

How do they (and how should you) cope?

If you watch slalom skiers, you'll notice that they seemingly take wide turns around each gate -- instead of taking a straight line from one gate to the next, which would require them to make an abrupt change of direction at each gate, they swoop in from wide of the gate, building speed through the turn toward the next flag. The rationale behind this strategy is that, by employing it, skiers can use the position of the next gate to set up the previous turn, always thinking further downhill and being prepared far in advance to avoid having to make last-second, ice-crunching, turn-on-a-dime turns that kill a skier's speed and waste valuable time. If the skier uses the downhill gates to set up his movements uphill, he can take as direct and efficient a line as possible, and maximizes his chances at success.

The GMAT affords you the same opportunity -- you've already noted that each question contains within itself five answer choices, but you may not have thought about using those "downhill" answer choices to set up your work.

Consider:

• If multiple answer choices include the square root of 3, there's a good chance you're going to have to use a 30-60-90 or equilateral triangle, as those triangles lend themselves naturally to sides with the square root of 3.



• If answer choices, similarly, include the square root of 2, you'll probably want to look for an iscosceles right triangle (45-45-90), for which the hypotenuse is going to have a side the length of the other side multiplied by the square root of 2.



• Other answer choices can guide you in the right direction, as well - look for clues such as denominators (do you need to end up with something divided by 3?), exponential terms (do you need to factor to get everything in terms of 2 to a power?), etc. If you let the answer choices be your guide, you'll often find that they provide you a template of what your mathematical goals should be.

As an example, consider the question:

What is 3⁸ + 3⁷ - 3⁶ - 3⁵?

(A) (3⁵)(2⁴)

(B) (3⁵)(2⁶)

(C) (3⁶)(2⁵)

(D) 6⁵

(E) None of the Above

The initial statement may not lend itself at first to any type of manipulation that would make it any clearer, but if you look at the answer choices, you’ll realize that your job is to try to convert the given statement to the multiplication of two exponential terms. Knowing that you’ll need to multiply an exponent of 3 by something else, you can determine that your first move is to factor out 3⁵, giving you:

3⁵(3³ + 3² – 3 – 1)

Looking again at the answer choices, it appears you’ll need to somehow find a base of two with an exponent, so it makes sense to simplify the parenthetical term to see if you can find an exponent of 2:

3⁵(27 + 9 – 3 – 1) = 3⁵(32) = 3⁵(2⁵)

Now, one last time, you’ll want to look at the answer choices. We’re close to A, B, and C, but each is one factor off. Answer choice D, 65, may look a little unlike what we have, but when you have the choice between an answer and “none of the above”, you’ll at least want to do your best to make your answer look like one of the tests. With 65, or something close to it, as our goal, we can play with our expression to see if we can restate it in that form. Doing so, we find that it gives us:

(3*2)⁵ = 6⁵

By using the answer choices as a guide, we took the initial statement and manipulated it until it looked like what we needed, employing that slalom strategy of looking downhill to set up our moves from the top.

To be successful on the GMAT, think like a slalom skier and see if the answer choices, like downhill gates, can set up your work for you as you seek efficiency. It's all downhill from there!

Author's Note: In honor of the 2010 Winter Olympics, Veritas Prep is offering 15% off all of its GMAT prep courses to students who enroll before the end of the Closing Ceremonies on Sunday. Use the offer code JULEZRULEZ2010 on any Veritas Prep course to qualify for the discount. (Veritas Prep congratulates fellow Californian Julia Mancuso on two silver medals to add to her gold from 2006!)

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Northwestern Law is Ranked #1, but Does it Matter?

By at least one measure, Northwestern University's School of Law is the best law school in America. But what is that measure? And what does it mean? Should would-be Harvard, Columbia, and Chicago students suddenly reverse course?

You may have already heard the "Northwestern ranked as best law school" sound bite in the last week and scratched your head. "Really?" Well, yes and no. Yes, in the sense that the National Law Journal is a highly respected publication that put out a legitimate ranking that had Northwestern had the top of the heap. No, in the sense that this ranking measures one thing -- and one thing only -- and has nothing to do with academic excellence, peer reputation, class profile, or any other metric that we're used to analyzing. And no in the sense that the one thing it does measure might be a pretty misleading statistic.

The NLJ survey focuses purely on the number of graduates from each school that land jobs at "NLJ top 250" law firms. That's it. The school with the highest percentage wins and for Northwestern, that percentage (55.9%) is enough to edge out the likes of Columbia (54.4%), Stanford (54.1%), and Chicago (53.1%). Since the NLJ is very good at determining what the top firms are, this is surely a pretty credible finding, right?

Again, yes and no.

Northwestern has rightly taken advantage of this ranking and used the news as a way to advertise the practical, hands-on training provided by their law school model. I've visited Northwestern Law, studied there, interacted with students there, worked at a large firm with graduates from the program and I can say that this is absolutely true. Northwestern does indeed do a great job of turning the esoteric study of law into something more practical. It's a progressive, innovative, interesting law school and all the things they say in their own student newspaper are completely true.

So what's the problem? The problem is that the data is skewed by certain realities. Such as: if every graduate from U. of Chicago chose to work at a top law firm rather than a prestigious clerkship, then that school would probably beat Northwestern like a drum in this kind of ranking. Such as: If Berkeley students stopped caring about public interest and went "all in" on top 250 firms, they would soar right past Northwestern. If Yale students no longer pursued academia first and foremost, not only would the legal heavyweight get back into the top 10 of this list, it would probably go right to the top. If Harvard Law went back to being the "law firm mill" it was before Elena Kagan became the dean and it students stopped pursuing all of the above (clerkships, public interest, and academia), surely Northwestern would have to take a back seat.

In other words, Northwestern may be placing such a robust percentage of students into top 250 firms in large part because its graduates don't have the same alternative elite options as some of its more prestigious brethren. If you revised this survey to include graduates who go into: "NLJ top 250 firms, federal clerkships, and academic fellowship programs" (i.e., the three most prestigious paths, probably in reverse order), I promise you the list would look much different.

This isn't to knock Northwestern. Again, they are doing a fine job of training good lawyers and firms recognize that fact. But this ranking is just as much about the jobs that Northwestern students aren't getting as the ones they are. And, more importantly for potential law school students, it's one more reminder that rankings -- particularly those that measure just one thing -- are never the be-all, end-all scorecard for the quality of a school.

(And yes, I went to U of C, so feel free to start lobbing tomatoes at me in the comments section!)

If you need help with your law school applications, give us a call at (800) 925-7737 and speak with an admissions expert today.

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INSEAD's Two-Campus Approach to Business Education

The final deadline for INSEAD's September, 2010, intake is still is still a month away, and there's still plenty of time for you to craft a successful INSEAD application. Continuing our series of admissions insights clipped from Veritas Prep's Annual Reports, our in-depth guides to 15 of the world's top business schools, this week we take a closer look at life on each of INSEAD's two main campuses. (Our Annual reports are absolutely free -- all you have to do is register to access all of them -- but we thought we'd share some snippets here to help get you started in your INSEAD research.)

As part of INSEAD's commitment to providing an MBA education with a truly international perspective, the 10-month MBA program is run concurrently on two campuses, located in Europe and Asia:

• European Campus: Fontainebleau. The town of Fontainebleau -- referred to by INSEAD students as "Fonty" -- has been a fashionable weekend getaway for the French aristocracy since the 16th Century due the town's location in the middle of one of Western Europe's largest forests. The forest provides extensive opportunities for walks, running, biking and rock climbing. The INSEAD campus contains 28 lecture halls, two restaurants, a bar, a bookshop, a gym, squash courts and extensive library resources. Additionally, INSEAD is just a ten-minute walk from the center of town. Fontainebleau itself is dominated by the massive Chateau de Fontainebleau, which served as a "hunting lodge" for French rulers from Francois I to Napoleon, who was escorted from the Chateau's grand horseshoe staircase into exile on Elba (from which he would eventually return).
  
  MBA students in Fontainebleau must make their own arrangements for accommodation, which range from apartments in the town itself to rented country houses and private chateaux that dot the surrounding countryside. Most INSEAD students rent a car during their stay, which is virtually a necessity. When you tire of French country living, Paris is only 40 miles away to the North and provides everything you would expect from one of the world's global capitals. If you have never visited, prepare to be dazzled. Given the amount of traffic, the trip typically takes about 90 minutes.
  
  Paris can be difficult to navigate by car unless you are a native, so don't forget your GPS. Train service to Paris is available from the neighboring town of Avon. During breaks, MBA participants in Fontainebleau explore France's wine regions, lay on the beach in St. Tropez, ski at Courchevel or go on shopping trips to Milan, where there are many bargains to be had. Barcelona and London are also popular weekend and holiday destinations.



• Asian Campus: Singapore. In contrast to INSEAD's European campus, the Asian campus in Singapore is located in one of the world's most highly urban settings. The campus accommodates 950 students and includes lecture halls, a library, meeting rooms, extensive workspaces and a fully equipped fitness center. As in Europe, MBA students in Singapore make their own accommodation arrangements, which range from modern condominiums with swimming pools and tennis courts, to government-subsidized apartments. The MBA office has a listing of local real estate agents and landlords who can assist with the housing search.
  
  Singapore is a bustling, modern city-state that combines Chinese, Indian, Malay and British culture. It is known for its fantastic shopping, a wide array of culinary experiences and an impressive selection of cultural events. Sentosa Island is a popular island resort that includes a dizzying selection of recreational facilities including volleyball, inline skating, cycling, canoeing, miles of tropical beaches, two golf courses, a butterfly park and an oceanarium, to name just a few. After dark, Singapore has a lively nightlife. Fortunately it is all a breeze to explore—getting around Singapore is both easy and cheap thanks to the city's excellent public transportation system. The INSEAD campus is located a short distance from the subway, buses run frequently and taxis are plentiful and cheap.
  
  MBA participants take advantage of their breaks and weekends to explore South East Asia, with visits to Bali, Angkor Wat and Bangkok being the most popular. The Indonesian island resort of Bintan is only a 45-minute ferry ride away.

This week's installment was clipped from our INSEAD Annual Report, one of 15 completely free guides to the world's top business schools, available on our site. If you're ready to start building your own application for INSEAD or other top MBA programs, call us at 1-800-925-7737 and speak with an MBA admissions expert today!

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Alternative MBA Options: Part 1

One of things we are often asked to do is identify new trends and themes that emerge in the MBA admissions process. One theme we are starting to feel pretty sure about this year is that the notion b-schools are "skewing young" is legitimate. Not every MBA program is shifting as rapidly and aggressively as HBS, where over half the class enters business school less than three years after graduating from college, but the ideal age range seems to be either holding rigid or even shrinking.

For applicants on the plus side of 30, this is a cause for concern. And that's before we get into GMAT scores that fall below the 20th-to-80th percentile range, or a lingering GPA that dipped under 3.0, or any number of flaws that are more often than not fatal for a candidate applying to elite business schools.

So what should candidates do when they are presented with these kinds of obstacles? It all starts with taking a realistic look at the available options. For starters, is the MBA really the right degree? More often than not, candidates have thought enough about this that they are committed to the degree. Okay, if the MBA is a must, how about looking lower in the rankings? This is often a smart option (and we plan to run posts in the future indicating strong "lower tier" options in various specialties) for students suffering from a mediocre GMAT score or a rocky GPA, but what about the candidate who is "too old" for a full-time program? In some cases, it doesn't matter how far down the U.S. News list you go, if you fall outside the age range, there might not be a seat at the table.

That's when it is time to explore alternative programs; specifically, part-time and EMBA programs. With that in mind, we are running a two-part series on alternative options for students who desire an MBA, but might not fit the full-time profile. Today, for Part I, we will focus on the best major cities in which to pursue part-time programs. Part II will focus on the rest of the options: other part-time gems, EMBA programs, and even online degree paths.

Part-time programs are always a great place to start any exploration of alternative MBA options, because this is the path that most closely resembles what a client desires from a full-time program. The structure obviously differs and it can take longer to achieve the goal, but part-time programs aren't always a massive departure from their full-time counterparts. For a candidate who wishes to retain his or her job during business school, the part-time program is perfect, obviously. However, even if an applicant does not fit that archetype, part-time programs might still present a great opportunity to get into a fantastic b-school, to build a network, and to gain access to critical on-campus recruiters.

Perhaps the easiest way to get a quick handle on the part-time landscape is to look at it geographically. There are basically five cities that offer nearly all of the best options in this space:

1. Chicago. There is probably no better city in which to pursue both a career and an MBA than Chicago. In addition to boasting plenty of industry and many nationally headquartered companies, the city is teaming with quality part-time options. Chicago Booth, housed in the state-of-the-art Gleacher Center in downtown Chicago, is famous for offering a part-time program that closely approximates the full-time course work - even blending the classes and mixing and matching professors. Kellogg is among the most innovative business schools in the world and the part-time program is no exception, as the school offers both a traditional evening and weekend program as well as a unique "Saturday only" option that was built purely as a response to student demand. In addition to the two big guns, Chicago also offers high-quality programs at more accessible schools such as DePaul and Loyola. If you are having a tough time cracking the code at full-time programs and you can take your career to Chicago, go there as fast as you can.


2. Los Angeles. L.A. is best known for UCLA Anderson's fully employed MBA program ("FEMBA") and for good reason, as it is one of the truly elite part-time options available, but candidates can also find attractive options at USC (high level coursework that is reflective of the full-time program and a distinctive study abroad option), Loyola Marymount (top-notch entrepreneurship program and very diverse student body), and Pepperdine (good ties with the entertainment community). UCLA Anderson is the crown jewel though and it offers one of the closest approximations to a full-time program anywhere in the part-time space, complete with quarterly course requirements, dedicated career services counselors, a cohort system, and a truly unique international field study program. For candidates with elite credentials but a little more work experience than full-time MBA programs want to see, UCLA Anderson's FEMBA program is a great place to start a search, as is the city of Los Angeles.


3. The Bay Area. Okay, we are cheating a little here since "The Bay Area" isn't technically a city, but there are enough program options here that candidates should think seriously about Northern California. Between San Francisco and the Silicon Valley, there is enough industry to support a career move and with two great programs of varying prestige - Haas and Santa Clara - there are attractive options for a large number of part-time candidates. Haas is well known for its part-time program, but with an average GMAT score of 689, it isn't exactly easy to get into. Enter Santa Clara. The underrated private school is often overlooked in MBA circles, but it has a great reputation with companies in the area and a strong track record for producing quality graduates.


4. Atlanta. This might come as a surprise on this list, but Atlanta offers two terrific part-time options. As a city blessed with plenty of industry and home to several massive companies, Atlanta is a good place to maintain a career while earning an MBA. Emory (great classes, evening office hours, on-campus recruitment, the works) is the most notable program here, but Georgia State is an underrated option. This is especially true if the candidate is seeking knowledge more than networking or recruiting options. The quality of the overall class at Georgia State won't measure up to Emory or most of the other schools in this blog, but the quality of the faculty is quite good, the style of instruction is extremely practical, and the location (in the relatively new Aderhold Learning Center in downtown Atlanta) is convenient. Plus, as a rule of thumb, there is always opportunity when you can find quality without the brand attached, because it tends to cut down on the competition.


5. New York. NYU Stern offers a competitive program with top faculty members and solid recruiting options ... alas, it might be getting too competitive as getting into Stern's part-time program is proving to be nearly as difficult as the full-time option. That, coupled with the relative lack of attractive secondary options, knocks New York down this list a ways. That said, for would-be MBA students with portable careers, Manhattan presents a massive amount of industry and at least one elite option for part-time study.

Also consider: Boston (Boston College and Boston University), Philadelphia (Villanova and Drexel), and Dallas (SMU). For "one-hit wonder" locations, consider Ross (Michigan), Nebraska in Lincoln, Elon in North Carolina, and Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh.

For more insight into part-time programs or MBA admissions, give us a call at (800) 925-7737. And, be sure to subscribe to this blog and follow us on Twitter!

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Good Study Tool: GMAT Club's GMAT ToolKit for the iPhone

Our friends at GMAT Club just earned a pretty impressive distinction when their GMAT Toolkit app was recently featured by Apple on its "What's Hot" list!

The iPhone app is part of an ongoing project by GMAT Club to create a terrific test prep app through the power of GMAT Club's community. The ToolKit was originally released several months ago and has since undergone three updates to include additional features requested by users.

While we offer our own GMAT prep app for the iPhone, here are some of the things that we love about GMAT Club's GMAT Toolkit:

• Question sets – the app comes preinstalled with 111 Hard Quant questions and also includes an option to download free additional Sentence Correction questions from GMAT Club's forum


• Timer – a sophisticated GMAT timer specifically designed for GMAT preparation


• Integration – save prep time by getting recommendations from over 78,000 GMAT Club members


• Key Math Concepts – detailed review of Absolute Value, Triangles, Circles, Coordinate Geometry, Standard Deviation and Probability


• Fresh Questions Every Day – receive 2 GMAT questions daily with the app's "Question of the Day" tool

And their GMAT Toolkit keeps evolving... New features and improvements are already on the roadmap for another update in 2-4 weeks, which owners of the app will receive for free.

If you have questions for the developers or want to learn more about the GMAT Toolkit, post a question in the GMAT Toolkit message folder at GMATClub.com.

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Round Three or Not Round Three: Part Two

Picking up where we left off with Part One of our series about applying to business school in Round Three, today we look at a couple of other factors to consider when planning your Round Three admissions strategy.

Another key consideration is the business school to which you're applying. Schools vary greatly in how they approach Round Three. While some are upfront about the fact that seats go fast and there aren't many left in Round Three, others (such as UCLA Anderson) make a point of holding seats for the last round, knowing that there will still be many great applicants applying then.

According to Anderson's MBA Insider's Blog:

Contrary to the belief that the 3rd round of the application process is so vast and competitive that your chances of being admitted are significantly reduced, you should know that each round is evaluated independently. You only compete with other people in your round. If your application is reasonably strong your chances of being admitted to the UCLA Anderson full-time MBA program are as good as any other previous round.

Why do Anderson and some other top schools use this approach? A big reason makes a great deal of sense, although it may not be obvious at first glance: Schools like Anderson compete with many top international schools to attract great candidates, and many of these schools have deadlines that run much later than American schools' deadlines. LBS, for example, will accept applications as late as April 21 this year. Anderson doesn't want this simple fact to be why a strong candidate chooses LBS over its own program. Admissions officers know that a great application can come in any time, and they want to be ready.

Why, then, would you wait until next fall before applying? Ultimately, how successful you will be depends on you more than anything else. If you can't pull together a VERY strong application between now and the Round Three deadline -- and this includes everything, from your GMAT score to your essays to your letters of recommendation -- then waiting will always be your best strategy. Additionally, if waiting will allow you to significantly improve part of your application -- this most often applies to your GMAT score or your academic record, which can be bolstered through additional college coursework -- then it also normally makes sense to wait.

What if you say "What the hell," and apply, anyway? Will that dramatically hurt your chances if you don't get in and want to re-apply in the fall? At most schools, no, it won't, but keep in mind that you can't submit the same application next year -- something will need to be new, or better, or more interesting, compared to what you submit now. So, applying now and getting rejected is not the kiss of death, but in some ways it will in fact raise the bar for you if you choose to reapply.

Of course, as Wayne Gretzky says, "You miss 100% of the shots you never take." So, for some of you, applying now will indeed be your best strategy, although it won't be an easy task unless you can put all the pieces in place and craft a truly strong, memorable application.

Everyone's case is different, of course. If you need more help, call us at (800) 925-7737 and speak with a Veritas Prep admissions expert today. And, as always, be sure to subscribe to this blog and to follow us on Twitter!

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GMAT Tip of the Week: That's a Deduction

If you're watching the Winter Olympics, you're likely amazed at the body control of moguls skiers, the grace of figure skaters, and the creativity of aerial skiers and snowboarders. You might also, however, find yourself becoming particularly critical of those around you, a byproduct of listening to Olympic announcers describing the mistakes made by these all-world athletes:

She didn't stick the landing; unfortunately, that's going to be a deduction.

His knees came apart on that turn...every time you do that, that's a deduction.

With the judged sports, the unfortunate nature of the elite level of competition is that the scoring system seems to assume perfection, and deduct from there, instead of rewarding excellence at each turn. In some cases, the system just isn't set up to reward that excellence -- Jonny Moseley's infamous "Dinner Roll" maneuver in the Olympic mogul skiing competition was too new and too unique to fit the scoring system, and he lost the 2002 gold medal as a result, even though most competitors would agree that his run was the most impressive of all.

The GMAT, in a lot of ways, is scored similarly: questions are structured so that you receive "deductions" in the form of incorrect answers for making minor errors. You can perform admirably on a difficult question, but if your answer contains one of those small mistakes, you'll be punished for it.

Because of this, in your waning days of GMAT preparation before the exam, you should put an emphasis on minimizing those "deductions" by practicing those little things that tend to give you trouble. With a few days before your exam, you're more likely to improve your score by perfecting the things that you do well than you are by adding new tricks to your repertoire. Track your common mistakes, and you'll likely find that you often:

• Answer the wrong question, solving for a value that is slightly different from what the question asks for
• Make assumptions regarding a number (say, that it's an integer, or that it's positive) and thinking that you have more information on a Data Sufficiency problem than you really do have
• Misread the conclusion of a Critical Reasoning question and choose an answer that strengthens your alternate conclusion, but not the official one
• Set up equations incorrectly when working quickly

If you catch yourself making these, or other mistakes, frequently, make a note to slow down in those situations to "stick the landing" and avoid the deductions that the GMAT will take from you if you're not careful.

For more GMAT prep tips and resources, give us a call at (800) 925-7737. And, be sure to follow us on Twitter

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Six Must-Have Professors at Chicago Booth

Continuing our series of admissions insights clipped from Veritas Prep's Annual Reports, our in-depth insider's guides to 15 of the world's top business schools, this week we take a look at six professors who have earned Chicago Booth students' love. (Our Annual reports are absolutely free with registration, but we thought we'd share some snippets here to help get you started in your Booth research.)

Among Chicago Booth students, there are a handful of professors who are considered "must-haves" during one's time in Hyde Park. Note that, while Booth is best known for finance, some of the school's most popular professors come from other departments:

• Sanjay Dhar - Professor Dhar primarily teaches the basic marketing strategy class and is very active in all Chicago Booth MBA programs. Professor Dhar makes this list because his passion in teaching is infectious. He makes the effort to truly know his students and it is not uncommon for Professor Dhar to have all 65 (or more) students in his class remove their name cards so he may recite their names back on the first day of class. Dhar is the recipient of several awards such as the McKinsey Award for Teaching Excellence in 2000, and was cited among the outstanding faculty in BusinessWeek's Guide to the Best Business Schools.


• Steven Kaplan - Professor Kaplan primarily teaches entrepreneurial finance and private equity. A quarter does not go by without students complaining that they were unable to get into his class prior to graduation. His courses are highly completive choices during the bidding process and students are only able to take his courses late in their program, when they have accumulated enough point "wealth." Professor Kaplan consistently attains top scores in Chicago Booth's internal faculty rankings by students over the last decade.


• Eugene Fama - The percentage of students who take Professor Fama's class is relatively small, but the reason for this is that his course content is highly specific, highly rigorous, and has a scope that may go beyond the average Booth student's interest. Professor Fama has been called the "father of modern finance." Professor Fama is highly respected both in academic circles and in the outside investment community. Taking a "Fama course" and doing well does wonders for the credibility of a Booth graduate in the field of finance, but truth be told, only highly skilled Booth students with an interest in analytical finance tend to enjoy his classes.


• Art Middlebrooks - Art Middlebrooks is a prime example of a great adjunct faculty member. His teaching method of "learning by doing" is appropriate in his services marketing and product marketing classes. As a Booth alumnus, he really connects well with his students and continually gets top marks in faculty evaluations. Mr. Middlebrooks is also the current Executive Director of the Kilts Center for Marketing and is the coauthor of Innovating the Corporation and Market Leadership Strategies for Service Companies.


• Harry Davis - Harry Davis is the type of professor who brings balance and perspective to the MBA experience. His Business Policy course is not at all the typical Chicago Booth fare.
  While most courses at Booth tend to dominate the left brain, Professor Davis focuses more on right brain activity: being intuitive, holistic, and metaphorical. Part of the Chicago Booth faculty since the mid-1960s, Professor Davis was once co-dean of the program and was integral to Booth's push to establish campuses in other countries. Booth is not really known for emphasizing leadership topics, yet Professor Davis does just that.


• James Schrager - James E. Schrager's New Venture Strategy is another highly sought-after course at Chicago Booth. His credibility in the business community equals his reputation as
  a faculty member at Booth and his expertise is on display in multiple mainstream media formats, such as the Wall Street Journal and various major television networks. Booth students across the board absolutely love taking his class.

Today's blog post was clipped from our Chicago Booth Annual Report, one of 15 completely free guides to the world's top business schools, available on our site. If you're ready to start building your own application for Chicago, Harvard, Kellogg, or any other top MBA programs, call us at 1-800-925-7737 and speak with an MBA admissions consultant today!

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The Medical School Boom

Over the weekend, The New York Times ran an interesting article about an expected boom in the number of medical degrees that will be awarded in a given year ... the most dramatic increase in years. The article focused on the two dozen new medical schools opening their doors, the 18 percent increase in total number of seats, and the ability to educate more doctors in American medical schools. It all sounds pretty great.

Leave it to one of the best legal blogs around to throw cold water on everyone. The edgy legal blog Above the Law ran a terrific opinion piece that pointed out all of the potential problems with this development by drawing comparisons with the law school arena.

The ATL article exists to ask the big question overlooked in the Times piece, namely, is it a good thing to generate more doctors? The piece takes the "good news" of the Times article and subverts it. Whereas The Times bemoans the fact that "qualified" med students have had to go abroad or into other areas of study, ATL hypothesizes that the mere fact that there are more qualified med students than seats is what preserves high salaries and prestige in the medical profession.

If that seems like an overly simplistic idea (and one that may fly in the face of the U.S.'s ever-pressing need for doctors), the article's author, David Lat, quickly finds support for the premise by looking at the current situation in the legal profession. Just last week, Mark Greenbaum wrote a terrific op-ed piece for The Los Angeles Times that basically begged for a moratorium on new law schools and the expansion of legal training. His stance was pretty simple: there are too many lawyers of varying quality, training, and employability and the net effect is that everyone in the legal profession is suffering as a result. Greenbaum drills the ABA for not creating more barriers to entry and for making a bar card too easy to come by.

Lat takes this observation and simply applies it to the news that medical schools are going to generate 18 percent more doctors. Not surprisingly, he theorizes that this development is going to have the same ramifications as the law school expansion ... too many doctors, not enough gigs, a drop in quality (or at least perceived quality), and, ultimately, a diminution of the prestige and job security of the profession.

The ATL article eventually tails off into a position defense and winds up focusing more on the legal profession than the medical field, but the initial thoughts offer up tremendous food-for-thought. Do we want to make an MD more accessible? Does America need more doctors? If the market floods, does it start a downward spiral?

Most importantly - for people applying and for companies like ours that work with those applicants - what does this mean for long-term career prospects? Surely most candidates are excited about the idea of more spots as it alleviates some of the pressure associated with medical school admissions. But if the value of the degree is jeopardized in the process, who much is that initial relief worth?

At the end of the day, most medical school students are driven by passion and a desire to serve just as much as they are by the money and prestige of being a doctor, so it is possible that these questions will have little impact on the average applicant's decision-making process. And that's probably a good thing. Let's just hope that we can one day say the same thing about the influx of med schools. These driven, passionate people don't deserve to sit around 10 years from now wondering what happened to their career paths.

For more advice on medical school admissions, call us at 800-925-7737 and talk to one of our admissions experts!

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Six Important Considerations for Grad School Financial Aid

Students owe it to themselves to consider the true cost and the true reward of the educational opportunity before them. It is has been said that borrowing money to pay for school is an "investment" and not debt, but try telling that to the loan services when they send out the monthly bill.

Not only that, but the analysis is rarely about going back to school or not going, but rather about making the best possible choice. It may very well be the case that attending one's dream school without the aid of scholarships or grants is the best decision, but it might also be true that a secondary opportunity starts to look a lot better when the calculator comes out.

In order to help students make the best possible choice, adhere to the following tips:

• Understand the true cost of the education. Pay very close attention to not only the current COA, but also the inflation rate at that school. Some universities are seeing tuition go up more rapidly than others, so it makes sense to project the cost for the following year (or years) as well as simply looking at the tuition and cost for the first year.


• Carefully calculate the ultimate balance on unsubsidized and private loans. $100,000 in loans is a lot of money, but it is really a lot of money when the interest kicks in immediately and keeps accumulating for the life of a 10-year loan period. Students should make sure to work with the financial aid officers to figure out how much they will ultimately shell out by the time they finish making payments. Any differences in "free money" between school A and B will only become more exaggerated over time


• Be willing to briefly consider the enrollment decision in purely financial terms. It sounds overly rigid to advise this, but considering how romantically and emotionally most students make their decisions, it will help balance things out to take a short period of time to consider this the way an accountant would.


• Avoid falling victim to the "drop in the bucket" mentality. Most grad students find the sticker price of graduate school so shockingly high that they sort of give up before they even get started. Not only does this lead to less-than-careful review of the award letter, lack of effort in contacting the financial aid officer, and a failure to appeal for reconsideration (all points included above), it can also lead to careless spending. A bigger or nicer apartment, a car payment, and a brand new laptop are all very common expenditures for grad students, and while the extra five or ten thousand dollars doesn't seem like much next to a $140,000 education, that extra spending will absolutely be paid for by the loans with the worst terms and highest interest rates. Those seemingly small items will ultimately cost the student twice as much down the road.


• Doggedly search for outside funding. More common among high school students with parents who see their life savings dwindling away, searching for outside scholarships is often something that slips past graduate school applicants. This is a mistake, as there are a variety of unique scholarships, fellowships, and writing competitions available for graduate students of all stripes. Most top grad programs feature a list of such resources on their websites and there are also both free and pay sites that collate these opportunities.


• Carefully review the financial aid opportunities at every school of interest. This sounds incredibly obvious, but most applicants do not perform a thorough search of each and every scholarship and fellowship offered at the schools to which they are applying. The reason this is so important is that students may actually qualify for something they aren’t even aware of. Whether it is something fairly well known like Teach For America arrangements or something more unique, students need to perform this simple step of due diligence.

This advice has been clipped from the Veritas Prep Guide to Graduate School Financial Aid. If you want more help in getting into business school, law school, or medical school, call us at (800) 925-7737 and speak with a Veritas Prep admissions expert today!

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Does Salary Information Matter in a Business School Application?

Recently we received this question from a client: "I've noticed that many schools ask you to put your salary history on your resume. What role does this play in the MBA admissions process?"

In short, while it's easy to get too worried about what your salary says about you as an applicant, it's a good indicator of how well you've performed on the job, and of how valuable you are to your employer. It's one thing to get a promotion or two, but, at the end of the day, did your employer "show you the money?"

To get a reliable read on how well you've performed on the job, MBA admissions officers only have several things to go by: What you say in your essays/resume/interview, what your recommendation writers say, and your salary information. Obviously, you will say you were great, and you will probably only request a letter of recommendation from someone who will say the same thing. This is where your salary information comes in. It provides a sort of indisputable "fact check" to see how much the company really valued you.

Maybe you received two promotions in title since you were hired, but your salary didn't increase much. If that same company (or other, similar companies in the same industry) tends to give much more significant raises to younger employees, that may tell admissions officers that the company promoted you to keep you from quitting, but you weren't necessarily so great that they were actually willing to pay you significantly more to keep you. Said another way, did the company put its money where its mouth was, or did your title change each year because that's just what happens with all employees at the firm, regardless of their performance?

Don't worry if you come from a company or an industry that doesn't pay a great deal. The more important point is to demonstrate that your level of responsibility has increased over time (a great indicator of strong performance). Your salary is one way to demonstrate that, but it's not the only way.

To get a feel for your chances of admission to a top MBA program, try Veritas Prep's Business School Selector, an absolutely free resource for all MBA applicants. If you're ready to start planning your candidacy, give us a call at (800) 925-7737 and speak with an MBA admissions expert. And, as always, be sure to follow us on Twitter!

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GMAT Tip of the Week: Let The Games Begin

As Biggie would have said, "It was all a dream..." for Pierre de Coubertin. The youth of the world, representing dozens of nations and all sorts of backgrounds, coming together in the spirit of competition to fulfill lifelong dreams. While he could have been dreaming about the GMAT, his project was the Olympic Games, which begin the latest installment of the Winter Olympics tonight in Vancouver. Much like the GMAT, these Olympics feature the best from around the world, all of whom have put in extensive preparation for this shot to prove to the world and to themselves that they belong, and that they can excel.

Much like the GMAT, as well, the Olympics take months of preparation and turn them in to a series of bllink-and-you'll-miss it moments that determine one's fate. Michael Phelps' quest for perfection two years ago came down to a hundredth of a second; if he fails to famously take that extra stroke, he loses his shot at immortality. The potential darling of these Winter Olympics, Lindsey Vonn (labeled by some the "Phemale Phelps" for her expected medal haul), may have already seen her moment come and go, suffering a shin injury in training that may prohibit her from even making a run at a historic Olympics.

Perhaps the fates were cruelest to Dan Jansen, the holder of multiple world records in speedskating with a wealth of expectation to match, who was shut out of the medals in his first two Olympics in 1988 and 1992, and lost his first of two races in his last Olympics in 1994. Jansen, whose non-Olympic record makes him one of the greatest skaters of all-time, slipped and fell in both of his 1988 races, and in his first race of 1994 slipped enough to ruin his race in a cruel reprise of his failues of the past. Like a test-taker with near-perfect practice scores who blanks under pressure, Jansen went in to his last race frustrated, defeated, and, positively, with nothing to lose:

"I finally told myself, 'Just don't expect things anymore, and just go out and see what happens.'"

Perhaps because he finally took the pressure off of himself, Jansen dominated the 1,000 meter race - his last chance at Olympic glory - setting a world record in the process of finally winning a gold medal.

How does this relate to the GMAT?

As did Jansen, you'll have multiple attempts to achieve success on the GMAT - schools, with very few exceptions, will only care about your top score. Also like Jansen, you'll typically achieve that success when you distance yourself from the pressure of needing to excel, and instead allow yourself to just do what you already know how to do. The Olympics, like the GMAT, carry with them a lot of artificial pressure, but when broken down to the essentials - remaining aerodynamic and getting full power from each stride in skating; identifying the crucial elements of the question and carrying out your strategy on the GMAT - the tools to succeed under pressure are exactly those that allow you to be successful when the pressure is off. If you can emphasize the process of answering each question, rather than allowing yourself to be overwhelmed by the situation as a whole, you can retain that inner calm of knowing that you've accomplished each task dozens of times before. And if you keep in mind that delayed success can be just as rewarding as immediate glory - you can always retake the test if you need to - you may be just as relaxed your first time out as Jansen was on his last. In the end, on the GMAT as in the Olympics, having accomplished your goal is reward enough, regardless of the journey that it took to get there.

For more GMAT prep tips and resources, give us a call at (800) 925-7737. And, be sure to follow us on Twitter!

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Three Things that NYU Stern Looks for in MBA Applicants

Continuing our series of admissions insights clipped from Veritas Prep's Annual Reports, our in-depth insider's guides to 15 of the world's top MBA programs, this week we look at three important characteristics that NYU Stern looks for in its applicants. (Our Annual reports are absolutely free with registration, but we thought we'd share some snippets here to help get you started in your Stern research.)

The Stern School's admissions committee claims to evaluate each candidate "holistically," paying careful attention to three clearly defined factors:

• Academic Potential. Students should be "confident in their ability to master the required material and excel in the classroom," and are assessed based on past academic performance (as well as the institutions they attended) and general aptitude as measured by the GMAT. Successful candidates come from a wide range of academic backgrounds, and Stern has no minimum GMAT score or GPA required of applicants, and will only consider an applicant’s highest GMAT score.


• Professional Achievements and Aspirations. Students who will "share their experiences with classmates and perform as future business leaders" are valued at Stern. Therefore, students who have interesting and significant work experiences and who have progressed in their jobs are attractive candidates. The Stern admissions committee also feels strongly that the time spent at Stern should be used to pursue specific, defined short- and long-term goals, not to first identify them. Accordingly, it seeks candidates whose past experiences (and personal passions) have led them to future goals, and who have a clear understanding of how an MBA will assist them in achieving those goals, by assessing candidates’ essay content, resumés, work histories, professional recommendations, and through their ability to express themselves in the interview setting (for 20-to-30 percent of candidates, see below). Although work experience is not required to apply to Stern, most applicants have "material" work experience (between one and 10 years). No one type of professional experience is prized over others, and diversity of backgrounds is sought for each incoming class of MBAs.


• Personal Characteristics. Stern has long had a reputation with outsiders as a meritocratic institution, rich with "scrappy," self-made individuals, rather than entitled, legacy students (who might be perceived as having an edge at other top schools). The way that Stern puts it is that it values "participants and leaders" who will "contribute to the supportive and diverse Stern community." The admissions committee looks for candidates who demonstrate leadership ability, maturity, character, and strong communication skills, and will develop into truly engaged and passionate "Sternies," with enduring pride in and commitment to the school. They look to assess candidates versus these criteria by reviewing essay content, professional recommendations, past activities and achievements, and through the interview process.

Today's installment was clipped from our NYU Stern Annual Report, one of 15 completely free guides to the world's top business schools, available on our site. If you're ready to start building your own application for Stern or other top MBA programs, call us at 1-800-925-7737 and speak with an MBA admissions expert today!

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Five Reasons to Take the GMAT Early

With our full slate of March GMAT courses right around the corner, one of the most common questions we encounter at this time of year is, "When should I take the GMAT?" Many prospective MBA students know the GMAT is in their near future, but for a variety of reasons, they aren't sure they want to deal with it just yet.

Sure, they could take a course in March and have the test done by May, but why not wait until July? We always encourage our students to look at their own individual situations first and foremost, but as a rule of thumb, we tend to encourage test-takers to tackle the GMAT early in the calendar year, whenever possible.

We offer five reasons for taking (and prepping for) the GMAT early:

1. Taking the test early preserves all of your options. One major part of test-taking psychology is to prepare for success and treat your first GMAT examination like it will be your only examination. That said, having options is always a good thing. Given that MBA candidates who sit for multiple GMAT exams are generally not punished during the admissions process, it makes sense to preserve the possibility of taking a second test. The last thing you want to encounter is a timeline that gets jammed up because you want to take the GMAT again. The earlier your prepare for and take the test the first time, the more cushion you allow yourself to repeat the process if necessary.


2. Having a score banked allows you to do proper research. The GMAT plays a major factor in determining admissions possibilities for an MBA candidate. A 30-point difference can send an HBS or Stanford hopefull back to the drawing board in search of a lower-ranked school that might offer a great fit. Alternatively, we've had many clients email us to announce that they "got a 730!" ... but now they have "no idea which schools to look at." The GMAT score serves as a critical benchmark for determining prospects and schools and it is difficult to dive into the school selection process without knowing that score. Late spring is often the best time to visit MBA programs and engage in exhaustive research, but unless you know that the schools are appropriate, that type of activity can wind up being wasted effort.


3. The earlier you are aware of a quant weakness, the more time you have to address it. We talk a lot in this space about how test scores work on two levels: as a raw number and also as an indicator for key admissions themes. When it comes to that second consideration, there is much candidates can do to offset negative admissions themes derived from their GMAT score ... but only if they act quickly enough. In particular, if the quant score is out of balance, an applicant can take some quant-heavy courses over the summer and help alleviate any concerns that the business school has about that student's ability to do the work.


4. No time like winter! It sounds ridiculous, but it can often be harder to buckle down and study during the summer months when the weather is great, the days are longer, softball leagues are happening ... you get the idea. Summer is a season that competes for our time like no other stretch of the year save for the holidays. Avoid the conflict and chase out the final days of winter with some serious GMAT prep.


5. Candidates are slaves to the GMAT. Above all else, the GMAT has the capacity to cripple an applicant's entire operation. So many of our admissions consulting clients wait to start working with a consultant until the test is over. Many other candidates won't even touch the essays until they have the GMAT squarely in their rearview mirror. Many applicants are linear thinkers and like to clear hurdles one at a time. Since the GMAT is often the first hurdle, and it is a task that people push off for later, it tends to set back the entire process. The sooner that you can tackle the GMAT, conquer it, and put it in your trophy case, the sooner you can address the rest of the process - essays, interviews, and everything else - with a clear mind and a sense of purpose.

For more GMAT prep tips and resources, give us a call at (800) 925-7737. And, be sure to subscribe to this blog and follow us on Twitter!

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Applying to Business School with a Blemish in Your Application

Today's issue of The Daily Pennsylvanian, U. Penn's student-run newspaper, featured an article about applying top business schools with a blemish or "black mark" in one's background. The article was mostly written with Wharton in mind, but the article's main takeaways are applicable for anyone applying to any top business school.

The message? Having a serious blemish in your past will create more work for you as you try to create the perfect application, but it won't automatically keep you out of a top MBA program. Incidents such as low undergraduate grades, academic disciplinary action, and legal troubles can all be overcome by an otherwise strong applicant, as long as the applicant addresses the blemish head-on in the application.

"The worst thing for a student to do is to ignore something they have noticed about their application that they regard as an issue or weakness and hope we won't notice," says Associate Director of Wharton MBA Admissions Kathryn Bezella in the article. "A hundred percent of the time, we will notice -- it's our job to notice."

This has especially become true in the past decade as more and more top business schools (including Wharton) have formalized the post-admission fact-checking process, using third-party firms to audit applications to make sure that everything is as you say it is in your application. While this IRS-like auditing might seem scary to some, it's actually quite liberating. If an applicant ever faces the moral dilemma of "Should I disclose this blemish in my application?" his job is made easier by knowing that the school most likely will find out about one way or another. And, just like the dynamic between parents and children, it's much better for the admissions office to hear it from you, not from an investigation agency.

Also, these application audits let an applicant know that the playing field is indeed level. If the auditors do their jobs well, they will find other applicants' past mistakes, too, so any given applicant can know that he's not putting himself at an unfair advantage by "playing by the rules" and disclosing something negative from his past.

Then, the question becomes how to address these problems in one's background. Here the advice (including Veritas Prep's own advice) is unanimous: Address the issue head-on, succinctly explain what happened, describe what you learned from it and how you grew as a result of the problem, and (ideally) point to more recent instances where you put that learning to use. You should avoid the temptation to lay litany of excuses at the admissions committee's feet... They're only hearing your side of the story, and while they truly are open minded about your explanation, by going on and on about the blemish you could actually begin to create new questions in their minds.

"It's all about how you handle it and what evidence you have to back up your claims," adds Associate Director Bezella. They know you're not perfect, and admitting failure or a mistake -- and showing how you took action to not let it happen again -- is more impressive than providing ten reasons why the blemish wasn't your fault.

If you're interested in Wharton or any other top business school, take a look at our Veritas Prep Annual Reports, 15 completely free guides to the world's top MBA programs.If you're ready to start building your own MBA application, call us at 1-800-925-7737 and speak with an MBA admissions expert today!

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Round Three or Not Round Three: Part One

This is the time of year when, every time the phone rings here at Veritas Prep HQ, there's a good chance it's an applicant calling to ask us if he should apply to business school in the third admissions round, or if he should wait until next year. The answer, as is the answer for most things in life, is "It depends."

Notice that we didn't say, "No way!" and we also didn't say, "Heck yeah!" There are some important macro trends to consider when applying in Round Three (or any any round, for that matter), but how good your chances are still depends on you and the quality of your application more than anything else.

The most obvious question is, How much room is left in Round Three? Business schools know that the proportions of applicants that come in each round are fairly consistent from year to the next, so they can plan ahead to some extent, leaving at least some room for Round Three applicants. Still, the number of seats at top MBA programs does tend to get pretty low at this point -- admissions officers from Stanford, Kellogg, Yale, Booth, and Ross have all said this, among others -- sometimes making admissions officers more reluctant to take a chance on an applicant with a glaring weakness or one who simply doesn't have anything remarkable to point to in his application. So, borderline applicants probably will indeed find that it's harder to get into a top MBA program in Round Three.

Said another way, great applicants will still have a strong chance of being admitted to at least one of their target schools, although creating a great application is of course a challenge for most applicants. In a blog post last March, Stanford GSB's Derrick Bolton said, "While it is true that the final round typically is smaller than the first two, we do admit excellent candidates in Round 3." Note the emphasis on excellent... If your candidacy is anything less than excellent, then you probably won't get into Stanford in Round Three, although the same can be said about the earlier rounds, too.

When you submit a Round Three application, you also may need overcome the question of "Why are you applying now, and not five months ago?" This is especially crucial if you're presenting a story of how earning an MBA has been a lifelong ambition, one that you've been planning for years. Of course, situations change and force applicants to apply a little earlier than originally planned (e.g., losing one's job), and other things hold an applicant back from applying sooner (e.g., taking the GMAT again to try to earn a significantly better score), and admissions officers are open-minded about these reasons, but you do need to be mindful of the message you send if you apply in Round Three... Is yours a well planned application that just so happened to arrive in March, or is the result of a hasty whim? That may be the difference between being one of the last applicants that the school will accept for the year, and being one of the school's final dings.

Next week we'll revisit a few other things to consider when deciding whether or not to apply to a top business school in Round Three. In the meantime, if you're in this conundrum right now, call us at (800) 925-7737 and speak with a Veritas Prep admissions expert today. And, as always, be sure to subscribe to this blog and to follow us on Twitter!

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GMAT Tip of the Week: Standardized Parts

What do Eli Whitney and Honore le Blanc have in common? And what does their commonality have to do with your impending GMAT exam?

Le Blanc is widely credited with having invented the concept of standardized parts in manufacturing. A gunsmith in the 1700s, his idea was to standardize each component of a gun, so that when one part broke, it could easily be replaced by another instead of needing to be individually repaired by a blacksmith or replaced by another gun entirely.

His idea didn't make it too far in France, where other gunsmiths and blacksmiths wholeheartedly opposed this threat to their business models, but the notion of standardization crossed the Atlantic, and with the support of Thomas Jefferson, Eli Whitney incorporated the idea of standardized parts in to his manufacturing. Standardized manufacturing revolutionized industry, and, perhaps just as importantly, made its way in to the realm of academic assessment with the eventual dawn of the "standardized test."

The driving force behind the standardized test is the concept that a series of seemingly-unique questions written to be nearly identical in difficulty and skill assessment can uniformly assess a student's academic abilities. In order to work, these questions need to appear unique to the test-taker, but be nearly identical to the test-maker. Knowing this can be a huge advantage to you as you study. How can you use your knowledge of Le Blanc, Whitney, and Jefferson to your GMAT advantage?

Knowing that the GMAT is committed to testing "standardized components", you can avoid a frequent Sentence Correction mistake. Many students both intensively study and excruciatingly debate obscure idioms. While the GMAT will certainly use appropriate idioms in its correct answer choices, such idioms are difficult to fit within the "standardized components" framework of a standardized test. Consider the sentences:

At the time of the Civil War, more American soldiers died than during any other period in U.S. history.

vs.

During the time of the Civil War, more American soldiers died than during any other period in U.S. history.

Many might consider the difference in the sentences - "At the time of" vs. "During" - to be an idiomatic choice, but in actuality it fits the GMAT's standardization well:

1) The GMAT requires that, when items are compared, they must be compared in equivalent form. Each sentence includes the phrase "...during any other period...", meaning that we need to compare durations of time, and not a single snapshot of time to a duration. This suggests that the second, "during", is correct.

2) The GMAT also tests logic moreso than it does "idioms", and the first sentence is illogical. It suggests that, at one time (THE time of the Civil War), a large number of soldiers died. Because the war took place over a period of time, the phrase "at the time of" is illogical, as the action would have needed to take place over the duration of the war. Again, the second statement is correct.

As you study for the GMAT, the more that you can look for broader-scope reasons that answers are correct or incorrect, the better off you'll be. The test has to assess your ability using standardized components - comparisons, the logic of statments - and, by nature, can't afford to rely on solutions that are simply "idiomatic." As Whitney and LeBlanc demonstrated, idiomatic solutions are too primitive to be largely useful in the new wave of industry.

For more GMAT prep tips and resources, give us a call at (800) 925-7737. And, be sure to subscribe to this blog and follow us on Twitter!

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Veritas Prep Announces 2009 GMAT Instructor of the Year Winners

If it's February in Southern California, it must be awards season. This past weekend, Los Angeles played host to the Grammys, and the nominees for this month's Academy Awards were announced. Just a few miles west, at Veritas Prep headquarters in Malibu, the academic services team at Veritas Prep sorted through its 2009 evaluation data to select its winners for the almost-as-prestigious Instructor of the Year award.

To be considered for the Instructor of the Year award is an honor in itself. Veritas Prep's GMAT prep instructors are no strangers to award and honors, with the faculty possessing accolades such as NCAA All-American, Forbes Future Capitalist, and Philly's Phunniest Comedian. Selecting award winners from this already select group is a difficult task, but the selection committee thanks this year's winners for excelling at their job enough to make that decision a bit easier.

Without further ado, this year's winners are:

• Rob Stringham, New York City


• Bobby Umar, Toronto

Rob Stringham, New York City
A Veritas Prep instructor since 2004, Rob has managed to lead the worldwide faculty in instructor evaluation scores with the added degree-of-difficulty of teaching in the world's most demanding market, New York. Typically juggling multiple schedules - often teaching on Long Island or in New Jersey in addition to his Manhattan classes - Rob strikes an admirable rapport with his students, eliciting multiple comments to the extent of "Rob was probably the best teacher I've ever had".

Bobby Umar, Toronto
Bobby's GMAT students are typically well-prepared for the AWA essays if only because they get so much writing practice when they submit multiple paragraphs of praise in the "optional comments' section of their course evaluations; Bobby leads the worldwide faculty in length-of-comments and number-of-exclamation-points in his course reviews, having inspired his students with equal parts knowledge of, confidence in, and enthusiasm for the GMAT. Like Rob, Bobby garners praise to the extent of "Bobby is the best teacher I've ever had at any level;" the team at Veritas Prep headquarters agrees that he's one of the best that we've ever had, as well.

Veritas Prep Instructor of the Year winners will be teaching several classes around the world this spring. Their upcoming assignments include:

• Bobby Umar: Toronto Weekend Course, February 13; Toronto Full Course, March 8


• Rob Stringham: New York City Full Course, March 20


• David Newland: Boston Weekend Course, February 13; Boston Full Course, March 8


• Burak Powers: Houston Weekend Course, April 10


• Amit Kakkad: London Full Course, March 8; London Intensive Course, March 21


• Ken Kleinfeld: Washington Verbal Focus, February 13; Washington Full Course, March 8


• Chris Kane: New York City Weekend Course, February 13; New York City Full Course, March 8; New York City Intensive Course, March 14


• Megan Kucik: Washington Quant Focus, February 20; Virtual Veritas Prep, April 14


• Kevin Richardson: Virtual Veritas Prep, February 8


• Cliff Smith: Palo Alto Full Course, March 20; Palo Alto Full Course, March 23; Voice of Veritas Prep on Demand

From the entire Veritas Prep team, we'd like to offer a huge CONGRATS to Rob and Bobby! Great work in 2009, guys. Here's to an even better 2010!

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Kellogg Admissions Officers Offer Insights in Online BusinessWeek Chat

Earlier this week Beth Flye, assistant dean and director of admissions at the Kellogg School of Management, and Carla Edelston, senior associate director of the school's Career Management Center, fielded questions from applicants during a live online chat on BusinessWeek. In the chat Flye and Edelston offered up some good nuggets for applicants who are in the thick of the MBA admissions process.

When asked about how much Kellogg "weighs extracurricular activities," Flye's response was right on target with what we tell our clients: "We do review extracurricular activities as that area shows us more about the applicant—i.e., his/her passions, involvements—as well as [allowing us to] learn more about that person's leadership and team involvements beyond work."

Note those last few words... Don't think of extracurricular activities, community service, and hobbies as a "check the box" exercise, but rather as one more way to demonstrate the traits that admissions officers look for in all applicants: leadership, teamwork, innovation, and maturity. While it may not seem obvious at first glance, community service and recreational activities can help you demonstrate these attributes just as much as your full-time job can.

In terms of the number of applications Kellogg has received so far this year, Flye reports that Kellogg's numbers are up slightly vs. this time last year. It will be interesting to see where Kellogg and other top MBA programs net out at the end of the year... Will the soft economy keep pushing more people to grad school, or will the worldwide financial shakeout continue to put downward pressure on the number of business school applications? Or both?

One applicant asked about whether a low GMAT score will hurt an applicant with a strong undergraduate GPA, and once again Flye gave advice that we frequently give to applicants: "If your quantitative score was not as competitive and if you had never had a quant class, I would encourage you to take a statistics course to be more competitive, and to further prepare yourself to be a student." We firmly believe that you can't go wrong by taking a couple of college-level courses before applying to business school, especially if you didn't major in (or do well in) quant-oriented courses while you were an undergrad.

Interestingly, while some schools recently have encouraged applicants to consider applying in Round 3, Kellogg's take is less rosy for a potential Round 3 applicant: "We strongly encourage candidates to apply for one of the first two rounds."

Finally, to an applicant who asked about low GMAT scores, Flye confirmed that Kellogg focuses on an applicant's highest GMAT score. So, if you aren't satisfied with your current score, there's virtually no downside in taking it again.

If you're ready to start building your own application for Kellogg or other top MBA programs, call us at 1-800-925-7737 and speak with an MBA admissions consultant today!

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Five Things That Make UCLA Anderson Unique

Continuing our series of admissions insights clipped from Veritas Prep's Annual Reports, our in-depth insider's guides to 15 of the world's top MBA programs, this week we investigate a few things that make UCLA Anderson's approach to graduate management education unique. (Our Annual reports are absolutely free with registration, but we thought we'd share some snippets here to help get you started in your Anderson research.)

UCLA Anderson's methodology is composed of a multi-faceted approach primarily delivered through lectures. The following are five key aspects of a UCLA Anderson education that comprise the framework of the MBA experience:

• The UCLA Anderson Culture. The emphasis on teamwork inside and outside of the classroom is the hallmark of the UCLA Anderson experience and the foundation for the rest of the school's approach. Student collaboration and leadership within teams is the attribute that ties everything together at UCLA Anderson. There are several schools with great student cultures – NYU Stern is known for the way students look out for each other during the job search process and Duke Fuqua is legendary for the enthusiasm on display from the various student groups – but Anderson's culture is largely unmatched, save perhaps for Kellogg. In fact, Anderson and Kellogg can often seem very similar in this one area of true collaboration and a spirit of teamwork that runs through the entire program.


• Diversity of Coursework within a Generalist Approach. The classroom approach at UCLA Anderson mirrors its general curriculum. While students may focus on a certain subset of course work, there are no declared specialties or designations. With the 10 core classes, students are expected to collaborate with other team members, each from differing professional backgrounds and skills sets. By putting everyone on the same page, the core offers a base of skills that are as much lessons in human relations and cooperation as they are on a given subject matter. Beyond the core, students will gravitate towards a multitude of electives in eight specialty areas. These eight areas include Consulting, Entertainment and Media Management, Entrepreneurship, Finance, Management, Marketing, Operations, and Real Estate.


• A Practical Approach to Learning. Many elite business schools offer its students the chance to study in the field and to get real world experience, but few incorporate the mantra of "learning by doing" to the degree of UCLA. The crux of this approach is the Applied Management Research project (AMR). The AMR project is conducted in teams of 4-6 students during the second year and represents a capstone to the UCLA Anderson experience. From the number of students who participate in business plan competitions to unique classroom opportunities to creating and test new technologies, UCLA Anderson allows every student to find a way to put their theoretical learning to the real world test. The school offers a nearly unparallel variety of courses and labs that focus almost entirely on learning by doing.


• Leadership and Social Responsibility. As mentioned above, UCLA Anderson puts a great deal of focus on leadership and a commitment to community. This applies to the admissions process, but also to the coursework and educational experience as the school attempts to elevate good leaders to great ones. Specific leadership courses and a pre-term orientation course, Leadership Foundations, bring this approach to the curriculum. Prominent programs and organizations such as the Riordan Programs and Challenge for Charity offer students the opportunity to explore concepts surrounding social responsibility.


• A Global Perspective. Like many top business schools, UCLA can boast an increasingly global approach to its learning environment and coursework. The student body is comprised of students from 40 different countries and the school has focused coursework and experiential learning opportunities specific to the global landscape, such as the Global Access Program, Advanced International Exchange Program, and Special Topics in Management courses that focus on emerging economies.

Today's installment was clipped from our UCLA Anderson Annual Report, one of 15 completely free guides to the world's top business schools, available on our site. If you're ready to start building your own application for UCLA or other top MBA programs, call us at 1-800-925-7737 and speak with an MBA admissions expert today!

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Improve Your GMAT Score in Just Two Weeks!

Sorry, we couldn't resist creating a "Seven-Minute Abs"-like title. If you've landed here while looking for a way to boost your GMAT score in two weeks' time, you've got your work cut out for you. But, we are the GMAT prep experts, and we received this question from an applicant recently, so let's dig in:

The surest way to improve quickly on the GMAT is by identifying the mistakes that you're making, and being aware of them on test day so that you don't make them again. The writers of the GMAT craft incorrect answers around a series of commonly-occurring mistakes that examinees tend to make –- things like misidentifying the conclusion on a Critical Reasoning problem, or skipping a last step on a Problem Solving question (e.g., solving for x when they actually ask for y), or making an assumption on a Data Sufficiency problem (e.g., assuming that x is positive when they don't specify it, and it could in fact be negative).

If you're aware of the mistakes that you tend to make, you can make quick notes to yourself at the beginning of the exam on your noteboard, and remind yourself at the end of each question to double-check those mistakes.

Another relatively-quick fix to scoring problems on the GMAT is a better pacing strategy. On your most recent practice test, did you have any time left over at the end of either section? It's likely that you didn't based on your score, and if you either failed to answer any questions at the end of a section, or had to guess on a series of questions just to complete a section, the penalty affected your score substantially. Again, go back to your practice tests and/or homework sets and determine which types of questions create the biggest timing problems for you. If you can identify 1-2 of those on test day and avoid spending an undue amount of time on them (guess early if you have to), you'll have sufficient time to answer more of the questions that you can get right in a limited amount of time, and increase your score.

(Note: this advice assumes that you truly only have a couple of weeks to prepare for the exam. If you have more time, we advise spending more time to become quicker at any questions that take you a long time, but if you're in a rush, simply knowing that you can guess on a question that would take you 4-5 minutes in order to have a shot at 2-3 or more questions that you can do in under 2 is a great way to make a quick improvement to your overall score).

If you have more time, we suggest working with a GMAT program that will help you master the individual question types. In addition to the "common errors" mentioned above, each question on the GMAT is written to be similar to a series of others, and you can learn to spot quickly what you're being asked to do and how to break down the steps of each question systematically. Even having a thorough understanding of one third of the questions on either section (say, Critical Reasoning on verbal and Data Sufficiency on quant) will drastically increase your odds of getting those questions correct, and also give you more time to carefully work through other questions.

Ideally, if you're armed with the strategic blueprint of each question type, plus a good understanding of the types of errors you're likely to commit on each, you'll work through the test methodically and confidently with time to spare at the end.

For more GMAT preparation tips and resources, give us a call at (800) 925-7737. And, be sure to follow us on Twitter!

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