The countdown is on MBA hopefuls! We are exactly six weeks away from our Round 1 deadline on September 23rd. For those of you planning to submit your application for this deadline, there are several things you should be knocking off your checklist as soon as possible:
1. GMAT. Write it or, at minimum, pull the trigger and schedule yourself a test date in the coming weeks. Even if you write after the application deadline, you can submit the rest of your application for September 23rd and we will add your GMAT score when it is complete.
2. Line up your referees. A quick coffee or phone call to chat with them about your MBA plans, your motivations behind it and schools you are applying to. (Note that we have a template form you will send to your referees. This is available in the online application).
3. Preview the essays in our online application and start jotting down some key points/ideas. Tip: we suggest writing your essays in a Word document and then cutting and pasting into the application when ready.
4. Dust off that resume. Add any recent or relevant updates, and start to build impact and achievement into your points. We don’t want to know just what you did but how you made an impact in the organization. This is what will help us assess the quality of your work experience.
5. Plan for a campus visit (if possible). Whether it’s before you submit your application or shortly after, assessing ‘fit’ is something you should do before you are required to put down that tuition deposit and solidify your choice. Our upcoming campus visits are an Open House on Saturday September 14th and a Class Visit on Monday October 7th.
6. Contact us! If you have any questions at all about the program, your application, next steps, special circumstances, GMAT scores, etc., etc., etc. – contact your Recruiting Manager. If you have yet to be in touch with a Recruiting Manager from our team (Chris Asper, Hilary Lemieux, or me) contact us at mba@ivey.ca and we’ll connect you right away. Remember that our job is to help you through this process.
If you need even more tips to keep you going, check out this recent post from Clear Admit: Planning for the R1 MBA Deadlines
One common question I have to address: If you have a GMAT score complete and are ready to submit your application, please do! We process our applications on a rolling basis so we still review, schedule interviews etc. in between our deadlines (and can sometimes do so faster without the heavy round volume). If you’re planning for a GMAT rewrite, you can let us know on your application and then submit your new score once it’s available – we will hold our admissions decision until all components are completed and up to date. Reminder: we will only use your highest score.
Ready….set…GO! We look forward to seeing your applications in just a few weeks!