Walter: Bring it On, HBS

July 31, 2013 :: Admissionado Team

In my previous post, I mentioned starting on the process of finding recommenders. And I have to say, I am happy that I informed my recommenders quite early on in my admissions cycle. Often times, this is not a high priority item on their list and it takes significant time to complete five or six questions of over 250 characters each…and that too for 4-5 schools. I’ve also requested them to give go as specific as they can in giving recommendations. So I am glad that I gave them plenty of time to do just that; and I am sure they appreciate that time as well.

Besides that, I have also spent some time refining my goals. Here again I am trying to go as specific as possible – listing company names and titles. I feel I have learned a lot about the post-MBA world in my last year, as I enjoyed connecting to and talking to MBA students. The gained knowledge is leading me to a different path than the one I mentioned when I applied last year. It’s not a complete change – I still want to focus on marketing and strategy – however, the long term vision now calls for a broader impact.

Also, I have finally decided to go ahead with HBS as the school I will be working on with Eric. It goes without saying, but HBS will offer an opportunity to learn from amazing classmates and super fantastic professors. FIELD integrates well with the case methodology at HBS to provide an awesome experience. There will also be changes in the second year curriculum with more focus on practical aspects, as a result of a $10 million fund by an alumnus. It just really is the best program for me… and now I need to prove to the adcom that I’m the best applicant for them.

I’m incredibly excited about HBS, though a bit nervous about the single HBS essay (like everyone else out there). Now I just need to figure out the best strategy there…

Wish me luck!

Walter’s your “typical” (in the eyes of the adcom) Indian IT male, fighting his way to HBS. He’s sharing his (re-)application journey and lessons he’s learning from start to finish for 2014. Follow along riiiight here.