Just to add my 2 cents to help those planning on applying to to B-Schs.

I applied to HBS and YSOM(Yale) for fall 2009.
My profile: GMAT - above 700;
GPA: ~3.7/4.0; BSc: 3rd tier university in US
Work Exp: 4+ IT from diff top US coys
Extracuricular: very good (btw - this is equally as important as other criteria)

I got dinged at HBS and got dinged at Yale after interview. Although, i applied to both schools during round 3. It's usually more difficult since most of the seats have already been given to R1 & 2 admits. I'm currently reapplying to these schools and 2 more schools as well.
Looking back, I could have put a little more work into my essays - this is where you sell yourself best to adCom.

Word of advice: as you already know it's extremely competitive so every part of your appl should be close to stellar. To give you an idea; I just met a guy from HBS class of 2011 and his profile looks like this:
GMAT - 780;
BSC Engr and MSc Eng (both from MIT) - Not sure of his GPAs but judging from everything else, i'd guess it was strong as well.
Work Exp: 3+ Leading software company in the world - your guess would do.

Needless to say is that I was intimidated after learning about his superior background, but this helped shed light for me as to the caliber of my competitors. Nevertheless I still think luck also plays its role.

Where was that 3.7 from, and in what major?

I purposely left that out, but to give a clue: a not so higly ranked HBCU. Major: Comp sci

Generally, AdComs are faced with a challenge when trying to measure the academic standing of students that attended unranked colleges with conterparts that attended colleges highly ranked within their major. Oh well, I can't change undergrad sch but I have a general feeling my whole profile should land me in one of my schools of choice, and considering it was good enough to get an interview invite (last appl season) from YSOM (albeit, not an M7 b-sch, still).

yeah, I was just curious- because I hate to be a bummer, but from what I have seen, schools seem to matter for Wharton/Harvard with the bulk of their students coming from certain schools. It could be also what is termed self-selection, in which usually only people from the best undergrads aspire to attend elite business schools. Also not surprising that HBS and Wharton's best friends are analysts from top consulting/I-banks/energy and IT firms because these people have the salary and connections to get into this school- wetin poor man pikin go do?.

I am impressed you got interviewed at Yale after applying so late. Goodluck though!!!

So is the top 7 a standard for Business school, i know for law school it is T-14? I would be a bit shocked if top would exclude Dartmouth and Columbia

rookie, i have seen ur post , sorry the spambot is doing his crazy runs tonite.

I was interested in your use of the term M-7 because I felt it would be pertinent to previous discussions about the need and efficacy of obtaining an MBA. For example, people who are going to law school say it isn't worth it shelling 60,000 dollars a year if you are not attending a T-14 law school, since to pay these debt you most likely need to sell your soul to a corporate law firm. So, i wanted to see if the M7 was an arbitrary term used to refer to schools which served as the core of the toppest business schools where anything less makes it more difficult for you to get recruited at the top firms and hence no need to take the 100,000+ debt

Yeah and I heard Ghana doesn't just surpass Nigerian students at Yale, but proportion wise, also at HBS. This isn't surprising though- nigerians tend to dominate undergraduate programs for africans then slack off a bit for post-graduate studies preferring to hustle instead

rookie,
I am guessing you went to FAMU (just my guess though) but on a more serious note, whenever you are applying, THE EARLIER YOU APPLY, THE BETTER. The reason is that when you apply early, you are competing against a lot less applicants. But if you apply in round 2 and round 3, your application better be stellar.

sefago,
if you want to go to law school, its better you go to university of california-irvine because they are tuition free. It is one of the top law programs in the country but they realized that if they want to surpass harvard and stanford that they should eliminate tuitions so as to have access to a wider quality of law students (specifically, the type that go to yale or columbia) this is good for them because they have a lot of money in endowments (i am guessing) but this automatically makes them more selective concerning the quality of students they select.

UCI, top law school   . I doubt it is ranked. and i definitely doubt they have cross admits with pepperdine, not to talk of the Big three or T-14. Considering the fact that getting into a top law school is 3 times harder than b-school.   Not planning to do law school, too many lawyers in America anyways. However, I admit it is one of the fastest ways to $$$$$$$$. Considering the fact that partners earn 1 million b4 bonuses, b4 the recession of course  

Hey quick question, u said u applied to IEOR/FEOR or finance programs- do u have a very quantitative background. I am asking because one of my friends is getting the punishment of his life while applying for jobs- he is getting rejected everywhere despite being a top applicant- 3.8+ GPA in the hard sciences, significant awards in school, part of a selective program in his school which gets him in contact vice-presidents and managers at morgan stanley, bain and deloitte - but he has gotten 0 job offers, despite his networking skills and experienc eand so he wants to apply to graduate school.

^^^^^ its a tough job market for everyone.

yep it is, but I am shocked supersmart and driven people are also having problems. This guy I am talking of is in a class of his own. One of the few people I am impressed with

things should pick up towards the end of next yr--- grad skool might not be a bad option.

the only place hiring at the speed of light these days are nonprofits--- but pay is not great.

SEFAGO:

I was interested in your use of the term M-7 because I felt it would be pertinent to previous discussions about the need and efficacy of obtaining an MBA. For example, people who are going to law school say it isn't worth it shelling 60,000 dollars a year if you are not attending a T-14 law school, since to pay these debt you most likely need to sell your soul to a corporate law firm. So, i wanted to see if the M7 was an arbitrary term used to refer to schools which served as the core of the toppest business schools where anything less makes it more difficult for you to get recruited at the top firms and hence no need to take the 100,000+ debt

M-7 falls short as a reference to top tier MBA (as you had earlier suspected) simply because it excludes some top ranked schs/ IVYs. Hence, i'm not sure it would be sufficient as a reference to all top-tier MBA schools. Nevertheless, when used loosely, there is a general understanding that it refers to creme of the crop, which obviously extends to the rest of the top-tiers i.e columbia, yale etc.

Not to beat the dead horse, but i understand why lots of folks would feel that investing heavily into a degree (i.e MBA) is a waste of resource. We can all agree that the cost of MBA degree from top-ranked schools these days surpass the short-term value of the degree. Nonetheless, I think in the long run cost and value tend to close up a little. Not only because of the almost exclusive access to the bulge bracket companies, but also because of the influential network and unprecedented access to successful alums you might get. Still i agree that such MBA isn't for everyone and it cannot guarantee success. Matter of fact, If i were to be given cash that would cover my MBA, I think i would keep the cash and still pay for my MBA through loans - this is largely the case.

davidif:

,  whenever you are applying, THE EARLIER YOU APPLY, THE BETTER. The reason is that when you apply early, you are competing against a lot less applicants. But if you apply in round 2 and round 3, your application better be stellar.

it's almost unfortunate that i had to learn this through an experience  . In truth, it was worth it.

Hey quick question, u said u applied to IEOR/FEOR or finance programs- do u have a very quantitative background. I am asking because one of my friends is getting the punishment of his life while applying for jobs- he is getting rejected everywhere despite being a top applicant- 3.8+ GPA in the hard sciences, significant awards in school, part of a selective program in his school which gets him in contact vice-presidents and managers at morgan stanley, bain and deloitte - but he has gotten 0 job offers, despite his networking skills and experienc eand so he wants to apply to graduate school.

I don't have a heavy quant background, that is why Columbia turned me down. I called the head of their program and when he found out that i didn't study engineering he was like naw, that they only take engineers so i fashid being a quant.

rookie,
First of all congratulations on being interviewed by Yale, but on a more serious note, you mean Yale called you for an interview and YOU WERE NOT WELL PREPARED?? Unbelievable.

my guy I was thinking the same thing

SEFAGO:

my guy I was thinking the same thing

shaaaay, i would give anything for that kind of interview, afterall, its almost like a once in a lifetime thing.

C'mon, you guys should cut the guy some slack. Been admitted is a function of quality of other candidates. I once interviewed with a top software company and they later told me they 're moving on with other candidates. That doesn't mean I wasn't prepared but that some other candidates were better than me. In this economy, there are so many folks with stellar CVs looking for openings be it admission or job placement. And it's not even a once-in-a-lifetime thing. The institutions will give you another opportunity down the road, you only have to make sure you 've bolstered your CV with improved materials (experience, qualifications, etc) by then.

Is it possible to get an mba in aberdeen or rgu under 15k pounds and without doing a gmat or what other school can anyone advice with especially good chance of getting a great job after studies cos i have a couple of guys who came back from england and are still jobless till now.

Isn't the GMATs strictly for U.S schools?

Not rily, british and canadian schools take it-

^^^
Are you sure? I 've friends that went to UK for their MBA and none mentioned having to do GMAT. In fact getting admission to UK school is simply a matter of applying (that's my impression). I had a friend who couldn't speak or write good English yet got admission to a UK school. GMAT + TOEFL would have helped to weed out such characters.

I think if UK schools require GMAT, they 'd also demand GRE for non-MBA courses. But that's not the case. VERDICT: GMAT (and GRE) is(are) for U.S. and CANADIAN schools only.

^^^ so I thot. British schools mainly check TOEFEL scores--- which measures ur understanding of English literacy

Are you sure? I 've friends that went to UK for their MBA and none mentioned having to do GMAT. In fact getting admission to UK school is simply a matter of applying (that's my impression). I had a friend who couldn't speak or write good English yet got admission to a UK school. GMAT + TOEFL would have helped to weed out such characters.

I think if UK schools require GMAT, they 'd also demand GRE for non-MBA courses. But that's not the case. VERDICT: GMAT (and GRE) is(are) for U.S. and CANADIAN schools only.

British graduate schools also take GRE especially for those who are from North American schools- notice i said take and not require

When you complete your online application form, you will be asked to attach:

    * your application essays
    * a one-page CV/resume
    * names and details of two referees
    * copies of your university transcript

You also need to arrange for us to receive:

    * your GMAT score (self-reported scores are sufficient at the time of application)
    * proof of your English Language ability
    * your application fee of £150
    * an original transcript of grades from each university you have attended if you are made an offer

The section on transcripts below explains how you should send us this information

http://www.london.edu/programmes/mba/applying.html

I would even go further and saying a lot of business schools in the world take the GMAT. I have seen tons of graduate schools outside North America require the GRE too.

Good to know---- thanks for the additional research