By doing some “intelligence,” we mean, where possible, contacting past colleagues in a discreet and diplomatic way to find out what their experiences were like with your potential recommender. For example, was your potential recommender a generous advocate or was he/she a disinterested third party who had a tendency to be harsh? Clearly, learning more about your target recommender’s approach in advance can help you understand whether or not you should offer him/her this important responsibility. Past colleagues can also guide you in how best to manage your recommenders, which can be just as important as choosing them. Knowing up front that your recommender is a procrastinator or performed better after being given a list of accomplishments from which to work can help ensure the best letter possible and can prevent you from inadvertently antagonizing your recommender or delaying the process.

For more information about recommendations, check out mbaMission’s Letters of Recommendation Guide, which includes a guide to give your recommenders and a full sample letter with notes.

You’ll have the opportunity to meet with representatives from the Anderson School of Management at our upcoming Road to Business School fairs. Don’t miss your chance to meet one-on-one with admissions representatives from this highly respected program. Register today!

UCLA Anderson School of Management

Founded in the depth of the Great Depression, UCLA Anderson School of Management now ranks among the top-tier business schools in the world. An award-winning faculty renowned for research and teaching, highly selective admissions, successful alumni and world-class facilities combine to provide an extraordinary learning environment in the heart of Southern California.

UCLA Anderson represents a select group of diverse and talented individuals from more than 50 countries around the world and a network of more than 37,000 accomplished and accessible alumni. The school is strategically located in Los Angeles, the business hub of the West Coast and the gateway to South America and the Pacific Rim. The same entrepreneurial spirit that first drew people to the promise of the “City of Angels” provides the driving force behind the most diverse city in the US in its employment base, number of citizenships represented, languages spoken and cultural opportunities. As part of the Anderson program, students will not just witness the excellence that is there now, but will have a daily stake in building on it.

I know what happens after undergraduate commencement: life. The vast majority of my aspirant MBAs are 3-5 years into their professional lives by the time they start positioning themselves for b-school. As the reality of the GMAT sets in, these individuals are soon overwhelmed and questioning how they might be able to pull off GMAT study in addition to all of the other things that were already too much to juggle effectively. Many discover that they simply cannot make it all happen. Balls and batons must be sacrificed for the show to go on, so the GMAT and b-school take a backseat to work and life. Maybe later, maybe next year.

The GMAT is the big obstacle for most people interested in attending business school. They already have their undergraduate GPA; they have long-since established relationships with those who will write letters of recommendation; work experience is exactly what they’ve been building since they last left university life; essays must be written, sure, but the source material from which content will be derived has already been lived through. What must be started from scratch, strived for, and completed successfully is the Graduate Management Admission Test.

The GMAT demands time and hard work. I tell all of my students that the best way to frame GMAT prep is to treat it as a part-time job. Set up a schedule and make it the rule, not the exception. The problem for so many GMAT students is that they are already on full-time-plus work schedules and often have partners—even children—that need these would-be GMATers involved in their lives. Furthermore, with respect to timing GMAT prep, all will agree that no aspect of their professional lives has helped prepare them for a test that is valid only to predict academic success.

Now, let’s pan back to the determined clairvoyants I love so much…

GMAT scores are valid for a full 5 years after Test Day. Closing out undergrad marks a time when the brain is fully engaged in student/study-mode and the responsibility payload is never going to lessen. The decision to tackle the GMAT now with the expressed intention of holding the score in your pocket until needed is a tremendous revelation indeed. Even for those that are well beyond their bachelor’s but nonetheless can see a window of relative downtime in the summer, taking on the GMAT before it is required can be a huge boon not only to your score, but also your general well-being.

Summer time is a wondrous time. Vacations, warm weather, long daylight hours… so much of the season is a recipe for joy. But, can you see how The Long Game unfolds? Do you have the dedication, commitment, and discipline to play it? If so, the rewards will be tremendous.

Date:

Time: 9:30pm-11:00pm ET/6:30pm-8:00pm PT

What: GMAT Bootcamp

Hosts: Kaplan GMAT Instructor Team — Justin Doff, Teresa Rupp, and Lucas Weingarten

Why: To learn the strategies you need to build the speed and accuracy to tackle the most advanced content on the test.

Listen up, people! You’ve got somewhere to be on Tuesday, May 14, 2013! One of Kaplan’s Elite GMAT instructors, Justin Lawrence Doff (shown here), will be on-camera and coming to you live from Los Angeles, CA dead-set on a singular agenda: arming you with what you need to conquer the most advanced attacks the GMAT has to throw at you. Learn how to set the pace on the climb to the top scoring tiers and, most importantly, how to maintain that level of performance to the end.

It’s bootcamp*. Expect to work hard and to make gains. No matter where you are in your GMAT prep cycle, Kaplan GMAT Bootcamp is designed for the GMAT warrior within us all.

We are saying ‘JUMP!’ and you are saying ‘HOW HIGH?’ See ya Tuesday.

*But don’t worry. We aren’t going to yell at you.

You’ll have the opportunity to meet with representatives from the IE Business School at our upcoming Road to Business School fairs.  Don’t miss your chance to meet one-on-one with admissions representatives from this highly respected program.  Register today!

IE Business School

IE is an international institution dedicated to educating business leaders through programs based on the core values of global focus, entrepreneurial spirit, and a humanistic approach.

IE has more than 500 international faculty members which teach a student body composed of more than 90 nationalities in their Undergraduate (IE University), Master, and Doctorate degrees, and Executive Education programs. Their alumni, now numbering over 40,000, hold management positions in some 100 countries worldwide.

Recognized as one of the world’s top business schools, IE is highly ranked for its MBA, Master, and Executive Education programs. IE Business School has an urban campus in Madrid and an online learning environment, thus catering to students who want to experience Madrid and to those who prefer to participate in our Blended programs which allow them to maintain a work-life balance. Our rolling admissions process means that candidates can apply at any time. IE Business School – a truly diverse center for innovation, entrepreneurship, and academic excellence.

You’ll have the opportunity to meet with representatives from The Fisher College of Business at our upcoming Road to Business School fairs. Don’t miss your chance to meet one-on-one with admissions representatives from this highly respected program. Register today!

Fisher College of Business -  The Ohio State University

The Fisher College of Business MBA program prepares every student for an extraordinary career through an action-based, business management education, hands-on learning opportunities, and international experiences. Each student receives personal attention, and benefits from an unparalleled network of resources—including our distinguished faculty, strong business connections, proven career management office, and extensive alumni network.

flu·ent   (flnt)

adj.

1.

      a. Able to express oneself readily and effortlessly

      b. Flowing effortlessly; polished

2. Flowing or moving smoothly; graceful

3. Flowing or capable of flowing; fluid

fluen·cy n.

fluent·ly adv.

When I teach people how to beat the GMAT a common refrain of mine during class #1 goes something like this:

“It is not enough to study content. It’s not enough to study methods and strategies. It’s not enough to merely understand how to get the right answer to a GMAT question. If you truly want to dominate this test, which is entirely possible for you to do, then you must attain GMAT fluency. You must be fluent in all aspects of the GMAT: content, methodology, strategy, timing, what the GMAT is, what the GMAT is built to test, why you have to take it, what the scores communicate, the levels and types of stress it cultivates, etc., etc., etc. Fluency is the key.”

In Kaplan GMAT courses, we begin our conversation about the Quant and Verbal sections of the test by discussing what we call the GMAT’s four Core Competencies. These core skills are what the GMAT is designed to test and every single question you will face on test day will leverage each of these competencies in some way. A particular problem solving question, for example, may lean heavily on critical thinking and pattern recognition, and less so on paraphrasing and attention to the right detail. The next one, though, might be built almost entirely around one tucked away, camouflaged detail that most test takers brush right by on their way to getting the right answer to the wrong question—a common GMAT mistake. However, the other three central competencies will still lurk within this question and the test will reward those who exercise those skills.

The point of this conversation about what skills the GMAT cares most about, despite my best efforts to make it intriguing, is very often lost on many. I try my best to describe that the GMAT is a definable thing and it belongs in a particular box and that the walls of this box are created by these core competencies. I try my best… but, despite my effort, I watch so many who are new to the game inherit only the most superficial appreciation of these concepts. I move on because there is always so much to do in a Kaplan class, always so much to cover, and I must trust that at some point on their trip down Preparation Road each will, in turn, have their own “a-ha moment” and perhaps revisit the big ideas again. (Admittedly, I help ensure these revelations by consistently tracking the competencies throughout the course.)

Possibly, what makes it a difficult sell initially is that the GMAT will never test whether someone knows what the four core competencies are or what aspects of a particular question pertain to which. Similarly, it is hard for some to remember the names of the Critical Reasoning or Reading Comprehension question types. After all, that terminology will never actually be tested. Yet, the ability to spot and accurately identify these question types is monumentally crucial to test day success. How a question ought to be approached and answered is inextricably tied to its type. Nonetheless, it is a common occurrence in my line of work to engage a seasoned GMAT prep student in conversation over a troublesome question and during that discussion I inquire as to the type of question we are talking about. Promptly, I am then met with a coy smile followed by, “I dunno… assumption? Inference?”

It is not that the student can’t understand the difference between an assumption question vs. an inference question. It is not even that they can’t articulate that difference if really pressed. The problem is that understanding is not enough. This knowledge must be at the very front of your mind. It must flow out of you so effortlessly it is as if you aren’t really even thinking at all—you are just doing.

Fluency is the key. It is difficult to acquire, though entirely possible, and it must be continuously worked in order to maintain once achieved. We most often use and think of fluency in regard to language—of which all of us are fluent in at least one. So, to stick with this line of thinking, I ask you:

Can you speak GMAT? Can you speak it fluently?

In terms of a target number—assuming that time is not a factor and you can commit yourself to all of your applications—five or six is generally optimal. With five or six applications, you can apply to a mix of reach, competitive and safe schools and can thereby truly cover your bases. Of course, each applicant has his or her own risk profile and timing to consider, but for most candidates, applying to too few schools can increase the risk of not being admitted, and applying to too many can be overkill.

To get some professional advice on your MBA applications or the business school admissions process, contact mbaMission for a free 30-minute consultation at www.mbamission.com/consult.php.

You’ll have the opportunity to meet with representatives from The Foster School at our upcoming Road to Business School fairs.  Don’t miss your chance to meet one-on-one with admissions representatives from this highly respected program.  Register today!

 The Foster School of Business at the University of Washington

The Foster School of Business at the University of Washington exists to inspire and develop the next generation of management leadership. The MBA program knows that well-run organizations have the power to change the world and that is why they offer exceptional individuals an opportunity to first create change within themselves.  They value strategic thinking, intelligent risk-taking and leading by example. Students work at Foster. Students play at Foster. Students engage the world at Foster. At the Foster School of Business they think differently and make a difference. It’s the Washington Way.

According to the 2013 annual ranking report of European business schools by Bloomberg Businessweek, in collaboration with QS Quacquarelli Symonds, publisher of the TopMBA website, European-born GMAT test takers are increasingly choosing to remain on EU soil rather than seek admission to US graduate programs. Further, US-born GMAT test takers appear to be ever more interested in obtaining their MBA and related management degrees from European business schools.

Other recent reports found on Bloomberg’s website help flesh out the EU b-school picture. Young European professionals, like their Asian counterparts, are trending younger and proving more and more interested in specialized master’s degree programs in lieu of an MBA. Interestingly, the underlying driver of the rising numbers of European master’s seekers is something known as the Bologna Process.

The Bologna declaration, the primary guiding document of the Bologna process, was signed in 1999. Several ministerial meetings and agreements among European countries have taken place since then, all with the expressed intention of ensuring comparability in standards and quality of higher education. One result of the Bologna process has been a shift in the duration and dissemination of academic degrees in Europe.

Traditionally, a university student would study for five years and emerge with a bachelor’s and a master’s degree. Now, the bachelor’s and master’s degrees have been separated. Students must now more concertedly navigate the rigors of admission to graduate school if they seek the training and employability benefits a graduate degree can bestow. Thus, a boon in EU GMAT test takers has been observed. What is more, in a time that Europe finds itself deeply mired in unemployment, the next generation of business leaders are hoping to use the shelter of academia to whether this economic storm and emerge into a heartier labor market.

If you are considering a European business school or have attended or are attending one, please share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below!