MIT MBA 2008 Grad Answering Questions...

[ID_075241 (Massachusetts Institute of Technology/MBA)]

Hey All,

I'm a recent Sloan Grad. Let me know if you have any questions about Sloan or MBA admissions in general.

It's a great school and program especially for consulting or entrepreneurship.

Regards,
Michael

[ID_056325 (University of Pennsylvania/MBA)]

Hi Michael,

Could you share some of the important details about MIT that a candidate should consider when applying to the school?

What particular aspects about an individual's candidacy does the adcom most value? Work experience? GMAT/GPA? Community involvement?

Thanks!

Paul

[ID_075241 (Massachusetts Institute of Technology/MBA)]

Paul,

I think MIT places a strong emphasis on leadership and past career progression for candidates but that is probably common to many B-schools. In the end, MIT wants to produce business leaders and in particular leaders in technology, high tech entrepreneurship, and renewable energy - IMHO. Without strong indications you have potential to be a business leader, admission is unlikely.

However, what is unique to MIT (and I think Stanford) is an emphasis on entrepreneurship and technology. Obviously, MIT has a reputation as a leading technology institution and that manifests itself in the course curriculum where case studies tended to be skewed towards tech companies (to me anyways). Also, the level of participation of many of my classmates in entrepreneurial activities was high -- regardless of whether that was their true career interest. There's just a very entrepreneurial spirit at MIT.

There are many programs/classes such as the 100K Competition, New Enterprises, Techlinks, iTeams, etc. that are geared towards bringing b-school students, PhDs, and professors together to bring MIT technologies to the market place. The most I learned from b-school was in my New Enterprises class which I used to develop a business plan to submit as a 100K Business Plan Competition entry. Participating in the 100K was when I really put together everything I learned at school. After all, I was responsible for developing an idea from start to finish (market analysis, strategy analysis, competitive analysis, financial analysis, etc.). This really drew out all the skills I learned in class and allowed me to put it into practice -- I highly recommend participating if you get the chance.

Also, MIT is a leading institution in the promotion and development of Renewable Energy technologies.

I think any candidate that has interests in these two areas (high tech entrepreneurship or alternative energy) and can clearly articulate how they will take full advantage of MIT's resources in these two areas will stand out as a candidate.

One final note, MIT is a heavily recruited consulting school. Sloanie's have a reputation for working well with people and being quantitatively oriented (key traits in consulting I assume). There are a lot of classes like OP, E-Lab, and G-Lab that emphasize going out to meet real clients and solving their problems giving you practice consulting with high level problems while at school. So if consulting is your goal research these programs and communicate how you will take full advantage of these courses at your time at Sloan.

Regards,
Michael

[ID_063426]

Hi Michael,

Could you share with us some of the good tips for interviewing successfully at MIT?

I want to knock my interview out of the park!

Thanks,

Aaron

[ID_075241 (Massachusetts Institute of Technology/MBA)]

Aaron,

MIT Sloan employs the STAR method (behavioral interviewing) for admissions interviews. I'd recommend reviewing the most common types of questions, brainstorming example answers, and practice verbalizing your responses so you are not nervous or struggling for words when answering.

http://web.mit.edu/career/www/guide/star.html

So common questions types include:
-Describe a time when you had difficulty with a co-worker and how did you resolve it.
-Describe a time when you had to lead a group to accomplish a goal but you had no formal leadership title.

Good Luck,

Michael