Stories of an MBA at a Top Business School

Alexey shares stories of his Wharton full-time MBA program, first impressions, the classes, and his first disappointments. In this interview with Kateryna Gridina of www.mbastrategy.com.ua, he talks about his experiences after starting his MBA program in 2007.

MBA Strategy: How did you formulate your plan to do an MBA?

Alexey: I think I have a pretty substandard background. Most people come to MBA programs from finance, banking, consultancy etc. As for me, before applying to business school, I had been working in technology companies. My experience in this field of business is about seven years, including four years of managerial experience. My last professional position was head of department in a software company. I approached the MBA with the idea to establish my own IT start-up and an MBA is the degree that will provide essential knowledge in the spheres of finance, management, and economics. The MBA program will also allow me to find networking opportunities, and appropriate people for future cooperation.

MBA Strategy: If people plan to develop their own business do they really need to spend time on case studies? Isn't it better to invest these two years in developing their own business?

Alexey: It depends on a person's ability to develop his own company with the knowledge basis available at the moment. Understanding a corresponding industry is not enough for a company to operate. For example, it's not enough to simply know technology to build your own tech company. You need to have profound knowledge in finance, in elementary human resource management and so on. Cooperation with other entrepreneurs as well as with venture capitalists is also important. Business school can give you all this.

But, frankly speaking, when I got into the school I felt disappointed because most people here are oriented towards a "hired manager" career. There are not many people who want to go into entrepreneurship.

MBA Strategy: Ok, so why have you chosen Wharton, the school famous for its "financin" specialization. Why not Carnegie Mellon, MIT, Berkeley, which are considered to be more technological schools?

Alexey: At first I considered technological and entrepreneurship schools such as MIT. But already at that time I thought that the school's specialization, when we're talking about top-10, was a myth rather than reality. For example, if we look at MIT, which is very close to technology, and Harvard, that is supposedly far away from them, we see that Harvard has more graduates who became heads of technology companies than MIT.

Moreover, if we take a look at statistical data of the top-five business schools for the last five years (not taking into consideration the fact that Wharton is a finance school, and MIT is a technological one), the percentage of graduates' distribution among main spheres of work is nearly the same: 30% of graduates are in banking, 30% in consulting, 40% in other industries.

During the recruitment season at top business schools such huge technological companies as Cisco, Microsoft, Google and others have the same politics as finance companies have. There is no difference.

Also top business schools give nearly the same level of education. So far, just like a sophomore can construct an educational program by himself, you may study finance in MIT as well as technology in Wharton. The difference between schools is small, as I see it.

MBA Strategy:  So you don't see an explicit specialization at Wharton?

Alexey: If you were to ask me: "Is Wharton a financial school?" I would say: "Yes. It is." Inside the school you see that the main educational target is quantitative skills. Outside the school, you see that it has a good alumni network in Wall Street, London and other top financial centres all over the world. After graduating from the school you can build a brilliant career in finance: private equity, banking.  But is the Wharton the only financial school? Definitely, not. The school offers a good perspective in other industries such as consulting, general management, technologies, and entrepreneurship.

MBA Strategy: What aspects should a person take into consideration while choosing a business school?

Alexey: The only thing that should be taken into consideration is the school's rank and location (the place where you want to live). I would recommend you to follow these guidelines while choosing a school. If a person wants to live in Europe there is no sense in applying to American business schools and vice versa. I'm sure that a person who graduated from Harvard rather than from MIT will have more opportunities to work in the technology and entrepreneurship field, and will also have more perspectives.

MBA Strategy: Please tell us about your admission process? What part of it was the most complicated?

Alexey: In round one I applied to Wharton, London Business School and MIT and was accepted to all three schools. I had a high GMAT score (750), a good promotion track and good essays. As a whole my application package was strong. During the preparation process I took 1.5 months of a GMAT course (the classes were held twice a week). After this I took one month vacation at work and was preparing by myself. To reach a 710 GMAT score or more you have to study by yourself. Continuous studying is the key to a high GMAT score. I spent two to three months writing essays by myself, and took help from a specialized company for proofreading only. In general the admission process wasn't complicated.

MBA Strategy: What do you think is the most significant preparation to enter a school

Alexey: I would say that the essay is the most significant part of the admission process. It is adeterminant that will help you sell yourself to the school. The admission process is like the first exam in marketing: you have to understand what the school seeks and what it wants, and you position yourself according to this.

There are two aspects - how you will present your short-term and long-term goals.  For example, many schools have essays like, "What would you like to do after graduating?", "What do you want to do in five years after graduating?" and "How can the school help you in this?" Most applicants have no idea about what the essay"s intention is so many applicants try to talk all about themselves. However, these essays are extremely important in positioning the applicant.

Firstly, a school wants to be sure that after graduation you won't have any problems getting the job of your dreams. This is a factor that influences the school's ranking. The more people that get the job they strived for - the higher the school's ranking. So, from the school's admission committee perspective, the most important feature is that what you want to do after graduation logically follows from your previous experience.

Secondly, it's about long-term goals. At the time you establish yourself as a professional, the name of the school will still be in your diploma. That is why a school has to be sure that your long-term goals correspond.

The third moment is when the school asks you how it can help you. The school wants to be sure that if it makes you a proposition you will accept it. This influences the ranking as well. The more people that refuse to go to the school, the lower its ranking. So, when you explain what the school can do for you, you have to show how much you know about it and how you want to join it.

MBA Strategy: You said that you were accepted by three top business schools. Were there any differences between applying to each of them?

Alexey: There were fundamental differences in applying to these schools in essay questions as well as in interviewing. For example, in Wharton I was interviewed by alumni. It was exactly the interview I was prepared for: it lasted 30 minutes and no longer, and featured mostly the questions represented on different preparation web-sites.

The LBS interview was held in an alum's office. It was a totally informal interview. The only formal part of it was the presentation that I had to prepare and present in 10 minutes. After this we continued the informal conversation.

As for MIT, the director of its admission committee came to my country to interview me. As in the essay, during the interview the school was interested in details. It wasn't enough to tell about achievements, I had to tell how I did it, what were preconditions and so on. This interview was the most complicated for me.

MBA Strategy: Now you have been in Wharton for four months. What are your first impressions of the school, the studying process, and the school's atmosphere?

Alexey: The first thing that impressed me was that I didn't see a competitive environment here, though there is a lot of talk about it outside the school. In reality, people around here help each other.

Secondly, there's a feeling of a permanent frantic rush and huge workload. The working week lasts for four days but the amount of homework on weekends doesn't allow you to relax. In addition, there are different meetings with the group, lectures that are not the part of your core but still are interesting for you.

MBA Strategy: What about different activities at school that are not connected with studying? Do you have time for them?

Alexey: Of course, we have them. There are different contests all the time. The essence of such contests is to solve some business cases and present the results. The prize for winner, for example from Microsoft, is money ($3,000 to $4,000) and a small present, like an X-box or something like that. Of course, a lot of people take part in these contests not because of money. The main factors are actual cases (they are very interesting). And also if you plan to work in a corresponding company you might be invited to interview in it if you win its contest.

Also there are a lot of clubs, from professional clubs on finances and consulting to wine and yacht clubs.

MBA Strategy: What would you wish to all applicants to Wharton?

Alexey: Per Asperam Ad Astra!
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