My 30-Day Countdown To An MBA Acceptance

Where am I you ask on this road to be accepted? Well right now I am literally all over the place. As much planning and preparation that I have done, it hasn’t gone my way. Imagine where I would be had I not gone through a years worth of planning. ::shrugs:: I know that it will all work out.

My application deadline is January 5th! I don’t have a choice, I have to have my applications submitted by January 5th. In order to hit that deadline I must stay on task because if I don’t then everything will go down the drain. As a result of my needing to continue studying for the GMAT, here is what needs to be done:

GMAT

Consortium Essay 1

Consortium Essay 2

Consortium Essay 3

Dartmouth Tuck Video Essay

Michigan Essay 1

Michigan Essay 2

Michigan Essay 3

UC Berkeley Haas Essay 1

UC Berkeley Haas Essay 2

Cornell Essay 1

Cornell Essay 2

Cornell Essay 3

NYU Essay 1

Recommender packets

Very daunting list huh? Looking at this list I say to myself “What have I even done up to this point?” Luckily I have started all of them, 4 of them are finished, but I just need to go back and re-read them again. I’m also going to prioritize them and complete them in order of importance. (no the list above is not the order of importance!).

I’m going to TRY to post an update every night to show the progress that I am making on each of these tasks. Hopefully you guys can keep me on task as well. I still have time for all of the essays. I sent my Consortium 1 essays to a friend who is incredible at providing feedback. Once I make those changes, I’ll send it back to my consultant for her feedback again.

From looking at my blog analytics, I’m seeing a lot of people googling things like “business school acceptance call” or “accepted to Columbia business school”, so I gather that schools are beginning to notify the students who applied for early decisions.

I believe the official deadlines for notifications are next week, but from what I’ve heard the phone calls to accepted students can start going out a week to two weeks prior. So… this is the week for some people! I know that I would be a nervous wreck–even more nervous than pressing “Get Score” at the end of the GMAT exam. As I think about that week in March when I should hear back from all of my schools, my palms start to sweat.

I’m going to be a HOT nervous wreck that week – trust that!

This report is adapted from Richard Battle-Baxter’s blog posts at “Ellipsing My Way…To Business School.”

Previous posts by Richard at Poets&Quants:

Should You Hire an MBA Consultant?

Study for the GMAT or Polish Off an Essay?

Am I Really Cut Out For This?

My First Round Applications Are Looking Elusive

A Frustrating Day and Night on GMAT Prep

Having Trouble Hitting the Submit Button

It’s Nearly Midnight. Where Are All My Friends?

“Why An Admissions Consultant Objected To My Essay on Coming Out”

“Brain Racing at 4 a.m. Thinking About Business School”