'MIT Sloan Let My Outspoken, Black Ass In. Hallelujah!'

Then, at 2:21 p.m. PST, the phone buzzed. I checked it and saw “Admissions Decision” as the subject of an email from MIT Sloan. Hmmmm….an “admissions decision” with no call. I knew what that meant. HBS and Stanford all over again; a ding.

I got back to my desk at about 3:55, logged in to get some closure on my admission process by confirming my last decision and skimmed right past the “CONGRATULATIONS” looking for some sign of a ding.

It wasn’t there. They let my outspoken, black ass in. Hallelujah.

Props Where they Are Due

I really must give props to MIT Sloan for what I believe was the best overall application process. While I have slight beef with waiting until the end of January for a R1 decision (would have been torture if I had yet to be accepted anywhere) and feel that Wharton has the best interview process, MIT killed the game with an app that didn’t take a day to fill out, an objective scoring system for choosing whom to interview, that awesome :59 video essay that I got to do and then giving out final decisions AFTER the business day was over (at least on the east coast) so that applicants could be at least remotely well productive at work. I only checked my email like 3 times today.

What Lies Ahead

Interestingly enough, I ended up getting interviews from the schools whose apps I enjoyed the most: Booth, Wharton and Sloan. Each school really allowed me to communicate who I was and why I was a fit for their program in its own way. I’d jump at the chance to go to any of the 3 in all of their quanty glory. My next steps are as follows:

1/31-2/3 – Wharton Welcome Weekend in Philly

2/7 – 2/10 – Booth Welcome Weekend in Chicago

2/19 – Deposit due at Wharton and Booth; thus, my decision deadline between Wharton, Booth and Sloan

I’ll let you know how it all checks out.

MBAOver30 offers the perspective of a 30-something, California-based entrepreneur who is applied to Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, Chicago, and MIT Sloan. He has been offered admission into Class of 2015 from Wharton, Chicago and MIT Sloan. He blogs at MBAOver30.com. Previous posts on Poets&Quants:

How I Totally Overestimated The MBA Admissions Process

Musings on MBA Failophobia

Letting Go Of An MBA Safety School

When A Campus Visit Turns Off An MBA Applicant

Yale, Tuck and Booth: The Next Leg of My Pre- MBA Research

My Countdown: Less Than 30 Days To The GMAT

From Suits To Startups: Why MBA Programs Are Changing

Why I’m Not Getting Either A Part-Time MBA or An Executive MBA

Preparing To Sit For The GMAT Exam

Falls Short of GMAT Goal, But The 700 Is A Big Improvement

A 2012-2013 MBA Application Strategy

Celebrating A 35th Birthday & Still Wanting A Full-Time MBA