HBS Says Admits 'Markedly Higher' For 2+2 Re-Applicants

Harvard Business School

MORE 2+2ERS ARE NOW GAINING THREE YEARS OF WORK EXPERIENCE BEFORE ENROLLING

HBS also revealed that for the Class of 2019 it admitted 11% of its 1,118 2+2 applicants and gained commitments from 115 students with a median GMAT score of 740 and an average GMAT score of 728. Increasingly more of those admits are deciding to spend more time in the workplace. “It’s not very 2+2ish anymore,” adds Leopold. “The more typical mode is three years that they stay out. It used to be when we first started, we could deal with them as a cohort. Some come after two. More come after three, and some wait four years. We won’t defer beyond four years.”

For the 2+2 Class of 2019, 61% of the committed students boast undergraduate degrees in science, technology, engineering or math (STEM); 28% in economics or business, and 11% in the humanities or social sciences.

“There isn’t a theme of the week or a flavor of the week in those decisions,” says Leopold. “If you look at the 2+2 cohort, it’s probably dominantly composed of STEM undergrads, but not so much that you would say it is for STEM kids only. It important to have a balance of schools. It is not critical to aim for diversity of professional backgrounds, but we really did design 2+2 a way for candidates to come from schools where there isn’t a well-trodden path to HBS.”

HOW HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL GENTLY TURNS DOWN 2+2 APPLICANTS