MIT Sloan MBA Apps Soar By 35%

The campus of MIT’s Sloan School of Management

QUALITY OF APPLICANT POOL INCREASED AS WELL, BASED ON AVERAGE GMATS & GPAS

Levenson says the increase occurred in a year in which the overall quality of the applicant pool increased as measured by overall GMAT and undergraduate grade-point averages. She confirmed that the average GMAT for Sloan’s pool is now above 700 and that the mix of candidates this year saw no material changes. “The candidates were definitely a step up,” says Maura Herson, director of Sloan’s MBA program. “It was really hard to make decisions this year.”

Herson also believes that the school is benefitting from increased interest in technology and innovation. “At MIT, innovation and technology are top of mind, and the world is coming to us in some ways.”

Levenson declined to say how many candidates are still on Sloan’s waitlist or whether the class that will arrive on campus this fall will boast a GMAT average above last year’s 716, up three points from a year earlier. The school won’t release its class profile for incoming students until September.

NO MAJOR CHANGES IN APPLICATION THIS COMING SEASON EXPECTED

Looking forward to the 2016-2017 admissions cycle, Levenson anticipates no changes in the school’s approach to evaluating candidates. “We continue to put a lot of emphasis on the interview, with the majority of the interviews face-to-face,” she says. “We did only a limited number of Skype interviews last year.” All admission interviews at Sloan are done by the school’s admissions staff.

In going with the cover letter this year, the school abandoned this required essay question: “Tell us about a recent success you had: How did you accomplish this? Who else was involved? What hurdles did you encounter? What type of impact did this have? (500 words or fewer).” The second, short-answer question will remain the same and is being asked only of those invited to interview: “The mission of the MIT Sloan School of Management is to develop principled, innovative leaders who improve the world and to generate ideas that advance management practice. Please share with us something about your past that aligns with this mission. (250 words or fewer).”

Only this week, Haas reported that its applications rose 12% when many other schools are reporting flat to slightly down volume. UCLA’s Anderson School of Management has reported that its applications were down this past year, while the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School said its apps were up just a tick above 1%. Haas’ rise far outstrips the 6% increase at Yale University’s School of Management and the 5% rise at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business.

DON’T MISS: 2016-2017 MBA APPLICATION DEADLINES AT LEADING BUSINESS SCHOOLS