Schmoozing Your Way To MBA Success

How Important Is Academics For Getting Into A Top Business School?

That question is a joke, right?

In some circles, business school is viewed as the academic equivalent to the football and basketball teams. Sure, some don’t really belong in a classroom, but they generate so much revenue and branding. And isn’t business more of a trade than a discipline anyway?

Um…no.

Sure, some could argue that MBA programs are one big meat market. Like athletes, students work in teams and hone their skills as they await that first big payday. Not to mention, the best schools are flooded with recruiters (the b-school equivalent to agents or scouts) studying the rosters, holding interviews, and waving big money deals. While some recruiters don’t prioritize grades, they matter to adcoms. Without the grades, you can’t get into b-school in the first place.

So what are business schools seeking? Kavita Singh, CEO of FutureWorks Consulting, recently tackled that issue in F1GMAT. And it starts with GPA and GMAT scores.

For GPAs, school reputation matters. When students graduate from higher end undergraduate programs, adcoms assume they possess the academic chops to succeed in business school. And a high grade point only reinforces this point, particularly if they majored in more rigorous STEM disciplines. However, as Singh notes, “a candidate whose college name isn’t such a well known brand can still do well if they showed how they went ‘above and beyond’ at college.”

So what do adcoms view as a respectable GPA? “A good GPA is around 3.5,” Singh notes. However, even that average doesn’t guarantee admission. For example, the average GPAs for Harvard and Stanford enrollees were 3.73 and 3.70 respectively according to the most recent U.S. News and World Report numbers. At Columbia Business School, Singh’s alma mater, the average is right at 3.5. Below that, schools are looking at a range between 3.2-3.6, with #19 Kenan Flagler (North Carolina) averaging 3.33 and #41 Hough (Florida) reporting a 3.55 GPA.

Alas, GPAs can be influenced by factors ranging from grade inflation to fluff electives (“Zombies: Social Anxiety and Pop Culture,” anyone?). However, everyone takes roughly the same GMAT, enabling adcoms to better compare students.

Like many, Singh touts the usual line that a 700 GMAT is about the right score for an Ivy-equivalent school. However, as she notes, accepted students at top students generally score much higher. For example, U.S. News reports that GMAT averages of 725, 723, and 713 at Wharton, Booth, and Sloan respectively for the Class of 2013. However, there is no shame in scoring below 700, as the student bodies at many prestigious programs maintain GMATs like 664 (Indiana Kelley) and 648 (Texas A&M Mays).

Even if a GPA or GMA fall below these marks, remember that academics are only a piece of the puzzle. Adcoms are also looking for applicants with strong track records, who’ve demonstrated leadership and upward progress in their short careers. Similarly, they respond well to candidates with involvement in professional and community organizations, who have passions and networks beyond their own work. Of course, there is always the ever-important essay and interview, where they can glimpse an applicant’s character, resolve, and people skills. In the end, all of these will ultimately matter more than grades.

DON’T MISS: Academics vs. Recruiters: Which Schools Perform the Best

Source: F1GMAT