As the saying goes…time flies when you are having fun! 🙂  It’s hard to believe we are already into the month of May! We are really excited about the class we’ve been building for this fall. With so many interesting, talented, and ambitious candidates joining the Rotman community, I know the admissions team is looking forward to seeing everyone on campus in a few months’ time.

Many of you have been inquiring about our final deadline (June 1st) so I wanted to clarify our process and policies.

1. International Candidates Can Still Apply

First — for international candidates, we certainly don’t prohibit you from applying but do typically advise that before submitting you do some ‘due diligence’ to ensure it is feasible for you to successfully get a study permit and secure financing in a few weeks’ time. Securing a study permit can actually take months in some countries, so make sure you research processing timelines now. We do not typically defer offers and there is nothing more heartbreaking for us, and for the individual, than to have to decline an admissions offer due to administrative obstacles. Since the situation varies significantly from country to country we leave it up to each applicant to determine what will (or won’t) work for your unique situation.

2. Timing Your Application

Since June 1st falls on a Saturday this year we technically won’t start reviewing applications until June 3rd. To account for the weekend deadline, you can adjust the timing of your application in one of  two distinct ways.

Many candidates opt to submit their applications as soon as they complete them in an effort to ‘beat the rush’. We receive applications on a daily basis in the weeks leading up to our final deadline and we begin the review process as soon as we get your submission. For this reason completing your application as soon as you can, instead of waiting until June 1st, is a smart strategy.

The other option is submitting during the first week of June, which is technically after the deadline, but as we return to the office on Monday, won’t disqualify you from the review process. This is a popular option for anyone writing their CFA Level 1 on June 1st. We routinely get questions about the possibility of submitting after the June 1st deadline. The fact of the matter is we don’t have a hard and fast cut-off that requires us to stop reviewing applications after June 1st. As long as there is capacity in the program, we will continue to review this summer!

3. The Final Round Doesn’t Hurt Your Chances

Last but not least, the biggest myth about this deadline is that applying during our final round makes your submission appear “late” and reflects badly on your candidacy. This is absolutely not the case. We have a formal deadline date for a reason. We fully expect to make offers during round five (and yes, there is still money available in our scholarship budget :)), especially since we are in growth mode and are building towards a class of approximately 330 students for this Fall.

If you have any doubt about applying because you think you are “late” I strongly encourage you to finish the process and hit “submit”!  You could be in the MBA classroom this fall, diving into the experience (vs. preparing for our round one submission deadline in early Fall for our 2014 intake). I am a firm believer in going after what you want so, if you’ve determined the MBA is your best next step, go for it! We are excited to review your application and get to know another future Rotman MBA student. 🙂

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