The MBA candidate to the Admissions Officer: What are you looking for in a candidate?
The Admissions Officer to the MBA candidate: We are looking for well-rounded candidates.
I am sure almost all of you have heard this phrase over and over from different admissions officers. Sounds easy to understand, but what does this phrase mean really?
Is [a well-rounded candidate] someone with well-balanced soft and technical skills? Sounds about right but still not clear enough.
At the Rotman School, we also define our ideal candidate as [well-rounded]. Via this blog post, I’d like to clarify this further for you so that when you start your Rotman MBA application; you will have a better understanding of who we are looking for.
We are looking for candidates who are committed to life-long learning. Having an undergraduate degree; while does open some doors, does not necessarily set you apart anymore. The job market is very competitive and our employers are looking for candidates who have furthered their [intellectual horsepower]. Having a strong undergraduate GPA and a competitive GMAT score are very good indicators of your academic performance. However, if you have a master’s degree or a designation in any field, the Admissions Committee will definitely pay attention to the extra schooling you have undertaken. Of course, needless to mention the fact that you are planning on quitting your job and starting an MBA will also show your commitment to learning but pre-MBA schooling will help you distinguish yourself in the competition.
We are looking for diverse experience. Diversity in any sense is always welcome at the Rotman School. We are looking for candidates who demonstrated leadership potential/skills in their work. It could be your professional experience or community involvement. Having strong community involvement is very important especially if this experience is in a field that is meaningful to you.
All of these will also count for your technical skills. As every top business school, we also look for strong technical skills. Submitting a thorough resume and well-written essays along with a good GPA and GMAT score will help you make that great first impression you need in order to be invited for an admissions interview. During the interview, you will be required to supplement your technical skills with your people skills.
We are looking for candidates with strong soft skills. “Soft skills” is another broad term. It encompasses strong leadership potential, communication and interpersonal skills. While having strong skills in all of these areas is an asset, let’s not forget [self-management] skills. Being able to manage others is a great skill but being able to identify areas for self-development is also equally important. We believe that there is always room for improvement. You can be as accomplished as one can be but you will always need to work hard to keep up with the changes and progress further. Pursuing an MBA is a great step to identify and work on opportunities for growth. If you have already identified some areas for improvement and if you are targeting the business schools that can provide you with the right resources to strengthen these areas, any Admissions Committee will be very impressed.
Nearing the end of the blog post, I’ve come to realize that describing the ideal candidate is not an easy task at all but I hope I was able to give you an idea of our perception of the ideal candidate at the Rotman School of Management. Please don’t hesitate to reach out for further clarification or assistance, we’d be happy to help anytime!
Claire
It’s an exciting time of year for us at Rotman-not only are we gearing up and welcoming our 2012 intake on campus, but we are also putting the final touches on our application and admissions process for our 2013 intake. I thought it would only be fitting as my first point as Director, Recruitment & Admissions at Rotman to talk about the changes we are implementing to our admissions process this year.