Tips on communicating with the Admissions Team

Afro CruzLast week I received an e-mail from a student I met at a fair several months back.  He was asking me for a follow-up meeting and was interested in booking a class visit with one of our Ambassadors.  He reached out to me via e-mail with the following:

“Hey Afrodite I hope u have been well!  I wanted to take u up on that class visit u mentioned when we spoke at the fair.  Can u book something for me for nxt wk.  Thx!”

Really.  That was the e-mail.  The first thing that ran through my head was – this was typed on a phone.  But the second thing I thought was – wow that is just not good. To help ensure you make the best impression on the admissions team as possible, here are some tips on communicating with us. Always start with you best foot forward and remember that you will make an impression on us with each interaction so make sure you are making a good one!

In person – at fairs, on-campus events and your admissions interview:

  1. Be on time.  It may sound simple but you never want to be that person who walks into an info session 5 minutes late and cannot find a seat.  Same goes for your interview.  Please plan ahead whether it is in person or virtually via Skype to make sure that you are ready and on time.
  2. Eye contact.  Another very simple one but for some people difficult to do.  Eye contact shows confidence and interest in the person you are speaking to.  Lack of it may be a sign of nerves so one thing that I personally do is smile and look at the person at the same time.  This helps me to relax and feel more comfortable.  We know that interviews may make you feel stressed but a smile to yourself will give you a small boost of positive energy.
  3. The handshake.  Too long?  Too hard?  Too limp?  What is the right way to do it?  We are not judging you on your handshake but a good one will leave its mark.  Shake firmly and with the whole hand, in a slight up and down motion and always look the other person in the eyes when you are shaking hands.
  4. Dress the part.  Use your best judgement on this one and remember that it is always better to be over dressed than under dressed.  When meeting with schools at a fair it is fine not to wear a suit and tie but when it’s interview time you want to show up dressed to impress.  If you have specific questions on a school’s expectations then speak with current students who will be able to give you great advice on this.  The general rule-of-thumb here is that for class visits you should dress in business casual and for your admissions interview you should be dressed in business formal attire.

Via e-mail – requesting program information, looking to clear up admissions requirements, interview follow-up, etc.

  1. Be cordial.  Ensure you are a bit more formal than how you would be writing to your friends.  We are not expecting overly formal e-mails from our applicants but friendly ones which are respectful are always appreciated.  “Hello” and the receiver’s first name is a safe way to begin an e-mail so go with that. Avoid slang and make sure that you pay attention to correct grammar and spelling.  After preparing your email take a few extra minutes and re-read to ensure everything looks good before hitting send.
  2. Be specific. Most schools have designated people as contacts for general questions about admissions requirements and  then a specific person who has been tasked with reviewing your file.  Find out who your main contact is (at Rotman it is usually an Assistant Director) and make that person your go-to.  No need to email multiple people with the same question. 🙂 This will also go a long way in building a positive relationship with the school.
  3. Be prompt.  Our Admissions team will reach out to you several times during the application and admissions process so please be mindful of the deadlines we are working with internally.  We are working with hundreds of students at a time so it is very much appreciated when you keep us in the loop on the personal deadlines you are working with. This shows your interest and eagerness and will definitely reflect positively on your application!

Building a positive relationship with your Admissions team is the first step to building a lasting relationship with the school.  Make sure you are starting it off well!  Admissions reps will be among the first people to welcome you to the school but we will also be your biggest cheerleaders on your MBA journey.  Keep your relationships going and remember that we too are part of your network.

GMAT Exploration Series is back!

DSC_9140Rotman never slows down! This has been a fact since I started here in 2010.

Round 4 deadline is already over and the admissions team is very busy with the next round of applications. Although we are fast approaching September, we still have one more application deadline-that is June 1st!

In the meantime, we’re busy working with our partners at various test preparation centres in the city. We have been rolling out the GMAT Exploration Series for a couple of years now and the feedback has been very positive so this year we will continue with our offerings. We will still be hosting the free practice tests at our awesome Finance Lab but apart from the practice tests, we will be hosting some informational events for those who are preparing for the GMAT test. Regardless of where you are in the process of prepping yourself, we have an event that will suit your needs at Rotman!

Below is the list of the upcoming events:

May 12th Writing the GMAT sometime soon-join our panel discussion GMAT Myths and Realities. Register now!

May 13th I will be conducting pre-application meetings at the Board of Trade Toronto between 10am and 2pm, email me to book a meeting at gumus@rotman.utoronto.ca .

May 30th Free practice test, co-hosted by Quantum between 12:30pm-4:30pm. Register now!

May 21stJoin us at Rotman for a Math Refresher co-hosted by AdmitMaster. Register now!

June 20th Free practice test, co-hosted by Quantum between 12:30pm-4:30pm. Register now!

Looking forward to seeing you at one (or more) of these events!

Claire

How the Rotman student community is so close-knit

Michael Moses - Assistant Director, Recruitment & AdmissionsHere at Rotman, getting to know your classmates, learning from them and having some fun along the way is one of the highlights of our MBA experience. You might be wondering, with 350 students in each intake, how is this even possible? Read on to find out!

Before the school year begins

The weekend before school starts, all of our students take part in orientation camp. You can read more about it in one of our previous blog posts or get a taste of it in this youtube video:

In Class

In the first year here, all of our students are grouped into sections of 70. Students are with the same 70 peers for all of their courses in their first semester and then with a different group of 70 for all of their courses in the second semester.

In second year, class size is dependent on how popular a class is. However it will never be more than 70 because we physically don’t have any more seats in the class!

Outside Class

Rotman students pyramidMost Rotman students live on or near campus. As a result, you can find most of our students hanging out here in the Rotman building for the better part of the day, regardless if they have class or not.

As well, there is at least one social event on campus every single week!!! And that’s at least, meaning on average students can expect even more opportunities to get to know their classmates on a weekly basis.

This was mentioned in a previous post but is worth repeating here- all of our student clubs are required to have a certain number of events every semester or they get shut down. As well, since our second year students usually organize club events, this is another great opportunity for our first year-students to get to know their second-year peers.

From student club-led events, to events hosted by Rotman, our students end up getting very involved on campus and as a result, when they graduate they will have had the opportunity to have made deep connections to most, if not all of their fellow Rotmanites!