Wharton Admission Reception: New Delhi

Last Thursday Wharton organized an admission reception at New Delhi. The Wharton panel consisted of one admission committee member, 6 alumni and around 6 to 10 current/admitted students.
The event was a great way to know the "Wharton way" of doing things. The alumni were especially helpful as they gave very practical answers to our( prospective applicants) questions. They answered questions regarding the application procedure, "why Wharton?" and general errors committed by applicants. Here is a brief list:

• Do not obsess with GMAT score. This was repeatedly stated for Indian applicants. In fact, one of alumni said whenever he meets applicants, they ask him about his GMAT score. GMAT score is just a data point. Beyond that your essays and recommendations play the most important role. James, one of the alumni who is a full time entrepreneur based in India,  told us about an instance when he read the file of an applicant with a 790 GMAT. James said "when you see a 790, you expect a lot from an applicant. But when the applicant does not come out as a right person for Wharton through his essays, no score can defend him". Basically, if one has 80% or above in both sections, then you do not need to worry. Focus on the application. But there is a caveat, score above 700 is desirable.
• While defining your long and short term goals do not fall in the trap of "Things might change at School". The admission committee knows that it is natural for applicants to change their goals once they are in the MBA program. But, when you define your short term and long term goals, just focus on what you have done till now because that is what you have with you, rest all is just a wild guess.  Moreover, Long term and short term goals should be unique i.e no one should be able to write exact same long term & short term goals.
• Make your essays personal, one of the current student told me that one of his essay was about how is proposed to his girlfriend!! Through that essay he was able to tell the adcom about his thought process and things that he values.
• One more tip about essays: Try to choose events that are recent ( around 3 years old). The adcom wants to see career progression. They want to see how you developed over a period of time. Therefore, it is great that you have some meaningful leadership stories from your college days but you also need to show that you have continued your development as a leader by taking leadership roles in your organization, community and even your family. This one was emphasized a lot, so I guess many of us commit that mistake.
• For consultants, do not include consulting jargons in your essays. The adcom personnel might find it difficult to comprehend.
• Articleship( residency) is considered full time work experience.
• And finally, Just be yourself. Do not write what you think Adcom wants to hear. They have been reading applications for a long time, it is very easy for them to differentiate marketing statements from real life experiences.

Overall, it was a fantastic event. The humility with which alumni answered all the questions was commendable. They were genuinely trying to relate to our queries and gave very realistic responses. One of alumni told me that he is glad that he is standing on the other side as he knows how emotionally draining the application process is. You know what, with half of June almost through, I am already starting to feel the pressure.

Cheers!!