Chances at HBS 2+2 Program?

Graduate School Business School - MBA
1

<p>Hi there! I'm a junior, planning on applying to Harvard Business School's 2+2 Program at the end of my junior year.</p>

<p>With my resume and transcripts posted below, what do you think my chances are of getting in? Is there any weak point in my application that you would suggest that I improve on?</p>

<hr>

<p>Undergrad Institution: ranked about #90 in U.S.
Majors: Mathematics and Economics
Minor: Psychology
GPA: 4.0/4.0
GMAT: 740</p>

<p><em>Internship Experience</em></p>

<p>Worked summer 2010 as an actuarial intern, doing generalized linear modeling of personalized policies using SAS, modeling accuracy of data and rates. (In other words, I used advanced statistical modeling programs to check the accuracy of personalized insurance rates, and helped recalculate rates that were no longer accurate.)</p>

<p>I am also doing an internship during this fall semester, and I plan to do another internship as well, probably in the spring.</p>

<p><em>Extracurricular Involvement, Community Service & Leadership:</em></p>

<p>Volunteered weekly at a Special Education school, teaching elementary school children with Down Syndrome.</p>

<p>Deliverance Bible Church – helped develop a second location of a church, located near our campus. The church specifically targets those in the hard rock and metal scene, where the gospel is seldom heard, and provides an “alternative” new church. It has grown to 100+ membership since its start.</p>

<p>Math Tutor – tutored students in calculus, statistics and other math topics</p>

<p>Reformed University Fellowship – led weekly dinner groups discussing and reflecting on each week’s RUF sermon</p>

<p>La Mesa Hispánica – spanish club, helped organize and run 10 events per year, ranging from Mexican cook-offs to movie nights.</p>

<p>Mathematics Club – helped advertise and organize events and talks</p>

<p>Problem Solving Club – worked on Putnam Exam problems, taught results of solved problems to the rest of the group.</p>

<p>Honors College Community Service Club – worked in various community service projects throughout the year.</p>

<p><em>(If anyone cares…)</em></p>

<p>Programming Skills: Java, Matlab, Visual Basic for Applications, SAS, Access, LaTeX.</p>

<p>Actuarial Examinations Passed: Exam P, Exam FM [very important for actuarial jobs—even more so than GPA—but I don’t think HBS is very familiar with these exams]</p>

<p>Foreign Languages: Spanish (almost fluent); Chinese (conversational); Greek (conversational).</p>

<p>Other Notes:</p>

<p>*technically I have one B, from a summer class, but it doesn't get computed into my GPA since it was at another university. still, HBS will see it since I have to send transcripts from all colleges attended.</p>

2

<p>Gee, it sounds like you’ve done a lot of very good work. My son is in the first week of his senior year of college, has essentially the same major as you and he just found out that he was one of the one hundred applicants accepted to Harvard’s 2+2 for the HBS class of 2015. All of his stats are below yours but that, of course, can’t guarantee anything. As you probably figured out, the 2+2 program targets science/math/engineering students so it sounds like you have a reasonable chance. Just make sure you are ready for the interview if you make the first cut.</p>

3

<p>Your numbers are very impressive and you don’t seem to have any glaring weaknesses. The only thing I can think of is the number of extracurriculars that you were involved in. Make sure that you focus on quality rather than quantity. Also, it seems like many of the students on the website are bilingual so you may want to stress that point.</p>

<p>You seem like a great candidate. Best of luck.</p>

4

<p>OneDown&OneToGo: Thanks for your feedback! It’s good to see that someone with a background similar to mine got accepted. Out of curiosity, would you mind mentioning what his major was exactly, and any of his stats (school, gpa, gmat)?</p>

<p>rmanderson: You made a very good point about the extracurricular activities. I also read HBS’s essay questions this week, and the optional question “Discuss how you have engaged with a community or organization” would fit very well with my involvement in my volunteer work teaching children with Down Syndrome. I think I’ll try to allocate more time to that, and worry less about some of the organizations where I have less of a leadership role (Spanish Club, etc).
Since I do have a large breadth of activities, what should I do with them on my application? Should I list all of them on my resume, or leave a few of them off of my resume?</p>

5

<p>I would only include the activities that you showed leadership potential in. If you think that this is all/most of them, consider including the organizations in which you had a formal title (President, etc.). For your math tutor experience, I would also include the number of students you tutored and possibly their level in school.</p>

6

<p>I think the best thing for you to do would be get some kind of part time corporate job/internship/unpaid apprenticeship/whatever so you can have more business experience on your resume. You have great academic stats, and you have that internship on there, but business school is about business. While the 2+2 is designed to give you two years to go into the workforce, I think HBS should make it a 5+2 because it takes more than 2 years to think broader than your own cubicle when you’re in your first job.</p>

7

<p>Dear GregM131,</p>

<p>You asked about my son’s profile as he was just accepted to 2+2. Well…he goes to Harvard and is an Applied Math concentrator. Apparently 20 of the 100 applicants accepted last week to 2+2 are Harvard undergrads so I suppose they may have an advantage in being accepted to 2+2 either because of the Harvard affiliation or because HBS is very familiar with their work load (heavy, especially in H’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and “pure” math/science). Also, alot of Harvard undergrads apply to 2+2 because they often meet HBS students who serve as “teaching fellows” in the undergrad classes. Some HBS students also live in the undergrad “houses” as tutors so overall the Harvard undergrads are very familiar with the 2+2 program and apply.</p>

<p>I don’t specifically remember what his GMAT’s were but I remember that he was disappointed. His GPA is in the mid 3’s, few EC’s. I think he interviews well.</p>

<p>Don’t get discouraged though…80% of those accepted to 2+2 didn’t come from Harvard undergrad and of those that my son has already met he feels that they are just normal smart kids (not supermen/women) just like you find at all schools.</p>

<p>Just like highly selective undergraduate schools all you can do is perform well enough to get your name “put into the fishbowl” and then see if your name is “pulled out” as schools like HBS have an overabundance of qualified applicants. When my son applied to undergrad he was rejected by six schools and his name just happened to be “pulled out of the fishbowl” by Harvard a few others.
Good luck.</p>

8

<p>I’m one of the 100 from this year. Everybody I’ve met is certainly smart, but I can tell you that some of the rejects were ‘smarter’ than me, at least stats-wise and perhaps had more academic capability/prowess than I. I think that really shows the fact that when HBS looks at your academic record/gmat, they’re trying to answer the question: “can he/she do the work?” If the answer is yes, they move on to other, ‘more important’ parts of the application, i.e. leadership and community citizenship (note: this is my take, based in part on an info session I attended. I’m no expert but I got in so maybe my thoughts count for something).</p>

<p>With the new dean of HBS, community citizenship is probably more important than it ever was before. Ethics and engagement in community welfare are going to be really important for applicants IMO (they were before too, but more so now). But if you don’t meet the leadership point, you’re not getting in. Plenty of applicants have smarts and care for community welfare, but are not suited for business school based on their leadership (or lack thereof). Leadership, ultimately, is portrayed by your essays. Your CV will just give them some clues to look for but you absolutely must portray a solid, coherent picture of yourself as an effective leader. Use specific examples of HOW you led, and what the results were. </p>

<p>I suspect your recommendations are going to play a big part in simply corroborating your story, so make sure these people know you very well (famous recommender < someone who knows you well). The interview… well, cross that bridge when you get there, but I have a feeling it’s just a way for them to get to know you better and see if there’s a real, and interesting, person behind the story.</p>

<p>As for the internships, don’t stress too much over them. Show you can do some high-quality professional work, but you don’t have to meet some quota for experience. That’s what the 2 years post-grad are for. But it helps, no doubt.</p>

9

<p>would every college econ major in america stop posting on this site asking for their chances of getting into Harvard 2+2? It’s a 100-person class! Get a magic 8 ball for christs sake…</p>

10

<p>I got in to the HBS 2+2 program with a 3.4 GPA and decent GRE (didn’t take the GMAT). I was of course surprised, but realize that Harvard is looking for industry leaders who are passionate about what they do and about what they intend on innovating in the future. Stats only go so far. Now I had a ton going for me (my 3.4 GPA is actually very good based on where I go to school and where I study, so that wasn’t really an issue).</p>

<p>Make sure you find yourself a niche somewhere in industry. Your raw stats are good, but it will come down to your personality and what you plan on leading down the road.</p>

11

<p>Hi thunderbird1990,</p>

<p>I am applying to HBS 2+2. Do you mind telling what your GRE score was?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>