Women in Leadership Club hosts annual conference

On March 3, 2012 the Berkeley-Haas Women in Leadership (WIL) Club will host its 16th annual Women in Leadership Conference—Beyond Mentorship: Women Championing Women. You’re invited!

The conference features prominent keynote speakers, panelists, and typically draws hundreds of attendees.  This year’s keynote speakers will include Jessica Steel, Executive Vice-President of Business and Corporate Development at Pandora.  The conference also features interactive workshops and a Closing Reception to help enhance your professional network.

The Women in Leadership Conference is the longest running student-organized conference at the Haas School of Business. It attracts over 400 attendees, including current students, alumni and professionals from the greater Bay Area and around the world.

Hope to see you there!

- Erin

Demystifying the Wait

To all candidates who have already submitted an application, we know you have questions about what happens next.  Below I have tried to shed some light on the most frequently asked questions of our Round 1 and 2 candidates.  I hope this helps demystify the wait.

• Are Round 1 interview invites still going out?  

In short, yes.  Although the majority of our invitations will be communicated by the end of the year, we will continue to invite Round 1 candidates to interview up until the January 12, 2012 decision date. Interview invitations are extended in the order in which applications are processed and reviewed.  The timing of your invite does not correlate to the relative strength of your application.

• Is it possible to get admitted without an interview?

All admitted students must conduct an interview.  Candidates who are placed directly on the waitlist without an interview are encouraged to schedule an interview at their earliest convenience to further support their candidacy. 

• I have received interview invitations and/or decisions from other business schools.  Should I provide an update to Haas?

The   Admissions Committee is unable to expedite an admissions decision or grant an extension based on the status of your candidacy at another program.  

• When will Round 1 candidates receive a final decision?

Our Round 1 notification deadline is January 12, 2012.  All candidates will receive notification on or before that date.

• When will Round 2 interview invitations start?

We are in the early stages of reviewing Round 2 applications.  Interview invitations will start going out the first week of January, and will continue through the Round 2 decision deadline of March 1, 2012.

• Why does it take 4-5 weeks for invitations to go out?

The Admissions Committee reviews every single application that is submitted.  We do not employ any minimum criteria to be considered for admission.  We appreciate the effort that candidates put into creating their applications and want to ensure a thorough review for every individual.

Thank you for your interest and continued patience.  Happy holidays!

- Morgan

Holiday Closure

The Full-time MBA Admissions Office will close for the winter break on Friday, December 23 at noon and will re-open at 9:00 am on Monday, January 2.

The Visitation Program for this semester has ended, however on-campus Information Sessions will resume Monday, January 23, 2012. Class visits and lunch with students will resume Monday, February 13, 2012. The Spring 2012 class visit schedule will be posted by early February 2012. For more details, please visit our website: http://mba.haas.berkeley.edu/admissions/visitation.html

During the campus winter break, Berkeley MBA students will host informal coffee chat gatherings in cities around the world. You can also follow us on Twitter @UCBerkeley_Haas for impromptu in-person #haastweetmeets during winter break.

Happy holidays and all the best for 2012!

- Stephanie

Diversity Mixer

On Tuesday evening, I attended the 1st Annual Bay Area MBA Diversity Mixer at Gordon Biersch in San Francisco. Like so many Berkeley-Haas events, this fantastic event was organized by our current MBA students. We are so proud to once again be a member of the Consortium for Graduate Study in Management (CGSM). The Consortium’s mission is to enhance diversity in business education and leadership by helping to reduce the serious underrepresentation of African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Native Americans in both member schools’ enrollment and the ranks of management. As soon as our Consortium students arrived on campus this fall, they expressed a need and desire to coordinate a networking event to bring together representatives and members from The Consortium, as well as from other influential organizations that support their mission – such as the National Black MBA Association (NBMBAA), National Society of Hispanic MBAs (NSHMBA), Toigo Foundation,  Management Leadership for Tomorrow.  Two Berkeley-Haas student organizations, the Black Business Students Association (BBSA) and Latin American and Hispanic Business Association (LAHBA) helped sponsor the event – along with Shartsis Friese LLP.

What was so special about this event was not only that it was student-initiated and planned, but that it brought together local professionals, MBA alumni, and prospective students.  At one point during the evening, I was having a lively discussion with a first-year Berkeley MBA Consortium student, one of her former co-workers/ now prospective MBA applicant, and a recent MBA alum and professional who recently relocated to SF from South Carolina.  What a great example of the benefits of the diverse connections made at this event!  Thanks to the students for coordinating this event. I am really looking forward to the next Diversity Mixer!

-Cindy

Meet the Admissions Team

Congratulations to everyone who submitted their Round 2 application last week – the hardest part is over!  Now that your work is done, ours begins.  We know the wait can be difficult, so we wanted to shed some light on what happens after you hit “submit”. First meet the Full-time MBA Haas Admissions Team.  These are the faces of the 16 people who will be reviewing your application over the next couple months.

Our team includes several Admissions Officers, many of whom you’ve likely met at an information session or fair.  We are the ones primarily responsible for evaluating your application and crafting the incoming classes.  The heroes behind-the-scenes are our Operations professionals.  If you’ve ever called or emailed in a question, they are the ones responding to your request.  They also manage everything from our application processing and website to interview coordination and advising appointments.  Finally, we have our stellar Financial Aid Office, with expertise in student loans and scholarships. Although they primarily interact with admitted and current students, they are also available to applicants throughout the process.

And now, back to reading applications…one of them could be yours!

- Morgan

Round 1 Interviews Have Begun

We recently began extending interview invitations for Round 1 applicants and thought this would be an opportune time to share some interviewing tips.

1. Be prepared.  This sounds obvious, but you would be surprised by how many candidates put hours of effort into their written applications and then don’t invest the necessary time in preparing for their interviews.  Practice talking through your responses with a friend or colleague.  Of course you don’t want to sound rehearsed, but you should know your story and be ready share details about your accomplishments, your career goals, and your motivation for pursuing an MBA at Berkeley-Haas.  Being prepared also means having thoughtful questions ready to ask your interviewer.  The admissions interview is an opportunity for you to learn more about the Berkeley MBA Program, so take advantage of it!

2. Treat the admissions interview as you would a professional interview.  Dress to impress (a suit is always appropriate) and arrive on time.  Don’t give your interviewer any reason to question your professionalism.

3. Answer the question.  If you’ve been invited to interview, you can probably boast a long list of achievements and awards.  However, let the interviewer guide the conversation and don’t try to force-fit responses that don’t actually answer the questions.  When answering a question, think before you speak; don’t be afraid to pause, reflect, and collect your thoughts for a brief moment before responding.

4. Relax and be yourself.  Though we understand that interviewing can sometimes be nerve-wracking, remember that the admissions interview isn’t meant to be a stress test and your interviewer won’t be asking trick questions.  We’re simply trying to get to learn more about you and assess your potential fit with our program and community!

As a final note, if you are a Round 1 applicant and have not yet received an interview invitation, remember that we may continue to extend interview invitations up through our notification deadline of January 12.  We appreciate your patience with us as we complete thorough evaluations of your applications.  Good luck!

- Corinne

Update to Incident at Berkeley-Haas

We are sad to inform you that there was a tragedy at the Haas School on Tuesday which involved the shooting by University Police of a student carrying a gun. Nobody else at Berkeley-Haas was hurt.

In our business school’s 113-year history, we have never experienced an event like this, nor do we expect another occurrence — all evidence points to this being an isolated incident. Still, we are taking every precaution to make certain our students, staff, and faculty are as safe as possible.  Safety is of paramount importance to our community and an essential precondition for what we are all doing here together at Berkeley-Haas.

We are grateful for the vigilance of our staff members and police officers who responded so quickly to keep others in our community safe.  As is typical at Berkeley-Haas, our community is pulling together to support one another during this trying time.

For additional information, visit
http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2011/11/16/haas-school-community-saddened-by-events-of-nov-15/.

To read about the incident from a student’s perspective, visit
http://berkeleymbastudents.wordpress.com/2011/11/16/one-students-perspective-on-yesterdays-events-at-berkeley-haas/.

Thanks to everyone for the words of support!

- Stephanie

Student Leadership at Berkeley-Haas

It’s an exciting time of year at Berkeley-Haas!  This week first-year students campaigned for positions on our student government – the MBAA Association with riveting speeches about the many reasons why they fell in love with the Berkeley-Haas community,
why they want to be considered for such a leadership role, and innovative ideas to contribute to the future of Berkeley-Haas.   The MBAA is the body of elected student leaders who advocate student interests to a broad range of stakeholders including faculty, administration, alumni, and the Berkeley community at large. There are 12 positions ranging from MBAA President to VP-Academics to VP-Career.  MBAA officers have the opportunity to serve and support the efforts of their classmates. One of the VP of Alumni candidates described his early exposure to the strength of the Berkeley-Haas alumni network as a new admit.  He attended events in Taipei, LA, Seattle, and the Bay Area.  This had such a positive impact on him that he wants to be sure that everyone in the community takes advantage of this incredible network. A candidate for VP of Diversity suggested we include a diversity element into our Orientation Week activities, while a candidate for VP of Community focused his platform on his passion for volunteering to encourage and empower other students to volunteer more – highlighting his fellow students strong involvement each year with C4C (Challenge for Charity).  MBAA officers impact can be even more significant as they have a stake in setting the future direction of the Berkeley MBA experience for years to come.  Now all we have to do is wait and see who will emerge as the new student leadership for 2012!

- Cindy

The 2011 Women’s Workshop – “An MBA is my path to…”

This past weekend Haas welcomed over 110 pre-MBA women to campus for our annual Women’s Workshop.  The all-day event included a discussion on gender and multi-sector leadership led by Professor Nora Silver, insights from Dean Lyons about the Haas culture, presentations by the Admissions Committee and Career Management Group, and networking opportunities with students and alumnae.  One of our first year students summarized the event nicely on the Haas Student Blog.

This year, the workshop’s theme was “My Journey Toward an MBA”. Participants were asked to complete the following sentence in ten words or less: “An MBA is my path to_______.”  The responses showcased a diversity of interests and remind us that there is no typical path to an MBA.  Haas students are diverse!  They pursue careers across dozens of industries from consulting to consumer packaged goods and clean tech to social entrepreneurship.   How does an MBA fit into your personal and professional journey?”

Sample responses to “An MBA is my path to…”

• “successfully pursuing my passion, building a network of likeminded individuals.”
• “leveraging my vast military leadership experience into the civilian world.”
• “knowledge, experience and opening doors to a better future.”
• “launch an orthopedic tissue-repair biotech startup.”
• “create original ideas that inspire ethical, responsible and successful results.”
• “take control of my destiny.”
• “a future career running a non-profit dedicated to youth advocacy.”
• “being more than just an engineer.”
• “becoming a CFO.”
• “becoming a CMO.”
• “bring integrity back to the finance industry.”
• “gain interdisciplinary knowledge to build stronger teams and valuable organizations.”
• “Diversity. Impact. Change.”
• “greater community impact and financial security.”
• “a better life for me and my family.”
• “accomplish my goals as a professional woman.”
• “pursuing my passion for sustainability in the mainstream food industry.”

Haas will be hosting our final Diversity Workshop on Saturday, November 5th.  Wherever you are in the application process, I encourage you to join us and reflect on how an MBA fits into your professional and personal journey.

- Morgan

Round 1 Update

Our Round 1 deadline was October 12—congratulations to all who submitted! We have begun our evaluation process and ask for your patience as we thoroughly review your applications.  We will start sending out invitations to interview as soon as possible, typically about 4 weeks after our deadline. Please note that we send interview invitations throughout the round and I want to stress that when you are invited to interview is no indication of how strongly we feel about your application. As multiple readers evaluate your application, it takes time to carefully read each one. We appreciate the time you have spent preparing your applications and we are excited to learn more about you!  Good luck!

– Stephanie