Attended Wharton Information Session

I went to Wharton Club of Korea infor. session a couple of days ago.

In short, the alums were mostly recent graduates, having graduated in the past 2 years.   As expected, they are top-notch intellectuals, clearly evident by their respective job positions and the way they carried themselves during the Q&A session.  I would like to share a few things you guys might find useful as far as admission questions are concerned.

1.  R1 vs. R2

In general, it was the consensus of the whole alum group that there is a marginal difference between R1 and R2.  However, one of the more vocal/active alum made an insightful comment that if applicants are ready, they should submit in R1, given the fact that there are LESS applicants in R1, albeit stronger applicants.

2. Why Wharton and Why Now questions.

Almost everyone made a point that articulating these two questions are extremely crucial to standing out in the piles of applications.  In other words, the very first essay question is the most important one by far.  ( I am sure many of you guys are already aware of this)

3. leadership initiative

Traditionally teamwork emphasized B-school, Wharton has recently made initiatives to strengthen its leadership programs.  One of the alum has mentioned that this is a direct response to some "unwarranted" criticism that Wharton lacks some concrete leadership initiatives, compared to other top B-schools.

4. Start with Why MBA question first!

The more knowledgable alum clearly mentioned, in a very strong tone and conviction, that once applicants answered the "Why MBA" question, the rest of essays should "easily fall into the pieces."  Obviously, this is easier said than done; however, once you clearly linked the previous work experiences and accumulated skills sets from the working experiences with a set of skills you wish to learn at Wharton, what you have a compelling case of your application.

In general, I really sensed that Wharton is clearly looking for people who want to come to Wharton and have clear goals of what they wish to learn and to do after MBA, rather than "superstars" on paper. 

As I am writing this, I am also thinking about re-drafting my first Wharton essay.  If you remember, I stated that I was quite comfortable with the earlier drafts of the essay a couple of months ago.  Well, I am on my 6th draft at this point:)

I am targeting R1, as I had already jumpstarted the application process.  However, I envision I would be doing 10th draft by the time I submit the application.  It is a pain.  I am not trying to put pressures on myself, but I can't stop thinking about the notion that Wharton essays are by far the "ESSAYS of MY LIFE".