I just hit the submit button for Tuck application and with it my hopes and dreams. I have spent weeks working on my essays but even so it felt a bit like I was throwing up a non look shot and hoping for luck like Boris Johnson (London’s beloved mayor). As you know, since visiting Tuck, I am really enamoured with the school. It will be a long old wait before decision day on 7th Feb 2014. You read that right 2014, scary huh?
Although I have submitted the application, I still have a scholarship essay to write for Tuck. I will of course try my hardest but this essay is handled completely by the financial aid office and does not affect any admissions decision. At this point, I would be perfectly happy with just an admit with no scholarship money!
Setting aside my b-school crush, I still have the small matter of my Wharton and Booth interviews. I am extremely lucky in that London is a hub location for both schools so I don’t have to organise flights and hotels. Wharton’s Team-Based Discussion is definitely something I need to research more and prepare. Unfortunately I cannot reveal much more than that since I have been sworn to secrecy. On the other hand, Booth should be a decidedly more straight forward affair. Having already prepped my Why MBA? Tell me a time when … answers previously, hopefully it won’t take too much practice to be ready.
Amidst all the excitement of interviews, R2 have been at the back of my mind. I wanted to use R1 as a litmus test for how my applications stack up. Clearly they have been good enough at least for an interview. That being said making the first cut doesn’t mean they will be good enough for a final admit decision. With decisions not being released until middle of December, I need to prepare for R2 apps to make sure I am ready in the event I do not get an admit. As for which schools and how many apps, I’m undecided. Kellogg almost certainly will feature in R2. Whether I have enough time/energy left by that point to push for another app, we’ll see.
Domotron 
Wharton, Booth, Kellogg, Tuck, they are so different from each other. I can understand why you gave HBS a shot (as did I, last year), after all, who wouldn’t want to go to HBS, right? But when you look at other schools, fit is just an enormous factor to weigh in. I can see people who see themselves being happy at Booth, also being happy at Wharton. And someone who loves Tuck, also targeting Kellogg. But Kellogg and Tuck are the opposite of Booth and Wharton! I don’t know you, your profile or your stats, but if you are good enough to get admitted at all of these schools, maybe you’re waisting your time (and $$$) applying to all of them!
I’m no expert, but I think you would benefit from focusing on those schools that best match you leadership and working styles. If you’re a perfect fit for Kellogg and Tuck, maybe you’re not Booth and Wharton material. And that doesn’t mean you are not good enough to be admitted at these schools; it just means your are not ‘their kind of guy’.
It took me getting rejected at HBS, Booth and Haas to understand that it made sense – I was not a good fit for those schools, and I wouldn’t be happy there.
Just my two cents, because your shortlist makes no sense to me, despite the fact that they’re all top 10 schools.
Best,
Hi Bizwiz,
Thanks for your reply. You are quite right in saying that on the face of it, the schools are quite different. Perhaps I will write a short post detailing my reasons in a day or two. I assure you I did not apply to top 10 carte blanche. There are pretty specific reasons why these schools are right for me.