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SPECIAL: THE HARVARD MYSTIQUE, SEE PAGE 8 DATE: SPRING 2015 ISSUE: #32

Working the Waiting Game: Why Many The Evolution of the Russians are being waitlisted, and What to do if MBA Application it Happens to You. Essay

Why does the school care about salary expectations when admitting MBA By Marian Dent, applicants? One of the main factors in B- By Andrew Dean, Pericles. school rankings is the increase in salary that Mendelssohn, GMAT Dent holds a JD graduates get from their MBAs. So look at it Professor and & from the University this way, with Russian banks not really hiring Legal Skills of California, at the moment, and hardly any Russian Director. Pericles, Berkeley. company raising salaries (let alone raising Moscow them enough to match the almost double drop in the ruble to dollar/Euro rate), what is the MBA advisors in Moscow have noticed a chance that a Russian graduate returning to Once upon a time, not too long ago, writing distinct and rather unhappy phenomenon in work in Russia in a year or two will be able to MBA application essays was a rather Russia for this MBA admissions season: show a dollarized salary gain from what he or predictable event. Most of the questions waitlisted Russian candidates! Not all are she made before entering the MBA? B- stayed very close to the traditional favorites: waitlisted of course, but we are seeing at least schools employ some of the best financial why an MBA? Why now? Why here? And, double the usual numbers of waitlisted forecasters in the world as professors, and perhaps equally or more important, why this applicants compared to previous years. It’s a truly their crystal balls don’t have a clear school? Some schools might have some conspiracy, you say? Well, I don’t think so. outlook on that one. variation, but by and large, most of the It’s more of a reality check. Russian B-school questions were the usual old friends. applicants today are in the position that many Moreover, what happens to that Answering them was easy, and quite often an forlorn Indian subcontinent applicants have candidate if Russian/Western relations applicant could simply reuse all or part of an been in for quite some time: application deteriorate further? Schools worry that the essay from one school when writing the essays for another. numbers are up, but they are not top salary Russian graduates will be anchors weighing contenders. down their employment statistics. Most of these essays originated in the time before Internet applications, when people For years, Russian MBA candidates, Three shorter term considerations also on average applied to fewer schools. Imagine, especially those coming from the finance factor into the high number of waitlisted at this time people had to submit multiple sphere, have been golden for B-schools. Not Russian applicants this year. The first is copies of documents with the application. only were Russian candidates relatively smart sanctions. There is now a long list of Russian Instead of scanning his or her transcript, an and hard working, but Moscow banks and citizens and companies that Western applicant would have to obtain multiple, investment companies paid very high salaries individuals and companies can’t deal with, certified copies for each school. Everything, for top MBAs. Business schools admitting plus a long list of high-tech goods and from recommendations to CVs, had to be done Russian finance candidates could easily bet knowhow that can’t be passed to Russia. by hand and then sent by expensive couriers that the candidates would, if not staying in Schools aren’t exempt from these restrictions: for delivery. Applicants applied to an average Europe or the US after graduation, at least a few years ago, a U.S. college received a of 3 to 5 schools. Schools could, therefore, return to Russia with net salary gains from the highly publicized fine and a damaged realistically expect that a large percentage of time they entered B-school. applicants would, if accepted, attend the school to which they were applying. See Waitlisted, p. 4 Two articles on Harvard, See pages 6-8. As Internet applications became increasingly wide-spread, many applicants started applying to a significantly larger number of schools. Why? Well, applying was now easier. Many documents could be scanned and submitted online, greatly simplifying the application process. So applying to even ten or more schools became possible without too much work. The Internet was the great equalizer in the application process, allowing anybody to apply to Harvard, for example. The Internet also See Evolution, page 4. little more stability and predictability before tell you that they have automatically added making their decision. you, and tell you not to contact them. In that case don’t. Some advisors advocate In short then, if you have applied to B- contacting the admissions office even when school this year, you have a pretty high chance they asked you not to, but I think if they of being waitlisted, if not outright rejected and specifically said not to contact them you asked to apply again next year. should not do so, at least not immediately.

If you haven’t yet applied, then your 2) Unless the school tells you not to chances of being accepted in the final contact them, and the letter gives you full application rounds are completely up in the information, try to chat/phone/Skype with air. On the one hand, the situation bodes someone in admissions to determine your real reputation when a professor accidentally badly for you, since so many Russian chances. Different schools have different passed prohibited technical information to a applicants are still under consideration. But waitlist policies. Some B-schools waitlist very group of students from Iran. Thus, on the other hand, fewer Russians already few candidates and genuinely expect that applications may be waitlisted so schools can have acceptance letters in hand, so an anyone on the waitlist stands a high chance undertake due diligence. B-schools have to outstanding candidate can be bumped ahead of being admitted. Other schools waitlist large be especially careful if they are connected to of those who are still waiting without numbers, and your chance of admission is universities with engineering or science adversely affecting the global diversity of the rather low. Unless the school told you in the departments where restricted technical data class. letter, you need to find out your chances in might become an issue. order to decide on a strategy. What to do with Waiting Time The second consideration is the increased If the waitlist letter didn’t already tell you, number of Russian applicants. For various For this part of my article, I’m going to also ask about whether you can submit reasons, both personal and political, more assume that you have already applied to all additional information to bolster your Russians want to study abroad this year. So the schools you want, and are not planning application. Ask the admissions schools have more Russian applicants to on simply submitting more applications until representatives what type of information they choose from. For the most part, schools don’t someone says “yes.” Our advisees are picky suggest, and pay attention to what they say. have any “quotas” of one nationality or and know that not just any B-school will do, Whatever they suggest, DO IT! Finally ask another, and don’t discriminate against any so I hope our readers are too. Unless you are the person you are speaking to whether he/ particular nationality. Really, they don’t. But unemployed at the moment, or likely to lose she can review your application and tell you B-schools do have to think about the diversity your job, or really need to leave the country the strongest and weakest points. of the entering class as a whole. You can’t in a hurry, don’t apply to a school you underestimate the educational benefit to wouldn’t normally want to attend simply to Plan your call to admissions about ten having an entering class that represents many be able to get in somewhere. It’s probably days after you receive the wait list notice—if different nationalities and experiences. A better to take your chances, even if it means you are contacting the admissions office school can’t call itself truly global, and waiting until next year. immediately, chances are everyone else will students won’t learn to do business globally, be trying to talk to them too, so the reps will if a large percentage of the entering class is Here’s what you do for the best chance of be too busy to spend much time with you. from one place. Plus, the people who read the getting off the waitlist and into the class: Ask for the conversation in advance so they applications are human, and there is simply a will have your application handy and be human tendency not to quickly thumbs-up 1) Carefully read the waitlist letter and prepared to talk to you. applications that look too much like others. follow the directions. Some schools want The applications that readers remember are you to contact them to “opt in” to the waitlist, Try to write down some questions in the ones that are a bit different, so the more and if so, you need to do this right away. Most advance about particular parts of your applications they read from Russian students with similar backgrounds, the less likely it is that any one will be quickly accepted.

And the last short term consideration is money. In Russia, unfortunately, we have less of it now. So more applicants are requesting financial aid, and a school has to think about whether it will be able to fund its Russian acceptees. This can be especially messy if the school fears blocked banks or other little difficulties that students might face in paying for their studies. Plus, when a country is politically unpopular, fewer donors and foundations may be willing to step up with scholarships for students from that country. Thus, some schools might waitlist Russian applicants to give time for the situation to develop. It doesn’t hurt them to pause for a 2 application to make sure you get all the information you need in one conversation. Don’t bother admissions more than once with these questions if you can avoid it.

3) Critically evaluate your application for weak points, and fix them as much as you can. Given this year’s numbers of waitlisted Russians, your application may not be actually very weak, but still there must be one or two areas where you think you could improve. Your chat with the admissions representative might have already told you this. Your first “fix” should be adding whatever they suggest. From then on, spend your waiting time working on your weak areas. (You might do this even before receiving your wait list notice.) For example, if your GMAT scores are low, consider retaking the test; it’s not too late to resubmit a higher score. If your quant background is weak, think about taking an accounting or economics class or a related MOOC, and submitting a verified certificate to admissions. If language level is the problem, take an English class, do a brief study abroad for a certificate, or retake TOEFL. For leadership skills, try If you know people who graduated from the school to which you are volunteering to organize a charitable event, chair a committee at a professional applying, you might ask them for letters of support. organization, or coach a sports team or student 6) Keep your name in front of the on the day you get the waitlist letter. Multiple competition. If it’s professional skills, think admissions over several intervals. You want students will be receiving waitlist notices and about writing a short professional article, to be the one the admissions committee writing to the ad com at the same time. You getting your most recent invention patented, remembers when someone says “hey, I think want your improvements to arrive on slow or getting on the speakers’ list at a conference. it’s time we admit some of those waitlisted admissions days. Russian applicants.” For that, multiple taps 4) Get some help from your friends. This are better than a single hammer blow. This But although you need to hit them more is a good time to see if you can add additional means you should not submit all your than once, don’t spam the admissions office references that might boost your application. application improvements to the school at with multiple updates that aren’t real. Nothing If the school asked for two or three references, one time. Scatter them to arrive about one is more annoying that getting constant and you only turned in two, definitely get per month if you are waitlisted early in the messages about ridiculously small someone to send a third now. If you know admissions season, and about one every two improvements to an application. You want to someone who graduated from the school or is to three weeks if you are waitlisted later in be the squeaky wheel that gets the attention, otherwise connected with it, you might ask the season. And don’t send out any updates but not the screeching one that gives them for a letter of support also. Although previously you handed in professional references, here you might ask a friend to write about you. If the school has an alumni club in Russia, try to get to know the members in the hope that someone might agree to write a note about you, or might at least give you more information about the school to use in future correspondence.

5) If you haven’t visited the school yet, it’s time to do so now. A visit shows the school that you are serious about it, and also gives you a chance to add a follow up letter to your application discussing your visit and explaining what other aspects of the school really appeal to you that you didn’t know about when you first wrote your application.

You should, of course, contact the admissions office about that visit. Set up an appointment to stop by in person and ask questions. Ask if you can sit in on classes or get a tour from a current student. 3 admissions a migraine and causes them to The Evolution of the MBA The solutions that many business throw away the whole cart. Three or four schools have worked out for this problem take improvements are plenty. Application Essay, contd. multiple forms. Some schools have rewritten from P. 1 their questions to focus on what are, 7) Prepare Yourself for Next Year. No essentially, duplication-proof questions that allowed those same applicants to apply to matter how carefully you planned your must be tailored for each individual school. many other schools to gain a safety net should Other schools have simply done away with waitlist strategy, you must resign yourself Harvard prove impossible to enter. to the unpleasant idea that you may have set questions, instead asking a simple question, such as, “we have all your to apply again next year. Therefore, you Schools at first welcomed this trend. This documents – now what else should we know need to start positioning yourself now for a was good for the schools, because higher about you?” or “this is us, now who are you?” better application in the fall. All those numbers of applications made the school more Of the schools that have taken this latter “improvements” mentioned above should competitive. High application numbers could approach, some have dispensed with length continue through the coming year, but the raise a school’s rankings as well as the quality limits, in effect giving the applicant all the rope best place to really cause your application of the entering class. B-schools of course he or she will need to hang his or herself, to change is probably at work. Now is not encouraged students to apply, even though while others have significantly tightened the best time to quit a job to become an they had to turn down more of the applicants. length limits to make the essay a less entrepreneur or start over at a new significant portion of the application. Still company; but it is a good time to ask your Schools soon had an interesting problem, other schools ask at least one video question, boss for a better title, and for more though, and in a way, they were victims of or require a follow up essay after the interview. responsibility. (You will be leaving in a year their own success. With people applying to All of these varied approaches are meant to more schools, the number of accepted and a half, you lose nothing by pushing a either de-emphasize the essay or to force its students who actually enrolled in any one personalization in such a way that it is bit for a higher position, even if it’s not in a school started to drop. That meant that the team or job sphere you particularly want to effectively duplication-proof. These make it schools’ acceptance to enrollment statistics harder for students to apply to large numbers be with long term.) If you can’t move up to started to drop. That’s bad for the B-schools, of schools without a corresponding large a better sounding title, at least position as it makes planning the size of the entering amount of work. In theory then, accepted yourself as a leader at your job: volunteer class rather difficult. It also looks bad in the applicants will be more likely to actually enroll. for committees, and take on opportunities ratings game when a school accepts many for personal branding, such as writing, people but few of them actually come. To show how all this works in real life, we teaching or speaking in public. will examine a number of schools to see how Lastly, the schools started to notice that they have implemented these changes. Now that you have a year, you can also those same essays, the ones in which an applicant should give a solid assessment push your company for some additional The Great Essay Reduction Program – about who they are and what they had training, particularly training in accounting, Harvard, Wharton, Booth, INSEAD, LBS micro-economics, statistics or other skills accomplished, all started to look alike. The Internet allowed people to submit essentially that B-schools love to see. It’s a great time Four years ago, the same essays, with just a few modifications, to start on CFA certification or other required applicants to write four essays, to multiple schools. Students started to follow professional qualifications that will make patterns of what the internet told them a including some of the old classics: What are next year’s application look different than successful application essay should look like, your three greatest achievements? (600 this year’s. or even hire one of a number of internet-based words); What have you learned from a admissions consultants to write much of the mistake? (400 words), followed by a choice of Finally, spend your coming year essays for them. That made it much harder two 400 word essays from a list that included building your profile into the person you for schools to rely on the essays to another mistake question and a post-MBA want to be after B-school. In last year’s distinguish between candidates. goal question. Within two years, Harvard had applications you probably had to explain dropped to one single essay, minus a word the person you wanted to be, the sphere in The schools, as you can imagine, were limit. In between, for a one year transition, which you wanted to work, and why. You not pleased. they required two 400 word essays in the tried to show that you really were that person. But in reality, your essays may have been filled with new ideas that you hadn’t had much time to really act on. Now you have the time. You should be able to show progression toward your goals and bring added factors to the table. Whatever you wrote about in last year’s applications should be more thought out, more solidified, and backed up by a year of action in that direction. And you should be all ready to apply again in round one this fall.

4 application. In addition to the reduction in words, Harvard (alone, among all the business schools) requires applicants who are interviewed to write a short essay within 24 hours of their interview summarizing their impressions. The common presumption is that this is a type of plagiarism check, ensuring that the person interviewed is actually the person who wrote the essays.

This move to reduce or de-emphasize the writing requirement started a process of change that has seen many top schools, including some that had not changed their essays in years (INSEAD cut one essay, and LBS cut two), significantly reduce their essay requirements. Wharton, for example, now requires just a single 500 word essay (essentially, what do you want to do and why will Wharton help you get there). Chicago Booth has largely mimicked Harvard’s approach, with an open-ended, single essay. Wharton and Chicago-Booth are using current students to screen applications and essays. Many commentators have speculated where this approach is likely to lead. An oft- year business student. Whether this is really question that made (and makes) Stanford made quote is that business schools are necessary is still debatable. Still, if my contact GSB’s application unique and relatively heading more towards the format of law is correct, I wonder how long these particular duplication proof. It further ensured that schools, where applications go through a business schools will persist in even requiring applicants who take the time to soul search centralized process requiring a single personal essays. and produce a strong answer to this difficult statement valid for all schools. Others have essay are truly serious about wanting to speculated that some schools may do away The Real You – Stanford, Cornell, attend Stanford. with the essay requirement entirely, and Berkeley, Duke instead institute some type of online skills Stanford is not alone in requiring very course or case to screen for the interview The opposite approach to the one personal essays. Cornell Johnson has taken candidates, and then use the interview to test mentioned above is to require essays that are the same approach. Cornell requires a 2000 applicants’ real strengths and social skills. very personal and very tailored to the character ‘Table of Contents to Your Life Poets and Quants suggested in one article particular school. Story.’ They encourage applicants to be that the interview will, in effect, be turned into creative, but otherwise do not have any a ‘geek screening’ event. Stanford GSB has also reduced its restrictions. This topic, like Stanford’s, is so applications’ required number of essays, but personal as to be impossible to write well As a brief comment, the Harvard approach they still retain what I consider to be the perfect unless the author is both very focused and as of now is being followed by a minority of example of the personalized approach with truly able to communicate his or her ideas in a schools. Still, this minority includes three their main question, “What Matters Most to cognizant fashion. Moreover, it’s so unique business schools in the top-five. There is You and Why?” The question is, in my that it can’t easily be reused for another also evidence that those who think that the opinion, sublime: simultaneously basic, but school’s application. essay may be dropped completely could be virtually impossible to duplicate or plagiarize. correct. Both Wharton and Chicago-Booth An applicant could quite possibly lie, but U.C. Berkeley also has gone with the are using current students to screen stealing an answer from another applicant’s unique and personal essay approach. They applications and essays. At the risk of personal experiences, or copying from another first ask you to describe a personal experience introducing a controversial idea, one current application you wrote, would be virtually that has fundamentally changed the way you Booth student with whom I recently spoke impossible. In typical California fashion, by see the world. Like Stanford’s essay, this said that this was the ‘anti-intellectualization’ asking this question Stanford is focusing both requires soul searching and can’t easily be (her word) of the writing requirement. She on the person and on the personal. Applicants plagiarized. And another Berkeley essay asks was referring to a Russian applicant who had are told to avoid repeating their CV you to choose a specific post-MBA employer written an essay that detailed his experience achievements. The brilliance of the question and position that you would like to get, and working for a company that had been is that most people cannot answer it. Very write a hypothetical application for that dismantled by the Russian government in few people, in my opinion, really know what position, explaining how your background is what some called a political case. The student is truly important to them or what truly compelling for the job and what makes you reviewer said that, no matter how moving, the motivates them. Thus, they have an almost better qualified than others. That’s certainly essay was wasted on its audience and will impossible time writing the essay, with weeks nothing you can repeat in another school’s likely result in the application’s being buried. wasted in thought to produce a mere 750 application. In her words, the people chosen to review words. The two applicants I know who were essays were hardly the best students, and successful passing this challenge were Lastly, after years of requiring the standard most would have experience limited to the absolutely focused, and fully capable of essays addressing the standard questions, regions from which they came. Her communicating what motivated them. So, Duke has also gone with a format that recommendation was to dumb down the essay while Stanford did cut its required number of absolutely requires a strong, personal to the level of a not-very-cosmopolitan second essays (and word length), it kept the one 5 approach. Duke’s first question is simply ‘25 school does something similar. Students can The Harvard Mystique, bullet-points about you, 2 pages.’ They do practice in as many unrecorded questions as not care what you write, except that they they want, but then they must take two cont’d. from P. 8 request the points to be new information and recorded questions in which they have 45 Students and researchers respected my ideas not simply a repetition of things contained seconds to prepare and 90 seconds to speak. and I was treated as an equal. I became friends elsewhere on the application. Duke’s second The whole format seemed very TOEFL like, of students from Russia, Ukraine, Estonia, question is a two page essay on ‘Why Duke?’, and can be particularly stressful for non- Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Hong Kong, and another topic that would be near impossible native English speakers. Iran, areas of my research concentration. I was to fake. It forces the applicant to really permitted to lecture on legal theory and to research, explore Duke, and think seriously Other formats also are coming into vogue help train two foreign students on U.S. legal about its advantages before applying. In this now. Chicago Booth has an optional research and writing. I also gave students way, Duke is making a concerted effort to really powerpoint presentation that applicants can ideas about how to perform well on exams. get to know their applicants, and to be use to replace the essay. Georgetown, absolutely certain that these applicants McDonough school tells applicants “Why There are plenty of opportunities for sincerely want to attend Duke. The Duke do you want to attend the Georgetown publication with the many journals at Harvard, application reflects this, and it is largely McDonough Full-time MBA Program? Tell whether as a student or later as alumni. There successful in accomplishing these goals. us in tweet format (140 characters or less). It are also opportunities for multimedia Duke, more than any other school, is really seems that as more communications production, e.g. video and other digital media. built on the idea of Team Fuqua, a shared technology develops, more and more There are also good opportunities for sports experience in which all the school’s students admissions directors are getting creative and fitness as well as social clubs such as are willing and enthusiastic participants. about their application questions. chess or role playing games. Other Little Quirks – the Video Essay Conclusion and Interview, IE, NYU and others. Boston - a really pretty city, though it gets In conclusion, the unifying factor in all cold in the winter. A final trend is moving away from essays these various forms of MBA application and into more modern media for imparting your innovation is that the applications themselves Boston, the intellectual capital of the virtues as an applicant. are in a state of flux. Almost all the schools, United States, has the most universities of for various reasons, have gotten tired of any city in the U.S.A. and is a beautiful clean Video is showing up here or there, either city. Institute of Technology as an optional media that schools are allowing reading the same answers to the same (MIT) and Boston College for examples are applicants to use or a required format questions. Some schools have greatly also world class universities and MIT is close somewhere along the application procedure. simplified the procedure, perhaps even to Harvard so there is some “cross As an optional format, video can be a great heading in the direction of essay free option IF YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE applications, while others have taken this pollination”. Unfortunately, one ought not to DOING. IE, NYU Stern, and Chicago Booth, chance to be even more personal in their swim in the river Charles, and the nearest ocean all allow the submission of an optional video approach. Still other schools are for swimming is at least 30 minutes by subway essay, and I have seen great examples of both. experimenting with alternative media and train, which is called “the T”. There are, Be creative, and most importantly, relax. If presentation forms. however, good sport facilities at the university. you cannot, then, really, stay away from video. I suspect people will ultimately apply to Bostonians, like other New Englanders, Other schools, however, will not give you schools, and have to deal with essays, that are reserved and not outgoing and not a choice. This year, I came across a few reflect applicants’ personalities. Harvard, talkative, or so it seemed to me. Boston is clean mandatory video essays, at the University of Stanford, and Duke, just to name a few and basically safe but students should be Texas, McCombs, the University of schools, all have distinctly different cultures, careful of their mobile phones, ipods, and Washington, Foster and at the University of and different people will fit better at one or computer equipment, which are easy to steal Toronto, Rotman. The McCombs essay was another, but probably not at all of them. The and resell. Housing is cheaper than New York, simply a sixty second personal introduction. choice of schools probably reflects as much but not by much. Inexpensive groceries can Again, for international students, this can be about an applicant’s personality as anything be found though one must look for that since a great opportunity to get creative. One else, and thus, with these changes, the essay most people in Boston are fairly wealthy. applicant I know of from Russia works for a (regardless of form) may again become a Those who like to drink and dine will also have major airline – he shot his introduction reliable indicator for the school whether the plenty of chances for good food and drink. standing in the aisle of an airliner while the applicant actually belongs there. flight crew prepped the plane for incoming You will need winter clothing. Winter is passengers. You can do almost anything in While nobody has yet studied this this format, as long as you make sure to be from November through February, usually by question, we might hope that the more yourself and relax. March the snow has stopped falling, though personalized approaches may decrease the there may still be some to melt. By April the phenomenon of applicants applying to The second mandatory video format is a snow is done! dozens of schools that they know little about, bit trickier. The University of Washington requires students it wishes to perhaps and bring more thought back into the How to pay for it? How to get in? interview in person to pass a pre-interview application process, as well as more video first. Applicants are given an unlimited equilibrium back into the applications/ Regarding the tuition (U.S. English) i.e. number of practice attempts, but the real acceptances/enrollment ratios. school fees (U.K. English): on paper, Harvard interview consists of two 90 second segments is expensive to attend. In my own case I was based on what look like intelligent TOEFL permitted to audit courses I could never afford questions. University of Toronto’s Rottman to pay for and even given interesting jobs, 6 though I did not take a degree. Admission to Harvard is needs-blind: that is, if you are highly intelligent, a leader, a productive person, your wealth or poverty will not influence Harvard’s decision to admit you because, as mentioned, the university has the largest endowment of any university on earth. Of course, if you become a wealthy person or are from a wealthy background try to fund future scholars with a donation to the college fund! You should seek scholarships: Fulbright, IREX, Rotary, DAAD, CNRS are examples of funding sources which may be able to help you.

Students needing income are encouraged . to consider working in the libraries or food BY AARON KEYT. AARON IS A GRADUATE OF U.C. BERKELEY SCHOOL OF LAW, service at Harvard! Harvard does offer AND A PRACTICING LAWYER IN SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, WHO IS VISITING AT employees tuition reduction, so that may be a HARVARD LAW SCHOOL THIS ACADEMIC YEAR WITH A FRIEND WHO IS STUDYING way to fund your education. Had I stayed at THERE. Boston I would likely have sought to do that in fact, but Pericles gave me a chance to teach HARVARD LAW SCHOOL: THE ICONIC LAW SCHOOL OF A MERICAN PUBLIC IMAGINATION in Moscow, which was also a fantastic AND MOVIES. IT ACTUALLY RANKS ONLY SECOND OR THIRD, BEHIND YALE. (STANFORD IS intellectual experience. ITS COMPETITOR FOR THE NUMBER TWO SPOT.) ITS CURRENT 1L CLASS OF 560 STUDENTS IS 50% FEMALE, 41% STUDENTS OF COLOR. 10% ARE NON-U.S. CITIZENS. LONG A BASTION OF WEALTHY PROTESTANT WHITE MALE PRIVILEGE, HARVARD IS TRYING HARD TO BE AS Regarding getting admitted: Be the best DIVERSE AS THE NATION. UNLIKE THE UNDERGRADUATE COLLEGE, WHICH ADMITS A person you can be. Be a leader. Follow your SIGNIFICANT PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS SIMPLY BECAUSE ONE OF THEIR PARENTS WENT passion. Build something. I learned lots of THERE (“LEGACY” ADMISSIONS), AND OTHER STUDENTS TO PLAY ON ITS SPORTS TEAMS, languages and foreign laws, so I became a ADMISSION TO THE LAW SCHOOL IS BASED ON MERIT. technical expert, and thus despite the fact I am not as sociable as I ought to be, I was able SIGNIFICANTLY, OVER HALF THE CLASS SPENT TWO OR MORE YEARS OUTSIDE OF COLLEGE to find a place there. Always try to make BEFORE ENROLLING AND FULLY THREE-QUARTERS HAD ONE YEAR OUTSIDE, A CHANGE yourself useful to others and you will be FROM THE TRADITIONAL DIRECT-FROM-UNDERGRADUATE PATH OF THE PAST. A LAW DEGREE appreciated at Harvard. Laugh and smile but IN A MERICA IS A TICKET TO A WIDE RANGE OF CAREERS, FROM SERVING THE LEGAL NEEDS OF be genuine: people appreciate honesty and THE POOR TO NONLEGAL CAREERS IN BUSINESS OR GOVERNMENT; FOR EXAMPLE, ONE OF AMERICA’S MOST SUCCESSFUL BREWERIES WAS FOUNDED BY A HLS ALUM, AND ANOTHER everyone wants to be happy. HLS ALUM IS THE CURRENT US PRESIDENT. THE ADMISSIONS PROCESS SEEKS OUT PEOPLE WITH THE MATURITY AND LIFE EXPERIENCE TO PUT THEIR LAW SCHOOL EDUCATION TO GOOD What do you get out of going to Harvard? USE.

If you are fortunate enough to get in, you THE APPLICATION PACKET IS ESSENTIALLY THE SAME AS FOR OTHER LAW SCHOOLS: will be part of a network of brilliant friendly UNDERGRADUATE TRANSCRIPT, LSAT SCORES, LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION, AND leaders, powerful people, who are also good; PERSONAL STATEMENT. THERE ARE NO FIRM CUT OFFS GUARANTEEING ADMISSION OR honest and hard working, friendly and fun. REJECTION; E.G., MEDIOCRE GRADES CAN BE OFFSET BY CAREER SUCCESS AFTER COLLEGE. That really describes the faculty and students THE PERSONAL STATEMENT IS HUGELY IMPORTANT. HLS DOES NOT WANT TO BE SIMPLY A at Harvard. You will learn whatever you wish “PRIZE” FOR HIGH-ACHIEVING UNDERGRADS. THEY WANT TO KNOW WHY YOU WANT TO to study and will be taught by some of the GO TO LAW SCHOOL, AND WHY YOU WANT TO COME TO HARVARD SPECIFICALLY. world’s best scholar’s and students. You will HLS ALSO ACCEPTS ABOUT 20-30 TRANSFER STUDENTS FROM OTHER US LAW SCHOOLS form friendships, and may even find true love. INTO ITS 2L CLASS. THESE ARE TYPICALLY PEOPLE AT THE VERY TOP OF THEIR 1L CLASS AT OTHER, OFTEN MUCH LOWER RANKED, REGIONAL LAW SCHOOLS. I opened with a quote on one of Harvard’s gates, to help you understand the wonderful HARVARD’S ENORMOUS WEALTH ALLOWS IT THE RESOURCES TO REVIEW ALL OF THE things at Harvard. I would like to close with THOUSANDS OF APPLICATIONS IT RECEIVES EACH YEAR. INTERESTING CANDIDATES ARE another quote from a Harvard gate, to INTERVIEWED, USUALLY BY SKYPE. THE PROCESS IS NOTEWORTHY FOR THE HUMAN encourage you to apply. The 1875 Gate at ATTENTION APPLICANTS RECEIVE. HARVARD IS KNOWN FOR ATTRACTING HUGELY Harvard bears on its entablature another bible COMPETITIVE, SOMEWHAT NEUROTIC AND NERVOUS PEOPLE, AND THE STAFF APPEAR EAGER quote: TO CREATE A MORE CALMING ATMOSPHERE. STUDENTS CAN — AND DO — OBSESSIVELY TRACK THE PROGRESS OF THEIR APPLICATIONS ON-LINE. THE LUCKY FEW RECEIVE WELCOMING PHONE CALLS. “Open ye the gates that the righteous nation which keepeth the truth may enter BEING A STUDENT AT HLS OPENS UP ACCESS TO AN ENORMOUS WEALTH OF ACTIVITY AT in.” Isaiah (26:2) HARVARD AND THE BOSTON AREA, FROM USE OF PIANOS AT HARVARD’S MUSIC SCHOOL AND FREE ADMISSION TO BOSTON’S MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS, TO THE POSSIBILITY OF TAKING CLASSES DOWN THE STREET AT MIT. NOT THAT HLS STUDENTS ARE EVER LIKELY TO HAVE THE TIME . . .

7 The Harvard Law Mystique

Almost every issue The Graduate Advisor focuses on a different B- school, law school or university, in which we write an in-depth piece about the school. We concentrate on facts and figures, understanding that our audience, mainly international students, often haven’t heard about the particular school we have chosen. This time, however, we are doing something a little different. We decided to focus on Harvard—the most famous, and probably the most written about, university in the world. Everyone Langdell Hall, Harvard Law School knows the facts and figures about Harvard. Everyone has read about its and Boston for potential candidates who wish The other strength of Harvard, achievements and advantages. So to study in the United States. academically speaking, is that it is truly a instead of repeating information that universal university: all fields of study are you have probably read elsewhere, we was the most offered and the quality of teaching and chose two people who have had close intellectually stimulating experience of my life. students in each of Harvard’s schools is the connections with Harvard as well as This is because of the quality of the faculty, highest or among the highest in the field. In close connections with Pericles, and the students, and the fact that Boston is a addition to the law school (JD, LLM, SJD) asked them to just give us their personal really pretty city. there is also the Harvard Business School impressions of what makes Harvard so (MBA), the Center for European Studies (PhD) special. The articles by our authors, Eric The Professors at the of Engle and Aaron Keyt, follow. government as well as the Harvard Ukrainian The professors at Harvard are extremely Research Institute. I am sure such intelligent, hard working researchers, powerful specializations would be found in any other VERITAS people, and many of them are wealthy. Yet, for academic field, but as a jurist I report on my HARVARD all their power and prestige, their wit and own specialties. intelligence, they are remarkably open, LAW SCHOOL friendly, and compassionate. I was able to ask Despite the excellence of the professors, the Professors questions and never felt the atmosphere is friendly, even at times By Dr. Eric Engle. Dr. Engle formerly excluded. informal. Whatever their title, the usual form studied and worked at Harvard law of address at Harvard among faculty and staff school, was a Fullbright Scholar in The academic strength of the corps of is Professor, Mr., or Ms. I presume this is Ukraine, and has recently finished an professors and Harvard’s financial endowment because some of the faculty or students, have LL.M. in German law. He was a visiting mean that Harvard, unlike any other academic titles, military ranks and even professor at Pericles in 2010-11. university, is constantly hosting conferences. decorations, hold political office, or even are Every week there is at least one conference. literal royalty. To be safe, call them Professor Harvard’s motto is “Veritas” - truth. The Many of these conferences are international. (faculty) or Mister or Ms. (staff): that’s 1881 Gate at Harvard includes a quote from During the academic semester, week after American equality. Among fellow students, it the bible: week, there are three to five conferences. Even is normal to use one’s first name. Some during the winter and summer breaks there is Professors asked me to call them by their first “Ye shall know the truth and the truth on average at least one conference each name. shall make ye free” (John 8:32). month. I have never seen so many conferences hosted at any university ever. Harvard has so The Students Can you imagine a place where the only many conferences because the scholars are thing that matters is the truth? among the very best and so are the students. The students at Harvard come from all Such a place exists! backgrounds both economically and I would like to tell you about it. Harvard can host all those conferences culturally. Again, though extremely intelligent, because the university endowment - a trust diligent, and even wealthy, powerful, or both, I had the privilege and the pleasure to fund - is the largest university endowment on the students at Harvard were welcoming and attend Harvard law school as an auditor and earth. Fortunately, Harvard’s trustees manage friendly. I was never made to feel excluded, then to work as a legal research aid at Harvard Harvard’s endowment carefully and disburse even though I have neither wealth nor power. law school as a contract employee. So I am funds cautiously. I was truly honored to have very honored to be asked to describe Harvard been the beneficiary of research funding. See Harvard Mystique, P.6