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Why Didn’t I Get In to My Preferred MBA Program?

When you don’t get accepted to your MBA program of choice, it hits hard emotionally.

Candidates who are reeling from an MBA rejection are full of questions: “Why didn’t I get in?” and  “What did I do wrong?”

The emotional reasons for asking aside, your questioning is great because in asking these questions you are uncovering what needs to change when you reapply.

The truth is that there are three possible answers to your question:

1. You failed to make a clear case for being accepted.  Most applicants are rejected because they fail to make a clear case why they and the program are a great fit.

It does not matter how good you are if you fail to show it well.  This is a communications issue.

Resolving it means stepping back and starting your application from scratch.

Develop a better understanding of who you are and how to map your skills and experiences to the brand of the school.

2. Lack of basic qualifications and experience. People who are on the margins are sometimes accepted if they clearly make a case for why they should be an exception.

But often, if your work experience, GPA and GMAT scores are way below the range acceptable to the school, you will be rejected.

Again, it’s time to step back and reevaluate.  Where are your weaknesses and what can you do now to address these before reapplying?

3. Bad luck and bad timing. A few unlucky applicants fail to gain admission, despite having a good fit and a good application package, purely because they belong to an industry or sector that is over-subscribed in the applicant pool or because they applied in a year where fewer candidates from that profile are admitted.

This is usually unavoidable and these applicants should try again because the applicant pool is constantly in a state of flux.

The most difficult part once you receiving your MBA rejection can be deciding to which group you belong.

This is where taking an unemotional and rational look back at the rejected application documents may help.

Try the services of an experienced application counselor who knows what top business schools are looking for at this point.

The fresh set of eyes may help you to identify necessary changes so that you may get in to the top MBA program of your choice.

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