Still Alive...

Wazzup! Yeah I know it's been a while. I've been busy NOT doing any work, getting in stupid arguments on BW forums, and other important things.

This is where the real lull in application season is. I've heard HBS came out w/ essays so at least applicants can get a head start there. I think Kellogg releases essays fairly early as well, too. If you're an MMM applicant, make sure you answer "why MMM?" rather than "why Kellogg?"

I booked my Random Walk trip. For privacy purposes, I'll just say that I'm headed to South America and I can't wait! I also decided to go with an iPhone 3G S. I pre-ordered it after I did a bit of research...mostly these two links:

http://fortuneapple20.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/3615683376_422978a68e_o.png

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4aQpczZC00

MAN that phone looks sweet sweet sweet! I'll be working thru July then moving back home for a bit before getting to Chicago later in August. Time to get back to surfing...

WSO offers 1-on-1 GMAT Prep

Recently, I've been spending less and less time on GMATclub and BWForums and more time on WallStreetOasis.com. This is a great site for those of you looking to break into Wall Street (such as myself). I recently received an email from the guy who runs WSO about a new GMAT tutoring service that they're offering:
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My name is Patrick and I’m a first year at Wharton. I currently run a site called WallStreetOasis.com, an online community for finance professionals (and students trying to break into ibanking, consulting, trading, HFs, PE, etc) and I am actively involved in the entrepreneurial community here at wharton.

The reason I wanted to reach out is to ask for your help. I just launched a private GMAT prep tutoring service with top-notch tutors (all 99th %) and I am trying to spread the word. Would you be willing to give WSO GMAT Prep a shout-out on your blog? I know you reach a good number of B-School applicants. The link that explains the tutoring service is here: http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/page/one-on-one-gmat-prep

Either way, great blog and resource!
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For those of you looking to apply this upcoming fall, it's a very good idea to get your GMAT out of the way over the summer. If you think you need a tutor, definitely check out what WSO has to offer.

Find the best GMAT prep advice here

The ClearAdmit Best of Blogging (BoB) results are in. My blog came in 5th overall (congrats Tieny!) and 1st for GMAT Preparation advice. A big thanks to my fellow bloggers and celebrity judges for the kudos on my blog.

FYI, the best GMAT prep advice post can be found here. I've said it before, I'll say it again: The best advice I can give is to take the GMATPrep exam at least twice each, for a total of 4 tries. It is, bar none, the absolute best way to practice for the exam and is the BEST indicator of what you can expect to score on the real GMAT.

Official US News 2010 MBA Rankings

EDIT: Added concentration rankings at the bottom [from GMATclub.com].

My friend bought the Grad School Rankings edition of US News this morning, here are the confirmed rankings:

1) HBS - 100
2) Stanford - 99
3) Kellogg - 93
3) Wharton - 93
5) Chicago - 92
5) MIT - 92
7) Berkeley - 89
8) Dartmouth - 87
9) Columbia - 86
10) Yale - 85
11) NYU - 83
12) Duke - 82
13) Ross - 81
14) UCLA - 80
15) Carnegie Mellon - 79
15) Virginia - 79
17) Cornell - 78
18) Texas - 74
19) Georgetown - 71
20) UNC - 70

Looks like the "leaked" rankings were pretty close...except...HEY LOOK -- Chicago is still Top 5! Take that "anonymous" commentor from my last post :P
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Finance:
1) (1) Wharton
2) (2) Chicago
3) (3) NYU
4) (6) MIT
5) (5) Stanford
6) (4) Columbia
7) (7) UCLA
8) (9) Berkeley
9) (8) HBS
10) (10) Kellogg

Management
1) (1) HBS
2) (2) Stanford
3) (3) Kellogg
4) (4) Ross
5) (4) Wharton
6) (6) Tuck
7) (8) Duke
8) (7) Darden
9) (9) Haas
10) (n/a) MIT (previously Columbia)

Marketing:
1) (1) Kellogg
2) (2) Wharton
3) (3) Duke
4) (5) Stanford
5) (4) HBS
6) (7) Ross
7) (10) Chicago
8) (6) Columbia
9) (8) Haas
10) (9) Texas

Entreprenuership
1) (1) Babson
2) (2) Stanford
3) (3) HBS
3) (4) Wharton
5) (5) MIT
6) (6) USC
7) (8) Haas
8) (7) Indiana
9) (9) Texas
10) (n/a) Arizona (previously UNC)

US News 2010 MBA Rankings leaked?

The buzz around BW forums is that US News accidentally "leaked" the new MBA rankings in one of their videos. Contrary to some guy on BW forums taking credit, the "leak" actually occurred on the website AutoAdmit.com.

If what they say is correct, the new rankings go like this:

Current rank [Previous rank] School Name (Rating) [Previous Rating]
1 [1] Harvard (100) [100]
2 [1] Stanford (99) [100]
3 [4] Northwestern (93) [93]
3 [3] Penn (93) [95]
5 [4] MIT (92) [93]
6 [4] Chicago (91) [93]
7 [7] Berkeley (88) [89]
8 [7] Dartmouth (87) [89]
9 [9] Columbia (86) [88]
10 [13] Yale (85) [80]
11 [10] NYU (83) [84]
12 [14] Duke (82) [79]
13 [12] Michigan (81) [82]
14 [11] UCLA (80) [83]
15 [17] Carnegie Mellon (79) [77]
15 [14] UVA (79) [79]
17 [14] Cornell (76) [79]
18 [18] Texas-Austin (74) [74]
19 [22] Georgetown (73) [69]
20 [19] UNC (70) [72]
20 [21] USC (70) [70]
22 [24] Emory (69) [68]
23 [29] GaTech (68) [64]
23 [20] Indiana (68) [71]
23 [25] WUSTL (68) [66]
26 [27] Ohio State (67) [65]
26 [34] Washington (67) [61]
26 [29] Wisconsin (67) [64]

It looks like the finance-heavy schools took a couple points hit on the ratings. Wharton, Chicago Booth, and Columbia all dropped 2 points -- my theory is that employment stats took a hit at these schools. Yale and Duke jumped up a couple spots, as did Carnegie Mellon. UCLA and Cornell took a hit in the rankings this year.

Anyways, here is a LINK TO THE VIDEO OF THE LEAKED RANKINGS :)

Here is another version. Take a look at 0:55.

Nominated for ClearAdmit BoB (and booked an apt too)!

Woohoo! I've been nominated for the ClearAdmit Best of Blogging award! I've got some pretty strong competition out there (think Tieny and Sam). I'd like to think my blog over the past year has helped fellow applicants...it's definitely been somewhat therapeutic for me. Nice to have a place to vent and post opinions.

Also, I've booked my apartment in downtown Chicago. This is soooo exciting, as I've never had a chance to live in a downtown before (suburbs all my life). I'll be living at the new Aqua building. The building opens in the summer and my lease starts mid-August. Now it's time to start thinking about selling my car ASAP.

I will probably quit work in early July, head home and live with the parents for a month or so before moving to Chicago. Can't wait to turn in my resignation!

BeatTheGMAT Scholarship -- 14k in Prizes for Class of 2012 applicants

I received this email from Eric, founder of BeatTheGMAT.com, about a scholarship they've been offering over at the site for the last few years. It's an AWESOME opportunity for applicants applying to Business school this fall.
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The 2009 Beat The GMAT Scholarship competition--co-sponsored by Manhattan GMAT and Stacy Blackman Consulting--features 5 prizes worth $14K. This is the fourth year we're hosting this competition, which has become the largest GMAT scholarship program on the Internet.

The deadline to apply is May 8, and more info can be found here: http://www.beatthegmat.com/scholarship.html
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Keep in mind that the deadline to apply is approaching quickly!