בהמשך לסדרת הראיונות עם בוגרי תוכניות ה-MBA המובילות, היום ראיון עם בוגר MIT:
What is special about your school? In your eyes, what differentiates your school from others?
- The spirit of MIT – the university has a soul, and for me that was the most amazing thing.
- Focus on entrepreneurship, being a hub of innovation and out-of-the-box thinking not only from the MBA classmates but also the brilliant minds from the engineering schools.
- No peer pressure to join stereotypical MBA jobs like consulting or ibanking, a lot of new ideas and pursuits are encouraged.
- Focus on team work.
- Tolerance for failure
Any recent changes in your school? or in the admission process?
MIT Sloan got some bad press a couple years ago when their yield was higher than expected, and they had to try and convince a few admitted candidates to join the next year. They did offer $20K in tuition to those who agreed to do that, and this is honestly a good problem to have. But the press wrote about it negatively, and ever since I think the process has become even more selective, and I think it is more critical now than ever to show why you are not only a good fit for the school but why we can be convinced that you will accept the offer if made one.
Another thing is introduction of the optional/video essay. I would recommend attempting the video essay if possible because it gives an opportunity to showcase something very different about the candidate, and create an informal setting to learn more about who you really are. It reflects the spirit and energy of the school as well.
Can you share some details about the atmosphere in the school? between students, between students and faculty? How do you spend your free time?
- There is a palpable sense of mutual respect and admiration amongst all students, no one is ranked or called out for either being from a wealthy background or having certain brands on their resume. The students love the way in which selection process happens and assume there must be something wonderful about everyone who is there
- We love working on C Functions, which are the most amazing thing ever. Alternate Thursdays, one of the cultural clubs organizes a show in which classmates from different cultural backgrounds come together to immerse themselves in the culture of a region, dance, sing, eat. Sloan sponsors beer, which is awesome. It’s a great avenue to bond.
- Sloan is not transactional. There is no fee for every mixer or interaction, a lot of things are school sponsored and encourage everyone to come out and get to know each other and do stuff together.
- Faculty is all about high thinking. Focus is on bringing out the essence of a concept, encourage open debate and discussion, provide a spectrum of perspectives. Assignments and learning are for the most part meaningful and relevant. If you don’t like a class, you can opt out late into the semester and it won’t reflect on your academic record which is just wonderful.
Can you share some details about the area/city?
Cambridge is a university town. Lots of brilliant young minds, the vibe is very young, entrepreneurial, energetic and optimistic. Accommodation is expensive but unaffordable.
Boston/Cambridge has a nice cultural vibe. Lots of art events to attend, very pro-diversity and liberal.
Winters are cold and snowed under but its not windy like Chicago so its quite beautiful if you ask me.
Can you share some details regarding job opportunities and summer internships for students in your school? How strong is the career office? Did the school name/brand give you any advantage when looking for a job? Are there any specific recruiters who mostly recruit from this school?
Saying you are from MIT or MIT Sloan opens almost every door. Its really upto how focused, proactive and determined you are.
The Career Office is very good when it comes to consulting, finance, tech and increasingly marketing jobs. They organize a lot of workshops, coaching sessions etc. Very helpful.
Career office not that great in traditionally non-MBA sectors like media entertainment, fashion, etc.
There are some opportunities to get part-funding for doing social impact internships, but not as much as some other peer schools.
McKinsey, BCG, Bain, Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, Genentech, Deloitte, J P Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Citi, love Sloan, there’s definitely a few more that I’m missing.
How did you deal with the Visa issue?
MIT International Students Office is wonderful. They made the process really easy, offered a lot of guidance and I never really felt I was going to a new country. It was a breeze. I took a ton of documents to my visa interview, all that the guy asked me was where I was planning to go to school, I said ‘MIT’ and he just instantly approved it.
What did you like about the school/program?
A lot of things that I have mentioned earlier. Just to be fair, there are things I think need to improve – the school underplays its branding and marketing a lot, either due to lack of resources or just the tech-focused culture where they downplay the glamor. So the sessions by the Admissions Office are not particularly impressive, and they don’t do a lot of sessions internationally, but if you can live with that then you are in for a rollercoaster ride that you will be glad you took.
Sloan should try and offer more scholarships and loan-forgiveness opportunities for sure, I got lucky and became a Siebel Scholar and they have amazing TA/RA opportunities but it is still relatively small in terms of the number of students it can impact
Who will especially enjoy this school? who will be a good fit to the school?
Someone who is liberal, looking for a genuinely engaging experience versus just doing bschool as a resume check point. Someone with an inquisite mind and proactive nature and doesn’t expect to be spoon fed or handheld all the time.
Folks with a passion for innovation, entrepreneurship and technology will do very well here. Those who need structures not so well.
Any tips for someone who is considering applying to your school?
- It is particularly important to be yourself in the Sloan application, they are not impressed by arrogance or make-believe.
- Highlight what you are passionate about in life and what makes you who you are.
- Show a clear passion for the school, do a lot of research in detail about courses and activities that would benefit you
Understand what the Sloan mission is all about, they really believe in it, and mean it. The focus on ethics, diversity and advancement of management principles is very deeply ingrained in the school. - Higher analytical ability, passion for data, technology, new and efficient way of doing things, challenging status quo are all great things to have for Sloan.