Many of you are planning ahead for your first application this summer and fall. Others are concerned that you may need to reapply because the news you’ve received so far isn’t what you wanted. In either case, if your grades are a concern, this podcast is for you. This week, join us for a rebroadcast of one of our most popular shows - our discussion of how to address a low GPA.

Click here for the complete show notes.

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Related Shows:

• Different Dimensions of Diversity

• Focus on Fit

• Linda Abraham’s Admissions Assortment

Related Resources:

• Get Accepted to B-School with Low Stats, live webinar

• Get Accepted to Medical School with Low Stats, on demand webinar

• The A-Z of Applying to Postbac Programs, a free guide

• 3 Steps for Applying to Business School with a Low Undergraduate GPA

• Boost Your GPA for Medical School Acceptance

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Today’s episode is an extra special show. This is AST’s 200th episode! It’s fitting that we welcome back Elissa Sangster, who was the very first guest on AST almost five years ago. Today she is the first guest to come back for a third time.

This show should be valuable to you because of Elissa’s critical role as head of the Forté Foundation in increasing women’s representation in business school and business, and because of her profound insider’s knowledge of the business school and professional worlds.

Elissa earned her MBA at Texas A&M’s Mays Business School in 1994 and immediately became the Assistant Director of its MBA program. She moved on to UT Austin in 1997 where she served in different roles including the Assistant Dean and Director of McCombs’ MBA program. In 2004, she became the first director of Forté Foundation, a consortium of business schools and companies working to increase the number of women in business leadership positions. Welcome back, Elissa!

Can you review Forté’s backstory for us? [3:00]

The origins go back to 2000-1, due to a Catalyst research study on women in MBA programs, called “The Gateway to Opportunity.” That research was looking at why there weren’t more women enrolled in b-schools, and that was the motivation for creating Forté.

It started with five events back in 2002. I came on board in 2004, and we’ve continued creating programs aimed at preparing women early in the process.

We’ve understood that we need to reach out earlier in the decision-making process, too, so we’ve created programs at the college/university level that help women see what careers in business can look like.

And we do professional development programs.

There’s a lot of lack of awareness, lack of role models – a lot of young women have no one in their influence set telling them that b-school would be a great fit. So we’re taking that role.

What is the Forté Fellows program? [6:40]

It started in 2005. We asked our partner schools to give significant scholarships (averaging half of tuition) to two students each year. In 2005, we had about 35 students. For 2018, 1100 students received fellowships. There are now about 5000 alums. It’s a great group.

The benefits are beyond financial – it’s about being part of a broader community. The fellows are involved in programming on their campus, programming for undergrads, etc. It’s a community we know we can depend on.

How do you become a Forté Fellow? [9:48]

Each school makes their own selection. We’ve given them general guidelines.

We start communicating and bring them into the Forté community as soon as they receive the award.

Another significant Forté program is MBALaunch (and Virtual Launch). Can you tell us about that? [10:35]

MBALaunch creates a very active community – they tend to bond and are very supportive and engaged.

It’s a ten-month program that starts with a live kickoff event (with sessions on different topics). Then they’re grouped, and they spend the next ten months working with their peers and a coach preparing for the MBA application. They address all parts of the application (essays, interviews).

There are 570 participants this year. We want them to be competitive.

We want them to apply to schools they might not have thought about if they did the process in isola...

I recently saw an article about a highly innovative approach to medical education launching with this year’s entering class at the University of Connecticut called M Delta. When I reached out to UConn the head of the curriculum reform asked me for a call and provided more information about the new curriculum. It was just fascinating. Fortunately, she and her colleagues agreed to join me for this episode of Admissions Straight Talk, and you can judge for yourself.

Today’s guests are: Dr. Suzanne Rose, UConn’s Sr. Associate Dean for Education and Professor of Medicine; Dr. Christine Thatcher Associate Dean for Medical Education and Assessment; and Dr. Thomas Regan, Asst Dean of Admissions and Student Affairs. Welcome!

Dr. Rose, can you provide an overview of the three phases of M Delta? [1:45]

M Delta is making a difference in education, learning, and teaching across the curriculum. It’s an innovative curriculum reform effort that started about four years ago – really thinking about cutting edge education for the doctors of the future.

Our curriculum reform effort has been implemented in August with the class of 2020.

Stage I is 18 months long – a time of study when the class is together. Students co-learn with dental students. We’ve eliminated lectures in favor of active learning modalities. Stage II will begin in March of the second year – a 12-week introduction to clinical medicine, flexible time for electives, board study, and rotations. We’re also coupling some of our rotations so we can have longitudinal didactics where our rotations can work together and students can think together across disciplines. Stage II goes through June of the third year.

Stage III includes some required advanced clinical rotations, but students will also be involved in the scholarly process – working on a project, or a community initiative (such as public health and education).

All our students will be receiving a public health certificate, so they’ll be immersed in public health across the curriculum.

Can you dive into Stage I? [4:40]

Stage I is the Exploration stage. The centerpiece is a team-based curriculum. It’s patient centered and case based.

At the beginning of each unit, students take both individual and team readiness assessments. That’s followed by an application exercise.

The PBL (problem-based learning) curriculum spans 50 units – 50 cases, in ten week blocks.

There are other courses, too: integrated human anatomy (with virtual anatomy lab, including radiology); Intro to Doctoring; CLIC – students spend half a day in a physician’s office, generally a primary care provider; Medical Home – another innovative course, where students and teams go to an affiliated hospital to learn about the clinical environment; and the VITALS course (Vertically Integrated Teams Aligned in Learning and Scholarship), where they learn about population health, biostatistics, etc. The VITALS course is in teams across the med school continuum and with our interprofessional partners (such as dental), and it’s a flexible curriculum, covering emerging topics and trends while exploring public health objectives.

Dr. Thatcher, can you talk about assessment? [11:10]

In each ten-week block, students will take an IRAT (individual readiness assessment test) and TRAT (team readiness assessment test). Then each ten week block is followed by a two week intersession that starts with an integrated assessment – like a final exam for the ten week module.

We are now getting calls from applicants who plan to plan to apply in the summer, fall, and winter to matriculate in 2018. A few have all their ducks lined up – test score in place, school visits planned, a GPA they’re proud of, and maybe they’re just rounding out their profile to put icing on the application cake. Others wish they had the test score they wanted. And still others are studying for, or more likely, planning to start test prep to take their particular exam for the first time. Those applicants – the ones still dealing with aptitude exams – are probably the majority of applicants preparing to apply in the upcoming application cycle.

Because so many people are thinking about test prep, I’ve invited Bhavin Parikh, CEO & Co-Founder of Magoosh back to Admissions Straight Talk. His company is an innovative leader in the online test prep industry. Magoosh is, according to its website, “an affordable online test prep company the offers study programs and apps for the GRE, GMAT, LSAT, MCAT, SAT, ACT, TOEFL AND Praxis.” Bhavin attended Duke University where he earned a joint BS/BA in Economics and Computer Science. He then worked for Deloitte Consulting for 5 years and attended UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business where he earned his MBA and co-founded Magoosh with three others. Welcome, Bhavin!

What does Magoosh provide? [2:10]

We help students prepare for standardized tests. The broader mission of the company is helping people overcome barriers at various points in their careers – standardized tests are one of those barriers as people enter college or grad school.

We offer a web-based product – people can sign up for a free trial. Our courses include short video lessons explaining concepts, and then people can do practice questions. We also provide a service where people can reach out with questions.

Is it a monthly subscription? Or a fee for a set period of time? [3:18]

It’s a set fee, generally for six or 12 months. Most of the products are $100 or $150.

Is Magoosh intended to be a standalone course, or a supplement to other study methods (such as classes or tutoring)? [4:05]

When we started seven to eight years ago, it was meant more as a supplement. Now it’s effectively standalone. But given our price-point, many people do use it as a supplement to a class.

What is distinctive about Magoosh? [5:18]

We have in-house content experts who’ve been tutoring this material for years, and we update our content based on data from our users. Since our content creation is in-house, we can see where students are getting stuck and where we can improve.

So you’re looking at data as well as qualitative feedback? [6:40]

Yes. We collect both qualitative and quantitative information. For example, we collect a “like” rate on each video, so we know how students are responding. But we also track requests for help – if we get a lot of requests for help on the same video, we know we need to update something or add an explanation.

Are you using AI or adaptive learning? [8:45]

We’re using some adaptive learning technology. Since the early days of Magoosh, we’ve used an adaptive algorithm that contributes to our product and makes sure students are provided questions at the right level for them to learn what they need to. The GMAT is adaptive itself, and that was part of our impetus early on.

We focus on content first, then technology,

The MBA application process is multi-faceted and there are a lot of things you can do NOW that will improve your chances of acceptance when you actually apply. I shared those steps, which I’ve seen work over the last 20 years, at our recent webinar 7 Steps to MBA Acceptance in 2018. Click here to view the recording!

One of the more interesting trends that has emerged in graduate management education in the last ten years is increasing choice and an ever-growing array of specialized masters to complement flagship full-time MBA programs along with different methods of teaching. A leader in this trend is IE, a business school located in Madrid, but with a global and entrepreneurial outlook.

Today’s guest is Jean Marie Winikates, Director of IE’s North American office. She earned her MBA from IE in 2003 and has been working for IE and growing its North American presence since her graduation. IE offers over 30 masters programs in business, allowing students to choose between general management programs like its full-time MBA or highly specialized programs like its Masters in Business Analytics and Big Data, or its Masters in Market Research and Consumer Behavior. We’ll learn more directly from our Jean Marie. Welcome!

What do all IE programs have in common? [2:50]

Core to all our programs – whether specialized masters or MBA – is a strong business foundation. No matter what your area of expertise, you need a strong business foundation.

Before we dive into a sampling of the programs at IE, what is driving the creation of this menu of options? What’s the back story? [4:00]

The school was founded by an entrepreneur, aiming to train the next generation of entrepreneurs.

The expanded programs reflect the changing marketplace and the need for employment and the global workforce. We’re looking at the future – where people will be employed and the skills they need.

How do you address concerns that Madrid is not a global business center? [5:30]

A lot of people are interested in studying in Western Europe. Spain is one of the largest countries in Europe, and Madrid is the largest city in Spain. A lot of people are attracted to Spain because of the history and language – Spanish is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world.

Can you give an overview of IE’s one-year International MBA? [7:03]

There are two intakes, in spring and fall (there’s no difference in the structure or the program). It’s a one year accelerated program – students are in class Monday through Friday, nine to three, like a full time job.

The program includes a six-month module of core skills, and an entrepreneurship/intrepreneurship lab period, then an elective module. Because a lot of people come to IE for entrepreneurship, they’re particularly interested in the lab period.

Who is it for? [9:37]

The average age is about 29, with about five years of work experience. Ninety percent of the class is international, with over 70 nationalities represented in each intake.

What does the program do for the students’ careers? Does it prepare people for career change? What type of careers do people go into upon graduation? [10:54]

I want to invite any listeners planning to apply to medical school this summer to check out our med webinar, The 5 Part Framework for a Successful Medical School Application. In the webinar I break down the complex med school application process into 5 essential goals that you must achieve if you are to be successful and start medical school in 2018. 

Our guest today can provide her own advice based her experience applying to and getting into medical school. She graduated from Arizona State in 2011. Later, she completed postbac studies at both Salt Lake Community College and UW in Seattle. Today Natalie Wall, of the Natalie Shoots People blog, is an M1 at the University of Utah School of Medicine. Welcome, Natalie!

Can you tell us about yourself? [1:55]

I grew up in Arizona, where I was really into dancing. Like you said, I went to ASU for college. I originally planned to go to law school, but I decided I didn’t want to sit behind a desk, so I changed plans. I moved to Utah, and here I am!

Why Utah? [2:20]

I had a thing with snowboarding… I decided I’d try to pursue that and maybe make a career of it, but a few hospital bills later, I realized it wasn’t for me.

How did you get from snowboarding to medicine? [2:45]

I come from a family of physicians, so medicine was something I was always exposed to from a young age. Partly because I’d pursued dance so seriously growing up, I wasn’t ready for the time commitment of medicine until I’d had a few more years to mature.

What else did you do during the time between college and med school? How long was that gap? [3:55]

I took two and a half years off from school. I did snowboarding (including time being injured), and also spent time coaching dance and gymnastics. And I ultimately went back to school.

Did you do a formal postbac program? Or more informal? [4:33]

It was pretty informal. I was a psych major in college, which I loved, but I hadn’t taken many hard sciences.

So I did all my core sciences in about two and a half years, going straight through the summer.

What was the hardest part of the application process for you? [5:30]

It’s pretty obvious I was a non-traditional applicant, so I think the struggle for me was trying to figure out my worth in this process that involved so many people who’d been working toward medical school since they graduated high school, and their entire resume was tailored to science and medicine.

How did you meet that challenge? [6:21]

I definitely had science experience, and exposure to hospitals, etc. I also tried to incorporate my life experiences. Those experiences have given me the confidence to interact with patients on a personal level.

What was the most memorable question you were asked at a medical school interview? [7:20]

One asked me what book I was reading. I happened to be reading a really awesome book, but I think if I hadn’t been reading a book at the moment it would have been harder.

Another that struck me as memorable, but not positive: the interviewer said,

Saving money on your student loans, ranking grad programs based on salary-to-debt ratios, plus life as a Columbia Business School grad. All in today’s show.

Today’s guest, Amanda Wood, graduated from Vassar College in 2009 with a degree in social psychology and economics. After graduation, she worked at BNY Mellon and at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. In 2014 she earned her MBA at Columbia Business School. Since 2013, she has worked in business development for SoFi. In March 2016, she became the Director of SoFi’s Entrepreneur Program, and in December, she became the Director, Business Operations & Strategy at SoFi. Welcome, Amanda!

How can students save money with SoFi? [1:20] 

Students can save money by refinancing their student loans with us.

When I went to b-school I graduated with five to six different loans. What SoFi does is consolidate all your loans into one, so you only make one monthly payment to one lender, which saves time. And we can lower your interest rate, which saves money.

Do you originate loans, or just refinance them? [2:00]

We don’t do new school loans, except to parents. We refinance loans. One of the ways we can offer such great savings is by offering great interest rates, and we do that by lending to “safe” borrowers who have graduated and are employed.

It’s for US citizens and permanent residents only, and we have no plans to expand at this point. [3:25]

What are your career resources? [3:40]

We have a career services team in house that helps place borrowers.

We do a bit of reactive help – say, if a borrower loses their job we can help them find a new job.

But we also work with people proactively who are gainfully employed and want to change their job (from law to tech, etc).

What is the Entrepreneur Program? [4:50]

We started when we were a very young company. We want to help people progress.

For participants in the Entrepreneur Program, we waive the income guidelines (since many entrepreneurs pay themselves only a token salary in the early stages of their company). And they can defer repayment for up to a year.

We have a kickoff day in San Francisco where participants can meet each other and discuss their ideas. We coach them through various stages of their business – pitching, marketing, etc. And we conclude with a demo day – we’ve seen a number of investments result from that.

Does interest accrue during the deferment? [7:10]

Yes, and some people opt to pay interest-only payments during that time.

You mentioned the income requirement. What are your other criteria for underwriting? [7:45]

We’re looking at ability to pay. So we look at their monthly income, expenses (based on where they live, etc), their total loan balance, and their other debts.

We’re also looking for a generally responsible financial history: no recent bankruptcy or significant late payment history.

What is Return on Education? [9:20]

We realized we have all this fantastic data on an interesting group of people – we know how much people are making, what they studied, how much debt they have. We wanted to use that to help people make decisions about what schools to go to.

Our guests today are both 2nd year MBA students at Darden who founded their start-up at the beginning of their MBA program. We’ll learn more in a minute, but a little background first. Maximilian Huc graduated from Princeton in 2013 with a BA in sociology. Outside of class, he started his first start-up called My Grade Zone Points, and has basically been a serial entrepreneur. Sam Boochever graduated from Cornell in 2011 with a bachelors in applied economics and management. He worked for Allscripts for several years and then started his own company in March 2015. In Oct. 2015, shortly after starting at Darden, Max and Sam co-founded 1Degree. Welcome, Max and Sam!

What is 1Degree App? [1:40]

It allows people to connect one-on-one with celebrities, athletes, etc – we call them “influencers” – that influence their lives. This doesn’t exist in the market today, where most celebrity-fan interaction is one-sided (such as Instagram, etc). We’re trying to take it a step further and allow people to connect with their favorite influencer.

The way it works is that people follow the influencer. The influencer offers the option of bidding on a two-minute, face-to-face video chat. People bid on the conversation. The celebrities can either keep the money or donate it to their favorite charity. Afterward, the celeb has the option to follow up with the auction winner after the chat.

What’s the backstory? [3:55]

We were paired as roommates when we got to Darden. We ran across the story about an individual who paid the rapper Meek Mill $2000 to take a selfie with him. We thought it was amazing how much people were willing to go out of their way to access the people who influence their lives, and the idea was born.

How’s it going? Are the influencers volunteering/participating? [5:00]

It’s going well! We’ve had influencers reach out to us even before the app was in the app store. We’re getting interest from various industries – entrepreneurship, fashion, sports. And it’s international.

Can you give an example of someone who’s participated? [6:40]

Robby Hayes, the runner up on the Bachelorette last year, offered a conversation. Our Darden classmates were bidding and were really excited – it was cool to see people who’d watched the show together every week having fun with it.

Are people doing it for fun, connections, star worship, advice… ? [7:45]

All the above! It cuts across demographics and industries.

What about the motivations of the influencers? Are they mainly looking to build their social media presence, raise money for charity, reach out to fans, or are there other reasons? [8:25]

Again, all of the above. It depends on their industry. Some people use it to humanize the fan relationship.

We’re hosting a pitch event at SXSW where people can use the platform to pitch, so it really depends on the influencer.

Did you know you wanted to start a business when you arrived at Darden? [10:30]

Sam: I applied to business school wanting to do healthcare consulting, but I realized I wanted to work for myself, and when I met Max and we developed the idea for this company, it took off.

In reviewing our stats for last year, I noticed that one of our most visited pages is an article on writing about diversity. That’s not shocking since Accepted’s consultants are frequently asked by stressed, panicked clients from well-represented groups in the applicant pool, “How can I answer this diversity question?!?!” Given the high interest in the topic, not to mention the anxiety associated with it and the confusion surrounding it, I decided to discuss it today and go into more depth than we can in a blog post.

So here are the questions I'll answer on today’s show:

1. Why is diversity important?

2. How can you approach diversity?

3. How can you write about diversity?

I’m covering a lot in the show. To help guide you, we’ve created a Dimensions of Diversity Checklist for you to download.

1. Why is diversity important?

Two primary reasons:

• The more diverse perspectives in a class room, the richer the discussions in class, in study groups, and the more creative the teams on projects. The more exposure all members of a class or team have to varied approaches and perspectives, the more prepared they will be for working in a multi-cultural society and world. Admissions offices believe that diversity in the classroom improves the educational experience of all students.

• American society, and indeed many societies, are increasingly heterogeneous. The world is more global and multi-cultural. Many professions and employers want a diverse work force. Medicine recognizes that a heterogeneous work force benefits people from cultures heretofore under-represented in medicine. Businesses realize that they will market more effectively if they can speak to different audiences and markets. Schools simply want to prepare graduates for the twenty first century job market.

2. How can you approach diversity?

I’m so glad you asked! There are so many ways! Really an infinite number of ways. But I’ve broken them down into three primary categories, and I’ll provide a bunch of examples for each one.

First the three-part framework:

1. Identity: who you are

2. Deeds: what you’ve done

3. Ideas:  how you think

As we go through these categories, you’ll quickly realize that there is overlap in the framework. The three topics are not mutually exclusive, and you may argue with how I classified some of my suggestions. That’s fine, and the framework isn’t the point. The purpose of the framework is just to get you thinking more broadly about diversity and how you can show it.

I. Your Identity.

This is the most common way that people think of diversity, and it certainly is a valid one in admissions. The under-represented minority applying to many top graduate schools almost by definition is showing diversity, but again let’s think more broadly about identity and showing diversity. Here are several ideas:

• Under-represented minority. In a U.S. context: African American, Hispanic American, and Native American.

• Ethnicity. This includes applicants coming from a country or culture not well represented. Not just under-represented minorities.

• Religious commitment. For example, the Buddhist monk at ISB.

• Non-traditional educational background. Here, think of the music major applying to medical school, or the bio major going for a masters in management, or the engineer deciding to go for a PsyD.

Before we introduce today’s guest, I want to invite you to our newest webinar, Get Accepted to INSEAD.  This is the latest addition to our “Get Accepted to” webinar series and the first time that we are focusing on a school outside the U.S.

If you’re interested in INSEAD, listen on! Today’s guest is Aly Madhavji, a recent INSEAD MBA grad. Aly graduated from University of Toronto in 2012 with a bachelors in commerce and became a consultant for PWC. He was extraordinarily active while in college, and although I’m not going to detail all his activities, you’ll have to trust me that it is an impressive list. After graduating he wrote a book titled Your Guide to Succeed in University, which provides a recent grad’s perspective on how to get the most out of your overall college experience. That was followed by a few other guides for various stripes of graduate students. He worked at PWC until December 2015 and rose to become a Senior Consultant. Next year, he will be a Schwartzman Scholar in Tsinghua University in Beijing. Welcome, Aly!

How did you decide on a career in business? [2:18]

Like many millennials, I went through a difficult decision process! I actually originally wanted to be a fighter pilot, and I joined the Royal Canadian Air Force. I ultimately decided it wasn’t for me, and I went to university, where I considered many fields.

What helped me most was having mentors. Conversations with mentors helped me realize that business would be the best springboard for change.

I joined PWC in the insurance practice, then worked there as a consultant. It was an extraordinary opportunity to travel and gain broad experience.

Some people have a more cynical view of business. How would you respond? [4:35]

I definitely see the tension, and I know business isn’t always a positive force! But in my view, business has the ability to help people create jobs for people who otherwise wouldn’t be able to provide for their families; it has the ability to challenge the status quo. I see it as a way to work for the betterment of society.

Can you tell me a little about your book? [6:50]

I’ve now written three books. The original was Your Guide to Succeed in University. I’ve now added Your Guide to Get Into Medical School and Your Guide to Succeed After Graduation. I worked with medical doctors and other experts.

It was a blessing to get lucky with this project. It grew out of conversations when I was a student board member at the University of Toronto. In addition to creating reports for uni stakeholders, I was asked to provide a guide for Toronto students. As I worked on that, I realized there was advice I wanted to share more widely. My mentors suggested publishing. I decided to self-publish. And early on, my book was the #1 college book on Amazon and won an international prize.

It’s something I wish I’d had when I was a student.

When I published each book, I made them completely free so students who are on a tight budget can read them.

What’s distinctive about your book? [10:55]

I think the real difference is the fact it comes from a young author providing insights from his own experiences, and that I was willing to share my failures to help people learn. It’s very open and down-to-earth. People can see themselves being able to navigate those situations in the future.