Admissions Straight Talk

Come learn about UCLA Anderson’s full-time MBA program with Assistant Dean of MBA Admissions and Financial Aid Alex Lawrence.

It gives me great pleasure to welcome Alex Lawrence, Assistant Dean of MBA Admissions and Financial Aid at UCLA Anderson School of Management, which just happens to be where I earned my MBA. Alex is a fellow Anderson alum, who earned his MBA in 1999. Prior to that he earned a bachelor’s and master’s in electrical engineering. After earning his MBA, he worked in management consulting for four years and then returned to UCLA Anderson as Director of the Riordan Program. In 2012 he became first the director and then the Assistant Dean for MBA Admissions. Welcome!

Can you give us an overview of Anderson’s full-time MBA program? [1:50]

It’s a great program in a fantastic location – Los Angeles – that offers so many opportunities. We have recruiting strengths in management consulting, finance, real estate, entertainment. Students have a flexible curriculum, and an amazing career services center. There are so many opportunities for those who attend Anderson and become part of the family.

What’s new or changing at Anderson? [2:55]

We’re building a new building! Marion Anderson Hall – we’re breaking ground soon and we expect it to be ready in 26 months. It will be fantastic, building on what we already have.

We have a new leadership development program, which launched last year. And our social development specialization just launched.

We changed the start of the school year for first year students. Now we bring first year students to campus in August (instead of September). They appreciate the chance to get used to the environment earlier – they take one course and have an orientation before fall quarter starts at the end of September. It also means that recruiting and info sessions are spread out over an extra month and a half.

What is the nature of the leadership development program? [8:10]

It gives students the opportunity to learn from their peers and from staff, and to build a rapport with senior leadership. They get insight on qualities they want to develop. They all take the Berkman Assessment Tool. It’s an opportunity to get feedback from a different perspective from the classroom.

In the classroom, there’s not always an opportunity for them to share all their skills – but working with the coaches they can get guidance on the opportunities they’re seeking.

UCLA Anderson is proud of its culture where students share success, think fearlessly and drive change. Let’s unwrap each of those core qualities. What do they mean? [11:10]

Share success – when you collaborate to win, that’s when you share success. We have our students collaborate in learning teams. We want them to support each other. Second year students serve as coaches for first years. And alumni remain supportive and involved – I’ve definitely been the recipient of that support.

Thinking fearlessly – our entire community is fearless in thinking about opportunities and innovations. When you look at the accomplishments of our alumni, there are countless examples of how they’re thinking of how to do business differently and respond to challenges.

Driving change – this really comes from the idea that we’re pragmatic, action-oriented. We measure ourselves against results. Being part of the community as a student, alumnus, and part of the staff, I see how these qualities come out in the community. There’s something different about UCLA Anderson.

Our guest today is Dr. Suzi Schweikert – a former English major at UCLA who decided she wanted to be an MD. She did so at UCSD, specialized in OBGYN at USC-Los Angeles County Medical Center, and after completing her residency, added an MPH to her credentials.

Let’s learn more about Dr. Schweikert’s path in medicine, and to becoming an Accepted consultant.

Suzi, welcome to Admissions Straight Talk!

Can you tell us a little bit about how you went from being an English major to being an MD? [1:20]

It’s a bit of a long story. I’ll start with my first year of college, when I got a C- in Chem, and I gave up being a premed. I thought I was done for. The next year, I retook it and got a B-. I didn’t have any doctors or nurses in my family – I really didn’t know what it took. After a couple of years of stumbling around, I transferred to UCLA, and they only had room for me as an English major, so that’s what I became. It was great for me – a break and balance with my science classes. And I realized it gave me a unique expertise – all my premed friends asked me to read their essays. I think reading all those essays helped me learn to write my own.

So I think it’s important to major in any subject you enjoy and learn your learning style.

Did you need to do a postbac? [3:05]

I continued my undergrad training for a fifth year, so I sort of did a postbac within my undergrad.

I think postbacs are great! A lot of people don’t do great in their first couple of years because they don’t know their learning style, and postbacs can help.

How did your learning style have to change to master the sciences? [4:00]

That’s a good question! I had to work hard at test prep.

I found I learn best by copying and recopying my lecture notes – in different colors. And I memorized better when I was moving around. It helped me with my MCAT, too. The way to get something deep into your brain is to do something that comes naturally to you.

How did you choose OBGYN? [5:50]

I’d thought I wanted to go into family practice. I did a sub-internship in ICU and found I liked critical care situations. Then I did another sub-I in OB, and I withdrew my apps for family med and applied for OB.

Sub-internships give you an entirely new perspective on the specialty.

And why did you also decide to pursue an MPH? [7:18]

After working in private practice, I missed working with underserved populations. I’d always wanted to serve people who fell through the cracks. Private practice wasn’t fulfilling my personal mission, and studying public health gave me a path back to that original passion. I ended up working in a community clinic, where I still work today.

When you were on the UCSD admissions committee and reviewing applications, what surprised you about the students being admitted? [8:27]

I was always surprised by how nice they were. The adcom was looking for people they could imagine caring for their own parent or child – the quality they were looking for was kindness.

Kindness is a hard quality to prove, but it shows in how people talk about themselves, and how they treat others on interview day.

Even if out of insecurity you’re not acting nicely to people you interact with on

For the 4th of July week, we are airing an encore of one of the most popular Admission Straight Talk podcast episodes of 2017.

Listen in on our conversation with Natalie Wall, a student at the University of Utah School of Medicine, for a fascinating discussion about her non-traditional path to med school, what it's like to be a med student, and more. For the show notes, check out the original blog post. 

Related Links:

• How to Create Successful Secondary Applications, a free webinar

• Natalie Shoots People, Natalie's website

• Natalie on Instagram

• Natalie on Twitter

Related Shows:

• Medicinal Magic and Magical Medicine: An Interview with M3 David Elkin

• M3 and Entrepreneur: An Interview with David Eisenberg, Co-Founder of PreMD Tracker

• Amy Ho: An ER Resident Who Connects with Patients and Society

• MD/MPH Tulane Student Tells Her Story

• Becoming a D.O.

• M.D., Mom, Wife, and Juggler

• The Unbelievable Story of an Orthopedic Surgeon

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What’s new at NYU Stern? New MBA programs. New application process. New deadlines. Let’s learn all about it!

It gives me great pleasure to welcome back to Admissions Straight Talk Isser Gallogly, Associate Dean of MBA Admissions at NYU Stern School of Business. I almost feel like Isser needs no introduction at Accepted. He participated in many of Accepted’s old text-only admissions chats. He’s also been a guest on AST twice before – Episode 97, where we discussed part-time options at Stern, and Episode 184, where we discussed NYU Stern’s FT MBA admissions process. So when you finish with this show and want to learn more about NYU Stern, check out those.

Welcome back, Isser!

Can you give us an overview of the changes to Stern’s MBA application process this year? [2:00]

We launched two new, focused MBA programs. We explored the idea of separate applications, and decided on having one application for all of the programs – so you can apply to up to four MBA programs with one application: the full-time MBA, part-time MBA, and our two new specialized, full-time, 12-month programs (one in tech, one in fashion and luxury). You indicate a primary program of interest and explain why it’s your primary, and then identify your alternates.

The EMBA has a different process because it’s a unique profile.

If you list an alternate, it won’t be held against you? [5:00]

Not at all. Maybe someone’s preference is the full-time MBA, because they want to be immersed – but they can also see that the part-time program would be viable, because they can see that going to school while in the work environment would be helpful for them. It’s two different paths to the same goal.

What is the EQ Endorsement? [6:35]

This is a completely new section for the MBA application, and one we thought was important!

At Stern, one of the differentiators for us is what we call IQ + EQ – our students don’t just have raw intelligence, but also emotional intelligence (EQ), to work with people and lead. EQ is always something we’re looking for. We thought there was an opportunity to get more information in the application process.

Professional letters of rec are often limited – sometimes the recommender doesn’t know you that well or hasn’t known you that long. We came up with the idea of an EQ endorsement. Someone who knows you well provides an example of your emotional intelligence.

We’re hoping to get good insight into what makes people tick – almost a preview of the interview. We’re really looking forward to the responses! Applicants are always looking for ways to tell their stories and differentiate themselves. This is another opportunity to do that. You can ask anyone aside from a family member. It opens up a wide playing field. The basic prompt will be a definition of EQ, and then ask for a specific example/instance that shows EQ.

Can you describe the Pick Six essay? [12:40]

I’m really pleased to have back on the show Dr. Karen Johnson, Associate Dean for Admissions at the Baylor College of Medicine and Dr. Jesus Vallejo, Assistant Dean for Admissions at Baylor College of Medicine. When recently looking at our downloads, I noticed that one of our most popular medical school admissions shows was my interview with Drs Vallejo and Johnson almost exactly two years ago. Fortunately, they agreed to come back. Welcome to Admissions Straight Talk, Dr. Johnson and Dr. Vallejo!

Dr. Johnson, can you give an overview of Baylor College of Medicine’s curriculum? [1:40]

Like all curricula, we’re evolving. As medicine changes and grows, we adapt to that as well. We have curricular committees that look at evidence related to medical education and medicine – right now we’re in the midst of a curriculum reform.

Our curriculum is structured with 18 months of foundational sciences, followed by clinical cores, electives and selectives, and time to do study away or study abroad. We’ve had our 18-month foundational science curriculum for almost 30 years. Over the last decade, more medical schools have adopted that model. It gives students more opportunities to explore their other areas of interest.

Baylor shortened the pre-clerkship portion to 18 months long before it was popular and a trend. What are some other innovations that you anticipate with the current curriculum redesign? [3:45]

Dr. Johnson: We’re revamping the curriculum over the next two years, building on what we have now. We’re looking to incorporate new modes of teaching – such as reversed classroom modalities (with more hands-on activities in class).

We’re developing our medical education leadership. The next generation has to be prepared for the big picture – professionalism, policy, population health. We’re mindful of and trying to be ahead of the curve of issues that the next generation of physicians need to be prepared in.

Dr. Vallejo: It’s very important that even in the preclinical years, students need to start thinking like clinicians. We emphasize clinical reasoning very early in the training.

Dr. Johnson: Physicians need to be teachers, but that’s rarely formally taught. We facilitate teaching opportunities – we want our students to learn that skill. That’s something we really are excited about here.

Your website mentions opportunities for students to customize their education. Can you give examples of what that means? [7:45]

Dr. Vallejo: Students come to Baylor with a lot of ideas of what they want to do. We developed the idea of tracks – for example, for students who are interested in public health, or research, etc, they can enroll in a customized track with a set of experiences around that interest.

Of the graduating class, a third of the class were on some type of track – and a few students did two. Examples included medical ethics, geriatrics, etc. So that’s what we mean by customizing your education – there are a lot of opportunities.

A lot of applicants are interested in global health or business. We do have a joint degree with an MBA, but for students who don’t want to do a full additional degree, the healthcare policy and management track is a good option.

What are other examples of tracks available? [10:00]

Dr. Vallejo: Geriatrics, genetics, global health. There are seven tracks total. We’re the only school of tropical medicine in North America, so that’s a special opportunity within the global health ...

Today we’re doing something a little different: a deep dive into a specific program at Wharton. It’s a program that reveals a lot about Wharton’s culture, which also gives us insight into what the Wharton admissions committee is looking for.

Commitment. Purpose. Meaning. These are all terms that are bandied about amidst the fake news, leaks, tweets and headlines that take up so much of our attention. And let’s face it on a personal level, we all have made New Year’s Resolutions that lasted until January 2. However, we’ve also made other commitments, deeper commitments that we stick to. Benjamin Franklin wrote down four resolutions at the age of 20 and they became his “Plan of Conduct” throughout his long life. Franklin also founded the University of Pennsylvania, which is home to the Wharton School and its innovative Commitment Project. And that’s what we’re going to learn about in this show.

Today’s guests are Wharton’s Professor G. Richard Shell and Wharton Commitment.

Project founder Siamak Sarvari. Professor Shell began his professorial career at Wharton in 1986 and became the Thomas Gerrity Professor of Legal Studies and Business Ethics and Management in 2001. He’s written five books on negotiations, persuasion and personal success and won many, many teaching awards during his career.

Siamak Sarvari earned his bachelors and masters degrees in EE, the latter from the U of Toronto in 2010. He then worked as an engineer and project manager until coming to Wharton in 2015. In winter 2017, he found himself in Prof Shell’s class, and we’re going to learn what followed in just a second.

Professor Shell and Siamak, welcome to Admissions Straight Talk!

Siamak, what is the Wharton Commitment Project? [3:00]

WCP is a student-led initiative to encourage Wharton MBA students to reflect on their personal values, life goals, priorities, and commitments as they complete their graduate education and get ready for their post-MBA life. It’s a simple process: we ask what are your personal commitments as you think about your life beyond Wharton? We invite students to write down up to five commitments (up to 50 characters each). It concludes with a final ceremony where students share their commitments with a partner. WCP also awards a memento to each participant – a metal business card with their commitment inscribed on the back.

Do you have the card? [4:30]

Yes, I have it in my wallet. We also give them a certificate. But the card is a useful reminder.

Professor Shell, from your perspective, what is the WCP? [5:00]

It’s a great initiative, coming out of an evolving Wharton student culture.

Wharton’s famous for being a pathway to Wall St. But the financial crisis created a tectonic shirt – there’s now more of a multifaceted range of aspirations. So I think this part of that evolving student experience.

It’s a bottom-up experience: something students created as a way to highlight their values and goals. And it’s a values-based experience. So it’s addressing a larger interest in having careers be meaningful and finding work-life balance.

I think it’s something really distinctive about Wharton.

How did it come about, Siamak? [8:25]

The idea came to my mind during one of Prof. Shell’s classes – Responsibility in Business. Prof. Shell was talking about commitments and values in business, and mentioned the white coat ceremony, etc. I thought the idea could be applied in business. Many business students will be leaders in various fields, and having something like this that they will re...

Today’s one of those shows where I’m going to be the sole presenter.

I actually started preparing this show during the World Series way back in October. Yes, folks, after 108 years of losing, the Chicago Cubs finally won the World Series.

At the same time, we were working (and have worked in the past) with amazing applicants who overcame hurdles – sometimes large and sometimes small – to get accepted either first time or via reapplication.

To me, these events had much in common. The applicants and the Cubs didn’t let their past define them. They looked to the future. And that’s what applicants need to do as they approach the admissions process – both first-time applicants and reapplicants.

While you can’t and shouldn’t ignore your background and previous experiences – both good and bad – I find that applicants tend to focus inordinately on the past and way too little on the future.

Focus on The Future

Let’s start with first-time applicants, because what I say here really applies to both first-time and re-applicants.

I sometimes get inquiries from applicants that start with what they’ve done in the past. And certainly, past achievements and blemishes are critical to this arduous process that you’re going through. They have to be dealt with, but the starting place for your application has to be your goals: What do you want to do when you finish your education? The answer to that question determines what degree you seek. The future you see for yourself is really the starting point of your application.

What Role Does Your Past Play?

Once you have that first ingredient of a successful application, you need to season it and perhaps temper it with your past. Your past will show if you are competitive in ways other than your goal. Look to see that you meet the requirements of your target programs (appropriate degree, required classes, test scores, relevant experience if required). Then evaluate your competitiveness by comparing your profile with the class profiles and other qualitative information available from your target programs and perhaps its students and recent alumni. You should be competitive at most of the programs you are applying to.

If not, you have to either improve your qualifications or change your target schools. Realize that for the overwhelming majority of you, there are multiple paths to achieving your goal. You don’t all have to go to Harvard or Top Choice Grad School to be the doctor, lawyer, business person, academician or whatever that you want to be. If Top Choice U (and its close cousins that are probably out of reach) didn’t exist, what you would you do? What would be your plan then? Would it be Second-Tier U that still has excellent placement in the kinds of firms you want to work for or the specialties you’d love to match at? Would it be a different career path?

Or, you can choose to improve your qualifications to become competitive at Top Choice U. We have lots of information on the site, www.accepted.com, about overcoming all kinds of weaknesses.

How to Change Your Chances

But if you don’t want to change your goal, or change the schools you want to target, then you may need to change YOU to compete effectively in an intensely competitive process.

This is where not letting your past define you really comes into play. If you have poor study skills, take advantage of courses and resources to improve those skills – either ...

Our guest today is a fourth year medical student at Stony Brook who graduated from UC San Diego with a bachelors in Physiology and Neuroscience. Nothing too unusual there for a medical student. However, things start to get interesting, maybe even enchanting, when we learn a little about his hobby: magic. He has been performing magic since middle school. He performed at the well-known Magic Castle in Hollywood and at parties and events in the LA area. He retired from performing magic at age 20, but by then had founded MagicAid. Let’s learn more about that initiative now. Welcome, David!

Can you tell us a bit about your background – where are you from? [1:25]

I’m a fourth year at Stony Brook. I grew up in LA, and did my undergrad at UCSD.

How did you come to medicine? [1:55]

I actually had a pretty circuitous path. Since a young age I knew I was interested in science and medicine, but I wasn’t sure in what capacity.

I was actually a dance major my first three years in college, and then switched to physiology and neuroscience in my fourth year. After graduation, I worked in entertainment (casting, etc.) and in tech, before applying to med school.

How many years were you out of college before coming to med school? [2:58]

I graduated in 2011, and took three gap years. I took the MCAT my senior year and applied to med school in the last year of my MCAT eligibility.

How did you get into magic? [4:06]

My mom would buy me magic tricks when I was a kid. And I had a magician perform at my Bar Mitzvah – and I was hooked!

I had a group of friends in middle and high school who would play card games and do magic. Later I auditioned for membership in the Magic Castle.

What’s MagicAid? [5:30]

It’s dedicated to relieving stress and anxiety for the pediatric population (in the hospital setting) through performing magic and teaching them magic. We call it “magic therapy.”

It started when I was in high school. I was volunteering as an orderly at a hospital. I saw a girl crying in her room – she was anxious about an upcoming surgery. I had a deck of cards on me, because I often carried cards to practice magic tricks. I spent time performing magic for her, and she completely forgot about her surgery.

I went to my supervisor and asked if, in addition to my other volunteer duties, I could spend time each week performing magic for the patients.

How has MagicAid grown? [7:30]

One of the nurses on the peds floor nominated me for a “cool kids” segment on the local ABC news. And later I was invited by the head of Magic Castle to be on his innovation committee.

But it wasn’t until I started med school that I revamped it and started performing magic for kids at Stony Brook Hospital – and training other med students and healthcare providers to participate as well.

We now have 60 med students trained to perform magic.

Are the participants all from Stony Brook, or are you branching out? [9:50]

Right now, all from Stony Brook. But we’re getting a lot of media attention (we were featured on the NBC Nightly News), and interest is spreading.

Looking back at your med school application process – what was the hardest part for you? [11:20]

The essays – you have to write a lot! The

Are you a quant jock with a bit of a poet in you? Learn about UCLA Anderson’s new MS in Business Analytics!

Harvard Business Review declared in 2012 that being a data scientist is the “sexiest job of the 21st century.” Glassdoor last year claimed it’s the “best job of the year.” And in a February Business Insider article, Dr. Andrew Chamberlain, Glassdoor’s chief economist said, “It’s one of the hottest and fastest growing jobs we’re seeing right now.”

Enter UCLA Anderson’s MS in Business Analytics and its newly appointed executive director, Paul Brandano. Paul earned his MBA from UCLA Anderson in Management and Marketing in 2006. After earning his MBA he worked for IBM becoming a Business Analytics Software Specialist before returning to Anderson to serve as the Executive Director for Marketing of Management Field Study Programs. This month, he became the Executive Director of Anderson’s new Masters of Science in Business Analytics – and that’s the program we’re going to discuss today. Welcome, Paul!

Can you give us an overview – what is the MS in Business Analytics at Anderson? [1:50]

Business Analytics has been part of our MBA program for a long time – in every one of our programs, quantitative analysis is a component (marketing, finance, operations, etc). But when you look at the world today, the data is growing, and the demand for an increasingly complex set of analytics is increasing with it. The tools for analysis also grow, and you get a very complex environment.

When I was at IBM, I saw there was often a gap in the marketplace between the people in IT who understood the technologies, and the managers who were looking for that real-time feedback. We see an opportunity to create a liaison – a person with an MS and the analytical training and skills to understand new technologies, with real business communication as a foundation.

What does the program consist of? [3:50]

It’s a 13-month MS program. We wanted it technically oriented. Students start with a five-week intensive course (off-site, asynchronous). This is focused on making sure you have the skills to be successful – you take four courses in that first five weeks to acquire a strong business/technical foundation.

Then there are two full (10 week) quarters of courses, followed by a summer internship, then a final fall quarter on campus before going on to your first job.

Courses include: fundamentals of business; data management; prescriptive modeling; and an industry seminar each quarter (including case studies).

What are the options for the industry seminar? [6:36]

We’re initially focusing on internet, entertainment, and healthcare. These are areas where big data technologies are being applied each day, and where data scientists are in high demand.

We also have many centers on campus focused on these (and other) key industry areas.

If you look at Anderson as a school, we differentiate on that practical/experiential learning component – every student will have done something in the real world, working for a real company.

Business Analytics is a mushrooming field. What’s distinctive about UCLA’s program? [8:50]

We specifically put it in the business school.

Let’s learn about the $90K fellowships awarded by The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans.

Today’s guest, Dr. Craig Harwood, earned his BA in Music from Queens College and then a PhD in Music Theory from Yale University in 2002. Dr. Harwood went on to serve as the dean of Davenport College at Yale University and the Director of Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College before becoming the Director of The Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans in 2013. Welcome!

What are the Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans? [1:20]

It’s a fellowship dedicated to honoring immigrants and the children of immigrants. We provide support – up to $90K – for them to go to grad school.

It’s $90K over two years: $25K a year for stipend (to cover living expenses), and $20K for tuition.

Who were Paul and Daisy Soros? [2:30]

They were immigrants from Hungary who escaped Nazism and communism and made their way to the U.S. Early on, Paul Soros wanted to attend grad school in engineering, and he was accepted to top schools, but couldn’t afford the tuition. A friend pointed him to Polytechnic University, where he was able to afford graduate school.

He had an extraordinary career in engineering – he specialized in systems for loading and cargo on ships, and became the world’s leader in the field.

Later in life he invested with his brother George Soros, and he and his wife did very well. They became philanthropists and supported a many educational causes.

How did the fellowship program come about? [4:45]

About 20 years ago, Paul and Daisy Soros were thinking through how they could make a lasting contribution that honored their experience and especially how valuable grad school had been in their lives.

They didn’t want to put their name on a building: they wanted to support other new Americans and propel them to accomplish their goals.

Who is eligible to apply? [5:48]

New Americans – immigrants and children of immigrants.

There are three main categories of eligibility:

• New American status: An applicant was born abroad, they need to be naturalized, a green card holder, adopted to the US, or have been granted DACA status. If you were born in the US, both parents must have been born abroad as non-US citizens.

• Academic standing: You must be entering grad school or in your first two years of grad school at the application deadline, and attending grad school full-time in 2018-19.

• Age: You can’t have reached or passed your 31st birthday by the application deadline.

Can you describe the application process? [8:50]

The application is on our website.

There are some general questions – background questions, etc.

We ask you to upload a resume. We ask for test scores (whichever scores your grad program requires). There are two essays. We have space for optional exhibits, and there are letters of rec.

The essays are really important – it’s where we get to know you as a person.

The first essay asks about your New American experience – what it means to you. We encourage people to start ahead of time to allow plenty of time to think – especially since thi...