Case Study: MBA in U.S.A. |
Recommendations
The first question I had about getting
recommendations was that since it is unlikely that the university will contact my
recommender, why shouldn't I write my own recommendation and have it signed by some one
senior at office?
I researched at my end and found that:
- My recommender is likely to receive a thank you note from the university.
- Admission committees who read applications day in and day out can figure out if the
recommendation is authentic, 4 times out of 5.
- An honest recommendation, assessing you objectively, even highlighting some points
about you that may not be very positive, hold more value than a self written
recommendation that shows what a great person you are.
I however did take time from my recommenders to discuss my career till now. I highlighted
to them points I was planning to project through my essays.
For instance, I wanted one of
my recommenders to focus on my communication and interpersonal skills. I gave her a brief
describing the presentations I had made to my customers and the feedback I got from them,
about my ability to look at difficult situations objectively and to keep my bosses and my
team members informed about my understanding on the situations. About the relationships I
had built with two of our customers who had informed me of their future projects even
before they officially approached companies for proposals.
So, even though they wrote my recommendations on their own, I was able to influence what
they should write.
To allow them to make an honest assessment and write what they wanted to, I had asked them
to seal the recommendations and hand them over to me. I then sent the recommendation
without knowing what they had actually written.
The strategy seemed to work for me, and I believe it should work for every one.
Almost anyone will also tell you that it doesn't matter who your recommender is, just make
sure the person knows you well. Only then will he/she be able to write about you in
detail.
There's no point getting a recommendation from your Managing Director if he
doesn't know you well. If your General Manager has worked with you and knows you well, his
recommendation has more value than that of your Managing Director.
Next > Financing Issues
Case
Study: International student getting an admission into Wharton
Business School, one of the top business schools in the world. The study
discusses the process as well as the important application issues for
the business school admission process.
(This story is meant to describe the MBA
admission process in the U.S. The name of the person, and some facts have been changed to
conceal the identity of the person. The story must be considered fictitious.)
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