What's the best way for an applicant to differentiate him/herself from
the crowd?
Don't start with your employment. Imagine that
the person next to you is also considering applying, so it may not be your
professional experience. It may be what your extracurriculars are, your
outside interests. It's being comfortable with yourself and being able to
tell your own, personal story. That's how you can distinguish yourself; not
trying to be what you think the school is looking for.
Can you describe the applicant interview process at Darden?
I think that our process may be a little more
unique than some others. We interview blind, so we know nothing about our
applicants before they walk through the door. There's a very level playing
field. It takes a more conversational tone, and through that, we are able to
get all the information we need. We set it up so the applicant knows the
information we're looking for, including communication skills. Can they tell
a very concise story?
Do you have any programs targeted to specific
population groups, such as women or minorities?
Yes, Darden is a member of the Consortium. We're
a founding member of the Forte foundation and on the board. We're a member
of the MBA Diversity Alliance. Diversity is as important to Darden as it is
to any other school, so taking active roles in these organizations is very
important to us. It's not just about being a member. It's about also being
active. It's a very supportive environment.
Each of those organizations that Wendy just
named are not just social organizations. They actually do create a series of
events that promote diversity at Darden.
What do you advise a wait-listed applicant to
do?
There are a lot of rules and regulations out
there in terms of wait-list management. But because a candidate is placed on
the wait list does not mean there's anything wrong. We don't know, up front,
what the rest of the applicant pool is going to look like. So there are
times when I do have to put an applicant on the wait list and see what's
going to happen down the road.
When we offer admission to somebody on the wait
list, the first thing we do is thank them, because we appreciate their
patience in hanging with us as we try to round out our class and do what's
best for the school in general. For anybody who makes it to the wait list,
many times, we are more than happy to give them some level of feedback.
If there's
something they can do, that they can respond to—we'll give them that
feedback. We also don't mind an occasional letter with an update. It has to
be substantive to their application, not a weekly entry to their diary.
There is a very fine line between being helpful and updating us, and
stalking us.
What information would you like to share with
applicants who would like to visit campus?
They can go to the Darden website and schedule a
class visit or an interview. We have lunch with our second-year students.
This is a very welcoming community, and if someone wants to make a visit,
we're going to make sure that they have a great experience while they're
here.
They'll also have an opportunity, if they
desire, to talk to a career consultant. If they're wondering whether or not
the potential career they're thinking about is possible, why not talk to
somebody who could really give them that feedback.
Describe how the financial aid process works
and what admitted students can expect in terms of scholarships,
assistantships, and loan guarantees?
In terms of scholarships, if someone is
interested in a merit scholarships, apply early. When I say that, I mean
apply early with a strong application; don't apply early with a weak
application. I think there are about 70 merit-based scholarships.
We find that over a third of the class every
year will qualify and receive a need-based grant. I believe I've heard there
are only one or two schools in the country that have a need-based grant
program. That's calculated by how much money you bring to the table, less
what you could apply for, for a loan. The average need-based grant is close
to $10,000. That helps a number of students who are looking for an extra
incentive to apply to Darden.
What type of careers do Darden students
pursue?
We have about 40% of the students who go into
some sort of finance, including investment banking and venture capital.
There are about a third, 25 to 30%, who will go into management consulting.
Then there's about another 25% or so who will go into general management
and marketing-type programs. So there are great things about that sort of
mix. We're nicely balanced, so if you're unsure of your career plan, Darden
is a pretty terrific place to go because we know companies from multiple,
different industries.
The second
thing, I think, that's unique to Darden is that we have a very robust self
assessment when you first come in to the program. We have a set of
assignments that students complete at their own pace over the summer before
they matriculate. In the first week of school, instead of the standard
orientation, the students spend time learning about themselves and others
through a series of six classes entitled "Personal Career Assessment
Program." In this class faculty help students develop a comprehensive
description of those themes in their lives that are going to be important to
them in their job search.
And then
we move into, over the first two months, an in-class situation. In your
regular, first-year program, 10 classes in professional career development
are designed to take you through the things that are in a job search
program. This helps you pace your way through the amount of work it takes
to do a job search in the first few months, and you’re beginning to think
about your summer internship.
It starts
with finishing the self assessment and writing a career objective, and then
it moves into the mechanics of a job search. Then in those first few months,
we'll also have five, big, career discovery forums around the five, big
functions of finance, marketing, consulting, general management and
entrepreneurship venture capital. We'll have a board that includes guest
speakers from companies in each of those functions. Then we'll have over 100
companies, in September and October, do company briefings, presentations.
So it is
from the data that you gather about yourself, and then the data that you
gather about functions in industries and companies, that you're able to, by
let's say the beginning of December, really have a robust understanding of
what your career objective and your job search is going to be like, so that
when first-year recruiting starts in earnest, in January, you really have
gathered the information it takes to be successful.
Many schools
have different elements of that, but I think Darden is one of the few that
pulls all of those things together in the first couple months.
Page
1
2
3
4
