Rejected by HBS – Now What?

February 1^st was either an exciting day or a tearful one for Harvard Business School (HBS) Round 2 (R2) applicants: the school’s MBA Admissions Board notified candidates whether they were invited to interview or had merited “early release.” Euphemistic though it sounds, early release should really be viewed by R2 applicants as the blessing that it is: you now know that you are out of the running for the HBS program and are free to consider your other options. So dab your eyes with a tissue, patch up the wall you punched, and take a look at what some of those other options are.

U.S. Citizens and Permanent Residents

If you are a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, you can still consider Round 3 (R3) at your top-choice programs, especially if you have a unique background or profile that these programs might still want to round out their classes. Did you steer growth in Africa, lead a new product in Eastern Europe, or pioneer a revolutionary health program in Mongolia? These are examples of unique experiences and insights that many top MBA programs would love to include among their student bodies. While visa challenges tend to be too difficult for R3 applicants who will need an F-1 Visa to study in the United States, those of you who do have U.S. residency will be prime R3 candidates. And many programs are waiving application fees for applicants who are victims of the recent tech layoffs. 

Moreover, if you are living in the United States, you might find one of the many top MBA programs with part-time options to be the perfect alternative if there are weak points in your profile. Students in Berkeley Haas’s full-time program have an average GMAT of 729 but those in its  have a median GMAT of only 700 (with 80% of students falling within the 640-740 range). The average GMAT score for students in Northwestern Kellogg’s full-time MBA program is 729, while its part-time MBA does not release data about student test scores (and Kellogg waives test requirements for applicants with an undergrad GPA of 3.4 or higher in a business, economics, or STEM field). Chicago Booth’s full-time students have a 729 average GMAT, but its  average is only 691. If your GMAT score was a significant factor holding you back, then part-time programs offer the opportunity to graduate with the same degree without making another attempt – or several! – at improving your GMAT scores.

Non-U.S. Citizens

If you are not a good R3 candidate for the U.S. fall-entry MBA programs, you do have alternatives that will put you in a business school classroom in the coming year. First, if your heart is set on building your career in the United States, then there are other program options here. For example, if your goals are in finance, you might consider a Master of Financial Engineering degree at Berkeley Haas (next deadline March 23^rd) or Baruch College (next deadline February 15^th), or NYU’s Tandon School of Engineering Master of Financial Engineering (deadline February 15^th). Columbia also offers a Master of Applied Analytics (which encourages international applicants to apply by March 15^th) and an MS in Business Analytics (deadline February 15^th). For those interested in careers in Healthcare Management, you might consider Columbia’s Management of Science in Industrial Engineering, which offers a healthcare management concentration (fall deadline February 15^th, spring start deadline October 1^st). Aspiring product managers and tech entrepreneurs might consider Cornell Tech’s MBA, which has rolling admissions through March 7^th.

Outside of the United States

MBA aspirants who are seeking international careers can consider the top MBA programs in Europe and Canada as well. While Oxford Saïd (March 22^nd) and London Business School (March 27^th) each have one remaining deadline for this year, the MBA program at Cambridge Judge has three (March 6^th, April 17^th, and May 22^nd)! 

In addition, IMD practically just began its admissions process, with upcoming deadlines of February 15^th, April 15^th, June 15^th, August 15^th, September 15^th, and October 15^th still remaining to enter its program (pre-program work starts in October). Similarly, INSEAD’s Round  4 deadline for its September intake is March 7^th, and INSEAD’s January-start program – which allows students an internship in the middle of the program – will not begin reviewing applications until March (with four rounds: March 7^th, April 18^th, June 27^th, and August 8^th).  

For applicants who were particularly interested in HBS’s case study approach, the Ivey MBA program in Canada – which analyzes more than 300 cases over the course of its one-year MBA – might be the perfect alternative. Ivey’s program starts in March, so you can apply for the program starting in March 2024 in the next rounds (April 17^th, July 10^th, September 18^th [the final round for international applicants], November 6^th, and January 8^th). IESE in Spain also bases its program on the case method and has two remaining deadlines for this year: March 14^th and May 2^nd.Other programs in Canada include Toronto Rotman, which advises international applicants (those from outside the United States and Canada) to apply by its March 6^th deadline; Sauder, which accepts international applicants until its March 14^th deadline; and HEC Montreal, which accepts international applicants until its March 15^th deadline.

Address Your Weaknesses

Finally, if your heart is still set on HBS and its full-time U.S. program peers, early release offers you the time to assess your application profile and address its weaknesses over the next seven months. Many applicants find Accepted’s rejection review the perfect starting point in identifying the parts of their application and profile that would benefit from improvement. 

Have you made a noticeable impact beyond the norm in your professional role? Have you demonstrated deep community engagement? Is your GMAT/GRE score meeting (or ideally, exceeding) your target program’s average score? If not, this is a great time to take action and patch those holes – in addition to the one you punched in the wall when you heard from HBS. 😉

If you would like a free profile review to identify weaknesses in your profile or shortcomings in your previous applications, register for a free consultation with me. 

At Accepted, we’ve helped hundreds of applicants get accepted to top master’s programs and look forward to helping you, too! Click here to learn more. >>

By Jennifer Bloom, admissions consultant at Accepted for 20 years and Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW). She is an expert at guiding you to produce application materials that truly differentiate you from the rest of the driven applicant pool. If you would like help with your application, Jennifer can suggest a number of options that work with any budget. Want Jennifer to help you get accepted? Click here to get in touch!

Related Resources:

• Business School Selectivity Index [Can I Get Into My Dream School?]
• What HBS is Looking For, a blog series
• MBA Round 3: Should I Apply Now or Wait for Next Year?

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