Spring Break
50 Things I Wish I'd Known when I Applied
Alex Godden (NJ), Viewpoints Editor
Issue date: 2/26/07 Section: Viewpoints & Humor
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Given that it is admit weekend this weekend, and the lovely people at the admissions office are at full capacity churning through applications, interviews and offers, I've found my mind turning back to his time last year, when as a relatively disorganised second round applicant I was preparing for my interview and starting to believe that spending the next two years in Boston (or San Francisco) was a genuine possibility. This was at once both gratifying, overwhelming and mystifying. Despite all the people I'd spoken to, I really didn't have much concept of what going to B-School would really be like.
Here is the list I am planning to send back in time to myself at that point, as soon as those folks over at MIT have got around the whole pesky paradox issue and built a flux capacitor.
1. It is impossible to answer the question "Wow, you got into Harvard, does that mean you are really smart?" without appearing either arrogant or moronic.
2. You will never show your friends at HBS your admissions essays.
3. You will cringe whenever you re-read your own applications essays.
4. You will borrow liberally from your applications essays for the LEAD reflective Best Self exercise.
5. No-one ever really believes they will do what they said they did in their essays.
6. Some people do actually go on to do what they said they did.
7. You do not yet understand the concept of "busy."
8. You do not yet understand the concept of "time management."
9. You do not yet understand that the CEO of Microsoft or the former U.S. Vice President may be speaking in a room less than 5 minutes walk from your dorm, and you can still decide it's not worth the effort.
10. You will not drink a Scorpion bowl after the first two weeks of your first semester.
11. Even if you work in consulting, you will be stunned at the sheer amount of acronyms and random jargon you pick up at HBS.
12. The letters BGIE are pronounced Big-E and mean "macroeconomics and politics."
Here is the list I am planning to send back in time to myself at that point, as soon as those folks over at MIT have got around the whole pesky paradox issue and built a flux capacitor.
1. It is impossible to answer the question "Wow, you got into Harvard, does that mean you are really smart?" without appearing either arrogant or moronic.
2. You will never show your friends at HBS your admissions essays.
3. You will cringe whenever you re-read your own applications essays.
4. You will borrow liberally from your applications essays for the LEAD reflective Best Self exercise.
5. No-one ever really believes they will do what they said they did in their essays.
6. Some people do actually go on to do what they said they did.
7. You do not yet understand the concept of "busy."
8. You do not yet understand the concept of "time management."
9. You do not yet understand that the CEO of Microsoft or the former U.S. Vice President may be speaking in a room less than 5 minutes walk from your dorm, and you can still decide it's not worth the effort.
10. You will not drink a Scorpion bowl after the first two weeks of your first semester.
11. Even if you work in consulting, you will be stunned at the sheer amount of acronyms and random jargon you pick up at HBS.
12. The letters BGIE are pronounced Big-E and mean "macroeconomics and politics."
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