[image] Dear Prospective Students, This is an official blog of Smeal College Of Business at Pennsylvania State University. My name is Anshul Sharma. I’m a first year student and social media representative for Smeal College Of Busi…
Dear Prospective Students,
This is an official blog of Smeal College Of Business at Pennsylvania State University.
My name is Anshul Sharma. I'm a first year student and social media representative for Smeal College Of Business. I will be active on this blog through the entire application process for MBA full time program 2012. Please feel free to post your queries/doubt that you may have as you prepare to submit your application during the course of the year.
To start with, I am posting few quick links, which should help you with your search and get better insight about the Smeal MBA program in general.
Good luck with the application process.
Homepage for the full time MBA program
http://www.smeal.psu.edu/mba?gclid=COy1kciBkasCFUF75QodHyHltw
Application Deadlines for Fall 2012 admissions
http://www.smeal.psu.edu/mba/admission/application-landing-page
To start a new application
http://www.gradsch.psu.edu/portal/ and click on Apply Now!
Class Profile of incoming 2011 class
http://www.smeal.psu.edu/mba/admission/profile.html
General FAQ
http://www.smeal.psu.edu/mba/related-links/mba/admission/faq
Tuition and Financial aid
http://www.smeal.psu.edu/mba/admission/finance.html
Integrity matters at Penn State's Smeal College of Business and we take pride in our honor code, for complete details please go to http://media.smeal.psu.edu/honor/
Like us at Facebook for all the latest buzz at the Smeal College Of Business.
https://www.facebook.com/PennStateSmealMBA
Or Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/smealmba
Once again thanks for showing your interest in the Smeal MBA program
Smeal College Of Business
Pennsylvania State University
Hi ,
I want to apply for full time MBA at Smeal starting Fall-2012.I will be taking GMAT for the second time on 23rd Sept. First attempt i got only a 610. I want to pursue ERP sales/consulting post MBA.Is there a specific program such as MIS for the above mentioned interest or will it be a general management course and a few specialisation subjects that i will pursue at SMEAL.
Thanks,
Ashwin Chadaga
Hi Ashwin,
Please check the below link for the various concentration that Smeal offers to it's student every year. Though, we do have a provision of 'Custom Concentration' where you can choose your concentration from the listed areas in the link below.
Concentrations; Penn State Smeal College of Business
let me know if you have any more questions, thanks
Hi,
At the onset,thanks for coming up with an exclusive blog for Smeal.
Well, I am from Bangalore, India and intend to apply to Smeal for Full Time MBA Fall,2012.
till date, I am carrying 6+ yrs of exp in the IT industry, mainly into development and consulting. Right now, m leading a team of 12 ppl.
I have also been modelling for the past few months. I intend to know whether modelling can act as an advantage in my application giving me an edge over other applicants. Pls let me know how the adcom will treat this as part of extra curricular stuff.
thanks in advance.
Naveen
Hello
I'm a prospective Fall '12 applicant to MBA - Finance programs in USA.
I've taken the Revised GRE and the scores would be out in November 2011 (P.S. - GRE scores are accepted by most B-schools now)
I've done my Bachelors in Business Management with a majors in International Finance from University of Mumbai.
JP Morgan Chase - Mumbai - 1 year of work exp in IB.
Nomura International PLC - London - 1 of the only 2 Indians selected amongst 1000's for a 6 months internship.
Morgan Stanley - Mumbai - 4 months in IB.
Had to leave Morgan Stanley to handle family business as my father fell terribly ill, and I being his only son had to take over and handle the business, and plan to do so until I fly for my MBA next fall. Handling and growing the business quite well, in spite of it being offtrack(Interior Designing)than my previous work experience in IB & education. Can this be highlighted well in my essays and work as a +ve point for me?
Will have total of 3 years of work exp by Fall 2012.
Very active with a few NGOs & other community services. excellent extra curriculars and co curriculars too.
Can you please suggest me B-schools in USA that match my profile.
Thanks for your help in advance and also for taking the time to read this. (I just realized that I might have been verbose).
Hi Anshul
Awesome initiative.
I am also planning to apply for SCM at smeal. I've Heard smeal is in top 3 in SCM at US. Hope we have a rocking thread this one.
710/5.5
4 years - 2 IT/ 2 Entrepreneurship
interest - Operations/scm/entrepreneurship
one question
the app portal says :
"Two official transcripts must be submitted from every educational institution attended. International students must also submit official copies of the Graduation Certificate, Degree Certificate, and Diploma."
Does this work similar to Rotman/NTU ? i.e hard copies before admit ? or a scanned copy will suffice for application completion ? My college has given me very few original copies. 😞
Hello Rohan Mody. Thanks for posting. We encourage you to share your past work experiences, and how they have led you to the decision to do an MBA, as well as your plans for the future in the application essays. We hesitate to recommend other business schools, as we are most familiar with our program and what we have to offer. If you have any questions about the Smeal MBA program, we would be happy to answer those.
Regards,
Ann Mallison
Sr. Admissions Adviser
Hi gremba2012. Our Admissions Committee looks at extracurricular activities as another piece of your total application. We evaluate each and every application as a whole, not just on the basis of one or two things. Each part of the application is valuable to us. We look forward to hearing more about your extracurriculars, as well as your work experience and goals. Please let us know if you have any other questions.
Regards,
Ann Mallison
Sr. Admissions Adviser
Regards,
Ann Mallison
Sr. Admissions Adviser
Hi bblast,
Two official transcripts must be submitted from every educational institution attended. International students must also submit official copies of the Graduation Certificate, Degree Certificate, and Diploma. Let me know in case you are looking for any other specific information
Anshul Sharma
Graduate Assistant
Smeal College Of Business
Penn State
Hi Anshul
Awesome initiative.
I am also planning to apply for SCM at smeal. I've Heard smeal is in top 3 in SCM at US. Hope we have a rocking thread this one.
710/5.5
4 years - 2 IT/ 2 Entrepreneurship
interest - Operations/scm/entrepreneurship
one question
the app portal says :
"Two official transcripts must be submitted from every educational institution attended. International students must also submit official copies of the Graduation Certificate, Degree Certificate, and Diploma."
Does this work similar to Rotman/NTU ? i.e hard copies before admit ? or a scanned copy will suffice for application completion ? My college has given me very few original copies. :(
Hi bblast,
Two official transcripts must be submitted from every educational institution attended. International students must also submit official copies of the Graduation Certificate, Degree Certificate, and Diploma. Let me know in case you are looking for any other specific information
Anshul Sharma
Graduate Assistant
Smeal College Of Business
Penn State
Thanks for the reply Anshul. I would like to know whether we are supposed to courier the hard copies of the above mentioned documents for application completion before November 11 deadline? Or do I need to send all these hard copies after I get an offer ?
Hello bblast,
The admissions committee will not make an admissions decision until the application is complete. The online application should be completed online and all supplemental documents should be mailed together in one envelope.
Check the below link for application checklist
International Applicant Requirements €” Penn State Smeal College of Business
Let me know any other information is required.
Anshul Sharma
Graduate Assistant
Smeal College Of Business
Penn State
bblast SaysThanks for the reply Anshul. I would like to know whether we are supposed to courier the hard copies of the above mentioned documents for application completion before November 11 deadline? Or do I need to send all these hard copies after I get an offer ?
Hi Anshul,
Thanks for the help so far.
The reference section on the smeal e-app portal says this :
References
Your intended program of study has chosen not to use the Graduate School reference collection feature. Please refer to your intended program of study's Web site regarding that program's procedures for submission of references/letters of recommendation.
Then I registered recommmenders using another link :
Smeal MBA Recommendation for Graduate Study - Penn State Smeal MBA Student Exchage
How do the adcom link the 2 ? Because i had to create separate account to register the recommenders on the link above !!!!
Hope I did not make any mistake above ?
Another huge issue. The last tab in the applications page {M B A - Program-Specific Questions} says:
"11 How many months of post-undergraduate, full-time work experience will you have upon MBA entry? (Calculate total months - not years - through July 2011. Include military experience. Do NOT include internships, part-time work, and post-graduate studies.)"
has the school forgotten to update the application portal to July 2012 ? Or am I applying at the wrong place ? 
Hi bblast,
Yes, we do require official copies of all the necessary documents to consider the application for review before the deadline. Please check the link below for list of documents required
International Applicant Requirements €” Penn State Smeal College of Business
Let me know if you have any questions!
Anshul Sharma
bblast SaysThanks for the reply Anshul. I would like to know whether we are supposed to courier the hard copies of the above mentioned documents for application completion before November 11 deadline? Or do I need to send all these hard copies after I get an offer ?
Hi bblast
Thanks for bringing it to our notice. Please try doing it now and should find 'July 2012' instead of 'July 2011. If not, Please enter your experience till July 2012 and that should be fine.
Thanks and good luck with the application!
Another huge issue. The last tab in the applications page {M B A - Program-Specific Questions} says:
"11 How many months of post-undergraduate, full-time work experience will you have upon MBA entry? (Calculate total months - not years - through July 2011. Include military experience. Do NOT include internships, part-time work, and post-graduate studies.)"
has the school forgotten to update the application portal to July 2012 ? Or am I applying at the wrong place ? :wow:
Hi bblast,
Instructions on all can be found here https://www.smeal.psu.edu/mba/admission/application-landing-page.
You register for your letters here Smeal MBA Recommendation for Graduate Study - Penn State Smeal MBA Student Exchage
They are separate from the application itself because our program has specific needs not shared by other Graduate Programs here at Penn State. We do make sure to like up the two records just make sure you use the same full name in both the application and registering for the letters of rec. If you have any issues please let us know.
Hi Anshul,
Thanks for the help so far.
The reference section on the smeal e-app portal says this :
References
Your intended program of study has chosen not to use the Graduate School reference collection feature. Please refer to your intended program of study's Web site regarding that program's procedures for submission of references/letters of recommendation.
Then I registered recommmenders using another link :
Smeal MBA Recommendation for Graduate Study - Penn State Smeal MBA Student Exchage
How do the adcom link the 2 ? Because i had to create separate account to register the recommenders on the link above !!!!
Hope I did not make any mistake above ?
Thanks a ton for all the help so far. Apologies for double posting all my queries here as well as on facebook.
But on the positive side I guess I am one of the early persons filling out the forms; and these posts would be useful to others following. I am doing this along with writing the essays so that I don't have any last minute doubts.
Some more critical issues :
1>I have generated an FPS ID and completed the online application (not submitted it). How can I check the status of my score reports or recommendations ? In the link https://secure.gradsch.psu.edu/status/ we need a 9 digit applicant ID and PIN which I think will be generated only after submission of apps ?
2>The TOEFL code for Smeal as per website is 2660. The ETS website further shows 2 graduate schools with this ID. Which one of the below should I choose for full time MBA at Smeal ?
2660 PENNSYLVANIA ST U-ALL CAMPUSES UNIVERSITY PARK PA 16802-3303
2660 PENNSYLVANIA ST U-ALL CAMPUSES UNIVERSITY PARK PA 16802-1204
Hi bblast,
Thanks for writing, below is the answer to your question
The only way to check the receipt of your scores, recs, or other materials is to contact us directly at [email protected]
Either will be fine. Both codes will lead directly to your score being submitted to our program.
reach out to us in case you have more questions
Anshul Sharma
Thanks a ton for all the help so far. Apologies for double posting all my queries here as well as on facebook.
But on the positive side I guess I am one of the early persons filling out the forms; and these posts would be useful to others following. I am doing this along with writing the essays so that I don't have any last minute doubts.
Some more critical issues :
1>I have generated an FPS ID and completed the online application (not submitted it). How can I check the status of my score reports or recommendations ? In the link https://secure.gradsch.psu.edu/status/ we need a 9 digit applicant ID and PIN which I think will be generated only after submission of apps ?
2>The TOEFL code for Smeal as per website is 2660. The ETS website further shows 2 graduate schools with this ID. Which one of the below should I choose for full time MBA at Smeal ?
2660 PENNSYLVANIA ST U-ALL CAMPUSES UNIVERSITY PARK PA 16802-3303
2660 PENNSYLVANIA ST U-ALL CAMPUSES UNIVERSITY PARK PA 16802-1204
Hi SmealMBA,
Doubt reg the Nov 11 Early Decision Deadline - Does applying within this deadline hold the same rules applicable for an early decision application? Is it binding? What i mean is - Do we have to withdraw all other offers if recommended? Will we be shown the offer with GA and Scholarship only after we give acceptance?
Thanks