Thursday, November 20, 2008

Waiting Stinks!

I received an email from Georgetown informing me of a status update...so I log in and see that my application is listed as complete and under review by the admissions committee. Awesome. Only thing is, Georgetown doesn't release decisions until January! That's cruel! Now I know they're looking at my scores, my essays, my interview already, but won't let me know anything for nearly two months! I find it funny I don't really worry about where I am with UCLA, but I'm dying to know about Georgetown.

Scheduled my interview with UNC, set for December 15th. I traded emails back and forth with some admissions people regarding interviews, the whole telephone vs. on-campus debate. Ms. Nair said that although there is no difference between the two, she would expect applicants in the US to visit campus. I wanted to avoid applying in round 3 (although technically it's round 2), so I made sure all my scores and stuff were already there. All I have to do is finish my essays and do my interview. Shouldn't be too tough.

I'm not going to reschedule Wake Forest or Duke (all set for late January). I'll continue working on them, regardless of an admit from Georgetown. The cost of living is so much cheaper in North Carolina, I'd definitely have to weigh the pros and cons of each before I make any sort of decision. But, I'm ahead of myself!

This weekend I'm working as a poker dealer for a charity tournament in Cleveland, to benefit the Humane Society. Should be a good time, and I'm recruiting players. Also planning on running the Turkey Trot 4 mile walk/run on Thanksgiving morning. Look at me, Mister Charity!

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Back To Work

In the words of Jed Barlett, what's next?

Georgetown application is done, all recommendations and transcripts are in, and it is now the waiting game. Anyone know if they release their decisions all on the same date, or in spurts? It'd be awesome to know before January 12th, but it's ok. I'll survive. The more I found out about the program, the more interested I became, and now I'd be pretty down if I got dinged. Their ranking in BW dropped a ton, which surprised me.

Next up is the North Carolina triumvirate: UNC, Duke and Wake Forest. I've scheduled my Duke interview/tour/visit for January 21st, and I hope to do UNC on the 22nd. Right now they only allow scheduling for 2008. I've also registered for all the events at Wake Forest on the 23rd/24th. Friday is the dinner, Saturday is the info session and panel interview, what they call the Done In A Day. I'd get a decision on the same day, which would be nice.

It seems lots of interview invites and offers/dings are going out now. I'd just like to wish all my fellow applicants best of luck! And remember, a ding isn't the end of the world. Trust me!

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Georgetown Submitted

After a last-minute change of heart regarding an essay, I submitted my application for Georgetown's McDonough School of Business. I'm pretty happy with my essays. I did use the optional essay to write about my undergraduate performance, explaining my GPA being low due to finishing school in two and a half years.

I did find this experience a bit easier than UCLA, mostly because I had been through it once before. It's true what they say, the essays get easier the more you do. I wish my recommenders felt the same way!

Best of luck to everyone who's applying to McDonough! And happy birthday to me!

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Georgetown Interview

Yesterday I had my interview with Georgetown. McDonough is candidate-initiated until December, so I scheduled this one myself. Six hours in the car Sunday allowed me to listen to football, and remember everything I forgot back home (ie, an undershirt, a TIE, and cufflinks). I spent that night at a friend's place, jotting down notes and reading interview stuff on GMAT Club and accepted.com.

I woke up early on Monday and headed into Georgetown. I had to run into some stores to pick up the stuff I forgot, but didn't have any problems there. A current student helped me find my way to the admissions office, which was nice. The place was pretty well packed with prospective students waiting for either interviews or an information session. I wish I had scheduled my interview around one, but it didn't work out that way. My interviewer met me a few minutes before my scheduled time and led me to a room.

For those that don't know, Georgetown allows second-year students to interview prospectives. My interviewer was extremely friendly, and helped keep things casual. He started it off by giving a quick background of himself, and what is expected both in the admissions process and the interview. He stated that everything is taken together, and no portion outweighs any other. Good to know!

The first question was the "walk me through your resume" one. I'm pretty confident that I completely botched this! I gave a quick spiel about undergraduate studies, then spoke awhile about my first position, telling about leadership opportunities and teamwork and success. Then, when I started talking about my current position, I completely left out the main points I had worked so hard to get across! How could I forget to mention the main project I've been working on for over a year! Ugh! He probably thought I was nuts, though he didn't ask many follow-up questions. After that he asked about short-term goals, and I went into detail about those as well as long-term plans. He asked a pretty good follow-up question, probably to see how serious I was about my career trek. Hopefully I answered that well.

He asked the "Why Georgetown" question, and I nailed it. I spoke at length about the international curriculum, clubs, classes, professors. I mentioned that I had been exchanging emails with a current student, who turned out to be his very good friend! When it came time to ask him questions, I had tons, and he answered them very truthfully. I think we split our time pretty evenly between his questions and mine, and the whole ordeal took 25 minutes. We continued to talk about stuff on our walk back to the admissions office. I sent him a thank you note this morning, as well as the current student, letting him know we talked about him in my interview!

All in all, I thought it went well, and everything I saw or learned completely reaffirmed my interest in Georgetown. I've got until Friday to complete my application, but I find it so hard to limit my essays to 750 words each!