Truths and Myths About the Ross MBA Admissions Process, GMAT Scores, and Scholarships

The halls are alive with the sound of students!

And we’re excited to have them back on campus. The 420 new MBAs joined 420 second year MBAs when classes began last week. You can read about the new class in this recent article on the Ross blog.  

The new MBA1s were “oriented” only a month ago and already, more than half the class has applied to serve as student ambassadors (current students who can answer your questions from a student’s perspective).

Meanwhile, the Admissions team has been on the road meeting candidates for the Class of 2021 as well as rounding up current students to share their experiences with various aspects of the MBA program through webinars.

Pro-tip: in-person and online events are a great way to get more insight into Ross. I highly recommend using these resources as they’ll help you create a stronger application as well as ask better questions. We love it when candidates asked informed questions.

There’s a lot happening on campus too! This week, Michigan alum and former CEO of Twitter, Dick Costolo, will be doing a fireside chat with Dean DeRue. In the next two weeks alone, student clubs will be hosting conferences on mobility, entrepreneurship, real estate and energy.

Admissions Truths and Myths

If you’re reading this blog, I’m assuming you’re considering applying to Ross, yes? Or maybe you’ve already decided that you will apply to Ross. If this is you, then here are some truths and myths that may interest you.

Round 1 applicants were admitted at a higher rate than Round 2 applicants:
True

There are many ways to interpret this.

• Fewer applicants applied in Round 1. (True).
• More competitive applicants applied in Round 1. (True when looking solely at the average GMAT of the pool).
• We have more spots for the class in Round 1 (False). We don’t have “targets” for each round; we admit based on the merits of the applications within the pool.

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You have to have a GMAT above 720 to get a scholarship
False

The GMAT scores of students who received a scholarship ranged from 620 to 770 this year. It’s truly not all about GMAT scores. We care also about your full-time work experience, your recruitability, the uniqueness of the perspective you’ll bring to the class, and your potential to engage in and lead the community.

There’s less chance of getting a scholarship in Round 2 than in Round 1
False

We don’t split up the scholarship budget by round. We award based on an applicant’s potential to contribute to the class in myriad ways. In some years, we spend more in Round 1; in other years, we spend more in Round 2.  In the last two years, more than 40% of our students received a scholarship, ranging from $10K (annually) to full tuition.

Round 1 Deadline - October 1

If you’re one of those candidates who’s considering applying to Ross, here’s some food for thought: Our Round 1 deadline is Monday, October 1 — later than many other schools’ Round 1 deadlines.

If you applied to one of those schools, you have most of the hardest parts of the application done - the GMAT/GRE, rec letters (we only require one), resume and transcript. The only “new” thing to do to submit an app to Ross are the essays. You may have toiled over the essays for other schools. Our essay prompts are short and straightforward. That’s the kind of response we’re looking for, too. Clear, concise straight talk that demonstrates you know yourself.

So. What are you waiting for? We’d love to get to know you.