Ding!

I just found out today I got dinged from Wharton. 

At this point I think it's fair to say that I have pretty much made up my mind to pursue a Ph.D.; however, it still stings a little bit to get a rejection from anything to which I've dedicated some time and effort.  Writing 7 essays for the Wharton/Lauder program took more than a few good hours that could have been devoted to quality t.v. watching!  There's a website out there where people can sign up and put their profile online and see what's going on with other applicants at various business schools, www.admissions411.com.  It's tough to know that I got rejected when I see some other people with similar stats (GMAT, GPA, etc.) who have gotten interview invites.  I think part of it may have to do with the fact that I applied for the dual Wharton/Lauder degree program which only accepts 60 people every year.  It is VERY competitive and most applicants have years of high-level international experience.  Oh well, time to move on.  I have two more MBA applications (Dartmouth, Harvard) out there currently and I'm hoping to get at least one acceptance from my top 3 choices...even if it is just so I can reject THEM!

On another note, I have some updates from my recent ventures to Chicago:

The FBI interview was a tough process.  I traveled out there with 7 other people from Columbus and we met up with 8 others who were from Dayton and Cincinnati.  It was a very simple process the day after we arrived.  They split us into two groups and we went through the two-phase interview process.  I had to do the panel interview portion first.  I sat down in a room with 3 Senior Special Agents and they asked me 13 direct questions.  They were looking for examples from my life where I've demonstrated certain skills they feel will translate into being a successful agent (leadership, teamwork, quick thinking, etc.).  I actually felt like this was the hardest interview I've ever been through.

  There was no back and forth conversation, they would ask a question and just let me talk and talk, never interjecting a word, until I decided I was done.  They never gave any hint as to whether they liked or dislike my answers and even at the end I thought for sure that I was just a terrible candidate and had completely wasted their time.  The second half of the overall interview process involved writing a case summary of a fictitious FBI case.  This was a tedious process, but overall it was pretty simple to just write down pertinent facts and state your opinion and recommended course of action.  I received a call from the Special Agent in charge of recruiting and she informed that I passed!  At this point, I essentially have an offer from the FBI pending a background check (VERY thorough), physical fitness test, and polygraph interview.  However, after discussing the opportunity with Ashley, I think I've come to the conclusion that this will not be my career choice.  I haven't informed them of this yet because nothing final has been decided.  But as I previously mentioned, I am leaning in the direction of a PhD...which brings me to my next Chicago visit.

This past Sunday-Monday I was in Chicago for the ADS Scholar Orientation.  As a recap from my previous post, they invited 60 applicants to come to the orientation.  From these 60 they will select the 30 recipients of the scholarship.  It was a great opportunity to go and learn more about the program as well as network with representatives from various universities.  Hearing about the life of a professor pushed me even more in this direction.  From what everyone was saying, the Ph.D. program is waaaaayyyy busy, like 55-70 hours a week of coursework, studying, and reading research journals.  But once you get your Ph.D. and become a professor, life is good.  There is always pressure to publish your research and have original work in your field, but the stress is low and you can be very flexible with your time.  I think it was interesting to hear how professors are somewhat like self-employed individuals: they work on whatever they feel like, they set their own hours (outside of class time), and they set their own market value by the reputation they carry and their network throughout academia.  Professors do have to report to a dean every now and again, but other than that, they have a lot of freedom -- and they even get benefits.  Anyhow, we'll see where this goes, I should hear back about the ADS program by next Thursday.

Knock, knock, knocking on opportunity's door

So, like many of you out there who are thinking about returning to school for an MBA, I am not 100% sure exactly what I want to do with the rest of my life in terms of my career.  I created this blog to talk about the experience of pursuing an MBA-preparing, applying, enrolling, and completing.  However, I just want to make mention in this post that an MBA program is not the only career transition that I've considered.

This summer I started to really contemplate my career and made the decision that I definitely could not continue in public accounting long-term.  Not that it's a bad job, it just does not pass the Monday test, if you know what I mean.  At that time I learned a few other opportunities that were pretty appealing to someone like me with a CPA and public accounting background.  Besides an MBA program, which is pretty well-known for transitioning someone into a new business career, I learned about two other careers that really interest me:

1.  FBI Special Agent

2.  Accounting Professor


Wow!  When I write it down and look at the two of them, I realize that they appear to be completely different spheres of personality types!

I decided that, since I wasn't sure which of the three I REALLY wanted to do, I would apply to all three and see what shakes out.  Well, I won't hear back about acceptance decisions for MBA programs until mid-December but, so far, the other two are shaking out to be really good prospects.  Unfortunately for me, it doesn't solve my decision problem.

FBI:  I passed the first round of testing and have been invited to participate in Round 2 testing.  This means a 2-day trip to Chicago for another round which includes a 4-hour process of writing up a sample case report and having a panel interview.  I am totally excited about this opportunity and on the face of it, it seems like an awesome opportunity.  While a Special Agent's salary is not anything to brag about (you can look up the pay scale, along with tons of other information at www.fbijobs.gov ), the money is sufficient to provide for a family and there is definitely a great feeling of accomplishment with the work that a Special Agent performs.  It would be awesome to spend your day figuring out how to bring down bad guys, and honestly, what is cooler than an accountant with a gun?  The only real issues I would have with a position and a career with the FBI are the fact that we will most definitely be moving to an unspecified location in the U.S. with potential future moves coming at periodic intervals and there is an overall toll that a career in law enforcement can have on an individual and their family.

Professor:  Not many people are aware of this, but being an accounting professor is less focused on knowing current accounting principles and regulations, and more on researching new ideas and concepts that can apply to the world of accounting and business management.  Also not known by many is the fact that accounting professors, along with most other business school professors, can make a pretty hefty salary--newly hired PhD's start around $120-$150k and get into the mid $200's and higher.  Not bad for someone that basically works on whatever they want, as long as it is relevant in their field, and has a lot of flexibility as compared to almost any other professional career.  Their is a teaching aspect for professors, which is something that really interests me, but anyone that is going to make a good living as a professor must live by the "publish or perish" mentality.  As far as this opportunity goes, I applied for a scholarship fund ( www.adsphd.org ) that was created for people with public accounting experience to go back to school.  A PhD program takes 4-5 years on average to complete and while most schools waive all tuition and fees and pay you a stipend for being an RA or TA, you may still be living of Ramen noodles for a good portion of that time.  The scholarship program will select 30 individuals nationwide for the next few years and pay them $30k to go back to school for an accounting PhD at any school that is associated with the program...the applicants must commit to pursuing a career as a professor in either Audit or Tax accounting.  I have been selected as a finalist for this program, which means another trip to Chicago for a 2-day conference to learn more about the program and to meet with representatives from various Universities.

Overall, it's great to have options, but it's hard to decide between Good, Better, and Best...especially when your future and your family's future depends on your decision.

Tuck essays

Just finished the Tuck essays!  It has been a tough couple of weeks.  Right after I submitted the Harvard and Wharton applications I didn't want to write about myself at all.  I'm on the road this week for work so it was a good opportunity to sit in my hotel room after work and just plow through the essays and get them finished up.  None of them were too difficult, especially seeing as how they were only about 500 words apiece.  Now time to cough up the application fee and get this puppy submitted!

B-school journey

Like many others in the b-school blogosphere, I am contributing my thoughts and experiences to anyone interested.  It was only about 3 months ago that I decided to apply for an MBA program and since that time I've had to scramble to research schools, study and take the GMAT, and organize all of the essays, recommendations, and applications for the schools to which I'm applying.  Now, with two applications done and sent in and one more coming due next week, I am approaching probably the most difficult task...waiting!  Here is a run down of the process I'm going through including the schools I'm considering.  I've applied to Harvard, Wharton, and (next week) Tuck.  After those three round one applications, I've selected four other schools for round two: UChicago, Fuqua, Kellogg, Darden.  The first two schools mentioned are no brainers for anyone who aspires to join an elite program and launch a successful business career post-MBA.  I obviously have some hope of gaining admittance to those schools, why else would I drop a cool $250/each?  But like many others, it is a slim chance and I have a realistic view of my standing.  Tuck is my #3 option, which may seem odd to many out there.  The reason I have Tuck so high on my list is partly because of the reputation/quality and partly because of the intangibles it has:


1) The "unique" experience of living in the middle-of-nowhere northeast part of the country.  I love the outdoors and I would love the opportunity to have so many winter activities available.
2) The close-knit community is not just something they put on their website.  After visiting Tuck with my wife, it was easy to see that there is a genuine sense of family among the students.  Having two kids to take with me on my MBA journey, I have to put a lot of emphasis on the family environment and Tuck definitely excels in that area.
3) The alumni are extremely loyal and devoted to the program, that should tell you everything right there.


Round two applications don't come around for my other four schools until after the notification deadlines for the first three...meaning that I won't have to pay any more exorbitant application fees until I'm sure I'm not getting into one of my first choices.


This is an exciting time and I'm sure that once the application process wraps up and I finally get an "Admitted" decision it will be even more exciting.  Let me know what you think of my school choices, I'd love to hear from anyone else on their thought process.