The Touch MBA Admissions Podcast

Justin Taines, RSM MBA ’21, shares his journey from developing kids and family entertainment shows in Los Angeles to the RSM MBA, based in the Netherlands. Why did Justin pursue an MBA (instead of an EMBA) despite having over 10 years of work experience? What was his experience at the RSM MBA as an older student and during Covid? Questions Justin's background (2:15) Justin's shortlist of schools (4:30) Why Justin took the GRE instead of the GMAT (12:36) Justin's positioning and application tips (16:40) Justin's RSM MBA experience (27:10) Justin's thoughts on his (forced) hybrid MBA experience (35:33) Justin's recruiting experience and lessons (45:45) What Justin wished he knew before starting his MBA; how to best prepare for your MBA (1:05:45) About Justin After getting his Bachelors of Fine Arts in Experimental Animation from the California Institute of Arts, Justin Taines worked in creative development, developing kids and family entertainment shows. He then worked in business development, building animation studios and helping the city of Jerusalem build up its animation industry. He also started and sold a retail cannabis cultivation venture before heading to the Rotterdam School of Management for his MBA. Justin is currently freelance consulting while exploring new roles post-MBA. Episode write-up: https://touchmba.com/rsm-mba-justin-taines Get free, personalized school selection help at Touch MBA: https://touchmba.com

Milan Mecklenberg, Insead MBA '18D, shares his journey from studying theoretical physics at Cambridge to McKinsey Berlin to Insead and then back to McKinsey, this time in Vietnam. What has he learned from the journey? Questions Milan's background (2:20) Applying to Insead and getting sponsored by McKinsey (4:20) Preparing for the GMAT (8:55) Interviewing with McKinsey as an MBA student (11:20) Milan's McKinsey experience (18:28) Milan's Insead experience (22:42) Making the most of 1-year and building your network at Insead (33:40) Building self-awareness at Insead & McKinsey (39:45) Picking classes & professors at Insead (44:55) About Milan After getting his Masters and Bachelors in Theoretical and Mathematical Physics from Cambridge University, Milan Mecklenburg worked for McKinsey in Berlin, who then sponsored his Insead MBA in 2018. He then joined McKinsey Vietnam's office for two years. Milan is currently working as a freelance consultant and pursuing entrepreneurial projects Episode write-up: https://touchmba.com/mckinsey-insead-experience-milan-mecklenburg/ Get free, personalized school selection help at Touch MBA: https://touchmba.com

Hunter Dong shares his best application tips for getting into the Wharton MBA / MA Lauder Joint Degree in International Studies program. How did Hunter pull together his diverse work experience working for the Hinrich Foundation in the Philippines, his family business in pharmaceutical packaging and IBM as a Data Scientist to make an ultimately winning case to Wharton and Columbia? Hunter walks us through his entire preparation process, from initial school research to the final team-based discussion interview. Don't miss this episode packed with clear, practical advice from a just admitted applicant. Questions Hunter's work experience and reasons for pursuing an MBA/MA in International Studies (2:25) Hunter's positioning strategy (9:10) How Hunter focused on students and professors as sources of information to craft his application (15:00) Hunter's advice for Wharton's team-based discussion (TBD) interview (19:25) Hunter's essay timeline and editing process (29:45) Lauder application tips (35:40) Preparing a "briefing guide" to recommenders (42:23) How Hunter demonstrated leadership qualities to adcoms (45:20) Why Hunter chose to attend the Wharton / Lauder program (47:30) About Hunter Hunter Dong will be starting his joint MBA/MA degree at Wharton and Lauder this Summer. He previously worked as a Senior Consultant and Data Scientist at IBM. Hunter got his B.S in Operations Research and Financial Engineering from Princeton University. Episode write-up: https://touchmba.com/how-i-got-into-the-wharton-mba-lauder-hunter-dong Get free, personalized school selection help at Touch MBA: https://touchmba.com  

After helping four MBA applicants with their resume and essays, Darren realized he was repeating similar advice. In this episode, Darren shares how you can use the five senses - sight, sound, smell, taste and touch - to make your application more three dimensional. Topics Introduction (0:00) Sight - paint the scene (2:23) Touch - make the reader feel something (8:00) Sound - have a point of view (12:54) Taste - be focused and break stereotypes (18:10) Smell - make sure your entire application matches (23:54) Episode write-up: https://touchmba.com/five-senses  Get free, personalized school selection help at Touch MBA: https://touchmba.com

Dr. Michele Roberts, MBA Academic Director of the Australian Graduate School of Management (AGSM) at University of New South Wales (UNSW), discusses what makes the AGSM MBA unique, the school’s admissions process, career opportunities and more. Program Highlights (3:20) | Admissions (31:00) | Careers (47:30) About Our Guest Dr. Michele Roberts is the MBA Academic Director of AGSM at UNSW, looking after all its MBA Programs. Michele teaches MBA courses in Marketing Management and Foundations of Management. Prior to academic life, Michele worked as a Marketing Manager at a Fortune 500 company in London and Melbourne. She holds a Masters’ Degree in Marketing and a PhD in Marketing & Public Policy from the University of Western Australia. Full write-up on what makes AGSM unique: https://touchmba.com/agsm-mba-program-admissions-interview-michele-roberts  Get free, personalized school selection help at Touch MBA: https://touchmba.com

Chief Market Officer Kai Stenzel and Admissions Manager Sofia Syed Nasir discuss what makes the Mannheim MBA unique, the school’s admissions process, career opportunities and more. Program Highlights (3:50) | Admissions (25:15) | Financing & Working in Germany (35:40) | Careers (48:30) About Our Guest Kai Stenzel is the Chief Market Officer for Mannheim Business School where he has worked for over 6 years. He is responsible for Marketing, Admissions, Career Development, and Alumni Relations. Kai got his MBA from Mannheim Business School and Essec Business School. Sofia Syed Nasir is the Admissions Manager for Mannheim Full-time MBA, Mannheim Business School. She got her Masters in International Business from Grenoble Ecole de Management. What is unique about the Mannheim MBA? Ranked #1 MBA in Germany by Forbes, Bloomberg Businessweek and the Economist Ranked #1 in Business Administration by German HR professionals 14 years in a row (Wirtschaftswoche University Ranking) Targets and consistently ranks top 10 worldwide for ROI 1 year MBA starts in September with ~60 students per intake Admissions looking for collaborative mindset, teamwork abilities, and unique point of view that could benefit other classmates  10 core courses taught in terms 1-2; electives, social sustainability project and business master project offered in terms 2-4; students can extend with a term 5 to get a management analytics certificate, study abroad or pursue a business idea or internship 80% of graduates stay in Germany to work Graduates get a job seeker's visa that lasts 18-months  Mannheim MBA fast facts, show notes and more at: https://touchmba.com/mannheim-mba-program-admissions-interview-kai-stenzel-sofia-syed-nasir

MBA Recruitment Manager Alex Jones discusses what makes the Bayes Business School MBA (formerly Cass), City, University of London unique, the school’s admissions process, career opportunities and more. Program Highlights (4:10) | Admissions (19:30) | Financing & Scholarships (33:40) | Careers (37:30) About Our Guest Alex Jones is the MBA Recruitment Manager for Bayes Business School (formerly Cass), City, University of London, where he has worked for over 8 years. Alex got his Bachelors in Communication from the University of Leicester and his Masters in Media Production from Birmingham City University. What is unique about the Bayes Business School MBA? 1 year MBA starts in September with ~90 students per intake City's campus is in the heart of London’s financial district, which helps with career-related events, meetings and recruiting Core curriculum is taught in 4 blocks through the first 6 months of program: 1) strategy & organization 2) the financial environment 3) creating management advantage and 4) knowledge and policy, followed by a week-long international consultancy, electives and business mastery project Looking for minimum of 3 years professional experience and experience working multicultural teams with international outlook Hosts week-long London Symposium elective that gives a behind-the-scenes look into the economic drivers of London Has an MBA Expeditionary Society, which includes MBA and EMBA students, and explores leadership through stretch experiences, delivered by renowned mountaineer Sir Chris Bonington MBA alumni can take one free elective each year Under revised UK visa system, international students can get 2-year post-study work visa to look for employment in UK Ranked #2 globally for corporate strategy by Financial Times (2020) Ranked #1 in the UK for Entrepreneurship by Poets & Quants and Inc Magazine's 2021 50 Best MBAs for Entrepreneurship Episode summary, show notes and more at: https://touchmba.com/the-business-school-city-university-of-london-mba-program-admissions-interview-alex-jones

Anastasia Georgiou, Director of Admissions at Melbourne Business School, discusses what makes the Melbourne MBA unique, the school’s admissions process, career opportunities and more. Program Highlights (4:38) | Admissions (19:00) | Scholarships (31:20) | Careers (34:00) About Our Guest Anastasia Georgiou is Director of Admissions at Melbourne Business School. Anastasia has worked in higher education and admissions for over 20 years. What is unique about the Melbourne MBA? What are its key advantages? Highest ranked Australian MBA by Financial Times, Economist and QS Offered Australia’s first MBA program starting in 1963. Melbourne Business School is 55% owned by Australia’s leading companies and 45% by the University of Melbourne Melbourne was ranked the world's most livable city for 18 years straight and is the multicultural capital of Australia MBA can be completed in 1 or 2 years Well-known for marketing and finance, and has recently set up Centres for Business Analytics and Sustainability & Business Prides itself in offering a high-touch MBA experience for 40 students/year Episode summary, show notes and more at: https://touchmba.com/melbourne-mba-program-admissions-interview-anastasia-georgiou

Job hoppers, this episode is for you! Darren shares three strategies you can use to mitigate your track record of job hopping. How can you present this as an asset to your target MBA programs? Episode summary, show notes and more at: https://touchmba.com/mba-positioning-strategies-for-job-hoppers

Gilbert Chua, Deputy Director of Marketing, Recruitment & Admissions at Nanyang Business School, discusses what makes the Nanyang MBA unique, the school’s admissions process, career opportunities and more. Program Highlights (2:30) | Admissions (11:50) | Scholarships (31:45) | Careers (34:20) About Our Guest Gilbert Chua is the Deputy Director of Marketing, Recruitment & Admissions at Nanyang Business School. Gilbert previously served as Head of Recruitment & Admissions for Singapore Management University's Postgraduate Programmes, where he also got his EMBA. What is unique about the Nanyang MBA? What are its key advantages? 1-year program includes 9 core courses + 4 electives + 1 leadership module + 1 business study mission + 1 strategy project, with option to add a summer / fall exchange or get Double Masters with Waseda (Japan), St. Gallen (Switzerland) or Essec (France) Offers 5 concentrations in Banking & Finance, Strategy & Innovation, General Management, Marketing Management, Human Capital Management, and Strategy Projects Admissions looking for academic capacity, those with "T-shaped" leadership potential, ability to contribute in classroom, and cultural adaptability The Nanyang MBA was ranked the 35th worldwide by Financial Times (2020) and 73rd worldwide by the Economist (2019), and Nanyang Technological University was ranked 48th Worldwide in the Times Higher Education's World University Rankings (2020) Episode summary, show notes and more at: https://touchmba.com/nanyang-mba-program-admissions-interview-gilbert-chua