Cornell MBA program is offered by the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management. The school is affiliated to the Cornell University, a private Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York. Ranked #23 by the Financial Times in its Global MBA Ranking 2020 and #14 by the Economist in 2019, Cornell MBA program is among the most prestigious MBA programs across the globe. The school has produced several leaders in different fields. Some of the well-known alumni include Mark Bertolini (CEO, Aetna), David Duffield (Co-founder, PeopleSoft), Dan Hesse (CEO, Sprint Corporation), Joe Saddi (Chairman, Booz & Company), & Anne Chow (The first female CEO of AT&T business).
A total of 282 students enrolled in the class of 2021 from 30 countries around the world. 35% of the class consists of women, while 32% are international candidates. The typical average age of the batch every year is between 27-29 years. Let us get to know more about the Cornell MBA program in the following article.
The 2-year Cornell MBA program begins in August with pre-term orientation. The pre-term lasts for 1-2 weeks and includes your first core course, Leading Teams, as well as the Johnson Outdoor Experience (J.O.E.). There is three main focus of the Cornell MBA program. They are
-Value of a solid education in all key business functions, including Marketing, Finance, Human Resource, & Production.
-Importance of strong analytical and decision-making skills.
-Greater flexibility to students in tailoring their curricula.
The first semester of the first-year includes core courses that cover advanced business fundamentals. It covers subjects like Financial Accounting, Managerial Finance, Strategy, Marketing Management, Leading Teams, etc. which help you acquire critical leadership skills. The first semester also includes a mandatory team-based case competition that enables you to apply your core learning to compete with your classmates. The second semester begins with two core courses, Operation Management and Data Analytics & Modeling. It also includes semester-long immersion of integrated programs and field works that prepare you for a competitive summer internship.
The first term of the second-year consists of Principled Leadership, a core course that focuses on leading larger teams & organizations. Other than this, you can customize the rest of your study with electives and concentrations to deepen your specific business knowledge. In the second term of the final year, you can continue to study through your selected electives or/and concentrations.
The school provides you the option to structure your second-year electives from one or more areas of focus out of 12 choices. Some of the areas of focus that the school provides are Brand Management, Emerging Market, Consulting & Strategy, Investment Banking, Leadership & Ethics, etc. The school also provides semester-long exchange programs to students in the second year with Cornell’s established partner institutions. Some of them are Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Melbourne Business School, IESE, Barcelona, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), & Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore.
Eligibility
The school looks for candidates with outstanding academic credentials and a commitment to excellence.
Academic Requirement:
The school accepts a bachelor’s degree in any discipline from an accredited university or institution around the globe. There is no minimum graduate GPA requirement for the Cornell MBA program. However, the average GPA of the class is generally 3.4 or 3.5.
Professional Experience:
There is no minimum full-time work experience required to enroll in the Cornell MBA program, but on average, students have 2-5 years of full-time work experience. Please note that the school accepts only a small number of outstanding students with less than one year of full-time experience.
Standardized Test:
A valid GMAT or GRE score is a must requirement to apply for the MBA program. The school does not require a minimum score, but on average, students have a GMAT score within a range of 680-740. Applicants are also required to submit proof of English Proficiency. However, it can be waived for applicants whose native language is English or who have completed their degree program from an institution where the medium of instruction is in English. The school accepts IELTS & TOEFL. The minimum requirement for the Internet-based TOEFL exam is 100 (25 in each section), and for IELTS, a score band of 7.0.
The one-year tuition fee for the Cornell MBA program is USD 71,940. The students are also required to pay a mandatory fee of $1,500, which includes required core course material, students’ activity fee, & an administrative charge. Please note that the tuition fee increases by 3-5% per academic year.
The estimated living expenses for one year come at $26,140. It includes housing & food ($16,800), books & supplies ($1,100), health insurance ($3,240), & other miscellaneous and personal expenses ($5,000). Please note that living expenses may vary depending upon your lifestyle & living arrangements.
The school provides a whopping $14 million of scholarships each year. Over 35% of the admitted students receive grants, covering full to partial tuition fees. The decisions are made by the admissions scholarship committee and are notified along with the admissions decision notification. The admission scholarship committee takes into account various elements before finalizing the awards, including academic performance, interpersonal skills, demonstrated leadership, writing skills, extracurricular, recommendation, achievements, & future goals of the applicant. Some of the most famous scholarship provided by the school is:
Consortium for graduate study in management fellowship:
It covers full tuition fees & is awarded to the meritorious applicants. It also provides benefits to students from ongoing professional development opportunities.
Park Leadership Fellowship:
It is a full-tuition grant, awarded to up to 25 outstanding students each year.
The Forté Fellowship:
This fellowship is provided to exceptional women candidates with excellent academics & demonstrated leadership skills. Along with these, there are many other scholarship & fellowship provided by the school like ROMBA fellowship, Peter and Stephanie Nolan Veterans scholarship, Roy H. Park leadership fellowship, etc. Students can also choose to fund their MBA journey with a private loan option. Cornell does not recommend any lenders but encourages students to compare lenders and loan terms before selecting the best loan option.
Out of the 282 students in the class of 2019, 264 students were seeking employment. Of the students seeking employment, 94% received a job offer within 3-months of graduation. The average base salary received by the class was $131,150, a 4% increase as compared to last year. The students placed within the United States received the average annual base salary of $136,281, while the students placed outside the United States received $119,349. The average signing bonus received by the class was $35,976, a 7% increase from the last year.
The top three industry by employment include
Financial Services 37%
Consulting 28%
Technology 15%
The top three function students chose were
Finance 38%
Consulting 31%
General Management 18%
The top hiring companies of the placement session 2018-19 were
Accenture
Amazon
Bain & Company
The Boston Consulting Group
Citi
Deloitte
EY
IBM
LEK Consulting
McKinsey & Company
Online Application
Including
Transcripts
Goals Statement
2 Essays
One letter of recommendation (2nd optional)
GMAT/GRE score
English Language Test (if required)
Resume
Application Fee of $200
Interview:
After the initial screening of your application, you may receive an invitation to interview. The school encourages you to schedule your interview within 7-days of receiving your invite. Interviews may either be conducted in-person in Ithaca, New York, or via Skype. On occasion, in-person interviews can also be conducted in your local city. However, the school encourages you to visit them in Ithaca.
The interview is conducted by the admissions & MBA program professional staff, trained second-year students, or in some cases, school alumni. The interview lasts for approximately 30 minutes and consists of behavioral MBA interview questions & case questions. After the interview process, the admissions committee again evaluates the shortlisted application, including the interview feedback forms. Based on their final decision, you will receive a notification either of acceptance, waitlist, or denial of admission.
Essay Details & Tips
The school asks the applicants to answer two mandatory essays. They are:
Impact Essay
At Cornell, our students and alumni share a desire to positively impact the organizations and communities they serve. How do you intend to make an impact during the next several years of your education and/or career? (350 words maximum)
Back of Your Resume Essay
The front page of your resume has given us a sense of your professional experience and accomplishments as well as your academic summary and extracurricular involvement. If the back page reflects “the rest of your story,” please help us get to know you better by sharing ONE example of life experience, achievement, or passion that will give us a sense of who you are as a potential community member.
Along with the above two mandatory compositions, there is an additional essay you can answer to call attention to items needing clarification and to add additional details to any aspects of your application that do not accurately reflect your potential for success at Johnson (in 350 words maximum). The impact essay is designed to explore the intersection of engagement and community culture. The school prefers candidates who hold a strong vision to contribute to the Cornell community.
On the other hand, the back of your resume essay allows you to present yourself as an individual. The school encourages you to think about your proudest accomplishments, interests and passions, and personal highlights that will help them to get to know you as a person and potential community member. Being one of the private Ivy-league Universities, Cornell is hailed as a reputed brand around the world. A Cornell MBA program will definitely give a boost to your career.
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