The art of transferability

The Art of Transferability

http://www.amerasiaconsulting.com/


In working with clients of all age, gender, nationality, and
industry, one thing we’re always trying to do is identify
things that connect everyone – common elements that
become and remain true, regardless of differences.

MBA Admissions Consultant | http://www.amerasiaconsulting.com

To be honest, there aren’t many such elements. Almost
everything about the MBA admissions process is a
contextual exercise. You can almost never divorce a
unique applicant or a specific school from your analysis.
It’s part of the reason this is such a difficult endeavor for
people, part of the reason why so many admissions
consultants do an incomplete job of advising candidates,
and a huge part of the reason why admissions consulting
even exists.

You have to do a lot of things right and you have to do
them with great contextual specificity.


That said, there is one universal truth that we have
uncovered that seems largely overlooked by the rest of
the MBA admissions landscape and that is how
enormously important it is to abide by what we call the
Art of Transferability.

What does that mean? Quite simply, it means finding the
experiences and skills you *already possess* and
highlighting them as the proof that you will succeed in
business school and beyond.


Most people either intuit or they learn that work
experience is important in an MBA candidacy and many
others grasp the concept that certain trademark themes
(leadership, teamwork, maturity, motivation, intellect,
etc.) are critical as well.

What few seem to understand, however, is that this
whole ballgame comes down to how well you EXTRACT
from those experience and then PRESENT evidence of
your relevant ability. And this is true of literally any
candidate.


Consider:

-If you are “young,” then the pressure is on to show that
you are mature and ready for an MBA and what comes
next. The way to do that is to comb through your life and
work experience to show off your early acceleration –
that you’ve been challenged early in life and you’ve
stepped up and met those challenges.

-You prove your credentials as a young applicant by
highlighting specific skills and experiences – by zeroing
in on that which is transferable to an MBA and to your
relevant career goals.


-If you are an “older” applicant, your goal is the same.
Rather than overwhelm a reader with 10+ years of
seemingly unguided career wandering, zoom in on the
specific experience and traits that will add value.

There’s nothing wrong with having a little moss on you so
long as you can boil things down to the essential
ingredients. As long as you can say “look, to be good at
X, I need A, B, C, and I have those skills,” you can be
highly competitive, even if you are older than 30.


-If you are a traditional applicant (banking, consulting,
etc.) and you are looking to stand out, you do it by
highlighting specifics and not banking (pun intended) on
assumed, general characteristics of those industries.

Focus on specific value you will bring to the class and
then to companies and their clients later on.


-If you are a non-traditional applicant, it is the same exact
exercise. Don’t worry that you were an actor and not a
banker or a restaurant manager and not a consultant;
simply comb through your life and work history and find
the building blocks that will make you successful in your
line of work.

As a restaurant manager, you worked on tough timelines,
managed difficult personalities, thought critically, came
up with innovative and creative methods, got a chance to
try your hand in everything from marketing to accounting,
and generally grew up faster than someone would in an
analyst position … and now you are ready to bring all
those critical and mandatory skills to strategy consulting.


On and on it goes. No matter what background you are
coming from you, the burden is on YOU, the applicant. to
show what transferable skills you bring to the table. The
admissions office will never assume you have them. Put
another way, if you don’t display them, they will assume you
DON’T have them.

Obviously, this is something a vetted admissions consultant
can help you with a great deal. Starting with the career
goals, we can help you move backward toward the
transferable skills that need to be on display, and then help
you research your own past to find those skills. As long as
there is a straight line running through everything, you can
clear this hurdle and move on to showcasing fit with each
unique program (a much harder exercise, to be honest).


If you are interested in a free initial consultation, please email
mba@amerasiaconsulting.com. Our boutique approach pairs
you with one of the principals of our company, meaning you will
be working with someone capable of walking you through the
above steps and perfecting your application.

Finally, make sure to download our free How to Apply to HBS guide.

http://www.amerasiaconsulting.com/

The art of transferability

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The art of transferability