The farse is by no means limited to the MBA admissions process nor does the blame lie exclusively with the essay, interview and test-taking prep industries and hucksters. It’s not dissimilar to the drill with law school applicants. For those who score well on the LSAT [a truely meaningless hoop-jump due to its dismal predictive utility for estimating an applicant’s ability for or likelihood of success in the study of law.]for example, it is quietly understood and accepted that the applicant paid well if not exhorbitantly to attend a puzzle-solver course or tutorial on how to ’score’ on the test. What then might be the answer or even an improvement? It will take years to even reach consensus on the question(s) and definition of the problem. Meaningfull answere based upon a critical look at our true purposes and objectives, our standards of relevance, validity and the very large vested and manifest interests of the essay, interview and test-prep industries will take generations. No one should attempt to hold their breath. FJS

FJS, at 7:55 am EST on February 7, 2006

Why is it...?

Why is it that every time private enterprise responds to a need, the focus is on them and not the appropriate villains?As Christine Sommers and her colleague, Sally Satel report in their critical analysis of the public school system, the theraputic emphasis on my poor baby’s “self esteem” and “getting in touch with my feelings” combined with making sure the 3% is overemphasized at the expense of the 97% assures that teaching the ability to write will be sacrificed and potential college material will be improperly prepared to meet the necessary international standards for competition.

One doesn’t have to look very far to see that this 60’s led theraputic “revolution” has created the “underserved” and improperly prepared candidates that require extensive remedial efforts at the college level. Here again traditional competitive efforts in private, charter and online schools recognize the need for teaching such things as “self-reliance” and stoic “suck-it-up-and-get-the-job-done” attitudes in our young people.

Will we come out of this theraputic approach to meet the world competition, or will we just try to “get the numbers of enrollees” into the classroom? Perhaps the U.S. may find it necessary to become a second rate nation to get its priorities straight?

Edward, A “retired” business professor, at 9:31 am EST on February 7, 2006

I don’t know why this shocks people. Even without for-profit essay companies, popular students would have their essays massaged by their friends and often by professors. If anyone is a victim, it is the students that think that having a nobody go over the essay will matter. Instead, the students should be concentrating on having people with “inside connections” put secret codewords into the essays that will convince a committee that they should admit an otherwise unqualified applicant.

FJS, I wonder why you say that the LSAT is meaningless? At a minimum it tests one’s ability to concentrate and apply some (but not nearly all) of the logical methods employed in law school. Indeed, the fact that everyone needs to take it, and everyone that want to get to a real law school needs to do well (165+) actually democratizes law school. Indeed, only the lesser law schools take essays seriously, because, they can’t choose from amongst highly qualified students. Also, the LSAT is probably a good predictor of one’s success in the study of law, simply because the “better” schools (that accept people with higher LSAT scores) have more grade inflation and therefore, their students appear to succeed more. I understand your distaste for standardized tests, but I think that your critiques of the LSAT are misplaced. Perhaps if you had explained why it wasn’t relevant to the study of law, I would be interested.

HJ, While I generally agree with you that there is more diversity in B-schools than people give them credit for, I would characterize the constant drone regarding “diversity” as not such much a position taken by “soft-side” academics (though many consider B-school to be pretty “soft”) but rather a political position regarding allies that one would like to have in a given program. So, for instance, if I say I want more “diversity” in my office, I really mean, “I want people that think the way I do, or do what I say, but, because they look different, might be able to convince shallow people to think the way I do.”

Edward, Strangely enough nobody I know that went to public or private schools ever had any emphasis placed on “self-esteem.” I suspect that “self-esteem” is something taught to the losers who wouldn’t go to college anyway, its teaching is an urban myth.

Larry, at 11:45 am EST on February 7, 2006

The lies of life

VRL,

I don’t want to break it to you, but personal statements are a testament to how well one can write a personal statement. Indeed, if people put their “true thoughts” into a personal statement, life would quite interesting. Personal statements would include the fact that most individuals are lazy, watch TV, have one-night stands, are emotionally imbalanced, use drugs, have problems with alcohol, beat their wives, and wet their beds. But, in the real world, personal statements are a way that people signal to others regarding what they want others to think about them. Someone with a lot of social skills (like me) knows that others want to hear, and subtly hints that they are that kind of person. We leave out all our bad points.

Likewise, we can convey these same false sentiments in interviews. Socially skilled people (like me) are good at it, and can fool many people into thinking that we are just like them.

When people are “leading” corporations, their good and bad points shine through. Life still goes on.

Larry, at 12:41 pm EST on February 7, 2006

Back to School

Omigod, I can’t believe Larry has been sucked into this discussion.

For years, I have been describing undergraduate business training – it’s a misnomer to even think about characterizing it as education – by plagiarizing, “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.”

The difference between the typical BBA and the typical MBA is nothing more than the arrogance of the latter. Larry, would you be surprised to learn that a fairly recent analysis of the success of MBA students at a top-five business school revealed that those with undergraduate degrees in engineering significantly outperformed those with undergraduate degrees in Arts and Sciences who did slightly (but statistically significantly) better than those with undergraduate degrees in Business. That proved nothing to me beyond the fact that the BBA graduates must have thought it was really difficult to take all of those courses over again (with only the numbers changed).

In any event, as tempting as it is to take all of this seriously, the process has been wonderfully – and accurately – captured by the experience of Thornton Melon (Rodney Dangerfield) in “Back to School.”

So, Larry, give yourself a break, check out “Back to School” (1986) at Blockbuster, crack a beer, and learn everything that’s worth knowing about business “education.” Unfortunately, in my forty-five years of experience, I found very few profs in the academy who could hold a candle to Sally Kellerman.

RWH, at 5:35 pm EST on February 7, 2006

Quick and Dirty History

R.A.S. is right ... for the most part, MBA programs did not sprout from existing BBA programs.

Let’s see, Late 19th century —-> Programs in bookkeeping —-> Programs in accounting —-> The MBA is born —-> MBA programs are neither academically rigorous nor practically relevant —-> World War II —-> The BBA is born —-> MBA programs clean up their act around 1960 —-> Around 1975, every two-bit college and university in the country that was primarily in the business of training teachers suddenly discovered it was eminently qualified to train businesspeople.

Two notes:

Wharton, the first collegiate school of business in the world, arrived on the scene in 1881.

An old friend of mine at the University of Michigan told me that during World War II, there were very few MBA students anywhere in the country (and, of course, women were not welcome). Since buildings, faculty, resources, etc. were just sitting around gathering dust, it inspired the creation and growth of BBA programs. No need to change anything ... just repackage two years of the same ol’-same ol’ as a four-year program and get used to teaching younger students with no business experience.

The tail wags the dog.

RWH, at 4:35 am EST on February 8, 2006

Just Doin’ My Research

Trouble with Larry is he does his research in libraries and on-line.

I have already told him to watch “Back to School” (with Rodney Dangerfield) if he want to know “how it’s done” in American business schools. If I’m not mistaken, Thornton Melon (who was already a very successful businessman) paid Kurt Vonnegut to write a term paper for him. I mean, isn’t that how it’s done in the REAL business world?

Now Larry writes, “Indeed, in many circumstances interviewers just lack the background – or time to prepare — to expose a fake.”

Well I guess he didn’t see “Risky Business” (with Tom Cruise) either.

In that flick, Mr. Rutherford, the unflappable Princeton recruiter (oops, they don’t have professional schools at Princeton, do they?), learns everything he needs to know about Joel Goodsen ... and under really stressful circumstances. I think Larry is grossly underestimating the skill and tenacity of those interviewers.

Anyway Larry, get off line for awhile, polish up your Blockbuster card, and check out “Back to School” and “Ricky Business” this weekend. While you’re at it, check out “Legally Blonde.”

RWH, at 8:55 am EST on February 8, 2006

real life v. movies

RWH, I don’t watch many movies (despite being related to a semi-famous producer and appearing briefly in one). However, I am keenly aware that movies distinct from reality and are generally a bad source of material on which to base public policy decisions. Indeed, I am told that anyone can put idea or set of facts into a movie they want, and through the magic of special effects and obedient actors, anything can be portrayed.

Since most movies are made to sell tickets, usually pleasing ideas are conveyed. Some common themes include: 1) the ability of people that don’t work hard to triumph by showing “spunk”; 2) triumphs of the “underdogs”; 3) true love; 4) athletic agility. Rarely do movies portray people failing because they never worked hard in their lives; failing because they just are not sophisticated enough to succeed; people marrying for money; or people doing boring things that they learned in school to make an acceptable (but not extravagant) amount of money. Also, I did notice that in all the Star Trek movies, not once is someone portrayed using a toilet.

Indeed, I might suggest that you view the “Crimson Permanent Assurance” (which is included with “The Meaning of Life”) which proves, beyond a doubt, that 1) the world is flat (I bet you didn’t know that); and 2) young B-school grats are all cutthroat scallywags.

So, although I didn’t see legally blonde, I should probably tell you how things work in real life; 1) there are many ex-sorority girls at HLS and other elite law schools; 2) people that goof off though college rarely get into elite law schools unless they know how to engineer their grades and classes to look smart. For the most part, however, most students at elite schools can point to some track record of excellence, and will keep their distaste for their fellow students to a minimum. HLS students do have the opportunity to “party” quite a bit, however. Also, clinic students don’t represent criminal defendants charged with murder, and most people on trial for murder are convicted.

Larry, at 11:55 am EST on February 8, 2006

Why not use turnitin.com?

I would recommend that admission offices avail themselves of turnitin.com’s services. It may not catch everything, but it could be a very effective tool for identifying the cheats.

Cheater Hater, at 4:25 pm EST on February 17, 2006