A Valuable Resource for Those Considering Transitioning from the Military to Business School

My friend, Antonio Buehler, is a graduate of the United States Military Academy as well as a holder of an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Since his own graduation from a top-tier MBA program, Antonio has helped many former Junior Military Officers make successful application to the nation's leading business schools. I have referred a number of individual s to Antonio, and his insights have proven to be incredibly valuable in determining which schools would be the best to apply to, and how best to leverage the officer's background as a military leader.

I asked Antonio to describe how and why his services have proven to be so helpful to JMOs in transition.

Al,

It was a pleasure chatting with you the other day about assisting JMOs who are looking to transition into the civilian world via a top MBA program. As I told you before, I have helped numerous people apply to and get into the top MBA programs over the past several years, and I am happy to help others moving forward. As you know, the bulk of my experience and my focus is on Harvard and Stanford, but I’ve also had success at Wharton (50% success rate), MIT (100%), Tuck (100%) and Fuqua (100%) as well.

With Harvard in particular, I have figured out what it is the admissions committee is looking for, and as long as the applicant clears certain GPA/GMAT hurdles, I can almost guarantee an interview (which HBS uses as a final screen for admission). My success rate at Harvard has been 75% and includes people with 3-8 years of work experience and GPAs as low as 2.7+. For reference, Harvard’s admission rate last year was 11%.

With Stanford, I am able to work with the applicant to really flush out what matters most to them and why, and put it forth in a coherent and compelling way. While the Stanford application process is much less obvious or predictable, I have a success rate of 33% at Stanford which includes people with GMATs as low as 630 and GPAs as low as 2.7+. Stanford’s admission rate last year was 7%.

The reason the people I’ve helped have been so successful is because:

1) I know what the schools are looking for and I push candidates away from wasting time writing essays that weaken their application

2) I push candidates to really dig deep and expose themselves in a way that they may initially feel uncomfortable with, but allows them to tell a compelling and relevant story

3) I ensure that the candidates have the full package in order, from essays to resume to recommendations to administrative data – I don’t just help with essays

Please feel free to share my information with any strong candidates who are interested in applying to business school, especially if they are focused on Harvard or Stanford.

Thanks,

Antonio

If you would like help in navigating the route to a possible MBA, and you would like to be put in contact with Antonio, send me an e-mail, and I will be glad to make the introduction.

achase47@gmail.com

Al

Conference at Columbia Business School That Could Be of Interest to White Rhino Readers - Friday, September 24

I recently visited with my good friend, Dan Beaudry. Dan heads up the U.S. operations for a firm called "QS" - QS - the world's leading network for top careers and education

During the course of our conversation, Dan mentioned an upcoming conference that QS is sponsoring at Columbia Business School on September 24th. As he described the topics that will be covered, it occurred to me that the event may be of interest to many readers of The White Rhino Report. Dan was gracious enough to give me permisison to tell you something about the event:

Al: "Dan, you’d mentioned a conference yesterday that might be of interest to my Blog readers in New York. Why do you think people might be interested in it?"

Dan: "Well, from attending your White Rhino Intersection conferences and meeting people in your network, I know that your friends and readers tend to be interested in leadership development, graduate business education and ‘doing the right thing’. The conference I mentioned yesterday is the intersection of those things."

Al: "Well, what is this all about? How will these topics be addressed in your conference?"

Dan: "We’re calling it “Developing Responsible Leaders: Who’s Responsible?” Business schools and MBA programs have taken some heat in recent months because many of those blamed for the financial crisis have an MBA. Some people claim that MBA curricula over-emphasize profit, and neglect other areas of executive responsibility. We’ve partnered up with Columbia Business School and assembled some leaders on both sides of this issue for a discussion on how companies and business schools can work together to develop ‘responsible’ leaders. It’s an important dialogue to have – particularly in the heart of world’s financial center."

Al: "What do you mean by ‘responsible’ leadership?"

Dan: "That’s part of the discussion, actually. I expect that business ethics, shareholder return and corporate social responsibility will all surface at some point. We’ll have learning and development executives from some of the larger financial institutions (AIG, CIT, Marsh, etc.) involved in the program, as well as some professors from New York-area business schools. All White Rhino Report readers are welcome!"

White Rhino Report readers interested in attending the conference will get $100 discount courtesy of Al Chase by entering coupon code WHITERHINO during check out. Click here to register.

Details:

Columbia Business School

September 24^th, 2010

9:00-4:30

Click here for the full agenda and speakers list