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What Duke Fuqua Seeks In MBA Applicants
Making money and making a difference.
Those are the two things Bill Boulding, dean of Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, says make a successful alumnus.
In a recent interview with Business Insider, Boulding explained why he thinks most successful business school alumni are able to balance the two missions.
The Two Missions
Boulding cites Apple CEO Tim Cook and Gates Foundation co-chair Melinda Gates, both Fuqua alumni, as the prime examples of alumni who have succeeded in balancing the two missions.
Boulding says Cook has succeeded in making Apple one of the most valuable companies in the world.
“It’s no accident that they’ve become the most valuable company in the world because they’re serving consumer needs in a way that they’re helping to unlock human potential,” he tells Business Insider.
On the other hand, Gates has helped to truly make a difference in answering “what can we do to use the resources that we have to change lives for the better?'” Boulding tells Business Insider.
What To Highlight When Applying To Fuqua
Although not everyone can be a Tim Cook or a Melinda Gates, there are a few ways applicants can position themselves for success when applying to Fuqua.
For one, it’s important to highlight your personality in your essay.
“Bringing forth my personality through my essays is very crucial as it’s really what differentiates you the most,” writes Kumar Ayush in an article for MBA Crystal Ball. “If someone has been socially active and energetic person, it should come out from essays directly or indirectly. Same goes with passion.”
According to Stratus Admissions Counseling, Fuqua’s admissions committee focuses on authenticity in an application
“They want to know what YOU plan on doing to make Fuqua a better place,” according to a blog post by the admissions counseling company. “Let them know what you are genuinely interested in doing and why you are passionate about a certain activity, club, or event. Relating clubs or events to past experiences will show that your plans are authentic.”
Additionally, it’s important to be clear about your goals and ambitions.
“Saying you want to be the President of the Tech club is great but that is not sufficient,” according to Stratus. “Elaborating on what you plan to do as President of the club, what unique skills you can bring to the position, and relating the position to your goals will make you stand out. You’ve just told the Admissions Committee about your short and long-term goals in the short answer questions. How will the contributions you plan to make to the Fuqua community help you reach those goals? Keep in mind that the goal is to show how you will help Fuqua, but tying that into your goals will add authenticity.”
Sources: Business Insider, MBA Crystal Ball, Stratus Admissions Counseling
Doing Good With An MBA
Traditionally, an MBA is the gateway to industries like finance, accounting, and consulting.
And it makes sense why MBA grads seek these fields. Almost half of the jobs in these industries, offer salaries of $125,000 or more according to a CNBC study.
Steven Lam thinks that notion is too simplistic. He is the co-founder and CEO of billion-dollar start-up GoGoVan, an on-demand van-hailing app which aims to solve logistical problems in big Asian cities. Recently, Lam made the argument that MBAs should be applying their skills outside of these traditional fields.
“There are a lot of things out there,” Lam tells CNBC. “You don’t need to be fixated on accounting or finance.”
Doing Something Meaningful
Lam says he was inspired to do something meaningful with his degree by a business ethics class he took as an MBA student at University of California-Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. The class opened his eyes to the idea that an MBA could be used to solve society’s biggest issues.
“That was the first class and I remember it so well,” Lam tells CNBC. “So when I graduated I just wanted to do something meaningful.”
Lam says MBAs should be open to working for companies outside the traditional finance, accounting, and consulting firms.
“Around the world, there’s thousands and thousands of companies out there,” he tells CNBC. “The greatest ones are not accounting firms, financial firms or consulting firms. The greatest firms are called Fortune 500. Each of them sell different kinds of stuff, have different types of business.”
Solving The World’s Problems
In Lam’s case, he went on to build a multinational on-demand logistics platform that offers delivery services across Asia. Last year, his company became Hong Kong’s first unicorn, as a start-up valued at $1 billion, according to CNBC.
While an MBA has the option to work for a Fortune 500 company, Lam says, they should use their education to help solve the world’s problems.
“More than that, the world has thousands of problems – poverty, environment – things that need good people, smart students, to help to solve,” he tells CNBC.
How B-Schools Are Using AI and VR
Around the world, b-schools are integrating artificial intelligence (AI) and virtual reality (VR) into the classroom.
Seb Murray, a contributor at Financial Times, recently discussed how b-schools are using the latest technology to further business education.
Transforming B-School Education
In Europe, b-schools are utilizing AI and VR to transform the way students learn, give or receive feedback, network, and land a job.
At Italy’s MIP Politecnico di Milano, the MBA program is using an AI search engine called Flexa, which automatically recommends which areas of a CV a student should focus on making improvements. After a student uploads their CV, Flexa offers suggestions based on the student’s expertise and jobs advertised by recruiters, according to FT.
“The vast amount of information on the internet can be overwhelming. Flexa filters it,” Paolo Mazza, an MIP EMBA alumnus who tested Flexa, tells FT.
At IE Business School in Madrid, VR is being used to take MBA students to places that are traditionally too expensive or dangerous to visit in-person, such as an Airbus satellite production line.
The VR technology is also being used to improve students’ communication skills. Students can practice public speaking using VR as they receive a simulated audience reaction, according to FT.
“Students learn to tailor their communication style, depending on the reaction,” IE dean Martin Boehm tells FT.
VR case studies are also making their appearance in b-schools. For example, at Neoma Business School in France, students can use a VR case study’s 360-degree view to learn about marketing through changing a retail shop’s interior virtually.
“It’s an immersive and playful experience that forces you to engage with people to acquire information — not reading it on paper,” Estelle François-Brazie, who tried out the VR case, tells FT.
Increased Funding In AI
More and more b-schools are now funding money into teaching AI.
Most recently, Harvard Business School received a $5 million gift from alumnus Stephen A. Schwarzman, chairman, CEO, and co-founder of Blackstone, a multinational private equity alternative asset management and financial services firm. His multi-million-dollar gift will help spur the efforts of HBS faculty members who are researching and writing case studies on AI.
“Across Blackstone’s diverse portfolio, I have seen firsthand the impact that rapid technological change has on businesses and industries,” Schwarzman says in a press release. “The disruptive implications and opportunities surrounding AI are far-reaching. Executives need to understand how to anticipate, act on, and manage these changes. I am hopeful that through these case studies—hallmarks of the HBS experience that have helped train a century of business leaders— we can better prepare the next generation to help shape the application of AI in an ethical and accountable way that benefits the public interest.”
Sources: Financial Times, Poets & Quants, Harvard Business School
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