Stanford MSx vs MIT Sloan Fellows: My application experience with EA score
For experienced executives in the United States looking for a full-time MBA experience (as opposed to the Executive MBA), there are two elite programs that stand out. Traditionally called the Sloan Fellows, with two based in the US and one in the UK, they offer an immersive and rigorous experience that matches what you’d get at any regular M7 or M10 MBA program.
From among the arguably top 3 MBA programs, namely Harvard, Stanford and Wharton, only Stanford GSB offers this program. We have worked with several candidates for both, the 2-year MBA and Fellows versions at MIT and GSB.
The applications are not very different though Fellows programs tend to provide a bit more room since candidates to these programs have typically more to tell. Stanford even has the option of applying to the 2 year and MSx together through a joint application!
Check out our review of the Sloan Fellows programs: MIT vs LBS vs Stanford MSx
Srikar, who earned his PhD in the U.S., preferred to focus on 2 of the 3 Fellows programs. The battle was on between Stanford MSx vs MIT Sloan Fellows. Which one would he get into?
Stanford MSx vs MIT Sloan Fellows: Applying with an EA score
One-year MBA in USA after PhD
by Srikar Jandhyala
My interest in technology led me to pursue a degree in engineering. I got my Bachelors in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering from NIT Rourkela, India.
I wanted to pursue a career in R&D in the industry and from what I knew at that time, I needed a PhD to learn the necessary skills to conduct research as well as establish credibility to enter the industry.
I was particularly interested in two major areas: semiconductor and battery materials development.
With this goal in mind, I researched universities in the US that have a strong Materials Science department in these areas.
I was also taking into consideration other factors such as weather, tuition and potential fellowships that the department has to offer while shortlisting universities that would be practical for me.
I was fortunate to have gotten an admit to the Master’s program in Materials Science at University of Texas at Dallas.
I quickly converted that into a PhD with a focus on semiconductor materials processing because of the excellent facilities, faculty and research opportunities.
My advisors provided me with the opportunity to work on industry funded projects which gave me exposure to industry thought process as well as the network.
Close to my PhD completion, I started looking for jobs in the semiconductor industry. My resume made it to a hiring manager at Intel through the recruiting events by SRC (Semiconductor Research Corporation), an industry consortium and one of the sponsors of my research work.
I made it through the interviews and started working as a Process Engineer at Intel’s Logic Technology Development division in 2013.
I was really happy with my job and my career progression at Intel. I was in my dream company working on cutting edge technology. So, I didn’t really feel the need to pivot or explore other careers.
I am sure at some point I told myself, “no more formal education for this lifetime”.
In 2016, during a casual conversation with my brother, I got introduced to the Stanford MSx and the MIT Sloan Fellows programs.
At that time, even though pursuing MBA was not in my plans, these programs definitely piqued my interest because of the shorter time commitment of 1-year vs a 2-year commitment for a full-time MBA program.
Over a period of time, I started developing an interest in clean technology industry. As my motivation to pivot into Clean technology and explore entrepreneurship became strong, I started looking into programs that would help me make a transition into Cleantech industry.
I shortlisted Stanford MSx and MIT Sloan Fellows programs because they not only seemed like a great fit for the career trajectory I wanted to embark on, but also because they are geared towards experienced professionals who have demonstrated leadership.
Stanford was my first choice because of the university’s focus on ecopreneurship, location (close access to Bay Area startup ecosystem) and of course the weather (I am not big fan of the snow). I have family in Bay Area which sweetened the deal for me.
Once I made the decision to apply to Sloan Fellows programs, I decided to go with the Executive Assessment (EA) as it was the shortest among the three tests accepted (GMAT, GRE and EA). I borrowed my wife’s GMAT book collection and also bought official EA practice questions and mock exams.
One of the amazing benefits that Intel offers is Sabbatical which is essentially paid leave for 4 or 8 weeks (depending on the length of service).
I had an eight-week sabbatical available. So, I decided to utilize this time to prepare for the test.
During practice, I found myself struggling with the Integrated Reasoning section, but I did well in the full-length mock exams.
I scored between 156-162 in the mock exams and was hoping to score above 157 (median EA score for Stanford MSx). I scored 160 on the actual EA test and was very happy to have scored above my target.
I think the mock exams offered an experience close to the actual EA test experience, but I found the quantitative section to be more difficult on the actual EA test compared to the mock tests.
Once I got my EA score, I felt confident to move forward with my application process.
I also signed up for Stanford MSx class visit to get a better perspective of the program. This was my first time visiting the Stanford campus.
I would highly encourage anyone serious about applying to the MSx program to go for a class visit.
There was something so powerful about being on-campus and having in-person interactions with the current students and faculty that it really motivated me to put in my best effort into the application.
Talking to the current MSx students during the campus visit solidified the thought process in my mind that this program can be transformative both professionally and personally. It also made me realize that the program is quite competitive and that I need to put in a lot of effort into submitting a successful application.
I didn’t want to take any chances and wanted to employ help instead of working alone. I also did not want to rely solely on friends and family for inputs because their experience would most likely be limited compared to professionals who successfully guide numerous candidates.
I read a couple of blogs from successful Indian applicants to the Stanford MSx program who had recently worked with MBA Crystal Ball (MCB). Their accounts gave me confidence that MCB would provide me the necessary guidance to put together a competitive application.
With MCB, you can sign up for essay editing services and tag on interview prep later if you get an interview call, which is what I did.
I reached out to Manish and he did a quick free profile evaluation over email to assess if my application would be competitive with the target schools.
One of the highlights that you will notice while working with MCB is their response speed. From my very first email, MCB has been blazingly fast with their responses.
I was assigned to work with Abhinav Chandra. Abhinav was the best co-pilot I could ask for in my MBA application journey. He was not only knowledgeable on the specific B-school application requirements but was also working in the cleantech industry. This gave me confidence that we would be the right fit.
After we discussed my goals, we agreed that I should apply to both Stanford and MIT Sloan Fellows programs in R1. After a detailed background assessment, we put together an outline for my essays.
Stanford GSB adcom prefers personalized essays that reflect your true-self and bring out your inner motivations.
The process of writing essays for Stanford MSx and MIT Sloans Fellows was tougher than I had initially anticipated.
Often, we may not be as conscious of our motivation behind our actions until we pause to reflect. Abhinav helped me deeply reflect on my motivations and brought out my best-self in the applications. Be prepared to be given candid feedback from your MCB team.
I honestly was not ready for Abhinav’s no nonsense feedback. Initially, it felt like a gut punch and it made me wonder if my application would be good enough.
But Abhinav provided actionable feedback that helped me think clearly and refine my essays. Abhinav encouraged me to utilize every opportunity on the application to communicate something new about myself to the adcom, which meant not glossing over optional questions or work history details.
Abhinav made sure that I didn’t settle for anything less than the best effort on my applications. I am confident that my applications would not have been as competitive without his guidance.
After I submitted my applications to MIT and Stanford, I was confident that I put in my best effort and couldn’t have done any better.
I got waitlisted by MIT without interview, which was difficult to digest, but was excited when I received the interview invite from Stanford.
I didn’t want to take chances on my opportunity to get into Stanford. I immediately reached out to Abhinav and Manish to sign for interview prep. Abhinav provided me feedback to not only improve my interview responses, but also helped me improve my confidence.
Stanford MSx interviews are conducted by adcom. My interviewer made me feel relaxed and I was able to demonstrate that I would be a good candidate for the program.
At the end of the interview, I was confident that I did the best I could and was ready to accept the outcome one way or the other.
As most MBA applicants highlight, applying to MBA programs can be stressful, exhausting and time-consuming. Even though I enjoyed the process of test prep and application, I had to give up vacationing with family all through summer.
When I finally got the admit call from Stanford MSx, I was very relieved. I was ready to move to the next phase of this journey.
In reflection, I think having well-defined short-term and long-term plans, communicating clearly on how Stanford MSx program would help me fulfil my career aspirations, and utilizing all the opportunities in the application to illustrate my strengths, especially my leadership potential, to the adcom helped me be a competitive candidate.
In hindsight, a couple of things that would have been helpful in being better prepared for the application process are journaling, especially regarding impactful events in life, and practicing writing. This is something that I hope to include more of in my life going forward starting with this blog post!
Working with Abhinav and MCB team not only helped me get into my dream program, but also helped me prepare to have a good head start to the program. I am glad to have worked with them for my MBA applications.
I am excited about going to the Stanford and cannot wait to get out there to join the fight against global warming.
As Srikar mentions, MBA Crystal Ball has extensive experience with Sloan Fellows applications. Reach out if you’re looking for admissions consulting for any (or all) of them. Our email: info [at] mbacrystalball [dot] com
Also read:
– How I got into MIT Sloan Fellows with scholarship
– How I got into LBS Sloan Masters in Leadership and Strategy
– How I got into Stanford MSx: One year MBA at GSB
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