Prof. Tayo Oyedeji Profile picture
Aug 27, 2019 15 tweets 3 min read Read on X
5 steps to gain admission to your perfect MBA program.

- A THREAD.
In 2009, I applied to Oxford and Cambridge MBA programs - got into both, chose Oxford, and graduated with an Oxford MBA a year later.

I will explicate the steps I took in hope that it would help the class of 2021 with their application packages.
Step 1. Evaluate your profile.

The key elements of your application profile are:

1. Quality of your undergrad degree (school and grade).
2. Your GMAT score.
3 Your essays.
4. Your age.
5. Your reference letters.
6. Your work experience.
7. Your extracurricular activities.
Step 1 (cont.)

1. Undergrad. Your GPA and the quality of your school matters. The GPA is probably more important. "I finished in the top 5 percentile of my class with GPA 3.9/4.0" works magic even if you went to Mount Kenya University.
1a. My undergrad profile was not great. 2:2 (3.2/5.0 GPA) so I crafted a story around my 4.0/4.0 (all As) PhD GPA and used my lack of resources at the undergrad level to explain why I was not a stellar undergrad student.

I will share my essays later.
Step 1 (cont.)

2. GMAT. For a top 20 school, you need a GMAT score around 90th percentile.

Try to score as highly as possible. My GMAT score was 92 percentile. It meant that I scored higher than 92 of every 100 people who took the test across the world.
3. Your essays.

I'll provide more details about this later. But the key is to sell a future picture that the school would want to be a part of.

An essay touting a future providing solar electricity across Africa is more compelling than a future banker,, for instance.
4. Your age.

Most people don't know this.

The very best schools hardly accept applicants older than 30. Other schools don't mind but you'll hardly see a 30+ student at the top 7 schools in the US.

Older applicants should consider lower ranked US schools or Europe.
5. Your reference letter.

This is important!

Don't trust anyone to write your reference letter. Create a draft or an outline highlighting your awesomeness and ask if the reference writer would consider following the outline for his/her letter.
6. Your work experience.

2 years at McKinsey is more valuable than 5 years at KPMG.

Brand name matters.

If you don't have a brand name experience. Tell a compelling story about the value of your work experience.

Stories matter.
7. Extracurricular activities.

Climbing Kilimanjaro is a winner. Volunteering at Clinton Foundation is magic. So is working on FGM and tutoring kids in poor neighborhoods.

Any activity that shows that you're not just a money-chasing vampire is good.
Wow. This is just step 1.

I'll stop here for now and continue with Step 2 tomorrow.
Homework.

If you're serious about applying,

1. Follow me to get the remaining steps.
2. Create a profile on "beat the GMAT" and "GMAT club" forums today.
3. Start preparing for the GMAT exam immediately.

I will share Step 2 tomorrow.

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More from @tayooye

May 22, 2023
10 Lessons from My 40s.

- A Thread

As I reflect on my journey through my 40s, I have compiled ten invaluable lessons that I believe hold value for individuals in their 20s, 30s, 40s, or even 50s.
1/10 Time Flies: Enjoy the Present Moment: One of the most important things I've realized in my forties is how quickly time passes. It's crucial to embrace each moment and make the most of it. Cherish the present because it's the only time that truly belongs to us.
2/10 Failure Leads to Growth: Mistakes and setbacks aren't the end of the road but stepping stones toward personal growth and improvement. Embrace failure as a valuable teacher, as it provides lessons that help you move forward on your journey.
Read 12 tweets
May 20, 2023
📌6 important ways to maximize the value you draw from your career.

- A THREAD
1/6 Don't allow loyalty to your current employer to stop you from considering better opportunities.

Remember, businesses prioritize their fiscal health. It's only fair for you to prioritize your career growth likewise.

Be open to change and progress.
2/6 🚀Embrace New Opportunities:

Don't shy away from a promising opportunity just because it means a smaller paycheck in the short term.

View your career as a strategic journey. Sometimes a pay cut can lead to new avenues, expanded networks, and unanticipated advancement.
Read 8 tweets
May 11, 2023
Life is a journey.

To navigate it successfully, we must understand the imperatives of each decade and fight to win one decade at a time.

Let's explore the adventures of the 20s, 30s, 40s, and 50s together.

- A THREAD
Your 20s: Explore and ponder.
- Try new things and embrace failure.
- Discover your passions and interests.
- Gain diverse experiences.
- Spread your wings and soar!
- Embrace the adventure.

This is your golden era of exploration. Try 1000 jobs or music or art or coding or...
Your 30s: Focus and Specialize
- Identify what brings you the most value.
- Hone your skills in that area
- Become exceptional at what you do
- Become a specialist at something

Focus on honing your craft, discovering what brings you the most value until it's a unique superpower.
Read 7 tweets
Dec 28, 2022
How to find the ONE THING that will change your life in 2023.

- A thread.
A new year is on the horizon and many of us will soon start making new year resolutions to improve several aspects of our lives.

For me: my new resolutions typically fail before the end of January. I will bet yours probably won't survive January too.

May I suggest another way?
Don't make several new year resolutions, MAKE ONE.

Choose ONE THING that will move you towards your desired future and devote the entire year towards achieving it.

We often don't need to make many changes to move forward.

The hard work is to find that ONE THING.
Read 8 tweets
Nov 23, 2022
The top question I ask people who are getting married is, "Will you enjoy life with him if he doesn't change at all?"

Why? Adults don't make significant changes.

Our values/virtues are mostly set by 25 so we remain fundamentally the same and only make a few cosmetic changes.
If your happiness is contingent on him/her making a few changes, please don't say "I do".

He/she probably won't change and you'll both be miserably married.
If I had a penny for every time a woman (and it's mostly women) tells me that she thought she could love him into changing, I would be a billionaire.

You can't love a grown man enough to change him!!!
Read 4 tweets
Oct 2, 2022
Him: How do I achieve my goals and ambitions? My parents are really poor and there is no one to help me move forward.

Me: One step at a time:
1. Start with research.
2. Decide on your strategy.
3. Set intermediate goals.
4. Create a vision board.
5. Outwork everyone.

THREAD 👇
Step 1. Start with research.

Find someone who has achieved something similar to your goals and ask:

1. What did they do?
2. How did they do it?
3. How did they start?

It's a lot easier to dream big when you know someone who has done it in the past.
Step 2. Decide on your strategy.

You need to create a broad (very broad) outline of a path to your dream.

So your plan is to become a software engineer.

1. What stack is currently in demand?
2. How can you learn it efficiently?
3. What project can you build quickly?

etc.
Read 7 tweets

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