MBA Admissions Blog

For our international applicants, we realize that it is difficult to make the trip to Champaign-Urbana to campus and meet our students, faculty, and staff. Over the past several months, therefore, we have hosted a series of online information sessions where we talk about the unique opportunities available at Illinois as well as provide you with details on the admissions process at Illinois. I would like to post a series of recordings here for prospective students in case you have not had the opportunity to attend these sessions. Read More >>

If you are thinking of applying to Illinois, the first admissions deadline is next Tuesday, November 15th. See below for 5 reasons why the Illinois MBA may be the right program for you. Remember, applying early is usually to a student's advantage, as greater scholarship consideration is usually given at the beginning of a recruiting cycle. Read More >>

The Illinois Professional MBA allows working professionals to earn an Illinois MBA in only 26 months. The program offers a comprehensive curriculum, opportunities for international experiences and exposure to a world class alumni network at a fantastic value. With only 3 days remaining until the application deadline, here are the top 3 reasons to apply to the Illinois Professional MBA: Read More >>

Illinois MBA students and alumni had a lot to celebrate during Homecoming weekend. Read More >>

Illinois MBA Director of Admissions Brian Precious offers his thoughts on the difference between an excellent vs. an average MBA application. To view the video, please visit: http://vimeo.com/29373953 Read More >>

Greetings from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil! This is my last stop during a two-week recruiting tour that took me through four countries and five cities throughout South America, including Bogota, Colombia; Lima, Peru; Santiago, Chile; and Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It has been a great experience. The cities are in some of the most naturally beautiful places on earth, the food has been great, and the people have been extremely friendly! Read More >>

As a member of the Forte Foundation the ILLINOIS MBA will be attending Forte Forums in Los Angeles (9/13), San Francisco (9/14), Houston (9/15), New York City 9/19 & 9/20), Atlanta (9/26) and Chicago (9/29). This is a great opportunity for female MBA prospective students to learn more about the application process and network with top business schools. Read More >>

Whether continuing on from college or just heading back to the classroom, first year business school students need to be well prepared and have all of the tools necessary to take on the year ahead. As one of the top 40 MBA programs in country, Illinois MBA knows what it takes to be prepared and have compiled a list of Back to School items that will be needed for todays MBA student. Read More >>

We are proud to welcome a large, diverse and well-qualified class to campus this week. Read More >>

The Illinois MBA program is hosting the Second Annual Scholarship Case Competition on Friday, March 9, 2012. Prospective students who have completed their application to the Illinois MBA full-time program are eligible to participate in the event. The winner of the Scholarship Case Competition will receive a full scholarship to Illinois! Read More >>

The Illinois MBA Admissions team is looking forward to meeting you this fall. From Los Angeles to Lima and all points in between, we are on the lookout for top students. Learn more about where we will be and how to meet up with us. Read More >>

The ILLINOIS MBA will be attending the Kaplan Road to Business School in Dallas (8/7), Chicago (8/9), Seattle (8/11), San Francisco (8/13), Los Angeles (8/14), Washington DC (8/18), and New York (8/20). Explore 30 top business schools, through an open networking session, application advice from an admissions panel, and breakout sessions. Read More >>

Want to learn more about the Professional MBA for working professionals at ILLINOIS? Join one of our upcoming information sessions in August! Register at http://go.illinois.edu/pmbaevents Can't make it to an information session? Check out our virtual information sessions on our events page. Read More >>

If you have already decided to come to Illinois in the fall, you may be wondering what you can do over the summer to prepare for what will be a challenging yet rewarding adventure. This blog contains some tips to help you hit the ground running. Read More >>

If you are thinking about earning an MBA in the fall, there is still time to apply to Illinois. Our final admissions deadline for domestic students is May 1st, and scholarships are still available for qualified applicants. Read More >>

Associate Dean Stig Lanesskog and several Illinois MBA students are spending their spring break in Brazil. Here is a quick recap of their adventure so far... Read More >>

An MBA is not just about the classes you take to earn a degree. Its about the experience; the people you add to your personal and professional network, the opportunities you have to learn and grow and the resources at your disposal to elevate your career after graduation. That is why it is important to find the right program for you. While cost, rankings and location factor into the decision, one of the most important, and sometimes overlooked criteria is the culture of the program. Read More >>

We are excited to announce the Illinois MBA has moved up 5 spaces in the 2011 US News & World Report Best Business School Ranking. The Illinois MBA program is currently ranked #37, up from #42 last year. Read More >>

Ten aspiring MBA students recently took on the challenge of competing in the University of Illinois' first-ever MBA Scholarship Case Competition. Three students walked away with scholarship offers in hand, but all of them left with some important experience under their belts--experience in critical thinking, structured problem solving, and effective communication. Read More >>

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know we try to write about exciting events on campus, the accomplishments of our students as well as some admissions tips and differentiators of our program. We would also like to hear from you! Read More >>

The First Annual MBA Night, on Thursday January 27th, will be an opportunity for you to meet informally with alumni of MBA programs. The event runs from 6:30-8:00 p.m. The ILLINOIS MBA will be participating in Chicago at the District Bar (170 West Ontario Street), St. Louis at the Clayton Plaza Grill at The Crown Plaza Hotel (7750 Carondelet Avenue) & Los Angeles Irvine at Caf Tu Tu Tango (The Block at Orange, 20 City Boulevard West). Youll get a feel for different programs, get your questions answered, and start building what business school is known for a strong network with whom you can have a great time. To learn more and register, visit http://www.jotform.com/form/3351956505. Read More >>

Twenty-two Illinois MBA full-time and Professional (part-time) students are on a week long study abroad trip at Freie University (FU) in Berlin, Germany. Berlin is the capital of Germany and has a population of 3.4 million making it Germanys largest city. Berlin is a very culturally diverse country and is one of the worlds largest economic powers. Our program kicked off Sunday evening with a welcome dinner at Spreestern, a traditional German restaurant. Students in FU's master in management and marketing program made us feel welcome and the students had a great time getting to know each other. Read More >>

One of the goals of the Illinois MBA program is to provide opportunities for students to learn first-hand about doing business in other countries. Over winter break, 16 Illinois MBA students traveled to Hyderabad, India to study and experience Indian business culture. Below is a recap of our adventure. Read More >>

December is a great month at Illinois! As our students are completing their class work and studying for finals, our admissions team is busy reviewing the first round of applications for the class of 2013. While we've received many applications so far, we know the majority of students are still working to compile their achievements. Below are some tips from our admissions team on best practices for applying to business school. These simple tips can help differentiate an excellent application from a good one. Read More >>

It's a busy time of the year at the Illinois MBA. While the students are finishing up their semester projects, the admissions team has hit the road in search of the best students from around the world. Read More >>

On Saturday, students and alumni from the full-time, part-time, executive, and Warsaw-Illinois executive MBA programs gathered for a tailgate before the Illinois-Purdue game. The event was a great opportunity for students in the Warsaw program to interact with their counterparts in Champaign. Read More >>

The Illinois MBA Scholarship Case Competition will be a great opportunity for prospective students to practice the skills that will allow them to be successful in a top MBA program and beyond. In addition, participants have the opportunity to compete for a full scholarship to the Illinois MBA program. Read More >>

Fall is an exciting time of the year at the University of Illinois. As temperatures cool off, the activites on campus really start to heat up. At the Illinois MBA, our students are hard at work, and our admissions team is already working to recruit the Class of 2013. Read More >>

Last week, Associate Dean Stig Lanesskog served as a moderator at a Corporate and Social Responsibility conference in New York. Learn more about the conference and his thoughts on the importance of incorporating CSR into the MBA curriculum. Read More >>

This week, Ben Moreland and Brian Precious from the Illinois MBA admissions team traveled to Brazil to meet with prospective students and MBA alumni in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janerio. Read More >>

If you are just starting to research MBA programs, it may be hard to imagine interviewing for your first post-MBA job. However, prospective MBA students should be thinking about the skills and experiences they would like to be able to convey to employers from day one. That is why we offer students a flexible curriculum. But what does this really mean? Read More >>

Last night the MBA hosted our annual Back to School Picnic. MBA1s (first-years), MBA2s (second-years), and Professional MBA students (part-time) came out to Hessel Park for a fun event. The highlight of the evening was the tug-of-war between the MBA1s and the MBA2s. This year the MBA1s were victorious in the female and male competition. Read More >>

The students are in class today after a very busy orientation week. Last Thursday, the MBA1s (first-year MBAs) took a charter bus to downtown Chicago. The day started off with students breaking up into groups depending on their intended area of study and visiting associated companies. The marketing students went to Google, the corporate finance students went to Boeing, the human resources students went to Procter & Gamble, and the students interested in consulting went to Gallup. The day closed with a beautiful sunset cruise on Lake Michigan departing from Navy Pier, which everyone enjoyed. MBA1s had the opportunity to get to know Chicago-based alumni on the cruise. Read More >>

MBA 1's are already making a difference in the Urbana-Champaign community. Read More >>

Yesterday the ILLINOIS MBA Class of 2010 kicked off their orientation week. The staff, faculty, MBA2s (second-years) at ILLINOIS are thrilled to welcome this amazing class to campus. The day began with all the MBA1s (first years) meeting in at select coffee houses around campus. MBA2s escorted groups of MBA1s to the Business Instructional Facility, where the 103 students had breakfast (some for the second time) and mingled. Although many students met Sunday night at the MBA Association event at Firehaus (a popular campus bar), this was the first time the entire class was together. Read More >>

It's been a busy summer at the ILLINOIS MBA. We are getting ready to welcome new classes to both our full-time program in August and our Professional (part-time) program in January. In the meantime, we're excited to announce two changes to our admissions policies that may be of itnerest to those considering an MBA from ILLINOIS. Read More >>

Illinois MBA Admissions and Illinois MBA Alumni will be attending the Kaplan Road to Business School in New York, Boston, Washington D.C. and Chicago. This is a free event and a great way to learn more about top business schools. Read More >>