Leveraging MBA Diversity Events

I’m heading to Indianapolis for the National Black MBA Association Conference tomorrow (let me know if you will be there!) It reminded me that business schools are hosting their diversity events – day or weekend events – to expose prospective women and minority MBA candidates to their MBA programs. When I was in admissions, I love these events because I had a captive audience – they were mine for two days I could deliver an experience that educated participants about my MBA program and also better prepared them to actually get in AND we could have fun. Shout out to the 20 participants that had a 2AM fast food “conclave” back in fall 2004 in New Haven, CT. #Nostalgia

If you are heading to diversity events in the coming weeks, here are a few suggestions.

Be prepared, inquisitive and engaged

Diversity events provide intimate settings to learn about the MBA program, build relationships and strengthen your candidacy. Prepare yourself for success by understanding the format of the event, having questions, and enabling yourself to be fully present (take care of your outside obligations, like work, in advance). Take in everything the school is telling you with enthusiasm (you can discard it later, but you want all of the knowledge and insight that you can amass to use later in your school selection and applications).

Be broad in your relationship management

We naturally gravitate to certain people. Some of us stick with people that look like us. Others seek out the people in charge. Get out of your comfort zone and engage with people that you wouldn’t normally. This is great practice, but more importantly will give you a better view of the diversity that you will experience in an MBA programs. Get to know admissions officers and students, and don’t forget about your fellow applicants (they are in the same boat as you so share the paddle and you can all move forward).

Be appreciative and respectful

For some of you, you are overwhelmed by the outreach and support of MBA programs so you ooze appreciation and respect for the opportunity. I wish I didn’t have to remind other candidates to be grateful (I know you’re grown), but exclusivity breeds entitlement which leads to expectation. When groups are singled out as special, that can lead to a feeling that they are entitled to such treatment and thus, they don’t value it as a privilege, but deem it as a right. MBA programs do a tremendous amount of outreach to women and minorities, because we are under-represented in their schools. We have come to expect that schools should be courting us to their MBA programs (and in my opinion, they should), but we can never lose sight of the fact that while we will help diversify their MBA programs, they will help us achieve our individual and collective goals.