The application essay has been around for decades. Now, the Tippie MBA is pioneering a new concept in MBA applications by introducing the application “Tweet.”
The Tippie Full-time MBA program will award one full-tuition award package to the applicant who most creatively answers an essay question in “Tweet” form — meaning they’re responding in 140 characters or less.
Why are we incorporating Tweets into our application? Social media is a powerful tool for business communication, and is driving change in today’s business world. We see it as a natural way to set yourself apart as an MBA applicant.
We’re confident our applicants will come up with clever and creative answers to the following ‘essay’ question: “What makes you an exceptional Tippie Full-time MBA candidate and future MBA hire? Creativity encouraged!“
Feeling intimidated by the 140-character limit? You can go beyond the typical Tweet by connecting your Tweet to other social media such as blogs, video, Facebook, or a web page. (Hint: You can shorten your links through http://bitly.com/ to keep your tweet to 140 characters.)
Learn about why Tippie and when you’re ready to begin, see Get Started below. Our team is here to walk you through the process. I look forward to seeing your application!
07/01/11 — Update: Read the story on BusinessWeek’s B-schools blog
07/13/11 — Update: See video of Jodi Schafer on MSNBC talking about the Twitter Essay or read about it on USA Today
07/14/11 — Update: We have a new hashtag! You can use #TippieTweet to tag us in your posts about our Twitter application.
7/20/11 — Read about us on Yahoo
9/2/11 — Mentioned in Wall Street Journal and Financial Times
The Details
- Submit application before July 28, 2011 to be considered.
- Applicants will not be admitted to the program based solely on their Application Tweet. Applicants need to meet typical admissions criteria.
- Because of time constraints involved with obtaining a student visa for the fall semester, this is open only to U.S. residents or U.S. permanent residents.
- All applicants who submit a response will have their application fee waived.
- The candidate with the most inventive and creative submission will be awarded a full-tuition award package for Fall 2011. Tippie’s full-tuition award packages are valued at $37,240.
- The winner will be announced on August 4, 2011 on Facebook and Twitter. The chosen candidate will be notified by phone before the formal announcement is made.
- Email your current resume and “tweet” to us at tippiemba@uiowa.edu. Jodi or Lydia in recruiting/admissions will respond via email with next steps on completing an application.
Terms and Conditions:
- Because of time constraints involved with obtaining a student visa, this is open only to U.S. citizens and U.S. Permanent Residents.
- Applicants who have applied to the Tippie Full-time MBA program before June 22, 2011 are not eligible as they have been previously considered by the admissions committee for admission and financial awards.
- These terms and conditions are not exhaustive and the Tippie MBA reserves the right to address other contingencies as they occur.
Email/Phone:
- Lydia Fine, Associate Director, Recruiting & Admissions — 319-335-0892
- Jodi Schafer, Director of Admissions and Financial Aid — 319-335-0864
Connect with us on social media:
- @TippieMBAIowa on Twitter
- On Facebook: www.facebook.com/tippiemba
I just found out about this option. Is this for fall admission 2011? I’m very interested, but this fall would be difficult to swing as I am out of state.
Hi Sherry – Yes, this is for fall 11. Although this is a tight turn around we have had prospective students taking advantage of the opportunity. If you’d like to talk directly to discuss the possibility of moving forward, I can be reached at 319-335-0864.
It is an interesting idea! But I fear that it encourages something that serves a very limited purpose in business, and fosters a further inability to communicate at a basic human level. It seems to support what we keep hearing about these days, “The dumbing down” that universities are having to do to accommodate the average student’s abilities today.
Thanks for your comments, Richard. Keep in mind, the applicants still have to meet our academic criteria, submit a GMAT score, write one essay, and interview with the program. This is just another way to evaluate the candidates. Also, the ideal tweet will lead us to other social media sites where hopefully the candidate will show us more about themselves through video, a web page, blogs, etc. This will potentially further showcase their writing skills for evaluation.
Hi Lydia and Jodi,
I really am enamored by this idea !
We met for dinner at the Time Warner Center in Fall 2008, I am graduating from NYU Stern EMBA on July 30th.
I REALLY hope you will publish the winning Tweet ! The winner’s Tweet after finding out should be interesting too! The application MBA “Tweet” is a new form of writing ! I told MaryJane Boland and Janet at NYU EMBA of this, Mary Jane analogizes it to Haiku!
Great idea!
Best,
Dan
Thanks Dan! Congratulations on your EMBA!
I just read about this scholarship on Yahoo! Very clever! I don’t plan on applying for an MBA program until 2012. Hope you guys reprise then.
Best of luck to the candidates!
Walter
Coz im an exceptional individual who strives hard to get what I want when I want it whatever it takes
So sad it’s not open to non US resident.
Hi Maricel: We will most likely be doing something similar where international students can participate in 2012! More to come.
I’m currently in the healthcare field but am seriously considering venturing into getting a business degree. I would love to enter but I assume I’m far from meeting any qualifications.
If someone would direct me on how I can get started on the path to an MBA program, I’d greatly appreciate it. You may contact me by email here: admin@d3so.com
Thank you!
D3so, we’ll reach out via email.
I am sure you can grab lots of attention and visibility by tricking “prospective” students to tweet their way to a full-ride scholarship, but where is the real merit – why do people try several times to score above 720 on GMAT, and spend extra year in Bachelor’s program to increase their GPA that will give them a better chance to obtain a Full scholarship. Instead, I just need to spend one summer reading and practicing short form of conversation aka Tweeting. I am looking for a good school with strong MBA and Doctor’s Programs and I am sure you’ve got more than one full-scholarship – I’ll just pass this “tweeting opportunity”
No one MBA program is right for everyone. I hope you find what you’re looking for, Petar! Best of luck to you!
Hey, Lydia – Does my entry have to be in “TWEET” language? I mean, do you want SOCIAL discourse or BUSINESS language? Do I NEED a Twitter account? Is this 140 characters ALREADY???
Hi Mike: I’m responding for Lydia today. She is enjoying some vacation. It is fine for the tweet to be in tweet language. We expect the abbreviations and other tweet language given the character constraints. Good luck!
So as I understand it, I can have a link to a full bio/pics/video right from the tweet, right?
Yes, absolutely!
Hi,
I am interested for full time MBA starting in 2012. When does the application start. ?
Also how much time does the admission committee take to review an application?
Thanks very much in advance
Harsh
Harsh, you can apply for 2012 anytime after September 1st; we’ll begin returning decisions in December, but can return a sooner decision if it’s necessary for the applicant. The amount of time can vary depending on how long it takes to get all the official documents in hand. You can also email me — lydia-fine (at) uiowa (dot) edu — and I can answer your questions with more specificity there.
Thanks for your interest!
I thought this opportunity is for student from all over the world. Please if possible keep this in mind for next time. I was very much excited to tweet the answer that was moving in my mind.
Zulfikar, we are adding the Tweet to our application for the 2012 admissions cycle, so all applicants, both domestic and international, will have a chance to participate. We had to limit this opportunity only to domestic candidates because of the time constraints with obtaining a visa. Thanks for your interest!
Lydia/Jodi, just a note to let you know I made positive comments about this unique twist on an MBA application on my business blog at writespecialties.com. Hope you get a chance to read the post. Best of luck with the results, Bruce B.
Great post, Bruce. You’re right — it’s all about getting to the point quickly!
http://www.writespecialties.com/blog/mba-an-application-tweet-away/
Hey, This seems really a great idea. I am sure the competition would be very challenging and fun at the same time. Wish if I could participate in this contest as I am planning do my MBA. Unfortunately, the competition is not open to international candidates! Anyway, it’s great idea and I am sure the best will win.
Regards,
Rajeeb
India
Rajeeb,
We weren’t able to open it up to international candidates because of the time required to secure a visa. But for the Fall 2012 application cycle, all applicants will have the opportunity to use a Tweet in lieu of an essay question!
Check back next Friday, August 5th, when we announce the winner.
What a wonderful opportunity for someone! I wish I had come upon this blog post before August 4th!!
Doing an MBA is very importent in todays arena. But doing it from the best college is more important. Take your time, get experience and then opt for MBA it surely helps.
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