Haas School of Business – UC Berkeley

Haas is differentiated from other Top MBA programs in a few key ways. First, location: we’re in the heart of the most innovative space in business in the world right now, the San Francisco Bay Area. Our connections to and relationships with all the big tech companies, startups, venture capital, sustainability companies, and other innovators is a tremendous advantage for our students. Second, it’s our history and commitment to questioning the status quo, one of our key defining leadership principles – that shows up in our investment in entrepreneurship, in embedding that entrepreneurial spirit into everything we do. Third, it’s our class culture. We are one of the smallest top 10 programs, and that enables us to really build a hyper-collaborative, close-knit class. You’ll leave knowing everyone in your whole class, and you’ll graduate into an alumni community that’s extremely supportive. Further, perhaps the biggest differentiator is our alignment to the 4 defining principles at Haas: Questioning the Status Quo, Beyond Yourself, Students Always, and Confidence Without Attitude.

Our admissions process is quite similar to those of our peer institutions in order to streamline the application process for our applicants. Where we diverge is in three key areas.  Our essay questions lend themselves to responses that cover not only an applicant’s experiences but also their values.  We don’t utilize a standard letter or recommendation template as we prefer to prompt an applicant’s recommender to focus on specific leadership attributes. Lastly, our interview process allows applicants to select from several interview options including a pre-recorded option which allows applicants to schedule an interview that fits their own schedules.