Meeting Potential Fellow Johnson Student

On Saturday I had the pleasure of meeting a potential fellow Johnson student!  So my tutor, whom I'll never have to use again, emailed me saying that another one of his students had received an interview invite to Johnson (Cornell) and asked if he could forward my information on to him.  Of course I said yes... this was before I received my acceptance but after I completed my interview.

So we met at the Starbucks across from Le Cirque on Saturday.  My tutor said that the two of us would hit it off and THAT we did.  At least I think so lol.  It was very weird being on the other side of the table/process so to speak.  He thanked me for meeting with him and I was like "oh please no problem at all... i remember being on the other side of the table where I would be wanting to meet with people who had "beaten" the process!"

I found myself asking questions that had been asked to me just a couple weeks ago from random folks.  So why MBA?  Why Johnson? et. al.  What's funny is that any time you meet with a current student or admissions person... OUTSIDE OF AN INTERVIEW they may ask "So WHY MBA?" and then follow that up with "Oh I don't mean to put you on the spot."  LOL... I said the same thing, but I was genuinely curious.  Then again anyone who gets to the interview stage of things definitely has an answer for Why MBA and Why School X.  His answer showed me why he's not the typical candidate but would fit perfectly at Johnson.  He also spoke with a passion which is key.  I was interested in what he was saying even though I know nothing about the field.  I loooove talking to people who have a passion for something.  It's refreshing.

He's a very nice guy and I won't go into detail what we spoke about but we did speak for 2 hours.  I will say this though... when he emailed me to see if we could meet up I thought to myself "I should tell him to bring a notebook."  Then I thought, "No...  if he's serious he'll bring a notebook."  So that's the first thing I noticed when I sat down.  He had a notebook so I knew he was serious.  I'm really about putting the onus on the applicant.  I think it's a function of me doing so much research and work that I feel that if one is truly serious about an endeavor they'll take the necessary actions to come out on top.

What was interesting is that this applicant and I have very similar stories and MO's.  So now I wonder if this is the common thread that Johnson students have.  It was very warming to just be able to be bond over similarities in our MO's even though other people don't understand them.  His personality was very warm and as I think about all of my other friends who have been accepted to Johnson I see that we're all very similar in that regard.  Warm...inviting...welcoming... accomodating...  I definitely see a common thread between current students and students who have been accepted.  I think THIS is what the admissions committee is looking for when they interview a prospective.

There may be some things in one's candidacy that they're also looking to dive deeper into but for the most part I think they're looking to make sure you're not a crazy haha.  This prospective student is definitely NOT crazy and I hope he rocks his interview!  I'm actually nervous for him because I want him to be a potential classmate!  I hope all of the information I was able to give him will be useful, although I think it will.

BEST OF LUCK BUD!  remember to text me when you get out of the interview.  I want to know how it went.

PS - My Johnson School Binder Comes Tomorrow!!!  Hey!  it's the little things people lol.. the little things....