Summary: Chicago Booth MBA program

If you’re ambitious about applying to University of Chicago Booth’s MBA program, then your dream is to wake up in the morning to something like this:

Get out of bed and see that you have received an offer from the top MBA program in the world.

Keep reading if you aspire to get into Booth and hope to receive an email similar to the one above.

This post will discuss everything you need to apply, such as GPA, GMAT/GRE, Essays, letters of recommendation, and much more.

Additionally, this post will include valuable information on letters of recommendation, scholarships, loans, and other specific information that you need to make it to Booth.

So why should you care to read what I write?

I have mentored over 1,000 applicants (since 2012) who dreamed of making it into the top global business schools. So, I have seen everything.

Additionally, I have tutored over 15,000 individuals for the GMAT and the GREs, which are one of the pre-requisites to get into the top MBA programs.

What are Chicago Booth’s MBA admission requirements?

Booth (The Business School of the University of Chicago) considers many factors while selecting candidates for their MBA program.

These mainly include intellectual curiosity, sense of personal direction and leadership experience.

Booth evaluates these traits by looking at the following aspects of your application:

• Admission Essays
• Resume
• Letters of recommendation
• Response to Interview questions

Before you go on further, here are some of the most salient features of the Booth MBA program.

• Booth Business school is located in Chicago, Illinois, and ranks 1st in the top MBA programs list.
• The average 2-year cost of attending Booth MBA is $230,000.
• Numerous scholarships and fellowships are available to Chicago’s MBA students.
• Booth MBA ranks as one of the top MBAs for full-time job offers with 96.4% graduates getting a job within 3 months of graduation.
• Booth MBA graduates have a starting average salary between $150,000 and $178,000.
• The median starting salary of Booth MBA graduates is $170,000.
• The median signing bonus after booth is $35,000.
• Companies hired 4 or more Booth MBA students, including Amazon, Goldman Sachs, Google, McKinsey & Co, Morgan Stanley, Pepsico, The Boston Consulting Group

Booth Business school’s MBA program has an acceptance rate of 12%. Nearly 5,000 applicants apply to their MBA program every year, and around 600 get selected. 

To get an idea of the competition, here are the acceptance rates of a few of the top MBA programs.

Acceptance rates give you an idea about how tough it is to get in.

In the case of the Chicago’s MBA program, only 1 in 8 applicants makes it, which makes Booth extremely selective.

Booth is one of the most prestigious business schools in the world. This is not just because of its high ranking but also due to its 50,000+ Alumni that are mainly working in dominant positions.

Every applicant admitted to Booth’s MBA program must pass through a 30-60 minute interview with an admissions team member, alumni or current MBA student.

Although Booth doesn’t share any official stats, nearly 30% (1,500) of all applicants are called in for the interview.

If you get called for an interview, you have a 35-40% chance of getting into the MBA program.

But before the interview, you must meet Booth’s strict admissions requirements based on multiple factors. Booth mainly looks at the following things in an applicant:

• Academic preparedness, Intellectual curiosity, and Communication skills, which can be demonstrated as follows:

1. GPA, GMAT, or GRE
2. Academic recognition such as scholarships or certifications
3. An interest in current affairs and in areas outside of your immediate environment
4. Willingness to engage in debate or to ask questions.

• Leadership, Teamwork, Philanthropy. This can be exhibited through:

1. Responses to application and Interview questions
2. Letters of recommendation
3. A history of long-term involvement in activities and community service
4. Contributions of personal time to an organization.

• A track record of success, Resourcefulness, and Time-management skills. These can be demonstrated through:

1. Resume
2. Professional recognition or certifications
3. Responses to application questions
4. Communication skills demonstrated in the interview

There is no guarantee that you will make it even if you checkmark on all the above factors. But, if you don’t tick mark on most of the above factors, your chances of getting in are almost none. (Unless you are Elon Musk or Mark Zuckerberg, lol)

Booth’s MBA GPA Requirements

For Booth, there is no minimum GPA to apply. However, the average GPA of admitted applicants at Booth MBA is 3.54 and the range of GPA is 2.7 to 4.

This means that Booth wants the top of the cream. Nonetheless, your undergraduate majors and university ranking matter as well.

For instance, someone from MIT engineering with a GPA of 3.3 is far academically superior to someone, let’s say, with a 4.0 in an arts degree from Florida Memorial University. (Not to say the Florida Memorial University is wrong, lol)

Since MBA curriculum these days is highly data-driven, you must show your analytical ability with some STEM-based undergrad courses and a high quantitative score on standardized tests.

All things aside, what to do if your GPA is low since it is impossible to change your GPA now. Some applicants think that doing a master’s with a better GPA can help you apply. Some say that one should enroll in some short courses and improve your GPA. Don’t do either of the two. Instead, if your GPA is below 3.5, focus on your GMAT/GRE to compensate.

GMAT & GRE requirements at Booth MBA

First, Booth has no preference for GMAT over GRE or GRE over GMAT. Therefore, you can take either the GMAT or the GRE before the application deadline to complete your application. 80% of the admitted applicants have taken the GMAT and 20% have taken the GRE. However, this doesn’t mean that Booth prefers GMAT over GRE. It’s just that GMAT is a popular exam among MBA applicants.

Booth’s MBA Average GMAT score & Analysis

Booth has no cutoff GMAT score, but a high score is necessary.

Again, this score makes Booth Extremely Competitive for GMAT test scores.

Only 3% of the global GMAT test-takers score 740+ on the GMAT.

It usually takes 5-6 months of rigorous prep to score something above 700 on the GMAT. You may want to look at this post to get the best books to prepare for the GMAT. Or if you like to study online, then here is the best online GMAT prep course that is the most affordable.

Booth Business school also looks at the Integrated Reasoning (IR) and analytical writing (AWA) portion of the GMAT exam.

• Excellent Integrated reasoning (IR) score for Booth MBA is 6.5+ out of 8.
• A good GMAT AWA score for Booth MBA is 4.5+ out of 6.

Booth MBA GRE Score & Analysis

Booth has no cutoff GRE score, but a high score is necessary.

Again, this score makes Booth Extremely Competitive for GRE test scores.

Only 15% of the global GRE test-takers score 325+ on the GRE.

It usually takes 4-5 months of rigorous prep to score something above 325 on the GRE. You may want to look at this post to get the best books to prepare for the GRE. Or if you like to study online, then here is the best online GRE prep course that is the most affordable.

Here’s the breakdown of Booth’s MBA GRE scores by section:

Only 10% of all test-takers score a 162+ on GRE verbal.

20% of all test-takers score a 163+ on GRE quantitative.

Booth Business school also looks at the analytical writing (AWA) portion of the GRE.

A good GRE AWA score for Booth MBA is 4.5+ out of 6.

Should you take the GRE or GMAT for Booth MBA?

Booth states that they have no preference between GRE or GMAT. However, there are a few things that you should know.

• Booth’s average GRE score of 325 is much lower than their average GMAT score (732).
• A 325 on the GRE is equivalent to a 670 on the GMAT, a massive 62 point difference.
• 325 on the GRE corresponds to an 85 percentile, i.e., 15 percent of test-takers get this score.
• 730 on the GMAT corresponds to a 96 percentile, i.e., ONLY 4 percent of test-takers get this score.
• GRE is much easier overall than the GMAT. Math on the GMAT is much more complex, whereas Verbal on the GRE is slightly more challenging.

Therefore, since Booth has no preference between the two exams, you must take the GRE for Booth. You will easily be able to score a 325+ on the GRE than a 730+ on the GMAT. You will be able to prepare for the GRE in nearly half the time it would take you to prepare for the GMAT.

Multiple GMAT or GRE attempts

Multiple GMAT or GRE attempts are very common among Booth MBA applicants. This is understandable since the scores are so competitive that many applicants don’t get a top-notch score on the first attempt.

Therefore, I recommend consulting the best prep material to ace the GMAT or the GRE.

Booth MBA has no bias against someone who takes the GMAT or the GRE multiple times.

Multiple GRE or GMAT attempts can positively impact your Booth MBA application. It tells Booth’s admissions board that you are persistent and ambitious enough to work hard to improve every aspect of your application.

You could have taken the GMAT, let’s say seven times, and every time you failed to achieve a 700+. Then the 8th time, you decided to take the GRE, which is more accessible than the GMAT, and scored your desired score. This speaks volumes about your commitment and will significantly impact your application.

Also, note that Booth MBA does not super score your standardized test scores.

This means that you cannot send section-specific scores from different exam attempts. You can only send scores in their entirety from a given shot. For example, if you have scored higher on the verbal section on your first attempt and lower on your second, you cannot choose to send the higher verbal score to your school from the first take. Instead, you will only be able to send all the scores from whichever attempt you want to report to the school.

Work Experience

The average Pre-MBA work experience at Booth Business School is five years. 

The average age of an admitted MBA applicant is 28.

The ideal work experience for the MBA program at Booth is 4-5 years when filing your application. Below and above that, the odds of making it fall dramatically.

For most top MBA programs, 4-5 years is the perfect amount of work experience. According to the leading MBA forum poets and quants, this is so because five years is enough to make valuable contributions in the MBA class. In addition, these young professionals are much more adaptable and can mold into the rigorous MBA program.

The quality of work experience matters a lot in the case of Booth. Booth seeks individuals who have diverse backgrounds and professional maturity. You could have worked for five years in a role where you didn’t get a chance to develop your leadership skills. That work experience is futile for an MBA at Booth.

At Booth, you would see many people who previously worked at top consulting and financial firms. Nearly 50% of the Booth class comprises people from consulting and financial services backgrounds. In a consulting firm, you can develop maturity and rigorous professional skills in a very brief period.

Undergraduate major

Nearly 75% of the MBA class at Booth is composed of applicants from business, engineering, and economics background. Nearly two-thirds of the class come from a STEM background.

This shows that Booth prefers those with a STEM undergrad major.

Letters of recommendation

You need two letters of recommendation (LORs) to apply to Booth MBA. Booth prefers that at least one of those letters come from your current supervisor. The other letter can come from a previous supervisor, mentor, or someone who knows you well from volunteer/community service activities.

LORs are an essential part of your application since a great letter validates your credentials and what you say in your application. A great LOR is not generic saying things like ‘this person is talented and brilliant. Everything that your referee says must be backed by actual examples. Make sure that your recommender can talk about specific things about you. Here are some examples of good LORs that you can consult for your application.

The title and credentials of your recommender are as important as what they write. Therefore, try to get references from high achievers who professionally know you exceptionally well.

What is the importance of each part of your Booth MBA application?

Over years, we have interviewed top MBA admissions consultants and interviewed hundreds of Booth MBA students and asked them to weigh each component of the Booth MBA application. Here is what our studies concluded:

Quality of work experience (both professional and extra-curriculars) and good GMAT scores are the most important admissions factor at Booth. This is because the curriculum at Booth is extremely synergetic and quantitative centric. Over 50% of admitted applicants come from finance and consulting, and have worked in banks, private equity, and top management consulting companies. Booth immensely values collaboration and leadership in experience. Applicants who have a wide range of exposure and have developed professional maturity at an early stage have a huge edge in the application process.

A good GMAT score, and a good GPA make up almost 20% of the overall admission weight. This shows that academic and analytical aptitude is a significant factor that top MBA programs like Booth focus on.

Also, Booth gives a lot of weight to your community work. The reason is that Booth is highly synergetic. Nearly all the assignments are completed in teams. Hence, the skill to cooperate, adapt and collaborate are invaluable.

A surprising outcome of this data is that letter of recommendation is nearly as important as the application Essays. Booth also gives weight to LORs that come from accomplished referees. Ideally, if you get a letter from your direct supervisor who knows you well (and has a strong relationship with) and has an impressive title/profile will add a lot of value to your application.

What is an Ideal applicant profile for MBA at Booth?

So, admission decision to Booth MBA relies on many factors.

However, based on the data and past profiles of admitted applicants, the ideal profile for getting admitted to the Booth MBA program is as follows: 

To have the best shot of getting into Booth’s MBA program, you should aim for a 750+ on the GMAT or a 330+ on the GRE, with a 3.75 GPA or higher. You should have 5 years of work experience preferably in consulting or financial services. Having a track record of success in your community and volunteer work is a must.

If your profile is similar to this, your acceptance probability to Booth MBA will be a lot more than the standard 12%.

Do keep in mind that many top-notch applicants like these ideal applicants get rejected by Booth every year.

Female applicants have a huge advantage in the admissions process at Booth MBA. 

Booth does not share the number of female applicants to their MBA program, but far more male applicants than female applicants for the MBA program. And since nearly 42% of all admitted applicants are females, this puts female applicants at a considerable advantage in the application process at Booth MBA.

Application Requirements for Booth MBA

Booth’s MBA program requires an online application that comprises of the following:

Deadlines and Rounds: Go here.