MBA Program Deferral – To Defer Or Not To Defer
We are currently living in interesting times when history is being made, with business schools needing to reinvent themselves on an almost daily basis. ‘To defer or not to defer’ (credit: anonymous client) is the quandary that seems to be playing on the minds of admitted students and prospective applicants who aspire to enroll in an MBA program in 2021. We’ve seen a range of responses from business schools with respect to MBA program deferral, graduation dates, and the upcoming academic year starting this Fall. Without getting into the specifics of what each school is doing, today we will delve into a few interesting and innovative steps taken by some schools to give our readers a sense for the range of options.
INSEAD
In a webinar for admitted students held on Friday, April 24, INSEAD shared the possible outcomes for candidates scheduled to start their MBA program in August 2020. The best case scenario would be for the program to start as normal. The next-best option would be for the program to start virtually at the start, followed by in-person classes. And finally, the school has also shared the possibility of a delayed start date where classes start two months later. INSEAD has adopted a highly accommodating attitude wherein they’ve generally permitted applicants to defer to 21D, 22J or 22D, with their reasons. INSEAD has also permitted campus switch for admitted students and the current batch, if there are visa restrictions for particular countries. Most importantly, in most cases, scholarships will be deferred along with the deferral. This webinar was met with cheer from admitted students, with a couple of them sharing their perspective with Crack The MBA.
Aishik Dhar shared, “Given the current COVID-19 situation, many of the incoming students were apprehensive about how accommodating the school would be. But the options that they have given us show that INSEAD truly is a global school, unlike any other, while truly cares about its students and alumni. No other school till now has been this warm and caring towards its students. I am glad that I have chosen INSEAD and I would not give it up for any other MBA school in this world.”
Along similar lines, Akansha Singh stated, “Seeing the uncertain situation and the approach taken by many schools, a lot of us went in with low expectations, but INSEAD came forward and showed us exactly why alumni have such a strong bond with the school.”
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School has stated that it will consider allowing admitted students to defer their offer of admission as the world has changed significantly. The form to request a deferral will open on May 25 and close on June 1. Post June 1,deferral requests will only be considered on grounds of medical emergencies, military deployments, or joint Harvard degrees. While the school is permitting what is being touted as blanket deferrals to admitted students, there is a caveat to the deferral. The school has stated that, if many admitted students choose to defer, the deferrals may be spread over two years i.e. starting in 2021 or 2022. While the school will do its best to honor applicants’ preference of a one-year versus a two-year deferral, they cannot guarantee the same.
Kellogg
Kellogg has made the most drastic changes within MBA admissions and the school has undoubtedly been garnering significant attention due to its recently announced policies, such as waiving off the requirement of a GMAT / GRE for applicants applying in Round 3 and allowing appeals from rejected students from the previous rounds. However, since this post focuses on deferrals, we will focus on that here. Kellogg has pushed out the start date of its 1Y and MMM programs by about three weeks to July. If international students are unable to arrive on-campus in time due to visa considerations, they would be given the option to commence the program virtually. People unwilling to start virtually would have the option to push their application forward for re-consideration in R1 of the next cycle with the $250 application fee waived.
Speaking on the subject of deferrals, Nishant Dhanendra (Kellogg MMM 2022) opined, “I am very glad Kellogg did not announce a blanket deferral policy. By deferring, we would be postponing our response to a difficult situation. Business school is about learning from ambiguity. By offering deferrals due to COVID-19, schools are potentially offering students a gateway to run away from this learning. At the same time, I see where one-year MBA programs like INSEAD are coming from, as the risk for them is enhanced due to the shorter duration of the program.”
Wharton
Wharton has informed international students that if they are unable to commence the program, due to visa considerations, despite their best efforts, then they will be deferred to next year’s class. However, more notably, Wharton has permitted its Class of 2020 to stay for an additional semester i.e. the fifth semester. This could be especially useful for individuals who may have had their offers deferred by several months. Students staying on for the fifth semester would have a graduation date of December 2020.
Darden
Darden has been creative in its approach to the crisis and is managing the situation by offering a delayed start option for a limited portion of the incoming Class of 2022. This group of students would commence their First Year core classes in January 2021, take classes into summer 2021, before completing an abbreviated summer internship.
Many schools have stated that they will consider requests to defer on a case-by-case basis. This situation is rendered uncertain due to the health pandemic and closure of U.S. consulates in most countries globally at this point. There is speculation that visa processing for visas to the United States is expected to commence in mid-May and there would be an expedited pathway available for students applying for an F-1 visa. Given the situation, several admitted students and prospective applicants are left in a state of uncertainty. While the external factors cannot be controlled, students and prospective applicants could think about scenario building and specific actions they need to take, irrespective of the outcome due to external factors. Stay safe and healthy all!
