By setting a new record in Investment Banking offers, Chicago Booth is a favorite for Finance candidates. To ensure that the application pool is not typecast to candidates with strong academic performance, the Booth admissions team validates the applicant's contributions to non-profits and measures their continued performance in roles outside their profession.
In this application breakdown of the Chicago Booth MBA program, we cover:
- Deadlines
- Personal
- Chicago Booth & You
- Family
- Academics
- Employment
- Recommendations
- Essays
- Activities
- Test Scores
- Additional Information
Deadlines
Chicago Booth MBA Application is accepted in three rounds – September, January and April.
| Rounds | Deadline | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| Round 1 | Sep 21 , 2023 | Nov 30, 2023 |
| Round 2 | Jan 4, 2024 | Mar 21, 2024 |
| Round 3 | Apr 4, 2024 | May 23, 2024 |
Personal
The personal address captures the typical information: Name, Address, Email Address, Telephone Number, Biographical Information, and Citizenship Information.
Applicants can choose to offer consent to sharing their personal information according to Booth's Privacy Notice.
The applicant must also fill the Conduct Information declaring the absence of misdemeanor, felony, or other crimes. Applicants can choose to answer No if the conviction has been overturned, pardoned, annulled, or sealed.
The final question is an optional sub-section asking about Gender Identity where the applicant can choose their Gender, preferred pronoun and confirm their identity as LGBTQ.
Chicago Booth & You
Academic Concentrations: Applicants have the option to choose up to 2 from 13 academic concentrations:
1) Accounting
2) Analytic Finance
3) Behavioral Science
4) Business Analytics
5) Econometrics & Statistics
6) Economics
7) Entrepreneurship
8) Finance
9) General Management
10) International Business
11) Marketing Management
12) Operations Management
13) Strategic Management
The academic concentrations should be relevant to your immediate post-MBA goal and, in rare cases (if you choose Entrepreneurship), to your long-term goals as well.
Goals: Applicants must cite their immediate post-MBA career goals and long-term post-MBA career goal in 250-characters (40 to 60 words).
Post-MBA Industry: Applicants must choose their intended post-MBA industry from Accounting, Advertising/Marketing/Communications, Aerospace/Transportation, Agribusiness, Arts/Media/Entertainment, Commercial Banking, Computer-Related Services, Construction, Consulting, Consumer Products, Diversified Financial Services, e-commerce/Internet, Education, Energy/Oil/Utilities, Food Service/Lodging/Leisure, Government, Healthcare, Insurance, Investment Banking/Brokerage, Investment Management/Research, Law, Manufacturing, Miscellaneous Services, Mutual/Hedge Fund, Non-Profit, Other Industry, Pharmaceutical/Biotechnology, Private Equity, Real Estate, Retail, Sports/Recreation, Technology – Hardware, Technology – Software, Telecommunications, and Venture Capital.
Post-MBA Function: After choosing their post-MBA industry, applicants must then shortlist their post-MBA function from Accounting, Advertising/Communications, Brand/Product Management, Business Development, Commercial Banking/Lending, Company Finance, Consulting, Customer Relations Mgmt, Education (Administration), Education (Teaching), Engineering, Entrepreneurial/Self-employed, General Management, Healthcare, Human Resources, Information Systems/Technology, Insurance, Investment Banking, Investment Mgmt/Research, Law, Marketing, Non-profit Administration, Operations/Production, Other, Private Client Services, Project Management, Real Estate, Research, Risk Management, Sales and Trading, Strategic Planning, or
Venture Capital/Private Equity.
Previous Applicants
There is a dedicated section for Previous applicants where applicants are asked if they had previously applied and whether they are a graduate of the Chicago Booth Summer Business Scholar Program or/and a University of Chicago Dougan Scholar.
Other Details
The other details specifically ask if the applicant has attended any Booth events. If yes, they must choose the type of event (Webinar/Admission-hosted Event/student-hosted event, alumni-hosted event/campus visit/booth live event, or other). Applicants must also choose the primary source of information about the full-time MBA program.
Scholarship and Mentorship
Booth clearly values collaboration with select non-profits and career assistance services as they ask whether the applicant is a member of the following organizations:
• Forté MBA Launch program
• Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Scholarship
• JumpStart Advisory Group
• Management Leadership for Tomorrow fellows
• Posse Foundation
• Prospanica
• QuestBridge
• Riordan Alumni Network
• Robert Toigo Foundation
• ROMBA
• Service to School
Family
The family section is straightforward, with the option to enter details of the family member, including parents, spouse, partners, and relatives associated with Chicago Booth, UChicago Law, or the University of Chicago's colleges. The applicant must also furnish details of the applicant's marital status. Space is also provided to enter the details of children, including their ages. The section also asks if the applicant was the first in the immediate family to attend college.
Academics
Transcript: Chicago Booth considers a copy of the transcript as essential to evaluate the application. Therefore, it is important that applicants scan both sides of the transcript and upload it in the section with the degree name and the year the degree was conferred clearly indicated in the transcript. For those who received degrees in a non-English language, a translated notarized version would be sufficient. It is not essential to scan the transcript of non-degree programs (exchange, summer internships, or short courses) if the grades/score are clearly indicated in the transcript. However, applicants must list them as separate entries under the Awards and Honors Sections.
Do not mail official transcripts to the admissions office. They are not accepted before admissions.
Employment
Organization Name: The employment section starts with a mandatory requirement to add employer details that cover name, job title, country state, telephone, start date, end date, starting compensation (converted to USD), starting bonus (converted to USD), ending compensation (converted to USD).
Applicants are also required to choose industry, function, and number of direct/indirect reports. For applicants with no team leading experience, enter 0 (zero). The employer section ends with the Job Description. Ensure that you limit jargon and capture all your responsibilities regardless of the duration of each project for that role. Enter different entries for the same employer depending on the role.
Professional Information
Months of Experience: The applicant must mention the months of full-time experience, excluding internships, volunteer work, and other summer internships in college/school.
Layoff/Gaps: The section asks applicant’s previous employment statuses, including layoffs, gap years, or terminations. On choosing yes, the applicant is provided with a space to explain the circumstances.
Employer Sponsorship: Next question asks about the sponsorship details received from the employer, including the name of the employer and the percent of the total cost.
Government-Sponsored Support: The section also requires applicants to mention govt. supported funds, excluding loans.
Military Experience: Booth values the unique service mindset that determines applicants to pursue a military career. Understanding the pay difference with applicants from other industries, the admissions team has waivered the $250 application fee for military veterans, regardless of the country. The applicant is required to mention the country of service.
University of Chicago Employee: For university employees, it is not required to furnish salary details as part of the application. Although later, this information would be collected on admissions.
Professional Certifications: The admissions team asks if the person has the following license: Architect License, CAIA, CDP, CFA, CFP, CISA, CPA, CSP, DVM, EIT, FRM, Investment Banking: Series, Investment Banking: Series 24, Investment Banking: Series 63, Investment Banking: Series 7, JD, MD, PE, PHR, Pilot License, Project Management Professional (PMP), Real Estate License, RN, Security Clearance and Others.
Professional Awards: The section also includes a space to list professional awards
Resume: Unlike other top schools that have strict guidelines on maintaining the 1-page length, Chicago Booth allows the resume length to be a maximum of 2 pages.
Recommendations
Applicants are required to add two recommenders – one a direct supervisor and another someone you have worked with, preferably through a volunteering project or a professional club. If the direct supervisor cannot be persuaded/approached to write the letter, you must offer an explanation as to why it is the case in the space provided.
While inviting the supervisor, applicants must enter the Name, Organization Name, Position/Title, Industry, Phone Number, and Relationship in the invite form. Although the school allows entering a public email address (Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo, etc.), the school prefers a corporate email id.
The recommender must enter their address, email address, relationship with the applicant, the timeframe they know the applicant, details of their MBA degree (if booth or otherwise), and their affiliation with the University of Chicago, if any.
The skill assessment sub-section is a rating matrix where the recommender must rate the applicant on five grades - Unable to Access, Area of Concern, Opportunity for Development, Solid/Meets Expectations, and Strength/Exceeds Expectations.
The traits that are assessed include:
• Ability to adapt to change
• Self-awareness
• Demonstration of empathy for others
• Maturity
• Openness to feedback and constructive criticism
• Interpersonal skills (with colleagues/subordinates)
• Interpersonal skills (with superiors/executives)
• Confidence
• Initiative/Self-Motivation
• Collaboration/Teamwork
• Critical Thinking Skills
• Intellectual Curiosity
• Problem Solving Skills
Peer Comparison: In addition to the trait assessment, there is a Peer Comparison sub-section that requires supervisors to assess the applicant as Best in Career, Truly Exceptional, Outstanding, Very Good, Average, Below Average, and Unable to Access.
The recommendation letter questions include two questions:
Q) How do the applicant's performance, potential, background, or personal qualities compare to those of other well-qualified candidates in similar roles? Please provide specific examples.
Q) Please describe the most important piece of constructive feedback you have given the applicant. Please detail the circumstances and the applicant's response.
Essays
Chicago Booth has two mandatory essays with both benchmarked at a minimum of 250 words. One is about post-MBA goals and the second is about the applicant’s experience outside of work.
Essay 1: How will the Booth MBA help you achieve your immediate and long-term post-MBA career goals? (250-word minimum)
Essay 2: An MBA is as much about personal growth as it is about professional development. In addition to sharing your experience and goals in terms of career, we’d like to learn more about you outside of the office. Use this opportunity to tell us something about who you are... (250-word minimum)
For Samples and approaches, Download F1GMAT’s Chicago Booth MBA Essay Guide. And for help from our Founding Consultant – Atul Jose, subscribe to the Essay Review Service. You can connect with Atul by adding him through LinkedIn.
Activities
Chicago Booth is known to value extra-curricular involvement spread across 80 student groups.
The section requires that the applicant add Organization Name, Role, Start/End Date, Description, Activity Type, Frequency (hours/year), Country, City, and State for each engagement.
Test Scores
Applicants are not required to submit the original test score, but it is mandatory to submit either the GMAT or GRE score along with a proficiency in English test (Duolingo English Test, GMAT, GRE, IELTS, PTE, SAT, and TOEFL) if the medium of communication is not English. The applicant is also required to enter the number of times they have taken the GMAT/GRE test.
There is also an option to enter an exempt status for English proficiency if the person is a citizen of an English-speaking country, currently attending or attended an institution where the medium of communication was English, or the applicant is a US Permanent resident.
Additional Information
The narrative that you share in the additional information is crucial. 300 words are sufficient to capture academic weaknesses, gaps in employment, or other developments resulting from unforeseen circumstances.
The narrative creation is part of our Essay Review Service. You can subscribe here.
Acknowledgments and Review
The applicant must acknowledge that the information shared is authentic and also offer permission for the admission team/alumni to contact or share information (email) for further communication (marketing or otherwise).
Review the application and submit it.
If you need help with editing the answers, Subscribe to F1GMAT’s Essay Review Service (1 School) (Unlimited Essays and Questions)
Related Services
• F1GMAT’s Essay Review Service (Booth) (Unlimited Essays and Questions)
• F1GMAT’s Resume Editing Service (Included if you subscribe to F1GMAT’s Essay Review Service)
• F1GMAT’s Career Planning Service (Choose your post-MBA goals and target schools)
Related Download
• F1GMAT’s Chicago Booth MBA Essay Guide
Reference
• Chicago Booth MBA Application
