The mbaMission Podcast

mbaMission
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Every Tuesday, The mbaMission Podcast delivers expert, unfiltered insights into the world of elite business school admissions. Hosted by Senior Admissions Consultant Harold Simansky alongside mbaMission Founder Jeremy Shinewald, the show strips away the guesswork of applying to top-tier MBA programs. Through candid conversations, timely market updates, and exclusive interviews with top admissions directors and industry insiders, Harold and the team break down every piece of the application mosaic—from essay drafting and resume optimization to interview preparation and post-MBA career mapping. Whether you are a traditional candidate aiming to differentiate yourself or a unique applicant navigating the process for the first time, The mbaMission Podcast is your definitive, go-to resource for actionable strategies, data-backed advice, and a behind-the-scenes look at what it truly takes to get accepted to your dream school. 

  1. 3d ago ·  Video

    What Duke Fuqua Looks for in MBA Applicants When Building “Team Fuqua” | Ep 114

    Send us your admissions questions! What does Duke Fuqua’s admissions team want candidates to understand before they start working on their application to the school’s MBA program? In this episode of The mbaMission Podcast, mbaMission Senior Consultant Harold Simansky and Founder Jeremy Shinewald speak with Shari Hubert, associate dean of admissions at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, about the MBA program’s collaborative philosophy, distinctive essay prompts, and behind-the-scenes admissions process. Shari explains that rather than focusing on the simple notion of “fit,” Fuqua looks for applicants who will thrive in the school’s community because of their intellectual curiosity, resilience, self-awareness, and willingness to work with others. The conversation digs into Fuqua’s well-known “25 Random Facts” essay and why Shari believes that it is especially resistant to the use of AI. She explains that the goal of the distinctive prompt is to make applicants more knowable, which makes the prompt hard to game: AI can help with clarity, but it cannot identify someone’s fundamental personal experiences or their unique voice. She reminds applicants that no one can tell their story better than they can and that Fuqua’s admissions team can recognize when essays and interview responses seem overly polished or inauthentic.  For candidates trying to understand how a top MBA program weighs its applicants’ academics, character, judgment, and community-minded leadership, this episode offers a clear look at what Fuqua values and how you can present yourself to its admissions committee with more confidence and authenticity. 00:00 What Fuqua Means by Thriving in Its Community 06:15 How Fuqua Admissions Functions as a Mini Business 07:37 What Applicants Misunderstand About MBA Admissions 11:52 The Qualities Fuqua Looks for in Its Candidates 12:06 What Kind of Applicants Thrive in the Fuqua Community 14:54 Why Fuqua’s “25 Random Facts” Essay Is So Valuable 19:40 Highlighting “How” Rather Than “What” in Your Fuqua Essays  23:09 How to Build Your Understanding of the Fuqua MBA Program 25:45 The Fuqua Admissions Committee’s Evaluation Process 28:37 Proving Your Readiness for the Fuqua Curriculum 30:55 The Concept of “Durable Skills” 33:42 Why (and How) You Should Prepare Your Fuqua Recommenders Book your FREE 30-minute MBA admissions consultation with Harold or another one of our experienced MBA admissions consultants by filling out this form. Learn more about onTrack by mbaMission, our innovative, on-demand MBA application platform, and take our two-minute questionnaire to receive your customized learning path.   ‼️Use code MBAMPOD for 30% off any onTrack subscription‼️ Contact Us: info@mbamission.com Follow Us: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

    What Duke Fuqua Looks for in MBA Applicants When Building “Team Fuqua” | Ep 114

  2. Jul 28 ·  Video

    Is an MBA Worth is in 2026 and Beyond? | Ep 113

    Send us your admissions questions! Is an MBA still worth the investment in 2026? What about in the years ahead? In this episode of The mbaMission Podcast, mbaMission Senior Consultant Harold Simansky, Founder Jeremy Shinewald, and Managing Director Gavriella Semaya discuss the MBA’s return on investment, AI, hiring headlines, scholarship opportunities, and the long-term value of business school. They explain why applicants should evaluate the expense of earning the degree through a broad lens that considers professional direction, leadership development, strategic thinking, workplace confidence, and the genesis of relationships that can shape one’s entire career. The conversation also addresses practical issues. The hosts explain how to use schools’ employment reports in the decision to pursue the degree and how to weigh the short-term costs against the long-term rewards. They also explore the importance of human leadership skills amid the ever-increasing prevalence of AI and how a softer application environment creates opportunity for strong candidates. For anyone wondering whether now is the right time to apply to business school, this episode offers a thoughtful framework for making that call with confidence. 00:00 Is an MBA Still Worth the Investment? 01:30 The Extended Career Value of Business School 05:13 The Human Skills AI Cannot Replace 07:41 Weighing the Overall Return on Investment 10:12 The Truth Behind the Hiring Headlines 13:02 Critical Thinking, Leadership, and the MBA Network 20:28 How a Softer MBA Application Season Creates Opportunity 22:04 Scholarships and the Decision to Enroll 24:00 Final Advice for Long-Term Thinkers Book your FREE 30-minute MBA admissions consultation with Harold or another one of our experienced MBA admissions consultants by filling out this form. Learn more about onTrack by mbaMission, our innovative, on-demand MBA application platform, and take our two-minute questionnaire to receive your customized learning path.   ‼️Use code MBAMPOD for 30% off any onTrack subscription‼️ Contact Us: info@mbamission.com Follow Us: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

    Is an MBA Worth is in 2026 and Beyond? | Ep 113

  3. Jul 21 ·  Video

    From Waitlist to Startup CEO: Clyde Anderson’s MIT Sloan Story | Ep 112

    Send us your admissions questions! What does starting a company during business school really demand beyond a strong idea? In this episode of The mbaMission Podcast, host Harold Simansky and Gatehouse Founder Liza Weale sit down with GrowthFactor CEO and MIT Sloan alumnus Clyde Anderson for a candid conversation about the Sloan experience, entrepreneurship, and school fit. Clyde explains how he moved from finance to business school, why Sloan became the right match after a surprising waitlist turn, and how a classroom insight became the seed of a company. The discussion covers Sloan’s analytical core, its culture of experimentation, the role of co-founders, and the practical resources that supported GrowthFactor, including startup workspace, entrepreneurship classes, faculty guidance, and MIT delta v. Clyde also describes why Sloan remains valuable for students who do not plan to launch a company, from consulting and finance paths to veterans, operators, and students pursuing less linear careers. For applicants considering MIT Sloan, this episode offers a useful reminder: fit comes from more than a school’s reputation. The strongest match often appears when your goals, your way of learning, and the community around you push you to become more fully yourself. Guest contact: Clyde Anderson, CEO of GrowthFactor clyde@growthfactor.ai https://www.growthfactor.ai/ 00:00 From Sloan Waitlist to Startup CEO 05:03 From a Waitlist Update to a Sloan Interview 09:28 The Benefit of Authenticity When Applying to Sloan 13:22 The Birth of GrowthFactor  19:47 Finding Co-Founders at Sloan 22:51 The Sloan Startup Resources That Supported GrowthFactor 25:07 How Sloan Students Champion One Another 28:38 Sloan Career Paths Outside of Entrepreneurship 34:21 How Delta V Helps Launch Student Ventures 35:17 The Post-Graduate Power of Sloan’s Alumni Network Book your FREE 30-minute MBA admissions consultation with Harold or another one of our experienced MBA admissions consultants by filling out this form. Learn more about onTrack by mbaMission, our innovative, on-demand MBA application platform, and take our two-minute questionnaire to receive your customized learning path.   ‼️Use code MBAMPOD for 30% off any onTrack subscription‼️ Contact Us: info@mbamission.com Follow Us: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

    From Waitlist to Startup CEO: Clyde Anderson’s MIT Sloan Story | Ep 112

  4. Jul 14 ·  Video

    Beyond the Essay: How Top Consultants Guide Candidates to Strong MBA Applications | Ep 111

    Send us your admissions questions! How do MBA admissions consultants help their clients beyond editing their essays? In this episode of The mbaMission Podcast, host Harold Simansky sits down with two highly experienced admissions consultants, mbaMission Managing Director Rachel Beck and Gatehouse Admissions Founder Liza Weale, for a candid, inside look at what MBA consulting entails. The conversation covers the brainstorming and experience inventory process that begins every client engagement and how consultants build personal relationships with their clients over months of collaboration. Rachel and Liza also shed light on the qualities that separate successful applicants from candidates whose results are less positive. They explain why the process often feels “messy” in the early stages and why reading your essay out loud is one of the most powerful strategies in the revision process. In addition, the discussion touches on the show-versus-tell principle, why applicants should spend more time on their resume, and how to identify “alignment” across an application when reviewing a final draft. Whether you are just starting to think about business school or are already fully immersed in the application process, this episode offers a rare look at how experienced admissions consultants work and what you can learn from the process, even if you never hire one. 00:00 Pulling Back the Curtain on MBA Consulting 03:18 The Kicker and the Art of Layering: Storytelling in Essays 06:13 Brainstorming and the Experience Inventory Process 09:40 What Makes a Client Succeed and How Relationships Factor In 14:12 The Messy Middle: Ambiguity, Authenticity, and Trust in the Process 16:08 The Importance of Answering the Question and Reading Out Loud 19:19 Editing Without Attachment 20:41 The Underrated MBA Application Resume 31:14 The Human Side of MBA Admissions Book your FREE 30-minute MBA admissions consultation with Harold or another one of our experienced MBA admissions consultants by filling out this form. Learn more about onTrack by mbaMission, our innovative, on-demand MBA application platform, and take our two-minute questionnaire to receive your customized learning path.   ‼️Use code MBAMPOD for 30% off any onTrack subscription‼️ Contact Us: info@mbamission.com Follow Us: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

    Beyond the Essay: How Top Consultants Guide Candidates to Strong MBA Applications | Ep 111

  5. Jul 7 ·  Video

    The Future of Work and Reinventing Work | Ep 110

    Send us your admissions questions! The old deal with work is broken. Leaders today are looking for a way to get their company’s culture back, but an expert in the consulting space argues that rather than returning to old ways, we should be reinventing work from scratch. In this episode of The mbaMission Podcast, mbaMission Founder Jeremy Shinewald and Executive Director Jessica Shklar sit down with Debbie Lovich, a BCG managing director and senior partner with 32 years of experience, for a conversation about the future of work, the collapse of the traditional employment bargain, and why the most successful companies of the next decade will be the ones that learn to make work human again. Debbie is the author of Make Work Work: The 5 Daily Practices of the Employee-Centric Leader, available for preorder now. She has spent 32 years at BCG advising global organizations, and this book represents a lifetime of lessons she wanted to pass on before retiring at the end of 2026. Whether you are a current or aspiring leader, an MBA candidate thinking about organizational culture, or someone who spends most of your waking hours somewhere you wish was better, this episode will give you valuable insight into what the future of work could look like. Preorder Make Work Work today: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/831079/make-work-work-by-deborah-lovich/ 00:00 Introduction: The Old Deal with Work Is Broken 01:27 What Is Employee-Centric Leadership?  08:12 Joy Is a Business Value Driver 11:51 The Five Daily Practices: An Overview 12:06 Practice 1: Celebrate People – Be Specific, Be Timely, Know Your Person 14:53 Practice 2: Go See and Help – With the Intent to Assist, Not Judge 16:43 Practice 3: Be Interested in the Person – Curiosity as Leadership 18:51 Practice 4: Co-Create Everything – Take Pride, Not Credit 23:07 Practice 5: Do First – Never Ask Anyone to Do Something You Have Not Done 37:09 AI, the Employee-Centric Imperative Book your FREE 30-minute MBA admissions consultation with Harold or another one of our experienced MBA admissions consultants by filling out this form. Learn more about onTrack by mbaMission, our innovative, on-demand MBA application platform, and take our two-minute questionnaire to receive your customized learning path.   ‼️Use code MBAMPOD for 30% off any onTrack subscription‼️ Contact Us: info@mbamission.com Follow Us: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

    The Future of Work and Reinventing Work | Ep 110

  6. Jun 30 ·  Video

    How to Avoid Business School Application Mistakes | Ep 109

    Send us your admissions questions! In this episode, listeners learn how to optimize the formatting of their resume, strategically handle issues with their transcript, and make their short-answer responses effective. Host and mbaMission Founder Jeremy Shinewald talks with Executive Director Jessica Shklar and Managing Director Rachel Beck about how admissions committees evaluate applicants’ professionalism. Drawing on decades of evaluation experience, these experts discuss why following instructions, avoiding technical jargon, and setting feasible career goals are so crucial in the application process. Listeners gain deep insights into showcasing collaboration over individual achievement, managing post-submission anxiety, and navigating team-based interview formats. 00:00 Hidden Messages in Your Application and Why They Matter 01:26 Professionalism Basics: Typos, Formatting, and the Wrong School Name 03:51 Word Count Violations and Resume Overstuffing 07:06 Interview Rambling and the Wharton Team Based Discussion 11:30 Red Flags in Extracurricular Activities 15:17 Handling Test Score and GPA Shortcomings 20:49 Identity, Oversharing, and Knowing What Belongs in an Application 29:41 Optimizing Short-Answer Application Questions 31:57 Seeing Every Line as an Opportunity Book your FREE 30-minute MBA admissions consultation with Harold or another one of our experienced MBA admissions consultants by filling out this form. Learn more about onTrack by mbaMission, our innovative, on-demand MBA application platform, and take our two-minute questionnaire to receive your customized learning path.   ‼️Use code MBAMPOD for 30% off any onTrack subscription‼️ Contact Us: info@mbamission.com Follow Us: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

    How to Avoid Business School Application Mistakes | Ep 109

  7. Jun 23 ·  Video

    Understanding the Case Method with HBS Professor Joshua Margolis | Ep 108

    Send us your admissions questions! What is the case method, and how does it work at Harvard Business School (HBS)? Plus, what should MBA applicants know before they enroll? In this episode of The mbaMission Podcast, host Harold Simansky and mbaMission Executive Director Jessica Shklar sit down with HBS professor Joshua Margolis—a member of the program’s Organizational Behavior Unit and a faculty member in the Christensen Center for Teaching and Learning—for a candid, behind-the-scenes discussion of how the case method works at the world’s most case-driven business school. Professor Margolis, who helps train the next generation of HBS case method teachers, walks listeners through what a “case” is, how the school’s three-step learning model works (individual prep, study group, full class discussion), and how HBS instructs its faculty to write and teach cases. In addition, he breaks down the infamous “cold call,” including how the classroom is laid out and how faculty keep track of which students have contributed (and which have not). He also explains that the goal of the cold call is to establish a foundation for a robust discussion, not to embarrass the student who is picked. The conversation also gets practical for applicants: how much time a first-year student should expect to spend preparing for each case (two to four hours individually, plus more as part of their study group), the “learning to learn” curve of the first six weeks, and the “warm call”—when Professor Margolis gives a student five minutes’ notice at the end of class to summarize the discussion, identify three themes, and take a position. In his view, this exercise is the most direct thing HBS does to train future leaders. 00:00 What Is the Case Method (and Why Does HBS Use It)? 01:19 The Three Components of the HBS Learning Model: Case, Study Group, Classroom 03:27 How HBS Faculty Are Instructed to Write and Teach Cases 07:56 What Teaching Using the Case Method Is Like 12:53 How Cases Are Revised After Being Taught  16:10 How the Cold Call Works and How Faculty Pick a Student to Open Class 19:47 Cold Calls in the Middle of Class and the Warm Call at the End 22:30 How HBS Professors Get to Know Their Students 24:42 How Much Time First-Year Students Should Spend Preparing a Case 28:57 Evaluating a Case Class as a Prospective Applicant 36:13 Understanding the First Six Weeks’ “Learning to Learn” Curve Book your FREE 30-minute MBA admissions consultation with Harold or another one of our experienced MBA admissions consultants by filling out this form. Learn more about onTrack by mbaMission, our innovative, on-demand MBA application platform, and take our two-minute questionnaire to receive your customized learning path.   ‼️Use code MBAMPOD for 30% off any onTrack subscription‼️ Contact Us: info@mbamission.com Follow Us: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

    Understanding the Case Method with HBS Professor Joshua Margolis | Ep 108

  8. Jun 16 ·  Video

    Real Estate as an MBA Career Path with Frank Cohen | Ep 107

    Send us your admissions questions! Is real estate a feasible career path for MBA students? And how can one break into the industry? In this episode of The mbaMission Podcast, host Harold Simansky and mbaMission Founder Jeremy Shinewald speak with Frank Cohen, a Boston-based real estate developer, co-founder of Sheridan Road Properties, former senior director at Tishman Speyer, and a Kellogg MBA, about how MBA students can effectively pursue careers in real estate, even if they arrive on campus with no industry background. Frank also co-leads the JL Access Program at Georgetown University’s Steers Center for Global Real Assets, where he partners with the executive search firm Jackson Lucas to help students build the technical foundation and the relationships they need to succeed in real estate recruiting. He is profoundly familiar with what makes MBA candidates appealing to recruiters and what does not. The podcast conversation addresses the gap between what business schools teach and what real estate firms hire for, what a real estate interview tests, whether a single “real estate type” exists, how regional the industry is, and the networking tactics that consistently produce results. Frank closes with his best advice for any MBA candidate considering the field and provides some candid insight into what still brings him joy in the work, decades into his career. If you are weighing whether real estate might be a good career path for you or simply curious about how one of the world’s largest and most dynamic industries recruits business school students, this conversation is well worth your time. Connect with Frank Cohen: https://jacksonlucas.com/frank-cohen/   00:00 Why Real Estate Tends to Be Less Represented in MBA Programs 01:53 Frank Cohen’s Path from Northwestern Kellogg to Tishman Speyer and Rockefeller Center 04:51 What JL Access Does for Georgetown Students 07:21 The Gap Between What MBAs Learn and What Firms Hire For 10:40 What a Real Estate Interview Tests 14:20 Breaking into Real Estate with No Industry Background  17:02 How Regional the Industry Is, and the Importance of School Choice 18:37 The Most Effective Networking Move  Book your FREE 30-minute MBA admissions consultation with Harold or another one of our experienced MBA admissions consultants by filling out this form. Learn more about onTrack by mbaMission, our innovative, on-demand MBA application platform, and take our two-minute questionnaire to receive your customized learning path.   ‼️Use code MBAMPOD for 30% off any onTrack subscription‼️ Contact Us: info@mbamission.com Follow Us: YouTube LinkedIn Instagram

    Real Estate as an MBA Career Path with Frank Cohen | Ep 107
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

Every Tuesday, The mbaMission Podcast delivers expert, unfiltered insights into the world of elite business school admissions. Hosted by Senior Admissions Consultant Harold Simansky alongside mbaMission Founder Jeremy Shinewald, the show strips away the guesswork of applying to top-tier MBA programs. Through candid conversations, timely market updates, and exclusive interviews with top admissions directors and industry insiders, Harold and the team break down every piece of the application mosaic—from essay drafting and resume optimization to interview preparation and post-MBA career mapping. Whether you are a traditional candidate aiming to differentiate yourself or a unique applicant navigating the process for the first time, The mbaMission Podcast is your definitive, go-to resource for actionable strategies, data-backed advice, and a behind-the-scenes look at what it truly takes to get accepted to your dream school. 

Information

  • Creator
    mbaMission
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    114
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The mbaMission Podcast
  • Show Website
    The mbaMission Podcast

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