Links and explanations used for GMAC PDP and Annual Meeting Presentation (2004)

Cluetrain
A good read to get a quick understanding on how our customers (students) are interacting with each other, with or without our help.

Discussion Boards, Chat Rooms and the Power of Transparency
A whitepaper I wrote that adds good context to the following links.

Wharton Admissions
Explore one or two levels from the homepage and see the 'active' content in the right hand column which includes excerpts from our discussion boards and diaries. These excerpts are 'contextual' ... i.e. they relate to the content of the specific page.

Student 2 Student
Wharton's applicant discussion board, i.e. an open forum which anyone can use. Same technology as businessweek's forums.

Round 1 Class 2007
Example of a thread from Student 2 Student that shows that applicants, in the very early phase of preparing their applications, are using the boards to identify each other and set up meetings to share experiences etc.

Business Week Forums
Businessweek forums are open to anyone considering business school. While some of the dialogue may not be totally focused on the application process it is important to keep up to speed with what is being discussed. The majority of MBA applicants are aware of these discussion boards. Manage your presence.

Student Diaries
Wharton's example of a diary interface. The diarists' entries are entirely unedited, some diarists are very frequent and some are not. It is important, when selecting diarists that you identify those with a natural affinity or desire for this type of task. It is not good to try to select who you would think would be an interesting diarist. If any of your students are 'bloggers' (see mbaleague below) they may be a good source.

E-talk
Wharton's admitted student discussion board, which is unfortunately a private forum so no public access. We started admitting students late december and will have approximately 10,000 messages by the time the fall term begins. Topics range from what type of computer to buy, establishing meetings all around the world, moving logistics to Philadelphia, what classes to waive etc., and of course, discussing the merits of wharton versus ...

http://mbaleague.blogspot.com
This resource lists all the mba blogs, separated by school (for those who have already been admitted to schools or are attending schools) or those who are applying. Very interesting perspective on school life and the experience of the applicant. It is also key to note that these blogs also appear when doing google searches for MBA programs, so it is risky to ignore these sites. If you have a blogger from your school you should consider whether you want your site to link directly to the blogger perhaps ?

Hella: MBA Applicant Blog Aggregator
One of the problems with the 'explosion' of the number of blogs is keeping up with the new content of different blogs. Hella solves this with his applicant blog aggregator, which aggregates all new content and becomes an easy way for the 'browser' to see what is new. (It was a lot easier when Tad Holbie was the only applicant blogger!)