Where we are going next (Veterans of HBS Class of 2011)

We didn't know each other when we started, but we moved forward with confidence and we quickly bonded. What was true for our general class was even more true for the veterans of the HBS Class of 2011.

Despite drastically different backgrounds; from Naval intelligence to Marine infantry, those of us from different corners of the military quickly united as we attempted to navigate through what to many of us was some of the most unknown terrain we had ever faced.

The uncertainty did not preclude success however, and our small group of veterans claimed two Baker Scholar Awards (awarded to top 5% of HBS) and several awards of Distinction, including one of the handful of Dean's Awards given to students who demonstrate exceptional leadership and contribution to the school while on campus. In short, the veteran community did not only do well, it thrived.

For those of you curious where the Class of 2011 veterans are heading, I've compiled the following data for you:


Industry/Function: The most popular destination is consulting, a favorite blogging topic of mine. Of those going to consulting, 4 are going to McKinsey, 2 to Bain, 1 to BCG, and 1 to Deloitte. There are also 8 going into finance, with 5 going into investment banking, 2 into investment management, and 1 directly into private equity. General Management, Bus/Corp Dev round out most of the others, while a few are breaking ground into their own niches in real estate and startups. One AFAA member is receiving $6m from a VC to start his own materials science company. Others are seeking similar funding to start other business, though the vast majority chose to pursue a traditional post-MBA position. In general, I think it's fair to say nearly everybody got exactly the industry and function they sought. See my previous post on "So What Does Business Mean Anyway?" for a beginner's guide to the recruitment process.

Geography: While the industry/function is not completely out of alignment with the general HBS class, the geography is noticeably different. Across all of HBS, New York City is by far the most common destination for US citizens, while London tends to be the most common destination for international students, or at least it certainly appears that way. That is largely because those cities are the financials hubs for their respective continents, and more HBS students enter finance after business school than do their veteran counterparts. Our #1 location, Washington DC, is not too much of a surprise, considering the natural draw to political and government interest by those who served. San Francisco was a popular destination in general this year due to internet/tech jobs, and the military pool was no exception from the trend. Also in general, a lot more military end up in Southern cities such as Atlanta, Houston, and Dallas.

General Notes: It should be noted that those are are still in the "TBD" category are there by choice. One veteran turned down a position that would most likely pay over $300k/year and is seeking entrepreneurial ventures instead. In broader terms, I don't know anybody in my class who tried but did not receive a top job offer. However, given the wide array of options and tensions associated with all of them, it doesn't mean that students did not have plenty of anxiety about recruiting and which job would be their first civilian position.

Salary: I don't have official numbers, but I'll make approximations. I only do so not because it is something to boast about, but because I still hear from so many military veterans who are concerned about the financial implications of not having income for two years and question whether they can afford to go to business school. For one thing, the Post 9/11 GI Bill makes a huge dent in school costs, and second of all, a school like HBS simply pays for itself. The average total annual compensation (signing bonus, salary, annual bonus, etc.) the first year for my veteran peers is around $175k-$200k/year, and of course, it only goes up from there. That said, don't let the numbers fool you. For many, the job hours are brutal, the work only marginally fulfilling, and for quite a few us who previously led under the greatest of stakes, many would rather be at the point of the spear one last time. That said, nearly everyone is excited about what the future holds, how our careers will unfold, and we are unbelievably grateful for the opportunities that HBS has given us.

The Harvard Age Curve - Part II

Last year I published an article about the age of matriculating students for the Class of 2010 at HBS versus other schools. Dee Leopold recently published new data on the HBS admissions blog for the Class of 2012 as follows:

Since I got a lot of positive feedback after my last article, I decided to briefly revisit the topic given this new information.

I'll make the same assumption I made last time, which is that students on average graduate from undergrad at age 22; the numbers who graduate later probably roughly balance those that graduate earlier. I then subtracted a year to calculate the approximate age at time of application (average time from application to matriculation is around 9 months). Comparing the two data sets show little change:

The data compares class sizes of 900 and 909, so I normalized the data and made the followng observations in the difference between the two years:

• Age group 23 and under: Down 23 students
• Age group 24-26: Up 29 students
• Age group 27-29: Up 17 students
• Age group 30 and over: Down 5 students
• Overall mean age change: from 24.9 up to 25.1

Don't forget this is age at time of application. It means that the average HBS grad is 28 years old. While the age average technically went up slightly, it's not a very significant difference. More significant is the slight drop in students with under 2 years of work experience, which looks like it got absorbed by those with 3-5 years of experience. Although I would emphasize that these are very small percentages changes and it's very likely that none of the slight differences are intentional.

For those wondering about the best time to apply, let's look at percentage of students matriculating by age groups at time of application:

• Age 23 and younger: 10%
• Age 24-26: 78%
• Age 27-29: 12%
  
• Age 30+: 1%

The numbers definitely speak for themselves and probably don't need any added insight. I will say that over my year at HBS I have come to form an extreme respect for the institution and its methods. There are certainly those that question the age skew at Harvard, and I think it's always worth discussing, but I will say that after a year at HBS, I have come to give them a high degree of trust. They've been the best at what they do for a long time!

HBS Military Class of 2012

While I'm on the subject of discussing admit demographics, I'll also follow up on the post I made last year regarding the military Class of 2011 at HBS.

HBS has made a very genuine effort to provide active duty military personnel the opportunity to attend and succeed at HBS. The new HBS Class Co-President is former military, and military personnel continue to be regarded in very high regard on campus. It's definitely our responsibility not to take that for granted and to continue to earn that respect by contributing to the Harvard community and upholding its long tradition of excellence.

In addition to increasing the GI Bill Yellow Ribbon package to $10k/year (matched by the VA for a total of $20k), the Class of 2012 also shows a 19% increase in former active duty US military personnel.

At 4-5% of the total class, HBS has taken a leading position among the top MBA programs as a school that places a premium on military experience.

I'll note that there were also three foreign military personnel from non-compulsory service nations to be admitted as well (2x Britain, 1x Greece). There are also at least three women matriculating from the military, compared to none in Class of 2011 and two in the Class of 2010.

So it looks like soldiers and sailors really increased their game this year, and unfortunately I won't be around HBS next year to report on the Class of 2013, so this will have to be the best information out there for a while.

Note: As usual, I'll clarify that my data is not from admissions and is therefore not necessarily perfect and is definitely not official. It is however very close.

Veteran enrollment in top MBA programs

I've recently connected the veteran club leadership of many of the top MBA programs in the country in an effort to open up communications and aid the veterans in our respective schools and beyond. One of the first topics we discussed was simply how many of us there are, so we compiled the following unofficial data:


This shows that US veterans represent around 2-4% of the top MBA schools, with an average of about 3%. There is also some variation from across the schools, but I would caution against extrapolating long term school trends from this data, as schools with smaller classes can easily have significant fluctuations in the number of veteran admits. Rather, we can look at this information as a single data point and compare it to future class years. This data also provides no insight into the acceptance rate at each school for military veterans, since applicant demographics are usually held strictly confidential.

On a positive note, there is no reason why these numbers can't go up. The HBS dean of admissions, Deirdre Leopold, is quoted in Fortune magazine talking about the number of military vets at HBS by saying "I would be happy to have that number go up."

Hopefully with the humble help of this blog, and all the resources available, those numbers will indeed go up.

HBS Talent

When recently asked what has been the most surprising upside of coming to HBS, I answered the following without hesitation: the unbelievable skills, talents, and personalities of my classmates. Coming here I expected to be surrounded by highly intelligent and business savvy people, but what I didn't expect was how talented and multi-dimensional everyone would be. This was again demonstrated this past weekend when I led some of my sectionmates and partners on an overnight backpacking trip through the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

The hike was meant to be of moderate difficulty, but turned out to be quite challenging; it would have been tough even for a decent infantry squad. Knee deep snow at places, ice cold river crossings (boots come off!), climbing of nearly vertical rock faces, a very poorly marked trail that required plenty of cross-country movement, and even night hiking (including down rock faces), all while carrying a good sized overnight pack made this a 21 mile hike covering over 5200 feet of elevation change a weekend to remember!



But did people ever complain? Or try to free load at any point? Never... it was amazing. Instead, people were volunteering to spread load equipment, encouraging each other, and smiles and laughter accompanied us every step of the way. When we finally set up camp around 10pm we each had a MRE (Military Meal-Ready-To-Eat), and exchanged stories and jokes. We even had a student who had never been in the woods and this was his first experience. I was truly amazed by my classmates' determination and good spirits. The point of the trip was not to be a physical challenge, but when adverse conditions came our way, they were easily handled (physically and more importantly, mentally).

It's not that I'm impressed that my classmates are in good shape or know how to hike in the woods. It's that people in this group could probably also play musical instruments professionally if they chose to, that they are involved in non-profits, launching businesses, and can speak intelligently about anything from the US current account deficit to financial put options, all while carrying a heavy backpack and climbing up snow covered mountains. So kudos to all my classmates. You guys inspire me to better myself everyday!