Getting an MBA from one of the Ivy Leagues B Schools not only guarantees a great career but ensures that one remains ahead of the race when it comes to leadership. While in India, MBA can be pursued by anyone regardless of experience. But when it comes to Ivy League B-schools of the USA, one needs experience, exposure and some basic leadership qualities.

Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Princeton, University of Pennsylvania and Yale are the ones known as Ivy League. When founded in 1954, these institutes focused on sports leadership and till date the spirit has been preserved. Getting a degree from any of these is deemed prestigious globally.

Muzaffar Ahmad, director, Abroad Solutions India, an education counselling expert in the country, said, “I’ve studied the 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017 student profiles of Harvard Business School, Yale’s School of Management, and Wharton Business School.

What I’ve found is everyone has played some significant role in social culture or value building in their respective industries with more than four years of quality experience. Some are selected because they have dual specialisations which make them a dual engineer making them evolve something new to the world of science, education or technology to mention a few. For instance, in 2017, HBS admitted a candidate with dual degree — mechanical engineering and human anatomy.”

“B-Schools have moved their paradigm of thought from only leadership towards the society leadership as well making them not only industry specific study institution but the institutions with some socio-industrial leadership towards a new future,” said Ahmad.

The Yale website quotes their former president Kingman Brewster’s observation, “We have to make the hunchy judgment as to whether or not with Yale’s help the candidate is likely to be a leader in whatever he ends up doing.”

Princeton’s dean Janet Rapeleye is quoted in The New York Times as saying, “We look for qualities that will help students become leaders in their fields and in their communities.”

“The B-Schools are diversifying their focus on value building rather than focusing on just industry work experience. What they want to hire is not just a professional but a future package which helps them gain good repute in terms of contribution in the modern world. This way the alumni network consists of many noble laureates bringing changes in the world and the intellectual society,” said Ahmad.

“A significant GMAT or GRE score will be the first line of control to be crossed towards the selection procedure. Almost all colleges and universities accept GMAT and GRE both.

Above 690 GMAT is considered to be the shortlisted in most of the Ivy League whereas 320 is the mean GRE score to be considered for the same. HBS accepts GRE 326+ and GMAT580+ whereas in Wharton GRE should be 325+ and GMAT 700+, and on the lower side Princeton’s cut off is GRE 250+, and GMAT 500+ among the Ivy League institutes. In the end what matters is the right counselling advice from a reputed education counsellor, which may help you shortlist the institution the right way considering all the aspects required,” added Ahmad.

For more details on Ivy Leagues, one can read class profiles of each of these institutes, readily available on the Internet as this will enable one to understand the admission requirements in a better way.