Chicago Business Fellows Program Application Process

LAUNCH is your mandatory orientation that will take place prior to your start at Booth.  LAUNCH sessions will be a combination of virtual and in-person sessions over the course of a few weeks.  LAUNCH will be completed prior to the start of classes for the quarter. The goal is to familiarize you with offices on campus and countless resources to aide you in a successful transition to Booth. The LAUNCH schedule will be finalized 4-6 weeks prior to the first session and will be sent out to you via email.

In addition to completing LAUNCH, new students will complete the Leadership Exploration and Development (LEAD) course, which is a degree requirement, during their first quarter at Booth. This course will be offered virtually as well.  During LAUNCH, more information about section offerings and registering for LEAD will be shared.

LAUNCH is your mandatory orientation that will take place prior to your start at Booth.  LAUNCH sessions will be a combination of virtual and in-person sessions over the course of a few weeks.  LAUNCH will be completed prior to the start of classes for the quarter. The goal is to familiarize you with offices on campus and countless resources to aide you in a successful transition to Booth. The LAUNCH schedule will be finalized 4-6 weeks prior to the first session and will be sent out to you via email.

In addition to completing LAUNCH, new students will complete the Leadership Exploration and Development (LEAD) course, which is a degree requirement, during their first quarter at Booth. This course will be offered virtually as well.  During LAUNCH, more information about section offerings and registering for LEAD will be shared.

To submit the online application, you will need to register and create a username and password. The online system includes step-by-step instructions for completing the application and submitting all required materials. You don't have to complete the application in one sitting, and you may edit your application as often as necessary prior to submission.

Your application must be submitted prior to 11:59p.m. CST on the day of the deadline in order to be considered for a particular application round.

We look forward to learning more about you through your answers to the following questions.

• Essay One (maximum 400 words): Why are you seeking an MBA from Chicago Booth, and why is Chicago Booth's Evening MBA or Weekend MBA your program of choice?
• Essay Two (maximum 300 words): Leadership depends on how well you communicate, collaborate, and motivate people. Chicago Booth understands the importance of developing leaders beyond their business acumen and technical expertise, and we believe that each individual has their own leadership style. How has your family, culture, and/or environment influenced you as a leader?
• Reapplicant Essay (maximum 500 words): Reapplicants must submit an additional essay. The essay prompt can be found in the application.
• Optional Essay (maximum 500 words): If there is any important information relevant to your candidacy you were unable to address elsewhere in the application, please share that information here.

Your resume should highlight the professional and volunteer activities that make you a good candidate for either the Evening MBA or Weekend MBA Program.

Please submit letters of recommendation from two individuals who know you well and can offer specific examples of your performance at and contributions to an organization. Avoid choosing recommenders based on their title or status. We are more concerned with content and substance rather than reputation.

One letter of recommendation should come from a supervisor. We are looking for objectivity in the letter, and we want to hear from someone who can assess both your strengths and your weaknesses.

• We prefer to hear from a current supervisor, although we understand that this may not be possible. If you are unable to ask your current supervisor, please explain the circumstances in the optional essay.
• If you work for a family business or own your own company, please submit a letter from a client or outside party who does business with you and can provide an objective assessment.

The other letter can come from another professional contact or from someone who has worked with you in an organization or club, or on a volunteer project. This letter can offer a different perspective on your skill sets outside of your professional environment.

• We have no preference regarding who supplies your second letter of recommendation.
• Our only guideline is that it should add new and valuable insight to your candidacy.

How to Submit Letters of Recommendation

The recommendation form is part of the online application. You will be prompted to provide the names and email addresses of your recommenders, and we’ll send them an email directing them to the online form. Chicago Booth does not accept letters of recommendation via mail or fax.

What We Ask

We ask recommenders to complete a skills assessment for each applicant and to submit a letter answering the following questions:

• How do the applicant's performance, potential, background, or personal qualities compare with those of other well-qualified individuals in similar roles? Please provide specific examples.
• Please describe the most important piece of constructive feedback you have given the applicant. Please detail the circumstances and the applicant's response.

Your educational record is an important part of your application. You’ll need to submit transcripts from all postsecondary educational institutions from which you earned a degree.

Unofficial Transcripts
As part of your application, please submit unofficial scans of your transcripts from every university, college, or graduate institution from which you have received a degree, taking care to submit both sides of every one.

Official Transcripts
Upon accepting our offer of admission, you must submit an official transcript from every university, college, or graduate institution from which you have received a degree. If you received transfer credits, we only need the transfer school transcript if the courses and grades earned do not appear on your degree-granting school’s transcripts.

Official records are defined as original documents issued by the institution and bearing the actual (not photocopied) signature of the registrar and the institutional seal. Many schools offer electronic official transcripts, which you are welcome to submit.

• Records issued only once by institutions should be photocopied and certified as official copies, either by school officials or legal authorities such as embassies or a notary public.
• Please do not send the original of an academic record that cannot be replaced.

All records must show:

• Dates of enrollment
• Courses taken
• Units of credit
• Your grades, marks, or ratings in each subject
• If available, your rank in the total class or group
• The institutional grading scale or other standards of evaluation, including minimum passing and failing marks, and definition of grades between them (should also be included on or with official records)

If academic records and diplomas are not issued in English by the institution, you must submit transcripts and degree certificates with an authorized English translation.

Chicago Booth reserves the right to review the academic records of all applicants and determine whether the academic credentials presented from a non-US institution qualify for consideration. All degrees must be from an institution recognized by the country’s department or ministry of education.

For more information about transcripts, read our blog post: Application Process FYIs and Tips: Transcripts and the Academic Record Section.

You can self-report your EA, GMAT, or GRE scores at the time you apply.

We will not need your official test scores until you have been admitted and have accepted our offer of admission. To make your official test scores available to us, please send your EA or GMAT scores using code H9X-9F-17 for the Evening MBA Program, H9X-9F-83 for the Weekend MBA Program, or your GRE scores using code 8852. Your scores are valid for five years.

If English is not your native language, you’ll need to submit proof of English proficiency by taking the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS).

This requirement can be waived if you:

• Are a citizen or permanent resident of a country where English is an official language
• Have earned an undergraduate or postgraduate degree from an institution in which English is the language of instruction
• Have been living and working full time in the United States for two or more years

Please note this exemption in the application. For more information, see International Applicants.

You are considered a reapplicant if you have submitted an application to any Chicago Booth MBA program within the past two years. If you choose to reapply to any Chicago Booth MBA program (Evening MBA, Weekend MBA, Full-Time MBA, or Executive MBA), you must wait six months from the date you submitted your original application AND apply to a Chicago Booth MBA program that begins in a subsequent quarter to your original application. For example, if you originally applied to the Full-Time MBA Program for the Autumn Quarter and would like to reapply to the Evening MBA Program, you must wait a minimum of six months from your Full-Time MBA application submission date AND apply to the Evening MBA Program for the Winter Quarter (subsequent quarter to the fall quarter) to be considered an eligible reapplicant.

Successful candidates in the reapplication process have demonstrated growth through career progress, academic preparation, or community involvement. In your reapplication, it is strongly recommended that you address the ways you have strengthened your application since you last applied.

For your reapplication to be considered complete, you must start a new online application for the quarter for which you are reapplying. In addition to completing new essay questions and the reapplicant essay question, reapplicants must also submit one new letter of recommendation and conduct an additional interview with the Admissions Committee. Please note, interviews are by invitation. We will keep your original application on file for two years, so you will not have to resubmit transcripts and test scores unless there is updated information.

For additional information about reapplying, please contact our Booth Admissions at 312.464.8700 or eveningweekend-admissions@chicagobooth.edu.