Disclaimer: This post is my personal view/opinion and does not reflect the opinion of UCLA Anderon.
Please access Part I here.
Another piece of advice I'd give to a potential applicant would be this: apply only to schools you'd be happy to go to. I read blogs and talked with other applicants and the consensus seems to be to apply to 2 "reach" schools, 2 "competitive" schools, and 2 "safe" schools. I agree with the general consensus, provided you're happy to go to all of them. Ask yourself this: If you got into your "safe" school, would you really be happy enough to go there? If the answer's no, save yourself some time and money and don't apply.
I only applied to 4 schools because there were really only 4 that offered the academics, culture, network, and location I wanted. As a dual degree candidate, I had to be more conscious of which schools I wanted to apply to because I wanted a school that offered great programs in both degrees.
If you're also looking to get another degree, look no further than UCLA: UCLA offers 10 concurrent degrees that combine an MBA with another graduate degree. And in addition to a great business school, UCLA offers great law, public health, medical, and other graduate schools.
Culture-wise, UCLA Anderson is a great. I love the collaborative atmosphere and how outgoing and easy-going many of the other admits and students I've met are.
I can see how Anderson's team culture translates into the alumni network. As soon as I got into UCLA, I contacted the UCLA Anderson alumni at the hospital where I worked. They were happy and pleased to take some time out of their day to give me advice and to let me know what possible jobs I could have in healthcare administration when I graduated.
Location-wise, UCLA is unbeatable. What school can really beat UCLA in terms of location? We even have a surfing club!
(Side blurb: If you're looking at schools, I'd highly stress considering the location as one of the main factors not only in applying but also in deciding where to go after you get accepted. There were schools I didn't apply to because I didn't want to live there. As a Southern California native, it'd be hard to live on the East Coast with frigid winters. No offense to anyone from the East Coast - it's just not my preference!)
~Dwight Asuncion '14
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