Application Requirements

Each year, the Admissions Committee seeks to assemble a diverse, well-rounded class based on an assessment of each applicant's academic and professional accomplishments, interpersonal and communication skills, motivation and goals, and other relevant credentials.  To be eligible for consideration by the Committee, you are required to submit the following elements as part of your application:

Application Form

Each applicant is required to submit an application form.  The form must be submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the date of the deadline.

A non-refundable application fee of $100 is required of all applicants.  Candidates applying online may submit payment by credit card.  If you prefer, you  may submit a personal check, money order, or cashier's check drawn from a U.S. bank or subsidiary, made payable to The College of William & Mary for the exact amount.

GMAT

Applicants are required to submit official scores from the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT). You will receive a provisional score immediately after the test is completed. Please indicate your score in your application and include a copy of the unofficial score report when mailing your supplemental materials. We will review your application using your unofficial score but you will need to arrange to have your official GMAT score report sent directly to The College of William & Mary Mason School of Business Full-time MBA Program; our school code is 9DDX725. If you took the test more than five years ago, you must take it again. Information regarding the GMAT can be found on www.mba.com.

GMAT Preparation Course: The Center for Corporate Education at the Mason School of Business offers a GMAT preparation course.

Academic Transcripts

The Admissions Committee requires official transcripts from each of the colleges and universities you have attended as a registered student (regardless of the number of courses taken), including summer school, evening classes, etc. If you have studied abroad and the courses have been transferred back to your home institution and appear with grades on this transcript, you do not need to request a transcript from the foreign institution.

While we certainly appreciate official transcripts accompanying an application, unofficial transcripts or copies of official transcripts are also acceptable during the application process. If you choose to send an unofficial transcript or a copy of an official transcript with your application, you will be required to provide an official transcript upon acceptance.

Official transcripts should arrive in a sealed envelope with the signature of the Registrar across the seal. DO NOT OPEN OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPTS. The sealed envelope must be sent to the Office of MBA Admissions unopened. If your institution will not release an official transcript to you, please instruct the Registrar to mail it directly to the MBA Admissions Office.

International applicants must have successfully completed the equivalent of a U.S. bachelor's degree to be eligible for admission to the William & Mary MBA Program. Please visit our International Applicants section for detailed instructions regarding expected academic preparation for international students.

Recommendations

You should select individuals who can provide specific and relevant information about your intellectual and professional abilities, performance, and motivation to submit a recommendation on your behalf.  Two recommendations are required.  Recommendations from friends, family members, acquaintances and other sources not able to comment on your professional achievements and managerial potential are of little value in the admission review process.

If one of your recommenders is not able or chooses not to complete a letter of recommendation online, a recommendation form may be submitted by mail. Recommendation forms can be found in the supplemental application forms section of the online application.

Essays

We require responses to three essay questions and offer you the opportunity to submit an optional personal statement. Please follow the guidelines on the application regarding the length of each essay.

At the top of each page, please put your full name and a complete statement of the question being answered. Use at least 11-point font and 1.5 spacing.

1. What key decision(s) or experience(s) in your life have led you to pursue an MBA at this time?  Please describe how these experiences have shaped you. (800 words)
2. What do you consider to be the most compelling business issue of our time?  How do you think it will impact the first five to ten years of your post-MBA career? (800 words)
3. The Mason Community is made up of talented and unique individuals who have come together to learn.  What personal strengths will you bring to the community?  How will you contribute to your classmates' learning experiences?  (250 words)

Work Experience

Post-undergraduate work experience is not a prerequisite for admission; we seek diversity among all dimensions of the application and encourage applications from candidates without post-undergraduate work experience to candidates with several years of work experience.

Candidates with no or limited professional experience must be strong in other aspects of their MBA application, including academic performance, demonstrated leadership achievement and campus or community involvement, and possess clearly articulated goals to offset the lack of experience.

Most William & Mary Mason School MBA students have obtained 2 to 8 years of post-undergraduate professional experience. However, the impact a candidate has made on an organization, growth in responsibility over time, leadership experience and other factors are all considered when evaluating experience, not simply the number of years.

Interviews

The MBA Admissions Committee offers interviews on campus in Williamsburg, by phone, and in select locations around the world (see our Admissions Events list for other locations).  Interviews are conducted after a completed application is received.

The interview is an opportunity for an admissions representative to get to know you and your qualifications better and allows you an opportunity to supplement the information provided in the application.

An interview is a required element of the admission process.  At peak application periods, we may be unable to interview all applicants to the Program.  Interviews are by invitation only: applicants with competitive profiles will be contacted by an admissions representative to schedule an interview time.

TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE

English language proficiency is critical to success in the Mason School of Business MBA program, particularly the ability to speak and write clearly and concisely.  The MBA experience goes well beyond textbooks, case studies and classroom lectures. From the very beginning, Mason School MBA students meet and interact with current and former leaders in industry - an opportunity that can lead to life-long relationships and open many doors. We expect students to take leadership roles within teams, using both verbal and written skills. Candidates who have not achieved a high level of English-language communication ability before beginning their studies at William & Mary will miss out on this very valuable aspect of the MBA experience.

Those applicants who have not completed a degree within the United States or who have not earned a university degree in an English-speaking country (not simply an English-speaking institution), or who have not lived and worked full-time in an English-speaking country for the past two or more years must submit scores from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), or the Pearson Test of English (PTE).

On average, incoming students score 100 (internet-based), 250 (computer-based), or 600 (paper-based) on the TOEFL and a 6.5 on the IELTS.  TOEFL and IELTS scores are valid for 2 years.  Achieving the average does not guarantee acceptance. We consider the TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE score along with GMAT scores in the verbal and AWA sections, essays and the interview to determine a candidate's language readiness to compete in and contribute to the William & Mary MBA community. Our school code is 5115, department code 02.

The TOEFL/IELTS/PTE requirement is waived for those candidates who meet both of the following two requirements:

1. Achieve a GMAT result in the 60th percentile or better in the Verbal section of the exam, and
2. Achieve a GMAT result of 5.0 or better on the AWA section of the exam.

Mailing Addresses

Please address documents being posted to the MBA Admissions Office as follows: