Business School Adds PowerPoint to Application Process

In a sign of the times, the University of Chicago, a premiere business school in the world has modified its application process to include a technology component. As business schools have learned over the last ten years, the need to ensure core competency in several tech disciplines before graduation, the University of Chicago has added a PowerPoint presentation to its admissions application process. With the evolution of technology, and its growing entrance into the daily activities of people in business, business schools are forced to modify their approach and goals in educating new business leaders.

The University of Chicago Graduate School of Business has a student population of just over three thousand. With forty thousand graduates, there is not an industry where University of Chicago GSB does not have a graduate. It is rated the #1 full-time business school in the nation in 2006 by Business Week. With a second place finish in the part-time program and third in the executive program, the UCGSB is well-regarded for its innovative approach to learning and developing business leaders.

In adding the PowerPoint presentations to the application process, university officials hope to open the door to creative types, who function at a high level with technology. On the other hand, they are equally focused on closing the door on those who are unwilling to embrace using technology in the workplace. With five hundred million copies sold and thirty million PowerPoint presentations done daily, businesses are using technology at blazing speeds. Companies are always looking for ways to leverage the capabilities of technology to streamline the workflow processes that govern their business. Those that fail to do so will eventually find themselves unable to compete on a global scale with companies that use technology as a core competency.

Business school graduates such as those at the University of Chicago, have to be prepared to function in a tech environment. With the implementation of the PowerPoint presentation in the admissions application process, students understand that technology will be a major part of their curriculum while in graduate school. This weeding out process will allow the university to focus its attention on those that are willing to develop new skills critical to the new business environment.

In the application process to a typical business school, graduating seniors or those looking to return to school after entering the workforce are given a packet to fill out that includes a laundry list of questions including what they expect to gain from attending business school. For some, answering questions like those is not a difficult primer. What it does not do is allow the creative types to leverage their strengths. So, using the PowerPoint will allow them to open up and express themselves in ways that an essay cannot.

With a large percentage of applications submitted threw the Internet, applicants are already net-savvy when they are preparing to attend a b-school. Some applicants have included other submissions with their applications, like art work or a DVD. The University of Chicago is also looking to reinvent its business school demographics. Looking to add more people who love technology, the school is also looking to decrease the number of people undesirable of using technology.

The four page presentation revolves around a prospective student presenting what matters most to them. The PowerPoint has no limits other than not having any links or videos as a part of it. The University of Chicago Business School hopes that those students who really want to exceed will produce high-quality, well-thought-out PowerPoint's that convey a gift for design, creativity, or content. The presentation will be the last piece of the evaluation puzzle for the admissions department at the University of Chicago. The quality of the presentation is not what will be evaluated, the content or ability of the presenter to show innovation will be. University officials understand that some applicants will find the presentation tedious. But in a global world, University of Chicago is willing to make the gamble knowing that those that find the presentation difficult will be equally challenged when asked to do it in the work environment.

With over five hundred millions copies in operation globally, Microsoft's PowerPoint presentation software has become as essential a business practice as a Word document or Excel spreadsheet. Businesses simply use the products every day for a wide range of job tasks. The University of Chicago's Graduate School of Business understands this and so will the applicants they accept.