Admissions FAQs

Yes! In fact, reviewing these FAQs is a great place to start. Below are a few additional resources that can help you build your best application:

• Review the application checklist. It is important to submit the required information and materials in order for your application to be considered “complete” and sent to the Admissions Committee for review.
• Listen to previously recorded webinars to get insight into why you should choose Simon and how to successfully complete the application, among other topics.
• Stay up to date with the Simon Admissions Blog. We offer application tips, but it's also a great way to stay up to date on what's going on at Simon, “meet” current students, staff, and alumni, and more. 

If you're looking for feedback on your candidacy before you apply, we encourage you to “Check Your Eligibility.” Fill out this form and we’ll respond with personalized feedback about your candidacy, which will be particularly helpful if you’re planning to start business school this year.

No. Applications may be submitted to only one program in an academic year.

It depends on the program you’re applying to.

Simon’s MS in Accountancy program is highly focused and specialized, so it is helpful to have a background in business, economics, accounting, or another related area. Simon’s MSA is a CPA licensure qualifying program, which means that there are several prerequisites that applicants must meet in order to be considered for the program. While we do not provide transcript reviews prior to receiving an application, you may find it helpful to review our list of MSA prerequisites to determine whether or not you have completed the necessary coursework. Our program faculty advisor will review an applicant’s transcripts prior to rendering an admission decision.

For the MS in Business Analytics, MS in Finance, and MS in Marketing Analytics programs, there are no official prerequisites, though we know that students enrolling in all four MS programs benefit from obtaining experience with programming languages before classes start. If you’re admitted to one of our MS programs and the Admissions Committee feels that additional programming knowledge will aid your success at Simon, you will receive further direction—such as taking a class at a local community college or leveraging online resources like Coursera—in your letter of admission. If you'd like to get started with some additional training, the programming language you’ll want to focus on depends on the MS program you’re pursuing:

MSF: Python
MSA, MSBA, MSMA: R Language

If you have further questions about this, please reach out to the Admissions Office.

If you participated in a three-year bachelor’s program (e.g., BCOM), this will satisfy the education requirement for our program.

For applicants applying with a Higher National Diploma (HND) and/or National Diploma (ND) a WES Evaluation or other official credential evaluation will be required at the time of application to show that your HND and/or ND are equivalent to a US Bachelor’s degree. If a credential evaluation is not uploaded along with your transcript(s) at the time of application, your application will be incomplete. Applicants that are admitted and who included a WES evaluation (or other credential evaluation) to support their application will be required to have their official credential evaluation sent to our office in a sealed envelope to complete enrollment requirements. 

The non-refundable application fee is $90 US dollars and can be paid by credit card within the online application. Applications are incomplete until payment is received. Some applicants may qualify for an application fee waiver—review our fee waiver requirements to determine if you are eligible.

Admitted students who have paid their enrollment deposit will receive instructions on how to make their track selection. Domestic students will receive an email in April, while international students will receive instructions as part of the I-20/DS2019 process.

No, please do not send us any official documents at the time you apply. We do not have the capacity to store paper items and therefore will not open, process, or review any hard copy materials sent to us.

Should an offer of admission be extended and then accepted, we will request official documents identified as part of your application at that time.

Please note: If any of your exam results will expire before the start date of the program to which you are applying, you should provide your official scores to us at the time you submit your application and notify our office, or you will need to retake the exam.

We suggest limiting your current résumé to two pages. Please include your employment, academic, and extracurricular history. For those without full-time work experience, internships should be included.

We do not accept letters of recommendation. As part of the online application process, you will be asked to supply contact information for two references. If the Admissions Committee decides to contact either of your references during the application review process, you will be notified. We strongly suggest listing references who are familiar with you in a professional capacity.

Yes, the video essay is required for MS applicants, as it takes the place of your admission interview. Upon submission of your application, your video essay link will appear in your Applicant Status Portal. You will find the link under the application checklist—navigate to the checklist, click on the Video Essay link, and follow the instructions. You have five days from the time you submit your application to complete the mandatory video essay (you will not have access to the link until you submit your application). 

You will receive a single question (similar to those asked by our Admissions Committee during an in-person interview). You will have 30 seconds to prepare your response and then up to 90 seconds to answer the question. You do not have to use the entire 90 seconds, so if you finish your answer earlier, it’s fine to stop the recording.

Important Note: If you do not complete your video essay within five days of application submission, your application may be reviewed without this required component.

First, be sure you have a secure internet connection, computer with a webcam and microphone, and an updated version of Adobe Flash—all are necessary to complete the video essay. In addition, you will need to use either Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox as your browser.

Instructions for recording your video essay:

• To begin press the red [Start Test] button. You will start by testing your equipment (video and sound) with a 10 second practice session.
• Once you have thoroughly tested your equipment and acknowledge that it is working, you will be prompted to record your video essay. The system will display a question for you to answer. This is a random question assigned specifically to each candidate. You will have 30 seconds to collect your thoughts and prepare your answer. 
• A visual timer countdown will appear on the screen. You will have up to 90 seconds to respond with your answer to the video essay. You may use the entire 90 seconds or stop the recording when you have sufficiently answered the question. 
• When your recording is stopped you may review it. If you are satisfied with your video essay recording, you may submit it. If you would like to record the video essay again, you will have the opportunity to do so until you reach three attempts.

For additional information, download a step-by-step guide with visual aids.

Reminders:

• You have three attempts to record your video essay—each attempt will present a different question. You have 30 seconds to prepare your answer. You have up to 90 seconds to respond. After three attempts, your final video will automatically submit and you will not have the option to retract it.
• The system will allow you three chances to record your video essay. Each time you redo the video essay, you will be given a different question and you will forfeit your previous recording. You will be asked to confirm its deletion before attempting a new recording.
• After three attempts at recording you will not be given the opportunity to record again—it will automatically submit the third attempt and you will not be able to retract the submission.
• You will see a message that reads “We have successfully received your video submission” after you have recorded your video essay.

All applicants are required to submit a new application. 

If you already applied to Simon in a previous cycle, please log in to your existing account (with the email address you used for your previous application) and begin a new application. Your transcripts and test scores (if still valid) will carry over, however you may need to reupload your test taker score report again. You will be prompted to complete new essays and several other areas of your application before submitting.

Yes, but all MS applicants complete a video essay as part of their application, which offers very similar benefits at no additional cost. If you have questions about InitialView, reach out to admissions@simon.rochester.edu.

Visit the Admissions Overview page to review the application and decision notification deadlines for the Full-Time MS programs. 

First and foremost, do not rush to submit your application just to hit the earlier deadlines. We would rather see your most competitive application—including retaking the GMAT for a more competitive score or waiting until an anticipated promotion goes into effect to strengthen your résumé—even if this means that you wait to submit your application for a later deadline. Simon uses a waitlist to ensure that we can make admission offers across every application deadline. We do not have a specific number of available offers for any given application deadline; each year our offers vary depending on the quality and size of the applicant pool.

Second, review our deadlines and take into consideration all that will need to be done to submit your application by your targeted deadline, including receiving your copies of test scores and transcripts. Keep in mind that the timing for you to hear a decision from us varies depending on which deadline you choose—those who apply for an early deadline with a complete application are guaranteed to receive their decision sooner.

Third, merit-based scholarship consideration is available throughout all application rounds. As the application cycle progresses, available scholarship funds diminish; however, there will always be scholarship funds for highly qualified and competitive applicants

We process and review applications the moment they are received by our office. We never hold applications, which means that if you apply earlier in an application window, there’s a strong likelihood you will receive your decision sooner than the “guaranteed by” decision date for that round.

No. Fall is the only entry term for our full-time MBA and MS programs.

Official notification that a decision has been made is delivered by email to the email address on file in your application. Decisions are made and communicated by the notification date corresponding to the round in which your application was submitted and are accessible via the status page. It is important to keep your email address current. Any changes can be made from within the applicant status portal. 

All admission decisions are final. However, we welcome your application for next year. We encourage you to visit our online selection criteria and class profile so that you may compare your candidacy to those who have already enrolled at Simon. To improve your candidacy for next year, we recommend relevant work experience (including internships as well as part-time and full-time experience), a competitive academic profile, strong communication skills, and a demonstrated potential for leadership.

Transcripts must be in English or translated to English. The translated version should be certified and notarized or otherwise authenticated. Both the original and translated transcript should be uploaded to your application.

No. Applicants are not required to submit a WES Evaluation (or other credential evaluation). However, some applicants may choose to submit. 

Please note enrolling students who included a WES Evaluation (or other credential evaluation) with their application materials will be required to have their official credential evaluation(s) sent to our office in a sealed envelope to complete enrollment requirements.

No. Screenshots of transcripts are not accepted as supporting documentation. We require a scanned copy of your official transcript, issued by the institution attended. We cannot accept a copy of your online academic record.

Instructions for uploading transcripts: 

• Upload your school-issued transcript or marksheets, including proof of degree conferral (e.g., degree awarded listed on transcript, diploma, or graduation certificate) and grading scale for each institution attended.
• We will not accept or review online screenshots or online transcripts of your academic record. 
• Your name, the institution’s name, all course names, grades, conferral date (e.g. graduation date), and GPA scale should be legible.
• If your transcripts are not in English, you must also provide a certified English translation. 
• When scanning, scan both front and back pages of all documents; use gray scale if possible, otherwise use black and white.

If your degree conferral (e.g., degree awarded listed on transcript, diploma, or graduation certificate) is not listed on your transcript, in addition to uploading a scanned copy of your official transcript to the online application, you should also upload your diploma, making sure it includes your degree and the date of conferral.

No, do not upload these documents in the Academic History section of your application. While we do not require these types of documents as part of the application process, if you feel these materials positively support your application for full-time MBA study, we encourage you to include non-academic certifications and professional designations on the Professional Experience page under Certifications & Professional Designations.

You do not need to submit new grades. The Admissions Committee will contact you for an updated transcript if one is needed. If you receive an invitation to interview, you are welcome to share new grades at that time.