Harvard Changes 2+2 App Process for Next Year

Harvard Business School announced today that it’s changing the deadline process for its early-career deferred MBA program from two deadlines to one.

Here’s their announcement:

“2+2 applicants will have ONE DEADLINE (April 3) and ONE DECISION NOTIFICATION (mid-May). That means no more picking rounds for college seniors. No more worry about ‘which round is best?’. You will all be reviewed together in April. Why? This way we get to see fall term grades and activities. And we can review the entire pool at once – a luxury we don’t have in the (much larger) work-experienced pool. So if you’d like to submit earlier than April, that’s fine. But this isn’t a “rolling” process so your application won’t be considered until the April deadline. We haven’t finalized interview dates yet (it’s a year away!!) but they will most likely be in late April/early May with a notification in mid-May.

Just a refresher on what will stay the same: 2+2 is a vehicle for college seniors (and master’s degree students without full-time work experience) to APPLY to Harvard Business School. It is NOT a separate educational experience. The positive outcome for a 2+2 applicant is a guaranteed spot in a future class contingent upon gaining employment for at least two years before matriculation. Many participants elect to work for three years and some for four. You’ve heard us say this before and we’ll say it again: 2+2 probably should be re-named “Flex+2”. Maybe we’ll do that. Your plans for employment need to be approved by us but we encourage a wide range of career exploration.”