by Carlotta Mast

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Technology is transforming the MBA admissions process. Prospects can now apply and review the status of their applications—all online. They can use the Web to download information about hundreds of MBA programs and chat electronically with admissions professionals, students, and other applicants from all over the world.

But while technology seems to be making life easier for applicants, it’s proving to be more of a mixed bag for MBA admissions professionals.

Columbia Business School’s Linda Meehan offers this case in point: When Columbia enabled prospects to apply online several years ago, people were confused. Rather than just submitting one online application, many prospects actually sent three: one via Columbia’s Web site, one via the postal service, and one via the vendor that accepts online applications on the school’s behalf.

Needless to say, weeding out duplicate applications and determining the actual number of applicants became “a real challenge,” says Meehan, assistant dean and executive director of admissions and financial aid.

Technology may have temporarily complicated some admissions processes, but it has also enabled admissions professionals to communicate more efficiently and effectively with applicants from San Francisco to Sydney through the use of e-mail and the Web.

In addition, online applications, which some schools now use exclusively, have made it easier for admissions professionals to track candidates throughout the application process. And because they no longer have to spend a lot of time entering data from paper applications into a database, admissions professionals can focus on answering questions and providing guidance to applicants.

“Technology has freed us up to be more candidate-oriented,” says Brook Hardwick, associate director of admissions at IESE at the University of Navarra in Barcelona.

Hardwick is quick to note, however, that technology has also increased candidate expectations. “They constantly bombard us with questions,” she says. “And they are looking for more immediate responses.”

“The incredible influx of [applicant] e-mails is actually unmanageable,” agrees Jett Pihakis, director of domestic admissions for the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley. “How can we possibly answer the volume of e-mails that are coming in and give individuals good customer service when there are not enough people to even come close to responding?”

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