How To Stand Out from the Herd - when you can't change who you are—how do you make your application something more than just one of many?

1. Stop Stereotyping Yourself

2. Mixing Up the Essay

3. Connect With People, Not Web Sites

4. More Than Grades and Scores

"...But applying to business school is like building a house. Your scores are only one pillar—if it doesn't have the other pillars it doesn't stand up properly."

...For international students like Mansukhani, being from a country where large numbers of students are also seeking a U.S. b-school education can make it more difficult for your application to stand out from the pile in the admissions office, even with top-notch test scores. And it's not just where you're from, it's also what you've done that can put you into the one-of-a-crowd category. There are plenty of applicants with backgrounds in consulting and banking, In other words, it's not that you're not right for business school. For business schools seeking diversity in their classes, you're too right.