Microsoft redesigns iPod packaging

This is quite funny, check it out!

Found Footage: Microsoft redesigns the iPod packaging

From 1/7 to 1/4

While a Wharton interview invite is heartening and I am certainly excited and optimistic about possibly attending the school, a quick glance at some stats and conversations with current students revealed some hard (even harsh) facts.

• The Indian applicant pool is as competitive as it can get. Wharton being perceived as Indian/techie friendly encourages many Indians to apply but there are only so many spots.
• Wharton interviews more applicants (as opposed to some other top schools), so getting an interview invite even though a positive sign, still leaves quite a margin to be covered to get an admit.
• There is this theory (or rumor) on BW that Wharton extends interview invites even to candidates who are considered what is called as 'Dead Meat." That is Wharton has almost decided against this candidate but still wants to interview them. In other words, even a super star interview wouldnt do much to get this applicant in at Wharton. I dont quite get why this could be true and what the point is but something I came across on BW. I would imagine Wharton sees potential in an applicant's file to offer an interview invitation.
• After submitting the application there is a 1/6 or 1/7 chance that an applicant will get in. After receiving an interview invite, those odds improve to about 1/4.

So only 1 out of every 4 interviewed candidates will hear the good news from Wharton on March 16th. Now, none of these are things I didnt already know before applying to Wharton but like they say, it takes time to sink in.

Clustr Maps and Four Things

This Clustr Maps thing is cool. It gets updated everyday and displays the geographic location of visitors to my blog. A simple concept but nevertheless interesting to see a graphical depiction of visitor locations.

Apparently playing tag is another cool (or hot) thing in the MBA blogging community. Looks like everybody I know has been tagged already so here I go -

Four jobs I've had in my life:

• Faculty / Teacher
• Consultant (IT)
• Consultant (Marketing Strategy)
• Photographer

Four movies I can watch over and over:

• Lord of the Rings
• T2
• Die Hard series
• Andaz Apna Apna

Four places I have lived in:

• West Bengal, India
• Uttar Pradesh, India
• Bihar, India
• New Jersey, USA

Four TV shows I love to watch:

• National Geographic Channel
• Friends
• Seinfeld
• CSI

Four places I have been on vacation:

• France
• Southwest USA
• Rajasthan, India
• Rocky Mountains, USA

Four of my favorite dishes:

• Rogan josh (or most Indian/Arabic lamb dishes)
• Tandoori chicken
• New York cheesecake
• Philly cheesesteak

Four websites I visit daily:

• Google
• Yahoo News
• Crickinfo
• Times of India

Four places I would rather be right now:

• Business school
• Anywhere in Europe
• With my wife
• California (I hate the east coast winters)

Four bloggers I am tagging:

• This is a tough one, everyone I know seems to be tagged already!

Movement at last

After playing the waiting game for quite some time, there is finally some movement on the application front - an interview invitation from Wharton. I wont look into it too much as many interviewed applicants at Wharton dont make it in finally but it is the next step in the process and confirms that I am still in the game, which is always heartening to know.

"The Admissions Committee would like to discuss your application in more detail through an evaluative interview." Thats what my status page says although I thought I read somewhere that the Wharton interview is completely blind, in other words the interview has nothing to do with the application but is based more on the applicant's resume. I may be wrong but atleast I can pretend that I am looking for something tangible on the BW forums now.