AAR: Dallin Rosdahl (Army to HBS)

I found Service to School in early 2013. I was deployed to Afghanistan, and had been thinking about getting serious about separating from the Army to attend business school. I had known for a while that I would get out as I had always wanted to work in finance. But as I began to prepare for the GMAT, I realized that I really didn’t have a clue where I wanted to go, or how I could go from sitting in my CHU in Afghanistan to being a successful applicant.

Luckily, a good friend of mine from West Point reached out to offer his hand. He told me about Service to School and offered his help by being my S2S Ambassador. He had recently been accepted to HBS, and was excited to help me navigate the process.

I had purchased the GMAC study guides for the GMAT prior to my deployment, but my study really hadn’t gotten me anywhere. We quickly drew up a plan for me to take a prep class when I returned from my deployment. By the fall of 2013 I had successfully conquered the GMAT with an acceptable score, and we quickly moved on to school selection and networking. As I began creating my list of target schools my ambassador put me in touch with veteran students at each school through the S2S network. I cannot overemphasize how helpful this was in the process as I was quickly able to assess my fit with each program while gaining valuable insight into each school.

Over the next six months I visited each school that I was planning on applying to, every time being greeted by the various veterans clubs on campus that I had been put in touch with through S2S. With my list of schools in hand, I began my applications in the summer of 2014. I applied to four schools round one (HBS, Wharton, Booth, and Tuck) and Columbia Business School (rolling admission). My ambassador kept in check by providing constructive feedback to my essays while putting me in touch with veterans at each school that could provide additional feedback on everything from essays to my resume.

When interview invitations came out (I was invited to interview at all of the previously mentioned schools) the relationships that I had been able to build through my ambassador the year prior enabled me to conduct critically important mock interviews as I prepared for the different interview formats. After a stressful month of interviews and then admissions decisions, I am thrilled to report that I was admitted to Harvard Business School and the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Having been accepted to my two “dream” schools I quickly withdrew my applications to Booth, Tuck, and Columbia. After carefully considering both options, I have decided to matriculate to HBS this coming fall.

I owe so much to Service to School; the holistic approach that my ambassador took in my admissions journey enabled me to take deliberate steps over the past two years that ultimately resulted in success. Thank you Service to School!