CMU Tepper MBA Recommendation Questions
How Many Letters of Recommendation Does CMU Tepper Require?
CMU Tepper requires one letter of recommendation. If you’ve been employed in a full time capacity for a period of more than 6 months, your current manager should ideally be your recommender. In case you are unable to request an LoR from your current manager, your next best alternatives are your former direct manager, or a senior colleague who can provide the school with insights about your candidacy. In this case, you must also write a statement of explanation in your application.
Like most schools, CMU Tepper uses the GMAC Letters of Recommendation to frame its Letter of Recommendation questions.
CMU Tepper MBA Recommendation Questions 2024-2025
Recommender Information & Ratings
Section 1: Recommender Information
Context of Relationship
Nature of relationship
How long have you known the applicant?
How long have you known the applicant?
During which period of time have you had the most frequent contact with the applicant?
If you are affiliated with the Tepper School of Business or Carnegie Mellon University, please select the option that most closely matches.
Section 2: Ratings
In this section, you will find 12 competencies and character traits that contribute to successful leadership. The competencies and character traits are grouped into five categories:
Achievement
Influence
People
Personal Qualities
Cognitive Abilities
Achievement
1. Initiative: Acts ahead of need/anticipates problems
No basis for judgment
Reluctant to take on new tasks; waits to be told what to do; defers to others
Willing to step in and take charge when required to do so
Takes charge spontaneously when problem needs attention
Volunteers for new work challenges; proactively puts in extra effort to accomplish critical or difficult tasks
Proactively seeks high-impact projects; steps up to challenges even when things are not going well
2. Results Orientation: Focuses on and drives toward delivering on goals, objectives, and performance improvement
No basis for judgment
Focuses on fulfilling activities at hand; unsure how work relates to goals
Takes actions to overcome obstacles to achieve goals
Independently acts to exceed goals and plans for contingencies
Documents activities and outcomes to learn from past; introduces incremental improvements to raise the effectiveness of team
Invents new approaches with measurably better results; works to deliver best-in-class performance improvements
Influence
3. Communication, Professional Impression & Poise: Delivers messages and ideas in a way that engages an audience and achieves buy-in; uses listening and other attending behaviors to reach shared understanding; remains calm and measured even in time of crisis or conflict
No basis for judgment
Struggles to get point across; neglects to understand audience’s input or perspective; lacks confidence and gets flustered under pressure
Works to get point across; acknowledges feedback; reframes statements when necessary to make them clearer; speaks politely; remains composed in known circumstances
Present views clearly and logically structures content for a broad audience; listens and responds to feedback; prepares in advance to appear confident; leaves a positive and professional impression; responds confidently in unfamiliar situations
Uses tailored language that appeals to specific groups; restates what others have said to check for understanding; comes across as confident; responds rapidly and strongly to crisis; looked to for advice and guidance
Structures content for senior-level meetings; maintains composure when challenged; solicits opinions and concerns, discusses them openly and adjusts communication; remains cool under pressure during conflict or crisis; channels emotion into positive action
4. Influence and Collaboration: Engages and works with people over whom one has no direct control
No basis for judgment
Does not seek input and perspective of others
Accepts input from others and engages them in problem solving
Seeks first to understand perspectives of others; takes actions to gain their support for ideas and initiatives
Uses tailored approaches to connect with others, influence, and achieve results
Uses tailored influence approaches to create and leverage a network of strategically chosen individuals to improve collective outcomes
People
5. Respect for Others: Acknowledges the value of others’ views and actions
No basis for judgment
Unwilling to acknowledge others’ points of view
Open to considering others’ views when confronted or offered
Invites input from others because of expressed respect for them and their views
Praises people publicly for their good actions; ensures that others’ opinions are heard before their own
Uses empathy and personal experience to resolve conflicts and foster mutual respect; reinforces respect with public praise when individuals solicit and use input from others
6. Team Leadership: Manages and empowers a team of formal or informal direct reports, including virtual teams
No basis for judgment
Struggles to delegate effectively (e.g. micromanages); does not organize activities or provide appropriate information to complete tasks
Assigns tasks and tells people what to do; checks when they are done
Solicits ideas and perspectives from the team; structures activities; holds members accountable
Actively engages the team to develop plans and resolve issues through collaboration; shows the impact of individual/team contributions
Recruits others into duties or roles based on insight into individual abilities; rewards those who exceed expectations; provides strong organizational support
7. Developing Others: Helps people develop their performance and ability over time
No basis for judgment
Focuses only on one’s own growth; critical of others’ efforts to develop
Encourages people to develop; points out mistakes to help people develop and praises them for improvements
Gives specific positive and negative behavioral feedback to support the development of others
Provides overarching practical guiding principles and recommendations that are applicable in multiple situations to direct or focus efforts on specific areas of development
Identifies potential in others; inspires others to develop by providing feedback, mentoring/coaching, and identifying new growth opportunities as well as supporting their effort to change
Personal Qualities
8. Trustworthiness/ Integrity: Acts consistently in line with or follows explicit values, beliefs, or intentions
No basis for judgment
Follows the crowd; takes path of least resistance; gives in under pressure
Acts consistently with stated intentions, values, or beliefs when it is easy to do so
Acts spontaneously and consistently with stated intentions, values, or beliefs despite opposition
Initiates actions based on values or beliefs even though the actions may come with reputational risk; demonstrates the values of the team or organization publicly
Demonstrates high personal integrity even at personal cost; holds people accountable to the team or organizational values
9. Adaptability/ Resilience: Adapts to changing demands and circumstances without difficulty. Maintains calm optimism in the face of challenge, problems, or apparent failure
No basis for judgment
Prefers existing ways of doing things; fears failure; becomes anxious under challenging situations
Adapts to new methods and procedures when required to do so; remains calm in unfamiliar situations until confronted with obstacle
Champions adoption of new initiatives and processes; exhibits level-headedness in most environments including challenging ones; persists until obstacle is overcome
Seeks out disruptions as an opportunity for improvement; remains optimistic and forward-looking in difficult situations that may result in failure
Energized by projects with high uncertainty but potential for high reward; seeks to be the first into unknown or unfamiliar situations; welcomes learning opportunities created by failure; learns from mistakes and rebounds quickly from setbacks
10. Self Awareness: Aware of and seeks out additional input on own strengths and weaknesses
No basis for judgment
Lacks awareness of how he/she is perceived; denies or offers excuses when confronted
Acknowledges fault or performance problem when confronted with concrete example or data
Describes own key strengths and weaknesses accurately; welcomes feedback from others and discusses opportunities to change with select individuals
Actively seeks out feedback to explicitly address desired improvement areas or build on strengths; explores reasons for problems openly, including own faults
Seeks out challenging and potentially risky experiences to improve; identifies and engages with resources—people, processes, or content—to maximize strengths or mitigate weaknesses
Cognitive
11. Problem Solving: Frames problems, analyzes situations, identifies key issues, conducts analysis on the issues, and produces acceptable solution
No basis for judgment
Avoids problems; when faced with problems, sticks to what worked before, or chooses an obvious path
Offers solutions when the risk is low; focuses on immediate, short-term implications instead of the big picture
Looks beyond the obvious; identifies and focuses on the critical information needed to understand a problem, identifies root cause(s), and comes up with reasonable solutions
Gathers and analyzes key information using complex methods or several layers deep; integrates perspectives from a variety of sources to arrive at unexpected but practical and effective solutions
Applies logic to break complex problems down into manageable parts or sub-problems; solves tough and interconnected problems and can explain how the pieces are connected
12. Strategic Orientation: Thinks beyond one’s span of control and into the future to reshape the approach or scope of work
No basis for judgment
Focuses on completing work without understanding implications
Understands immediate issues or implications of work or analysis
Develops insights or recommendations within area of responsibility that have improved near-term business performance
Develops insights or recommendations within area of responsibility that have shaped team/organization strategy and will have impact on long-term business performance
Develops insights or recommendations beyond area of responsibility with impact on long-term business strategy and performance
(Optional) Is there anything about your competency ratings on which you’d like to comment?
Based on your professional experience, how do you rate this candidate compared to her/his peer group?
Unable to assess
Below average
Average
Very good (well above average)
Excellent (top 10%)
Outstanding (top 5%)
The best encountered in my career
Overall, I …
Do not recommend this applicant
Recommend this applicant, with reservations
Recommend this applicant
Enthusiastically recommend this applicant
CMU Tepper MBA Recommendation Questions
Please answer the following questions and provide specific examples where possible.
Please provide a brief description of your interaction with the applicant and, if applicable, the applicant’s role in your organization. (Recommended word count: 50 words)
How does the performance of the applicant compare to that of other well-qualified individuals in similar roles? (E.g. what are the applicant’s principal strengths?) (Recommended word count: 500 words)
Describe the most important piece of constructive feedback you have given the applicant. Please detail the circumstances and the applicant’s response. (Recommended word count: 500 words)
Analysis
Ratings
The CMU Tepper Letter of Recommendation form asks your recommender to rate you on 12 broad criteria that evaluate your ability to thrive in the MBA classroom.
Your recommender’s ratings give the school an accurate picture of your strengths in specific skill areas. That’s why you should guide your recommender to think deeply about these ratings and not simply mark everything as “Truly Exceptional”. The school may think that your recommender doesn’t know you well enough to fairly assess your strengths and weaknesses, which could weaken your overall recommendation. So, choose the highest rating for 8-9 skills, the second highest for 1-2 skills, and the third highest for 1, to mark any areas for improvement in your profile.
Recommendation Questions
Q1. How does the performance of the applicant compare to that of other well-qualified individuals in similar roles? (E.g. what are the applicant’s principal strengths?) (Recommended word count: 500 words)
Your recommender is asked to evaluate your performance, aptitude, skills, and leadership qualities in comparison to your peers working in similar roles.
Our advice is for your recommender to offer 2-3 examples that each illustrate a specific strength or quality. This allows the school to assess your candidacy based on concrete evidence (even better if this is quantified by your recommender). As they write about these strengths, a good rule of thumb is to make sure they’re aligned with the school’s values. Here’s what CMU Tepper is looking for in their MBA candidates:
Emotionally intelligent and empathetic
Interdisciplinary collaboration
Bold and experimental thinkers
Innovative and hand-on learners
Use the SCAR methodology (Situation, Challenge, Action and Result) to structure the examples and make sure your recommender is aligning them with your target school. Reiterate to them the importance of quantifying results to showcase the impact and outcomes of the projects you've participated in.
Q2. Describe the most important piece of constructive feedback you have given the applicant. Please detail the circumstances and the applicant’s response. (Recommended word count: 500 words)
Recommenders often find it challenging to choose the weakness they should discuss in this answer. Don’t ask them to share an unconvincing weakness, or a strength masked as a weakness. Dig through your performance reviews or evaluations, or speak to your manager to find a real weakness that they gave you feedback on during your time working together. It should present you as someone open to feedback, who can self-reflect and work on improving themselves. Guide your recommender to provide examples of how you worked on the feedback and the changes you made to improve.
To frame the answer, guide your recommender to use the SCAR method to structure their example. Since the school is looking to build a cohort of diverse individuals driven to create an impact on the business world and solve real life challenges, try to demonstrate a fit with these values, keeping it consistent with your written application.
Our complete Recommender Guide course on MBAConsultant.com has all the advice (and sample letters based on real applicants) you need to create a compelling letter of recommendation. Check it out here.
Want personalized support for your letters of recommendation? Book a chat with us today!
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