MBA program will award full scholarship for best application tweet

If MBA classes can be offered entirely through Facebook, then it should come as no great surprise to see application essays delivered through Twitter. Sure enough, the University of Iowa’s Tippie College of Business is now in the midst of a contest through which it will award one full financial award package to the student who makes the best 140-character pitch. Launched at the beginning of July, the effort invited applicants for 2011 admission to respond on Twitter to the question, “What makes you an exceptional Tippie MBA candidate and full-time MBA hire? Creativity encouraged!” With a deadline of last Friday, entries were allowed to connect to blog entries, full resumes or expanded talking points elsewhere on the Web. Only US residents or permanent residents could participate, and they must still meet standard admissions criteria as well. The winner will be announced on August 4th and will receive a financial award package valued at USD 37,240. Colleen Downie, senior assistant dean of the full-time Tippie MBA program, explains: “Social media has been shown to be a powerful tool for business communication, so it makes sense that our applicants demonstrate an ability to use it. This is a way for prospective students to show us that they embrace innovation and are comfortable using the kind of media and technology driving so many changes in business.” There’s no doubt contests and social media go hand in hand, but this is the first time we’ve seen an effort like this in the academic world. Other educators around the globe: how about you? Spotted by: Katherine Noyes