What value (if any) does having completed Harvard's HBX CORE have, as a soft in one's application to lawschools (T14)? Forum

[AmbitiousSoul]

Hey there everybody!

I'm seriously contemplating doing this online course, offered by Harvard Business Extension School, called the CORE (Credential of Readiness). For more information about this course, see http://hbx.hbs.edu/courses/core/

I wonder if having completed this, or having done especially well in it, would help my application in a non-negligible manner? From what I've heard--from persons, who have completed the course, it is extremely useful--especially for those, whose background in undergrad is not business-related. The more germane question though, as far as I'm concerned, is this: it's usefulness as a course aside, is one's having completed this likely to favorably predispose AdCom, while reviewing one's application (or in any case, more so, than in the absence of one's having completed this)?

On a related note, what is (or is likely to be) the perceived value of courses from NYIF, or other MOOCs (such as the Micromasters offered on EDX) etc. on an application? I understand, of course, that the lawschool admissions process being primarily number driven, these are not likely to be overriding factors in determining one's acceptance/rejection, from a particular lawschool. Yet, are they worth even pursuing--purely as regards their utility in ramping up one's CV?

Thanks!

[HLSstudent]

I have little to back this up with beyond gut feeling. With that said, I highly doubt it would have a positive impact for any T14's.

[grades??]

absolutely 0

[hamshotfirst]

The value of Harvard Extension schools is the actual skills it teaches you, along with the potential connections you can make through it. That's it. For example, my friend got a degree from the extension school in museum studies. The degree itself is basically worthless, but through his courses he got a lot of hands-on experience learning how to best handle artifacts and was forced to get an internship within the museum industry, which led to further hands-on experience. Those skills are what ended up getting him his current job within the industry, but the fact that he did courses with the Harvard Extension School, or even that he got a degree from there, did literally nothing to alter his chances of having his resume looked at twice. This is what he told me when i considered doing a course at the extension school.

The individual classes are, as you mentioned, great for people who want to learn something they don't know, but that's the extent of their applicable value. Doing a course at Harvard Extension School, quite honestly, isn't going to impress anyone. You could somehow incorporate it into your personal statement to demonstrate your dedication to honing your skills in a given subject, but that's about how useful it would be on a LS app. If you just want to learn something in the course and have the spare time/money, go for it! The extension school is great for learning new things, but don't go if you're only going so you can put the word Harvard on your application.

[AmbitiousSoul]

@hamshotfirst, Thanks for the detailed response. I was considering doing it because I feel that it would give me valuable skill sets. Having said that, I was curious as to whether it would have benefits, other than those which arise out of the course material. The HBX Core page lists that doing the course would be beneficial, in terms of strengthening one's application to graduate level programs.

1. College students and recent graduates looking to stand out from the crowd and impress during interviews
2. Those considering an MBA or other graduate program who would like to strengthen their application and be prepared on day one

Granted, that could just be PR, but I wanted to be doubly careful to not overestimate the usefulness of completing the course. Thank you for your response though!

[nubcs]

I think there would be little to no value added as a soft for law school applications. If anything it would be treated similarly to having a master's, but on a much lower scale due to it being less demanding than attaining a master's, and it seems that those as softs have very little weight in the application process.

That being said, I do think the course is well-executed, and it has helped in becoming more fluent in the language of business. I have also heard that it's a talking point during job interviews while in law school if you have it on your resume/CV. You also get a massive discount on the course if you're a HLS student, so there's that.

[foregetaboutdre]

I was actually part of CORe's inaugural class. It will have 0 effect on law school admissions (mine may have helped a bit because no one knew what the fuck it was) and may give you something to talk about during OCI interviews.

[hamshotfirst]

@hamshotfirst, Thanks for the detailed response. I was considering doing it because I feel that it would give me valuable skill sets. Having said that, I was curious as to whether it would have benefits, other than those which arise out of the course material. The HBX Core page lists that doing the course would be beneficial, in terms of strengthening one's application to graduate level programs.

1. College students and recent graduates looking to stand out from the crowd and impress during interviews
2. Those considering an MBA or other graduate program who would like to strengthen their application and be prepared on day one

Granted, that could just be PR, but I wanted to be doubly careful to not overestimate the usefulness of completing the course. Thank you for your response though!

That's pretty much PR. The extension school is great for learning new skills but it carries zero weight as a name. It will help you stand out in an interview in the sense that, if the course is a business course that involves learning Salesforce, you'll be able to say that you know Salesforce, or during an interview you can talk about the things you learned in the course and how that applies to the job/school you're applying for. I won't pretend to know exactly what MBA or masters programs entail or require, but having worked in marketing, it very much sounds like they're trying to imply that the degree is what makes you stand out, but what they ACTUALLY mean is that the skill is practical and useful, and the fact that you have it is what will make you stand out (especially that "be prepared on day one" bit).

Again, totally worth doing if you have the spare time/money, but the fact that you did it isn't going to give you a bump in consideration for LS.

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