The future of college applications: Powerpoint?

Parents Forum
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<p>They never stand still in Chicago, do they? And, this must be rather pleasing news in Redmond.</p>

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<p><a href=“http://www.chicagogsb.edu/fulltime/admissions/essay.aspx[/url]”>http://www.chicagogsb.edu/fulltime/admissions/essay.aspx&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Press release at</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.chicagogsb.edu/newsmedia/releases/2007-07-12_admission-slides.aspx[/url]”>http://www.chicagogsb.edu/newsmedia/releases/2007-07-12_admission-slides.aspx&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>I don’t think this is terribly unique. My kids learned powerpoint in tenth grade and since have used it routinely for presentations. Everybody uses Powerpoint in the business world and elsewhere. It’s a great communication tool, don’t you think?</p>

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<p>No one is presenting anything, they’re just printing out 4 8.5x11 images to look at. Why even tell kids what program they should use to make those images?</p>

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<p>I did not have access to PowerPoint in high school. This could be a minor disadvantage to lower-class students. Microsoft Office is expensive!</p>

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<p>Where we live, our kids have been making Powerpoint presentations since middle school or even elementary school. So, making one is not a big deal. I think, however, that the fact that the presentation would be printed, sort of limits what a Powerpoint presentation can be. I’m not so sure that a printed Powerpoint is so much different than some other hardcopy document a student could submit.</p>

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<p>Well, Open Office is free and it can produce .ppt files.</p>

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<p>If you desire to suck the life out of a presentation there is no better tool to use than Powerpoint. I have rarely seen a dynamic PP presentation and there are far better low tech technique to get information to an audience in an interesting and interactive way.</p>

<p>Most prisoners to a PP presentation cannot wait for the Q&A to begin.</p>

<p>Yes, our son knew about PP but preferred to use BK crowns and a music stand trident to present his project. Yep, he actually did that once in HS.</p>

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<p>I think that slide presentations can be great when done well, but usually are done very badly. A good presenter can use slides while still interacting.</p>

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<p>OMG I so agree with orignaloog. I think PP is the living hell of conferences and business meetings. I want to just stand up and shout - 10 slides and you are CUT OFF!!!</p>

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<p>Ahh PPT, where I used to work you had to get the critical information on the first slide, 3 back up for statistical detail. If you could not make your case on the first slide you needed to refine your issue and get the info more concise. The attention span of an exec :)</p>

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<p>I’ve seen one’s done with music and incredible graphics that are spellbinding.</p>

<p>However, many kids don’t know powerpoint at all and are computer illiterate. That is why some “creative person” at Chicago wants to see this. If you are entering an MBA program, they want computer literacy.</p>

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<p>I don’t believe that knowing how to use a particular proprietary GUI is what makes a person computer literate. But it would show them that you (or someone you bribed) know how to use that particular GUI, and maybe that’s what they care about. Or maybe they just think it’s ‘creative’.</p>

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<p>I hate, hate, hate PP as a method of presenting information during a lecture. I never use it. It’s ok for distributing information (printed slides), but with PP the screen becomes the center of attention, not the lecturer who often does nothing more than read what’s on the screen.</p>

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<p>I used PP to do the sports programs at my kids’ school, and they turned out really well.</p>

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<p>Which is why I hate to see admissions head down the PowerPoint path. It will only expand the admissions arms race into a new arena where applicants will compete to out razzle-dazzle one another with their slides. Also, PP will provide a new medium for applicants to try to hide or make up for weaknesses in their qualifications with the special effects on their slides. </p>

<p>Another triumph of form over substance.</p>

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<p>Coureur - your objection re to the sounds and graphics is why it is being limited to hardcopy.</p>

<p>However, using music and graphics is a real talent, which any graphic artist, musician and web
designer will agree. These are not bad skills for an MBA applicant to have, in my opinion.</p>

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<p>I have taken classes that required power points. Most all of them stink. Fonts too small, cheap clip art, plagiarized images from the internet, standard templates,. . . </p>

<p>I think you can learn a lot about a person’s creativity by seeing how they make a powerpoint. And, it is not all about using animated graphics!</p>

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<p>The creativity comes in when combined with other tools, like photoshop. You can do some neat stuff, but I can see where it leaves poorer students out in the cold. The better your tools, the better your presentation is going to be.</p>

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<p>[I&lt;/a&gt; would say Yes](<a href=“http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/ptech/12/30/byrne.powerpoint.ap/]I”>http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/ptech/12/30/byrne.powerpoint.ap/)</p>

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<p>However i like HyperCard</p>

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<p>C’mon. The programs aren’t that expensive. People shouldn’t be cheap about their educations. I see plenty of people wearing $100 tennis shoes that are “poorer students.” You can get nifty graphics software for that $100. Sometimes, it is about choices. </p>

<p>Also, students can often buy cheaper versions of software with proof of their student status.</p>