patrickpui wrote:
Hi Pual,
How old is too old or how much experience is too much (in terms of chance) of getting into the top 10 or top 5 programs? There are many talks about school trending toward "younger" candidates/applicants. How do you see that play out in terms of positioning for older applicants? Is age also a bad mark for older applicants who wish to switch career or get some mega boost in career progression.
What school are more open to "older" or "more experience" applicants? What school are "young" friendily? How do you see this trend play out?
P
Patrick,
As a general rule, 35 years old is "too old" for the top programs *if* you are not an above average applicant. Superior applicants 35 and older with excellent reasons for needing a full-time MBA will be admitted by top programs.
Generally, European schools have higher average student age ranges. Some American and Canadian schools that are clearly more open to older applicants include Indiana, Queen's, Ivey, Purdue, and Duke. Aside from HBS and Stanford, schools that welcome younger (including those with 1 year or less of work experience) aplicants include Cornell, CMU, Notre Dame, Pittsbugh, and Rochester.
Good luck,