How Important is Age when Applying to B Schools

Age is not a disqualifying factor, but once you hit about 30 and beyond it becomes increasingly more difficult to attend the typical 2 year full-time MBA programs. There are a few things for you to consider:

1. Have you thought about an executive program? These are directed towards individuals that have 10+ years of work experience, and can still be very prestigious
2. Have you thought about a part-time program? There are plenty of very strong part time programs, and often people have an average of 7 or so years of experience (this is much higher than full time programs)
3. Why do you want an MBA? To the outsider who is the typical 25 year old applicant, it would sound to them that you are already successful. Manager of 10 individuals... so why an MBA? Adcoms don't want to think that you are just going to an MBA b/c you've hit a roadblock in your career. They want individuals with lots of upside potential, and that's why younger strong applicants have an advantage. So what's motivating you? And how will that be looked upon?
4. Age is definitely something that Adcoms will look at, and most likely something that you will have to address very well in your applicantions. You have to decide why an MBA will still be benficial for you at 33, and what your exit opportunities will be once you leave school. Be realistic. If you are trying to do Investment Banking, it's going to be extremely challenging to land an entry level MBA job with no exerience at 33. So when you tell your story, you have to have a realistic growth plan that will show the Adcoms that you know where you've been and where you're going