Ask Prep MBA

For those targeting HBS, I thought I would post this recent article from Business Week on the application changes and whether or not you should write the essay. I was quoted on some aspects, but I'm happy to send any GMAT Club members my full written comments on HBS' new question. Email me for the full piece.

https://www.businessweek.com/articles/20 ... onal-essay

Alex

What if someone at the age of 25years with no relevant work ex wants to make it into the ivy league. He is an Artist and has done theater shows(Stage/Street acting) from past 4 years. MBA with this profile looks impossible and stupid. So he started preparing for GMAT and got 720+ in mocks, he wants to take GMAT but still thinking to pay around 15k INR for the exam is it worth to take a shot?

He also dosent have good grades in graduation(44% out of 100) and has done it through distance learning, moreover he belongs to a below middle class family where people need good and extra ordinary reasons to study . Reason for MBA- Has learned to work hard in those 4 years and wants to get a good job and settle down.Now what should he do? Has anyone converted any top US bschool with this kind of background??

10th= 50%
12th= 66%
Graduation= 44% Bachelor in commerce Pass( Two reasons for doing grad. through distance learning one poor score so unable to make a cut in good government colleges, had no money to study in Private universities).

From school days he acted on number of street shows,so even after graduation he persuaded the same profession.But day by day its becoming difficult to survive as the per month income is too low.

Any suggestion/guidance would be appreciated.

Thanks

Planet Earth,

Though having MBA ambitions is admirable, I would suggest that you put your energies towards finding a great job and getting some business experience. To attract an ad com and also in order to get the most out of your studies, I think that working first will help you clarify your path and introduce you to the concepts you will see in the classroom. Almost nobody gets in with no formal business experience. Getting 720 would be a great help, particularly given your undergraduate record (which is an issue), but that alone will likely not get you real consideration. Taking your acting experiences and using them to work at a talent agency, the screen actors’ guild, or a theatre company on the business side would be good examples of moving more towards relevant experience. These are meant as examples, and perhaps you want to change directions completely.

You are still only 25 and can apply in 2-3 years after you cut your teeth. Much lower ranked schools may give you a look but I expect the "Ivy League" will need more than your acting experience. Of course you may not have included on here your entire resume, but I think my advice is directionally sound.

Good Luck!

Thank you for your responce.

I would like to start a production company and a Theater group basically who can work for Social cause(NGO), it will be more of taking government projects.

MBA will add a value in my resume moreover it will give me an exposure to the international market to get connected with right network.

Secondly as far as the diversity in the class is concern i will be the right candidate almost all the students will learn from me.For example i am very extrovert, expressive , how to attract people who are walking on road etc. Most importantly i have worked for many social causes just to make people more aware and attentive without any money.

Finally yes i want to do mba to earn money because a project wont just work on willingness it would need money.\\

And yes i understand ivey would be difficult, i am open to quality programs and not just ivey.

Also if i start working for 2-3 years now adcom wont consider what i did in last 4 years as i did theater but its not there on paper.

Thank you would love to hear your response.

Hi Prep MBA,
Can you provide info on European MBA?

Look forward to hear from you.

Hi Alex,
I thought it'd be helpful for you if I come up with some specific questions on European MBA...

So, my questions are :
1.Most of them are 1 year program as you know...so,should one consider these for career change (re: Industry change not job function change)?

2.Could you please let me know like INSEAD & IE whether LBS,Said & Judge also have rolling admissions and two intakes (for example, one in September 2014 and other in January 2015 for INSEAD)...?

3. LBS,INSEAD are top ones but in global b-school rankings (FT) b-schools like IE,Said & Judge are placed ahead of many top 20 US schools like Ross,Darden,Anderson (for IE only),McCombs...How do you see that for an International applicant & career changer?

4..For these European schools, is it always better to apply in R1 (if some of them don't have rolling admissions and/or two intakes) rather than in R2 like US schools...?

Would really appreciate some deep insights from you on these.

Looking forward to hear from you.

Debayan

Hello again. I think you contacted me off line for some other information.

What is most critical for you is to decide what you want. It's hard to decide between programs without ranking what matters most to you. I work with Euro schools every year and they can be great options for those with a bit more work experience (given some of the age parameters in the American process) and for those who want to get back to their careers quickly. I just had a highly qualified US applicant get into INSEAD, and she could have gotten into a Wharton or Kellogg but she has an idea for a business and just wants to get to it after some entrepreneurial training.

If you are a career changer, then the one year program will give you less time and opportunity to network, get summer work and marinate over your plan of attack. And it also matters where you ultimately want to work---Europe or the US? Or Asia? It's hard to compare a Darden to a Judge for that reason.

So make those critical decisions about 2 year vs 1, and geographical career interest and then all else will be much easier.

Good Luck!

Hi Alex,
I'm more keen on European MBA but skeptical how career changers would suit the 1 yr European MBA...so what's your opinion whether INSEAD/LBS/IE/Said/Judge can offer that opportunity in their 1 yr program if it's both industry and job function change...?

P.S: You're absolutely right..I'd get back to you by the end of this week hopefully for the reason I contacted you off-line... Actually work has been very crazy back in office and keeping me down for this month...but things have improved quite a bit now...at least again for next few days

Debayan,

Sure no worries. We all have to balance busy work and personal lives.

In terms of the Euro schools, why are you keen on them versus the US programs? Do you want to build your career there?

Since you are making inquiries about both sets of programs, apply to a slate of schools with some from each. Once you put hard work into 4-5 schools, the effort per incremental school does go down given the thematic and strategic overlaps. So maybe you will apply to 7-8 schools over the course of the app season:)

Alex

Hey Alex,
I'm inclined over 1 yr UK/European program as simply I'd be spending less as compared to US 2-yr MBA programs.So,this the primary reason or one of the most important considerations for this preference-less expensive/quicker ROI than US MBA but skeptical how career changers would suit the 1 yr European MBA as mentioned in my post...!

Any thoughts?

Hi GMAT Club,

For those of you writing your resumes, here is an article meant to help you critically evaluate your second draft:

sell-yourself-with-your-resume-156170.html

Good Luck!

Hi Alex, was wondering if you could give me a bit of an evaluation

My profile:

B.S. Mechanical Engineering, cum laude
University of California Irvine
Overall GPA: 3.56
Engineering GPA: 3.74
Spend 1 semester studying engineering at Hong Kong University as part of a global exchange program

GRE Exam: 167/170 Quantitative (95%ile) and 163/170 Verbal (93%ile)
GMAT: --- currently in prep period, ETS compares my GRE score to a 740 on the GMAT ---

Work Experience - 2 years

I work at a boutique, global management consulting firm focused in major engineering industries such as Automotive, Aviation, and Telecom. We offer services ranging from engineering solutions (system validation, product development etc.) to program management, supplier management, and classical strategy consulting.

I started at this company straight out of college at the lowest rung of the organization: Test Engineer. I wrote and executed test cases, fairly mindless and boring tasks; I knew from the start that I wanted more. I began to push my boundaries by getting involved with the product innovation group within the organization, and it was there that I pioneered automated test software applications within the company, leading to increased business at key clients. Within 1.5 years I transitioned from Test Engineer > Program Management Support > Product Manager > Project Lead for two projects back to back, one of which was in the 6 figure revenue range.

Extra Curricular:

Co-founded an online food-delivery startup targeted towards college students. I was in charge of sourcing and managing developers, building requirements, UX and wireframes. I'll be candid in saying that it failed in less than a year, with 0 revenue. Still, there were a lot of valuable lessons from that project.

My Goals:

Ideally, I'd like to start my MBA Fall 2014, at Stanford. Stanford is my dream school for a few reasons: they offer a joint MS in Computer Science and MBA program that would be perfect for my long term goals (founder, CXO or other leadership at a technology startup), the program has great global experience opportunities, and they are located in the heart of the silicon valley, where the majority of the technology innovation happens. I'm also looking at Berkeley.

I'm open to other top 20 MBA programs worldwide, but I'd like to stay with schools that have a pedigree of being technology oriented as opposed to banking, finance or marketing.

Are my goals reasonable? What are some schools that I should look at? Any advice or tips on ways to strengthen my application would be appreciated. Do I need to get involved with community service or non-profit? Is my work experience compelling enough to justify the short length?

Again, thanks for reading and I appreciate any feedback you might have.

Tgarg,


Thanks for being patient. You have a very solid background---a competitive gpa in a tough major, a strong GRE, and clear progression at an industry-aligned consulting services firm.

If things are going so well at your company, what else can unfold there over the next year? Could you be promoted again, could you be assigned to more of strategy vs testing/software project to round out your profile..? These are key questions as you decide whether to apply this year or next. Reapplication is not always an easy thing to do one year after, so you want to make a sound decision. And from your research you probably know that though some folks do get into the top schools with 2 years at application, it is less frequent than other "segments".

The start up, though it failed, certainly shows off your risk taking. And yes if you apply next season, getting involved with a charity/volunteer/hobby ASAP is a good idea. You don't want to start something too close to the application season.

In terms of your career goals, they are not well defined yet. Many people can say they want to be a tech founder, but is there an area of tech that most interests you, is there a particular business problem you want to solve, is there a tech company you admire for post mba employment....??? You will need to present some specifics.

Sure, Stanford is most everybody's dream school these days:) Haas is hard to get into as well but aligned to your interests. Ross also has an established tech focus so you may want to look there. Many of the top schools are embracing tech (like Wharton having folks spend time on their West Coast campus) so don't rule out some great schools because they are not synoymous with tech just yet. You want to look at schools also in terms of where they will be in 5-10 years and not just now. Tech is where the whole economy is headed.

For you the critical issue is MBA now or later, and what you can make happen at your job (and the impact on your LORs) in the next 1-1.5 years is probably the most important factor.

Hope that helps move the conversation forward.


Alex

GMAT Club,

Here is a recent article on MBA Interviewing for Internationals from US News & World Report, for which I was interviewed. Interviews are not here yet, but they are coming soon!

https://www.usnews.com/education/best-gr ... -candidate

Hi Alex,

Could you please give me your opinion on my profile for my target schools?

Age: 29
Work Experience: Current- Equity Analyst- research the consumer staples sector for a large buy side investment management firm think (Fidelity, Wellington, T Rowe, American Funds) for the past two years. Previously was in a research support role supporting portfolio managers for non-stock research and before that traded international equities and currencies.
GMAT: Haven't taken yet
College: University of Vermont- 2.7 GPA Business Admin/Finance, had 3 really bad semesters 1 my uncle died, and the other 2 my mom spent a lot of time in ICU with an undiagnosed kidney ailment, I was young and incapable of dealing with my personal issues and school at the same time, I just didn’t go to class, without the my other 5 semesters my GPA averages over 3.3. I knew my low GPA and non-target school would hurt me so I enrolled at Boston College for their MSF program, graduated last year with a 3.75 GPA.

Extra-Curricular: Treasurer for my fraternity, managed a 200k budget. 100 hours of community service in college. I plan to get involved with a local charity to volunteer now that I have a lot of free time back in my life; I just finished the CFA program.

Certifications: CFA

Targets:
Reaches: Harvard and Wharton
Main Targets: CBS, Tuck, and Booth
Safety: Cornell

Timeframe: 2014-2015

Post MBA Goal: Become a portfolio manager at mutual fund company or analyst at a leading hedge fund.

What GMAT score range do I need to be in to even be considered at any of these schools? I know each of these schools are very difficult to get in to especially with my poor undergrad. Harvard and Wharton are probably extreme reaches for me and I am more realistically hoping for Columbia or Tuck but understand those my also be out of the question.

Is there anything else you would recommend I do between now and applying to try to overcome my poor undergrad? I believe I will have strong recommendations; I will be able to select alumni from each school to write them for me. I am hoping my MSF GPA, a strong GMAT, and passing the 3 CFA exams 3/3 consecutively can overshadow my 2.7 that I got when I was a lot younger and a much different person.

Basically I want to find out if it is possible to get in to one of my targets with my undergrad, I want to weigh my options before putting the time in to getting a GMAT over 700.

Thank you very much for you time and consideration.

Thanks for sharing all that information. Yes, a low GPA seems to be more of thorn than it was 5-7 years ago, but you have certainly helped your case with your Masters record. I would say that your target schools are likely out of reach given the extreme competition, though if you blast the GMAT (740 plus) you could have a fighting chance and put yourself in an even better position at schools like Ross, Tepper, Cornell, Darden....

I helped two clients last season with your gpa and even slightly lower---one got an interview at CBS and ultimately got into Cornell and one got into Ross/Tepper. I hope that helps!

Alex

Hi Alex,
Could you please let me know the followings -
1. Are Ross Essay 1 and McCombs Essay 1 EXACTLY similar,EXCEPT the word-count difference?
2.To what extent these two essays are similar to CBS Essay 3?

Much appreciate your feedback...