bluesmann wrote:
Hello all-
I recently discovered the forum and was very excited to find such a great resource. I am looking into applying to international business/public policy phd programs and was hoping some of you might be able to give me a bit of advice regarding my background and what kind of schools i could realistically target.
I recently took the GMAT and scored a 730 (Q42 V48). I think a bad case of nerves led to me scoring well below my practice scores (in the 47-49 range) on the quant. does this quant score warrant retaking the test?
As for other aspects of my background, i have a MA from top International Relations program (gpa 3.8) and have work experience abroad with a foreign bank as well as in teaching. I am currently doing busines research and policy analysis for the US arm of a large japanese company. So i am hoping that these would fit my concentration interests but am unsure whether it would merit applying to top programs.
I realize that not many of these posts are related to the above concentrations but any advice that participants might have would be most appreciated.
Thanks for your help!
i'd say your work experience in research will really help you get noticed... and your graduate gpa is very good. i don't know if scoring higher on the GMAT will matter.... i don't know how important mathmatics is to your field --- perhaps they might express concern over a 42 in Q.
i only scored a 710 - same boat as you vis-a-vis nerves - i will be applying to PhD programs after i complete my masters in marketing. i'd prefer to not have to retake the exam. part of me thinks the differences between a 710 and a 740 are so **** miniscule as to be irrelevant! but i think my decision to retake rests on whether i get very close to a 4.0 as a grad student, and what kind of research i get to work on with professors. i think you need to look at the programs that offer what you want to study and see what their student profile is like.
also, as far as "top" PhD programs go... there are no real rankings. i think what is considered "top" varies by discipline... basically, if you go to an AACSB accredited school you are going to get a solid & challenging education no matter where you end up. what makes one program top vs. another has to do more with the professors and what kind of research they put out... so your top program might be a small school that is only be ranked 100th overall in terms of MBA programs. Also, a PhD does no one any good if they don't finish it... so fit counts! i don't know what the academic job market is like... but i would imagine hiring committees are smart enough to look beyond merely the "brand" and realize that you might have studied under the leader in a particular subfield.
i'd say start looking at professor profiles to get an idea of whom you might want to study under. this is easier than it sounds! i've found some interesting folks that i'd like to learn from. unfortunately they are in an Australian business school!!
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20 Aug 2007, 17:58
