Intern
Joined: 06 Jul 2010
Posts: 31
Given Kudos: 0
Concentration: Entrepreneurship
Q50 V47
GPA: 3.2
WE 1: Corporate Strategy
Please evaluate my profile
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06 Jul 2010, 18:06
Applying for fall 2011
Age: 27 at matriculation
Ethnicity: White
Sex: Male
Nationality: US
Undergrad school: top 50 public
Undergrad major: Managerial Economics (Basically business with extra econ classes); minor in Physics
Undergrad GPA: 3.2 - final 2 year avg was 3.8, with a 3.9 for the Physics minor - graduated in 4.5 yrs (does this matter? Stayed extra time to make up for low cum GPA)
GMAT: 770 (50Q 47V) - took once
Work Experience: 4.25 years at matriculation; top 5 US bank
Year 1: Technology Leadership Development Program - Rotational program designed to develop future company leaders. Only ~15 people per year - prestigious within the company
Years 2+: High level corporate strategy team - originally doing expense management initiatives - shifted priorities during financial meltdown, team became responsible for overseeing one of the largest financial services integrations in US history - currently shifting back to expense management
Multiple examples of achievements with significant organization-wide impact; work daily with executive management
Promoted 1 year after joining strategy team
Received prestigious annual recognition award - given to ~1% of employees each year
Extracurriculars
Undergrad:
Held significant leadership role in major campus event (~150,000+ attendees)
Practiced Taekwondo for 3 years
1 year work experience in managerial role
Post-undergrad:
Licensed skydiver
Licensed scuba diver
Backpacked Europe & Southeast Asia
co-founded / currently running young professionals social/development group at my company - oversee ~30 committee members, have ~350 group members total
Unique Experiences
In addition to what's listed above, I lived with a deaf roommate for a year and a half and learned to be somewhat fluent in american sign language
Moved to Arizona for my first 1.5 years after undergrad for work. Didn't know anyone there.
Recommendations
My supervisor is a high level strategy manager w/ MBA from Sloan and will write a stellar recommendation
Also have HBS alum who will write a great recommendation - coworker on my team
Thinking of asking my former roommate who taught me ASL to write my peer reco for Stanford (not sure if other schools ask for that - I haven't done a ton of research beyond Stanford yet) - he'll write an awesome rec and I'm thinking having him write it will be unique & more memorable
My old mentor from technology also offered to write a rec - he has mentored me since I joined the company - midlevel technology executive (has ~200 employees)
Goals
I'd really like to become a technology entrepreneur, and I'm hoping that the right bschool will give me the networking contacts and strategic skills to succeed. Planning to focus on entrepreneurial classes and network with the computer science students and VC/entrepreneur alumni.
Stanford is my top choice, also planning to apply to Harvard, Wharton, Sloan, and Berkeley, but I'm still finalizing my list of schools. Right now I view my undergrad GPA as my biggest flaw, but I'm hoping the 3.9 in Physics and 770 GMAT will overcome the low cumulative.
Thanks for your input!