Profile Evaluation (low GPA, 720 GMAT, attorney)

Great!!! Sounds like a pretty good plan to me! I understand your point about lower-ranked programs, and it can be true. But make sure you look into the programs. People tend to make arbitrary cutoffs based on the decimal system (Top 10, Top 20, top 30), whereas the real criteria is "Can this school help me reach my goals?"

I wish you the best of luck dude, and if you have anything else, just drop a line.

Best,
JF

Thanks for the response Jon!

To give you a better idea of my work experience and career goals, I currently work at one of the largest financial services law firms in the country. We advise clients on regulatory matters related to consumer and commercial lending.

My goal for going to business school is to transition to a career in consulting and still remain in the financial services industry, utilizing my legal knowledge of regulatory and compliance issues. Specifically, I'd like to continue assisting banks, lenders, and other financial institutions (except on the business side rather than the legal side) by working on creating and developing internal policy, analyzing growth strategy and corporate development, and helping with risk management. Both Navigant and Lek specialize in industries that I would like to break into. Navigant, specifically, assists clients in consumer protection, which is right up my alley (https://www.navigant.com/services/econom ... rotection/). Lek offers a broader range of consulting services, but that are still similarly related to banking and lending (https://www.lek.com/industries/financial-services).

Does that provide enough information on what my post-MBA goals are? Because that type of consulting is a bit more specialized, I'm not sure that certain schools would be better than other ones for what I'm trying to do, except based on their rankings for employability in consulting in general. As such, I'm applying to schools that I feel I have a reasonable chance at (not trying to overreach), but that are still ranked relatively high.

Ideally, I would rather attend a FT program, but in all honesty, I would probably apply to USC and UCLA's PT programs if I have much better shots of getting in. Because my firm has offices in LA and NY, I can continue working at my current firm while attending school. But would you say I have a pretty good shot at USC FT or is it closer to a long shot? If there's a good chance, I think I will take the plunge in applying FT.

Also, I think you're right in saying that I should apply to a couple more schools. Based on what I've said, are there any FT programs you feel I'd have a good shot at? I know McCombs has a good program for consulting so I'll probably apply there as well.

Thanks again for your help!

Ideally, I'd rather not work while attending school. I think I'll try applying to the FT programs at USC, UCLA, and possibly NYU (haven't made up my mind about that yet). Regarding lower ranked programs, to be honest, I probably wouldn't go, even if I got in. If I'm spending 100k+ to attend b-school, it'd only be worth it to me if I feel like I'm getting a positive return on my investment. I'm really not trying to be a snob, but I'm not sure that a lower ranked program would actually help me to achieve my career goals. I'll do some more research into other program, nevertheless.

Again, thanks so much for your great advice! It's given me some encouragement and optimism about my application into these programs.