Profile evaluation - which pre-exp program to choose?
[#permalink]
05 Aug 2014, 10:03
Hi! I've been planning to start my MS Finance studies in 2015. However, there's one task to do before that: to prepare the applications.
My profile is:
Male, 22, white EU citizen
Speak fluent English, Swedish and Finnish, rusty-but-okay German and Russian enough to communicate in everyday situations and business presentations, but with lots and lots of grammar errors
BSc in International Business Administration at my country's top business school (not so well known in other European countries), specialization studies 30 ECTS combined in Finance, Accounting and Information Systems, est. GPA 4.37/5.00
Exchange studies (4 months of finance) in China
GMAT 740 (Q48 V44 IR5)
1 year in part-time marketing/sales job, 2 months in full-time telemarketing, 6 months completely non-related grunt level work
1 year of half-mandatory military service, NCO training, led a 7-man team for 6 months
No extracurriculars to speak of
Got a small scholarship for my success in physics studies during high school, yay!
When I started my studies, I had no idea I was going to apply to foreign master's programs. In my country, extracurriculars don't really matter that much for master's admissions, and most people start working in their field of studies on their senior year of BSc or during the beginning of their master's studies. Master's admission is based almost purely on GPA and, in some universities, GMAT results. However, elsewhere in the world extracurriculars and work experience seem to be important, which is why I'm worried about my profile. The IR score of 5, just above the median, doesn't help my case to much, either.
Which schools in EU/Canada/US should I apply to? I'd like to shoot for a career in (investment) banking, financial/strategic consulting or investment management. So far I've decided to apply to Stockholm School of Economics Finance, Finance&Accounting and International Management programs. Also, I can't really afford high tuition costs unless I get a scholarship and/or loan enough to pay for almost all the costs.