Great post, terry12. Once again, all the best for your future.

Oh, forgot the kudos .. +10 for you, terry12

Kudos to river for being so honest about wanting kudos No .. seriously, river, take this as kudos for all the great rankings / stability analysis of the schools that you've been doing recently.

You have made genius threads???

What's the address for the message board those are on?
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Kellogg Class of 2010...still active and willing to help. However, I do not do profile reviews, don't offer predictions on chances and am far to busy to review essays, so save the energy of writing me a PM seeking help for these. If I don't respond to a PM that is not one of the previously mentioned trash can destined messages, please don't take it personally I get so many messages I have a hard to responding to most. The more interesting, compelling, or humorous you message the more likely I am to respond.
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ouch, b***h.
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How has your B-school plan evolved? When did you decide to pursue this, what were your goals and have those changed, and of course the rotating decision on what schools and which is your top?

When: About the middle of last year. My friend, who is an engineering like myself, told me he wants to move into finance because he's sick of engineering. I took a look at the MBA degree and saw that it would give me the most flexibility in terms of career paths. So I decided last summer that an MBA degree is perfect for me. Since I'm a career switcher wanting to move into consulting, a PT program won't do.

What: I am an engineer, having also worked in sales and operations. I majored in EE and did poorly in undergrad. Currently in the process of completing my Masters in engineering degree with a high GPA. I also smashed my GMAT so that should help offset the low UGPA.
I enjoy engineering, but I am afraid of being pigeoholed: stuck to a life of narrow, focused design work. An MBA degree will allow me to move from a "grunt" role to a leadership, decision-making position. I want to go into strategy consulting post-MBA and work in other industries that I've been interested in but never had a chance to try: energy, finance, healthcare. I think a consulting role at a top 3 firm will give me that opportunity. In the long run, I want to move into a high-tech management position and improve the decision-making process at that company. Too often, engineers at the bottom of the ladder have good input about projects but are ignored by upper level management that doesn't appreciate the complexities of engineering projects. That's something I hope to help change.

Where: Initially, the list was long...HBS, Stanford, Wharton, Chicago, Kellogg, MIT, Columbia, NYU, UCLA, Haas, Fuqua, Darden, Yale
1st round eliminations: HBS (too competitive, little collaboration in school, I'm too old (30 yrs old at mat)), NYU (too finance focused), Yale (small class size, location)
2nd round eliminations: Darden (location), UCLA (too west-coast oriented, I want to be east coast), thinking of dropping MIT (wasn't impressed at admissions event)

What's left (in order of preference): Stanford (dream), Wharton (2nd dream school), Chicago GSB, Kellogg, Columbia, Haas, Fuqua (safety)

The decision: TBD. I will be applying this coming fall and hope to put in 6-7 quality apps.

TODAY IS MY 1-YEAR ANNIVERSARY AS A GMAT CLUBBER! Don't laugh. GMAT Club has made a big impact on my life, and if it were not for the class-act people in this community I would not be going to Columbia. Everyone on here pushes each other and strives for the best for themselves. There are plenty of my friends (not on GMAT Club) who have accepted less than what they are capable of because they want a quick and easy path to those "three letters." However, I knew there was more to the process than that, and GMAT Club affirmed my belief. Since I have stumbled on to GMAT Club I have been accepted to Columbia, succeeded at the GMAT (in that order!), and now I am 2 months away from moving to NYC to attend business school! If you are a first-time applicant or reapplicant, let my 1-year anniversary illustrate how invaluable GMAT Club is throughout the business school endeavour!

Congrats djhouse! That was inspirational.

The question is what will come first, his 1 year anniversary or his 5000th post.
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Kellogg Class of 2010...still active and willing to help. However, I do not do profile reviews, don't offer predictions on chances and am far to busy to review essays, so save the energy of writing me a PM seeking help for these. If I don't respond to a PM that is not one of the previously mentioned trash can destined messages, please don't take it personally I get so many messages I have a hard to responding to most. The more interesting, compelling, or humorous you message the more likely I am to respond.
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this is a great thread. thanks river! +1