680 GMAT, but very little work experience and unrelated minor?

Question

Hello all,

I assume we're all busy people so I'm just going to get straight to the point in point form.

*White Male, 24. Have a DUI when I was 17, cannot be expunged.

*Graduated in May 2014 from a Mid Tier/dime a dozen "directional" State School with a degree in Health Administration. GPA 3.45, but core GPA was 3.6.

* Couldn't initially find a "real job" so took time as Pharmacy tech, originally got promoted to a Pharmacy Liasion, making good money.

* 2 months into my promotion, my father dies in a car accident, leading me to start abusing drugs triggering a huge bipolar episode. End up in the hospital and a suicide prevention clinic for two weeks. Understandably lose my job, though after explaining to my supervisor, he said he will always mark it as a voluntary resignation.

* Difficulty for finding work, grannddad Suggests GMAT, study for a month and get a 680 first time.

While this all sounds good and dandy for me to apply from 25-50th ranked schools, I am worried that my lack of work experience (less than 2 months of an actual job that needs a college degree) will limit my options, and even if I do get in, will limit my post employment options. I do not want to go to a non-big name school, as I feel the whole point of getting a MBA isn't so much what you learn but the networking power and Job Placement. I guess my question is, do my stats put me in the running for a quality school. I'm not delusional and know Ivies and Schools like Emory are probably out of my league, but I feel like even a Purdue or Michigan State MBA could do wonders to my career path.

I am not overly concerned with cost (inherited a large sum that will easily cover it), but due to pride and ego, I do not want to get an MBA and then get stuck at some entry-level job anyways. Your thoughts? Is B-School worth it, or should I try to get some more work experience and then apply in 2-3 years time? Will 20-50th ranked schools even look at me? Is an MBA an MBA, or am I right in assuming name recognition make or break an application.

jz4analytics · Answer

An MBA is definitely not an MBA - rank matters somewhat. Graduates from the top schools start consulting jobs at around $130K; for Purdue it is $110 and for Maryland it's about $100. It is also easier to get recruited and get signing bonuses from more well-known universities. Also, if you ever wanted to start a business, the resources and network would be better.

What do you want to do? Why an MBA now? The average age for MBAs starting is 27-28... and the top schools accept 27-28 year-olds at a higher rate (if you're either too old OR too young it's bad). MBAs are mostly made for people who have a few years of full-time work experience, have shown some leadership abilities, and will take on more management positions after school. That's why age/WE are so important. You might do better to hold down a job with relevant experience for 2-3 years and then apply (your GMAT score is good for up to 5 years, but you could also retake if you think you can get that above 700).

Overclass · Answer

To answer your question, why an MBA now, well quite frankly I can't find good work and have been searching for 3+ months. I wanted to see if the internships would be enough work experience for a quality school's program to get me a job offer. I understand that I won't make as much as an average graduate as I'm light on experience but Even a 70k a year full time job would change my life. I don't need the money, but I do need to start a real career, one with actual job mobility, before I go crazy

Overclass · Answer

I just typed a lot more context on my iphone but then accidentally deleted it. Without getting heavy winded, basically the reason I'm considering am MBA now is because I'm worried if I continue to not be able to find relevant work experience in my field, it will only look worse when I'm 28 or so. Basically I'm just worried by the time I get my MBA it may be too late to justify it, and would rather have the name recognition of a big and well known school, as I think their internship and job placement structures would trump those available to me currently. I basically am afraid of just spending a few more years of my life in mediocrity. I'm trying to be realistic, I know Ivies won't touch me even if I got a 700, but are the schools I listed doable, even with little work experience? 25-50 range.

If I retake the GMAT a few times, I think I certainly can get 700, so I think I'd be good, i'm just worried if it'd be worth it and would my offers be significant lower than the rest of the graduating class.

If I retake the GMAT a few times, I think I certainly can get 700, so I think I'd be good, i'm just worried if it'd be worth it and would my offers be significant lower than the rest of the graduating class.

fxMBAconsulting · Answer

Hi Overclass,

First of all I'm sorry to hear you've had a rough couple of years here - and sorry to hear that you've lost your dad.

I read both your posts and I see your logic. Which schools did you think would specifically take you at this point with basically no work experience? I ask because while HBS and Stanford are more open to very young candidates....the lower ranked schools tend to be more traditional and want to see at least 3 years of work experience (their average is probably 5).

With some good work experience you will be admitted to a better school in a few years than you could have been admitted to now. Now you need to get the best job possible at this point - that's going to be a job where you get to be involved/lead interesting projects (if possible) not a job where you are just working solo selling something (for example).

I'd suggest you get a job in a healthcare start-up. Preferably one that is still under 30 people. Even if the pay is terrible I think the number of opportunities to shine professionally that you'll have there will make up for it.

I strongly suggest you pay someone to help you craft your resume, your story and even work with you on interview skills - you're going to need all the aces in your pocket in order to land a great job.

In 18 months time let's see where you're at and then start talking about which schools to target

Good Luck!

680 GMAT, but very little work experience and unrelated minor?

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards