VantagePointMeredith wrote:
Hi there -
Firstly I'm sorry to hear that you went through a battle with cancer. I'm inspired to hear that it motivated your career!
I've worked with several folks who have a lab / research background (one of them went through a severe health issue as motivation as well), and they often can do a good job of explaining their roles in a way that demonstrate the "why" behind their healthcare career choices. However, what's hard with a research position is demonstrating real leadership and team work in the way that the adcom is looking for. As such, most of my clients had also spent some time working in a more traditional role. Given that you don't have much work experience, at this point I think it will be a tough sell to the top / M7 programs. My advice would be to transition to a healthcare system or tangential company and work for a year then apply with a real thesis on how you'll leverage the MBA to promote whatever aspect of healthcare you believe most needs the talents of a top MBA grad. Having passion is important; but having a clear path and plan is the other part of the equation that I think will be tougher for you at this point to really sell.
Sorry to be a little Debbie Downer - but I think in an year, with full time work experience, you'll have a REALLY powerful application to the top programs!
Hope this helps!
Hi thank you so much, it was really helpful. If you don't mind me asking one more question, do you think I would be competitive for Yale SOM this cycle? The research I did was all clinical, which involved teamwork with doctors and PhD's as well. I also worked as a Customer Service Manager at Wal-Mart (part-time/reduced hours, around 30/week) for 1 year. I am really interested in Yale. If not, I'll work for one more year. Thank you so much once again!
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15 May 2017, 15:16
