Any Chemical Engineers in the house?

Question

I am a chemical engineer looking to make the transition from the sciences into the business world. I have generally been math and science based my whole life (AP Calc and AP Chem in high school, Chemical Engineering Major in college). I am curious if anyone else has a similar background and could share their application process. I was also wondering if anyone knew if being an engineer carried any positives or negatives in the eyes of the admissions committee (Possibly a positive due to being able to bring different work experiences to the class? That's my hope lol).

MBADecoder · Answer

Hi There, May I ask where you live? Engineers come aplenty if the applicant profile is Indian, and they also bear the brunt for it by enhancing the competition among themselves by many, many notches. I don't think you belong to that boat

so there may be something to cheer about then. There are no positive or negative connotations attached to your being an engineer, a chemical engineer at that. Consider yourself an individual who brings a unique set of experiences to the MBA class. Adcoms would essentially like to hear your story - personal and professional, know about your career goals and how the MBA fits into your scheme of things. So, focusing upon your strengths will be the key to the admit. Hope that helps.

engineer1234 · Answer

Hey Pottsmi1,

I'm an engineer too (Mechanical UG, Systems Engineering @ work with focus mostly on Electrical). I'm in the middle of working on apps right now for Fall 2015 and have noticed that engineering as a plus or minus is dependent on my story/goals and the school.

For example, most people think it's weird that I would apply to Columbia since my post MBA goals are not finance nor closely tied to NY. It's not that Columbia can't get a former engineer a job in consulting or product management - employment records show that they definitely do and Silicon Alley is up and coming as well. It's just not as easy for me to tell that story and I don't think I could convince anyone that I would attend. If R1 doesn't go well for me I'll definitely think harder about it.

I've heard that adcom gives engineers more leeway on GPA - but I don't have hard data on this so I don't really take it seriously.

stevenfuqua · Answer

There are always a ton of engineers in each MBA class. I think it's like 30% or so at Fuqua. Engineers are highly sought after for their work ethic and analytical ability. You just need to be able to sell yourself on why you want to make the transition into a business function.

Pottsmi1 · Answer

I live in Chicago. I am focusing mainly on kellogg. I recently took the GMAT and got a 720. Undergrad GPA was ~3.6.

Thanks!

Any Chemical Engineers in the house?

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