Hi. When you say you got a scholarship - is that like an independent program in the country to attend an MBA? or where is the scholarship from?

In terms of the profile, it will all look how competitive you are vs. your peers in terms of work experience, promotions, GPA, scores, etc. You are compared to other applicants first of all so if your undergrad was really tough, that GPA may be good and not low. If you do get funding and financed for tuition, that's a positive too since chances of you attending are higher.

I would not worry too much about extracurriculars. I don't think you have much time for things, and unless you have something really big achieved or started, it does not matter really. So don't worry about it.

I think the part you may think about is why you need an MBA and if you would be able to recruit into the position you are looking to join and why you will succeed. If you got a scholarship in your country, you will likely have to come back to pay it off (again, I may be off here with my assumption), but the part of how you will leverage the MBA and how it is the last touch on your profile and you are about to head into IB... you get the idea.

P.S. You should consider Stern, Columbia and Darden as well-placing IB schools. Johnson as well. They have good pathways, though of course if you get into Sloan, pick Sloan

P.P.S. The GRE is evaluated separately from the GMAT, so 329 is not 740, that's just how the numbers end up type of thing. It is pretty weird but the scores are siloed.

Hi bb!

1. The scholarship is fully funded (including tuition and living costs) by the Government for MBA. However, it expires within a year AND I put MIT Sloan as my choice. Thus I *have* to get Sloan otherwise the scholarship will be withdrawn at worst or fight a lengthy paperwork and re-interview battle as to why I changed my target school. Booth, Stern, and Columbia are indeed also my consideration given my quantitative trading background!

2. Thanks for your affirmative words, man! Yes indeed my undergrad was tough (how many theoretical physicists choose an MBA in the first place lol), but still I sometimes get insecure about it. Hopefully, my relatively high GRE score helps.

3. True, I will have to come back to Indonesia after graduation since the scholarship has a return policy, but I don't have to repay it in cash

4. I think there's a mistake on my part. In my applications, for both Sloan and the scholarship, I did not specifically mention IB, but rather cryptocurrency development in the country. My pitch was twofold: First is MBA has a holistic approach to leadership and decision-making on top of finance, economics, and analytics to help foster safe and reasonable crypto development. The second is specific to Sloan, as Sloan (and HBS) has a running project with the Fed to develop US-backed crypto, on top of their actual classes and labs around blockchain. IB and MC are not in the scholarship's pitch nor in my Sloan essays.

I edited my pre- and post-MBA industry as Software to avoid confusion

5. Ah, I see. I thought that the scores were mutually interchangeable. Still I'm in the upper half of Sloan's 80% median GRE Score, so I should be safe in the score department, right?, right?????, RIGHT???????

6. A question, does MBA admissions put a lot of weight on the employer's name? Since my current employer is a small fund with little-to-no name outside the niche crypto trading space

7. Finally, what can I do next to increase my chances? )

Hi. Sorry about the wait. That's a great opportunity or golden handcuffs 😂

Cryptocurrency is going through some interesting times so applying with something safe such as an extension of your current career is a better strategy. Admissions unfortunately reward and prefer safe options. This makes program more successful and applicants more satisfied if they have simple goals. Admissions like that. So make them like you as an applicant who wants to build on top of their career with as few switches as possible and hopefully someone who has a job already lined up. They really don't care what you put as your career goal, as long as it makes sense and as long as it shows you have a plan.

I think you are quite safe in the score department. It is up to the rest of your application. I assume you have mentioned your government scholarship in the application as well - that's a BIG bump and bonus by the way.

Yes, in the US brands matter a lot. Even if you work for McDonald's it is respected vs. an unknown bank/entity because there is no reference point. Employers and admissions can't qualify your experience if they have no familiarity with the employer. So brands are always better, esp if you can get a western brand. This is why your scholarship from the Indonesian government will be valuable - that will give you validity and indicate that you have passed vetting type of thing.

In terms of improvements to your application. There are a few things you can do:

1. You can try to get a promotion or a raise - that would help. I would not recommend switching jobs or anything like that unless you can find a brand-name bank/company that will onboard you before Jan deadline for MIT.

2. Most help and work you can do on your application and essay and story.

3. What will help you with #2 is talking to current students. Reach out to a bunch of them and start talking - preferably at MIT but likely anywhere. Being in touch and having a good understanding of the experience and expectations will help a lot. They will be able to answer so many questions including those you can't post on the internet. Just be respectful of their time (they have very little of it) and they will be happy to help. This is probably the most impactful action you can do.

4. Work on your resume, etc. Make sure your application is spotless and your goals are are super clear and sharp. If you think you can make a difference and can be passionate about volunteering or doing something outside of work, that can be nice but really not a big deal.

-BB