Hey,

There’s a lot to like in your profile: substantial regional impact, a clear entrepreneurial vision, and a solid mix of product and data roles across LATAM. Being a first-gen student from Peru with TA and advisory experience gives you a compelling edge, especially for global programs like INSEAD and LBS. The key now is translating this diverse experience into a tight, results-driven application narrative; for that, a personalized strategy makes all the difference.

We’d need to align your post-MBA steps (PM/VC/social impact) with what each school values, and ensure your story flows across the resume, essays, and interviews. Let’s build that roadmap. A quick 1-on-1 will help us uncover key angles that can elevate your profile for M7 and top European programs.

Ameer Khatri, Admissions Consultant
Schedule a 1-on-1 call with me for a detailed profile review:
https://calendly.com/ameer-khatri/profi ... th=2025-05

Hi @phdalvaro
Thanks for sharing your profile!

The overall academic strength of your profile is extremely impressive considering you ranked in the top 5% of your class for a significant portion of your degree and earned a distinction as one of the youngest teaching assistants in your faculty. This is already a factor that will distinguish you from other applicants. You haven’t mentioned your GPA which would have provided a better understanding of your profile strength.

You bring 5+ years of diverse experience across product, growth, and data functions within multiple industries such as fintech, e-commerce delivery, manufacturing, and consulting. Importantly, you've worked in three different Latin American countries, giving you strong cross-cultural and regional exposure. Being an advisor to a fintech startup adds a significant leadership spike and demonstrates entrepreneurial initiative. This breadth and depth of experience along with advising exposure positions you well for a post-MBA entrepreneurial pivot.

Your goal of building a tech-driven venture to drive positive social impact in Latin America is compelling and aligned with your background. There is a strong clarity of purpose which you should emphasize well in your essays especially for Stanford, Berkeley Haas, and INSEAD. Also, focus on strategically explaining how an MBA will sustain your entrepreneurial plans (e.g., funding, global exposure, market scaling) and draw on your first-generation background as well. We recommend that you talk about your entrepreneurial plans in your long-term goals and focus your short-term goal on working in a high-growth tech startup or impact investment firm that operates in Latin America. This will show a progressing career path where you mature with experience.

Since you are yet to give the GMAT exam, we suggest you aim for a 700+ score which will make you a competitive R1/R2 candidate for most top-15 programs, with a particularly strong fit at Stanford, Haas, Sloan, and INSEAD. MIT Sloan’s data-centric approach and Kellogg’s strong growth and startup ecosystem also suit your profile. Wharton and Booth offer top-tier support for entrepreneurship but skew more towards finance, so make sure to clarify how their specific centres and tracks fit your goals. LBS and INSEAD provide solid global exposure and recruiting pipelines in Latin America. Do consider Duke Fuqua, Yale SOM, or ESADE as options as they have a strong entrepreneurial network and good placement in growing markets.

We’d love to offer a 1-on-1 profile evaluation to dive deeper into your strengths, talk through your fit across schools, and co-create a tailored application game plan!

Feel free to reach out to us at the coordinates below!
Email: gwyneth@thembaedge.com
Phone/WhatsApp No: +91 88502 49409
Website: https://thembaedge.com/

Warm regards,
The MBA Edge Team

Thank you for sharing your profile @phdalvaro! Your story reflects a strong commitment to using technology for meaningful impact in Latin America.

Your academic background shows promise. Graduating from a top university in Peru and ranking in the top 5% of your class for a significant portion of your studies demonstrates intellectual capability, even though your overall GPA (15/20) may fall below the average for M7 schools. Please share your GPA on a 4-point scale. If it's alright, we can address this in your application, especially the personal challenges that impacted your academic performance. Framing your resilience in overcoming those challenges, along with emphasizing your upward academic trajectory, can help turn a perceived weakness into a compelling narrative. That said, a strong GMAT score (ideally 720+) will be essential to mitigate GPA concerns and establish your quantitative readiness.

Your entrepreneurial goals seem aligned with the values of schools like Stanford GSB, MIT Sloan, and Berkeley Haas, programs that emphasize innovation, leadership with purpose, and global impact. Stanford especially values personal stories rooted in social mission, and your desire to build technology that improves lives in Latin America fits that ethos well. Similarly, Sloan's action learning and Haas’s “Beyond Yourself” leadership principle could be great cultural and professional fits. Wharton and Booth, with their data-driven, analytically rigorous approaches, can also offer you strong preparation to scale a tech venture, especially one rooted in growth and product strategy.

At the same time, it’s important to be realistic about the competitiveness of M7 schools. With the given information, your story seems good, but your candidacy hinges on a few critical variables, particularly your GMAT score, your ability to clearly articulate your post-MBA entrepreneurial vision, and the depth of leadership demonstrated in your experiences. If you haven’t already, consider gaining additional exposure to entrepreneurship (through side projects, social ventures, or accelerators), which can serve as both evidence of your commitment and a conversation starter in essays. Also, consider enrolling in online certifications (like HBS CORe, data analytics, or product strategy) to further show initiative.

Your school list looks ambitious but well considered. Beyond your current targets, other programs could also offer good entrepreneurial ecosystems, Latin American networks, or generous scholarships. These include NYU Stern’s Tech MBA, Duke Fuqua (which has strong ties to LATAM), Cornell Tech (for tech innovation in NYC), and IE Business School in Spain (especially for social entrepreneurship). These could be additions to a balanced list, depending on your GMAT score and preferences for location, network, and duration.

Use this time to engage in strategic extracurriculars, mentoring, volunteering, or building a small side venture that aligns with your goals. Choose recommenders who can speak to your leadership, resilience, and impact. Most importantly, start working on your story; your essays will need to connect your past, purpose, and potential with authenticity and ambition. You might want to take a look at these BLOGS on (Strong Anecdotes to Strengthen Your MBA Application) , (Strengths and Weaknesses) and (Extracurricular Activities for MBA)

You’re on a meaningful path. With strong execution, especially on the test and narrative side, you could be a highly compelling candidate at many top programs.

We would love to learn more about your journey and offer personalized insights to strengthen your application. Let’s chat. Feel free to book a profile evaluation session.

Join our upcoming Coffee Session on 9th May

Cheers!
Shantanu Sharma
Founder and Admissions Consultant, MBA and Beyond

Hi @phdalvaro,

You have a mission-driven and well-rounded profile that can stand out at top MBA programs, especially those with a strong focus on entrepreneurship, social impact, and global diversity. With 5+ years of experience across product, growth, and data roles in multiple industries and countries in Latin America, you bring strong regional insight and a practical understanding of how to build and scale solutions in emerging markets. Your long-term goal of becoming a tech entrepreneur focused on driving positive social impact in Latin America is compelling and well-aligned with your background.

Academically, while your GPA of 15/20 is modest, it is offset by your top 5% class ranking during much of your degree and the fact that you studied at Peru’s top university. Explaining the dip in performance paired with a strong GMAT score (aim for 685+ on the GMAT Focus Edition) can help you demonstrate academic readiness. Additional strengths like being a first-generation student, serving as one of the youngest teaching assistants in your faculty, and advising a fintech startup demonstrate leadership and initiative. Be sure to quantify your professional impact where possible and clearly connect your past experiences to your future goals. Focus on articulating your goals and career transition plan clearly - connect your past experiences to your future goals.

Highlighting your leadership, professional achievements, career goals, unique experiences, and fit with the program effectively will be crucial in crafting a compelling application. To maximize your chances, consider applying to a balanced mix of reach, target, and safety schools. Feel free to book a free call with our MBA consultants for a more detailed discussion. You can also contact us directly at team.mba@theredpen.com or +91-7780769732.