Evaluation please
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25 Feb 2010, 13:05
Hi,
Thanks so much for posting here. Here is my profile:
GMAT: I took the GMAT about a month ago and scored a 760 (45V, 49Q, 6.0 AWA).
Undergrad: Accounting major, 3.98 GPA, honors college, Dean's List every semester from a mid-size midwestern Catholic school. Graduated in 2007.
Work experience: 2 years at a big-four accounting firm in NYC, about 7 months in a hedge fund doing accounting / pricing / some IT work (I want to apply this fall, so at that point, I'll have worked in the hedge fund for about a year)
Extra-curriculars: In college, I was president of the student accounting group, a board member of my social Fraternity, and active in the business fraternity on campus. Post-college (I've worked really intense hours), I was part of the GLBT group at PwC and I've been part of running group since moving to NYC post-college. Last fall, I took a leadership position in the group.
Post-MBA I would like to work in research and eventually portfolio management at a hedge fund.
I feel like I am weak in two areas:
1. I've never had a direct managerial role. I've shown leadership at both companies through projects I initiated, etc. - and I can write about that - but I haven't had an official promotion to a managerial role. I took the job at the hedge fund in order to be more closely aligned with my goals (I didn't want to be seen as just an auditor post-b-school). What do you think of this? How much is it hurting me?
2. I didn't go to a top-10 school for undergrad. I ended up getting a full scholarship to the school I went to and my parents were not wealthy . . . so that's why I went there. Thoughts on how much the reputation of a school matters?
Schools (first choices):
Chicago
Harvard
Wharton
Columbia
Backups:
NYU
Cornell
Others you would recommend for finance? CMU?
My thought was to apply to my first choice schools in round 1. If I'm admitted to any of them, I stop applying. If not, I would apply to backups in round 2. Do I have a shot at any of my top schools?
Any thoughts you had would be really appreciated!
Thanks,
Daniel