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Nov 1909:00 AM PST
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What’s in it for you- Live Profile Evaluation Chat Session with Jenifer Turtschnow, CEO ARINGO. Come with your details prepared and ARINGO will share insights! Pre-MBA Role/Industry, YOE, Exam Score, C/GPA, ECs Post-MBA Role/ Industry & School List.
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Nov 1911:00 AM PST
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Round 2 is here — and it’s your chance to make your MBA dream happen! Join GMAT Club’s LIVE discussion with two top experts from The Red Pen, Gunjan Jhunjhunwala and Natasha Mankikar, as we break down everything you need to know- Nov 12
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Get expert MBA strategy, instant essay feedback, and personalized advice on your entire application. Join My Admit Coach, the AI-powered MBA admissions platform built on 10K+ successful application docs for HBS, Stanford GSB, MIT and other top programs. - Nov 20
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Learn what truly sets the UC Riverside MBA apart and how it helps in your professional growth 
Nov 2010:00 AM EST
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If you’re applying to Columbia, NYU Stern, or Yale SOM, you need more than strong stats. Each school defines “leadership” differently, and your essays must reflect that. Join Sia Admissions founder, Susan Berishaj on November 20th
Nov 2009:00 PM IST
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Join our free expert-led Essay Workshops to discover how to choose impactful stories, highlight your core values, and align your background with each school’s distinct culture, making every word truly count.
Nov 2108:30 AM EST
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Get the inside scoop on what makes Emory’s Goizueta Business School great, learn how you can present a strong MBA application, and connect with an Admissions Director to get your questions answered.
Nov 2109:30 PM IST
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Learn how to craft powerful, authentic essays by mastering the 3 “WHYs” every top MBA program looks for: Why MBA, Why Now, and Why This School.
Nov 2408:00 PM PST
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Inquire for a free profile evaluation and guarantee statement for possible admits and scholarships!
Hi everyone.
My name is Jerome and I just got an offer from a top ranked business school (within the Top 15 worldwide). When I was first looking for more information on how to come up with a good strategy for my application, I found it hard to find a guide that caters to applicants with a low GPA. Now that I got accepted to the program that I wanted, I'd like to share my experience with the entire application process in the hopes that someone with a low GPA will stumble upon this post and serve as his/her guide.
First, let me tell you guys more about my background
Ethnicity: Filipino/Asian
Age: 20 (19 during the application process)
Undergraduate background: Computer Science at a top Philippine university, subpar GPA (Can't remember the exact figure but it's between 2.2 and 2.4)
GMAT: 780
Work Experience
- Co Founded a food delivery startup which lasted for a year and a half (I was 18 when I was running this one)
- Helped create an algorithm that can automatically summarize any news article written in any language that uses the english alphabet
- Stint at a software consulting firm. Handled 4 products of moderate size and 1 project worth 2 million pesos (not worth that much if you convert it into dollars, but hey). Created the company's employee investment package
- Internship at a design firm and conducted tests and heuristic evaluations, etc.
Extra Curriculars
- Awarded the Most Outstanding Vice President award for a school org
- Country Director for Kairos Society
Other interesting stuff I mentioned in the article
- Wine enthusiast
- Novice traveller, started travelling last year and visited 8 countries in a year
- Participated in original theatrical performances
I know that every business school has a different application process in terms of content, so here are some of my general tips on how to attack your application despite your low GPA.
1. Do well in the GMAT
- This is self explanatory. Since your GPA is not that good the best way to tilt the scales into your favor is to get a high GMAT score. A low undergrad GPA is really easy to explain (In my case, I said that halfway through my degree I just lost passion and felt like Computer Science wasn't for me) anyway. If you get a low score in the GMAT then that's more problematic so make sure to do well.
2. Get great recommendations
- People say that recommendations don't really "matter that much" but I beg to disagree. In this situation, you're basically handicapped so you need all the help you can get. Get someone who knows you in a really personal level and knows your strengths and flaws. In my case, I got my recommendation from a really close mentor in Madrid (Who happens to be the general manager for one of the biggest logistics company in Spain) and another from my fellow country director at Kairos Society. Don't just get recommendations from your professor or whatever. Go out there and network with people and build your relationships with them.
3. Create a really coherent story
- By creating a coherent story I'm not referring to lying in your application. What I meant by this is that your application needs to have its own personality and you come up with that by creating a story and making sure that the other components of your application fit that story. For example, I was selling them the idea that I come from a computer science background but didn't like it so I shifted to business even though my grades suffered. In one of my essays I told them about my startup in detail (One of the reasons why my grades are low), in the other I told them about why I think business is the right track for me, and so on and so forth. If let's say you're the type of guy that has a background in chemistry but want to do business, base your entire application on that desire to transition from one industry to another.
4. Apply to that school that fits you and your goals
- Don't apply to a top ranking school based on the rank because it would be hard to justify that in your essays (Some schools as the Why Us question). In my case, the school that I got into is focused on entrepreneurship which is I'm aiming for so essay writing was a breeze.
5. Ace that interview
- Again, this is self explanatory but I can't stress enough how important the interview is. If ever you get invited for an interview, the only tip that I could give you is this (and a lot of people will disagree with me on this one): Don't prepare.
Hear me out first before you guys tell me that I'm an idiot, haha.
I think that preparing for an interview is cool, but it's something that I haven't really been worried about. At first glance I thought that it was because I'm a pretty confident guy, but then I realized that it's not about that but rather it's because I knew my application so well. In a sense, I have been preparing for the interview from the moment I started typing my first essay.
Be spontaneous because at that point in time you've got nothing else to lose (You've already exceeded your expectations anyway). When I got the interview notice I scheduled for the slot the following day (Which happened to be my 20th birthday) without reviewing anything. I relied on being spontaneous to get the spot.
I think that's it for now. If you guys have any questions for me, don't hesitate to hit me up!
My name is Jerome and I just got an offer from a top ranked business school (within the Top 15 worldwide). When I was first looking for more information on how to come up with a good strategy for my application, I found it hard to find a guide that caters to applicants with a low GPA. Now that I got accepted to the program that I wanted, I'd like to share my experience with the entire application process in the hopes that someone with a low GPA will stumble upon this post and serve as his/her guide.
First, let me tell you guys more about my background
Ethnicity: Filipino/Asian
Age: 20 (19 during the application process)
Undergraduate background: Computer Science at a top Philippine university, subpar GPA (Can't remember the exact figure but it's between 2.2 and 2.4)
GMAT: 780
Work Experience
- Co Founded a food delivery startup which lasted for a year and a half (I was 18 when I was running this one)
- Helped create an algorithm that can automatically summarize any news article written in any language that uses the english alphabet
- Stint at a software consulting firm. Handled 4 products of moderate size and 1 project worth 2 million pesos (not worth that much if you convert it into dollars, but hey). Created the company's employee investment package
- Internship at a design firm and conducted tests and heuristic evaluations, etc.
Extra Curriculars
- Awarded the Most Outstanding Vice President award for a school org
- Country Director for Kairos Society
Other interesting stuff I mentioned in the article
- Wine enthusiast
- Novice traveller, started travelling last year and visited 8 countries in a year
- Participated in original theatrical performances
I know that every business school has a different application process in terms of content, so here are some of my general tips on how to attack your application despite your low GPA.
1. Do well in the GMAT
- This is self explanatory. Since your GPA is not that good the best way to tilt the scales into your favor is to get a high GMAT score. A low undergrad GPA is really easy to explain (In my case, I said that halfway through my degree I just lost passion and felt like Computer Science wasn't for me) anyway. If you get a low score in the GMAT then that's more problematic so make sure to do well.
2. Get great recommendations
- People say that recommendations don't really "matter that much" but I beg to disagree. In this situation, you're basically handicapped so you need all the help you can get. Get someone who knows you in a really personal level and knows your strengths and flaws. In my case, I got my recommendation from a really close mentor in Madrid (Who happens to be the general manager for one of the biggest logistics company in Spain) and another from my fellow country director at Kairos Society. Don't just get recommendations from your professor or whatever. Go out there and network with people and build your relationships with them.
3. Create a really coherent story
- By creating a coherent story I'm not referring to lying in your application. What I meant by this is that your application needs to have its own personality and you come up with that by creating a story and making sure that the other components of your application fit that story. For example, I was selling them the idea that I come from a computer science background but didn't like it so I shifted to business even though my grades suffered. In one of my essays I told them about my startup in detail (One of the reasons why my grades are low), in the other I told them about why I think business is the right track for me, and so on and so forth. If let's say you're the type of guy that has a background in chemistry but want to do business, base your entire application on that desire to transition from one industry to another.
4. Apply to that school that fits you and your goals
- Don't apply to a top ranking school based on the rank because it would be hard to justify that in your essays (Some schools as the Why Us question). In my case, the school that I got into is focused on entrepreneurship which is I'm aiming for so essay writing was a breeze.
5. Ace that interview
- Again, this is self explanatory but I can't stress enough how important the interview is. If ever you get invited for an interview, the only tip that I could give you is this (and a lot of people will disagree with me on this one): Don't prepare.
Hear me out first before you guys tell me that I'm an idiot, haha.
I think that preparing for an interview is cool, but it's something that I haven't really been worried about. At first glance I thought that it was because I'm a pretty confident guy, but then I realized that it's not about that but rather it's because I knew my application so well. In a sense, I have been preparing for the interview from the moment I started typing my first essay.
Be spontaneous because at that point in time you've got nothing else to lose (You've already exceeded your expectations anyway). When I got the interview notice I scheduled for the slot the following day (Which happened to be my 20th birthday) without reviewing anything. I relied on being spontaneous to get the spot.
I think that's it for now. If you guys have any questions for me, don't hesitate to hit me up!
gcb09173
Joined: 23 Oct 2014
Last visit: 20 Oct 2015
Posts: 188
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 36
Concentration: Finance, Strategy
Schools: LBS '17 (M$)
05 Jun 2015, 15:54
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