Looking for advice in applying for MBA

Question

Hello. I'm not sure if anyone can help me out with some advice, but I'll try in any case. I have my undergard in Econ & Finance from McGill Univ in Montreal. I graduated in 2004 with Honors with a 3.8GPA in my double major and a 3.54 overall. I got a 640 on the GMAT. Unlike most of you, I'm not applying to a top 20 MBA program. I am hoping to be accepted at UCONN for part-time study. My concern is my work experience. After graduation from college, I went to France for the summer to work in a hotel instead of getting a job in the US (I have US citizenship). I studied French for 9 years prior to going and during the summer I became nothing less than fluent in French. It was a great experience. When I got back, I had some trouble finding a job. I worked at Pepperidge Farm for a 3 month assignement and then found a job at a medical publishing company in the circulation department where I worked for 3 years. I then applied for a transfer to accounting and now work in billing at the same company since June of this year. My concern is that I don't really have much, if any, experience in what I went to school for, namely Econ & Finance. I am afraid that this might hurt my candidacy. The essay that I have to write is a general letter of intent, which I think would include how my current work experience will factor into what I want to do in the future. My plan is to get a general Accounting base and more in depth Corporate Finance knowledge. I would like to work for a company in the role of Finance Manager or similar where I would do financial analysis, investment analysis, budgeting etc. Any advice any one can offer me as to what I can put in my letter of intent to explain my work experience, to any other suggestions would be greatly appreacitated. Thank you.

rda24 · Answer

Anyone? I know I'm not applying to a top school, but would someone offer some advice?? Thanks.

traffix · Answer

Hey,

I dont think you have to worry to much! Just say exactly wha u said in your initia post and talk abt the experiences u have had studying in Canada, working in france and culture differences between the countries. Talk abt wht u did to fit into the crowd and relate it to the MBA program. Also, do talk abt ur fluency in french and provide some strong examples of where it might have helped u in the past! Since the school doesnt require u to answer a specific question, u can always tailor make your answer to your strengths (whtever u might think they r). Plus juxtapose whtever work exp u have in accounting and use that towards your "wht MBA" part of the essay.

Honestly, getting into a part time MBA program should not be very diff esp since u graduated with honors from McGill.

Hope this helps!

Best, 
Nadtrans

bostonsparky · Answer

rda24,

Any good program wants diversity in its applicants, if they just took people with 'traditional' tracks things would get pretty mundane. Follow what nadtrans said (speak to your strengths). I also think if you could get some good recommendations that speak to how you desire to move into accounting/corporate finance and your intelligence (which based on your gpa at mcgill / gmat is quite evident), it will paint you as someone who just wanted to travel and take some time to figure out exactly what he/she wanted to do. And if it's something that you've arrived at due to experiences outside of work rather than in, don't hesitate to explain them. I don't think your letter of intent has to be about your work experience as long as you can provide concrete examples. Schools always want to admit candidates with unconventional backgrounds.

Looking for advice in applying for MBA

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