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Looking for Feedback on my Profile

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jeffdill
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Joined: 24 Apr 2013
Posts: 66
Own Kudos [?]: 12 [0]
Given Kudos: 27
Location: United States
Concentration: Strategy, Operations
Schools: Wharton '16 (D) Duke '16 (WL) Kellogg '16 (D) CBS '16 (D) HBS '16 (D) Kenan-Flagler '16 (A) Ross '16 (M$)
GMAT 1: 660 Q44 V38
GMAT 2: 700 Q44 V41
GPA: 3.55
WE:Engineering (Manufacturing)
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Looking for Feedback on my Profile [#permalink] Looking for Feedback on my Profile   28 May 2013, 20:26
Hello, I am looking to apply for MBA school in the fall. Here's my stats:

-White American male from the midwest, 26 years old at matriculation
-Graduated from The Ohio State University with a degree in Industrial & Systems Engineering. 3.55 overall GPA, 3.84 major GPA
-Working as an R&D engineer for a medium-sized company; gained experience about a good variety of products and manufacturing processes
-Took the GMAT in April, got a 660 (44Q/38V). I am studying to retake the test and am shooting for 710 or so. That's a topic for another thread though!
-EC's are certainly a weakness, homebrewing is a major hobby of mine and I'm involved with a local homebrewing club but unfortunately not in a leadership role. My college EC's are moderate, not super strong. I'm considering looking for different volunteering options but I'm worried it will just look desperate.

I have not completely hashed out what my specialization will be. I think I would excel in general management, but I'm starting to consider finance to be a good starting point out of MBA school. I'm not absolutely tied to engineering, I guess I'm saying. I clearly need to hash this out a little more before I write my essays so I have a clear narrative.

Do you have any advice for how I can improve my profile before round 1? Duke is my top choice at the moment for some personal reasons, but I am looking to apply to several other schools as well. What are some realistic goals for me?

Thanks!
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AlexMBAApply
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Joined: 26 Dec 2008
Posts: 2457
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Re: Looking for Feedback on my Profile [#permalink] Looking for Feedback on my Profile   28 May 2013, 23:27
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jeffdill wrote:
Hello, I am looking to apply for MBA school in the fall. Here's my stats:

-White American male from the midwest, 26 years old at matriculation
-Graduated from The Ohio State University with a degree in Industrial & Systems Engineering. 3.55 overall GPA, 3.84 major GPA
-Working as an R&D engineer for a medium-sized company; gained experience about a good variety of products and manufacturing processes
-Took the GMAT in April, got a 660 (44Q/38V). I am studying to retake the test and am shooting for 710 or so. That's a topic for another thread though!
-EC's are certainly a weakness, homebrewing is a major hobby of mine and I'm involved with a local homebrewing club but unfortunately not in a leadership role. My college EC's are moderate, not super strong. I'm considering looking for different volunteering options but I'm worried it will just look desperate.

I have not completely hashed out what my specialization will be. I think I would excel in general management, but I'm starting to consider finance to be a good starting point out of MBA school. I'm not absolutely tied to engineering, I guess I'm saying. I clearly need to hash this out a little more before I write my essays so I have a clear narrative.

Do you have any advice for how I can improve my profile before round 1? Duke is my top choice at the moment for some personal reasons, but I am looking to apply to several other schools as well. What are some realistic goals for me?

Thanks!


A couple of things:

1. Your GMAT. What you score on a retake really dictates your competitiveness. That's why you should be focusing on nothing but GMAT prep at this point. With your current score, you're looking at top 30 schools as sweet spots to slight stretches, and top 16 schools as big stretches. With a 700 or more (and ideally a 720+), the picture changes entirely: top 16 schools are stretches (but more within reach), and top 30 are sweet spots, maybe even safeties.

2. Going to b-school full-time by nature means you'll be leaving engineering. If you aren't sure about leaving engineering, then you may not be quite ready to apply to b-school, because few if any MBA grads go back to a technical position post-MBA.

3. Interesting extracurriculars are great, but ultimately your competitiveness comes down to a combination of your raw stats (GMAT/GPA) and your professional profile, so don't fixate about trying to come up with some super interesting non-work life. Again, your focus at this point should be your GMAT. Good luck
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Joined: 30 Nov 2009
Posts: 9233
Own Kudos [?]: 2067 [1]
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Location: Chicago, IL
Schools:Brown University, Harvard Business School
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Re: Looking for Feedback on my Profile [#permalink] Looking for Feedback on my Profile   Updated on: 31 May 2013, 01:09
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jeffdill wrote:
Hello, I am looking to apply for MBA school in the fall. Here's my stats:

-White American male from the midwest, 26 years old at matriculation
-Graduated from The Ohio State University with a degree in Industrial & Systems Engineering. 3.55 overall GPA, 3.84 major GPA
-Working as an R&D engineer for a medium-sized company; gained experience about a good variety of products and manufacturing processes
-Took the GMAT in April, got a 660 (44Q/38V). I am studying to retake the test and am shooting for 710 or so. That's a topic for another thread though!
-EC's are certainly a weakness, homebrewing is a major hobby of mine and I'm involved with a local homebrewing club but unfortunately not in a leadership role. My college EC's are moderate, not super strong. I'm considering looking for different volunteering options but I'm worried it will just look desperate.

I have not completely hashed out what my specialization will be. I think I would excel in general management, but I'm starting to consider finance to be a good starting point out of MBA school. I'm not absolutely tied to engineering, I guess I'm saying. I clearly need to hash this out a little more before I write my essays so I have a clear narrative.

Do you have any advice for how I can improve my profile before round 1? Duke is my top choice at the moment for some personal reasons, but I am looking to apply to several other schools as well. What are some realistic goals for me?

Thanks!


Well, Jeff, since round one begins like NOW.. ;)
I'd say retaking the GMAT if you can get higher is about the only thing you need to worry about. Your lack of ECs is just something you are gonna need to write around. Ideally if you are going for R1, your next GMAT will be taken by mid-July so that you have enough time to get started on your essays. Do you have a test date?

Let's wait on setting other target schools until you get your next GMAT score.

Originally posted by Admissionado on 29 May 2013, 01:11.
Last edited by Admissionado on 31 May 2013, 01:09, edited 1 time in total.
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jeffdill
Manager
Manager
Joined: 24 Apr 2013
Posts: 66
Own Kudos [?]: 12 [0]
Given Kudos: 27
Location: United States
Concentration: Strategy, Operations
Schools: Wharton '16 (D) Duke '16 (WL) Kellogg '16 (D) CBS '16 (D) HBS '16 (D) Kenan-Flagler '16 (A) Ross '16 (M$)
GMAT 1: 660 Q44 V38
GMAT 2: 700 Q44 V41
GPA: 3.55
WE:Engineering (Manufacturing)
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Re: Looking for Feedback on my Profile [#permalink] Looking for Feedback on my Profile   29 May 2013, 06:20
JonAdmissionado wrote:
Ideally if you are going for R1, your next GMAT will be taken by mid-July so that you have enough time to get started on your essays. Do you have a test date?

Let's wait on setting other target schools until you get your next GMAT score.


I don't have a test date set yet, but I am shooting for early to mid July. It sounds like if I still don't get my target score I should take it again and hold off on applying until round 2. I'm confident I will get it done though, I was scoring in the 700+ range on practice tests and just screwed up my timing on quant on the real test :dunnow
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Joined: 30 Nov 2009
Posts: 9233
Own Kudos [?]: 2067 [0]
Given Kudos: 69
Location: Chicago, IL
Schools:Brown University, Harvard Business School
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Re: Looking for Feedback on my Profile [#permalink] Looking for Feedback on my Profile   31 May 2013, 01:09
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jeffdill wrote:
JonAdmissionado wrote:
Ideally if you are going for R1, your next GMAT will be taken by mid-July so that you have enough time to get started on your essays. Do you have a test date?

Let's wait on setting other target schools until you get your next GMAT score.


I don't have a test date set yet, but I am shooting for early to mid July. It sounds like if I still don't get my target score I should take it again and hold off on applying until round 2. I'm confident I will get it done though, I was scoring in the 700+ range on practice tests and just screwed up my timing on quant on the real test :dunnow


I couldn't agree more about R2. Good luck!!!
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Re: Looking for Feedback on my Profile [#permalink]
31 May 2013, 01:09