Could you please evaluate my profile? 760 GMAT, 2.5 year w/e

Dude are you serious? You are that impatient? You realize that Harvard Round 1 is like 5 weeks away, right? And this is like our busy season? Like, really?!??

OK, we'll forgive you. We appreciate that you apparently joined GMAT Club just to ask EssaySnark a question. We can see how that might make someone impatient to get an answer. But keep in mind that the bschools are gonna force you to wait, like, WEEKS!!! before you'll hear back from them. Might want to take up meditation or something. You know, to calm the nerves.

All right, enough of the snark, let's see if we can deliver some luv instead.

First up: Congrats on that shiny GMAT score, certainly impressive! That can open some doors.

Also the background info looks like you should have some useful raw material to mine for your essays.

On the goals though: Those are kind of a mess. You need to wrestle those into shape; we're not really seeing what you want to DO with the MBA. You have some vague ideas, that is all. This needs work.

Next, school selection. While ESMT is an up-and-comer, and Mannheim is known in the region, we're not actually convinced that a German school is the best choice for you. Maybe it is, but we're assuming you don't want to stay in Germany forever, correct? If not, then a school with a more international footprint - and most especially, broader name recognition - seems like it would serve you better over the long haul.

We are not absolute experts on this part (we know enough to get into trouble) but our understanding is that ANY of the European schools will be as good as any of the others in terms of helping you with a post-MBA job in Europe. The only advantage to going to a German bschool is that maybe (this is a big MAYBE - you'll need to research this yourself) they will have a more generous policy on how long you can stay on the student visa, in case you don't land a job in country right away. Some countries will kick you out pretty fast after you finish your studies. And all of these European countries are pretty restrictive in terms of hiring foreigners right now - some worse than others. We've heard that getting a job in Spain as a foreigner can be pretty tough. It makes sense, given how far down in the dumps these economies have been, and for so long. This is starting to turn, so by the time you'd be graduating, then hopefully all job markets will be humming again and these protectionist policies would be loosened. These are questions you need to ask of the schools directly.

The other main advantage to trying for a German bschool is that we're guessing it would be lots easier to get in. These schools are not high profile, they're not on the radar of many international applicants, and so they are quick to snap them up when they find them. But you shouldn't need any significant admissions advantage like that, based on what you've shared of your profile - you're a competitive candidate from what we're seeing so far. So this is a benefit you may not need.

In terms of actual schools: INSEAD - 'cuz France is pretty close to Germany. Makes a lot of sense in terms of general geographics but you didn't give us a clear-enough idea of actual goals to say if they're a good fit otherwise.

The Spanish schools could also be a great option - IE, IESE, Esade. These are all excellent programs, they have VERY different cultures, and of course you have the horrible decision of trying to choose between Madrid and Barcelona. That may be the hardest part of all!!!

There's a gazillion schools in London that might make sense for you too - ok, there's three specifically: LBS, Oxford, Cambridge. There are in fact others too but those seem like the first candidates to consider.

We're not knocking the German schools but they may not be the best investment if you look at the big picture. You need to weigh these things out.

Hopefully with this lengthy answer you've forgiven us, and are feeling the luv now. If you have other questions for us then don't hesitate to ask! (But don't forget that we're bizy!)

Thanks dude.
EssaySnark