question one --I certainly hope that you found out whether or not you got into Georgetown. I hope the result was positive.
If you are still considering whether or not to reject Smith, I would ask them for a deferral. Basically that is asking them for the option to attend next year for "personal reasons."
I would definitely work on getting your GMAT up. It does not sound like you are too far past the age of 27 or 28. If not, you still have another year or so in your "prime" MBA age. Take the time to get the GMAT up and you could be the beneficiary of scholarships as well as admittance to a higher ranked school. I know you want to go into consulting, but Smith -- even though it is a good program -- is not necessarily going to get your foot in the door at a lot of consultancies.
what I would do is this -- take a look at the career center or employment statistics for Smith as well as some other schools that you believe you could get into with a higher GMAT score. See how many people go back into consulting. If the percentage is low at Smith, and they will not let you defer, I would not attend.
question two -- your chances really do not look that great at these programs. Your GPA is simply too low. I know that you have a lot of excellent work experience and leadership activity, but it is not enough to overcome the slow performance. With respect to rebranding, you are going to want to explain that you have to work full-time as an undergraduate in order to support yourself. This is why your undergraduate grades are so low. This is not a perfect excuse, but it is one that works to a certain extent -- only a true of course. So what can you do now? I would consider taking a couple of online classes in finance and accounting to help bolster your undergraduate GPA. The name of the school does not matter, the classroom format does not matter, the only thing that matters is you get an A in the class. if you manage to do all this-- consider applying to some schools in the 15 to 20 range.
I hope this helps.
Respectfully,
Paul Lanzillotti
enigmatic526 wrote:
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Question 1 - Do I reject Smith in hopes of applying with a better GMAT score next year? I plan on taking prep classes to solidify my chances of getting a 700+ on it. My GPA is something I can't control anymore and my professional experience is something that won't increase too much in a year. However, I am planning on becoming LEED accredited by this summer -- something else I can add to the resume. No offense whatsoever to Smith, but I feel for what I want to do, I may need to attend a more reputable school. Thoughts? The downside is, if I say no to Smith and don't get into any school next year -- I'm basically done as far as an MBA goes since I doubt I can reapply to Smith next yr after saying no to it this year. Or can I?
Question 2 - With everything remaining at the status quo except my GMAT's going up to 700+ and LEED accreditation, what are my chances at Columbia (pretty awesome RE program), NYU, Haas, Georgetown, MIT, Kellogg, Booth -- and INSEAD or LBS for international schools? I am contemplating on hiring a consultant to possibly 'brand' myself better than I have this year -- or maybe my recommendations were awful (my boss did submit all recommendations on the same day the day before he left for his Christmas vacation).
I sincerely appreciate your opinion on these matters. Thank you so much.
nks