Hi, and thanks for writing! To clarify - you are in university right now, correct?
The full-time programs in U.S. and Canada require candidates to have work experience (candidates come in with a range of experience, but the average is about 4-5 years). Therefore, what I'd recommend is getting at least a few years of work experience, perhaps in finance or consulting, doing well, and then applying. Even if you can't get a full-time position in investment banking after college, you can transition to the career after bschool - you'd just have to explain in your application the transferrable skills you've gained and your motivations for wanting to work in finance.
There are several programs in the U.S. that are geared towards those still in undergrad (such as Harvard 2+2) but those are extremely competitive and require exceptional academics and extracurricular leadership.
Your GMAT score is solid, but if you're able to increase it by 20+ overall, that would be ideal (especially as IBs sometimes even ask for GMAT scores) and it would help offset your lower GPA. Most schools take either GMAT or GRE, but I'd stick with GMAT in your case since you're interested in banking and since you aren't struggling with GMAT.
Hope that helps! Let me know of any other questions.
TheRealStig wrote:
Hey guys,
I am targeting US and Canadian B-schools for 2019 intake. Can you guys please evaluate my profile and share your comments? Please be as blatant as possible.
Can you guys suggest a few schools that I should apply to? Stretch, achievable and safe ones.
Profile summary
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Age: 21
Nationality - Canadian
Sex - Male
Academics:
GMAT - 710 (Q47, V41)
Undergrad GPA: 2.77/4, Actuarial Science, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign
Work Experience - 1-month Investment Banking Internship at CITIC Securities, the largest investment bank in Asia. 2-month consulting internship at Deloitte Shanghai.
Extracurricular activities:
Consultant for the school's Chinese Students and Scholars Association. Focused on Career development, specifically in organizing career fairs, Meet the Firm, and other career development activities.
Career Goals - Initially came into university majoring in Actuarial Science under the assumption that a knowledge in risk calculation would help me excel in the financial world. Upon further understanding of the major and the responsibilities of an actuary, I noticed that this is not a major that I like and would help little in my dream of entering the financial field. Therefore, I wish to study finance for graduate school. Upon graduate school, my goal is to pursue a position on Wall Street, working my way up from the bottom of the corporate ladder and learning more about the financial world as time passes by. Once I obtain enough knowledge and experience, my ultimate goal would be to become a partner at a boutique financial firm or return to my home country and provide affordable financial advice and portfolio management for the masses.
Please let me know in case any additional information is required from my end.
By the way, would have a good GRE score help with my application, I plan on taking the GRE in May.