Hi! I really appreciate you evaluating my profile!

· Demographics (nationality, gender):
White female 25

· Education (undergraduate institution, GPA, major - high school/entrance exams not needed):
University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Business admin & public policy, 3.8 GPA.

· GMAT or GRE or EA score (include section breakdown):
At test center: 700 (Q42, V42)

· Work experience (briefly highlight amount of work experience, industries, roles, promotions, special accomplishments, international exposure):
4 years MBB management consulting direct promote to consultant

· Extracurricular activities (briefly highlight notable undergraduate and post-undergraduate ones):
Very involved in womens affinty group, recruiting, firm mentorship, advisor for UNC club


· Target schools:
Kellogg, Booth, Harvard, Wharton, Darden, Fuqua
(this is where I need help, I need a general sense of how far or close I am at getting into some of these schools)

· Other information relevant to your profile:
1. As my profile stands, I still find it difficult to grasp how much of an overreach it is for me to get into some of these programs. To me it's clear that HBS is an overreach, but I truly have no idea what program would be a "safety application" given my profile. I appreciate the honest feedback.

2. I am struggling to find inspiration to retake the GMAT. I am not happy with the 700,, but realistically, I am not sure I will be able to take the time I took to study for those two attempts again. I know I can get 10-30 more points if I truly tried, but I do think that it's going to impact others aspects of my application which I think I need to start putting some time on. Based on my profile, is this something that would really swing the balance in case I scored say 20 more points?

3. If not covered answering Q1 and Q2, any suggested areas of focus?

carolynniers:

Responding to your three primary questions:

1. I would classify your options as:

HBS: reach (not overreach)
Wharton: reach
Kellogg: high target
Booth: high target
Fuqua: target

You might want to fill out some safety schools if that's appealing to you. Such schools could be Ross, Johnson, McCombs, and McDonough.

2. It feels like 20 more points would help, but you're right in that you are in this gray area. You've cleared the key threshold of 700 and coming from MBB with a good GPA, so if I had to give you a straightforward answer, I would say it probably won't make a huge difference. If you want to spend time on other parts of your profile/application, I would totally support that.

3. If not covered answering Q1 and Q2, any suggested areas of focus?

Assuming you are targeting R1 and retaking the GMAT is off the table, I would turn your focus towards researching the schools/attending events and working on your actual application (note: essays.) You could try to pick up an extracurricular "achievement" between now and then, but there's limited time and, for it to matter, it would have to have a big impact for it to be worth your time.

If you are seeking professional help, please reach out to us for a free consultation:
https://admissionado.com/free-consultation/

Hi, carolynniers,

Thank you for your post!

First, I would like to congratulate you on backing a 700 in your GMAT; that's quite good! However, you need to understand that your score is nothing but a reflection of your academic prowess; hence if you could provide enough examples of your intellectual brilliance, they will be enough to compensate for your additional 20 points. Also, you have a good overall GPA; however, I would like you to add more to your statistics during your graduation and also try to add any additional courses, certifications, and academic accolades won so that we can gauge your actual chances at your target B-schools.

Coming to your profile, you have an appropriate amount of work experience and were promoted too; hence, I think you won't be short on stellar leadership examples. So, to bank upon your experience, elaborate more about your responsibilities, crucial projects assigned, skill-set developed, and obviously, your professional accolades (including any leadership awards )and the impact generated during your diverse tenure. Also, could you add any detail about international exposure/experience as they are greatly valued at this stage? Also, you should definitely add any professional certification (like CFA, FRM, AWS), as it would add new horizons for you to start an interesting conversation with the adcom.

Coming to ECAs, most of your relevant work was done during your college/school years. So, I would suggest you add some more relevant volunteering, community work, and even some great hobbies would work. Also, I would like you to elaborate more on the new challenges faced, the leadership role you played, the impact created by you, and a bit more about the overall experience. Moreover, I would suggest you add a relevant post-MBA goal and define both in terms of short-term and long-term goals and convince the admission committee that your future goals are relevant and bring about Collinearity in your post-MBA goals.

Overall you have a competitive profile and a good chance at schools like Kellogg and Booth. HBS can be a stretch for anyone, but it's really smart of you to add schools like Booth and Kellogg to your list. All you have to do is align your profile in accordance with the school values and must be extremely clear in your essays about how an MBA can help you reach your goals and mention your motivation/driving force, your aspirations, and finally, why you think it's a good choice for you to go for an MBA now and you have relevant skills to be successful! I see much potential in your profile, and the only thing you need is a bit of guidance and fine polishing around the rough edges! We would like to know more about your work experience and post-mba goals to gauge your chances better. If you'd like, we are happy to hop on a call with you sometime this week to discuss your profile in length and further help you with shortlisting MBA programs; feel free to book a free session with us at your convenience.

Cheers!
Neha Hadke
Profile Analyst & Channel Manager, MBA and Beyond
Testimonials
Email: neha@mbaandbeyond.com




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Hi carolynniers hope this finds you in good health

Your credentials look decent on the surface - MBB consultant , High Undergrad GPA, Sub 700 GMAT
As you may know, schools look beyond academics, the GMAT, the undergrad pedigree, and the strong employer brand to judge your potential. I agree with Admissionado that you need to have stellar essays that present a strong overall personal narrative. Harvard and Wharton may continue to stay in the aspirational category, unless your story has a strong differentiating factor.

Best wishes
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carolynniers:

Answers appended to your questions below:

· Demographics (nationality, gender):
White female 25

· Education (undergraduate institution, GPA, major - high school/entrance exams not needed):
University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Business admin & public policy, 3.8 GPA.

· GMAT or GRE or EA score (include section breakdown):
At test center: 700 (Q42, V42)

· Work experience (briefly highlight amount of work experience, industries, roles, promotions, special accomplishments, international exposure):
4 years MBB management consulting direct promote to consultant

· Extracurricular activities (briefly highlight notable undergraduate and post-undergraduate ones):
Very involved in womens affinty group, recruiting, firm mentorship, advisor for UNC club


· Target schools:
Kellogg, Booth, Harvard, Wharton, Darden, Fuqua
(this is where I need help, I need a general sense of how far or close I am at getting into some of these schools)

· Other information relevant to your profile:
1. As my profile stands, I still find it difficult to grasp how much of an overreach it is for me to get into some of these programs. To me it's clear that HBS is an overreach, but I truly have no idea what program would be a "safety application" given my profile. I appreciate the honest feedback.

Ans: Clearly you have a decent idea of the admissions process, while also staying aspirational. HBS/ Wharton/CBS/Stern etc are not exactly "reach", but your chances are definitely higher than average applicants to these schools. If I were you, my choices would depend on a) Time available for an EXTRA school application b) If I could include at least 2 Safety Schools (even R2 is fine). Depending on whether you like smaller, closer bonding type schools, or larger, competitive but big network type schools, the choice of your safety schools would be anywhere beyond the top-10, hoping that you won't need the safety schools. Darden, Fuqua though should be well within your targets.


2. I am struggling to find inspiration to retake the GMAT. I am not happy with the 700,, but realistically, I am not sure I will be able to take the time I took to study for those two attempts again. I know I can get 10-30 more points if I truly tried, but I do think that it's going to impact others aspects of my application which I think I need to start putting some time on. Based on my profile, is this something that would really swing the balance in case I scored say 20 more points?
As for the GMAT score, a 20 point raise would strengthen your chances a lot, mostly because of your well-represented profile. Your ECAs should be able to compensate for some of it, but would be able to comment upon that after a more detailed look.


3. If not covered answering Q1 and Q2, any suggested areas of focus?[/quote]
There's much beyond the essays, including the innocuous seeming "data" that you give in your applications, especially on HOW privileged/ educated you "show" your profile to be. There are many more places, but once again, much of this will depend upon a more detailed look.
Feel free to connect for end-to-end unlimited hours professional help.
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Hello carolynniers,

Thanks for writing in.

While an improvement of about ~20 points would definitely help, we do understand that it might not be worth compromising on other aspects of your application. Having said that, schools such as Harvard and Wharton will be difficult to get into with a 700.

You must, at this point, focus on consolidating the different strengths of your profile and putting forth a set of compelling essays.

Good luck!
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Hi carolynniers,

I'd encourage you to apply to the schools that you really wish to go to, rather than those where you think you might get in.

I don't think any school would be a stretch for you. Just go after your dream.

Best,
GSBcoach (com)
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