PROFILE EVALUATION.. ADVISE NEEDED

Question

Hello everyone 
I would like to present my profile and my target MBA programs and get some advise if it is advisable to apply.
Thanks in advance

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 25 
GPA: 8.7/10
International Business Administration
Work experience: 2 years.
GMAT: 650
TOEFL IBT: 106

Porgrams of interest- FULL TIME MBA
-THE GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
-TCU (TEXAS CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY)
- ROCHESTER UNIVERSITY
- RICE UNIVERSITY
-NOTRE DAME

I am interested in beginning my studies on the fall of 2014.
By that time I would have more working experience more than 3 years in total.

I would like to share some academic and professional information that may be relevant .

I lived during 1 year in England in order to improve my English. I attended to an English course my whole time there.
-FCE
-CAE I obtained both of the mentioned certificates in the English language

I know it is nothing impressive, but I would like to know if the universitites take into consideration if you have some academic international experience and received a certificate to prove that you were doing something productive during your time abroad.

I spent a summer in Alaska working in a cannery. I just wanted to make money , but it was an interesting experience.. It was an adventure.

University.
I spent 7 months in Germany as an exchange student in the university.
I combined my regular university courses in Germany with a german course there, I attended the Goethe institute and received the B-1 certificate in german.

-I made my professional practice in the custom administration in mexico for 6 months.
- Social service / internship : Economic development ministry/ state of Jalisco.. in the international promotion department during 8 months.

I graduated from the university in 2010 (December)
I wanted to improve my german a bit more and get another certificate so I spent 3 more months in germany taking german classes everyday and got a B-2 german certificate.

After that I got a job in an American company in Mexico (PANDUIT) It was a new team that was created to give service to the sales workforce of the company.. It was not a really challenging job but it had some peculiarities.

- I provided my services to the European division based in London.. so I had to worked during the night in mexico from 2 AM to 10 AM.. I got this job because I was able to speak german and provide my services to both the german speaking sales force and the english speaking one.

I worked there for a year, and then started working on the family business.. It is a small / medium size company.. the idea is that one day I will be the one in charge of running the company.. No need to say this is one of the main reasons I want to study, I want to be prepare for that day.
I have been rotating from one department to another in order to have a general idea of all the parts of the company.

I recently took the GMAT and got a 650.. I know is not an impressive score... specially when everyday I read posts of people getting 720 or more.. I am concern that I will have to improve my score a little bit more. I was hoping to get at least a 670, but I did not..

I am not interested in applying to the top schools, I am realistic and I want to improve my chances of being accepted in a decent and competitive program.

I am already working on the applications of the schools mentioned above, but since this is my first experience, I am not sure if the essays required and my CV will be good enough. I am wondering if it is worth hiring an specialized service in order to have a more competitive application.

Please any suggestions will be appreciated

ErinaApphelp105 · Answer

Hi David, The best part in your post is approach towards b-school selection.

You have shortlisted some realistic b-schools which I believe is within your reach. However, to be able to get into a b-school, you need to focus on application essays and exhibit awards/achievements in or outside work place, potential as a leader and how an MBA will help to achieve your dreams. You must also work hard on interviews and showcase maturity, ability to work with others and professionalism. You may try your chances in b-school(s) by clicking https://www.apphelp.co.in/Bschool-selection.htm . Entrepreneur experience will strengthen your candidature. Let me know in case of further queries. You may PM your details for school selection or discussion in length. Regards Erina

PaulBodine · Answer

David, You have strong international experience and an interesting story, so given that you are also a Mexican applicant, you will be competitive at all of the schools you listed. Are you open to retaking the GMAT? If you could raise it a bit higher, you would begin to be competitive at some higher ranked programs or you could improve your chances of winning a scholarship at the schools you listed. Again, your profile looks solid and distinctive. Feel free to send me your resume for a closer look. --Paul Bodine, Great Applications for Business School, www.paulsbodine.com/testimonials

CriticalSquare · Answer

Hi there,

Firstly, thank you for so much information! That is incredibly helpful. I agree with Paul's comment regarding the GMAT. Even a slight improvement may open the doors to slightly higher ranks and each notch you can climb makes a difference. Given your goals you're going for a thorough business education and the ability to gain hands on experience so I'm not saying this from a pure pedigree standpoint (where, for example, it might matter for someone trying to get into consulting).

I think you have a good profile and definitely a lot of experiences to pull from. Additionally, some of them, like the cannery, are definitely off the beaten path. Overall, your path through life to this point hasn't been the standard, cookie cutter approach and that will be your key differentiator.

I won't reiterate what Erina and Paul have mentioned because i agree with them. I will, however, address your last question about specialized service. Obviously, we provide these services as well but I am writing the below as objectively as possible to help you out.

The main advantage to consulting services is that we don't just help you turn out good, individual components like a good resume or a good essay. Firstly, we work with the client to understand the ins and outs of your application to make sure those components are great. But secondly, and more importantly, we make sure all these components work together. That's the real advantage services like ours bring to the table - it's how we help you put forward a cohesive, unified, and compelling application that works together to touch upon key themes.

If you have questions - please don't hesitate to ask. I hope that helps a little in understanding what the value proposition of services like ours actually is.

Bhavik

MBAPrepAdvantage · Answer

Ideally you would like a higher GMAT score. But unlike the advice I give Indian applicants Mexicans usually score lower on the GMAT because of the lack of standardized testing in Central America.

Where did you go to university? If you graduated from a name undergraduate institution like Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México or Tecnológico de Monterrey, this will help your admissions chances.

I think you are already competitive for the schools you are targeting and actually can aim higher. I think you are competitive for the top 16-20 and with a higher GMAT score would be competitive for the Top 8-15.

The key is to position your experience as strongly as possible with your family business and how some of your previous work experience help you with your family business. More and more schools are focusing on family business (although thought leaders like Kellogg, Wharton and NYU Stern are out of your range with your present score). Check the entrepreneurship programs of schools outside of the top 15 and see which have family business (sometimes called family enterprise) course, clubs, and/or conferences.

Best of luck,

davidlf · Answer

Thanks to everyone, I really appreciate you took the time to reply.

I have read that everyone (including me) considers that I should try to improve my gmat score. I really think it is a good idea. But I was wondering how many points should I improve in order to be competitive in better ranked program. I have no problem with taking the test again, by how many points should improve my score in order to make a difference in my application?

Lets say I score a 660 will that really make a difference? or I should only consider to retake the test if I am looking to improve 20, 30 or more points..

Thanks in advance

CriticalSquare · Answer

Hey David,

I think the answer to your question comes down to perception versus statistical impact. For example, 660 after a 650 wouldn't make a statistical difference to the adcoms and merely reiterate that the 650ish level is accurate for your abilities on the exam.

However, a 20 - 30 point improvement not only improves your score's perception, but also statistically via the percentile.

Either way, I still think you should take it again but what you're really going for is the 20-30 point improvement. a 680 would put you in a good spot within the range of most of the top programs. Also, that will paint a story around trajectory and say, "look, I got a 650 but then I studied and improved X" which is a great thing to be able to say.

Bhavik

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