VP
Joined: 22 Apr 2004
Posts: 1117
Given Kudos: 59
Location: Southern California
Schools:Kellogg MBA 2004
Re: Profile Evaluation Please
[#permalink]
18 Jun 2010, 10:51
Hello,
Overall, I like your chances. The main reason is that you have a very realistic, easy-to-believe career path ahead of you. You're not the 1,000th applicant who wants to go into consulting or try to get into banking (in this bad economy) or start some sort of new enterprise. While those are all valid goals, they're also very common, and it will be some time before schools get over their paranoia about being able to place grads in good jobs. So, your plan to go from Big Oil to Big Oil will actually help you stand out in a way, I think.
Love the firefighter experience. TONS of great material there to use in your apps, I bet. Don't underestimate how much of an interest admissions officers may take in this side of you! Also, I really like the rest of your EC involvement, but ideally you will have at least 1-2 great leadership stories to draw upon (e.g., you didn't just show up to events, but you actually created or ran something).
Your undergrad work looks fine. As long as there are no black marks or dramatic dips, I think you'll be okay there. Re: age, you'll only have several years of full-time experience by the time you enter, so I think you'll be okay re: HBS, although of course getting into HBS is hard for anyone.
Your school selection is fine, although the ones that have a more general-management bent (HBS, Kellogg, Darden, Tuck) seem to make the most sense for you, given your career goals. But, overall, I expect that you'll be competitive at top-10 schools.
Good luck!
Scott