Profile Evaluation...Please Help!

Question

Hello, 
I was wondering if someone could provide some input regarding my chances of gaining admission into the following schools: Cornell, Georgetown, UNC, Duke, and Washington U. My profile is as follows:
Education: 
-Finance Undergrad-University of Central Missouri 4.0 finance GPA, 3.65 Cumulative GPA
-Held presidency of several student organizations, scholarships, etc
-Could obtain recommendation from Econ & Finance Dept. Chair
Work Experience: 
-4 years with Bank of America, Private Wealth Mang. Division
-1st 10 Months, worked as an analyst
-remainder, was promoted early to Assistant VP and made Portfolio Manager, managing $100million+ investment portfolios
-Excellent Reviews, etc
GMAT: 650
Additional:
-Passed all three levels of the Chartered Financial Analyst exam (CFA) and will receive charter shortly. 
-Member of the CFA Institute and the Kansas City CFA society
Long-term Goals:
Plan on leveraging my MBA to gain management/Director positions with Bank of America or similiar companies.

Any input would be most appreciated. Thanks in advance

APM · Answer

Getting a lot of views, but no suggestions. Can anyone share some personal insight. Thanks

jjanders · Answer

I would suggest posting this in one of the "Ask XXX" forums.

pelihu · Answer

You have a shot at all of the schools on the list (a good shot at some), but you will have to work hard to overcome your GMAT score at Duke, Cornell & possible UNC. Your experience seems to be spot on for an MBA applicant. One thing is that Private Wealth is sometimes considered the poor sister of Investment Banking and S&T, but generally speaking your experience is strong. Your academic record is great, but your school is off the radar, so this is probably a neutral factor overall. Without knowing and additional information, I'd say you have a chance, but 40-80 more points on the GMAT will make your a strong candidate at all of those schools.

kidderek · Answer

26/27, quick promotion, PM managing 100+mm and you passed all 3 CFA exams? 

You're going to need to do a lot of convincing as to why you need an MBA. Otherwise, I think you'd be a goldmine for a bschool. CFA makes you very easily employable, which will always boost a school's rep.

APM · Answer

Thank you all for your suggestions. 

Pelihu, when I said "Private Wealth", I should have added that I also manage endowments, charitable foundations, institutions, etc. I'm also not interested in doing I-banking or S&T now or in the future, so I hope that point carries no weight in the application process. Thanks for your advice.

Kidderek, the structure of this organization is such that when one becomes a Portfolio Manager, they could potentially stay at that level for the duration of their career. I'm hoping that the MBA will make myself more marketable for a transition from managing client portfolios to managing those who manage client portfolios; essentially become the director of investments. With this in mind, do you think I will have trouble making my case for an MBA? Thanks in advance for your advice.

kidderek · Answer

FYI, Cornell class of 09 has avg gmat of 690 -- the highest in recent years.

Business schools are still a business. If you are a CFA, I'm sure schools will look at that very favorably. Also, you can put in your apps now with a 650 and take the test again before decisions come in.

rhyme · Answer

Maybe I'm seeing something here that other people aren't, but I see  a lot  of potential in this profile. Spun properly, I see a young aggressive and dedicated analyst who distinguished himself in a large multi national corporation and quickly rose to Assistant VP and wealth manager. I see a focused passion as identified by a CFA exam, solid GPA, etc.

The only thing holding you back would be the GMAT and a more well developed "why mba". It isn't sufficient to merely say you want to become a Director, I think you need to develop a more deep reason you want an MBA - say "a better understanding of operations, economics and strategy so that I can better understand the strategic moves made by the companies I cover and recommend to my clients". Even something as "basic" as that is already a substantial step in the right direction. 

If you can bump the GMAT, I'd probably be suggesting you give Wharton, Chicago, etc a shot. Heck, I'd suggest you toss in an app into one of these top schools anyway, but certainly, if you can bump that GMAT, refine the "story" and why mba a bit, I imagine you would do just fine...

APM · Answer

Rhyme, thanks for your encouraging input. I think with a little effort I can create an excellent "why MBA" letter and raise my GMAT score. I'm hoping that the CFA and my GPA will negate the fact that I didn't attend a recognized university. Once again, thanks.

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