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bc1991
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Profile evaluation request 17 May 2017, 04:58
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Hello! Hope this message finds you well, any tips or pointers would be great :)

Profile:
- 25yo, English, white male, middle class

- Undergrad at London School of Economics in Government, 2.1 honours (not the top grade, but top 10% of class)

- 3.5 years at Big 4. First two were on the grad scheme, last 2 in Strategy department working on a large infrastructure strategy project

- About to move to smaller strategy boutique (no-brand name in the US, but recognised in Europe / France)

- 730 GMAT (49Q,40V) Only 6 on the IR, but also 6 on the essay

- Weak extra-curricula activities (regular blood donations, limited involvement in mentoring scheme at work)


Reasons for wanting to do an MBA:
- Short term: to pivot to a senior role in a focussed strat. house in the U.S. Ideally working in the public / transport sector to help improve public services and reduce emissions

- Longer term: get increasingly involved in NGO work

Target schools:
- Harvard, Wharton, Kellogg, MIT, Booth, Yale

Questions:
- Is my profile competitive at these schools?

- Other that working on the pro-bono elements of my application, what else could I do to stand out?
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StratusDonna
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Concentration: Marketing, Organizational Behavior
Schools: Kellogg
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Schools: Kellogg
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Profile evaluation request 17 May 2017, 11:38
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bc1991
Hello! Hope this message finds you well, any tips or pointers would be great :)
Hi bc1991. Thanks for reaching out and will answer your questions below!
Profile:
- 25yo, English, white male, middle class

- Undergrad at London School of Economics in Government, 2.1 honours (not the top grade, but top 10% of class)[color=#1a7b30]Overall this is pretty strong.

- 3.5 years at Big 4. First two were on the grad scheme, last 2 in Strategy department working on a large infrastructure strategy projectGood work experience

- About to move to smaller strategy boutique (no-brand name in the US, but recognised in Europe / France)Less important to have the brand name here as you have the big 4 already

- 730 GMAT (49Q,40V) Only 6 on the IR, but also 6 on the essay[color=#0000ff][color=#1a7b30]Very impressive[/color][/color]

- Weak extra-curricula activities (regular blood donations, limited involvement in mentoring scheme at work)
[/color]I would not count on the regular blood donations to get you into B School! Try to up your game here- there is still time now to get some meaningful involvement somewhere in next 6 months

Reasons for wanting to do an MBA:
- Short term: to pivot to a senior role in a focussed strat. house in the U.S. Ideally working in the public / transport sector to help improve public services and reduce emissions

- Longer term: get increasingly involved in NGO work

Target schools:
- Harvard, Wharton, Kellogg, MIT, Booth, Yale

Questions:
- Is my profile competitive at these schools?[color=#1a7b30]HBS likes to see a "habit of leadership" in all areas of life-
extracurricular, work etc- so I am not seeing that here... not sure I am seeing MIT either... nor Booth... but Yale, Kellogg are probably your strongest bets from this list. Might also look at Tuck, Georgetown, Fuqua for the public sector- social enterprise connection.


- Other that working on the pro-bono elements of my application, what else could I do to stand out?[/color]
Show more
In focusing on how to stand out- capture your impact and accomplishments to date, explain WHY you have the passion and interest in transportation and or NGO work- the pieces of the story need to connect- also do strong research on the schools and WHY this is a fit for you.
A good admissions counselor can help- and we have lots of these at Stratus- so to reach out for a free consult please go to this link:https://stratusadmissionscounseling.com/admissions/business-school-admissions-consulting-gmat-club-visitor/
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MBADecoder
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Profile evaluation request 22 May 2017, 05:31
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bc1991
Hello! Hope this message finds you well, any tips or pointers would be great :)

Profile:
- 25yo, English, white male, middle class

- Undergrad at London School of Economics in Government, 2.1 honours (not the top grade, but top 10% of class)

- 3.5 years at Big 4. First two were on the grad scheme, last 2 in Strategy department working on a large infrastructure strategy project

- About to move to smaller strategy boutique (no-brand name in the US, but recognised in Europe / France)

- 730 GMAT (49Q,40V) Only 6 on the IR, but also 6 on the essay

- Weak extra-curricula activities (regular blood donations, limited involvement in mentoring scheme at work)


Reasons for wanting to do an MBA:
- Short term: to pivot to a senior role in a focussed strat. house in the U.S. Ideally working in the public / transport sector to help improve public services and reduce emissions

- Longer term: get increasingly involved in NGO work

Target schools:
- Harvard, Wharton, Kellogg, MIT, Booth, Yale

Questions:
- Is my profile competitive at these schools?

- Other that working on the pro-bono elements of my application, what else could I do to stand out?
Show more

Hi BC,

Great Profile!
My concern is, if you are so passionate about NGO work, why is your volunteering work so sparse right now? Keeping this perspective, the long term goal could seem as a strategy to get the adcom's attention, unless you are able to tie it up as a strong story
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bc1991
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Profile evaluation request Updated on: 23 May 2017, 18:02
Originally posted by bc1991 on 23 May 2017, 17:39.
Last edited by bc1991 on 23 May 2017, 18:02, edited 1 time in total.
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Thanks for the tips guys - I think the stuff you have picked on is probably right. I generally struggle to get beyond being another generic applicant, so I'm really looking for ways to build out my story / extra-curriculars in a credible way. I think the things I am most insecure about at the moment are:

1.) Lack of a clear story (even in my own head) about business school motivation. My application at the moment is driven mostly by fairly selfish reasons (a chance to move from big 4 to big 3, career security and a chance to re-assess what I would like to do with my life after a stint in consulting) rather than the "higher calling" that most good candidates seem to have.

2.) Although I have a desire to do socially "good" things in life, I have generally tried to do this through picking consulting projects in the public sector. As a result, (and also because of laziness / wanting to spend time with friends and family) I don't have a real areas where I've helped with charity / third sector work.

I'm planning to apply in 2-3 years, when I will be 27 / 28. This therefore gives me a bit of time to get involved in stuff, but these are areas that I want to get sorted! On that basis, my questions are:

a.) What techniques are there (if any) for building out a personal "story" that runs through an application?

b.) What's the best way to find a deliver effective volunteer work? In particular, what type and level of work is considered meaningful?

Sorry if this is a little confused (I'm still trying to get the story straight in my own mind) - any thoughts on these areas would be really appreciated.

Thanks as always,
Ben