Hello! Thanks for your post.
Let's start evaluating your profile by talking about academic qualifications -- your GRE score is definitely competitive for top programs so that's a great recent indicator of your ability to manage the coursework. Your overall undergrad GPA is below average so that will be a concern. The upward trend helps though and you can write a brief Optional Essay to explain that. I'd want to know more about the types of courses on your transcript - for many liberal arts majors (myself included
), schools will be looking for experience with quantitative coursework. So if you've taken courses in things like Stats, Econ, Calculus, and gotten good grades, then that's less of a concern. But if not, then I would highly recommend you take a supplemental pre-MBA course in a quantitative area.
Your work experience in education can serve as a differentiator since many applicants will be applying from consulting, finance, etc. So this can help you to stand out because you've had some really rich leadership experiences and you've likely had to overcome many challenges (motivating students, managing school politics, etc.) that will be transferable to a business setting. Plus business schools know that TFA and programs like it are very selective so in a sense you've been pre-vetted for things like interpersonal skills and leadership potential.
I think the challenge (though it's an addressable one) is telling a compelling story about why you want to make the transition into management consulting and how you're going to be successful in making that transition. Especially since you already have two MA degrees, they'll want to make sure you're serious about the MBA and understand how it will benefit you. So really be thinking about the experiences you've had and how they'll help you as a consultant and what specifically you want to get out of the MBA that you don't have already. You may want to check out this Consulting Career Primer (offered by our sister company MBA Career Coaches) for an explanation of what the post-MBA consulting path looks like (
https://info.mbacareercoaches.com/consul ... eer-primer).
I think you've got a lot of strengths in your profile - the GPA is a concern but it's further in the past - and I think you can address the career story / timing question. Your volunteer activities outside of work and the fact that you're not applying from an overrepresented demographic will give you a slight edge. I think top 15 is reasonable though try to have a range of programs within that, perhaps dipping into the top 20 for a safety school. Try to engage with your target schools too - especially important for schools like Tuck where fit is really emphasized.
Good luck and keep us posted if we can answer any more questions!! If you'd like to dive deeper into these questions, feel free to sign up for a free 30 minute phone consultation too. You can sign up at
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Kate Richardson
mbaMission Senior Admissions Consultant
Chicago Booth Alum, over 80 5-star reviews on GMAT Club
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