Profile Evaluation - Unconventional Background
[#permalink]
11 Jul 2015, 15:52
Hi, looking to get some advice regarding apps for 2016. Any thoughts or suggestions are much appreciated.
Citizenship: US, born and raised in NJ/NY
Ethnicity: Mix (but mostly Indian)
Age: 26
Education:
UG GPA: 3.85, decent public research university
Major: Psychology, Sociology
LSAT score: 97th percentile
Law School: Top 20
Law School GPA: slightly above median
Work Experience:
*Here's where things get weird. After two years of law school, I dropped out to start a company with some friends (I led the team). We secured $50k in funding and went through an accelerator program. the company was legal related. Unfortunately things didn't pan out and 6 months later we ran out of money. I then started working in NY for an ecommerce startup and shortly after a boutique digital marketing agency. In both companies I led marketing efforts. Outside of my full-time job, I participated in and won several hackathons. One of these hackathons led to the creation of an app company, which I led for approximately 6 months. After a year of working in the "real world" I started another legal related company. I led this company to an annual run rate of $240k. However, we recently shut down because of growth and legal issues.
To sum it up:
1 year work experience in marketing
2 years running and 3 leading startups, one of which produced $20k/mo
I'm currently looking for another job, so that'll add another year of experience. That's a total of 4 years of work experience and 2 years of law school before starting b-school.
Lastly, why b-school: I'm at heart an entrepreneur. I love making an impact in the world. All my startups have been legal related and I invested in making a meaningful difference in the lives of people who could not afford a lawyer. I believe technology can do wonders and help people, regardless of socioeconomic status. I see business as a sustainable way to change lives. Despite my failed startups, I've learned a ton of valuable lessons in leadership, marketing, product development, etc.. Overall, I think I can tell a good story about why I left law school and why I think business school is right for me. After b-school I'd like to get into consulting and then (most likely) start my own company again.
My Question - if you noticed I haven't included my GMAT score. That's because I haven't taken it yet. So here's my question:
Given my unique background, what score is enough to get my admission to the M7. I know there's no cut off, but realistically speaking, what score would give me ~50% chance of getting an offer. My goal right now is 740, and with enough studying, I think I can get it. Is that enough? If I score 720, should I bother applying? At what score should I really cancel my score and try again. I'm only going to apply to M7 schools (I have my reasons - mostly because I'm buried in law school loans and it won't make sense for me to take on more unless I was confident in securing post-grad employment, hence M7). I'm planning on taking the GMATs on sept 6, a few days before Harvard's app deadline...
Please let me know your thoughts! I really appreciate any insight!
close
