Profiles - Admitted to Top B-Schools w/ Low GMAT or Low GPA

Definitely a great thread. I don't dispute the point made earlier that being an URM doesn't play a role in admitting individuals from the lower end of a school's 80% GMAT/GPA range. But I think the diversity at the lower end of this range is not just limited to ethnicity or gender but also career background, career goals, and life stories, etc.

I spent most of my life until now refusing to "check the box" because I would rather know that I got somewhere in my life because I was great at what I do not because of my heritage. I was OK with my grades, OK with my test scores my entire life but always was the leader of everything I did and received several awards all through HS and Undergrad.

I only check the box now because I had a conversation with an AdCom member from a top 10 B-school who articulated to me that they don't see the URM status as being more lenient but they want and need a diverse program. Whether I check the box or not, they're going to maintain a diverse program either way and I may fit into one of the other "boxes" that they're looking for (career background, career goals, and life stories, etc.) given my solid marketing/advertising background and desire to go into a non-traditional career in Media and Entertainment. The big thing I might be passing on by not checking the URM box is scholarship money. Which, given the prospect of paying for everything myself with no help, is a BIG reason for me to check the box.

I apologize for the long commentary but I say all of this to say, the numbers don't say everything and because I can check that box does not mean it's the only reason why they're going to admit me. I still need to be able to succeed in B-school and even more importantly, I need to get a job and be an advocate for the school when I'm done and give them lots of money . If I wanted to go into I-Banking or Consulting at a top firm with my GMAT, they would probably laugh at me because the odds of me getting a job with my GMAT is slim to none.

My profile and link below have my full background.

[quote="JoeKaneForHeisman"]How did you initiate this conversation and what is your standard explanation? Looks like you and I are in similar situations.

Thanks![/quote]

I was on campus and made an appointment to discuss my application.

As for the explanation, is pretty simple...I took the GMAT a bunch of times and was not able to crack it. Everyone has weaknesses and GMAT math happens to be one of mine. With that said, I have a pretty quant heavy job, such as projects x, y, z and am confident I can meet the quant rigors of the program...but if there is any additional classes/tests that the admin committee would like me to take, I am happy to do so.

So what is your situation?

I just got admitted to Ross with an UG GPA of 3.01, an academic probation and a couple of F's on my transcript. Not your typically strong UG candidate. My GMAT was a 710 so that helped me prove my academic ability.

Sorry guys, been MIA lately. Just came back to civilization from Vermont. Ok, here's my story: 1.9 GPA here (yeap you got that right) and just got into Ross, waiting to hear from UNC and Cornell next week and INSEAD in May. Will report back when I do. Already interviewed at UNC and expecting good news there. Cornell is a big wild card at this point.

What I think made a difference in my case:

- I went to a well-known and rigorous program in Canada (GPAs from non-US schools have no bearing on their GPA averages and therefore rankings - so if you're in a similar situation, you just have to prove to them that you can handle the course work and are interesting enough to contribute meaningfully to the community. If you went to school in the US, there's still plenty of things you can do to strengthen your candidacy)

- I took quant and accounting courses at well-known universities last summer and got A-s in all of them

- I have a very fast career progression and my job is such that it leaves little doubt about my quantitative abilities

- I have good reasons for my sub-par performance in UG and explained those in the optional essay. That story also meshed well with the rest of my application and the qualities that came through in all the stories in the rest of my essays

- I was able to present a coherent application and build a brand, which jived with everything they saw on paper: course work, career progression, international experience, etc. I cannot emphasize this enough - imagine you're trying to introduce yourself to somebody and they don't know anything about you besides a few data points that can be construed in various ways. Come up with 3-4 strengths that you believe define you (ideally those will be aligned with the school's philosophy and you have some tangible experience to lend cred). In ALL your essays, make sure you pick stories that send that consistent message. At the same time, take care to present yourself as a versatile individual through varied experiences (which again, show that you possess those qualities you're trying to communicate to them, albeit in different environments)

- my interview went really well

- demographics - sadly, I believe this played a major role. I'm a Caucasian female, originally from Eastern Europe, have lived in different counties and have varied experiences. I possess a fairly unique work experience and post-MBA goals (yes IB post-grad is not the most popular choice among women). So I think all that contributed a lot as well.

I remember starting a thread on this very same topic a while back before I even started working on apps and I've come a long way since. It hasn't been easy but I, among others, am proof that a low GPA can absolutely be overcome. Just hit me up on PM if there's anything I can do to help anyone who is in the same situation as I was. I'll be happy to share what I have learned and hope that my experience can be of help to someone. Best of luck!

Didn't want to jump the gun until I heard back from a few schools, but despite my low GMAT (mid-600's), I received admissions to Booth and Kellogg.

Moral of the story: don't lose hope even with the low GMAT or GPA. Blow them out of the water with your story and other accomplishments. Hope this helps motivate others to keep fighting for that admission spot. Best of luck all!

This topic simply inspires me .I hope I can post here one day

Good GMAT score is good to have. But that is not all. So, with a moderate GMAT score you can still make into a top B SChool. If you are not interested to give another shot at GMAT or if you dont see yourself with a much improved GMAT score in the near future, it's better to focus on criteria than spending more time on GMAT

Had a gmat score of 490 last year after taking it twice! I applied to wharton anyways and got invited to an interview.. Don't worry.. I did not get accepted. But the fact that I got the interview says something! I am convince that a score over 550 is enough if your background is unique and interesting! We shall see

Posted from my mobile device

Great idea, it seems that only 700+ are getting into top schools. Wondering if anyone is gonna post something here

I hope to be one of the success stories with a 660..... but I don't think it's going to happen

After browsing this board and looking at some friends, I'm pretty sure I overestimated my chances. Guess I'll be taking the gmat again for the 7th time and applying next year. That is, if I can manage to stay employed. Oh boy. Credit crunchtastic!

Good luck to you guys!

I know someone who's WL at Booth it that helps... probably reading this right now!

GMAT: 670 (Q:50, V:30, AWA:4)
University attended: ENSAM (French top leading engineering school)
Major(s): Mechanical engineering
GPA / Honours:N/A
Nationality: French / Congo
Age: (at matriculation) 31
Gender: Male
Work Experience: 6 / Consulting / Associate
Extra-curricular Activities: Many
Community Services: Many

Business Schools (Admitted): Columbia in the ED
Business Schools (Applied but Dinged):

Hope this gives hope

Found a few more interesting profiles. First - 640 and got into Duke. Second - friend got 640 and got into Stanford. These are from the beatthegmat forums.

----------------------------------------
suffissd:

I am a 24 year old white female, and I majored in Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology. I had a 3.40 undergraduate GPA, and then I got a certificate in Biochemistry where my GPA was 3.89.
My GMAT was 640 (35V/44Q, 6 Analytical Writing)

I only have 1.5 years of work experience (which I think proves quality is better than quantity) at the National Institutes of Health where I got a prestigious fellowship to work on the AIDS virus. I was elected the Fellow-Chair of my institute at the NIH which gives me some management experience.

I think what really got me in were my letters of recommendations which were amazing, and then my essays with an emphasis on how everything I have done thus far in health care will enable me to be successful in the Health Sector Management Concentration which I plan to pursue.

I also tried to set myself apart from other applicants in my essays by talking about being an Academic All American in Snowboarding which I was very dedicated to in College.

Good Luck!
-------------------------------------------------

Leonard C:

Just found out a friend of mine was accepted at Stanford with a 640 GMAT. He was on the wait-list for a while but has now been accepted. He was also accepted first round into LBS.

His background is not extraordinary - worked for six years at a top 100 company (mining sector) in Australia, progression rate normal, but had fantastic references. He's also a great writer, so I'm guessing his essays were good.

I also heard (not sure whether this is true) that six people with an 800 GMAT score applied to Stanford last year, and all were rejected.
-------------------------------------------------

That girl sounds pretty awesome. I'm sure she'll be a hit at Stanford.

That said, I never thought I'd say this, but... I agree with Pelihu. Would this applicant have gotten into Stanford if she were a he and white? There's no way to know, obviously, but if I had to bet on it, I think the safe money would be on a big fat ding, no interview.

I'm a white dude from a family that wasn't poor, so I won't get on a soapbox here about affirmative action, except to say that this admissions process is a little frustrating for someone who can't check all the boxes my schools are looking for to up their demographic numbers.

i've edited the thread title to reflect low GPAs as well. here is an admit success story from drsatisfaction - GPA of 1.9, and admitted to oxford and insead.

my-road-to-oxford-sbs-and-insead-89413.html

thanks man. wasn't sure where to put it but this is a good thread.

also, to clarify a bit on my profile:

Asian
25, 26 by matriculation
GPA 1.9 - admitted into school at 15 on a full scholarship though, and completely screwed off afterwards
GMAT - 760
WE - 6 yrs by matriculation, with 1.5 in a pretty senior leadership role. i manage all financial related issues on my company's business with 2 major Fortune 50 companies (think software maker and chocolate maker) and have a team of about 50 that all matrix into me for finance. this is worth easily $10+ million and i increased the profitability of the businesses significantly.

reading some of the earlier success stories, i must say, the essays are key. the reason i think i got into oxford was the fact that the 2nd essay is 2000 words and i went on a limb to really write a compelling case for myself as an outlier and distinguish my application from others. for INSEAD, i focused on the achievements i had at work. i'm not talking about winning awards or whatever. i'm talking about hard bottom line results that can't be argued with and the experiences i have managing people at a fairly young age.

also, references - i believe i got very strong references from my VP. i never got a chance to see what he wrote, but i have a great relationship with him and believe he really pushed for me in the references.

so overall my argument was - talent is not an issue with me. it's always been drive. i was 15 and i butchered my undergrad GPA. i've moved on, i've grown in life, and i can handle the work now. of course, some programs bought it and took me in, others didn't.

GMAT: 610 (low quant)
GPA: 3.3
Nationality: USA
Age: (at matriculation): 28
Gender: M
Work Experience: Six years, consulting
Extra-curricular Activities/Community Services: Strong area for me, many unique experiences

Business Schools (Applied in R2): Wharton, Columbia, Chicago

Though my job is pretty quant heavy, I just could not crack the quant section of the GMAT. I demonstrated my quant ability through essays and asked my recommenders to focus on my quant skills.

Honestly, at the point in my career, going to a lower ranked school (ie, one where my GMAT "fits") is just not worth it for me. Though I have reasonable expectations for this process, I am going to be intrigued to see how much GMAT actually comes into play.

I have extensively networked at each of the three schools I have applied, and hope that the hustle factor, along with my essays/work experiences, will allow adcoms to wave me in.

Question: Though my best individual GMAT is a 610, if you combine my best verbal with my best quant (from consecutive GMAT takes) my score is roughly a 680. Any chance an adcom would take this into consideration.

Best of luck everyone...will report back when I have some news to report.