Social Enterprise/Non-profit post MBA goal question

Question

Does anyone have any experience with applying with Social Enterprise/non-profit as the post MBA career for M7?

I am worried schools will be wary of this as a goal (especially schools not necessarily known for this field such as CBS, Booth, Wharton etc) since the pay is typically lower than the school's average, going off employment reports, and there isn't a set funnel into these jobs.

Also will it seem fake if I don't have experience working in an established social enterprise role pre-MBA? Although I have done extensive volunteering with leadership roles from college to the present, and started my own non-profit. Thank you!

LeoN88 · Answer

Hey  grh582

What exactly is M7? I too am from not-for-profit background.

grh582 · Answer

LeoN88 , M7 is just a classification of schools, basically the top 7 schools including Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, Booth, MIT, Kellogg, Columbia

CoachNikhilesh · Answer

I had not-for-profit aspirations as a part of my essays and got admit to Kellogg and Wharton.
I always have had an entrepreneurial spirit with a strong desire to do greater good. As long as social cause you are invested is also profitably viable it wouldn't count as a negative. On the contrary, they would welcome some with a different aspiration. My case was even more compelling as I was working simultaneously as an entrepreneur and project manager in healthcare sector for a Hospital and an NGO respectively.
So yeah, they welcome people with social bent. However, you will need to show that you have made major contributions to your chosen cause in the past. If you started the not-for-profit and dedicated significant time to it, you will be able to make a compelling case for yourself.

For more tips and tricks related to MBA admissions head to my blog at  Admit Vidya

ExpertsGlobal · Answer

Hello  grh582 ,

Thanks for your query.

The M7 definitely appreciate goals with a social bent provided they sync in well with your story, the strengths of the school, and do not look force-fitted; goals with a social bent will add the much-needed diversity to your profile and make you stand out in the applicant pool. Needless to say, the sync is only possible if you have a relevant background and can join the dots in a meaningful way. Hence, a lot will depend on how well you portray your goals through your essays, as well as, your GMAT score.

Should you have any follow-up questions, please feel free to reach out to us.

All the best!

CrackVerbalShree · Answer

Hello grh582,

It won't seem fake - if you are genuine and have really done it. B-Schools trust you at the same time they know who is faking too. With years of experience and evaluating thousands of applicants, they would be able to figure out who is faking and who is not.

That said - social enterprise experience is great if you have really done some good work. We have worked with some aspiring students who have worked with social enterprises in remote areas of their country and reported to managers who were from the M7s. This company I am talking about was funded by the Melinda Gates Foundation and these grads were part of the team who were strategizing and managing the execution of all the projects and making the right use of the funds.

You need to be clear about your vision and why you believe an MBA can get you the kind of role you would want to get into.

Hope this helps.
Shree

grh582 · Answer

Thank you for your input! Could you elaborate on this last part you said, about the strengths of the school?
So this confuses me because it seems to suggest it's not a good idea to apply to schools that aren't strong in the field you are pursuing.

Does this mean people who want to go into banking should not be applying to Stanford/Haas/Kellogg/MIT because they aren't particularly known for their banking recruiting? 
That really limits the schools you can apply to in that case. If you wanted to do banking and Kellogg was your #1 choice, how would you make that case? They definitely send people into IB according to the employment reports so I am wondering what those people wrote for their essays.

ExpertsGlobal · Answer

Hello  grh582 ,

What we mean to say is that goals with a social bent work if they go well with your story and do not appear force-fitted.

Hope this clarifies your doubt.

Thanks.

Social Enterprise/Non-profit post MBA goal question

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