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FSF17
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Which Schools 10 Oct 2012, 13:28
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I'm looking for honest opinions on which B-schools I should apply for. I got a 3.2 GPA from a regional public U (full academic scholarship, political science A.B.), interned for a congressman, then went to a T1 law school with a pretty good scholarship. I wanted to get into politics or corporate law. However, I decided after a couple months that law school was not for me, and dropped out. My law school transcript has 5 Ws on it. I needed something livelier for a career, so I became a Naval Officer, a pilot flying patrol aircraft. I was a Plane Commander, Mission Commander, and held ground jobs in Operations, admin, QA, etc. I got a 690 on the GMAT... I'm still active duty, have been in for 5 years, and have no idea how my résumé sounds to the typical B-school. I'm sure my leadership experience plays well, but my mediocre GPA from a mediocre undergrad school does not. Am I competitive at the top b-schools?

-FSF
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ManhattanReview
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Affiliations: Columbia, Wharton, LBS
Concentration: Finance, Accounting, Marketing, Entrepreneurship
Schools:Harvard, Stanford, LBS, Columbia, Wharton, HEC Paris
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Which Schools 10 Oct 2012, 17:34
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Remember that when you write your application, admissions does not have to know every single detail. In your case, editing what and how you present your background is critical. One one front you can read it and find it compelling and full of potential and the other front you can read it and conclude that you are a flake. Obviously b-school admissions prefers one of these over the other.

The one aspect of your candidacy that you will have to explain is your law school grades. if you do this correctly it should not hurt your candidacy at all; however if you do not do it correctly, then it can really hurt your prospects. I would also focus primarily on your military experience as most military experience is highly valued in business school admissions.

Lastly, I would be very careful about which schools you apply to and focus on those that have the most open minded admissions offices. From my experience of working with hundreds of candidates with imperfect backgrounds, I would recommend that you look at Wharton, Sloan, Booth Ross, Anderson, Johnson, Yale and Fuqua.

Good luck in your quest -- and yes I think you will be successful in this process.

Kimberly Plaga
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Which Schools 11 Oct 2012, 03:11
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I would say, just at quick first glance that you are competitive at Top B-schools. It depends of course on the detail of your experience as an officer, and everything else in your profile, but schools in general LOVE military leaders... Still you can't just glide in on that alone. You need to come up with clever goals that make sense, and overall show diversity (Plus a thought - not 100% sure whether you need to report your law school debacle... something to think about).

so H/S/W will likely be challenges for you, but with strong leadership stories other Top schools should be within range.
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Which Schools 16 Oct 2012, 00:08
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Hi,

An overview of my profile is given below:
GMAT score - 670 (Q45, V37)
Graduation BCom (H) - 8.31 CGPA
Class 12 - 80%
Class 10 - 82%
Work ex - 3 yrs and counting

I was one of the 4 school captains. I actively participated in all the school activities including sports, but do not have any certificates or medals
During graduation, I was the class rep. I have also been the speaker at seminars held in my college and my team won the first position in quiz contests.

I am a trained and certified classical dancer. I have organised and participated in various cultural programs. I have also been associated with an NGO for quite some time.

I do not have any significant achievements at work. However, immediately after I joined, I was part of the core team that organised the annual day very successfully. I was involved in all aspects from the venue to the performances and invites etc. That was the first time an event of such a magnitude was held in the organisation.

It is not possible for me to take the GMAT again. Which schools (India or abroad) should I apply to?

I’m not looking to getting into a second-tier school abroad. In that case, would rather go for a good school in India. Pls suggest some top-tier schools or atleast those figuring in the world rankings.

Thanks in advance.
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GeneralEducation
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Which Schools 17 Oct 2012, 01:37
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gmatmba2013
Hi,

An overview of my profile is given below:
GMAT score - 670 (Q45, V37)
Graduation BCom (H) - 8.31 CGPA
Class 12 - 80%
Class 10 - 82%
Work ex - 3 yrs and counting

I was one of the 4 school captains. I actively participated in all the school activities including sports, but do not have any certificates or medals
During graduation, I was the class rep. I have also been the speaker at seminars held in my college and my team won the first position in quiz contests.

I am a trained and certified classical dancer. I have organised and participated in various cultural programs. I have also been associated with an NGO for quite some time.

I do not have any significant achievements at work. However, immediately after I joined, I was part of the core team that organised the annual day very successfully. I was involved in all aspects from the venue to the performances and invites etc. That was the first time an event of such a magnitude was held in the organisation.

It is not possible for me to take the GMAT again. Which schools (India or abroad) should I apply to?

I’m not looking to getting into a second-tier school abroad. In that case, would rather go for a good school in India. Pls suggest some top-tier schools or atleast those figuring in the world rankings.

Thanks in advance.
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Hi,

You have a nice profile with good academics.

Per your Profile and GMAT score I would recommend you to target ISB, Kellogg, Kelley, Tepper, Duke and Purdue etc. As the average GMAT Score for these B Schools fall in between 650-790 range.
You are in perfect stage of your career and around 5 years of work experience is what most B Schools look for.

However you would need to cleverly prepare yourself for questions like why you had a low GMAT score, your rationale behind applying for a specific B school, so on and so forth.

The next step for you is to focus more on your application essays & recommendations for these Business Schools.

Hence it would be highly advisable to seek assistance from professional consultants for guidance on preparing a good letters of recommendations and get your essays/scholarship essays evaluated before sending it out along with your application.

Please visit https://www.general-ed.com/MBA-essay-analysis to see more about online Essay Evaluation and https://www.general-ed.com/mba-counseling to see how General Ed can help you with MBA counseling and Business School Selection Process.

Also if you happen to be based either in Delhi, Bangalore or Mumbai you can attend a MBA workshop by Director of Admissions ISB along with alumnus of various global B-Schools during the dates mentioned in this links https://www.general-ed.com/workshops-and-seminars

Also visit https://www.general-ed.com/b-school-selection-process, this can help you to select the business school as per your requirement and profile and visit https://www.general-ed.com/chances-of-bschool here you can find your chances of getting admit in a business school chosen by you.

Feel free to post any other query or concern that you might have.

Regards
Neha Singh
https://www.general-ed.com/
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GeneralEducation
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Which Schools 07 Nov 2012, 22:23
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Hi All,

General Education is organizing the MBA Application Strategy Workshop on 18th November 2012 in Mumbai.

Hear from an expert team comprising alumni of Top B-Schools - Harvard, Duke, Cornell, INSEAD, HEC and ISB on how to go about planning for the seemingly complicated MBA admission process. Interact with experts to know what makes a B-School application stand-out in the eyes of the admissions committee.

Key Note Speakers:
Alumni of Harvard, Duke, Cornell, INSEAD, HEC Paris & ISB.

Venue for Mumbai:
Mayfair Banquets, 254 C , Dr Annie Besant Road, Worli, Mumbai -400030, Opp Sasmira Institute, Next to Old passport office

Time - 2pm to 6pm

For registration, please visit our website - https://www.general-ed.com/workshops-and-seminars

It is a free event. No Registration fees or entrance fees.

Looking forward to meeting you all on 18th November in Mumbai.

Regards,
Neha Singh
General Education