Events & Promotions
|
|
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.
Customized
for You
Track
Your Progress
Practice
Pays
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
May 1212:00 PM EDT
-12:30 PM EDT
Get the inside scoop on what makes Emory’s Goizueta Business School great and how you can present a strong MBA application. Explore the difference between our One-Year MBA and Two-Year MBA programs, talk to our admissions team, and meet students.
May 1310:00 AM EDT
-11:00 AM EDT
Applying to business school this year? Don’t miss Personal MBA Coach’s Top MBA Application Tips guide
May 1505:00 PM PDT
-06:00 PM PDT
Inquire for a free profile evaluation and guarantee statement for possible admits and scholarships!
30 Oct 2010, 00:44
Kudos
Bookmarks
Hi guys - currently in somewhat of a bind here. Was hoping to get some critical feedback, and wanted some advice on whether hiring a consultant would be useful.
- Profile: ex I-Banker (top ranked analyst 1.5 yrs), 2 yrs top Hedge Fund, 1.5 years Corp Dev. professional. Quit my recent position in Corp. Dev. to return to investing and find a career that I was more passionate about.
- Grades: GPA 3.9 State school; 710 GMAT (90% verbal, 78% quant, 6 AWA) - took once, didn't bother retaking (scored much lower than my practice exams)
- Extracurriculars: lots of alumni work, mentoring (this year), micro-finance (couple years)
I unsuccessfully applied to a couple of schools last year: Wharton / Columbia / Dartmouth / & H&S (which in retrospect had weak & unclear essays). I interviewed at Wharton (wasn't prepared enough & didn't get it). No luck anywhere else. Honestly am not sure about what weaknesses I should try to polish / whether there is something fundamentally weak about my profile / essays.
Reapplied this year - R1 Wharton / Columbia (close to the deadline). The broad essays were similar this year to my Wharton essays from last year. Didn't receive an invite on Friday. Still early though and am keeping my fingers crossed.
I am considering broadening my school sights: Chicago / MIT / NYU / Tuck / Yale / [ undecided if I need to look at Virginia / Duke / Cornell etc. ]. Also not sure if I should be looking at Harvard / Stanford - is it worth putting the effort into schools that are statistically unlikely?
Regarding Northwestern - I want something with a good finance network and credentials for PE / HFs - is Northwestern good for this?.
I would like to maximize my chances of getting in this year. Likely will not apply again next year if I fail again now. Can anyone please give me some thoughts on the school related questions / whether I should use an admissions consultant / some profile feedback?
Really appreciate the help!!
- thanks.
- Profile: ex I-Banker (top ranked analyst 1.5 yrs), 2 yrs top Hedge Fund, 1.5 years Corp Dev. professional. Quit my recent position in Corp. Dev. to return to investing and find a career that I was more passionate about.
- Grades: GPA 3.9 State school; 710 GMAT (90% verbal, 78% quant, 6 AWA) - took once, didn't bother retaking (scored much lower than my practice exams)
- Extracurriculars: lots of alumni work, mentoring (this year), micro-finance (couple years)
I unsuccessfully applied to a couple of schools last year: Wharton / Columbia / Dartmouth / & H&S (which in retrospect had weak & unclear essays). I interviewed at Wharton (wasn't prepared enough & didn't get it). No luck anywhere else. Honestly am not sure about what weaknesses I should try to polish / whether there is something fundamentally weak about my profile / essays.
Reapplied this year - R1 Wharton / Columbia (close to the deadline). The broad essays were similar this year to my Wharton essays from last year. Didn't receive an invite on Friday. Still early though and am keeping my fingers crossed.
I am considering broadening my school sights: Chicago / MIT / NYU / Tuck / Yale / [ undecided if I need to look at Virginia / Duke / Cornell etc. ]. Also not sure if I should be looking at Harvard / Stanford - is it worth putting the effort into schools that are statistically unlikely?
Regarding Northwestern - I want something with a good finance network and credentials for PE / HFs - is Northwestern good for this?.
I would like to maximize my chances of getting in this year. Likely will not apply again next year if I fail again now. Can anyone please give me some thoughts on the school related questions / whether I should use an admissions consultant / some profile feedback?
Really appreciate the help!!
- thanks.
02 Nov 2010, 18:28
Kudos
Bookmarks
Your core stats look good, and frankly the only thing that jumps out at me is perhaps a lack of conviction in your early career. I can only assume, therefore, that your package itself may have been weak (maybe with essays that were unconvincing or not compelling?). Don't forget that you are essentially being compared to others from a similar background, so how do you stand out in a pool of I-bankers and finance applicants? Make sure you have some hooks to distinguish yourself. Although I am biased, I would say yes, you should look to a consultant this time around. Someone with your credentials should not be getting dinged by b-schools. Your vision has to be passionate and must tie into what you have already done. Cast each step in your career as a progressive step towards your ultimate vision. It's got to make sense and come from the heart. The most important question is "why do you want/need an MBA?" You have to have a thoughtful, compelling answer to this no matter how great your credentials are. As for the big 3, Wharton, HBS, Stanford, they generally scrutinize state schools, unless it's a top ranked one (UNC for example). Plus, the numbers game at these schools is almost overwhelming for anyone, and it becomes a real shot in the dark just based on the sheer odds. You are wise to pick a variety of schools, because in the end, you will get a great MBA education from any school in the top 20 and you should go somewhere you fit in and will enjoy. Sounds like you could probably use some good interview prep and coaching as well. You can do it! You have done all the right things in preparing yourself. Now you just need to package it well.
