Profile Evaluation - 740 GMAT, Banking/Music experience

Question

Bryant, huge thanks in advance for any feedback on the below. I feel I have a peculiar story to tell, but would like to understand any potential weaknesses in my profile, especially for applications at top US schools.

Male, Italian, currently 28. Lived in London since 2008.

GMAT 
740 (Q49/V41), IR 8, AWA 6

Education 
1) Bachelor in Management of Public Administration (taught in Italian) at Bocconi University, top Italian business school.
GPA: 4.0. Final Result: 110/110 cum Laude. Graduated in 2006.

2) MSc in Finance (taught in English) at Bocconi University.
GPA: 4.0. Final Result: 110/110 cum Laude. Graduated in 2008.
Awarded with 'Scholarship for Outstanding Students' (50 scholarships vs 2000+ students), with full exemption from MSc fees.

Exchange Programs: 3 months in a high school in South Africa in 2002 with American Field Service; 1 month at Shanghai’s Fudan University in 2005; 4 months at Copenhagen Business School in 2007.

Extra-curricular Activities 
• 5-year volunteering with American Field Service (Intercultural Programs), 2003-2008. Appointed President of Milan's Local Chapter in 2006-2008, managed 25+ volunteers across all activities of the association. Invited by Italian Secretary General to be part of the national Committee for 3-year Strategic Plan in 2008.
• Wrote, played and produced (voice, guitar/bass, keyboards, drum programming) 3 albums between 2007 and 2011, distributed physically through e-commerce store and digitally on sale on iTunes and other retailers.
• Led a 3-piece cover band in 2009/2011, performed several acoustic gigs in small London venues.
• Studied Russian at London's main Russian-culture centre since 2011. Become a member of the association, and organised 2 events focusing on Soviet rock music.

Work Experience 
Over 6 years of experience in London.

1) Morgan Stanley: my career started with a Summer Internship in 2006. Received full-time job offer, but decided to pursue MSc, thus converting the offer into a 2nd internship in a different division in summer 2007. Started full-time job in July 2008 (M&A Real Estate). Tough working conditions, partly due to the financial crisis that started back then, made me soon realize that banking career was not the one for me. I took the most difficult decision of my life and resigned in December 2008, with the dream of pursuing a heartfelt career in my true passion, music.

2) Universal Music: hired in March 2009. Rapid and consistent progression across 2 divisions (International and UK). Promoted from Analyst, to Manager, to Head role in less than 18 months. Involved in several key projects, and currently leading (i) analysis of existing business partners (ii) commercial negotiations for distribution of digital rights in the UK, dealing with wide range of partners (big tech companies, ISPs, supermarkets, music startups, etc.). Currently managing 2 analysts. Various examples can show a profound impact on the worldwide organisation, through leadership, innovation and adaptation of strong quantitative skills to specific industry challenges.

Why MBA Now, and Goals 
I am very happy with my job, and I would like to raise the game in 2015. MBA would provide me with a wider angle on several industries and let me refresh/learn management principles I am currently not exposed to.

Short term: slight industry change. The aim is to get a directing role at a top global Technology company (Digital Content/Internet Services), either in the US or UK. 
Long term: relocate to Italy with a senior exec position in a top global Technology company. My ideal goal would be to contribute to the development of Italian tech/digital industry – I could welcome involvement in the public sector at a later stage.

Target Schools 
1R at Stanford, Columbia, MIT, Harvard, London Business School. US school would be preferable.

bryantmichaels · Answer

You are aiming high, and rightfully so, since on almost every level you seem to be a top candidate. Not only are your academic credentials beyond reproach, you seem to have a nearly perfect school record, which when coupled with your GMAT score, will impress just about any school. Italy is definitely under-represented in the US b-school system, so you have a diversity advantage from the outset, and then your work experience is global, unique and progressively responsible. I am not sure I see the clear connection between what you want to do post MBA and your past career, so you will need to make sure this lines up seamlessly in your vision-casting to the adcom. Even the most highly qualified candidates are scrutinized for their vision and you will need to make a strong case for why you need the MBA to the adcom. I realize you are not going into full detail here on the blog, but this part of your story is probably the weakest, so spend some time working on your post MBA vision. One other thing I notice is that you have both Stanford and HBS on your list, which are widely considered to be almost opposite in culture and environment. Generally if you are a great fit at one, you are not as good a fit at the other, so make sure you visit these schools if you can to get a front seat view of what the students and life is like so you can ascertain if you are a "Stanford Man" or a "Harvard Man" at heart. You will need to explain to yourself why you like these schools other than their reputation and rank. In short, however, you should have a great run at the top schools and we would love to help you hone your approach.

NandoParrado · Answer

Bryant, thanks so much for taking the time to review my profile. I appreciated the encouraging words and the points you raised.

Goals . I agree that the one-liner in my previous post is not particularly clear. Hopefully, my CV and essays will show a convincing trajectory linking what I have been doing, where I'd like to go and why MBA would be essential. In brief: my current role is at the edge of my target industry (Digital Content / Internet Services). Hence the "slight" industry change. The Biz Dev part of my job requires negotiating deals with key digital players (Apple/Google/Spotify/etc.). When I approach a new deal with one of these or similar companies for distribution of rights owned by my employer, I need to be aware and model out the tiniest details of their business plan, product features, strategic positioning, marketing activity, etc. However, the huge difference is that Apple/Google/Spotify/etc own the product - I have no input on it. In the last few years I have realized that developing and bringing to market a digital product, especially if with cutting-edge technology and great vision, is exactly what excites the most. I can't reveal many more details on a public forum, but a recent direct experience along these lines has opened up my eyes. So the big plan for next phase of my life would be to leave the record company, after a gratifying experience, and to transition my knowledge/skills into one of the big Tech companies I already interact with. Not necessarily on a music digital service though. An MBA would help me (i) get more exposure on the wider target industry, beyond digital music products; (ii) get wider knowledge on functions/management principles I am currently not exposed to on a day to day basis (my role is mainly Commercial); (iii) develop further my leadership and innovation skills.

Harvard vs Stanford : very good point, which I have overlooked so far. In the last month or so I have been reading blogs, watching webinars, and trying to understand the key cultural differences between the schools, their programs and their students. But the "fit" at the moment is purely theoretical in my head. I will visit both schools (+ MIT and Columbia) this Spring, so hopefully I will be able to sense the differences, and understand whether I am potentially a Stanford or a Harvard man.

Thanks again - I will let you know if I need any help in the next 8 months!

bryantmichaels · Answer

Sounds like a good plan. You will do well in business school! Love to hear how it turns out.

NandoParrado · Answer

Dear Bryant,

I just want to say "thank you" a year later. I was admitted to both Harvard and Stanford.

You were right though about the key differences between the schools. Although I could build an argument of why each school would make sense for my career, I found out that Stanford represented a better fit, so ultimately chose this school.

The post above was the beginning of my MBA application, and your words helped boost my confidence and shape my application.

All the best!

bryantmichaels · Answer

Fantastico! great to hear that you got in your dream school. Actually, that's everybody's dream school!!! REally appreciate your circling back!

Profile Evaluation - 740 GMAT, Banking/Music experience

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards