Profile Review

Question

Hello guys,

I plan to apply next year in R1 at Wharton/Chicago/Columbia/Stern/Kellog/MIT (2020 Intake)

Background and nationality  : Spanish (Male)

Undergrad Information  : 2.8 GPA BSc Industrial Engineering in a top 5 national university and 1year - academic exchange in Best Latam University (University of Sâo Paulo).

Age : 25 by the age of the application

GMAT : 720+ expected (let's take this assumption)

Work experience and leadership : 
half a year of work experience at Vodafone Group as a Operations Engineer (Project manager)
3 Years of work experience at Deloitte (Strategy & Operations ): 
Promoted each year with almost the best recognition
Led teams since my 2nd year (was a Project leader in charge of 2 people)

Community and others:  
Involved in different clubs in both my main university and University of Sâo Paulo (consulting club, alumni, women-empowerment, mentor of international applicants)
3 Years of various community service initiatives through Deloitte. (I'm captain of soccer team)

Post MBA goals:  
Ideally my goal is to focus primarily in consulting (MBB) in Consumer Goods industry. I'd like to work in the States, but I know now being native suppose a big disadvantage.

I speak English, Spanish, French and Portuguese, and I'm really commited with social impact, recently i've been involved in a local org.

According to my target schools,

Which are my possibilities?

Thanks in advance,

Best,

David

mbaMissionJA · Answer

Hi David, thanks for writing in to us. Hmm, it's a little early to start composing a list until you have an actual GMAT score. Your GPA, however, will likely be a stumbling block at the very top schools. Generally speaking, to form a list, a good starting point is to check out the school's average student profile page and see how you stack up. So, for example, with Columbia, you'd see that the average GPA is 3.5, the average GMAT is 724, and the average work experience is 5 years. As you can see, your GPA and work experience are low in comparison. Your GMAT is also just a little lower than the average (even as a hypothetical). Whenever some categories are lower than the average, know that your others will have to compare even more favorably, so Columbia would fall into the reach category with the stats that you've submitted. If it's possible to get your GMAT higher than 720, try to do so! Generally, you'll want to make a list that includes reach schools, schools where you are on target/at the average, and schools where you are safely above the average. So, because of your low GPA, make sure to look at schools outside the top 15, where your GMAT will be above their target range and help compensate for your academic performance. Also, don't forget to include any context for your grade performance in the optional essay. Is there a period of time then where you had a problem but then turned the situation around? Was your major GPA much higher than your grades in other classes? Another strategy to help counter a low GPA is to add new coursework now to show schools you can handle a business school curriculum and are serious about preparing to go back to school. See here: https://www.mbamission.com/blog/2007/05 ... oursework/ Luckily, you have some time to do that! You'll also want to make sure to highlight your strong performance at work and community service/soccer. The schools want to see you excel at work and beyond. As someone targeting consulting, you'll want a strong resume highlighting your great analytical skills and strong teamwork. For MBB consulting recruiting, your GMAT and GPA will be under scrutiny again, so I'm crossing fingers that you manage to test above that 720+ threshold. When you get to business school, I encourage you to network heavily and to look for every opportunity to participate in case competitions and consulting activities on campus. I can't speak to what the visa situation will be in a few years' time, but you're right in that it's currently a challenge. The schools will want to see you have a realistic view of your plans, so I'd target an easier home office consulting firm path as plan A, and mention that you'd also look at US consulting if the visa situation worked out. Best of luck to you as you start preparing your strategy! Julie-Anne Heafey Senior Consultant mbaMIssion

dagargal · Answer

Thanks you Julie,

I really appreaciate your time. 
Assuming this low GPA, I know I'd need a strong GMAT score. 
By the way, which other ways are there to mitigate this low GPA? Maybe enrolling in some Undergrat courses during this year? HBxCORE?

And last one, I'm considering an admission consultant, when should I contact him/her assuming I want to apply in 2019 (2020 Intake)?

Thanks in advance,

David.

mbaMissionJA · Answer

I missed your reply, David, apologies!

Yes, you can partially address a low GPA by adding what we call an "alternative transcript." HBX CORe is indeed a well respected program. If you can get a Pass with Honors, all the better! You can also look into online coursework at other schools like Berkeley or NYU or at extension programs at local universities. Statistics, finance, accounting all might be good choices for you. Obviously, try to do the best you can - you want your alternative transcript to be a strong one!

To prepare for applying in the 2019-2020 cycle (for 2020 entry), you might consider reaching out to us in January/February of 2019 once most of the Round 2 furor of this year has died down. That will give you enough time to make any extra preparations you might need before really working on the applications in earnest when they get released in May/June. If you can take the GMAT by then, that will help you to determine at least a first cut of a school list. You'll have lots of time to do a retake if necessary too.

Best of luck,
Julie-Anne

Julie-Anne Heafey
Senior Consultant
mbaMission

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