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nsidelnik
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Joined: 30 Dec 2009
Last visit: 15 Oct 2011
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Location: NYC
Schools:Columbia (waitlist w/int), Yale (interview), Wharton (interview), MIT (interview), Stanford, Harvard
GPA: 3.44 at MIT and 3.23 at Franklin Pierce Law Center
WE 1: 6 months as associate with IP boutique firm
WE 2: 18 months as general counsel of startup company
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What are my chances? 750 GMAT, MIT grad with a JD 30 Dec 2009, 16:52
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I plan to apply to Harvard, Wharton, Stanford, MIT, Columbia, and Yale. What are my chances?

Nationality: US (Hispanic)

Education:
MIT grad, majored in Aerospace Engineering, GPA 3.44/4.0 (converted from 5.0 scale)
JD from Franklin Pierce Law Center, emphasis in intellectual property law, GPA 3.23/4.0

GMAT:
750 (48 Q, 44 V)

Work:
6 Months practicing patent law at IP boutique firm in NYC.
18 months (by the time I start B-school) working as general counsel for a startup company
Summer internships at GE Aircraft Engines, Congressional office, several law firms, and research assitant positions at MIT

Goal:
Continue working with startup companies or engage with startup companies more broadly through a career in venture capital.

Extracuricular:
4 years varsity swimmer at MIT, coached a club swim team all three years of law school, avid traveler and adventurer (mountaineering, cross country bike touring, open water swimming).
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eminent
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What are my chances? 750 GMAT, MIT grad with a JD 31 Dec 2009, 08:25
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You should be competitive at any school on the planet as long as you execute your application well.
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jon82
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What are my chances? 750 GMAT, MIT grad with a JD 08 Feb 2010, 16:27
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As long as you can answer the work experience question, I think you'll find a place. If I were interviewing you I would ask point blank "Are you a professional student?" Something to prepare for. Good luck!
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hypermeganet
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What are my chances? 750 GMAT, MIT grad with a JD 09 Feb 2010, 14:08
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Why not just do Stern at night? Why leave a presumably lucrative, if short, career in IP law?

And I would be wary of adcoms that are even remotely familiar with law. I mean this with the utmost respect (and only say something because it might come up): Franklin Pierce is a really bad school (in the realm of law schools, even with its IP focus, it is tier 3, at best) and pulling a 3.2 there is a red flag. You have limited work experience and aren't working at the IP boutique anymore - any reason you jumped ship so quickly? Was it a shop that paid NYC market?

Also, I'm not sure why you'd need an MBA to pursue your goal. You have a background in IP law, a JD, and the tech background from MIT. You've only been out of school since 2008 and have had limited work experience.

These are some of the issues you'll encounter from an adcom's perspective, I think. I know I'd ask those questions if I saw your profile.
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anu1979
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What are my chances? 750 GMAT, MIT grad with a JD 09 Feb 2010, 14:28
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hypermeganet
Why not just do Stern at night? Why leave a presumably lucrative, if short, career in IP law?

And I would be wary of adcoms that are even remotely familiar with law. I mean this with the utmost respect (and only say something because it might come up): Franklin Pierce is a really bad school (in the realm of law schools, even with its IP focus, it is tier 3, at best) and pulling a 3.2 there is a red flag. You have limited work experience and aren't working at the IP boutique anymore - any reason you jumped ship so quickly? Was it a shop that paid NYC market?

Also, I'm not sure why you'd need an MBA to pursue your goal. You have a background in IP law, a JD, and the tech background from MIT. You've only been out of school since 2008 and have had limited work experience.

These are some of the issues you'll encounter from an adcom's perspective, I think. I know I'd ask those questions if I saw your profile.
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Sorry to pipe up just to contradict another poster, but technically the issue about the GPA isn't necessarily true. An adcom with a familiarity with the legal world is also likely to know that a whole bunch of Tier 2/Tier 3 schools have way, way, way harsher grading than the majority of Tier 1 schools, mainly because they don't want the top kids to transfer out. I have colleagues who attended Tier 2 schools that have low 3/high 2 GPAs but were ranked fairly high in their class. If the original poster has a cum laude+ attached to his law degree (i.e., he's ranked somewhere in the top percentages of his class), I don't think they're going to call the GPA into question. I would definitely use the optional essay to somehow convey this point, though.

I agree about the quick abandonment of the law, though. I'm on my 5th year of practice and kind of felt like I had a combo of enough work experience on financial transactions (have a portfolio, worked with a wide variety of financial institutions) to be able to craft together a story about why "b-school" but not enough that they'd put me in the executive mba basket. Are you sure you don't want to practice for a couple more years?
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hypermeganet
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What are my chances? 750 GMAT, MIT grad with a JD 09 Feb 2010, 14:47
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I concede that a lot of lower tier schools appear to grade on a harsh curve (although I disagree about it being due to the fact they want to keep 1Ls there), and FP is known for a harsh curve. To be fair, OP could have received a full scholarship to FP and a 3.23 GPA could be well above median, I don't know.
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nsidelnik
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Joined: 30 Dec 2009
Last visit: 15 Oct 2011
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Location: NYC
Schools:Columbia (waitlist w/int), Yale (interview), Wharton (interview), MIT (interview), Stanford, Harvard
GPA: 3.44 at MIT and 3.23 at Franklin Pierce Law Center
WE 1: 6 months as associate with IP boutique firm
WE 2: 18 months as general counsel of startup company
Posts: 20
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What are my chances? 750 GMAT, MIT grad with a JD 09 Feb 2010, 15:19
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Thanks for the feedback everyone. I admit the Franklin Pierce sucks, except in IP, where it is consistently in the top 5 IP schools nation wide. I went there because I got nearly a full scholarship and I knew I wanted to go into IP law. My GPA was not the highest there, but it wasn't bad either. I had a bumpy transition from technical education to writing intensive course work, but I got by barings and my last 3 semesters I had a 3.6 average. I think my GMAT score will also calm any concerns over my ability to handle the coursework.

For a while I had the job I wanted, making 6 figures with a top New York IP boutique firm. Unfortunately they dissolved back in January of 2009 after a solid 115 year run. Nearly all the associates were left twisting in the wind. I landed a job as general counsel of a startup company, which exposed me to business and got me thinking about a career switch into venture capital.

I have been invited to interview at Columbia and Yale so far, still waiting from the other schools. If you guys have any more tips or areas you think I should be concerned about, please share them with me.

Thanks!
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gregarious
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What are my chances? 750 GMAT, MIT grad with a JD 09 Feb 2010, 23:15
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Hey, your thread is one of the more interesting ones I've come across in Peer Review. Some of my friends are in law school right now and after hearing their horror stories about current recruiting I've been reading some of the anti-law school blogs that are out there. Given the general outlook for lawyers in general in the foreseeable future (although IP is supposed to be less hard hit that BigLaw), it seems now is as good a time as any to re-brand yourself as an MBA with a tech and IP background.

Other posters have already made some good points about your WE and law school GPA, so all I would add is that you probably really need to focus on "Why MBA" in your interviews. Good luck!