Which Nationality Has Higher Chances?

Question

Hello you all,

Let me introduce myself: I'm that kind of "step-by-step" guy - never take the second step before the first! So first, get an undergrad degree, then land a good job, then score a decent GMAT and THEN even think about application processes at Business Schools.
Yesterday, I have taken another step and scored a 720 GMAT (Q48, V41). I am so glad never ever having to deal with the GMAT again - and now the time has come to think about my application.

There is one question I am asking myself (and that I couldn't answer with the help of Google...):
Currently, I am a Turkish citizen living in Germany. Since I am eligible to get the German passport (but not hold both Turkish  and  German), I have to decide for which one to go. I know that the German passport could make visa issues abroad easier, but I have also heard that Business Schools sometimes tend to recruit on the basis of diversity. Of course, this is never the decisive factor, but could sometimes turn chances slightly more towards your direction...
To make it short: What would you say - should I keep my Turkish passport and apply as a Turk? There aren't many Turks breaking into top B-Schools. Or should I go for the German passport? Downside: I suppose the majority of appliciants from Continental Europe is German.
Or does nationality not matter at all, but race or the country where you were born and raised? Then, German/Turkish would make no difference at all.

Any help is much appreciated!

cosmopolitan · Answer

A good question, have been asking myself if the nationality one mentioned in the application could make a difference for dual nationals.

munich, could you study in the US for two years without losing your residence status for Germany?

mgg234 · Answer

There's not many Germans applying to U.S. Business school nowadays either. If you were Chinese/Indian, I'd definitely say stick with Turkish. However, I wouldn't give up the chance to get an E.U. passport if I were you, especially with how things are going to Erdogen, Syria, the Kurds, etc. There's a distinct possibility Turkey could find itself with some painful Visa restrictions in the near future depending on how things pan out. At the very least, E.U. citizenship will make it easier to get European jobs, as I don't think Turkey's E.U. bid is moving forward any time soon.

I think it gives you a better international story too to have changed citizenship.

cp4321 is from Germany, so you can maybe send her a few questions.

I think it gives you a better international story too to have changed citizenship.

cp4321 is from Germany, so you can maybe send her a few questions.

domotron · Answer

It depends where you want to go to school. If you are looking at US b-schools then I don't think Germans are too common at all. At the end of the day, which passport you hold is far too important a decision to base around whether it will give your b-school app a boost. There may be far more important advantages like being able to work in the EU without a visa or ease of travel into other countries.

Nationality does matter to an extent but the difference between German and Turkish is not big enough to be a consideration in my eyes. If your GPA, GMAT, work experience, leadership experience, extracurriculars etc are strong enough, you will have get in whatever your nationality. If they are not, your nationality won't make any difference.

munich · Answer

Thank you very much for your replies! Well, good to hear it won't matter that much anyway. It's interesting to know, though, that the number of Germans is not that significant compared to Indians or Chinese. I know it's quite popular to go to the US and would have thought that you can also encounter many Germans at MBA courses...

Posted from my mobile device

Posted from my mobile device

sunset3 · Answer

As far as I know, MBA programs love diversity and they always try to create an international class (they love to show off the number of countries represented in their class profile). Therefore, a candidate from somewhat "unique" nationality may even have a small advantage, especially if there aren't many candidates from the same country on the same year.

Which Nationality Has Higher Chances?

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