Need help/advice for statement of purpose

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I am looking for advice for writing a strong statement of purpose to get into an MBA program. I will provide some information about my background so that my question can be more adequately answered.

I graduated in 2010 with a B.S. in Accounting and a 2.43 GPA, which was raised this past semester to a 2.459 when I took a class at a local community college. I also took the GMAT this past November and scored a 680 (38 Verbal and 46 Quant), with an IR score of 5 and AWA of 4.0. I am aware that I would be on conditional status for any program that would admit me. Since graduation, I have been working as a bank teller and will make two years with my company next month. I emailed the MBA director at University of Louisiana-Lafayette, who told me that if my GMAT was what I said it was, my chances of being admitted should be very good pending the review of my complete application. I am required to submit both a resume and a statement of purpose with my application.

This all being said, I was wondering if anyone could give me some good advice on writing a good statement of purpose, as well as what strategy I should take, how to address my low GPA, etc. Any help on how to construct an effective resume will also be appreciated. Also, if anyone can tell me if there is anything I can do to improve my chances of being admitted into this program as well as other programs, it will be much appreciated. Thanks in advance for your help!

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by sultana199 » Tue Jul 08, 2014 10:08 am
Statement of Purpose for MBA is the eassy, written to show the admission authority about the details of the applicant. It contains the skills, experiences, educational background, extra curriculum activities , reason behind the choice of the school etc. It should be written in a prcise and smart form but will contain all the information about the applicants. So, the writer should be very much carefull in preparing the SOP. It will be wise to customise the SOP from the professional sites because they are experts and know the requirements of the admission authority in a SOP.
https://www.statementofpurposeformba.com/
https://www.university.careers360.com/ar ... of-purpose

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by KDogg87 » Wed Jul 09, 2014 5:45 am
I think you stand a good chance but the key would be to do lots of introspection, know what you want the MBA, what has gotten you to this point etc. And be willing to be honest with yourself and the admissions committee instead of trying to tell them what they want to here.

There are my application tips (I managed to get into Stanford GSB): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2Pcn_VQuDo
Latest video blog about my application:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9cMfeMY36c

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by jambainsomba » Tue Jul 15, 2014 3:29 pm
Hey, there's this site that I think can improve your chances of being admitted to the program. It's called EssayScoop and what they do is essentially apply data mining techniques to admissions essays in order to find out what it is that objectively makes an essay successful on a per-school basis. These are the same techniques that Facebook and Twitter use to analyze their user behavior and cater their content to their users. My personal advice would be tell them why your GPA was low. Were you doing extra curriculars? Volunteering? Also, a good tip, when analyzing what your going to write about, always ask yourself why and how does this relate to me wanting to pursue an MBA. Hope this helps, and best of luck to you!

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by Kaneisha Grayson » Sun Jul 20, 2014 6:36 am
This all being said, I was wondering if anyone could give me some good advice on writing a good statement of purpose, as well as what strategy I should take, how to address my low GPA, etc. Any help on how to construct an effective resume will also be appreciated. Also, if anyone can tell me if there is anything I can do to improve my chances of being admitted into this program as well as other programs, it will be much appreciated.
Writing a strong statement of purpose:

- Be sure to tell the AdCom what your career goals are for immediately after graduation, about 5 years out, and about 10 years out
- When discussing your career goals, be specific about what kind or org you'd want to work for and in what role and WHY
- If you tell a story in your essay, be sure to make it juicy and engaging by sharing what you and other characters thought, felt, said, and did
- Include specific information in your essay about the classes you hope to take, professors you want to learn from, campus orgs you want to join (and the role you'd have in the org), and what you hope to contribute to the classroom

Addressing a low GPA

- Take some supplementary coursework as needed in Microecon, Stats, Calc, Accounting, and Finance (read more here: https://www.beatthegmat.com/pre-mba-cour ... 63263.html)
- In your optional essay, explain why you have a low GPA, what you learned from that experience, and what your specific plan is for being academically successful in grad school

Constructing an effective resume

- Provide context for each organization you've worked at, such as annual revenues and what kind of business they are in. (Not everyone on the AdCom may be familiar with the companies)
- Use lots of numbers to quantify the scope of your efforts and the results of those efforts: cost savings, profitability increase, # of people on your team, frequency of a certain action
- Include a personal section at the bottom with some interesting qualities about yourself such as foreign languages you speak, your passions, etc. This gives AdCom members a chance to connect with you on another level
- Make sure your resume isn't too cluttered. Leave enough white space for the eye to rest.

I think that should get you started!

Kaneisha
Harvard Business School MBA 2010, Harvard Kennedy School MPA 2010
Founder, The Art of Applying
Admissions Consulting for MBA, MPP, Joint Degrees, and Fellowships
https://theartofapplying.com

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