Profile review request from Military Officer

[Tom040711]

Hello!

I am a Marine Officer hoping to transition to a top MBA program next fall, at which point I will have 6 years experience. In particular, I am interested in Wharton, Kellogg, Duke, and possibly some others including UVA and Columbia.

My stats:
-2.6 GPA from Service Academy in International Relations (I know, terrible, but I am capable of explaining myself in the optional essay: had 3.5 before sudden death of parent, basically lost motivation, I do not plan to whine but I can detail how my perspective and outlook on my life goals have changed)
-750 GMAT on first attempt (Q47, V47...do I need to retake to improve quant? I think Q50 would be my ceiling, and I think getting a V47 again would be very difficult)
-Marine Infantry Officer: have been selected ahead of peers to assume more demanding assignments, I commanded and enhanced the performance of company of 280 Marines despite 70%+ personnel turnover, deployed to Europe and Africa, et al.)
-Despite a busy schedule, I attend graduate classes one night a week at an extension campus on base in an attempt to mitigate my poor GPA (wanted to prove I could succeed in a classroom environment vs. online programs, have completed 7 classes including one on finance for managers, 4.0 GPA thus far)

I am interested in applying R1/R2 this year.

Would appreciate any and all advice. I understand the importance of crafting a compelling narrative devoid of military jargon in my essays. It would be helpful to get some feedback to gauge whether I can realistically hope to get into a top-10 program with good execution of the application (not taking this for granted by any means).

[Jon@Admissionado]

Hey man,
Your profile is awesome! And don't et anyone tell you otherwise!


Really. Sure you have a really crappy GPA that is far far below the average for top 10 programs, but you ALSO have leadership that 20 candidates combined won't have! And you gave back to your country! And you probably have awesome and fun military stories to tell

Oh yeah? And that GMAT?! I didn't mention it yet, but job well done! It's the MOST important thing to have for someone with a low GPA because it PROVES you are smart. (And now your story of failure becomes more effective).

Honestly, despite the GMAT, I think you can get into Top 10 schools (Although I'd love to know more about you, your dreams, your goals, your experience, your personality). Juuust in case I'd hedge my bets with 1-2 Top 20 schools though. Because your GPA is pretty low.

But I think a lot of your success will ride on your STORY - are you passionate? a leader? making sense? Then you will be good. Otherwise... eh...

Anyhow, feel free to drop us a line: https://admissionado.com/free-consultati ... n=mba_blog

Best,
JF