My initial thought was that I would leave work to attend school full-time. While this is clearly the most fun option in that it would allow me to enjoy the social aspects of such a decision, I finally came to the realization that continuing my career while obtaining my MBA in a part-time program would allow for the best development. The main reason for this is the fact that I do not wish to switch industries; I only wished to switch functions. Staying at work during the time that I complete my MBA will allow me to gain two additional years of experience (i.e. on-the-job training) while at the same time learning through formal education. Learning in two ways will make me that much more marketable, allow me to immediately apply concepts I learn in school, and continue generating my very respectable income.
Because there are so many excellent GMAT debriefs on this site already and my GMAT score was nothing to write home about, I will focus my debrief on the application process and attempt to highlight my thought process along the way. It was definitely an eye-opening experience that has allowed me to get to know myself much better.
Obviously, the first part of the application process is the completion of the GMAT. I will echo what I read in several posts: focus intensely on the GMAT and do it early in the process. You really don't want to begin applying to top schools before you know how you perform on the GMAT as that is one important piece of the admission puzzle. Refer to the "I just beat the GMAT" forum for hundreds of awesome debriefs and tips.
As I stated earlier, I was initially set on applying to only full-time programs. As my thought process started to mature, I started figuring that there really is no reason to forego my informal, on-the-job education, as well as sacrifice my income. Not to mention the fact that, because my wife is currently in nursing school, I would have to delay my application for a couple more years. I am very lucky to have a clear vision of what I want to do with my career so there is no point in waiting for the right time to attend a full-time program. Of course, if I had the desire to switch fields to banking, healthcare, or some other field unrelated to design and manufacture of automotive engines, it WOULD NOT make a whole lot of sense to complete a part-time MBA and forego the opportunity to participate in an internship in the field that I wanted to continue my career in. As I see it, I will have a 2.5 year internship in my current situation and be able to continue making a mortgage payment.
Once I figured out that I would apply to part-time MBA programs and I knew my GMAT score (650, by the way), I could start looking at schools to apply for. I am in the Indianapolis area so Indiana University's Kelly School was a clear consideration. Unfortunately, at my company and in the region, in general, Kelly MBAs are a dime a dozen and I got the impression that the degrees value was a little bit watered down. So, Kelly School of Business was put on my list, but toward the bottom. Through networking, I had also become aware of the Chicago schools and met a couple of students from both Kellogg and Booth who work with me. This option really piqued my interest so I set up a few meetings with people who had, or were in the process of completing, their MBAs. These meetings solidified my choice for part-time over full-time but also gave me a first impression of the two schools - through their students. Conveniently, there was an info session for each school during the same week in January so I attended both. These sessions further increased my awareness of each school's culture. I saw clearly that Kellogg was a better fit for me and confirmed this through additional research and interaction with students/staff.
So, my list went as follows and in this order:
- -Kellogg
-Booth
-Kelly
Now, to discuss the essays... I think the was the most insightful part of the entire process and was very rewarding. I had to dig deep and really figure our where I was going with my career and who I was. The essay portion of the application process should get the most emphasis, even more than the GMAT. You really need to paint and interesting and accurate picture of who you are in the essays and they must match the picture that you paint during your interview. Sending mixed signals will surely raise questions in the admission commitee's minds about who you are. Be sure to put in time on your essays and have several people take a look at them to provide feedback. If you do that, you will be more likely to get a feel for how your typed words are being interpreted. Also, the dialogue with proofreaders will also allow your thought to gel a lot more and make for much more interesting essays. Be sure to eliminate all the redundant and unimportant junk from the essays and optimize what you say, word limits are a pain.
I'm not sure that I have painted a complete picture of the application process and how I evolved but I have definitely caught many of the key points. Please feel to ask any questions and I will be glad to answer as an attempt to repay for all the information I have extracted from this site.
Because I found comfort/reassurance/motivation by understanding the application profiles of other aspiring MBAs, here is mine:
- -Academics:
----B.S. Mechanical Engineering Technology from a state school in New Mexico
-----President of a social fraternity
-----3.35 gpa
-----3.5 years of work experience designing engine components for a leading engine manufacturer
-----650 GMAT score
-Community service:
----Big Brothers Big Sisters
----Reading Mentor
----Fraternity advisory board member
-Extracurriculars:
----Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
----College recruiting team for my company
----Toastmasters International
----Foreign travel - Russia & Italy
----Gardening / worm composting
----Biking
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