Please evaluate my profile

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Please evaluate my profile

by N:Dure » Tue Nov 16, 2010 8:59 am
Hello!

Please review my profile:

Male
Egyptian
25
Target MBAs: INSEAD, NYU Stern, Columbia, IE and Yale

GRE to be taken in January/February but currently scoring 650Q 410V in mock tests

Recommendations: - Top business partner from General Motors Egypt - Professor of Marketing Strategy - McKinsey & Company business advisor

Essays: By the testimony of several friends and alums who proofread them, they all seem fine. My career goals are mainly to spearhead our family automotive business post-MBA and position it as a top player in the Egyptian market, and on the long run to lead a successful conglomerate with business lines in the automotive, food and retail fields, that positively contributes to the Egyptian economy, creates employment opportunities and plays an active role in the society.

* Education
Bachelor of Business Administration with Honors - the American University in Cairo (No.1 Ranked in Egypt)
GPA: 3.54/4.00

Non-degree Study Abroad Program, University of St. Thomas (UST), Minnesota, USA
GPA: 3.64/4.00


* Work Experience: 3 years (4 by program start)

General Branches Manager & Board Member, Berkeley Automotive (Family Business), Cairo, Egypt Feb. 2008 - Present

"¢ Planning monthly and quarterly sales target plans and marketing plans
"¢ Leading a team of 25 associates and motivating them to achieve sales targets
"¢ Monitoring & developing the business's branches network, service centers and brand portfolio
"¢ Planning monthly print campaigns, promotional offers and online social media advertising
"¢ Increased sales volume by 52% in the second month on the job, and by 66% in Q2 2010.
"¢ Procuring and managing a stock inventory of 300+ cars and maintaining relationships with the company's suppliers, locally and internationally (Egypt, China, UAE).
"¢ Organizing several entertainment and social responsibility events at which the company is the main sponsor.
"¢ Shifted the company from being a 1S Authorized Dealer to a 3S Sole Agent, Service Provider and Importer.
"¢ Opened new business lines with car suppliers in China and the UAE.
"¢ Reporting to the Chairman & Managing Director of the company.

After-Sales Intern, General Motors Egypt, Cairo, Egypt July 2008 - August 2008

"¢ Handled customers' complains and promptly responded with solutions
"¢ Co-designed a training system for new GM employees, dealers and authorized service centers
"¢ Co-organized and promoted GM summer service clinic for Chevrolet and Opel cars
"¢ Gained knowledge about car engineering, technology and spare parts
"¢ Reported to the After-Sales Department Head


Arabic Teaching Assistant, University of St. Thomas - Department of Modern Languages, St. Paul, Minnesota, United States of America, October 2006 - May 2007

"¢ Guided the students to become better speakers and assisted the professor
"¢ Provided feedback on the assigned homework and evaluated the students' performance
"¢ Gained knowledge in how to communicate and deal with different cultures

* Honors & Awards

"¢ Academic Honor Certificate, AUC Honors Assembly, 2008.
"¢ Nominated for the International Student Leadership Award, University of St. Thomas, 2007.
"¢ Dean's Honors List, University of St. Thomas, 2006-07.
"¢ The International Student Scholarship, University of St. Thomas, 2006-07.

* Extracurricular Activities

"¢ Project Head, Opel's Hope On Wheels Cancer Campaign, The Help Cub, AUC, Spring 2005.
- Participant, Auto China 2010, Beijing, China, April 2010
"¢ Founder & Co-Host, The Euphoric Sessions Radio Show, KUST Radio, UST, Spring 2007.
"¢ Head, Reach Out Committee, Volunteers In Action (VIA), UST, Spring 2007.
"¢ Volunteer English Teacher, Language Development Committee, Alashanek Ya Balady (AYB), AUC Student Union, Fall 2007.
"¢ Student Leader, Friends of International Students (FIS), Office of International Student Services
- Advanced Open Water Diver, PADI, September 2007 - Present
- Founder, DJ & Host, Movement Radio Show, Horytna Radio, July 2008 - September 2008
- Sponsor, the Right Road Club for Road Saftey, Cairo University, March 2008


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The main thing that concerns me is the dreaded standerized test part. Given my profile and my goals, if I scored low in the GRE, would there still be a chance to be accepted at these schools? Also, I'm open to suggestions regarding MBA choices that fit me. I'm mainly looking for a program thats strong in the retail, marketing and strategy areas.

Thanks ahead for your help!
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by paulsbodine » Wed Nov 17, 2010 3:11 pm
N:Dure,

You have a very strong and distinctive profile. You have excellent leadership and being Egyptian is an asset. Your verbal score is a major negative. You need to bring your scores up to about a 730 quant, 570 verbal to have a shot. That would work out to about a 640 GMAT, which would still leave you a longshot at schools like Stern, Columbia, and INSEAD, but would give you a decent chance at some other U.S. schools that are strong in marketing, such as Indiana, Emory, Washington Olin.

Hope this helps.
--Paul
Paul Bodine
Author, "Great Applications for Business School," "Perfect Phrases for Business School Acceptance," "Perfect Phrases for Letters of Recommendation"
https://www.paulsbodine.com/
[email protected]
(858) 869-1959

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by N:Dure » Sat Nov 20, 2010 11:15 am
Dear Mr. Paul,

Thank you for your kind feedback! These are very nice scores :-) but I don't know whether I'll be able to reach them, especially in verbal. If I applied with scores below these or below the 80% of a school, can my GPA offset some of that drop? Also in general, do applicants get accepted with scores below the 80%?

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by paulsbodine » Sat Nov 20, 2010 11:37 am
N:Dure,

Yes, GPA can offset GMAT to some extent, but you still need a GMAT score that is in the school's range. For most top programs, that would be above a 650, though I have helped applicants with a 640 GMAT get into schools like Cornell, Chicago, etc. Yes, applicants do get accepted with percentiles below 80th. A percentile in the 70s can certainly work, and you will be given some slack because English is not your native language. I do think that being Egyptian is an asset for you because the schools don't receive huge volumes of applications from Egypt...

--Paul
Paul Bodine
Author, "Great Applications for Business School," "Perfect Phrases for Business School Acceptance," "Perfect Phrases for Letters of Recommendation"
https://www.paulsbodine.com/
[email protected]
(858) 869-1959