Profile evaluation;which mba/masters program is fit for me?

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Education

1. Professional Futures and Forex Trader Certification 2014-2015
Online Trading Academy New York

2. Bachelor of Business Administration, Marketing and Finance - (2012; GPA 3.52/4)
Independent University, Bangladesh
"¢ Placed in the Dean's list of spring 2008 and 2009
"¢ Member and executive of the Business Students' Society Club

3. O'level & A'level (2005 & 2007)
Edexcel

Work Experience

1.General Manager
Terrace Hall (2018-Present; Hazleton, PA)
"¢ Led a team of 6 in organizing 50 events within just 6 months with a 100% success rate based on client satisfaction.
"¢ Conceptualized and designed highly-personalized social events, supervised warehouse activities, constructed and executed 360 marketing plans, and coordinated departments to cohesion.

2. Marketing Manager
Hered LLC-a multi-use building (2014 to Present; Hazleton, PA)
"¢ Singlehandedly increased revenue by 340% in just 6 months
"¢ Increased occupancy of the property, evaluating new market opportunity and demographics, brought 7 new vendors.
"¢ Modeled market-penetration and expansion strategies and served as primary liaison in all engagements
"¢ Wrote detailed Marketing plans

3. Co-founder/Partner
JB Asset Management (2015-Present; Hazleton, PA)
"¢ Assessed potential trading opportunities and monitored developments on global stock & commodities futures markets.
"¢ Regularly met or exceeded the daily P/L budget of $200

4. Executive- Customer Service
Hanjin Shipping (2012-2014; Chittagong, Bangladesh)
"¢ Started an as an intern, promoted to executive customer service in 3 months

5. British American Tobacco (part-time) Summer 2012
"¢ Spearheaded the advertising and PR campaigns for Benson Switch through market research and field experiences

Additional Information

1. Sports(Karate): Achieved First Dan (black belt) in Karate-do from Honke Shotokan Karate-Do Association, and awarded Silver Medal in Kumite (60kg+) in Chittagong District Karate Do Competition

2. Culture and arts: Nationally certificated through 3 years of training in classical dance and 4 years of training in classical music

3. Community: Volunteered and wrote grants for HARP (Hazleton Area Recreation Program), headed clothing drives as the founder of one of the first online boutiques in Bangladesh (Tasnuva's Wardrobe), and sponsored community blood drive in Terrace Plaza, Hazleton, PA.

4. Consultancy: Taught English language in Chittagong Grammar School which is one of the leading British-curriculum schools in the country, coached 10+ middle school students as a private tutor, and lead a 3-month spoken English course in Mentors with is the country's top educational consulting house dedicated to supporting students in pursuing the world-class education

5. Business: Remodeled and re-envisioned real estate property purchased through auctions to prepare them for sale or rent, and co-founded JB Amusement (Funtastic Fun Factory) which is an indoor amusement center for children(in progress or will open soon)

That's basically my resume in 1 page. The only issue I have right now is my GMAT score. I was below average on my first 2 attempts and about to sit for my 3rd and last official exam to meet round-2 application. But to be honest, I am not going to score 700+. I have never scored above 550 on any of my practice exams. I am stuck in Q41-43 and V20. My verbal sucks. That being said, I am confused if I should even consider GMAT or should I go for GRE instead. Without any preparation, on my first GRE practice test, I scored Q 147-155 V 141-149.

Initially, I wanted to study in Wharton! But I think that's not a practical solution for me right now. I need help in deciding my future goals, which are realistic. I've postponed my GMAT toward the end of the year, kissing the ivy deadlines goodbye.

Keeping my verbal score constant(can't improve much in a month), my plan is to score as high as possible in quant, so that I can get a score of 560-600 and apply to schools, such as University of Pittsburg, Pennstate, Lehigh University, Temple and Drexel, for a 1-year Masters in Marketing/Education. Re-apply to Ivy: Wharton (my first choice), Columbia and NYU ( MBA in Fashion Luxury) after consistently studying for 3-4 months.

Is that a good Plan? What if I get 550!

I think having a masters degree will make my resume stronger. Isn't it?

I am so confused which program will be best for me.

Thank you for the patience.

Jeesa




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by MargaretStrother » Fri Nov 23, 2018 5:05 am
Hi Jeesa,
There is a lot of information here, so I'm going to try to parse out a few key points:
If you're looking at full-time, two-year MBAs at top business schools, your test scores definitely impact your options. The GRE might be a better fit for your test-taking style -- it's a very personal thing -- but once you've taken the test, you will want to look at average incoming GRE scores for the schools you're considering applying to. Wharton would be a long-shot for anyone with a GMAT under 720 or a GRE at a similar level. NYU reports an average GRE of 162/161 for the 2017 full-time MBA class; assume it would be slightly lower for the one-year program, but only a couple of points.

It looks like you are considering one-year Masters in Marketing programs, so again, look at their incoming class profiles to see the average GRE scores they're accepting.
If your plan is to do a one-year Masters and then apply for an MBA, be prepared for schools to ask "Why" on this -- what are your post-MBA goals, why are you considering a certain school's program, who do you want to hire you, doing what, post-MBA, and why does that career path necessarily require an MBA from School X?

Even with a Masters in Marketing, your test scores need to be competitive with the incoming class profile of the top MBA program you're applying to. If not, there are actions you can take to try to make yourself an "exception to the rule": for example, if your verbal score is low, you'll want to take graded (not coursera-style) courses in Business Writing to demonstrate your commitment to improve in this area, even if your test scores aren't where you'd like them to be. Think about your application from the admissions perspective: you might sound interesting, but what are you doing to assure the admissions committee that you are committed to performing at the same level as your peers?

Good luck,
Margaret
Margaret Strother
Senior Consultant
Stacy Blackman Consulting

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