Finding Target School - NYU, Columbia, Cornell help!!!

Figure out where you wish to apply
This topic has expert replies
Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2009 9:33 pm
Location: toronto
Followed by:1 members
GMAT Score:710
Hi everybody,

I have read so many of your responses on BeatTheGmat. I found every single one of them so helpful and detailed. I was hoping if I could ask you a question regarding my MBA application for the above three mentioned schools. I would greatly appreciate your advice and input. First, my profile:

Undergraduate: Top University in Canada, BAH Economics, June 2009

GPA: 65%(B)

GMAT: 710 - 50 Quant(94%), 35 Verbal(74%), 6.0 Writing(90%)

Work experience: Daewoo International, Seoul Korea(July 2009 - July 2010), Research Analyst, Steel Division I

Foreign Exchange Firm, Toronto Canada(August 2010 - Present), FX Trader

Certificiates: CFA lvl II candidate, C++, Visual Basics, Investment Banking Institute completed(Advanced financial modeling)


One thing about my GPA is that I failed 4/5 courses in my first year University so I was placed on Academic suspension in my second year. The reason behind this is that I played professional rugby in Australia and I neglected school work(I wanted to play pro so I only focused on training and traveled throughout the year for matches). I broke my shin(Tibia) in half while I was in Australia and I can no longer play rugby or even run(This happened during my one year academic suspension). I returned to school after the suspension and finished a four year program in 2.5 years, however, my marks were not great. I didn't want to stay in school for a total of 6-7 years so I rushed through.

I was involved with many extracurricular activities in undergraduate and I was the assistant coach for the varsity rugby team. In Seoul, Korea I introduced rugby to a local middle school and taught young kids how to play rugby. My goal was to introduce new sports to Korean students other than soccer and baseball. In Toronto, I am currently coaching kid's club rugby teams in the GTA area.

I returned to Canada to pursue an opportunity in Sales and Trading. In the one month that I was back, I organized tens, almost a hundred sit downs in order to get this one job at a foreign exchange brokerage; however, I want to move to bigger firms in the US and to be exposed to other areas than FX alone.

I would like to pursue an MBA now in order to pursue a career in Sales and Trading in the United States. It is very difficult for a Trader from Canada to break into US firms. I find that a strong US MBA, especially those offered in the financial hub such as New York(Columbia, NYU) would be most beneficial at this point of my career(I will only have 2.3 years of experience by September 2011).

Realistically, am I overshooting for NYU, Columbia and Cornell given my low GPA and experience? I apologize for the long message but your response would really mean a lot to me. I had a meeting with Toronto Rotman MBA and MFIN and I was quite dissapointed with their response. They are quite stern about the minimum 3.0 GPA, which I don't have. I was told to return to school(undergrad) for one more year to boost my marks but frankly, that is not a viable option.

Best Regards,

Jason
Rollpound!
Source: — Research MBA Programs |

User avatar
MBA Admissions Consultant
Posts: 247
Joined: Tue Feb 23, 2010 11:27 am
Location: Houston
Thanked: 52 times
Followed by:42 members
GMAT Score:740

by Jessica@VeritasPrep » Mon Nov 08, 2010 7:20 pm
If your low GPA is the result of only your first year, I think you have a compelling argument to make. You will want to make sure that your GPA in years 2, 3, 4 is signficanlty higher, but, if so, you can discuss the trend in your GPA and how you hope that the later years will be given more serious consideration (they often are). It would be worthwhile to write an extra essay (or a few short paragraphs) to explain the extenuating circumstances. You want to be careful not to portray yourself as a victim or to seem irresponsible. Just simply state that your GPA greatly improved when you made the decision to focus on academics rather than rugby and that you believe these grades are a better reflections of your capabilities.

While I don't think it is necessary to return to school for a year, I do think that taking a few courses (even just one at night or during your lunch hour) could improve your candidacy. You said you don't have time to do this, but, if you are not accepted in a school then you may find that taking the time would have been a preferable route!

With that said, I think your GMAT will mitigate many of the concerns about low GPA. Just make sure your LORs focus on your ability to easily grasp concepts and perform "analytically", etc. You want to make sure that your dedication and your brain power show! You can use your essays to discuss your focus and how it is improved now (you may even be able to tie in a story about how you put yourself 100% into what you are doing and during your freshman year, it was rugby, now it is your career and education, etc.??).

Hope this helps!

Jessica
Jessica
MBA Admissions Consultant
Veritas Prep

Enroll now. Pay later. Take advantage of Veritas Prep's flexible payment plan options