Profile Evaluation - Have I done enough to offset low GPA

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My profile is as follows:

Nationality: US
Current Age / Gender: 32 / Male
Undergraduate: UC Berkeley, BS Mechanical Engineering
GPA: 2.4
GMAT - haven't taken yet, but from practice tests, I'm very confident about something over 720, just not sure how much higher
CFA: level 1 passed, awaiting level 2 results
All As in supplementary classes taken from UC Berkeley Extension last 3 years: Microeconomics, Statistics, Intro to Financial Accounting, Basic Corporate Finance, Intermediate Corporate Finance,

Extra-curriculars: Unfortunately, no extracurriculars.
Work Experience: 3 jobs since undergrad; worked for a technology startup out of college doing professional services for them and helped with fundraising until the dot com bust ended that run; tough finding a job in that environment, so settled for a software QA job at a security software company a year later and worked my way back up to senior QA and did some on-site client support; current job senior QA at a successful high tech company and have led a number of projects in the last couple of years.
I'm pretty sure I can get great recommendations from all my superiors past and present.
It took me awhile, but I'm very confident I want to work in finance, either in corporate finance or asset management. I love spreadsheets and working with numbers and would love to work as an analyst of some sort.

I'm really concerned about my really low undergraduate GPA due to my poor choice of major, my age (I know I'm over the hill by bschool standards, but I've always been a late bloomer), and my lack of extra-curriculars.
Since I'm considered old, I really can't afford to wait to apply another year, so I'm thinking this is my only shot.
Would my classes from the last few years and my CFA test performance offset the low gpa?

I'm shooting for the following schools:
Wharton, Sloan, Haas, Tepper, Ross, Anderson, Chicago, Kellogg are in consideration for reach schools
Not sure how far down I need to go for safety schools?
I'd consider going to Marshall, Cornell, UNC, UT Austin, Notre Dame, Vanderbilt, Wisconsin. Will I need to reach all the way to San Jose State?

Thanks for your help in advance and I really appreciate your time!
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by Lisa Anderson » Thu Jul 01, 2010 9:38 am
Dear calgrad99,

First, you are not too old to go to business school. Yes, you will be on the more experienced side, but I doubt you will be the oldest person in your class. I do think your alternative transcript and a solid (>700) GMAT will help to mitigate your GPA. The CFA will further demonstrate your analytical and quantitative aptitude. I would still encourage you to write the optional essay though. As for a safety school, you won't know what your range truly is until you have your GMAT score. Based on the schools in your post, I think you are probably on target if you do score in the 680-720 range. The only other possible weakness in your profile is the lack of extracurriculars since college. Perhaps you have been doing things outside of work but don't feel they are important? Schools do like to see well-rounded individuals with varied interests, so think about that aspect of your application as well.

Good luck,
Lisa
Lisa Anderson
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Stacy Blackman Consulting

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