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Application Advice

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Application Advice

by fdq_45 » Mon May 05, 2014 5:03 am
Hi All,

Just looking for some general advice on what schools I should apply to (given my stats below). Please note, I was already denied from Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, and Columbia when I applied last year (without interview). I am trying to see where I should realistically apply to now that I have another year under my belt, as it seems I was aiming too high last time.

GMAT
- 710 (46 Quant, 41 Verbal)

Work Experience
- 3 Years (if I am accepted into the class of 2017)
- Middle/Back Office work (fund ops/valuations) for a top 5 finance firm
- No promotions (yet), but very strong reviews

Undergraduate
- 4.0/4.0 GPA (Valedictorian)
- Semi-Target School; Concentration in Finance
- Other various awards/honors/endorsements by University

Extracurricular Activity
- Division 1 Team Sport
- Numerous Volunteer efforts throughout college and some post-grad

Story
- I really want to get into investment management after acquiring an MBA, as I am having great trouble making a jump otherwise.

Any advice would be very helpful. Thanks in advance.
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GMAT/MBA Expert

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by Judith@Fortuna » Tue May 06, 2014 8:53 am
Thanks so much for your question- and for thinking ahead about your applications and what may make sense for you moving forward. It sounds like you have been building a great profile both academically and professionally; and that the MBA makes a great next step for you. I am sorry to learn about the outcomes last time around for you; but the good news is that you have an additional year under your belt, and that you have survived this process once already!
Do you feel that you were able to make the case for what you wanted to do after business school- did you connect the dots between what you do now,and where you see yourself? I might suggest that if you are interested in finance, you consider UCLA Anderson, NYU and perhaps Ross to round things out. It may also be that you try Columbia again; the important question to ask is do you feel that enough is different about your profile to warrant a reapp this time around to H,W S and Columbia? Sometimes its easier to work on a new set of applications, rethink your positioning- and apply to the first set of schools ( again) with a fresh slate. While I was at Wharton, we would tell students to really walk away from the first application, think about it again- and how you would want to use the space alloted to reframe your value proposition.
Always glad to chat about this futher- do let me know.
All the best,Judith
Judith Hodara | Fortuna Admissions - a dream team of former Admissions Directors from the world's top business schools | https://www.FortunaAdmissions.com | [email protected]

Interested in a free 30-minute consultation? Sign up here: https://fortunaadmissions.com/free-consultation/
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GMAT/MBA Expert

Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts
Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Feb 27, 2014 7:45 am

by Judith@Fortuna » Tue May 06, 2014 8:54 am
Thanks so much for your question- and for thinking ahead about your applications and what may make sense for you moving forward. It sounds like you have been building a great profile both academically and professionally; and that the MBA makes a great next step for you. I am sorry to learn about the outcomes last time around for you; but the good news is that you have an additional year under your belt, and that you have survived this process once already!
Do you feel that you were able to make the case for what you wanted to do after business school- did you connect the dots between what you do now,and where you see yourself? I might suggest that if you are interested in finance, you consider UCLA Anderson, NYU and perhaps Ross to round things out. It may also be that you try Columbia again; the important question to ask is do you feel that enough is different about your profile to warrant a reapp this time around to H,W S and Columbia? Sometimes its easier to work on a new set of applications, rethink your positioning- and apply to the first set of schools ( again) with a fresh slate. While I was at Wharton, we would tell students to really walk away from the first application, think about it again- and how you would want to use the space alloted to reframe your value proposition.
Always glad to chat about this futher- do let me know.
All the best,Judith
Judith Hodara | Fortuna Admissions - a dream team of former Admissions Directors from the world's top business schools | https://www.FortunaAdmissions.com | [email protected]

Interested in a free 30-minute consultation? Sign up here: https://fortunaadmissions.com/free-consultation/
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GMAT/MBA Expert

Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts
Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Feb 27, 2014 7:45 am

by Judith@Fortuna » Tue May 06, 2014 8:54 am
Thanks so much for your question- and for thinking ahead about your applications and what may make sense for you moving forward. It sounds like you have been building a great profile both academically and professionally; and that the MBA makes a great next step for you. I am sorry to learn about the outcomes last time around for you; but the good news is that you have an additional year under your belt, and that you have survived this process once already!
Do you feel that you were able to make the case for what you wanted to do after business school- did you connect the dots between what you do now,and where you see yourself? I might suggest that if you are interested in finance, you consider UCLA Anderson, NYU and perhaps Ross to round things out. It may also be that you try Columbia again; the important question to ask is do you feel that enough is different about your profile to warrant a reapp this time around to H,W S and Columbia? Sometimes its easier to work on a new set of applications, rethink your positioning- and apply to the first set of schools ( again) with a fresh slate. While I was at Wharton, we would tell students to really walk away from the first application, think about it again- and how you would want to use the space alloted to reframe your value proposition.
Always glad to chat about this futher- do let me know.
All the best,Judith
Judith Hodara | Fortuna Admissions - a dream team of former Admissions Directors from the world's top business schools | https://www.FortunaAdmissions.com | [email protected]

Interested in a free 30-minute consultation? Sign up here: https://fortunaadmissions.com/free-consultation/
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Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts
Posts: 2
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by fdq_45 » Tue May 06, 2014 10:45 am
Hi Judith,

Thank you so much for the insight. I very much appreciate your advice. Personally, I do not feel as if enough in my candidacy has changed to re-apply to those schools. However, I thought that maybe with a clean slate, I can still get into a top tier (top 15) type school. Taking what you said into consideration, I would like to ask some follow up questions. First, would Chicago Booth be a similar stretch given my stats? I really like the academic/cerebral side of the program that I read about everywhere. I also hear it is a great place to get into equity research (what I hope to transition into). Also, what about Kellogg, Haas, Tuck and Darden? I know the first two may still be a stretch but these schools have all caught my eye, and I am trying to narrow down my application field to 4 or 5. Thanks again in advance!
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by GeneralEd » Thu May 22, 2014 1:36 am
Hi fdq_45,

You have a decent profile and GMAT Score. Based on your current profile you stand a fair chances of getting admit in top 20 B-Schools.

I would suggest you to do some ground work on B-Schools you are targeting and start working on B-School essays. try to make contacts with the alumni/current students. This way you can gather information about B-School application procedure and requirement and will help you to draft your essays accordingly.

As you don't have managerial experience you have to make your essays strong.

I would suggest you to target B-Schools like- Columbia, University of California Haas, Kellogg, Yale University, Dartmouth Tuck and Duke Fuqua.

Hope this helps. Feel free to write if you have any further queries.

Cheers!
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