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Me again... final post

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Me again... final post

by mbaseeker09 » Sun Nov 18, 2007 12:27 pm
Hi Amy, hi Stacy,

as my last post was becoming too long, I've decided to recap everything here, just to have you final word on me :)

I'm a European student, and I'd like to pursue a MBA in the USA.
I plan to apply next year, but I've already taken the GMAT two years ago, and I've just taken the TOEFL test too.
I'd like an assessment of my opportunities and some indications about which school you think I should apply for.
Here's my profile:

AGE: 28
Nationality: Italian
Bachelor's Degree (Laurea) in History, GPA 4/4.
Laurea Specialistica (which is, according to WES, equal to an American Master's Degree) in Cultural Anthropology, GPA 3.60/4 (considering A- = 3.7).
GMAT score: 680 (Q43, V40)
TOEFL IBT: 109
Work experience: set up my own business re-selling media products through internet when I was at university (1,5 years) on my website. Kind of unofficial business, yet profitable and that gave me deep insight into business.
After graduation, I've joined my current employer. I've worked with them for 1,5 years now. I started as assistant to the Quality Assurance Manager, and I've been recently promoted to Quality Assurance Manager. I work for a mid-sized company working in the logistics field, with 320 employees.
I can speak fluently italian, english and spanish, and I can speak good finnish and a bit of chinese.
I've travelled extensively to 27 countries for tourism, plus two volunteering experiences of 20 days each in Romania and The Gambia.
I've spent one year in Finland as exchange student and a summer semester at UMKC in Kansas City, MO.
I've been involved in volunteering for the last 6 months, and I'm studying french.

So, given my curriculum, and with all the clarifications made about my GPA, do you still believe I can succesfully apply to a Top 30 or a Top 20 school? As I've worked in the logistic field, I was considering to take a MBA with a strong reputation in Supply Chain, like Broad. What are other schools that have a good reputation in this field?
Also, if I want to work internationally and travel a lot, what concentration would you suggest? University of Iowa (Tippie) offers the chance of a primary concentration plus a specialty concentration in international business which sounds interesting...
Well, I really appreciate your help!

Thanks!

Andrea

P.S.
- Do you think I should retake the GMAT? I'm planning to take a calculus and statistics course in the next semester, to show admission committee I'm serious about quantitative skills. Is a 43 on my Q part of the GMAT good, considering I have a liberal arts/social sciences background?
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by Amy » Mon Nov 19, 2007 3:50 pm
Hi Andrea,

Both your GMAT and GPA are solid. It never hurts to have a higher GMAT score, and is certainly something you can work on since you have a year. Admissions is truly a holistic process, so the only thing I can tell you is that your school choices are reasonable and you are in the right range.

I think you are beyond needing a basic profile evaluation from this forumn - and that you would really benefit from starting to have some personal interaction with programs - there is a limit to the research you can do online, and it may help you to think about your target employers and call their recruiting offices to ask what MBA programs they recruit from. It will also help you to reach out to current students and ask about their programs. There is likely to be a professional club focused on the areas you are interested in, and you can easily reach out to the officers of those clubs.

Good luck!

Amy
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info

by mbaseeker09 » Sat Nov 24, 2007 11:32 am
Hi again,
in a previuos post you said you find my background interesting, referring to my volunteering abroad experiences (even though they were only 14 days long each) and my internation exposure. Do you believe that having travelled so much across the World - either for study or for tourism - could be an asset for my application? Do you think the same about my language skills? Again, speaking fluently italian, english and spanish and speaking a decent finnish plus elementary chinese is not bad I guess!

I'd really hope so, I try to gain as much int. exposure as possible 'cause I'd like to work internationally.
Well, thanks for your advice!

Andrea
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correction

by mbaseeker09 » Sat Nov 24, 2007 12:11 pm
Actually my volunteering exp. were one 20 days and another 18 days long! And I spent 9 months in Finland and a summer semester in Kansas City (UMKC) studying english. I really think that all the travelling (I'd like another international volunteering exp. like next summer) coupled with my BA in Anthropology really gives me an advantage in understanding other cultures and societies that most people don't have (life experience is unbeatable in this regard!!). Do you think it will be useful in my quest for a job in international marketing or international finance? And what about my application?
thanks a lot!

Andrea
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by Amy » Mon Nov 26, 2007 12:51 pm
Hi Andrea,

Of course, all of your international experience is great to help you towards your goal and to write about in your applications. It sounds like you have plenty of interesting experiences to talk about in your essays.

Good luck!

Amy
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last q

by mbaseeker09 » Mon Nov 26, 2007 1:22 pm
Hi again...
there's something that bothers me... average GMAT scores of thsi year's admitted students.

Here's some GMAT scores for 2006 and 2007 per school:

USC: 685 to 689
UNC -Chapel Hill: 662 to 689 (!!)
Emory: 690 to 685 (median still 690)
Indiana University (Bloomington): 645 to 656
Texas - Austin: 669 to 663
Texas A&M: 643 to 665

The trend is really upward!
I plan to apply in 2, maximum 3 years.
Do you think I'll still be fine for these schools? I mean, even if the median GMAT will be around 690-695, will a 680 still be considered ok (a good, comfortable one) or it will be considered too low?

thanks!

A.
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by Amy » Mon Nov 26, 2007 1:31 pm
Hi Andrea,

I thought this was your last post? :D

Yes, the average GMAT has been steadily trending up in the last few years. I hesitate to speculate what will happen in the future. The MBA admissions world can sometimes be cyclical based on what is happening in the economy. In 1998 most high potential business people were trying to start .com businesses rather than returning for their MBA, for instance.

I would advise focusing on your own candidacy and not worrying too heavily about outside factors - after all, you can control your own application to some extent but you certainly can't control the competition.

I'm sure your fellow applicants have opinions on this as well.

Good luck!

Amy
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gmat

by mbaseeker09 » Wed Nov 28, 2007 1:31 pm
Well, I think that retaking it would put a lot of pression on me, as it makes my 680 worthless... I mean, if I had the awareness that a 680 would still leave me in a highly competitive position to get into a top30 school, that would surely ease tension and pressure... But the idea that I have to improve it at every cost is really frustrating. What do you think?

Furthermore, I plan to take a calculus class, as I really find the math part the most difficult to tackle... I scored 43, so I think I have room for improvement there...

Well, thanks a lot again!
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by Amy » Fri Nov 30, 2007 10:44 am
I think taking a calculus class is a great idea.

I don't think worrying too much about what may happen down the road to GMAT scores is worth your time right now. I think taking it once more after your class is over may be useful, and then re-assessing the situation once you are actually applying.

Good luck!

Amy
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again

by mbaseeker09 » Fri Dec 21, 2007 1:02 pm
Hi again,
do you think my profile would be competitive for Carnegie Mellon too?
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by mbaseeker09 » Wed Jan 16, 2008 6:40 am
Hi again.
Do you think that my dvd business - as it was conducted full time (usually 5-8 hours a day counting packing, orders handling, etc) - will count as full time work experience (as it was post bachelor's degree too, as I was enrolled at a master's program)?
thanks!!
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by Amy » Wed Jan 16, 2008 10:46 pm
Hi mbaseeker09,

I would consider full time work experience to be work you did when not enrolled in school. It was probably more of a part time endeavor if you were in school at the time.

Good luck!

Amy
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by mbaseeker09 » Fri Jan 18, 2008 5:39 am
hi Amy,
actually it was a true full time job. The fact is, by that time (June 2006) I had finished attending all of my classes, and I only had to take exams (system is Italy is different from the US). So I could focus 100% on working and on studying during evening, and that was exactly what I did, so it was fully a full-time job...
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by mbaseeker09 » Fri Jan 18, 2008 5:39 am
So, what do you think?=
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by jelt » Fri Jan 18, 2008 7:00 am
Hi,

I think it depends specifically on the school you want to apply to. Some look upon students with less than 2 years of post-graduation experience negatively. Some are more positive. A useful site for you to check out may be www.youngmba.net there you can find a list of schools that look upon early career applicants more kindly.

As for how these schools, who recruit among a younger demographic, approach the question of work experience, let me quote a former member of Wharton's adcom, the legendary FanaticalFan:

"Just on the issue of work experience, in the length of work experience question, Wharton asks for full time experience since graduation - this would exclude most internships, part time experience etc. However, in terms of what experiences you can include in the job duties section, you can certainly include significant part time or intership experiences. the length of work experience is for statistical reporting purposes - adcom are more intersted in what your experiences have been, and more specifically what you have learned from them."
(emphasis added)
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