Ask an MBA Admissions Consultant

Can someone please evaluate where they think I can get in?

I have a 700 GMAT (45Q 41V), 3.6 GPA from Washington Univ in St. Louis, and will have 3 yrs work experience in corporate finance (financial analysis, planning, budgeting, etc) from JPMorgan Chase. I'm looking at Northwestern, U Chicago, Wash U, Berkeley and not sure where else.

Any idea where my app would stand with top 25 schools?

Hi and thanks for your note. It sounds like you would be right in the thick of the mix, in terms of all but the most competitive programs (i.e., Stanford and HBS) but, even for those, I think you would still have a chance.

As I have said in other posts (I won't repeat myself here but would be willing to find old posts and send you the URL), there are MANY factors to consider besides the rank of the school in a newspaper or magazine (when I speak about MBA admissions, this is the point where I dramatically wave US News and World Report or the Wall Street Journal or the Financial Times).

They include but are not limited to:

- Geography
- Teaching Style
- Urban / Suburban / Rural
- Culture
- Specialization (finance? marketing? entrep.?)

Along these lines, the schools that you are mentioning are all very different. You may want to start with a set of "priorities" or "filters" and then choose schools that way.

I hope this is helpful.

Keep me in the loop about your decision making and if you have further questions.

Cheers--

Paxton