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Where to go from here?

by Calikid3820 » Mon Nov 21, 2011 8:21 am
I just graduated from the 2nd smallest NCAA Division 1 school in the country. I had a 2.7 GPA, though I attirbute it to being a Scholarship 2 sport athlete, a triple major(Accounting, Finance, and Management), and being president of my fraternity(which won fraternity of the year).

I do not plan on attending Business School for another probably 5 years, but with my low GPA I know I will be shunned away from a lot of institutions... I took the GMAT kind of on a whim 2 years ago now and got a 620 during football camp after a 22 credit summer.

I currently work as a Financial Analyst/Consultant for a Public Finance company which specializes in advising Municipalities, School Districts, etc. I am also slated to take Level 1 of the CFA in June and assuming I pass Level 2 in December. And because I have the 150 credits im contemplating the CPA.

I would ultimately LOVE attending either Stanford, Berkeley, or the London Business School. So what can you recommend for me to get there from where I am at?
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by Calikid3820 » Mon Nov 21, 2011 8:40 am
I also wanted to add that I do plan on actually studying and taking the GMAT again.
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by DanaJ » Tue Nov 22, 2011 10:08 am
I think taking the test again is a smart move.

Also, I'd keep myself involved in the activities you describe. Extracurriculars are really good to have and can help mitigate your GPA (although to which extent, I'm not sure).

I also feel like a good career progression (i.e. working your butt off for the next few years and getting as many promotions as possible) is the best way to get admitted! :)
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by Calikid3820 » Tue Nov 22, 2011 10:29 am
Thanks for the reply. I understand that with low GPAs come the inevitable essay to explain that GPA. Would my experiences/extracurriculars during my undergrad in combination with the extreme course load be considered a fair justification for a 2.7?

Also am I targeting the right schools? I am interested in London Business School as my top choice, then Berkeley, then Stanford. I really like the approach they take to education and that it is about total experience and real learning more than just a GPA. Also they all have extraordinary placement numbers. I was browsing the gmatclub forum at their class profiles and it seems there are a lot of people with diverse backgrounds and great stories that were immediately dinged by Wharton/HBS/Columbia because of a <3.5 GPA or a <720 GMAT, but were interviewed/accepted by LBS/Berkeley/Stanford(hit or miss).

I put LBS at the top because of their extremely high percentage of International Students, the fact that every company in every industry i've ever even looked at trying to work for recruits from there, and because I would love to travel and experience Europe(I ultimately want to work in London).
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by Jon@Admissionado » Wed Nov 23, 2011 12:35 am
Well sir, the low GPA may be unfortunate, but there are ways to make up for it, and make your candidacy appealing. First thing - you DO gotta get a great GMAT score, better than the average for applicants of the schools you are thinking of applying to. You need to show this or other academic/intellectual pursuits that were successful to allay their fears that you might not be a good student. Thankfully you got plenty of time!

BTW I should say being a professional athlete is very helpful. It's a place for lots of great stories and leadership.

As for target schools, well you have lots of choices and lots of time (hopefully you will meet people from the schools and visit too). But it's sounding to me like you might like Tuck, Kellogg and INSEAD as well.
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by DanaJ » Thu Nov 24, 2011 2:57 pm
Jon's the expert here, so I'd listen to whatever he says :)

Stanford and Berkeley are both awesome schools and so is LBS. And yeah, they both have interesting reputations regarding the people they admit (as you can probably tell from reading their real essay questions: https://money9111.blocked/2011/10/r ... ssays.html )LBS would love you since they love Americans (or so I hear, but again I'm not an admissions consultant!).
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by Calikid3820 » Thu Nov 24, 2011 6:51 pm
PrecisionEssay wrote:Well sir, the low GPA may be unfortunate, but there are ways to make up for it, and make your candidacy appealing. First thing - you DO gotta get a great GMAT score, better than the average for applicants of the schools you are thinking of applying to. You need to show this or other academic/intellectual pursuits that were successful to allay their fears that you might not be a good student. Thankfully you got plenty of time!

BTW I should say being a professional athlete is very helpful. It's a place for lots of great stories and leadership.

As for target schools, well you have lots of choices and lots of time (hopefully you will meet people from the schools and visit too). But it's sounding to me like you might like Tuck, Kellogg and INSEAD as well.
Thanks for the info and advice... As sad as it is this whole topic actually is on my mind for the better part of everyday... I have spent hours looking into retaking classes... Taking new classes.. Or possibly even to the extent of adding a whole new degree.

Im happy to know that there is hope. Also I looked at INSEAD and it really didnt catch my attention like LBS did
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