Ask Stacy Blackman

Hi,
- African (raised in Nigeria, went to high school in the US (dual citizen)), Male, 29 years
- GMAT 680, Q-42, V-41 (retaking to raise quant to 48)
- BA 3.5 UCLA, double major in Theater and Film ( Full Academic Scholarship (1 student per year) )
Worked fulltime as a video editing instructor and manager of a multimedia lab.
While in school created a newsmagazine show that was nominated for the Student Emmys which subsequently led to being hired by MTV out of college.
- Work experience
5 years in entertainment as a VJ for MTV, and a host of various network shows. Guest starred in numerous network TV shows, and acted in films presented at Sundance and Cannes. Interviewed everyone- from Elmo to Jesse Jackson to Kanye West.
3 years till current working between Nigeria and the states, launching a family business with interests in mining (export) and clean tech (water remediation: rejuvenating land destroyed by oil spills). In charge of business strategy, and managing a team of 7.

- EC's:
Co-developed an award-winning trilogy of plays. Taught theater classes for local children.
Helped launch a cottage industry for the elderly women of my village (sewing traditional clothes to sell throughout the Nigeria)
Created a private social network for the international expat community of my village, upgrading our communication platform from email forums.

Target B-Schools: Harvard, Stanford, Booth, Columbia, Wharton, Dartmouth

Career Progression post-MBA: Short-term Consulting/finance in emerging markets. Long-term: Sub-Saharan African PE

A few questions:

1. Which B Schools should I target with my current profile?
2. Any positives / negatives associated with my age and artistic work experiences?
3. What if I was to score above 700, and not hit the 48 quant, which is most vital? (I did get A's in my quant classes in undergrad (statistics))

Let me know if u need any more info, thanks so much-

Thanks,
Ended up taking the test again last minute and scoring a 740, with a 46 quant. Still spreading out my apps and including schools outside the top 10, thanks for the advice.