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Profile Evaluation

by pmh2244 » Wed Apr 27, 2011 8:08 am
Hello,

I was hoping you could provide me with some insight on which MBA Programs I should focus on. I am hoping for a top 50 school.

Here is my backgroud:

I am a 31 year old, white non-Hispanic male.

I graduated with an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from East Stroudsburg University in Pennsylvania. My GPA was Low 2.63

I was actively involved in leadership roles on campus, particularly, as treasurer and community outreach chair for my fraternity. I also participated in a retail internship at Jo-Ann Stores.

That retail internship lead to a full time position as a manger of store operations for Jo-Ann's(Fortune 1000 company). I worked there for one year before accepting a position with American Greeting(Fortune 1000 company). My position with American Greeting was that of area manager. I worked there for 18 months then made a life changing decision to go back to school.

I graduated with an undergraduate degree in accounting from Eastern Michigan University. My GPA at EMU was a 3.55 and I graduated Cum Laude. I was actively involved with Beta Alpha Phi -the national accounting honor society. I also participated in the VITA - volunteer income tax assistance program.

After graduation I went to work as accountant for Karmanos Cancer Institute, a top ten nationwide cancer research institute and hospital in metro Detroit. I was there for 4.5 months. After leaving the cancer institute, I took a position within the Finance Developmental Program at Ford Motor Company(Fortune 10 company). I have been there now for almost two years. I have rotated from product development to the treasurer's office.

My GMAT score, on my first try, was 690.

My main volunteer focus is around breast cancer research and the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. I am heavily involved in the Detroit race. I am a committee member and part of the finance board for the Detroit race.

Thanks for taking the time to look over my profile. Any suggestions or advice would be truly appreciated.

Patrick
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by mbaMissionJessica » Wed Apr 27, 2011 6:35 pm
Hi Patrick, thanks for your inquiry.

First off, I believe a top 50 school is well within your reach and encourage you to apply to a range of schools. You have an interesting and unusual background and while it does present some challenges, there are elements in it that are distinctive and impressive.

While your initial undergraduate GPA is quite low, it will be clear to the AdCom that you are someone who does not give up, and in fact when you were ready, made the huge undertaking of a second undergraduate degree and performed quite well in a quantitative field. If your GMAT of 690 is evenly balanced (approximately 80% each in the quant and verbal sections), that is just further evidence of your ability to succeed in an MBA program. (If it's heavily skewed, or if you think on a second attempt you can improve it, I think you will feel easier going into the applications with a 700+ and having that score will remove all concerns about your initial undergraduate GPA).

I think your work at Ford is also distinctive. Since it was a rotational program though, be sure to focus on your accomplishments - which can be difficult to demonstrate when you have spent a short time in multiple divisions. So that would be my suggestion for the biggest area of focus for you - articulate not just what your job was, but the impact you have been able to make. You don't mention your career goal - the AdCom will like to see a logical flow from your past to your present (the MBA) to your future, and in your case getting that story right will be particularly important since you've had several jobs in different fields. You don't want the AdCom to think that an MBA is just another career change but rather that it is a clearly thought out step in your journey. (Download our free Personal Statement Guide from our website, the store section, for more guidance on this).

Finally, I like that your initial work experience at Karmanos ties with your volunteer activities which show depth and commitment.

Your age may be your biggest concern (aside from the career statement I mentioned above), but quite frankly, there's nothing you can do about it so don't worry about it. Discuss in your career vision how you've matured, what you've learned from your journey, and where you are going. Plenty of 31 year olds get accepted to business school, even though they are trending younger.

I don't know enough about what you're looking for in a business school to guide you to specific programs. Do you want a real campus feel, like a Ross, Duke, Darden, Emory? Do you want a completely flexible curriculum like at Chicago? Do you prefer urban or not? These are just some questions to ask yourself. But I do think that if you tell your story right, you will be an interesting candidate at many top schools and I would encourage you to select a range of programs - one or two top 10, a handful of 10-25, one to two safety schools.

If you have specific names of schools you've considered I'll be happy to weigh in.

Best of luck,

Jessica
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by pmh2244 » Thu Apr 28, 2011 8:20 am
Hello Jessica,
Thanks for the quick response, I appreciate it.

As far as my goals for after an MBA, they would be to continue and grow my career within corporate finance. I would love to focus on and gain a better understanding of asset/investment management and risk management strategies in a corporate setting.

As far as a school is concerned, having a reputation of producing strong well rounded finance professionals would be very important to me, so in short a school that is known for finance. I am originally from the east coast and would prefer that location, but would consider the Midwest.

There is one other possibility, and that is Ford is considering the opportunity for me to attend the University of Michigan Part Time MBA program while continuing to grow my career. My thought process is that seems to be the best career move unless I can build my profile to fit a top ten type school. I guess it comes down to cost benefit.

Thanks for all your help. You have given me a lot to think about.

Patrick
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by mbaMissionJessica » Thu Apr 28, 2011 3:01 pm
Hi Patrick, yes, it comes down to cost-benefit but also to your own wishes regarding business school. Do you want the typical campus experience of building a community and getting involved in activities, or is the education itself of such dominant importance that the other activities are not a big issue. (There's no right or wrong answer by the way). Do you want to stay at Ford for the length of time it would take you to complete the part time program? Are you comfortable being pulled in multiple directions or do you thrive on being able to focus exclusively on school vs. work? (Again, no right or wrong answers!).

I hesitate to be overly confident without knowing how you write, what your recommenders will say, or how your overall package and profile will come together, but I definitely think you have a shot at a top 10 or top 15 school. The biggest two "black marks" are your original GPA - which you have totally offset - and your somewhat disjointed career path - which you have also largely offset.

Best of luck - don't sell yourself short! (But still put together a balanced list of stretch/competitive/safety!).
Jessica Shklar
Senior Consultant
mbaMission (www.mbamission.com)
646-485-8844

Sign up for a free consultation with mbaMission, the only admissions consulting firm that leading GMAT prep companies, ManhattanGMAT and Kaplan, recommend.
www.mbamission.com/consult.php
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