Thank you for your inquiry.
I don't know very much about either program, but on the surface it looks like you will have a better chance at University of Pittsburgh than at Penn State. Penn State is really looking for candidates with work experience; their average student enters with four years of work, and 80% of their applicants have between 2 and 6 years. Unless you have tremendous work and leadership experiences during college, you may find gaining admission there to be a challenge. The University of Pittsburgh accepts more students with no work experience (their average is 3 years but 80% of their students have less than 5 or so years, including no experience).
As for your second question, without knowing more about your profile I can't give you a complete answer, but a strong GMAT can definitely help offset a weaker GPA. In your case though, you have a strong GPA; you want your GMAT to reinforce your academic abilities, not make up for them. A strong GMAT cannot really compensate for lack of leadership or work experiences; it measures a different attribute.
I hope that helps; best of luck.
Jessica Shklar
Senior Consultant
mbaMission (
www.mbamission.com)
646-485-8844
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