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Profile Evaluation

by ccx88 » Mon Feb 21, 2011 6:37 am
Hi all consultants,

I have recently just completed my GMAT and would appreciate if one of you would be kind enough to help me evaluate my profile below:

Age: 23
Gender: F
Nationality: Singaporean


GMAT

740 (Q49,V41) First attempt (AWA unknown now)

Education

Completed GCE "O" Levels in Singapore and entered an American University in Madrid, Spain when I was 16. I completed three semesters there and my CGPA was 3.67/4.00.

Transferred to McGill University, Montreal, Canada and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, Economics in Dec 2008. CGPA was 3.12/4.00. (Last two semester GPA was 3.3/4.00)

I also did a summer exchange at Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Work Experience

Started work in Jan 2009 at a top law firm in Singapore doing economic analysis for their Competition Law department. However, after 5 months I realised that the job wasn't suitable for me and left the job.

In September 2009, I was offered a scholarship by the Monetary Authority of Singapore to work in an insurance broking firm (one of the top three worldwide and is listed on the NYSE). I have been working there ever since and manage a portfolio of almost 40 clients. Under the scholarship, I have completed the exams required to be an Associate under the Chartered Insurance Institute and have also been seconded to our company's headquarters in London for two weeks.

Prior to graduation, I attended Merrill Lynch's summer wealth management program.

Others

I completed a course on Financial Markets offered by the Singapore Management University and plan on completing the CFA level 1 by December 2011.

I am effectively bilingual in both English and Mandarin. Ability for Spanish is at best basic.

Based on my profile above, would schools like MIT, Yale, Michigan (Ann Arbor) and Cornell be out of reach for Fall 2012 R1? I know my weakness is my low GPA but I am hoping that my GMAT would be able to mitigate it. Also, will the admissions office also consider my higher GPA from my university in Madrid?

I would really appreciate any comments from any one of the consultants and thank you in advance!
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by Tani » Mon Feb 21, 2011 6:38 pm
Hello,

The admissions office will see all your grades from every undergraduate institution, so that will include your strong work in Madrid. Your GMAT is also very strong.

You have shown great career progress, but you are in a horizontal field where you have had little opportunity to supervise others. Build your resume by either taking on managerial tasks in your job or by volunteering in a position in which you lead teams. our mix of Asian, North American and European exposure should work in your favor. Be sure not to simply tell them that you have worked in different cultures, but make it clear that you have learned from these cultures in ways that will make you a strong classroom contributor.

The schools you have noted are within reach, but certainly not a sure thing. They never are! If you are determined to go to school a year from now, you should include one or more "safety" schools on your list. Remember, the top schools turn down 80-90 % of the applicants from outstanding pools. You need to put your best foot forward with respect to your career and your essays as well as your GPA and GMAT.

You have a strong start and have time to pull it all together.


Good luck,
Tani Wolff
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by ccx88 » Tue Feb 22, 2011 3:29 pm
Hi Tani

Thank you for your advice, I really appreciate it !

After looking at my profile, could you please advise me on what would be a suitable safety school for myself?

In addition, would my background in insurance harm my chances as there are usually a lot of stereotypical views surrounding this industry.

Thank you in advance!
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by Tani » Tue Feb 22, 2011 5:26 pm
Look at the stereotypes for the insurance industry and picture how you are different. Then build your essays so that you turn industry negatives into your positives. For example, engineers are often viewed as loners, so an engineer would stress extracurricular activities that involve a lot of interaction with people.

For a safety look for a school that has a score average in the high 600s, has an acceptance rate of 35% or more and sees a large segment of its graduates go into the field that you want to enter. Sometimes schools in smaller college towns have higher acceptance rates because so many people only want to go to the large cities. That's a particular problem for people who have trailing spouses who need to find jobs. Those schools often have acceptance rates that are higher than other schools of comparable rank.

By the way, with a 740 GMAT of on the first attempt, I would not take the test again. You have a great score and you don't want to look as though you are focusing on that one piece of the application.

Good luck,
Tani Wolff
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