Young CPA - Please Evaluate, Thanks!!

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Young CPA - Please Evaluate, Thanks!!

by CPA2011 » Mon Jun 27, 2011 6:53 am
My Profile: 24 years old (25 at time of admittance), Male

- Bachelor in Accounting, 3.7GPA from Marshall University (run-of-the-mill state school)

- I am currently studying for the GMAT. Judging by practice exams, my conservative score prediction is 650 up to possibly 690. I know this will significantly impact your evaluation of my profile, but I do not want to make the GMAT until I am very confident that I won't come in at my lower range (650).

- I'm a Senior Auditor at a regional accounting firm (aka, unheard of). Although my firm is small (50 professionals), it is the 4th largest in my state (WV) and I have worked with large privately held corporations in the coal and manufacturing industries, including the largest privately held coal corporation by reserves in the mid-Atlantic U.S., as well as manufacturers with operations across the Eastern U.S., China, Australia and South America. I have also worked with our largest bank client that also happens to be publicly traded.

I have all the standard auditor experience (audits as well as comps, reviews, projections) and I have also worked directly with foreign translation of Chinese subsidiary financial statements. My firm is very non-traditional, and as such, I have not been as limited in my ability to gain more responsibility simply by working hard.

I have handled entire audit engagements by myself, dealing face to face with CEO's and CFO's of mid-sized ($200-500+mm in revenue) corporations. I have also been a team member of our Business Valuation group and taken part in multiple valuations, although I do not possess the CVA or CBV certifications.

- In college, I was the Treasurer of my Beta Alpha Psi accounting fraternity. I also spoke at our regional conference competition and was awarded 2nd place, only behind NYU. During my time in BAP, I also volunteered for the United Way to prepare tax returns for low income individuals and families.

- I have no patents or publications, however, I am a Certified Public Accountant, and the youngest CPA in my firm.

- I am a recreational distance runner and have successfully completed a marathon.

- My target schools are solid 2nd tier schools, with some 1st tier schools thrown in as my long shots: Target schools are Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, Penn State, Ohio State. Long shot schools are UNC and Duke.
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by Stacey Oyler » Tue Jun 28, 2011 10:35 am
Hi,

Thanks for your post and your honest personal assessment. I think you can be competitive at the programs on your list (even perhaps your long shots as you call them) as long as you are able to get a solid GMAT score.

The adcom won't likely have concerns about your academic ability given your undergrad performance as well as the skills required to do your job, however, a GMAT score that is below the average of a school (it's 650 for Wake Forest)can raise some red flags. Keep studying for the GMAT, but don't sit for the exam until you're consistently getting 670+ on your practice exams since it's very likely you may have a lower score on the actual exam (this is quite normal as many of my clients score 10-30 points higher on practice tests than in the real thing).

Lastly, you didn't mention your post MBA goals. Be sure that when you are writing about them in your essays that you are able to connect the dots between what you're doing now and what you want to do post MBA.

Regards,

Stacey
Sign up for my MBA admissions course, featuring me and other Clear Admit experts, by visiting: https://www.udemy.com/business-school

Stacey Oyler
Clear Admit, LLC
[email protected]
215.568.2590

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