Dear aabish,
Thanks for your post!
My thoughts on your background are as follows:
Personal
You have a very remarkable background as a Canadian citizen of Lebanese descent who grew up in Kuwait and has traveled extensively. This is just the sort of "global citizen" profile that many leading schools like to see.
Academics
Your GMAT result of 740 is clearly a homerun. Your ugrad from McGill is unfortunately on the weaker side in light of the GPA (2.87 is well below the average for students who make the cut at top b-schools). Having said that, I like the fact that you went to McGill (top school), that adcoms know that the grading system in Canada is much harder than in the USA and that you pursued a rigorous major in electrical engineering. I also like the fact that you are presently pursuing a masters, as this allows you to (ideally) showcase better marks. You should do everything you can to earn a high GPA in your remaining coursework for the masters.
In short, the grades at McGill are clearly a liability, but I think you might be able to overcome them - assuming you get very strong marks in the masters and present things appropriately in the applications (via the optional essay, etc).
Work Experience
This sounds a bit spotty at the moment, since you haven't really stayed in one place for long (3 jobs, each less than one year). Schools tend to shy away from job-surfers (they think these folks don't stay anywhere long enough to gain true leadership experience/responsibilities), so you'll need to find an effective way to weave these posts together into a coherent whole.
It's also somewhat damaging that you haven't worked since last November - as gaps in employment are never ideal. While the adcom knows that the job market is bad at the moment, you should still do everything you can to avoid a long lapse in work. Your present plan of full-time dedication to your master's degree may be a good option until you can find something, but I'm curious as to when the master's degree will wrap up and what you'll be doing after it. You might also pursue volunteer opportunities or activities like language study, sport, etc to ensure that the adcom doesn't feel you are sitting around.
Career Goals
These sound passable - albeit not terribly detailed in terms of industry/function. In other words, it's fine to be drawn to consulting (a huge chunk of the MBA applicant pool falls into this bucket), but I'd be curous if you have some kind of focus - e.g. strategy consulting in the pharma/bio-tech sector, etc. The entrepreneurial aspect of your goals is also a good starting point, but you may want to be more specific when it comes time to write your applications (as most budding entrepreneurs are chock full of ideas, passionate about a developing sector, etc).
XCs
You didn't provide much in the way of information on your outside interests, hobbies, activities, community service. This is a fairly important aspect of one's profile. Ideally, you've got some things to share in this regard (and can 'map' your interests onto future involvement at your target b-schools - which you will discuss in the applications).
Conclusion
While you have an interesting personal background, your b-school profile has a few liabilities at this point. Your ugrad GPA is of some concern, your career to date seems inconsistent and somewhat lacking in direction (unless I've missed a common 'industry theme' that ties together the posts you've held), and your career goals could still benefit from further refinement. While some of these matters can be addressed (see my advice above), you will require strong application materials and the right strategy over the coming months if you are going to be competitive at the leading programs.
Feel free to send your resume to Clear Admit if you would like to have a free initial chat with one of our counselors ([email protected]).
Best of luck,
Graham
Profile Eval.
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Source: Beat The GMAT — Ask an MBA Admissions Consultant |
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Graham
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Graham Richmond
Clear Admit, LLC
[email protected]
215 568 2590
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Clear Admit, LLC
[email protected]
215 568 2590
Stay Informed with Clear Admit!
Read our Blog for daily MBA admissions tips and updates.
Follow us on Twitter for breaking b-school news.
Download our Publications on MBA programs and admissions strategy.
Visit our MBA Admissions Wiki to read and share application insights.
