Profile evaluation - early career applicant

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Profile evaluation - early career applicant

by blah313 » Thu Apr 29, 2010 7:16 pm
Hello,

Can you please evaluate my profile below for full time MBA programs to start Fall 2011?

I am an early career applicant (will have 3 years of experience when I start):
3.5 undergrad GPA in Chemistry, minor in Econ from Dartmouth
760 GMAT (51Q/44V)
25 years old, Vietnamese-American male (US Citizen)
Will have 3 years of work experience in operations research consulting by the time I start next fall:
-early promotion to associate/jr. manager (1.5 years)
-placed in the top bracket of the bonus pool each year I was employed
-currently lead project teams to deliver consulting work
-participated in sales work (presentations/conference calls)
-presented to executives/C-levels on engagements
-did some consulting gigs internationally
-took initiative and spearheaded the standardization of a number of internal organizational processes in my company (developed standard content for proposals, created technical documents for common/standard consulting projects, created process around new employee recruitment, consolidated all of the group's research findings into one database, etc.).

From an extracurricular standpoint, I do a bit of volunteer work every Saturday and Sunday. I don't put in crazy hours toward EC's due to my workload but I try to volunteer 5-10 hours a week during the weekends. In college I was an executive editor of an entirely new publication so I led the entire process for my segment of the journal (recruiting editors, selecting papers, leading the editorial process, etc.). No substantial extracurriculars beyond that, however.

I'm looking into the schools below:
HBS
Wharton
Kellogg
Sloan
Columbia
Tuck

I know it's an uphill climb with only 3 years of experience. Any thoughts on my chances as I stand now, in terms of safety/reasonable/reach? As an aside, do you have any thoughts on my chances if I apply w/ 4 years of experience (by waiting an extra year)? Do you think that would matter?

Thanks for your help.
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by Lisa Anderson » Sun May 02, 2010 7:50 am
Dear blah313,

Based on your post, you have a competitive foundation for an application to any business school. Whether or not that translates to an offer of admission will depend on how strong your application package is--meaning your essays, recommendations, and interviews must be stellar and make a compelling case for your admission. You have quality experience in your career tenure, so if you feel you are ready to enter business school in 2011, then you should apply this fall. The only reason to wait another year is if you feel you aren't ready or if you have an opportunity at work that you simply cannot pass up. With regard to your school list, I think you have a chance at any of these schools with a great overall application package. However, these schools are all highly selective and are essentially a reach for any applicant. While I do think these are possibilities for you, I would encourage you to identify some safety options as well for R2 applications as a backup plan.

Best of luck,
Lisa
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by blah313 » Mon May 10, 2010 10:52 am
Thanks Lisa. What would be a good safety for my profile? I was thinking of adding either Stern or Haas. Should I be more conservative?

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by Lisa Anderson » Tue May 11, 2010 2:26 pm
For a safety option, I do think you need to expand your list a bit. Stern and Haas are both top 10/15 programs. In my opinion, schools with that level of selectivity are not a safety option for any applicant. Perhaps look more outside the top 15/20 for a true safety?

Regards,
Lisa
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