Profile Evaluation

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Profile Evaluation

by Travis-Mcelmurry » Thu Aug 27, 2015 9:02 am
Hello,

I am hoping to have my profile reviewed. I recently took the GMAT and my quant was a bit lower than I hoped I am seeking an overview analysis of my target schools and how well I match to them. Also if I should do anything specific to improve chances.


I am unique from most applicant in that I am pursuing a JD/MBA degree.

Here is my background:

1) I have 8 years of retail store management experience with 5 as store manager with 2 companies. One of them being in the Fortune 10. (This experience is pre-Bachelors).
At these two companies I received five promotions in 6 years.

2)LSAT 167 (94.3 Percentile)
GMAT 710 (91st Percentile)- Q43 (55th percentile) V44 (98th Percentile).
I was ill the morning of my GMAT test and time ran out as I went to submit the last IR question. This left me out of sorts during the Quant portion of the test. A 55th percentile is much lower than my practice scores but I have solid quant support in recent classes and can have my recommenders focus on this. I was able to calm my anxiety and focus during the Verbal section.

3) College info: Pepperdine University, GPA 3.511 (Graduated Cum Luade), Major Business Administration, year of graduation 2015.
I struggled to balance work and classes during the first half of undergraduate courses. During this time I worked a job requiring an average of 65 hours per week and had to care for my terminally ill father in-law, who passed away from cancer.

4) During my time at Pepperdine I was president/founder of a student club which provided an arena for students to learn and develop from the influence of the unique skills of others. The club focused on connecting military and civilian students to foster a safe environment for networking, skills development and collaboration by leveraging each member's unique attributes. The club is officially recognized and acts as a resource for about 60 students in many areas of their academic and professional lives.
https://bravery2business.com/
I have also been volunteering my time at a local animal shelter for the last 4 years.

5) I possess a certificate from Oxford University for Global Management awarded for my succesful participation in an intensive study abroad program.
I also have a certificate from HarvardX for their Intro to Contracts mooc course.

6) My short-term post-MBA goal is to gain experience working for either a business law firm or consulting firm. I will apply this experience in my long-term goal which is to found a company that provides legal and business consulting services focusing on startup and entrepreneurial ventures.

I am a first-generation college student and have been lucky enough to be influenced by great mentors. I want to use my knowledge and power gained from an MBA to give back and help others find success similar to mine.

I am planning on applying to the respective JD/MBA programs at the following schools: Duke, University of Virginia, University of Pennsylvania, Northwestern University, Vanderbilt University, Washington University in St. Louis, and Michigan Ann Arbor.

I would appreciate and feedback or thoughts you have from this.

Thank You,


Travis McElmurry

GMAT/MBA Expert

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by CriticalSquareMBA » Tue Sep 22, 2015 7:44 pm
Hi there,

I like your academic profile and test scores as they put you in the conversation for the schools you're targeting. As far as your work experience, keep in mind that only post UG work experienced will be viewed as true professional work experience when it comes to the MBA AdComm. I think the best use of your time from this point forward is to flesh out your goals a bit more. I get your short term goal, but it has to be more detailed - what would you be doing in this role? Why is it interesting to you? Also, your long-term goal is way too vague - I'm not sure I understand it. Once you have your goals in a better spot, your story will come through a bit better and you can filter schools based on fit. Penn and Northwestern are going to be the farthest stretch schools, but I think they're worth applying along with the rest. If you have any questions on how we can help you put together a cohesive story for your upcoming application, feel free to sign up for a free consultation below. Hope this was helpful and best of luck!
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