Advice needed please - Profile Evaluation

[GoodBull2006]

Hello,

Thanks for taking the time to read my post. I only have three questions. Here are a few of my credentials up front:

-Goal is a school in the 5-10 range (NYU, Columbia, MIT)
-Male Caucasian
-26 years old
-3 years full time work experience
-Electrical Engineering degree from Texas A&M University
-GPA: 3.26 (If you look past my first year, I averaged a ~3.5)
-GMAT: 700 Q47/V38 (first attempt) 690 Q48/V36 (second attempt)
-I currently work for a large engineering company that focuses on United States defense work. My responsibilities are above and beyond the typical engineer at my level and I feel I could leverage this into a quality part of my application.
-Volunteer/extra curricular experience is average, I have led a few volunteer efforts as part of a Volunteer team within my company but I am not sure that this is above the average for people applying.

My first question is, what is average as far as extra curricular/volunteer efforts go for the top 5-10 schools? Some people talk about hunger missions to feed kids in Ethiopia and there is no way I can compete with that.

My second question relates to which program rankings might be reaches for me and which are shoe-ins. My initial guess is that 5-10 is a reach but still attainable (30% chance), 11-15 is 50/50 and 16-20 75% or greater. Am I selling myself short here or am I perhaps being overconfident?

Last quick question, do you think taking the test twice and scoring 10 points lower hurt my profile? I was regularly scoring 720 while practicing at home and am disappointed in my second attempt. Is taking the test a third time frowned upon?

Thanks for your time.

-Goodbull

[Cindy Tokumitsu]

Hello,

Thank you for sharing your profile. To answer your questions:

1. The average extracurricular activity for successful applications to top-5-10 schools is good to strong. It’s higher than the average for say, top-25 schools. That said, it’s just an average. The range is from pretty low to exceptionally high. So when you prepare your essays make the most of what you’ve done, but don’t try to make it into something it isn’t, either. It will be OK probably but it won’t be the highlight of your application. It sounds like your work experience would be a highlight.

2. I almost agree with your assessment. I agree about the top tier. I hesitate to say 11-15 ranked schools are 50/50. That’s still pretty competitive, you face a lot of competition in the engineering category, and your numbers are fine but not standout. Your work experience seems to be a clear strength, but it’s one clear strength. With exceptional applications I believe you will have a good shot at schools in this range. I’d ditto these comments for your assessment of chances at 16-20 ranked schools. If you prepare an excellent application and really make a strong case for why you want to attend the particular school, it can really boost your chances since you’re overall clearly qualified.

3. No, I don’t think it will hurt.

Good luck!

Best regards,
Cindy Tokumitsu
Senior Editor, Accepted.com
www.Accepted.com

[GoodBull2006]

Thank you for the follow up and I appreciate your frankness. I have two more questions if you are still available for help.

Would taking the GMAT a third time and scoring a 720 or perhaps a 730 make a noticeable impact on my application? I believe 720 is my true upper level potential, with 730 being if everything clicks perfectly on test day.

I also have fears that taking the test three times would be frowned upon by universities (even though they say they ONLY look at the highest score). Whats your opinion on this? I'm sure there has to be SOME point when its too much.

Its sad when scoring a 700 (90th percentile) on the GMAT is just considered "average" isn't it?

-GoodBull

[Cindy Tokumitsu]

Hello, Goodbull,

I agree, it is sad! Personally, I tend to be a bit skeptical about the value and the use of the GMAT …

Yes, I do think raising the score 20-30 points would help. It wouldn’t be an immense difference, but every single point will help at least on the margins.

Many applicants take the GMAT 3+ times. I don’t think you should worry about that. G

Best regards,
Cindy Tokumitsu
Senior Editor, Accepted.com
www.Accepted.com