Good fit?

[briangtsmith]

Hi all!

I've decided to apply to an MBA program, and was aiming at the following schools: USC, Georgetown, Emory, Duke, and Vanderbilt.

I graduated from The George Washington University with a 3.20 GPA in International Affairs, concentrating in East Asian Relations and having studied abroad at Tokyo's Sophia University. I am proficient in Japanese.

By the time I apply, I will have had 2.5 years of experience. After interning during college at The Ritz-Carlton, I started as a hotel manager for Disney and was part of the re-opening team at The Plaza hotel in New York. Now I am working for a real estate company hoping to acquire the skills necessary to build my own hotel. Outside the office, I have a role on a nearby condo board, representing my company's investors in property issues.

I feel and MBA will help me gain a better perspective on the global economy and the proper quantitative/financial skills necessary to start my own company.

My practice GMAT's have been between 640 and 690...do I have a shot at my schools of choice?

In advance, thank you for your assistance!

[Graham]

Dear Briangtsmith,

Thanks for your post! Please see my thoughts below:

I've decided to apply to an MBA program, and was aiming at the following schools: USC, Georgetown, Emory, Duke, and Vanderbilt.

>>I'm curious as to how you came up with this list. I presume you that you have a need/desire to be in the Southeast (assuming that USC is South Carolina and not Southern California)? Have you investigated the strength of each program in real estate and entrepreneurship (given your goals)? The reason I ask is because there are a number of programs with great offerings in these areas (Cornell, Wharton, Berkeley, Columbia, NYU come to mind)....

>>From an admissions difficulty standpoint, you have a nice group of top-30 type schools, with one top-10/15 option in Duke.

I graduated from The George Washington University with a 3.20 GPA in International Affairs, concentrating in East Asian Relations and having studied abroad at Tokyo's Sophia University. I am proficient in Japanese.

>>Your ugrad performance is decent, albeit not stellar. Your area of study is somewhat unique and the study abroad/language proficiency is a clear positive. Any chance your goals might tie in your language skills in some way? Will the hotels you open be US-based or in Japan? Just a thought...

>>I'm curious to know if you took much in the way of quantitative coursework (statistics, calculus, accounting, economics). The admissions teams will definitely be looking for evidence of your abilities in these areas. If they don't see it on the transcript, they will look at the GMAT or perhaps at any outside courses you have taken since college.

By the time I apply, I will have had 2.5 years of experience. After interning during college at The Ritz-Carlton, I started as a hotel manager for Disney and was part of the re-opening team at The Plaza hotel in New York. Now I am working for a real estate company hoping to acquire the skills necessary to build my own hotel. Outside the office, I have a role on a nearby condo board, representing my company's investors in property issues.

>>Your work experience sounds promising and nicely focused. I'd be curious to know more about the roles you've held and for how long (with each employer).

>>I'd like to know more about your goals and the intermediate steps you anticipate taking (short-term goals, etc).

I feel and MBA will help me gain a better perspective on the global economy and the proper quantitative/financial skills necessary to start my own company.

>>Yes, an MBA clearly makes good sense in light of your goals.

My practice GMAT's have been between 640 and 690...do I have a shot at my schools of choice?

>>There's a big difference between 640 and 690, so my suggestion is that you work hard on the exam (perhaps taking a course if you haven't done so already). Try to clear the 80th percentile with your math result, since that may be the primary data point the schools have on your skills in that area.

>>As to your admissions odds, there are a number of areas that you haven't offered information on:

1) Collegiate XCs
2) Post-collegiate XCs
3) Recommendation possibilities
4) Extent of quant. coursework you've taken in ugrad
5) Fully fleshed out career plans

>>It seems that you have the initial building blocks to be competitive at some of the schools on your list, but I'd really need to know more to give a complete assessment. Feel free to send your resume to [email protected] if you'd like to have a free 30 minute session to review your profile via phone with one of our counselors.

Best of luck,

Graham

[briangtsmith]

First, thank you so much for your response!

That's the answer I was anticipating- I was extremely involved in college, taking on leadership roles on both a University level as well as with my local Knights of Columbus group. Through each, I put together a number of fundraising concerts and breakfast events, in addition to always having an internship. So while I was excited about and interested in my classes, they were not my only focus.

To combat this I was thinking about taking an accounting or finance class this summer. While I took and scored well in a number of economics classes at GW, my accounting background is weak.

Finally, I meant University of Southern California. I chose schools with strong entrepreneurship and international programs.

University of Southern California is particularly intriguing to me, with it's PRIME program (work abroad in Asia), strong real estate development program, and heavy recruitment by companies I admire. It just seems right. I know it's not an easy program to gain admission to though, so hoping to gain any advantage I can.

Thank you again!

[briangtsmith]

All,

Just to update- I signed up for a graduate level financial accounting course at SUNY: Stony Brook today. Hopefully, I'll get an A and, considering my average undergraduate GPA, improve my candidacy.

What do you think?

Thanks again!

[Eliot]

Briangtsmith,

Thanks for your follow up note. I am pleased that you have signed up for a financial accounting course at SUNY. By working hard and getting an A in this accounting course, you will clearly be improving your candidacy.

Sincerely,

Eliot Ingram
Clear Admit LLC