Army Vet Profile Review/Consulting Recommendation

[dustincathcart]

I have a couple questions: 1) One a quick candidacy eval 2) Recommendations for admissions consulting

Quick Profile:
1) Army Vet: For Captain in the army (actually out of the army in 5 hours), jobs include: infantry platoon leader, heavy weapons platoon leader, headquarters company executive officer, military transistion team logistics advisor, and battalion logistics officer. Iraqi vet. Consistently rated among top 10% of officers (out of approx 40) in the unit.
2) Attended Norwich University (small military school in Vermont) GPA 3.48. Major: International Studies
3) Havent taken GRE/GMAT yet, but plan to take GRE end of Sept--applying for a joint MBA/MPP degree
4) Internship at United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland
5) Currently taking statisics--anticipate an A
6) November taking 9 month backing trip through latin america, southeast asia, & india (not sure if admissions committe has interest in this kind of thing)
7) In the works of securing part time job as an army reservist planner for NATO HQ in Belgium
8) Interested in general management, finance, and entrepreneurship

Only appling to two MBA programs: HBS and Sloan (MIT) -- hope to complete a joint degree-- MBA and MPP at Harvard's JFKSG

I know its a brief run down and I still lack a major component (GRE score) curious how this stacks up? I'm sure the ole candidacy eval question gets old, but any candid feedback would be much appreciated.

2) What are your thoughts on MBA consulting? It can be daunting to choose a company to work with (accepted, clear admit, stacy blackburn, veritas, manhattan, mba exchange...) Curious to hear from both consultants and mba applicants who have used consulting services. What makes a particular company unique? Overall reviews on services rendered?

A couple big questions, I know.

Thanks in advance for all who take time to share some feedback--appreciate it!

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear dustincathcart,

Welcome to civilian life and thank you for your service! To answer your questions:

1) it is hard to know how competitive you will be for HBS and MIT without your GRE or GMAT score. However, you have many of the qualities the schools look for as well as some interesting experience that should help distinguish you from the competition. Your GPA is strong, so it is a matter of getting your GRE/GMAT score in the right range to satisfy the academic aptitude component of the evaluation process. Ideally, you want to be near or above the average for the schools on your test score. After that, the rest of your application is critical for presenting your compelling case for admission.

2) there are many options out there to you, but I think you will find all of the consulting firms do offer detailed information on their websites regarding services, prices and results. Likewise, many offer a free consultation so you can learn more about the firm's process and ask specific questions you have. My firm, Stacy Blackman Consulting, does offer the free consultation and I think it might be helpful to you. You can request one through the website at www.stacyblackman.com.

Best of luck,
Lisa