Profile analysis

[mdlindsa]

Age 24
White/Male
Undergrad: University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, 2007
Major: Multimedia Journalism
GPA: 3

Work Experience:
6 months New York Times, web designer/developer
1 year NBC Universal web designer/developer
1.5 year Mother Nature Network web designer/developer/videographer
3 months in China running the special olympics world games website during the games in 2007

GMAT: bombed it the first time with a 580...Took it again yesterday and got a 710 (45Q/42V)

Schools Interested In (no particular order)
UNC-top choice
Emory
UVA

Do my school choices correspond with my profile? Do I have a shot at a top 5 or 10 school, or would that be a waste of time/money applying?

My weak spots I believe are my undergraduate gpa and work experience. I'm trying to decide if I need to apply to some lesser-ranked schools. I interview soon and have yet to finalize my essays (for unc, round-1), so maybe I can help solidify my case.

-also, after posting this I realized I left out my goals and reasoning behind getting my MBA, which is very important. I really want to acquire a broad range of skills during the process of getting my MBA, but I would probably choose marketing as a concentration. The company I work for right now is a start-up, and we do not have a marketing department. I end up working as not just a developer/designer, but also a product manager and creative director. I know that I don't really have a standard background in this, and have been learning on the job for quite sometime. I would like to really solidify my understanding of it through an MBA, and move out of development/design work into more managerial positions. I would like to bring that new skill set into new media, where I've worked for the past couple years. Having said that, I am also very interested in management consulting and finance...I'm not really tied down yet. My essays will be written geared towards marketing most likely...I believe I can make the best impression that way.

[Sophia007]

Do my school choices correspond with my profile? Do I have a shot at a top 5 or 10 school, or would that be a waste of time/money applying?

If UNC is your top choice and I gather from your background that your graduated from there, so you have a pretty good chance of getting into the school without too many issues. That said, if you mean Harvard / Stanford / Wharton by "top 5" then I'd say it is usually tough call purely because of the large pool of applicants who apply every year. The only issue is that with a GPA - 3.0 you'll need a good reason to back it up.

My weak spots I believe are my undergraduate gpa and work experience. I'm trying to decide if I need to apply to some lesser-ranked schools. I interview soon and have yet to finalize my essays (for unc, round-1), so maybe I can help solidify my case.

So here are some questions you may want to think through as you visit the campus for an interview - Why UNC? Why MBA? Why now? What are you goals immediately after you graduate with an MBA from UNC? Where do you see yourself in the next 5-10 yrs?
My question to you is that - why UNC and not Cornell or Kellogg if you are looking to specialize in Marketing?


-also, after posting this I realized I left out my goals and reasoning behind getting my MBA, which is very important. I really want to acquire a broad range of skills during the process of getting my MBA, but I would probably choose marketing as a concentration. The company I work for right now is a start-up, and we do not have a marketing department. I end up working as not just a developer/designer, but also a product manager and creative director. I know that I don't really have a standard background in this, and have been learning on the job for quite sometime. I would like to really solidify my understanding of it through an MBA, and move out of development/design work into more managerial positions. I would like to bring that new skill set into new media, where I've worked for the past couple years. Having said that, I am also very interested in management consulting and finance...I'm not really tied down yet. My essays will be written geared towards marketing most likely...I believe I can make the best impression that way.

Yes from where I see, Marketing would make the most sense. However, keep in mind that once you are admitted into a school, you always get the option to choose your field again. Many people get into the school with the idea of specializing in one field and end up specializing in another! So, it is totally fine if you think that right now - marketing may be your best bet.

Hope this helps.
-S