Profile evaluation please

[thatdude]

Hi Stacy

I graduated from the University of California at Santa Cruz in 2006 with a BA in the Business Management Economics. While in school I was socially active. I was the vice president of the student body, founded a NABA chapter, and founded a chapter of a non profit org. Since college, I have work for Ernst & Young (Big 4 CPA firm) and a regional CPA firm. I have also recently been licensed as a CPA. I am on track to be place in a management position at my current firm within 1-2 years.

On the side, I currently sit on the board of a small non profit, and I have a small CPA practice.

Recently, the CPA world has become mundane and i have became very interested in pursuing an MBA. However my GPA undergraduate GPA is not very impressive. Cumulative, it is a 2.9. Not great at all. I took the GMAT during my senior year of college to test the waters and was able to get a 600 without much studying, so I hope I can pull off a 720+ if I take a GMAT course.

I would like to apply to an MBA program within 1-2 years.

What are my chances of getting admitted to a top MBA program? Should I take classes at a University extension program to create an alternative transcript?'

Also, if I were to take classes to create an alternative transcript, what classes would you recommend, and what type of schools/universities do you recommend?

Thanks so much

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear thatdude,

I commend you for thinking this far in advance of your applications on what you can do to strengthen your profile. While your GPA is below average, it is not insurmountable. A strong GMAT combined with your CPA and successful professional track record will help to mitigate that application component. You could also build an alternative transcript through any accredited college or university, including community colleges, extension programs and online courses--as long as they are accredited, you earn a grade and you can obtain a transcript. In most cases, alternative transcripts are used to demonstrate quantitative aptitude if you did not do well in quant coursework in college and/or did not score high on the quant section of the GMAT. In that case, you will want to take math classes like college algebra, calculus and statistics. If your grades in college quant courses were B's and A's, then building an alternative transcript would simply be a way for you to demonstrate you are committed to excelling in the classroom now and can juggle competing priorities (i.e., work and school). If the latter is the case, then you could take a calculus or any business course. With regard to being competitive for a top MBA program, you appear to be building a good foundation for your future application based on your professional success, community work, and GMAT prep plans. Continue to work on all of these items and give yourself ample time to put together a strong overall application for submission in the first round to have the best shot.

Good luck,
Lisa