Getting into a decent business school

[Moot01]

Hi there, I am currently an undergraduate student at UMASS Amherst. I spent 3 years as a pre-med/biology major and as result my GPA is absolute garbage. Recently I switched my major to sociology my last year in school, and I will be graduating with an overall 2.8 GPA but my major GPA is 3.3.

I am trying to plan out the next couple years of my life, and I would like to get into a decent business school (Maybe Northeastern or UMASS Boston?) because I fear not being able to find a job with my Sociology Major. My adviser suggested that try to get into a business school, and this is something I absolutelywant to pursue.

I don't have any work experience besides internships in Harvard Medical School in the pathology department, as a summer researcher/lab assistant, and in another Lab for 2 summers, doing research and lab work.

So I was wondering what GMAT score would I need, along with what type of job/how many years of it would I need to get into a decent buisness school. At this time I am pretty doubtful I will get into a decent business school, with such a poor GPA, unless by some miracle I do an amazing job on my GMAT.

Thank you for your time,

-Moot


P.S. My adviser mentioned getting into a decent business school is important, and much of my income will depend on which one I graduate from. So, she suggested that it would not really be worth the money and effort to graduate from a bad business school. Is this true?

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear Moot:

With your overall GPA being a 2.8, you are correct that your GMAT needs to be as high as possible. You should probably aim for a score starting with a 6 or 7, the higher the better. You will also want to use the optional essay to address your low GPA directly when you do apply.

It would be advantageous to get professional work experience between now and when you apply to business school. With a pre-med background and work at Harvard Med, you might look into operations positions at medical schools, hospitals and/or doctors' offices. Likewise, with your sociology degree you could look at sales opportunities (maybe around healthcare/pharma).

It is not the industry or job title that is important, but the quality of the work you have done. Your work experience needs to be on a professional level (i.e., requires a college degree), and you need to maximize the experience so you will have examples of teamwork, leadership potential, etc. when you write your business school essays. Ideally, you should probably get 2-4 years of professional work experience after graduating with your bachelor's degree before applying to business school.

As for the comment from your advisor on income potential, there is some truth to the statement but only in the short-term. Business schools are brands to some degree, so programs top 20 programs (Harvard, Wharton, Stanford) are premium brands and their graduates command higher salaries upon graduation than folks at small, regional or online programs which would be generic brands in this analogy. Long term, however, income potential really depends on the individual and the career path s/he pursues. Taking this one step further, where you go to school will also influence the career paths available to you to some degree. For example, if you want to be an investment banker, you absolutely need to go to a top 20 program to have the highest probability of getting a job with an investment bank.

Hope this helps you with your plan. Good luck!
Lisa

[Moot01]

Hi Lisa,

Wow, thank you so much for taking the time to write a reply. It was EXTREMELY helpful. Now that I have a clear goal and path, I feel much less panicky about my low GPA.

If you don't mind I would like to ask a couple more questions. First, do business schools take into account the fact that your grades are improving? Because my last 3 semesters grades were all As and Bs.

Also would you recommend me putting of graduation for a year to further raise my GPA, or will that be seen as something negative to business schools?

Thanks again Lisa for taking the time to answer my numerous questions.

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear Moot:

Yes, the admissions committee will review your transcript for trends, and it will be beneficial that your grades have improved greatly in your last two years. As for staying in school longer, I would only recommend it if you want to do it for other reasons like a double major. By the time you get to your 4th and 5th years, taking an additional 8-10 courses is generally not going to have a significant impact on your overall GPA.

Regards,
Lisa

[Moot01]

Dear Lisa,

Thank you very much for your insightful advice, your posts have been very helpful.

-Moot