Help needed in deciding B School!

[hassan55]

Hi ,

Would appreciate it alot if a few experienced community members can guide me through my dilemma.

Brief Education and work history: LLB honours QM University of London, 2 years solicitor experience London, 6 years Entrepreneurial exp. Started , developed and sold my banking consultancy firm (revenues $250,000/year, staff :100) , Director of an energy consultant firm, working/worked on major alternative energy/gas/petroleum projects in the middle east/sub continent region. Decent extra curricular activities ,GMAT first attempt 610 ( was going through a company sale at the time).

Applied to RSM and AGSM, got an RSM admit , pretty confident on AGSM aswell. Future goals are to work for a top 5 management consultancy or Energy company in business development.

Now the dilemma is should I choose between RSM/AGSM or give the GMAT again and try my luck for LBS/Insead/IMD/Oxbridge ? I am 30 so time is not really on my side as I would be 31 if I manage to get into the latter B schools.

Would appreciate any feedback on the matter, thanks in advance.

Regards

[throughmba]

Started , developed and sold my banking consultancy firm (revenues $250,000/year, staff :100)

Wow. Just get back with a good GMAT and you are there for the top BSchools.

I mean you just need to translate these CV points into strong essays, you are in.

[Jon@Admissionado]

It depends on a) what you want to do b) when is the better time for you to attend c) what your potential for kicking the heck out of the GMAT is.

If you already got your admit, I assume you will have to wait at least till January intake of INSEAD, and then to apply for other schools. Now, it seems like you have some good stuff and would have good chances at getting into LBS/Insead/IMD/Oxbridge if you can hit say a 690 or higher.

But getting into a "higher ranked school" is not necessarily going to make your life and career magically better. A lot has to do with what you put in.

Sooooo, what does this all mean???
Well it depends on your goals man... what is it you want to do? Do you want to retake the GMAT? Do you want to wait another year? Is it really important for you to get into the best academic program possible?

[throughmba]

Hi

Always aim for the better ranked college in the list. It will make the goals easier. So for that you need a better GMAT for sure.

[hassan55]

Gentlemen thank you for your response , I got a AGSM admit call today so two admits for the Jan session. I agree with Alex a better Gmat would definitely help in getting into the top schools, but the question is, as Jon puts it, what are my goals! Is it worth giving a second GMAT, wait 6 more months and pay higher fee?

As I am not in a job , waiting for the August admits would mean burning through my savings. As it is all these B schools have considerable fees, which is a major consideration for me as I am all self financed. Yes the prestige factor is important but how much? Post MBA I am hoping for a career in Oil&Gas Industry/Consulting and hope to change my geographic location as well.

Out of these two , which school would be higher on your list? I am leaning towards AGSM but it is $ 20,000 dearer and has a 16 month course compared to RSM's 12 month.

Once again, your feedback is appreciated.

Thanks!