gogetter08 wrote:I understand that for someone like me with 7 yrs work experience, they look at the latter and my extra curricular activities.
But I am curious that between my undergrad and grad GPA, which one has more weightage? Any idea?
this is going to depend on what you've studied, and where, because the admissions officers are going to be looking for the
meaning of your gpa's more than the numbers themselves.
for instance, if your undergrad was engineering at MIT (a program that is notorious for grade
deflation, as opposed to the grade inflation that's rampant at so many other schools) and your grad school was in a fuzzy field at a school well-known for cushioning grades, then your undergrad gpa will probably carry more weight (especially if it's high). on the other hand, if your undergrad was in liberal arts at some school whose first reaction from the admissions officer is a quizzical look and a wikipedia search, but your grad degree is from a well-known institution in a field that pertains directly to your business aspirations, then the latter will count for more.
but here's the deal:
you need to CONCENTRATE ON THE WHOLE PICTURE.
in this regard, your application is not unlike the gmat itself, which consists of multiple sections that are disparate in both content and strategy.
if a student came to us and asked a question such as 'which is more important, data sufficiency or sentence correction?', we wouldn't even bother to address the question literally; instead, we'd engage in a process of mental re-framing in which we'd try to get the student to see EVERY component as equally important, each in its own way. it's absurd even to think about trying to determine which of DS and SC is 'more important'.
by the same token, you have to realize that EVERY component of your application is important. but here's a good principle to follow:
you should concentrate the most on 2 parts of your application: whichever part you consider the strongest, and whichever part you consider the weakest.
you see, the
strongest part of your application is what's going to set you apart from the rest of the applicant pool - so you should spend extra time glitzing this part up to be extra-impressive.
this means that if you're a gmat jockey (750+ cold on practice tests) with otherwise pedestrian credentials, then you should still dump time into test preparation, because that score will be the highlight of your app. if you've saved the world and started 3 schools for impoverished children in africa, then you should work on playing that up in as dramatic, personal, and poignant a manner as possible.
but you also have to work hard on the
weakest part of your application. try to think hard about what is your achilles heel (and EVERY application has one), and then think just as hard about what you can do to fix it. if the problem is low gmat scores, then study ridiculously hard for the gmat, take prep courses, etc. if the problem is lack of strong recommendations, then re-connect with your recommenders, perhaps outside of business time, and establish a more personal rapport.
etc.
good luck!
