Somewhat atypical profile--good or bad?

[kindofbluenote]

First, I’d like to thank you for this helpful service. With so many questions involved with this process, it’s a great help to have the collective wisdom of forums like this.

I’m curious about how the nontraditional aspects of my profile will affect my candidacy for the schools I’m interested. Due to personal and financial reasons, college wasn’t a possibility for me after high school. I entered the workforce immediately, and attended classes at a trade school to become a mechanic at a power plant. When I finally decided to try college I worked third shift and attended school during the day, while also advancing in the company.

The basic facts:

34 year old Caucasian male.
B.S. Accounting from University of Massachusetts
3.91 GPA
710 GMAT (45V 43Q)
11 years of continually growing responsibility in the power generating field. (From mechanic to management)

Extra-curricular: Own and care for rental property, amateur classical musician and volunteer to play regularly for residents of area nursing homes.

I believe my weaknesses on the application will be my late entry into college and low quant score. It also seems that most people have a background in banking, or finance. I wonder if my operations background will be a hindrance. I currently work for a company that manufacturers products for the nuclear industry, and I have been involved in the creation of new programs at the company that increased efficiency, and improved customer relations.

The low quant score can probably be attributed to the nature of the test itself. I can demonstrate my ability as an undergrad, since I considered Quant courses my strength. I took as many as possible, filling my electives with the most finance and math classes allowed, with an A in each.

My goal for the MBA is to work in corporate finance, preferably in the energy field. I plan to apply to Yale, Boston University and Boston College.

Do you think the weaknesses in my profile will exclude me from consideration at these programs? Although I started schooling later, I have shown that I can handle the work. I went full time while working (and succeeding) 40+ hours in a demanding field. I will not be working during my studies, so my full attention will be devoted to schooling.

Should I address these concerns in an optional essay?

Is it possible that I’m overly pessimistic, and what I consider to be my weaknesses may actually be a positive that sets me apart from other candidates?

Thanks again for such a helpful service.

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear kindofbluenote,

I do think you are being pessimistic and underestimating the competitiveness of your profile. By the way, most people do not enter business school from banking/finance--there are actually more engineers/technical people than bankers/finance people in the national MBA applicant pool.

Your quant score is not low, and your transcripts and work experience emphasize your quantitative aptitude as well. You can absolutely leverage your career path to your advantage. I do think it would be a good idea to use the optional essay to give a concise explanation of your background--entering the workforce out of high school, working while in school, moving up in your career, etc. It will be helpful for the admissions committee and will allow you to highlight your perseverance, organizational skills, and motivation to succeed.

Now, you just need to put some effort into those applications and submit them. Good luck!
Lisa