Engineering undergrad, low gpa

[xfire]

Hi All,

I am thinking about applying for an mba degree within the next two years, but I have some work to do to be a competitive applicant. I have a bachelors degree in mechanical engineering from a top 15 program, but my gpa when I graduated was only a 2.7. I got A's and B's, some B-'s at worst in all my math classes(vector geometry, linear algebra, multivar, differential equations, statistics, calc 2). Right now I only have 2 years work experience in a mechanical engineering position. I am planning on taking the gmat within 2 months time.

My goal is to get into a top 15 b-school, and I was wondering how high of a gmat score would I need to get into those programs given my low gpa, and would 4 years of work experience be enough by the time I start applying. I was thinking about taking a few business classes online from ucla's extension to build an alternative transcript, and I was wondering what classes I should take. Right now I was thinking of starting out with a principles of macroeconomics class and/or business statistics.

Your advice would be greatly appreciated.

[GeneralEducation]

Hi,

Most of the b-schools follow holistic approach in deciding your candidature so don't worry about low GPA, you can still compensate that with high GMAT score you should target 700+ again it depends on the level of b-schools you are targeting. So finalise on the target b-schools, do some research about the b-schools, attend info sessions, talk to the current students/alumni. You have enough time to build your profile and work on your GMAT so start working on it at the earliest. Wish you all the best!!

Regards,
Manish
https://www.general-ed.com/chances-of-bschool

[MBAPrepAdvantage]

First, schools will consider the difficulty of your major in evaluating your academic profile, so a 2.7 in engineering is really like approximately a 3.1 in a liberal arts degree. Furthermore, a high GMAT score points them to the difficulty of your degree (conversely a low GMAT score points them to your low GPA).

Without seeing the rest of your profile, a 700+ GMAT score should be sufficient with the difficulty of your undergraduate degree.

Best of luck,

[xfire]

Thank you for the responses. How many years of work experience would you recommend?

[GeneralEducation]

Hi,

Most of the b-schools consider ideally 3-6 years of work experience. So you are at the right stage of your career, start working on your GMAT and apply next year for 2015 intake.

Regards,
Manish
https://www.general-ed.com/bschool-selector

Thank you for the responses. How many years of work experience would you recommend?

[MBAPrepAdvantage]

4 years experience should be fine. Remember, with each additional year of experience, the admissions committee expects more in terms of promotions/advancement, impact, leadership, etc. For more information read MBA Evaluation Criteria.

Good luck,