Finalizing my MBA list for Jan '15 deadline

[mbahopeful14]

Hey guys, I need some help finalizing my MBA list for the upcoming deadline in January. I find myself really at a crossroads because I think my application is top notch, except for one blemish -- my gmat score. I scored 600 but have aspirations of attending a top business school. Here are my specs:
- Stanford undergrad, 3.5 GPA
- work experience: marketing at a Fortune 500 company
- diversity: female, african-american
- other: recipient of prestigious international fellowship & trilingual
- post MBA goals: brand management OR product marketing (undecided)

Because of my GMAT score, I feel the need to cast a wide net, but at the same time I don't want to apply to more than 5 schools. Here's what I'm considering so far:
Kellogg (dream school)
HBS
UC Berkeley
UCLA
Duke
Emory
USC

Can anyone help me narrow this down? Is there a school that given my GMAT score is simply "out of my league" that I should just remove? Or is there a school I should consider that's not listed?

[interviewbay22]

Hello

Having attended Stanford I understand why you would not want to go to a lower rank B-school. It sounds like you have a good profile with the exception of GMAT of course. What is your quant score? A high quant score will make things easy for you. In any case a 3.5 from Stanford will also help in offsetting your GMAT score.

Having said that, GMAT and GPA though extremely important aren't the only factors that determine your selection. Your work experience - what you bring to the MBA class - is also very important. Having affirmative and convincing post - MBA (short term & long term) goals is also very important. So it will boil down to the way you present your essays - your sense of direction, maturity and leadership skills. Tell me more about your work experience - achievements, promotions, performance relative to your peers, extracurricular activities, social work - abilities that make you unique.

Though the applicant pool of females with your background, may not be large, from your side be as prepared as you can on all fronts and present the adcoms with a compelling application, one that would make them overlook your GMAT.

I can see that Kellogg is your dream school but tread carefully as last year only 3% of the class had a GMAT score below 640. Kellogg has a high average GMAT and an average GPA close to 3.7. Talk to Kellogg alums as that will help you assess your chances better. See if you can find an alum with a profile similar to you.

For HBS, I suppose you can go ahead as they could be slightly flexible with GMAT. Current HBS students' GMAT range is 510 - 790 with average GPA of 3.67.

Have you considered applying to Stanford GSB? (GMAT range - 550 - 790) It is one of the most popular school for marketing and with 42% women in the class.

UCB has a high percentage of female students with avg GMAT 3.64 (3.36 - 3.9) & a GMAT range of 680 - 750. Stats are similar for UCLA

You should certainly consider Duke Fuqua as it has a wider range for both GPA and GMAT. Emory is also slightly flexible on GMAT (620 - 730)

You should also take a look at UT - Austin McCombs, Vanderbilt University - Owen, Ohio - Fischer and Indiana Kelley as they have a strong MBA program for a specialization in marketing.

I would advise you to retake GMAT if it is possible. A few more points can improve your chances significantly.

Hope this helps.

You can also go through this article about top business schools for MBA in marketing https://www.interviewbay.com/blog/top-bu ... -marketing

All the best
www.interviewbay.com

Application Reviews & Mock Interviews by Alumni of your Target B-School

[fxmbaconsulting]

Hi - I would definitely recommend retaking the GMAT (if you can manage it by the round 2 deadline and also leave yourself enough time to focus on your essays). Otherwise applying next year is also an option (how old are you?).

The type of candidate that gets in to HBS with a sub 700 GMAT are anomalies.
Some fictitious examples to give you an idea:
Amazing ex-Marine, ex-IB, recovered from being shot in the line of duty
Female, LGBT, worked for Madeline Albright
Hispanic female, very poor background, top university, top consulting job

I would have to know more about your work experience to get a better idea (are you a superstar at work?). It does sound like you are an amazing candidate from a diversity, undergrad, international perspective. I feel like you should really be in the top 10 (the GMAT is the hiccup at the moment). What do your ECs look like?

[Michael@VeritasPrep]

You should think about adding Ross to your list. Are you planning on taking the GMAT again? If you can bump your score 50-60 points, I think you would be in a great position.