I've given plenty of feedback, now I need it from you guys...

your gmat score may let them give you a second look but there isn't anything that pops as to why you should be admitted to a top B school- you gotta come up with some kind of good story or something, thats key.

Agree with jdrdeer. It'd be nice to get the Sr. Associate title. Also, you need something that makes you pop.

You're not the national/world champion of anything? Raised $10mm for Libya? Solved world hunger?

I think your shot is ok, but not outstanding I would add, UVA Darden, Tuck, Chicago (the GMAT may play better there) and maybe Haas or Anderson.

Harvard/Stanford will be tough, but your profile is definitely strong enough to admit at Wharton/Columbia/Booth. I have several friends at Wharton and Booth right now who have similar profiles to yourself.

However, as others have said, your profile is not strong enough to be an "automatic admit" at those places. So you'll have to differentiate yourself in other ways. At this stage, there are three ways you can do that. One is to continue to crush it at work, including getting the promotion to Snr Asc (but more importantly, working hard enough that an MD at your fund will write the best rec letter of his life for you). Two is to get more involved in the community. Best case is to get really involved in one thing, preferably something that connects to your profile or past experience in some way (so that it isn't obvious that you're only doing it for b-school), and definitely in a leadership position where you're having real impact on other' lives. Three is to be really thoughtful about why you need an MBA and what your career goals are. Articulating a crisp, clear, impactful career goal, along with how an MBA helps you achieve that, will differentiate you from the other finance jocks who just say they want to go back into PE.

Btw, even though Harvard/Stanford will be tough, I still think you should apply. You'll always regret it if you don't even try at GSB, and HBS is big enough that they can afford to take fliers on people who they find compelling. Only cost is ~$250/each in application fees + time to complete the essays (which are getting smaller / less onerous each year).

Oh, and I don't think they'll care about you only spending 1 year in IB before jumping to PE. You should be prepared to answer a question about it during interviews, but shouldn't be a major issue. It's pretty clear you got a really cool opportunity and took it. And it isn't like you're one of these people who changes jobs every 6 months... you've only had 2 jobs, which is pretty standard.

Just my $0.02. Good luck.

Stanford and Harvard will definitely be a stretch. Your chances will depend on your undergrad GPA, which I am assuming is pretty high given all of the awards you won and were nominated for. The work experience is solid, but not gold plated. Your resume and recommendations are going to have to work hard for you. You might get the interview at HBS if you can execute well. Stanford is a crapshoot but you never know.

You seem to be in line for Wharton, Booth, and CBS. I am going to stray from the common opinion that you need to start some type of organization and do more community work. You already have shown a commitment to others through your tutoring work. How many hours per week do you tutor? My recommendation would be to get even more involved in this activity and expand your involvement to the operations and management of the organization. Also if you want to beef up your ECs just find something that you enjoy doing and do it well. There is a common misconception that you need to be a "save the world" type of person to get into business school and that is not the case. Schools like seeing ECs because it's a good indicator that you will contribute to the school's community as a student. However, there are many different ways to get involved at school (student government, professional clubs, Follies, community service, admissions fellow, etc.). So if there are a million and one ways to be active at school why should there only be one way to pursue ECs as an applicant (i.e. community service)?

CBS, Wharton, and Booth are most concerned with you presenting a clear career goal, showing fit with their program, and demonstrating strong leadership. If you can demonstrate these things I am sure that you can gain an admit to at least 1 of the 3.

thank you to everyone that responded -- great feedback and I appreciate it

Agree with ReluctantMBA.

Some good points in there, even though it seems like your GPA is fine and won't really swing you one way or the other (assuming your in the 3.4-3.7 range, which is my guess or you would have mentioned it). It's all about execution for you, and as always, a little luck.

yeah should have clarified at the beginning - GPA was a 3.9.

how do you guys feel about essay consultants? worth the investment?