Chances of admittance
I am looking for BRUTALLY HONEST feedback on my chances to gain admittance to a top 10 MBA program (Preferably M7) and get into a buldge braket associate role afterwards. Ideally I would like to start the MBA in Fall 2013, working at my current company until then, which would give me 3 years pre-MBA experience.
Summary of my experience: Can provide additional details on any item at request
Education:
Summa Cum Laude BBA from Baruch College, New York, NY
Class of 2010
Major: Finance and Investments Minor: Anthropology
President and Founder of Transfer Student Organization
Distinguished Student Leader Award
Deans List - 2006 - 2010
2 Internships in GWM, NYC
1 Internship in Abbott Labs corporate finance, working in Pharmaceutical Strategic Pricing and Planning Group, Chicago IL
- 1st Place, 2009 Finance, General Business, and Sales Intern Poster Presentation
Competition, Abbott Laboratories
Current Position: Financial Professional Development Program - Abbott Labs
1st Rotation - Commercial Brand Team Financial Analyst - Columbus, OH
2nd Rotation - International Treasury Trade Finance Analyst - Amsterdam
- Silver Award for Outstanding Performance and Lasting Contributions on Trade
Finance/International Treasury
3rd Rotation - Manufacturing Accounting - San Juan, Puerto Rico
Have 1 more rotation and 1 full time job planned before planned start of B-school. Rotation will be in Chicago, and fulltime is TBD.
Thanks for the help!
GMAT score?
So long as your GMAT score is strong, essays are well written, and you have some decent recommendations you should be able to get into M7.
It boils down to: Work Exp>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Ugrad GPA/GMAT>>>Essays>>Recs.
this couldnt be farther from the truth. gpa/gmat are almost equally important as work experience. your gpa is already very high, just score a decent gmat and you should be fine. if you had sub 3.5 gpa, id be concerned.
Didnt take the GMAT yet, am studying right now. What would you say is the minimum required score?
Undergrad GPA was a 3.92. Had multiple semesters with 18+ Advanced Credits and 4.0 GPA
As far as reccomendations go, who should I pursue them from? My friends's 4th cousin who is a senator, my boss who manages/has managed me directly, or the divional controller whom I report up to? What is the ideal number of reccomendations to have?
Is it worth it to hire an essay review service? Who are other people I may have contact with to pursue proofreading advice from?
Thanks for the comments!
Rec from a senator looks good, but he doesn't know you and the adcoms might see through that. Ideally the people writing your recs are your managers from current and previous employment as they've had the most direct contact with you. You don't need many recs, I think three would suffice.
Admission consultants are becoming pretty mainstream for M7. I remember reading that about half of the 2012 HBS class had used admission consulting services.
If you're shooting for the top schools I think you'd be ok with a 710-720, obviously scoring higher is a plus. The GMAT is just a filter that allows adcoms to look at the rest of your app. It's the first thing they'll look at, but it's the last thing that will make or break your application once they go through the rest of your app. Plenty of people with 800 GMATs have been dinged because their "total package" was lacking in several areas.
Ok, thanks for the information.
Do you think I should make it clear in the essay that I want to become a banker post MBA?
Also, is there anything besides what we have already mentioned to increase my chances? Taking non-matriculated classes? Volunteer work? CFA?
Depends on the essay, but if you can weave it in there and can show that you are passionate about banking then I don't see why not.
Volunteer work can never hurt you.
The CFA isn't going to help all that much because 1) You won't have enough time to obtain it 2) It isn't prevalent in banking and 3) most MBA school adcoms don't know much about the CFA program so it doesn't help for admittance.
Thanks for the advice! I will be sure to get some good volunteer experience.
Most of the applicants will write about becoming a banker after MBA. Try something else. Trust me.
GMAT, you need at least 700 to 720
Where is your leadership experience? I guess you have none since you graduated recently.
Yes, Volunteer work will add a few points in your profile.
CFA, nah. Not mandatory, but good to have.
You kids nowadays want to make big bucks after 1-2 years of full-time work after undergrad.
Maybe write about how I would like to get involved in the expansion of capital markets in the BRICS countries? Or pose my essay as I would like to go back into Corporate Finance? Any suggestions on a career path that would really catch their interest?
As far as leadership goes, I have founded and lead a student organization (the Transfer Student Organization) for a year and a half at Baruch College. Through the organization I created a mentorship program which assisted newly arriving transfer students (currently with 100+ participants), advocated for policy change and representation on the administration level, and held career events focused on networking opportunities. The organization has been growing rapidly since creation, and currently has over 150 members.
I also am the Leader of the Intern Committee in the rotational program I am in.
I know these are not the best leadership experiences, but like you said I am just beginning in my career.
Any other comments/opinions are welcomed and appreciated.
You really should hire an application consultant to help you out. Let him/her get a good sense of your background, and he/she will be able to tell you what a story is for you.
OK. any idea how much that costs?
A lot.
check out gmatclub.com the place is crawling with admissions consultants. there's a section where you can input your info and they'll help point you towards the right schools.
Yes, it's a lot of money. You should at least prepare $2000 to $5000
Admissions consultants can run like $4-5k for a full 2 school package. I would check out Stacy Blackman or one of the other established firms. They really help with creating the theme of your app, the essays, and all the other minutiae.
You should definitely start volunteering with charity orgs, etc. Even beyond volunteering, try to contribute to the group by leadership, business skills, organizing, etc. For recs, you need to pick someone that has direct supervision of your day to day activities, or that can speak of them. Having some high up person, that has no idea how you are as a worker, write your letter wouldn't help and could probably hurt you. If you can't approach your boss, then you'll have to find a client, other employee in your company, etc that can talk about your work specifically. You would have to explain in the other section why you did not have your manager write one of your letters.
With your background at Abbott, you could probably write about how you want to become a health care banker or VC, or something along those lines. It doesn't matter if you end up becoming a consultant or ibanker or never work in healthcare, as adcoms just want to know you have a plan and that their school would help you get there. That would probably be the "theme" of your app, and I think its a pretty realistic one to write about.
Thank you for the Healthcare Banker/VC idea, as I could tie this into a very relevant theme, where an MBA is a natural stepping stone to achieve my career goals. I may bite the bullet and hire a consultant when the time gets closer.
I will get involved in some charity organizations ASAP, and will try to obtain a leadership position in one. Perhaps attempting to start my own organization would suffice also, right?
As far as the recs go, would a mentor from my company who has oversaw my development throughout my time hurt me since I have never reported to him? How about a manager from the past? Or is it always best to have your current boss reccomend you?
Anyone have any feedback on the Kaplan GMAT Course? Any other GMAT Review courses? I am planning on taking the test around April 2012, so will start to ramp up my prep efforts in Jan.
You sound like you're trying way too hard to check the boxes / put in resume filler. Alex at MBA Apply has some great advice, which is "build a life". It's good that you're keeping your eye on the prize but don't forget to live a little! Adcoms can easily detect fakeness in a person's application.
Generally speaking, your background seems pretty strong. Not blue chip, but definitely solid. Given where a lot of schools are currently in terms of branching out away from finance (IB/PE), a corporate rotational program in healthcare is probably good. That being said, who knows what the flavor of the day will be in a year from now. At the end of the day, career goals should be realistic. Schools that care a lot about career placement (from a stats standpoint) are sometimes weary of taking people who explicitly say they want to go to banking/PE without any relevant experience.
On volunteering, starting your own group is difficult and time consuming. I'd go with something that you care about / have an interest in and go from there. Volunteer places are always looking for people to step up so it should be easy to get integrated.
You'll need recs from at least 2 different people. Generally, adcoms like to see people who have directly supervised you. Current boss is usually best (unless you don't have a good relationship with him/her).
I think a lot of people like Manhattan GMAT. Knewton is also supposed to be pretty good.
Finally, someone earlier recommended gmatclub.com. Check that out as there is a wealth of information and far more people who have been through the bschool process on that site.
Planning to take GMAT on 04/12 and you want to start ramping up your prep efforts on 01/12?
So what are you doing now? You're not being serious at all.
making multiple threads? :D
volunteering -- you cant just volunteer you need to CREATE and or LEAD something. big brother big sister wont do shit. make a non profit, make difference in multiple peoples lives.
work -- i think its better to stay in the work place for a year or two more -- corp fin people tend to have more years of experience before they do the b school shuffle. furthermore, better to stay at corp fin and advance up. corp fin at abbott isnt that 'sexy' of a job but is okay/decent.
gmat -- do it
recs-- from your bosses and people youve worked with clients.
you can get by without an admissions consultant, i did it by just reading books, browsing gmatclub forum, talking to MBA students in the program and consulting good writers i know. hell i'll do it for a couple grand less than what those firms will charge you. take manhattan gmat also.
Thanks for all of the replys! I appreciate all the help guys...
To start from where I left off, What am I doing now? I am working full time in Puerto Rico, learning spanish, researching programs, reviewing GMAT questions 2 days a week, going to get involved in volunteering
Volunteering: I was involved with a start-up organization in college, and I did enjoy it, but it does take alot of time, and I need to prioritize, although it is a great way to make myself stand out, does anyone else have some comments on this? Opportunity cost worth it to spend time starting an organization versus joining/acquiring a leadership position in one?
GMAT - I will def look into the Manhattan Review, I just hope they offer it in Chicago, as that would be where I want to take the class in 1/12
Why not CorpFin? : I have tried to convince myself numerous times that I should just stick with what I am doing now and rise, but I cant seem to do so. Although it is a safe job with alot of room for progression, I have no interest in being a "support function" No matter how many ways you look at it, corpfin is always supporting the business, while brand management/ general management are driving it. Couple this interest with my passion for financial markets and transactions, and I see no other logical career than banking.
Years of Experience: I have also been thinking about how much time to spend this career before attempting to get into b-school. Does anyone else have any more comments on that? Is 2-years experience at the time of application sufficient? (would then give me 3 years of experience when I start). Is it bad to think that if I get turned down I can just apply again next year? Or does it significantly reduce your chances to re-apply?
Building my own life: Could you elaborate a little more on what you mean, as far as a MBA goes? I know i should not just check off the boxes to check them off, but actually get the experiences out of these boxes that the adcoms are pursuing. I have done extensive traveling around western europe and the caribbean over the past year, is that what you are looking for? Please explain.
Sorry for long post and THANKS for all of the help!
Have a great weekend!
i really think corp fin types need more than 2 years to progress/gain experience in their roles to be valuable in a b school environ -- the majority of the kids going in with 2 or 3 years to MBAs at the top level tend to be those
700 + GMAT score. You might want to talk to an admissions consultant if you are serious about getting an MBA. They'll give you a realistic perspective, and will figure out any angle you can focus on in your essays. I read a lot about MBA admissions and hundreds of kids have profiles like you (its good enough to get in, not great enough to stand out). Paying the money for professional help will be worth it in the end if you can land a spot at an M7 and an IB job afterward.
how do adcoms look upon Baruch business undergrad? Beyond the top ivy and state schools, does it really matter?
Hi Dave
Looking at the 2012 class profile at Columbia the students scored in the range of 680-760 in their GMAT. Similarly at Wharton’s MBA class of 2012 the students scored in the range of 650-770 in their GMAT and the median GMAT score being 720. Looking at the 2012 class profile at Columbia the students scored in the range of 680-760 in their GMAT. Looking at the 2012 class profile at Harvard the students scored in the range of 550-790 in their GMAT and the median GMAT score was 730. Hence a GMAT score of 700 plus is advisable if you are aiming for top institutes abroad.
However it is not just the academics but beyond the academics that will help you in determining your candidature. Generally most of the applicants have a good 4-5 years of full time work experience apart from part time work exp or internships. Although it is not just the work experience that counts but also what you did there like-what were your achievements, what initiative you took, what changes you drove in your workplace etc. So if you can show that in 6 years you have demonstrated the skills business schools are looking for you can put in a strong set of essays.Make sure you follow the ‘show rather than tell’ principle so that the admissions committee could really understand your strengths and differentiating factors.”
Find out where you stand with our Free Assessment Test or drop your resume at [email protected]
Thanks
Kavita Singh FutureWorks Consulting
Hi Dave
Looking at the 2012 class profile at Columbia the students scored in the range of 680-760 in their GMAT. Similarly at Wharton’s MBA class of 2012 the students scored in the range of 650-770 in their GMAT and the median GMAT score being 720. Looking at the 2012 class profile at Columbia the students scored in the range of 680-760 in their GMAT. Looking at the 2012 class profile at Harvard the students scored in the range of 550-790 in their GMAT and the median GMAT score was 730. Hence a GMAT score of 700 plus is advisable if you are aiming for top institutes abroad.
However it is not just the academics but beyond the academics that will help you in determining your candidature. Generally most of the applicants have a good 4-5 years of full time work experience apart from part time work exp or internships. Although it is not just the work experience that counts but also what you did there like-what were your achievements, what initiative you took, what changes you drove in your workplace etc. So if you can show that in 6 years you have demonstrated the skills business schools are looking for you can put in a strong set of essays.Make sure you follow the ‘show rather than tell’ principle so that the admissions committee could really understand your strengths and differentiating factors.”
Find out where you stand with our Free Assessment Test or drop your resume at [email protected]
Thanks
Kavita Singh FutureWorks Consulting
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