Chances at Top MBA w/ Low GPA?
.......................................................................................................
Trending Content
| +50 | Interviews Are So Fake | 33 | 8h | |
| +33 | 2024 UK Election - Tories finished? | 21 | 1d | |
| +29 | ADHD ! | 14 | 2h | |
| +29 | Non-Competes Banned | 34 | 2h | |
| +29 | Being Christian in investment banking | 14 | 2d | |
| How do I become Sigma | 15 | 1d | ||
| +19 | Moelis has the cutest Analysts? | 4 | 2d | |
| +18 | Best NYC neighborhood for single 30M | 12 | 4d | |
| +16 | Underage intern, drinking? | 7 | 2d | |
| +13 | Secretive vs Universal Prestige? | 7 | 2d |
Career Resources
How hard are you willing to work to mitigate the impact of the low GPA? You say you want to switch into finance? Are you willing to take the CFA? Finance related classes and earn A's . You also have to make your intent there a little more real.
Also don't lock yourself into top 5 or nothing. There are many programs that will help you transition into finance and that with a 750 would overlook your GPA. or perhaps in the top 10 and not the top 5. Think more broadly about how to achieve your goal, and it may become doable.,
You might be interested in 5 As for Your Low GPA. I provide a lot more information on how to deal with it.
............................
Hi
My main point is that your undergrad performance doesn't have to determine your future. Your past doesn't define you -- if you're willing to change, and you present a lot of evidence that have changed and matured.
Best, Linda
Deleted Per Request
..........................
Deleted Per Request
Does talking to alumni really help? I've been grabbing coffee with graduates from B-Schools i'm interested in, but I figured their word wouldn't really matter to the admissions office.
It doesn't help in the way that you're suggesting. You can't just talk to alums and have them "put in a good word."
Each school has many thousands of alums. Imagine what would happen to the admissions process if getting coffee with alums was a way in. Every alum would be having several coffees a year and admissions would be fielding hundreds of thousands of "putting in a good word" emails. It would probably lead to that factor being eliminated from the process, which is as it should be.
The benefit of talking to alums is to get a feel for why the culture of the school is different from other schools, so you can write about that in your essay. Probably seems very silly to you now, but when you're writing those essays it can save you many hours or days of time if you have a good idea of what to say.
concerned about gpa for top b school (Originally Posted: 12/19/2011)
Hello,
I'll be graduating from a mid-tier ivy. Will be joining a decent bulge bracket... think CS, Barclays, Citi, DB... President of school's business club and captain of a club sport... Worked 3 different jobs (not at the same time) over the 4 years typically around 10 hrs/week... Founded student-run business with some friends serving a campus need... been around for 2 years.
HOWEVER, my gpa is on the low side and will probably be just above 3.5... depending on how finals went/next semester...
How badly will this impact my chances for a top b school? Harvard/Stanford?
A lot of it was due to my attempt to help my close friend who was going through some really really hard times this past year and I was sort of dragged into it... how could I try to explain that/would it be better off if I just left that out of the apps?
Thanks!
3.5 isn't a bad GPA, it isn't anything to write home about but if the other elements of your application are good, you wont automatically get dinged.
what ivy and what's your major? I graduated with a 3ish GPA but I was in M&T Wharton (finance)/Engineering (comp sci) at Penn, and went to a top MBA.
think Penn/Columbia/Dartmouth double major Econ and Japanese
does major make a difference?
what is the GPA of all Top B- School's?
so you went to brown?
Provided your GMAT has a 7-handle, an Elite Eight spot is yours to lose, but this sounds more like a lower-end Elite Eight (Columbia given your finance focus) than making the Final (Harvard, Stanford), though a Final Four finish (Wharton, Booth) is also realistic.
haha. 'yours to lose' think again. dont be so confident just because you work at morgan stanley and went to ivy with good test scores that youre going to get into a top b school ... this entitlement idea is why so many finance kids get dumped by top b schools
It is his to lose based on stats alone as he will be competitive at all of the MBA business schools">M7 schools assuming he continues down the path that he is on and can craft solid essays, get good recs, get involved in ECs, etc.
GPA: 3.5 (well within the 80% range for H/S/W and M7) GMAT: assume 700+ (well within the 80% range for H/S/W and M7) Ivy undergrad and bulge bracket experience
I hear you on the entitlement issue but if he is willing to put the time in I think he could easily get into a top program. Again, I realize a lot of admissions comes down to luck and execution.
its not just about stats though ;\ if it was just stats then all the asians and indians would be dominating all us cracka-ass-foos
Quos vel quasi doloremque occaecati qui ut sit aut. Est maxime enim culpa cupiditate optio molestiae.
Optio delectus et totam libero dolorem ad. Nisi odio aut sequi saepe quo quos. Distinctio eaque quidem accusamus qui nobis laborum maiores et. Asperiores nisi illo incidunt in non quisquam consequuntur. Et consectetur vel dignissimos eius.
Quae neque facere possimus harum totam repellat aspernatur omnis. Praesentium quidem saepe quis vel ab eos.
Culpa animi minima tempore architecto beatae qui voluptatum. Et enim voluptas nihil asperiores. Aliquid natus suscipit a eaque qui vel.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...
Minima blanditiis ut aut aspernatur. Ut nisi fuga et minus. Ad libero repellendus magni et voluptatibus soluta et. Et non quibusdam amet officiis molestias quo ut culpa. Repellendus et similique beatae. Nemo consequuntur maxime fuga vel quia dolorum.