Hey guys, looking for some advice on what kind of schools I should target as I begin to consider an MBA. Not sure if I have a shot at the top programs given GPA but curious to hear opinions/ gain some perspective to even see if the caliber of schools I have a shot at would even be worth applying to.
Profile:
Why I want an MBA: I would like to build out my network, transition into Venture Capital and get a brand name University on my resume (came from a Non-Target) Still unclear if I will get to stay for a 3rd year (2 year program) so would like to keep my options open Target schools: Want to get a better understanding of how competitive I am, what I can do to improve my chances and what programs I should target Background Work experience: 2 Years at an Investment Bank (Think (Baird / Blair / HL / Lincoln /HW) 1 year at a top Private Equity Firm (Think KKR / TPG / Carlyle / Apollo / Blackstone / Warburg Pincus / Bain) in a front office investing role
Extra curricular and other experience: Interned for a powerful US congressman in Undergrad, Founding member of an organization that did community outreach to assist children from underprivileged backgrounds Undergrad school/major: Top 50 Undergrad (ranked top 25 Undergrad B school at the time) / Finance, Scholarship, Case competition winner, Honors college Other education/coursework:None besides Finance degree Race/nationality: African (Born in Africa but US Citizen) Sex: Male Stats GMAT Score: 750 Undergrad GPA: 3.01 (worked two jobs and interned for that Congressman while remaining active on campus. No excuses it is what it is lol)
Thanks!
As long as you execute the rest of the application process well you should have no issue with T10s and M7s given your work experience and good GMAT. I am also a URM male applying to matriculate next fall
I'm more impressed you were able to get into IB and then a top PE firm with a 3.0 from a nontarget. I think that was the hard part by far, since MBA admissions cares a lot more about work experience in my understanding.
Actually though, how did you break in with that gpa from a nontarget? That's insane. Props
Thanks. Was an absolute grind. actually got an internship (then job) at a credit shop that was looking to expand. Crushed the interview process and GPA never came up luckily. I also lucked out because all of the top of the top kids in my university were chasing BB S&T offers and didn't realize that private credit was on the verge of blowing up (in a good way). Used that to lateral into IB where I ended up getting top bucket both years and leveraged that into my current role. I will say the headhunter meetings were tough given GPA and was shocked that one of them forwarded my resume to my current fund. Did well in the first round, was perfect in the in person modeling test, went way above and beyond for the take home case study and passed the airplane test with the partners. Essentially all the stars lined up perfectly and my path would be difficult to replicate. Happy to answer any other questions!
Did you not see the race part lmaooo
Your GMAT and WE will offset your GPA, as long as you do a good job w/ your essays.
Apply as early as possible and spend a lot of time on your essays. Your essays need to be a clear story that concisely articulates your career development/growth, why a certain MBA program fits your plans and that's going to help your post-MBA career.
Good luck!
Given your GMAT, post college experience, African origins, and the context for your GPA, I recommend you apply to schools in the top 10 this year. With a strong application, you have a decent chance in the top 10 and yes even the M7. I'd apply this year limiting yourself to the top 10, and if not accepted this year, reapply next year with a wider net.
Suggestion: Be more specific in your goals and don't say that you want an MBA to "get a brand name University on my resume." What do you want to accomplish in your career that an MBA will help you accomplish. Yes. you want to go into VC, but what do you hope to achieve while there? The MBA and even your career in VC are both means to an end. What's that end?
A few resources that might interest you:
*https://blog.accepted.com/m7-mba-programs-everything-you-need-to-know-i…</a">M7 MBA Programs: Everything You Need to Know in 2020 * https://blog.accepted.com/what-to-do-about-a-low-gpa/</a">5 As for Your Low GPA * https://reports.accepted.com/guide/why-mba</a">Why MBA?
Thank you for the thorough advice and resources! All extremely helpful. I find it a bit hard to believe that I would have a shot at the M7 (H/S/W/MIT/ Columbia etc.) given my gpa. Would WE and test scores be able to offset that? Understand that admissions to these schools are all a crapshoot but just wanted to make sure I am allocating time effectively for schools I have a realistic shot at in order to put my best foot forward. Given good essays and strong recs (one from founder of firm and direct report both M7 grads) what schools in the top 10-20 would make the most sense given my lower GPA. Said differently, of the 3 prongs (Work experience, GPA, and GMAT) would a stellar 2/3 give a top school a reason to take a chance on me?
Thank you!
Obviously I can't guarantee acceptance, but the short answer to your question is yes. You are URM. You have impressive experience, both professional and EC, context that reveals you can perform better in an academic context if you aren't working two jobs, and a test score that indicates you have the raw ability to succeed in a top MBA program.
I think you have a chance. If you want to maximize chances of multiple acceptances and a scholarship, apply to NYU Stern, Tuck, UCLA, Cornell, Georgetown, Duke, UNC,
If you want to try to get into a T10, program, apply to Wharton, Chicago, CBS, and HBS R1, Then prepare apps for Duke, NYU STern, Tuck, and Cornell for R2. only submit if you aren't accepted to any of your R1 schools.
Another option is to aim for first choice programs this year and if not accepted apply more widely next year.
But with a good app, I think you have a real chance. If you'd like help with your applications, please let me know.
Unpopular opinion here, but you're a lock at non-HSW M7 and solid chance at HSW. C/B/K/S salivate at MF PE with at most 1-2 associates/class from these funds. The jumbo GMAT more than makes up for low GPA because the schools can see you have a ton of potential in all other aspects of the app, so they'll look the other way for a 3.0 (top GMAT, top bucket IB, MF PE).
If you weren't URM, I'd say you'd have a good chance at non-HSW M7 and limited chance at HSW. But the 750 is off the charts for URM and the work experience is simply too good to care about one blemish on the app.
For reference, I go to a non-HSW M7 and you'd be a top applicant here. I have URM classmates who I'm confident had 3.2-3.4 and 690-710 (i.e., you're at least on par with them stats-wise). Their work experience is across the board not even close to being comparable to yours, so I'd have a hard time believing you wouldn't get in if you executed reasonably well.
Totally agree and would echo this. Unless you screw up the applications themselves, the work experience + high GMAT + URM should be enough to get you into non HSW M7 for sure and a good shot at HSW as well. My guess is you can probably get a lot of money from a number of these schools and attend for (close to) free. The low GPA from a non target isn't ideal, but the other factors should out-weight that. Your work experience is very very strong for almost all of these programs. I would probably not waste your time with schools outside of the top 7, but depends on your risk appetite / amount of time you have to work on apps.
Are you on the PE side or in a credit / other investing role at the firm? Only asking because the jump from the banks you mentioned to the funds you mentioned is extremely rare (I don't think I've ever seen anyone make that jump to be honest). In any case, quite impressive.
Thank you. Really appreciate the insight from everyone on this thread. Unfortunately I would like to keep some anonymity but I will say that my group has a solid track record of sending people to H/S/W. This has all been great feedback and at this point it all comes down to execution.
Thank you
Totally agree. H/S/W material for sure and if you apply to enough M7 / Top 10 programs it should be statistically impossible for you to not get a decent amount of scholarship at at least one school. Good luck to you!
Not to hijack the thread but would URM with a slightly better GPA (think 3.4-3.6), GS/MS/JPM, and MF experience be a lock for HSW?
H/S (and somewhat W) are not a lock for anyone. Would you have a good shot? Sure, but those schools (and especially GSB given its small class size) are hard to predict given how many qualified applicants they have.
I would have to think you'd be as much a lock for HSW as anyone in the world at that point. No one is a true "lock", but with good essays and execution, probability would have to be 60-80% at all of them, which is higher than pretty much anyone.
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