Stanford/Harvard - am i good enough?
Hey everyone,
big fan of the board, been quietly following it for a few years.. need some advice myself now.
I want to apply for an MBA, only to Stanford or Harvard. I would not go to any other school, and i would only go here if i can get a c. 50% scholarship. I was told this is doable with my profile by some consultants etc, and compared myself with some friends who got similar, seems plausable.
(for all of you who will ask why only these two MBAs - i only see value in forking over 200k for these 2 names, - its individual, not really here to discuss the rationalle, hope you understand.)
profile: 1. come from a country that has few people appling to MBAs - not much competition. diversity factor is important i know (previous MIF exp). 2. graduated as No 1 at an university in said country, economics. 3. master in finance at a top 3 european b school, top 5% rank. 4. job in London, 2nd tier IB for IBD (think UBS, Barclays, CS, DB, Citi ) 5. moved to another 2nd tier to do S&T 6. moved and currently at public/ governmental institution in London 7. speak 4 languages fluently and done business in all fo them. 8. own and operate a startup, social media sphere, already has decent media coverage, brings in some money, expect it to flourish (or not) by jan 2013.
main issue is i did my gmat for MIFs a few years ago, got 650 only (long story, had 3 weeks to apply, travelled overnight to another country to take since not available at my country, didnt sleep in the train, did the test in the morning, could have done better i think due to practice tests etc, but dropped it and moved on)
i dont like studying for exams such as gmat, have little time due to my job and startup - is it worth and crucial to retake the gmat and get a 720+ for what i want, given that i would have to take time away from my startup (and work) or could i play all other cards and still get in with a 650? Is a high GMAT also crucial for scholarships, or other real world stuff matters more?
i know noone can give an answer, but ur thoughts would b appreciated..
thanks
in before all the college kids swarm in to give their uninformed advice.
i dont see what you have to lose by applying. If you arent good enough now, you never will be (unless you do something crazy good, which means you wont need HBS). I dont know enough about the MBA, but if you dont like exams (I don't either) then is it the right thing for you?
thanks for the comment. i didnt say i dont like exams, just exams such as gmat (exams that test pretty much useless knowledge, frankly a waste of time, unless of course it is crucial for my app).
Considering your current score is below 700: Yes.
Your academics - impressive Your professional background - just about average(for these two schools!), unless your startup takes off Your GMAT - clearly below average
H&S want their candidates to be outstanding in every aspect. There's no reason to bust your a** for years at university, then work like a mad man in London finance - just to shy away from a few weeks of GMAT practice.
My 2 cents: Retake the GMAT. Easily the highest ROI when looking to improve for your application at this point. If I read correctly you worked some years in London after you took the initial GMAT - if verbal was an issue before, it certainly shouldn't be anymore.
Prepare well and retake the GMAT, otherwise you have a pretty competitive profile,
Your age and gender could a difference as well. All the best.
Too hard to say. Your background seems good but it's so vague that it's really impossible to tell. Your international background is a plus. Your entrepreneurial gig could be a plus as well but it's hard to say knowing so little. Your GMAT is a negative and the fact that you're male is as well.
There's a lot of soft things that go into acceptance such as: 1) strength of your essays 2) strength of your recs 3) your gender/race etc 4) what you plan to do after b school 5) your interviews
I'd either provide a lot more detail about yourself or stick to your consultants' opinions as they have a fuller picture. Either way . . . doesn't hurt to send out the apps!
PS - do yourself a favor and send out another app or two. It's really nice to have optionality of a good school and it's quite possible you won't get into H/S at no fault of your own.
Hi untruegrit, Here are my quick comments based on my experience as an HBS grad and someone who worked at Stanford GSB.
>> helpful in a theoretical sense, but not a driver
graduated as No 1 at an university in said country, economics. >>good stuff
master in finance at a top 3 european b school, top 5% rank. >>good stuff
main issue is i did my gmat for MIFs a few years ago, got 650 only (long story, had 3 weeks to apply, travelled overnight to another country to take since not available at my country, didnt sleep in the train, did the test in the morning, could have done better i think due to practice tests etc, but dropped it and moved on)
i dont like studying for exams such as gmat, have little time due to my job and startup - is it worth and crucial to retake the gmat and get a 720+ for what i want, given that i would have to take time away from my startup (and work) or could i play all other cards and still get in with a 650? Is a high GMAT also crucial for scholarships, or other real world stuff matters more?
>>Harvard is need-based only. No merit scholarships from the school itself. Monkeys, please correct me, but I have heard Dee Leopold say this over and over, unless I am misunderstanding.
>>GSB is so competitive that I would have to think a 650 is too much to overcome. I also know that admissions members world-over want to see that you are not settling for a 650, but that you are committed enough to try again. Otherwise they think you don't get the rules of the game.
if you have any more q's please PM me or come over to my B-school Q&A thread.
thanks a lot for you insights. Im sure all of you are right - i just wanted someone to tell me "nah gmat doesnt matter" hah... or that grades etc cover this bit as well... i wouldnt tell them th conditions i took it the first time, so it would be a disparity, grades vs gmat score..
i guess a high gmat shows that you are serious about the whole thing, so probably worth taking it again...
thanks again.
Your academics are impressive, but gmat is just too low. You gotta get at least a 700, ideally a 730+. Also your work experience at a 2nd tier IBD is actually subpar at HBS/Stanford, at least among men. The languages and startup are pretty interesting, so you can leverage that in your resume and essays. But as of now, if i were a betting man, you would not get into HBS/Stanford.
Thanks Brady4MVP. I will take a few weeks and retake it, startup will have to suffer. The main reason i did a tier 2 IB was because at the time US banks (ones i consider tier 1) could not hire people that need a work permit sponsorship, but i guess you cant tell that either to the adcom. and later on IB lost its appeal for me, so i moved to the development/governmental role.
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