Wait another year or apply now for H/S/W

Hi All,

Wanted to get a few opinions on my admit chances this year versus future chances next year at H/S/W. At this point I’m fairly certain I want to do an MBA, and after taking the GMAT last week and scoring 760, I’m curious if H/S/W are even possibilities for me at this point as a R2 applicant (class of 2022). My main concerns about applying right now are 1) I only have 2 years full time WE and 2) my GPA is a bit low for these schools.

Anyways, my background: Undergrad: ~3.3-3.4 GPA, Engineering major at top Engineering undergrad program (think MIT, UC Berkeley, Stanford, Michigan) and Student Athlete + National Champion in a non-football/basketball sport GMAT: 760 Q48/V46 8 IR 5.5 AWA Work Exp: 6 Months at boutique consulting firm, 18 months at Big 4 management consulting; Energy/Utilities focused group Letters of Rec: Good, though maybe not H/S/W quality “amazing” Extracurriculars: Continue to play collegiate sport - National Champions in our division; part time tutor for both underprivileged and non-underprivileged high school kids in STEM and SAT/ACT, worked for a company in college and independently post-college Interests Post MBA: Most likely banking in the Energy/P&U space (possibly would try for energy focused PE if I went to H/S) Diversity/Other: None

The case for waiting a year: Likely looking at a promotion in early 2020, would provide additional opportunities to take on management/leadership roles and get some great rec letters. Maybe shore up my ECs by consulting for a non-profit or something. Would be able to send out a greater # of apps given fewer time constraints.

The case for applying now: I’m certain I want to go, the IB associate track is a grind so it would be good to start a year earlier, have heard from people in admissions/other places that 1 year of work experience won’t really make too much of a difference, also have heard H/S in particular are receptive to younger applicants, opportunity cost is lower given my lower salary.

Other considerations - preferably I would like to wind up on the west coast, so what are some other schools that I should consider? (Haas seems like an obvious choice, Booth has a great finance rep and good IB placement from what I understand), GSB doesn’t really place too many people in banking, does that mean I’ll get a head scratch from the Adcoms when they read my application?, Am I reaching too high? The profiles of admitted students at these top schools are insane and usually they have a much higher GPA.

Any opinions or thoughts would be appreciated! Also books/resources/forums/etc I could reference would be great.

Thank you