2.4 GPA - 760 GMAT - Interesting Stats
Would appreciate any help in regards to my chances of getting into a top 10 MBA Program:
Stats:
2.4 GPA (top 50 Uni - 4 years out of school)
760 GMAT
Started own NPO
Started own company out of college that grosses 2 m/yr and employs 5 people
Now in Sales/Relationship Management at large US Bank
I know the GPA is low but how much will my GMAT, EC's, and work experience help offset it? Chances of getting into a top 10?
Thanks again
Everything else of course looks good, but you will definitely still need some sort of explanation in your supplemental essay as to why you earned the 2.4...
@"Betsy Massar" you're up
Supplemental transcript bro. Take some classes at a nearby/decent school in the quantitative area.
I'm not sure what I can add, in that I don't do the odds. Look at @"brj" above, he or she seems to have gotten into a good school with a sub-2.9GPA.
Frankly, I think it is tough. If anyone read the Economist last week they would have seen a chart that illustrates grade inflation, and I am afraid that makes all GPAs suspect. But it makes it even harder to imagine what one would have to do to get a 2.4, considering what the averages for undergraduate schools look like
That isn't to say that the OP isn't talented and smart. But what it does mean is that there's no real proof that the individual involved knows how to take a classroom seriously. And to quote Dee Leopold of Harvard Business School, "Hello.... we're a school" So it represents a risk, but also an opportunity. It shows that the person has innate talent for tests and also a strong entrepreneurial streak. Will that add to the class? Don't know -- like @"Deo et Patriae" says. Where I disagree with @"Deo et Patriae" is his point after checking the boxes. Yes, you need certain qualifications to get you a look, but those are minimum qualifications. And they are also guidelines. It's about fit, fit, and more fit. It has never been just about the numbers, and that's why it's really hard to make a prediction worth taking seriously.
Pretty sure the answer is that the 760 will cancel out your 2.4 GPA, just gota write some explanation on it and you'll be fine.
It's impossible to put an exact number on your chances for admission. Even if your GPA was a 3.7 instead of 2.4, there would be absolutely no guarantee you would get into a top 10 school. Would your chances be "better"? Probably... but again, there is no way to put a number on that. Some admission counselors will actually provide a % based on a candidate's background and stats, e.g. "you have a 50% chance of getting into X school," but honestly, you can't really take such figures at face value.
There is a strong element of chance involved. Every year HBS rejects people with what many on WSO would consider to be very strong credentials: Top GPA, 770+ gmat score, superstar analyst at Goldman Sachs, etc. I personally know someone with that very profile who was dinged at HBS. Why? It's impossible to say. Perhaps the person reviewing his application decided there were already enough finance-types in that current year's class. Maybe his personal statement did not resonate with the ad com?
B-school admissions is all about checking off the right boxes (e.g. GPA, GMAT score, work experience, letters of recommendation, etc.) and then crafting a coherent, tight story in your essay (as well as interviews, if it gets to that) about why, at this point in your professional career, an MBA would be useful to you. You seem to have checked off most of the boxes except for GPA. A forthcoming explanation is in order. While I don't think its necessary to make the reason for your low-GPA the entire focus of your personal statement, it is definitely something that needs to be addressed at some point.
I have very similar stats. Does anyone know why GPA is even a factor given it's years ago?
GPA and GMAT are pretty much the only widely available quantitative measures of performance. U/g GPA is actually one of the best indicators for post-u/g job performance.
That said, I somehow managed M7->MBB with a 770 / sub-2.9.
I thought Google did a study saying that undergrad GPA does not correlate at all to job performance? I think there was a piece on it here on WSO by Eddie.
Nearly identical stats to brj, and I also did M7 -> MBB.
A few comments to OP: 1) I took a few classes at a local fairly well respected public university during my free time and and got all A's 2) I had an interesting story (like you) with a start-up on the side n addition to solid work experience
long story short: very doable. shake your tail feather a bit in the essays and make it happen
I had a similar situation when I wanted to go to a specific Ivy League for Master's Economics. I had a low GPA and a limited quantitative background, but a strong resume. I got in by taking the following course of action:
-Got two strong letters of recommendation from 2 alumni (one is a President of a well known think tank) -Got a letter from a client (I do freelance consulting work on the side) -Visited the school and spoke with the professors (include this fact in my personal statement) -Wrote in my personal statement how specific classes and professors would support my short -term and long-term ambitions. (For examples, I sat in on a class where the lecture focused on the peripheral reach of the credit crisis and I used the lecture to provide an analysis to my client who gave a speech on how it affected a certain region in Africa.)
If you can run a business that gross 2M and get a 760 GMAT, but need to ask WSO your chance, then I would say your trouble is confidence.
Don't focus on what are your chance, find ways to increase them. Have you considered getting a MBA coach to help you with the admissions process?
Building off @"BigPicture"'s advice, here are the things that I think helped me overcome the low GPA:
Suppose one had poor grades in quant classes in undergrad. Would taking the classes over again while working FT make up for that (assuming they performed better)?
Maybe, and worth a try. The alternative transcript is without a doubt a great way to show that you are able to do schoolwork. If you were lazy or unfocused as an undergrad (BTW, I was, but it was a different era), then an alternative all-A transcript is great. I took 7 courses in the evenings over a period of 2.5 years and broke the curve on the stats courses (amazing myself, and finding a love for statistics in the process) . I can see by those who chimed in above that others have found success that way.
I never get how people who are smart enough to score 750+ on their GMAT's (cause you clearly are very smart if you can get that kind of score) are not capable of at least graduating with a decent GPA. Did you even study a little bit in college?
750+, sub 3.0 undergrad --> M7 MBA --> MBB person here
seems silly to say they "are not capable of at least graduating with a decent GPA" when the issue is more likely effort than capability
did you work a couple years before you apply for M7 MBA?
I never said it means you cannot be successful or anything. If the OP scored 760 on his GMAT that clearly shows he's a very intelligent dude. I just find it remarkable people that smart cannot get a decent GPA. With such brainpower only a little bit of study should be enough to get somewhat decent GPA.
yep
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