pretty sure there is a positive correlation between academic performance/gmat and top banking jobs anyway; so chances are the problem is not just being from a smaller bank. if this isn't true, then you definitely have a solid shot with good rec's from top people at your bank.

 

I would rather lick the steps of a new york city subway station for 30 minutes than have to do another b-school application. Yes--getting into a top b-school, especially top-7, is really hard for the normal people. If you are a whiz kid with a 3.5+ GPA, 750+ GMAT, and a great professional history with shining recommendations, then getting into a top-7 is pretty easy (though HBS and Stanford are still not a lock).

 
Best Response

From the due-diligence I've managed to do thus far, the "M7" are essentially the "Ivy League" / "Bulge Bracket" of Business Schools. They consist of:

Tier 1: Harvard, Stanford Tier 1a: Wharton Tier 2: Chicago Booth, Columbia, MIT, Kellogg

Tier 1 and 1a are widely recognized - however, the relative merits of those in tier 2 are a lot more difficult to discern. Among those though, it seems to be the consensus that if the focus is finance, Chicago is really the place to be.

H/S really takes a lot of luck in addition to great credentials to get in. Also it helps if you've done something "different". Wharton is for those aces who've done Ivy strong GPA + strong GMAT + BB experience --- basically the creme of the crop that might not have the wow factor H/S sometimes look for. For a strong candidate without the wow factor (i.e. some mind-blowing EC's), getting into a MBA business schools ">M7 should be pretty 'easy'. Getting into H/S is another story.

 
oneortheother:
How would Top Ivy, 3.9, 780 GMAT, 1 year McKinsey + 2 year Bain Capital, followed up a year as head of corp dev of a Bain Cap porfolio company (think 200 million+ revenue) look for business schools?

Not that good--should probably apply to a few safety schools like Devry's Keller School of Business

 

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