How to improve my profile for MBA admissions in the next year?
Hi everyone!
I am new here. Just wanted to thank everyone for the wealth of information available on this site - amazing resource!
I am a first year analyst in corporate banking (not a bulge bracket, but still a strong name). I realized pretty quickly into this gig that I need something far more strategy oriented so I want to apply for an MBA to switch gears and head into management consulting perhaps a year from now. I am looking at the usual H/S/W along with other top ten schools.
I consider myself a pretty well rounded person. I am freelance writer for a major global publication in their business/entrepreneurial section, recently a published author, started a non-profit with a pretty large staff and received great recognition for my efforts over the past couple years. I am also working on developing a tech company with a partner featuring a pretty unique application - we'll see where that goes...
I like to keep busy, lol. But I'm worried about a few things.
Is corporate banking looked down upon in admissions - perhaps in comparison to other finance gigs? Also, My GPA is a 3.5 (not that great, I know. I screwed up in stats and a couple other courses also...so that kind of bothers me since I'd still be pretty "fresh" out of school when I apply). Coming from a strong undergraduate business program (i.e. think Ross, Stern, etc.). My gmat score at this time is 730, but I'm trying to improve that.
I am just trying to figure out any glaring flaws, and like all of you here, I want to position myself in the best possible way for the admission process. Advice?
A high gmat score always improves your chances at a business school, but I would say 730 on the GMAT with an undergraduate GPA of 3.5 would give you a pretty good chance at top 10 schools. corporate finance is not looked down upon in admissions. The aspect of your work experience which business schools care about most is leadership experience. So if you can land a promotion (2 would be better) before applying to business schools, you would have a very good chance at whichever school you target. The extracurriculars section of your profile is amazing and if you can continue taking part in those activities by the time you apply, they would definitely strengthen your application. So, the only aspect of your profile which you need to concentrate on is leadership experience.
Good Luck!
Leverage your extra curricular experience. What's your goal in life? What's your story? You've done quite a few amazing things, but how do they all tie in?
You are in very good shape. Your biggest challenge will be to overcome only two years of work experience when others with similar jobs/experiences will have more than twice as much (meaning twice as many accomplishments). I would think that the key for you will be to leverage your extra curricular opportunities and tie them in to your short and long term goals. As @TopChedder said, tying everything together will make a much better profile and could potentially allow you to make up for the limited experience.
A few more GMAT points won't hurt, but I'm not sure if you need them. A 3.5, 730, good work experience and good extras is good enough to get you in anywhere. You just need to execute and pull it all together.
Thanks! This is very solid advice. As far as leadership is concerned at the workplace, I did work with recruiting and start a new program for analysts in my division...hoping that counts. I know 2 years work experience is quite minimal, but I am just so sure I don't want to do this anymore. I really feel like I belong somewhere else, somewhere where I can really excel.
Topcheddar - your comments give me good stuff to think about! I am pretty confident I can bring together a good "story" as all of my outside activities really do connect (even though they may seem random as written above because I didn't go into much detail about what each one entails).
It's just scary to put yourself out there and try to "sell" things you actually are passionate about to admissions officers...kinda feels like recruiting again, but such is life I guess lol.
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