M7 profile. How do I stack up?
I'm in the process of deciding whether I want to pursue an MBA in the near future.
Brief background:
- BAs in political economy and German studies from a non-target (4.0 GPA)
- MSc in political economy from LSE
- MSc in Russian and East European studies from Oxford
- 2 years at a think tank (think along the lines of RAND)
- currently in my third year of consulting in Europe
- fluent in German and Russian
How competitive would I be for top MBA programs (assuming that I have a decent gmat score) and will my graduate or undergrad GPA carry more weight?
Post MBA: I'll probably return to my current employer or I would like to move into private equity.
To what extent does graduate gpa not matter? And also, surely a postgrad (I.e masters) from a top school is favourable...or does it really all come down to where you studied your undergrad?
I'm curious. What made you decide on those masters?
The subjects always interested me and I thought I wanted to be a Foreign Service Officer. The thought of getting stuck in Afghanistan for 3 years killed that dream though.
Not sure if it is m7 profile, although if you have a good GMAT, any school after top 25 would be eager to see you.
one question... why do you need an MBA now? you got to be compelling for the MBA Adcoms second question... what can you bring to the table in leadership?
So even a gmat score around 720 wouldn't make me that competitive for an M7?
It's one of those things that I've always planned on getting. My dad, grandfather, and great-grandfather all went to HBS and my brother and uncle went to Stanford. I would like to own my own real estate investment firm at some point and I think an MBA could really strength my managerial skills (and grow my network).
Would already having two masters degrees be an issue for some Adcoms?
I think it will help if you get 720. But note that M7 have those as average--meaning half got in with lesser scores, and half are even better than 720.
I think it doesnt hurt to have pedigrees from HBS/GSB. However, it is not to say that people with HBS/GSB alums are entitled for a spot---if true, they have tons of alums' family members who can say the same thing as you.
if you can bring a delight to b-schools and tell them why it fits you, and how you may bring your knowledge to the table for other diverse MBA students, you may earn a spot; otherwise, why not share this spot to a job seeker, who may make useful of an M7 MBA a lot more than you do? :)
very good question. I'm not an Adcom, so please correct me if I'm wrong by any means, below.
I just thought that: A. two Masters puts his age among "older" applicants; although a typical 5 year WE guy would be only near ~27 in age after UG. I'm guessing he is closer to 30. Schools like early + mature applicants to be "shape-able".
B. He took 2 masters already. But neither are strictly STEM degrees (okay, Idk if that LSE's degree has much math); aside from a proof for STEM abiliity, he also seemed to have made two decisions inconsistent with his goals---why there wasn't a Math / Finance / Quantitative Econ / Real Estate with his previous THREE degrees? Will his goals in SOP be consistent with what he thinks, or will he just deceive Adcom for another degree?
C. Job goals. if he plans to return to current industry, but not for a move-up in management, why MBA? MBA only makes sense for those who wants to break-in into consulting. For private equity, many go into it after 2 years of IB or MBB. He could do that already if he worked hard enough for it.
Lastly, Bschools want people who have goals--not necessarily perfect but drafted plans and tried out. If people are just grabbing M7 MBAs for an option, one probably has a lot more options than just M7 MBA offers.
very good question. I'm not an Adcom, so please correct me if I'm wrong by any means, below.
I just thought that: A. two Masters puts his age among "older" applicants; although a typical 5 year WE guy would be only near ~27 in age after UG. I'm guessing he is closer to 30. Schools like early + mature applicants to be "shape-able".
B. He took 2 masters already. But neither are strictly STEM degrees (okay, Idk if that LSE's degree has much math); aside from a proof for STEM abiliity, he also seemed to have made two decisions inconsistent with his goals---why there wasn't a Math / Finance / Quantitative Econ / Real Estate with his previous THREE degrees? Will his goals in SOP be consistent with what he thinks, or will he just deceive Adcom for another degree?
C. Job goals. if he plans to return to current industry, but not for a move-up in management, why MBA? MBA only makes sense for those who wants to break-in into consulting. For private equity, many go into it after 2 years of IB or MBB. He could do that already if he worked hard enough for it.
Lastly, Bschools want people who have goals--not necessarily perfect but drafted plans and tried out. If people are just grabbing M7 MBAs for an option, one probably has a lot more options than just M7 MBA offers.
Apologies for the late response. I will be turning 29 in the next few months. I will not give the specific firm, but it is McKinsey, BCG or Bain. My career trajectory has been on par with the majority of my peers. Although I did bring in several new clients that are major players in the former Soviet block. My undergrad school is ranked somewhere between 85-100 according to US News.
Outside of work: I am an ambassador for a non-profit. I was responsible for managing the construction of a maternity ward and secondary school in a developing country. I've been at the non-profit for 3 years. I am also on a semi-professional triathlon team (probably doesn't mean much). I've published a handful of articles in academic journals.
Is there any correlation between LSAT score, and say, the performance on the GMAT's verbal section? I got a 175 on the LSAT.
You seem like a smart guy. I'm sure you'll be competitive. That being said, what good would it do you to collect yet another degree?
People on this board have a skewed sense of how difficult it is to get into top programs because they have difficulty hiding their aspergers in their essays and interviews.
You are extremely competitive at any school.
Well executed app should be good for at least one of HSW, lock for top 10.
Do not mention pe in your app. They don't want you to be part of their unemployed statistic because you are holding out for a dream job.
If your math skills are on par with your verbal and logic you should be 750+on GMAT. LSAT is a far more difficult exam.
Agree with the first sentence here - this guy is definitely a lock for the M7, and probably good enough for HSW. I was accepted by schools in the M7 (not HSW - was rejected at the 2 of the 3 I applied to), and his resume blows mine away.
I can't fall asleep for the life of me so I figured that I would go ahead and respond to some of the comments lol. First, thank you for all taking the time to provide me with your feedback. I truly appreciate it and it has helped immensely. DickFuld thank you for bringing up that excellent point. Three masters could very well be excessive and I might start looking like a degree collector.
To clarify my age and a few other things: I am 28 (TWENTY-EIGHT, not 30+ haha!) and will be turning 29 in early August. My masters were done in succession with an internship at the World Bank/IMF between the two. The masters in Russian and East European studies was to expand my research on investment opportunities and economic growth in the former Soviet block. After I graduated, I worked at a major policy think tank in DC where I worked on trade and development policies. I was at this place for 2 years and then landed a job at an MBB in Europe.
@shuang19" please tell me how my masters were inconsistent with my goals at the time? Yeah, my career has been predicated on "deceiving" Adcoms lol. Have you even done anything worthwhile?
LongandShortofit that first sentence made me laugh.
The point of getting an MBA would be to move into a management position. I wouldn't waste my time to go back to doing the same exact thing as shuang erroneously assumed. However, most of the people in senior level positions at my office have PhDs in subjects ranging from biomedical engineering to psychology. So I'm not sure if an MBA would do me that much good in the long run.
feel free to throw monkey poop here. I'm not too worried about those type of things. You always know yourself more than I do--no plans to dispute. Lastly, don't think too hard about your importance--we have some 7 billion people in the world besides you and some VIP clients. That is what you are missing for a M7 MBA. good luck to ya. Not planning to make more comments.
I think you're definitely competitive for M7 schools and I'd be surprised if you don't get into at least one. For reference, I have a friend with two master's degrees who got into an M7 and you have more and better work experience, not to mention it's international experience, which adcoms will value. Your degrees aren't quantitative but I've seen multiple cases where people spun that to say that an MBA (especially at a school like Booth) will give them the quant background that they're lacking and make them more well-rounded. As long as you get around the median on your GMAT you should be fine.
Shuang seems to know the least and make the most comments of anyone here. I wouldn't worry about what he has to say. Highly confident and often wrong is a bad combination.
W and other M7 should be easy but HS may be a bit stretch mainly because of age. Typical MBB applicants for HS are 24-26 years old. It becomes increasingly difficult to get into HS after certain age for typical blue chip candidates.
That being said OP has some interesting background so I'd say a really impressive/convincing story would help.
Btw, not being critical but I would be nice to anyone spend time replying my post. Also you will be 30 at matriculation (assume you apply for 2018 class)
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