MBA Math Or Pre-Calc Class then Calculus Class

[Guest]

I am going to apply for 2010, by then I will have 5 years of experience and will be 29. I haven’t sat for the GMAT, I plan to do so this spring. What is going to "ding" me is my GPA, its overall 2.5 due to a family situation I had no control over and needed to work through my entire undergrad career.

I read an article that I could take a Calculus class at a community college to build an alternate transcript to submit with my application. However I never took calc in college, (I hold a BS in Finance) the community college I want to take the Calc class at is requiring a Pre-Calc class, then Calc class. I have enrolled in the Pre-calc class which starts in two weeks, but if the Calc class is not available during the summer I would have to take it fall of 09 and would not receive my Calc grade until after the second round deadlines for some of the schools I am considering.

I came across another alternative called MBA Math, www.mbamath.com/status/applying.htm it’s a self paced course used by Georgetown, INSEAD, LBS, Ross, Sloan and many others. It’s designed as a brush up course for skills in finance, accounting, microeconomics, statistics, and spreadsheets for incoming MBA students. They have a transcript to send to the schools I am applying to once I am finished to show my abilities. My question is should I take the
Pre-calc and Calc class or MBA Math? I feel the MBA Math would be more beneficial due to the fact it would show my abilities in classes I would be taking at the MBA level. I am also open to any other suggestions.
Thank you.

[MBAApply]

It doesn't really matter -- just take the classes that best fit your schedule and interest you. One is not "better" than the other in the adcom's eyes.

Alex Chu
alex@mbaapply.com
www.mbaapply.com
http://mbaapply.blogspot.com

[Guest]

Alex,
If I took a calc class or MBA Math and did very well, what do the adcom’s begin to think compared if I had not taken the extra step? Have you heard of students having success taking this route?

[MBAApply]

You're over analyzing this. Take a few classes (whatever combo) that best suits your schedule. Nothing can take away a bad GPA except for a time machine -- taking extra courses like this is solely damage control to at least provide some hard evidence that your low GPA wasn't due to lack of brains, but lack of effort/discipline/whatever (the lesser of two evils).

Alex Chu
alex@mbaapply.com
www.mbaapply.com
http://mbaapply.blogspot.com