Hello,
Can someone please evaluate my profile? I am looking at top 10 schools, with Dartmouth and Columbia as my top 2 choices. Harvard and Stanford of course would be a dream reach.
Age: 26 (would enter B-School at age 27)
GMAT: 710
Demographic: Asian-American (Born in U.S.)
Graduated from a private U.S. tier-1, Top-20 institution (GPA: 3.4), Liberal Arts Major with Business Minor
(I transferred after two years from a U.S. top 40 institution to the top-20 institution I graduated from).
4 Years Work Experience:
(All in Financial Services Industry)
1 Year at mid-size local financial firm in S.F. Bay Area
1 Year at small boutique firm
2 Years and Counting at a large, global institutional firm.
Looking to do a career change. Want to do entrepeneurship and/or private equity, particularly in South Korea.
Extra-Curriculars:
(LEADERSHIP)
-Editor for two leading publications on campus
-Was a Resident Assistant (R.A.) in a 300-person dorm.
-Selected for a special seminar to consult with V.P. of Student Affairs and the Dean of my university's business school to design a future class at the university on ethics/leadership.
-Leader of a mentor group for students at Stanford University
(ENTREPENEURSHIP)
-Assisted in successfully executing a business plan for a e-commerce internet business, selling health products (which are prohibitively expensive in Korea) at U.S. Prices to Korea.
-Wrote and developed critical technology patents for an internet start-up company. (A new process that hopes to make transactions more efficient and make credit card companies obsolete.)
-Founder of a grassroots online writing clinic for Koreans to improve their writing skills to assimilate successfully in American culture.
GMAT Forum
2 postsPage 1 of 1
- mkolympic
- Course Students
- Posts: 3
- Joined: Wed May 19, 2010 6:13 pm
- mbamission
- Students
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- Joined: Thu Mar 10, 2005 7:20 pm
Re: Profile Evaluation
Hi MKOlympic
Your application could potentially be strong but there are a few areas of concern, or where I do not have enough information to comment.
A 710 GMAT with your grades will allow you to be in the mix at the top tier of programs - it is neither a point of strength or weakness. Although if your score is heavily lopsided toward verbal or quantitative (less than 80% in either subject area), that could be an issue of concern with the admissions committee.
Although it is common for recent college graduates to frequently switch jobs, an admissions officer might be interested in knowing your reasons for switching twice in two years, so you may want to address this in your personal statement. Of course, it is not just enough to have a good title or work at a well-known company; you need to demonstrate that you were successful in these jobs, whether that take the form of a promotion, exceeding a goal, or creating efficiency. Be sure to focus on what you achieved in your jobs, and how those experiences could be transferable in your post-MBA job.
Your entrepreneurial experience seems to fit in well with your stated goal of working in entrepreneurship in South Korea, and I encourage you to think about dedicating one of your essays to what you learned from this entrepreneurial experience, rather than writing entirely about your full-time jobs and community service.
Your leadership experience caught my attention because it appears to have all occurred during college. By the time you enroll in an MBA you will be 4-5 years removed from college, and the admissions committee is going to wonder what, if any, leadership experience you gained during this time. Sometimes it is helpful to think over the actual projects you worked on during your job or extracurriculars and where there have been instances where you have been required to assert yourself, persuade your peers or leader, or achieve results through creative actions.
Lastly, make sure to do your research on the programs you apply for and find specific reasons why they are a good fit for your long-term goals. This is an area candidates often overlook or do not devote a lot of time to, but it is definitely one of the factors the schools look for.
I think you could be in the mix at Dartmouth and Columbia, but your chances for success will rely heavily on how well you can explain your experiences and post-MBA goals.
Best of luck,
Daniel Richards
mbaMission
http://www.mbamission.com
Read the mbaMission Insider's Guides (14 individual school titles)
Visit the mbaMission Blog
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Your application could potentially be strong but there are a few areas of concern, or where I do not have enough information to comment.
A 710 GMAT with your grades will allow you to be in the mix at the top tier of programs - it is neither a point of strength or weakness. Although if your score is heavily lopsided toward verbal or quantitative (less than 80% in either subject area), that could be an issue of concern with the admissions committee.
Although it is common for recent college graduates to frequently switch jobs, an admissions officer might be interested in knowing your reasons for switching twice in two years, so you may want to address this in your personal statement. Of course, it is not just enough to have a good title or work at a well-known company; you need to demonstrate that you were successful in these jobs, whether that take the form of a promotion, exceeding a goal, or creating efficiency. Be sure to focus on what you achieved in your jobs, and how those experiences could be transferable in your post-MBA job.
Your entrepreneurial experience seems to fit in well with your stated goal of working in entrepreneurship in South Korea, and I encourage you to think about dedicating one of your essays to what you learned from this entrepreneurial experience, rather than writing entirely about your full-time jobs and community service.
Your leadership experience caught my attention because it appears to have all occurred during college. By the time you enroll in an MBA you will be 4-5 years removed from college, and the admissions committee is going to wonder what, if any, leadership experience you gained during this time. Sometimes it is helpful to think over the actual projects you worked on during your job or extracurriculars and where there have been instances where you have been required to assert yourself, persuade your peers or leader, or achieve results through creative actions.
Lastly, make sure to do your research on the programs you apply for and find specific reasons why they are a good fit for your long-term goals. This is an area candidates often overlook or do not devote a lot of time to, but it is definitely one of the factors the schools look for.
I think you could be in the mix at Dartmouth and Columbia, but your chances for success will rely heavily on how well you can explain your experiences and post-MBA goals.
Best of luck,
Daniel Richards
mbaMission
http://www.mbamission.com
Read the mbaMission Insider's Guides (14 individual school titles)
Visit the mbaMission Blog
Follow mbaMission on Twitter
Download the mbaMission Webinar, Demystifying the MBA Admissions Process
2 posts Page 1 of 1