Profile Evaluation

[chayes05]

Hi,

I was hoping you could evaluate my profile:

Target Schools, top 25:
- Columbia (early app), UVA, NYU, UCLA, USC, UT-Austin

GMAT:
1st => 650 (42 Quant / 36 Verbal)
2nd => 670 (45 Quant / 36 Verbal)

Education:
Graduated 3.6 GPA from top-50 undergrad program with double major in Finance & Management

Job Experience (all in NYC):
- 2005 - 2006: Worked at small technology company working as the business contact with clients of software, providing support to equity capital markets users.
- 2006 - to Present. At bulge bracket US Investment Bank in Market Risk Management Dept. Work in the Mortgage Trading Risk Mgmt group, I was promoted after 1.5 years, invited to stay on after my firm was acquired. Have had broad exposure to a variety of activities across different types of mortgage securities; pricing, cash flow analytics, stress analysis, VaR, etc.

Activities:
- Participated with various volunteer income tax associations, assisting low-income families complete tax returns (in college and now).
- Variety of volunteer activities through NY Cares
- College activities; President of Fraternity, Member of Leadership Council for the American Cancer Society.

Career Goals:
Focus on Finance & Management, interested in starting in a new direction.

- What weaknesses would you suggest I address before applying for 2010 admission?
- I'm scheduled to retake the GMAT, but assuming my score remains the same, do you see the schools listed as a reasonable mix of reach, competitive, & safety?

Thanks!

- Chris

[mbamission]

Hi Chris,

Thank you for the detailed description of your profile and your interests. I think that you are doing the right thing in terms of preparing to retake the GMAT. You will be in a better position for the schools you are interested in if you can improve your score by another 30 points or so. You’ll also want to pay attention to the breakdown of the verbal and quantitative score. If you can score in the 80th percentile or better for both, that will allay any fears the Admissions Committees might have about your abilities in either area.

The set of schools you plan to apply to is a good set for you, with some reach and some safety. Given the fact that you have worked exclusively in finance, majored in finance and plan to stay in finance after business school, it will be important for you to highlight your leadership outside of work and be specific about your post-business school goals so that the AdComs understand why you need or want an MBA.

If you do not feel that you already have meaningful experiences you can write about for your extracurricular activities, it is not too late to make a meaningful contribution in some of the organizations that you work with. In addition, you will want to think about the contributions you have made at work with respect to business processes or people leadership so that you can distinguish yourself from applicants with a similar professional background. I hope this helps!

Sincerely,
Akiba Smith-Francis
MBA Mission

646-485-8844

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