Profile Evaluation

[thatsku]

Probably should have my career plans figured out by now, but I'm at a stage where I'm thinking of changing functions...

A bit of background:

2 years as a jr. sell-side research analyst at a boutique fund
- Essentially researched the 10Q, 10K, and DEF14A along with stock price and key developments of companies under coverage, the research supported PM's
- Led a team of 5 on a recurring project

2+ years as an associate at an asset-based shop owned by a national commercial bank (primarily caters to middle market firms and equity sponsors focused on middle market investments)
- Again, researched 10Q and 10K and other filings, built spreadsheets to analyze IS/BS/CF trends to identify prospects, the research/analysis supported the originations team (and has led to many new deals)
- I've since moved away from doing research to train and manage two new hires on a day-to-day basis, in addition to assisting seasoned analysts with their daily research

Graduated with honors w/ 3.6GPA from a top tier public school in california (think a top three in the UC system)
700 GMAT (79% Q, 89% V, 6.0 AWA), and 1440 GRE (92% Q, 93%V, 5.5 AWA)
CFA Level II Candidate
Recurring EC activities throughout the year (project angel food, heal the bay)

I'm happily employed, with that said I would very much like to push myself/career to the next step. My end goal is to get out of commercial banking, and explore the PE and HF paths as career choices (I'd like to stay within finance).

Just wanted to gauge what my chances are with respect to a top 5 program.

Thanks very much.

[mbamission]

Thank you for your question. While your 3.6 GPA and 700 GMAT score are both fine, they are slightly below the averages for the top five schools. I think your professional experience has been good, but based on the information you included, I don't think your leadership experiences are strong enough to be competitive at a top five program. In regards to your community roles, are you a volunteer or do you have a leadership role? A leadership role would stand out more. With that said, based on this limited information, I believe you would be more competitive at schools in the 10-15 range. Best of luck with the application process.

Monica Okrah
mbaMission

[thatsku]

Thank you for your question. While your 3.6 GPA and 700 GMAT score are both fine, they are slightly below the averages for the top five schools. I think your professional experience has been good, but based on the information you included, I don't think your leadership experiences are strong enough to be competitive at a top five program. In regards to your community roles, are you a volunteer or do you have a leadership role? A leadership role would stand out more. With that said, based on this limited information, I believe you would be more competitive at schools in the 10-15 range. Best of luck with the application process.

Monica Okrah
mbaMission

Thanks for the honest feedback Monica.

With respect to community service, I'm not in a leadership role and I'm just volunteering on a regular basis. Not to make excuses, but I'm swamped with work in additional to preparing for the CFA exams (some argue that the CFA is not just an exam, but also a lifestyle choice).

While there's not much I can do about my undergrad GPA (I graduated in 2005), would you recommend that I retake the GMAT and try to reach a higher score?

I wonder what sort of professional leadership experience the top 5 schools are looking for?

Additionally, my dream schools are columbia gsb and chicago booth, I wonder if you have any inputs/experiences with those programs with regards to my background.

Thanks again (you must be swamped with these "profile evals" on here)

[mbamission]

I think your GMAT score is right on the "cusp" since it is just below the 80th percentile. However if you pass the CFA, I think that accomplishment along with your strong GPA can be used as evidence of your quantitative capabilities.

Top MBA programs are looking for leadership in everything that you have done or currently do (in college, your current job and the community). General examples of leadership include launching a club during college, volunteering for challenging projects at work, starting a training program at work, finding unique business opportunities and convincing your managers that your team should pursue them, launching a junior board for a nonprofit, raising thousands of dollars via a fundraiser for a nonprofit, and so forth and so on.

I think the fact that you led a team of five and that you are now managing two new hires can strong examples of leadership. However, given that your profile is not very well rounded and that your GMAT is slightly below average, Chicago and Booth might be reaches for you. You will likely be more competitive at programs like Cornell, Ross, NYU, Duke, UCLA, and Darden.

You should certainly pursue your dream schools, but just keep in mind that you have a weakness in your profile.

I hope this helps!
Monica

[thatsku]

I think your GMAT score is right on the "cusp" since it is just below the 80th percentile. However if you pass the CFA, I think that accomplishment along with your strong GPA can be used as evidence of your quantitative capabilities.

Top MBA programs are looking for leadership in everything that you have done or currently do (in college, your current job and the community). General examples of leadership include launching a club during college, volunteering for challenging projects at work, starting a training program at work, finding unique business opportunities and convincing your managers that your team should pursue them, launching a junior board for a nonprofit, raising thousands of dollars via a fundraiser for a nonprofit, and so forth and so on.

I think the fact that you led a team of five and that you are now managing two new hires can strong examples of leadership. However, given that your profile is not very well rounded and that your GMAT is slightly below average, Chicago and Booth might be reaches for you. You will likely be more competitive at programs like Cornell, Ross, NYU, Duke, UCLA, and Darden.

You should certainly pursue your dream schools, but just keep in mind that you have a weakness in your profile.

I hope this helps!
Monica

Monica,

Your response always helps :-)

Quick question for you:
My 700 overall exam was the 90th percentile, although the quant score was a bit below the 80th percentile. I've heard of the golden 80-80 rule, which means you're good to go if you get above 80th percentile in both quant and verbal sections on the GMAT. Not sure how that rule plays into my score... I definitely don't think my profile is bullet-proof, and many thanks for helping me identify my weaknesses. Again, much much appreciated :-)

As for starting clubs... Actually I did start a club during my undergrad and led the club for two years. Generated about $3k per quarter through various events and donated that money to UNICEF. So I'll be adding that info in my application when the time comes.

Thanks again!

[mbamission]

Glad that I could help! As I mentioned...your quantitivative score is right on the "cusp" so you should probably focus on passing the CFA vs. retaking the GMAT. I think your college leadership will be good to include in your application as well (although if it was far back, it might not be the best story to use for an essay).

Best of luck!

Monica Okrah
mbaMission

I think your GMAT score is right on the "cusp" since it is just below the 80th percentile. However if you pass the CFA, I think that accomplishment along with your strong GPA can be used as evidence of your quantitative capabilities.

Top MBA programs are looking for leadership in everything that you have done or currently do (in college, your current job and the community). General examples of leadership include launching a club during college, volunteering for challenging projects at work, starting a training program at work, finding unique business opportunities and convincing your managers that your team should pursue them, launching a junior board for a nonprofit, raising thousands of dollars via a fundraiser for a nonprofit, and so forth and so on.

I think the fact that you led a team of five and that you are now managing two new hires can strong examples of leadership. However, given that your profile is not very well rounded and that your GMAT is slightly below average, Chicago and Booth might be reaches for you. You will likely be more competitive at programs like Cornell, Ross, NYU, Duke, UCLA, and Darden.

You should certainly pursue your dream schools, but just keep in mind that you have a weakness in your profile.

I hope this helps!
Monica

Monica,

Your response always helps :-)

Quick question for you:
My 700 overall exam was the 90th percentile, although the quant score was a bit below the 80th percentile. I've heard of the golden 80-80 rule, which means you're good to go if you get above 80th percentile in both quant and verbal sections on the GMAT. Not sure how that rule plays into my score... I definitely don't think my profile is bullet-proof, and many thanks for helping me identify my weaknesses. Again, much much appreciated :-)

As for starting clubs... Actually I did start a club during my undergrad and led the club for two years. Generated about $3k per quarter through various events and donated that money to UNICEF. So I'll be adding that info in my application when the time comes.

Thanks again!