Strengthen My Profile

[Dillonfriedman]

Hello and thanks for reviewing my profile. I am planning to apply to a top 10 B school (Wharton is my dream school for reasons I do not wish to detail here) in three or four years:

Undergrad: graduated from University of San Diego with a BA International Relations, 3.46 GPA, in May 2009. Interned in Hong Kong for Summer 2008 and went back to HK to study in Jan 2009.

Grad Studies: Working on a Certificate of International Studies at Johns Hopkins SAIS in DC. I'll be finished before I apply. SAIS offers a number of economics and statistics courses I plan on taking to boost my resume's competitiveness, given my "low" quant score on the GMAT.

Work Experience: 6 months living and working in Sydney, Australia as a bar back June 2009 to Dec 2009. 1 year and counting at a top government consultancy as an information security engineer and defense research analyst in DC Metro area.

Certifications: I am planning to get three certs related to my job: CIPP, CIPP/G, and PMP. I'll probably also go for a CAPM before the PMP but I haven't decided. I also have a security clearance. Don't know if that's relevant but there you have it

Extracurricular Activities: Co-President of one of the largest internal communities at my place of work (related specifically to outdoor activities like hiking, white water rafting, bungee jumping, etc.) Member of USD DC Alumni Event Planning Committee. Member of USD Young Alumni Network Bylaws and Structure Committee. DC Kickball. Eagle Scout

GMAT (practice): 700 (Q44V42). Planning to take later this year.

Let me know how I can improve as I always have some time on my hands... Thanks again.

DWF

[mbamission]

Hi DWF,

Thanks for writing in. The best part of knowing so far in advance that you will be applying to business school is you can now spend the next three years thinking through the lens of your application. A few thoughts come to mind:

1) Can you add a more traditional charitable organization to your extracurriculars, even better if you can secure a leadership role. Your leadership in the work group is good to list, as is Eagle Scout, but since you are so active already it would be great if you could diversify the activities a bit.

2) Think about the most common MBA essay themes, and then keep a running list of how you would answer those questions today. As you progress over the next two years, write down any new examples that would help you answer those questions as they arise. For example, after meeting an intense deadline -- what did you learn or experience that you could write about for your essays? By recording this info as it happens, your details will be more vivid and your memory more clear than if you have to write about it down the road.

3) Lastly, iron out your "Why MBA" story as much as possible. This is a staple essay question and one candidates struggle with, so use this extra time to build up your answer.

Best of luck!

Daniel Richards
daniel@mbamission.com