<p>Hello,</p>
<p>So I'm currently teaching English to pre-schoolers in South Korea (not exactly the precursor to MBA admissions) and will be doing so for the next year. It is my first year out of school. I went to a middle of the road state school in the southeast and graduated Summa with a 3.98 GPA in Economics (1 B+ in French 310 my first semester... yikes!). During my university tenure, I studied abroad in France as well as worked for the US Dept of State in Washington DC. I managed to do this and graduate a year early. After graduating, I moved to the northeast area of Brazil for the summer where I lived with a family, learning the language (nothing official, though). After that, I hopped over here to South Korea and started teaching English. Now that I've settled in my job here, it's time to really start making serious decisions about the future. I know my education is not over yet. After a short 3 years in school, and nearly half that time away from campus, I find myself wanting. </p>
<p>Well my resume to this point seems to be perfectly designed for a career at USAID or as a foreign service officer, but that's not really where my heart is. I want to pursue a career where I can problem solve at an international level, without as much of the bureaucracy of government. I'm thinking something like logistics planning, although admittedly I'm quite early in the search and am certainly open any suggestions you may have. </p>
<p>So what are my next steps? I know that something in this area will ultimately require me to get an MBA, but I'm not sure if I really have the chops to get into a top school, considering my limited and unrelated job experience. I know Thunderbird highly values international experience, but even their suggested work experience is 2 years, which I still won't have after this time in Korea. What about other schools with good internationally focused programs? </p>
<p>And if I should need a job, what would be the best strategy, preparation wise? I really just need a good place to start.</p>
<p>I would suggest that you take a good hard look at the companies you want to work for and the ultimate position you want to obtain. Hopefully you can get an entry level job with them and work for at least two years and obtain some management experience before apply to business school. It is very important to find the right job(do your research) and/or take an internship position with that company. You do seem to have the right credentials for thunderbird and it would be an excellent fit for you. I think you would be a competitive candidate. Good luck!</p>
<p>business related experience isn’t required for top school, but it will help. You can get in with non-traditional background; however, you need have a strong application with solid goals.</p>
<p>from the description of your goal, it seems that a MPP degree (Masters in Public Policy) would better suit your need. have you looked into public affair schools?</p>
<p>liu02bhs, I haven’t really looked at an MPP because I don’t quite see how I could end up doing some sort of problem solving for a company at an international level with this degree. Maybe a similar government position, but that’s not really my cup of tea. If you feel differently, then I’m certainly all ears.</p>
<p>sonic2000, do you think it would still be okay if this entry level position wasn’t exactly with a top company? I feel like my undergrad school might hold me back from the more well-known companies. And how easy is it to get an internship when I’ve already finished my undergrad? I will be sitting on some cash when I leave Korea, so I could stand to go unpaid for a little while.</p>
<p>As for Thunderbird, how is the school viewed by employers?</p>
<p>I believe there are considerable amount of benefits working for the “big dog,” especially the fact that most will more than not only encourage but will finance your way through business school - but dont’ fret about obtaining a job at the top of the top a fortune 500 could do. More importantly take a job in a company you will bring you closer to your goals even if you have to take on a job at a smaller company. In my experience, yes it would be difficult to obtain an internship if you weren’t in school, but I would try your schools career center and find some job posting on the job you would interested in and while your at it have them spot check your resume. Internships at large corporations are always paid internships, rarely unpaid. Be aggressive in your job search, and start going to interviews to build the confidence up. Remember, your resume is key to getting you an interview, so make that perfect. You wouldn’t know, but there are literally 100’s of applicants for one position and one grammar mistake can turn your resume into a basketball.</p>