<p>Hi all,</p>
<p>I'm currently a graduating senior from UC Davis and I'm looking to see if I can get into any decent B-schools. My stats are as follows:</p>
<p>GPA - 3.78
Major - Economics
Minors - Applied Mathematics and Statistics
Work Experience - Yes
GMAT - 770</p>
<p>Since this is all new to me, I'm not quite sure what schools I should shoot for. I intend to work a few more months at where I am at currently.</p>
<p>I would really appreciate any advice. Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>Does the placement office at Davis provide any services to students planning on a graduate business school degree? I would think the professors in the business school or your own department could provide some useful advice, and may be able to put you in touch with colleagues at schools you might want to attend. Don't forget your alumni network as a resource.</p>
<p>"Work experience" is not a yes/no question. They'll want to know length of time, what you did, how fast you advanced, what your responsibilities were. That's the most important part of this whole thing.</p>
<p>How do you have work experience if you are a graduating senior? Part-time and internships don't really count towards what MBA programs are looking at. They only contribute to helping you get the jobs that MBA programs will evaluate.</p>
<p>Yes, you have a <em>chance</em> at top programs without work experience. Your profile will have to be both exceptional and exceptionally striking to the adcom for you to get in. If you're set on going to b-school as soon as possible and don't mind the expense of applying, throw your hat in the ring. Know also that you may well get rejected from all the top schools to which you apply.</p>
<p>Why not just get a job?</p>
<p>Very impressive GPA and GMAT, but work for at least 3 years.</p>
<p>Just get a job.</p>
<p>3 years?? I believe that is too much, beacuse you will get back to study when you get in to an MBA program. My roommate who worked for couple years before he got into jhu, but once he started mba he suffered from not being able to study for long hours anymore, so he just quit. </p>
<p>JHU requires at least one year work experiment as an application requirement btw.</p>
<p>3 years is almost certainly less than average for top-tier MBA programs. In any case the coursework itself is not all that difficult in an MBA, and motivation is typically not short in top-tier MBA candidates.</p>
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3 years?? I believe that is too much
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<p>This seems to be a recurring theme in this forum. Undergrads think they don't need work experience, but graduates think they do.</p>
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but once he started mba he suffered from not being able to study for long hours anymore, so he just quit.
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<p>It can be tougher to study when you are far removed from undergrad (3 yrs is not long though) However, if you aren't able to study for long hours, you probably aren't cut out to work an MBA level job.</p>
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JHU requires at least one year work experiment as an application requirement btw.
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<p>But JHU does not have a good MBA program. Aside from that, most programs do not have a definitive "requirement" but may make a recommedation...if the suggested amount is two years it is quite likely that it is very difficult to get into the program with that little of experience (if the program is any good).</p>
<p>isn't it widely accepted that undergrads should work around 3~5 years before pursuing MBA?</p>
<p>get a job, don't waste getting a ****ty mba just for the sake of getting an mba. Spend 4-5 years, find out what you like, which industry and firm, then go back to school for your mba.</p>
<p>I wouldn't say 4-5 years is average, most people at Mckinsey or BCG spend two years as an associate and go get their MBA and most at GS or MS spend two years as an analyst and go get their MBA.</p>
<p>Uh yea, because there are thousands of people who work in consulting and IBanking.</p>
<p>Well if you want a good chance at a top B school you should...</p>
<p>You have the academics, now go get a good job and have great job progression for 4-5 years.</p>
<p>"I wouldn't say 4-5 years is average, most people at Mckinsey or BCG spend two years as an associate and go get their MBA and most at GS or MS spend two years as an analyst and go get their MBA."</p>
<p>Look at the class profiles of any of the top 10 MBA programs, which, at least, when I was applying regarded to be Stanford, Harvard, Wharton, Northwestern (Kellogg), Dartmouth (Tuck), UChicago, Sloan (MIT), Columbia, UMichigan, UVA (Darden) and you will see the average student with about five years experience, with 80% having between 3-6 years experience. For the most part, the remaining 20% have more than six years, as opposed to less than three. </p>
<p>In the early 1980s until the early 1990s, people would work at Goldman or BCG for two years and then go back to school, which is kind of why these analyst programs were created because before ~1980 many would get an MBA directly after college. This has since changed and is why banks and consulting firms have third year analyst positions. Typically, the best third year analysts will apply for an MBA or remain with the firm in a post-MBA position as an associate and the rest will get another job before going back for an MBA. There's a whole recruiting mechanism within hedge funds and private equity firms (among other industries) focused on hiring 2nd and 3rd year analysts at investment banks and consulting firms; many of whom they realize have an eye for going back to business school within a few years.</p>
<p>Many of these third year analysts find that they don't really need to get an MBA after all if they are not switching careers. If they stay in the securities business and have a solid finance background, their performance speaks louder than any graduate degree. Having an MBA for them makes little difference, it's more like a window dressing.</p>
<p>One doesn't need an MBA to work in hedge fund/PE if you have IB experience. My son is an example. He's fourth year post graduate from undergrad Wharton. Among his many classmates, only one has gone back to school.</p>