Chances of being accepted to top MBA program with foreign military experience?

Graduate School Business School - MBA
1

<p>I know this sounds petty, but I think that this thread would prove to useful for applicants with foreign military experience. I would just like to get a few opinions on how adcoms from top five business schools view foreign military service and how that affects chances of being admitted. </p>

<p>Here's some information about me:
Dual citizenship: American and Israeli
University of Colorado - 2007
GPA - 3.4
Non-profit work in Israel with international social entrepreneurship organization. 8 months as project manager.
Israeli Defense Forces - 2008-Present. Was squad leader (leading 5 men). Now I am a section commander (leading an average of 50 men). I will be released in August 2010.
GMAT - 730
Project leader for non-profit in USA for 3 years.
-26 years old</p>

<p>Assuming I will garner stellar recommendations from a military source, a non-profit source and an academic source, and that I will write stellar essays, I would like to get some opinions on the following things:</p>

<p>-How is an applicant's leadership in a foreign military perceived by a top 5 business school? All things equal (like leadership positions, duration of military experience) how would foreign military experience be looked at compared to American military experience?
-At the end of my service in August 2010, I will have served 2 years, having commanded large teams for 6 months. Would this relatively short amount of time in a leadership position really be a sore spot of an application to a top five business school?
-Is my profile competitive in general?</p>

<p>Thanks in advance of your comments.</p>

2

<p>Military experience is often viewed positively, particularly with demonstrated leadership experience.</p>

<p>What did you study undergrad? That will have a bearing with more quantitative a major being better. A 3.4 at Colorado will be measured through a prism of difficulty of major. CU is a great school, but a liberal arts degree won’t be considered quite rigorous. Why are you focusing on top 5? Widen it to top 10 and apply to a few. And put one or two top 15/20 safety school in there as well.</p>

<p>Just my opinion…</p>

3

<p>I’ll take this guy’s experience over a 2 year stint as an analyst at Morgan Stanley or Goldman Sacks any time. However, what the business school is going to question with the 3.4 GPA from U of Colorado is: Can the OP handle the rigorous academic work at the top business school. This is partly answered by the relatively high GMAT score. As suggested previously, look at the top ten schools, not just the top five.</p>