Do I have a chance?

Graduate School Business School - MBA
1

<p>I was hoping people may express opinions on my chances of getting into an MBA program or financial engineering program. I obviously would love to get into a Top 5 B School, but I want to hear what my realistic chances are. I am interested in knowing where I fit in.</p>

<p>Undergrad was done at a large, midwest State university that is reputable. There I had a cumulative GPA of about 3.35 majoring in Economics and Statistics (double major). I scored a 700 on my GMAT, and have what I think would be good recommendations from two staff members, and potential for others from future work experience (see below).</p>

<p>I have a couple concerns; however, I have a class taken my Sophomore year showing a No Credit. It was a financial mathematics course and although not in the major coursework is relative to major. Freshman year I also have a course appearing as a withdrawal. There is a long explanation as to why, but matter of fact it is on my transcript. Finally, would I need to retake the GMAT or does it hold value for four years?</p>

<p>Finally for work experience, I have had three internships, two in the insurance industry, and one additional one. I plan to join the military, through Officer Candidate School upon graduation. This has already been determined, so I am not really interested whether you think this is a good idea or not (I apologize for being blunt, but I have heard everyones opinion on this). After a four year service commitment I would like to pursue an MBA. </p>

<p>One last point is I had good involvement in school as an undergrad, but I am unsure whether that will be significant 4+ years later.</p>

<p>Thanks for your help, and if you have ideas to improve my resume please feel free to let me know.</p>

2

<p>Don’t sweat the concerns about your undergrad transcript. It isn’t all that uncommon to have a stumble or two as an underclassman and if you plan on applying to B school after a 4-year hitch in the military, what you did as an 18-year old just won’t be that relevant. </p>

<p>I don’t know what the military is like these days, but back in the old days when I was on active duty I had LOTS of spare time and I wish I had taken advantage of that time and done a better job of preparing myself for grad school. </p>

<p>I recommend that you reach out to someone in admissions at one of the schools you want to attend. See if they will talk to you about your undergrad degree, the requirements for admission to that school, and what you can do to better prepare yourself in the 4 years before you apply. They may recommend an online course or two you should take to better position yourself as an applicant.</p>