<p>I'm posting this for a friend. By the time she applies, she will have had 3 years of work experience with a major corporation, but the work involved isn’t exactly high level stuff (think HR/PR)</p>
<p>Profile (when she applies)
-25/26 years old
-Female
-Graduated from a mid tier UC with honors (3.8 GPA)
-GMAT score (estimate) 600-620
-3 years of work experience
-Great recommendations
-Good interview skills</p>
<p>I think that University of Arizona, ASU, Pepperdine, University of Oregon, and University of San Diego would all be nice fits for her, but I'm hardly an expert when it comes Business schools. Any suggestions? Are schools like USC and University of Washington reaches?</p>
<p>Is she a bad test taker? She should be shooting for at least a 700 on the GMAT IMO. She would be weak on work experience and below average on age. Her GPA would be great for any school. What is in-state for her?</p>
<p>I'm not very impressed with the list of schools you believe would be nice fits for her. For example, the starting salary out of Pepperdine is only 72k (it is IN CALIFORNIA). Also, it's a private school so tuition is high.</p>
<p>She could get a higher GMAT and/or wait an extra year or two and go to a top 20 school.</p>
<p>then again she is a woman, so lets be honest. With only about 20-30% female classes she probably stands a little better chance. bump her GMAT to 650 and it's even better.</p>
<p>She's a bright person, but not a great test taker. She scored 1200 on the SAT. She studied with SAT prep books, but did not take one of those expensive classes or have a private tutor. Can her GPA make up for her GMAT score? She is instate in California.</p>
<p>She has always done well in school - ~4.0 GPA in high school, 3.8 GPA in college.</p>
<p>I thought that UC Irvine might also be a nice fit for her, but the average GMAT score there is 670. Maybe Indiana? Santa Clara?</p>
<p>I know that she would prefer to stay on the West Coast after getting her MBA. I was thinking that it might be better for her to get her MBA from a West Coast school since typically MBA students generally stay in the area of their college.</p>
<p>Where people get jobs from what I've read
Iowa (Midwest)
Indiana (Midwest, East Coast)</p>
<p>Any suggestions? I'm looking for specific schools that she should aim for. She is looking for a full term program where there is a good sense of community.</p>
<p>I just think she would be short changing herself if she didn't aim for top schools and if she doesn't try to shoot for a higher GMAT score. To a point, the GPA will make up for the GMAT score. However, it's not like she had 3.8 in engineering. Schools could always take a low GMAT score as "her undergrad course work wasn't that challenging."</p>
<p>IMO, she should get a 650 on her GMAT (unless she has already taken many practice tests and is convinced she can't do this, then I'm not convinced that she can't) and shoot for UCLA Anderson and USC Marshall. If she gets a 700+ on her GMAT she should be shooting for Stanford.</p>
<p>The most important factor is still going to be work experience though. I personally don't see a major issue with HR/PR. However, is this an area where she can show career progression...especially in only 3 years? </p>
<p>An MBA is about making connections and becoming part of a network. If a person wants to work on the West Coast they should get an MBA on the West Coast (except for rare instances..ie admits to Harvard or Wharton; or someone looking for a very specialized MBA program).</p>
<p>BTW, the Average GMAT at UC Irvine is 670 but the range (25%-75%) is 600-730.</p>
<p>GPA doesnt mean much. It's probably one of the lowest factors. Schools and classes are too different to weigh GPA equally. Also, some classes stick to a straight bell curve meaning only the top 10% of the class gets an "A". Depending on the competativeness and placement of the school, this can be very easy or very difficult. the GMAT plays a much more important roll in applying to MBA's because, like the SAT, it's weighted equally for everyone.</p>
<p>3 years of experience will be fine, but nothing impressive. As Vector said, it will be difficult to show any advancement in such a short time unless she's in a Management program or she can really sell herself in her essays and interviews.</p>
<p>If she's not a test taker, then I would definately suggest taking a class to prep. To be honest, if she's dead set on going to an MBA program, what's 1200 dollars compared to what you're about to spend on a 2 year program. The GMAT is completely different than the SAT in test taking style and knowing how to take the test is almost as important as knowing what's on the test.</p>