Hi! In the coming months, I’m going to need to narrow down my search for the best MBA program possible with my grades and experience. My goal has been for some time now to be accepted into Stern NYU. With my current grades and experience, what schools should I be looking at and is NYU a reasonable possibility and/or what do I need to improve to be accepted into NYU?
-Native American student from West Virginia
-GPA- 3.3
-GMAT- 680
-Founded a non profit organization helping low income students find and apply to colleges in my hometown
-Intern for a consulting company in NYC this summer
How long ago did you finish undergrad? What have you done in the mean time? Your GPA matters less and less depending on the time when you were in undergrad and what you have accomplished in the mean time. Your GMAT and GPA is a bit low for the top tier of schools, but you are an excellent candidate from a diversity standpoint (there are close to zero NA MBA students). If you could improve your GMAT score 30-40 points that would make a big difference. If you only have a year or two of work experience that will make entry much more difficult, and it will also be a waste of time for you.
I’m currently in my senior year of undergrad
You need to look into Graduate Horizons. Harvard, Duke, Georgetown, UMich among the current B schools as partners. I think the grad program, unlike the undergrad program, is only held every other year. There’s still webinars you can participate in and I’m sure they can put you in touch with programs.
http://www.graduatehorizons.org
You can register on their site to be added to their mailing list for workshops. They’re really big on “fit”: the right student at the right school, so you’ll be able to do well at the program.
From their website:
“Graduate Horizons is designed to align with the multicultural-diversity outreach initiatives of a college/university’s Office of Admissions. We understand that Indian Country is vast - comprised of 310 geographical reservations and 40 Indian Statistical Areas (29 located in Oklahoma), 200 Alaska Native villages, over 563 federally recognized and 200 state recognized tribal nations, and the islands of Native Hawaiian homelands. We also know that Native American and Native Hawaiian students continue to be the most underrepresented minority population on college campuses. Graduate Horizons brings to campus a competitive and talented pool of 100 American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian college students and college graduates. Students have the opportunity to study and reside on-site, take a campus tour and informational session, and use the facilities and resources of the university to gain first-hand experience of what the school has to offer.”
I don’t know about the grad program, but for the high school/college program, you need to have tribal enrollment, a CDIB, and/or letter from your tribe’s registrar stating you are eligible for membership. I assume it’s the same at the grad level.