<p>Just a question--how much importance do the top business schools (i.e. Harvard, Wharton, etc.) place upon an applicant's grades in their very first semester? or even in their entire freshman year?</p>
<p>Unlike Medical and Law School, GPA is not that important to MBA programs. If you go to a respected university, a 3.5 GPA will pretty much get you into most MBA programs, provided you have excellent work experience, great recs, good essays and a 700 on your GMAT. </p>
<p>This said, you obviously cannot afford starting your first year with a 2.0 GPA. If your first year GPA is 3.0, you are ok provided you can finish with at least a 3.4 cummulative GPA.</p>
<p>On the other hand, if you go to an average university, then GPA becomes important. You will not have a shot at a top MBA program if you do not graduate with an amazing GPA.</p>
<p>Thanks for that info. I'm just worried because I'm a freshman at Cornell University, and have started my college career off somewhat poorly. I'm thinking I'll be getting mostly B's this semester, but I'm worried that I'll get as low as a C in my international relations class. However, now that I've learned the consequences of procrastination, I think I'll be much better during the spring semester. I'm just worried that this first semester will penalize me in the long run when I apply to top MBA programs.</p>
<p>I wouldn't worry too much. If your first semester, you get a 3.0 GPA, you can easily make up for it in the future. Besides, Cornell is famous for being difficult. So if you can maintain a good GPA, you will be in a good position to get into a top MBA program. I posted somehwere else that Cornell sends 25 students to Wharton annually. Only Penn itself, Harvard and Princeton send more students to Wharton.</p>
<p>Well, let's keep in mind that Cornell undergrad is the largest undergrad of all the Ivies, and so it would make sense that they would send lots of their former undergrads to B-school, just because they have lots of former undergrads in general. </p>
<p>However, I do agree with the gist of Alexandre's posts.</p>
<p>Hi Alexandre, what's the chance for someone with a ~2.5 GPA at an average UC (Univ. of CA) to get into a MBA program? The person, whom I'll refer to as S, simply wants to get into some MBA program, not the top programs being discussed here. S only has 1 year+ of work expereince, but some good recs could be expected. Also, what kind of GMAT scores should S get to be considered for admission? Thanks in advance.</p>
<p>Is nyu stern considered a top notch university if i want a mba ? what gpa should i get? how long should i work before applying for grad school?</p>
<p>Grades do matter, but not as much as they do for med/law school. If you scan the list of U.S. News' top 30 MBA programs, you'll notice that the average GPA is probably between 3.25-3.4, except for the top few. But even then, their averages aren't that high. At H/S/W, usually their average GPA is around 3.5-3.6. If you did your undergraduate degree at a school with a great academic reputation, they will give you a little more leeway than if you went to a small state school. Another thing they'd like to see on your transcripts is improvement. Even if you had a tough first semester, if you bring it up and continue an upward trend, they like to see that. </p>
<p>eddiepferd - </p>
<p>Getting into an MBA program with a 2.5 GPA at a UC and only one year of work experience will be tough. In my opinion, your friend should not apply yet. He can probably get into some MBA program, maybe a Cal State school, but your friend has to figure out if doing the MBA at this point in their career at a Cal State or another lower-ranked school is worth the time and money. Your friend should not, as you say, "simply want to get into some MBA program." The MBA is a serious degree, and the admissions folks do not want to accept someone who hasn't thought things through. Along with GPA and GMAT, the most important aspect of the application is the essays, and it doesn't sound like your friend would be able to put together a compelling case to get in.</p>
<p>I guess if he wants to be competitive with a 2.5 at an average B-school, your friend should aim for a GMAT score over 650. But remember that MBA programs look at the whole package, and the GMAT is just part of one large application. </p>
<p>One of my friends did his undergraduate degree in business and finance at Wharton, but had a sub-3.0 GPA. He had 4 years of great work experience at a number of different places, and he rose to manager status at his most recent employer. His GMAT was 770, and he still was not able to get in to the programs he applied to. Granted, he applied to H/S/W, Haas, and Anderson, but he said it was his GPA that was killing him. So to make up for this, both my friend and your friend HAVE to write great essays.</p>
<p>mattistotle - </p>
<p>NYU Stern is a great university for getting an MBA. It's hard to pinpoint an exact GPA that you should get, but I figure that their average is probably 3.4-3.5. Their average GMAT is 700, and their middle 80% range is 650-750. Their average amount of work experience is about 5 years. Keep in mind that these are averages, so there will be people above the average as well as people below it. But of course, you stand a much better chance if you are above the average than below it. To be accepted and be below the curve, you've got to really write some dynamite essays.</p>
<p>hi, I'm currently studying in a Canadian university's commerce program (University of British Columbia). I received 82% (3.7 gpa) in my first year, and 86% (4.0 gpa) in my second year. However, because of MASSIVE procrastination this semester in my third year, I received several B's and even one C (60%). Basically, I have done quite poorly this entire semester. I am very involved in lots of extracurriculars. I wonder whether the several poor grades will have a huge effect on applying to grad schools if I receive a 3.5 or 3.6 gpa when I graduate? I was aiming for Harvard, Columbia, and Cornell Business Schools... I wonder what my chances are now. Thanks.</p>
<p>Well, it's hard to assess your chances now. Like I said, the essays are HUGE, and a lot of what you write about in your essays is your work experience and your experiences as a leader. Just get the best GPA you can and get a great job. Work for 3-4 years, then hopefully you'll have done enough as a professional to make you an attractive candidate.</p>