| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| AdmissionsConsultants |
Posted - 09/06/2003 : 14:23:41
On behalf of AdmissionsConsultants, I will be available to answer questions and offer insight into the MBA admissions process.
Best of luck with your b-school applications,
David Petersam, University of Chicago MBA ‘96
President
AdmissionsConsultants, Inc.
DPetersam@admissionsconsultants.com
Admissions Consultants
AdmissionsConsultants: Admissions committee experience from the top business schools
AdmissionsConsultants is a comprehensive admissions consultancy that has been helping its clients gain admission into their top-choice business schools for over 7 years. All of our consultants have reviewed applications, conducted admissions interviews, and made accept/reject/waitlist decisions for the top business schools. We have a thorough understanding of the admissions process and know exactly what you need to do to maximize your chances. We work one on one with our clients to provide them with the highest possible level of service. In addition to essay editing services, we also consult our clients on admissions assessments, business school selection, admissions strategies, essay topic selection, interview preparation, letters of reference, pre admissions action plans, and more.
www.admissionsconsultants.com |
| 15 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| AdmissionsConsultants |
Posted - 08/31/2010 : 17:05:57
Hi and thanks for your inquiry.
Hi,
I'm 2 years out from B school, and I need advice. I graduated from a large state school in May of 2008. I had two months between graduation and my first day of "real" work, so I studied for and took the GMAT. I got a respectable 730. My college GPA was a less-than-respectable 3.2. I work for one of the bluest of the blue chip tech companies as a technical consultant. I'll be 26 in November. I really have nothing in the way of leadership/volunteer experience. I'd like to start business school fall 0f 2012. Given that I'm 2 years out, what should I be doing to strengthen my profile/story? As I see it, there are 2 apparent gaps - my undergrad GPA and my leadership experience. What are the best ways to address those shortcomings? Should I take some night classes? Volunteer at the local soup kitchen? Thanks for taking the time to read this. Any input is definitely appreciated.
These are excellent questions which are a bit beyond the scope of this forum but certainly things we can adequately cover within a one hour pre admissions consultation. In short, an alternate transcript and some extracurriculars that will support your probable story themes and not wreak of expediency are in order here.
EDIT: I also want to add that the schools I'm most interest in are (in order) Dartmouth, Duke, UVA, UNC. I've come to term with the fact that I have no chance at the top schools...an likely no chance at Dartmouth and Duke.
Depending on your career progression, you could be competitive at Dartmouth, Duke and possibly other very selective schools with well-prepared applications.
Best of luck on your applications!
Sincerely,
David Petersam
President
AdmissionsConsultants, Inc.
DPetersam@admissionsconsultants.com
www.admissionsconsultants.com/mba/blog.aspx
LIMITED TIME SPECIAL! Order our new business school guide from Amazon.com and deduct $25 from any of our services!
AdmissionsConsultants
703.242.5885
Keep up with us on:
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| kjm |
Posted - 08/22/2010 : 22:20:30
Hi,
I'm 2 years out from B school, and I need advice. I graduated from a large state school in May of 2008. I had two months between graduation and my first day of "real" work, so I studied for and took the GMAT. I got a respectable 730. My college GPA was a less-than-respectable 3.2. I work for one of the bluest of the blue chip tech companies as a technical consultant. I'll be 26 in November. I really have nothing in the way of leadership/volunteer experience. I'd like to start business school fall 0f 2012. Given that I'm 2 years out, what should I be doing to strengthen my profile/story? As I see it, there are 2 apparent gaps - my undergrad GPA and my leadership experience. What are the best ways to address those shortcomings? Should I take some night classes? Volunteer at the local soup kitchen? Thanks for taking the time to read this. Any input is definitely appreciated.
EDIT: I also want to add that the schools I'm most interest in are (in order) Dartmouth, Duke, UVA, UNC. I've come to term with the fact that I have no chance at the top schools...an likely no chance at Dartmouth and Duke. |
| AdmissionsConsultants |
Posted - 08/20/2010 : 14:15:30
Hi and thanks for your follow-up inquiry.
Dear David,
Thanks so much for your help. I felt heavily comforted after reading several pages of this blog regarding admissions from recently graduated undergradues (though I can see the competition). I have some further questions regarding admissions.
Would it be okay to say that I am currently looking for a part-time job during my last year of undergraduate study and make a note of this in my application?
You *could* say this. However, where are you planning to apply? If you are looking at the top schools, they will expect something "better" than this from the applicants they are looking to admit.
Also, for the essays, when it asks for a life experience, can that be anything (even the remotely simple experienes) or does it have to be associated with business?
If something not associated with business best supports your story themes and wow factors, then go for it. Don't hesitate to call us at 703.242.5885 to discuss your candidacy in more detail.
Thanks again!
Best of luck on your applications!
Sincerely,
David Petersam
President
AdmissionsConsultants, Inc.
DPetersam@admissionsconsultants.com
www.admissionsconsultants.com/mba/blog.aspx
LIMITED TIME SPECIAL! Order our new business school guide from Amazon.com and deduct $25 from any of our services!
AdmissionsConsultants
703.242.5885
Keep up with us on:
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| Alcc2068 |
Posted - 08/14/2010 : 23:49:51
Dear David,
Thanks so much for your help. I felt heavily comforted after reading several pages of this blog regarding admissions from recently graduated undergradues (though I can see the competition). I have some further questions regarding admissions.
Would it be okay to say that I am currently looking for a part-time job during my last year of undergraduate study and make a note of this in my application?
Also, for the essays, when it asks for a life experience, can that be anything (even the remotely simple experienes) or does it have to be associated with business?
Thanks again! |
| AdmissionsConsultants |
Posted - 08/14/2010 : 12:56:11
Hi and thanks for your inquiry.
Dear Mr Petersam,
Thank you so much for this service!
My pleasure! 
I was wondering where I stand in terms of my competitiveness. I've decided on schools such as UCLA, UC Berkeley, USC, UCR,etc.
I am currently a college senior with a GPA of 3.87. I have minimal work experience but I have quiet a few extracurricular activities. I am currently in Phi Beta Kappa and I served on my schoo's conduct committee for a year. I have also been on the dean's list for every quarter.
I haven't taken the GMAT yet, but I am currently struggling a bit with it. How high of GMAT would I need and does my lack of work experience and my age (I'm 21) put off my competitiveness?
Excellent question.
A few thoughts. First, make sure you know what you want to get out of your MBA experience and be sure it will help you achieve your future career goals. You only get one shot at an MBA. So, basically, you can't do an MBA from one of the schools listed above and then try to "re do" an MBA from HBS or Stanford down the road.
It is important you have the pre MBA work experience you will need to allow you to get enough out of the program. You can certainly call our office to discuss this in more detail.
Regarding the GMAT score, it will not make up for a lack of work experience. It is part of the academic qualifications hurdle.
Best of luck on your applications!
Sincerely,
David Petersam
President
AdmissionsConsultants, Inc.
DPetersam@admissionsconsultants.com
www.admissionsconsultants.com/mba/blog.aspx
LIMITED TIME SPECIAL! Order our new business school guide from Amazon.com and deduct $25 from any of our services!
AdmissionsConsultants
703.242.5885
Keep up with us on:
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| AdmissionsConsultants |
Posted - 08/14/2010 : 12:51:01
Hi Sid and thanks for your inquiry.
Dear Mr Petersam,
How are you?
1. I am Siddharth from India working for past 14 years in the Indian Army as a Major.
2. Offlate, I have started dwelling on the idea of applying and getting through to a top 10 B school and I would appreciate if you can evaluate my profile based on facts given below and give out my chances of getting there.
3. I finished my schooling with 81% marks in high school and 86% marks in 12th std with science subjects.
4. Thereafter, I was selected for the premier tri-service (Army, Navy and Airforce)Officers training establishment for the Indian Defence forces, i.e. National Defence Academy(NDA). During my stint at NDA, I was trained for 3 years in the subtle nuances of modern day warfare, tactics, combat leadership and expertise in handling arms and ammunition. Apart from these, I also excelled in debate competitions, sports, swimming and wildlife photography. Simulatneously, I also completed my graduation(Bachelor in Sciences) from Jawahar lal Nehru university, New Delhi.
5. After that, I went for advanced training of Army to the Indian Military Academy for 1 year, wherein I was trained to lead an Infantry Platoon(125 men) in war in all types of terrain viz. High altitude, desert, jungle and amphibious environment against a nuclear backdrop. I was also trained for counter insurgency operations.
6. On completion of my precommission training, I was deployed in North eastern sector of India in anti terrorists operations. Therein, I commanded 125 men carrying out surgical military operations resulting in elimination of large number of militants in my area of responsibility and recovery of large cache of arms, ammunition and improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
7. My efforts were well recognised and I was honoured with three gallantry awards including one from the Honourable President of India and the other two from the top military hierarchy.
8. Thereafter, I was posted to Jammu and Kashmir(ladakh sector), the highest battlefield of the world, where I along with my team was responsible to provide optimum logistic support to the field Army.
9. I was then posted to an Aviation support echelon providing logistic backup to the complete Indian Army.
10. In my past 14 years in the Army, I attended various courses of instructions in a wide range of fields from Inventory Management , tactical deployment of Army and bomb disposal at premier training establishments of Army and have topped all of them with very high academic and practical performance.
11. I also served with the elite National Security Guards(NSG), the crack anti-terrorist unit of Government of India for 3 years. During my tenure in NSG, I was selected to be a part of OP black tornedo, which was launched in the wake of terrorist attack on Hotel Taj, Hotel Oberoi and Nariman house in Mumbai on 26 Nov 2008. My operation was a success and I was honoured with a gallantry award from the Chief of Indian Army. In NSG, I extensively carried out many detection and disposal of many bombs and carried out post blast investigations at various sites of incidence.
12. Presently, I am working with an ammunition unit providing ammunition support to the field Army.
13. I have also extensively participated in social causes especially in terrorist infested areas.
14. As of now, I am preparing to take GMAT in Sep and wish to do MBA(finance). The post MBA goal is to get into Investment banking.
15. I would request you to provide me realistic guidance on my chances of getting into top B Schools like Harvard, Wharton, Stanford etc and what in your opinion should be my ideal GMAT score for getting in there?
Regards
Siddharth
With well-prepared applications, it would appear you could be competitive at top 10 schools.
sid
Best of luck on your applications!
Sincerely,
David Petersam
President
AdmissionsConsultants, Inc.
DPetersam@admissionsconsultants.com
www.admissionsconsultants.com/mba/blog.aspx
LIMITED TIME SPECIAL! Order our new business school guide from Amazon.com and deduct $25 from any of our services!
AdmissionsConsultants
703.242.5885
Keep up with us on:
|
| Alcc2068 |
Posted - 08/12/2010 : 19:24:16
Dear Mr Petersam,
Thank you so much for this service!
I was wondering where I stand in terms of my competitiveness. I've decided on schools such as UCLA, UC Berkeley, USC, UCR,etc.
I am currently a college senior with a GPA of 3.87. I have minimal work experience but I have quiet a few extracurricular activities. I am currently in Phi Beta Kappa and I served on my schoo's conduct committee for a year. I have also been on the dean's list for every quarter.
I haven't taken the GMAT yet, but I am currently struggling a bit with it. How high of GMAT would I need and does my lack of work experience and my age (I'm 21) put off my competitiveness? |
| sid |
Posted - 08/03/2010 : 01:09:21
Dear Mr Petersam,
How are you?
1. I am Siddharth from India working for past 14 years in the Indian Army as a Major.
2. Offlate, I have started dwelling on the idea of applying and getting through to a top 10 B school and I would appreciate if you can evaluate my profile based on facts given below and give out my chances of getting there.
3. I finished my schooling with 81% marks in high school and 86% marks in 12th std with science subjects.
4. Thereafter, I was selected for the premier tri-service (Army, Navy and Airforce)Officers training establishment for the Indian Defence forces, i.e. National Defence Academy(NDA). During my stint at NDA, I was trained for 3 years in the subtle nuances of modern day warfare, tactics, combat leadership and expertise in handling arms and ammunition. Apart from these, I also excelled in debate competitions, sports, swimming and wildlife photography. Simulatneously, I also completed my graduation(Bachelor in Sciences) from Jawahar lal Nehru university, New Delhi.
5. After that, I went for advanced training of Army to the Indian Military Academy for 1 year, wherein I was trained to lead an Infantry Platoon(125 men) in war in all types of terrain viz. High altitude, desert, jungle and amphibious environment against a nuclear backdrop. I was also trained for counter insurgency operations.
6. On completion of my precommission training, I was deployed in North eastern sector of India in anti terrorists operations. Therein, I commanded 125 men carrying out surgical military operations resulting in elimination of large number of militants in my area of responsibility and recovery of large cache of arms, ammunition and improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
7. My efforts were well recognised and I was honoured with three gallantry awards including one from the Honourable President of India and the other two from the top military hierarchy.
8. Thereafter, I was posted to Jammu and Kashmir(ladakh sector), the highest battlefield of the world, where I along with my team was responsible to provide optimum logistic support to the field Army.
9. I was then posted to an Aviation support echelon providing logistic backup to the complete Indian Army.
10. In my past 14 years in the Army, I attended various courses of instructions in a wide range of fields from Inventory Management , tactical deployment of Army and bomb disposal at premier training establishments of Army and have topped all of them with very high academic and practical performance.
11. I also served with the elite National Security Guards(NSG), the crack anti-terrorist unit of Government of India for 3 years. During my tenure in NSG, I was selected to be a part of OP black tornedo, which was launched in the wake of terrorist attack on Hotel Taj, Hotel Oberoi and Nariman house in Mumbai on 26 Nov 2008. My operation was a success and I was honoured with a gallantry award from the Chief of Indian Army. In NSG, I extensively carried out many detection and disposal of many bombs and carried out post blast investigations at various sites of incidence.
12. Presently, I am working with an ammunition unit providing ammunition support to the field Army.
13. I have also extensively participated in social causes especially in terrorist infested areas.
14. As of now, I am preparing to take GMAT in Sep and wish to do MBA(finance). The post MBA goal is to get into Investment banking.
15. I would request you to provide me realistic guidance on my chances of getting into top B Schools like Harvard, Wharton, Stanford etc and what in your opinion should be my ideal GMAT score for getting in there?
Regards
Siddharth
sid |
| AdmissionsConsultants |
Posted - 07/26/2010 : 10:38:06
Hi Tom and thanks for your inquiry.
David,
As an applicant who will have 3 years work experience at the beginning of my mba next fall, should I include college internships on my resume?
Excellent question. We normally advise making no more than a quick mention of the internships unless they are very closely tied to your post MBA career ambitions or if they go a long way to successfully differentiating your candidacy.
Thanks
Tom
Best of luck on your applications!
Sincerely,
David Petersam
President
AdmissionsConsultants, Inc.
DPetersam@admissionsconsultants.com
www.admissionsconsultants.com/mba/blog.aspx
LIMITED TIME SPECIAL! Order our new business school guide from Amazon.com and deduct $25 from any of our services!
AdmissionsConsultants
703.242.5885
Keep up with us on:
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| tmartin4 |
Posted - 07/26/2010 : 08:57:03
David,
As an applicant who will have 3 years work experience at the beginning of my mba next fall, should I include college internships on my resume?
Thanks
Tom |
| AdmissionsConsultants |
Posted - 07/15/2010 : 11:45:02
Hello everyone!
I thought you might like to know that we just released a new white paper on the GMAT versus the GRE. You can find this 2-page release at http://www.admissionsconsultants.com/mba/gmat-versus-gre.asp and, as always, we welcome your feedback.
Best of luck on your applications!
Sincerely,
David Petersam
President
AdmissionsConsultants, Inc.
DPetersam@admissionsconsultants.com
www.admissionsconsultants.com/mba/blog.aspx
LIMITED TIME SPECIAL! Order our new business school guide from Amazon.com and deduct $25 from any of our services!
AdmissionsConsultants
703.242.5885
Keep up with us on:
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| AdmissionsConsultants |
Posted - 07/13/2010 : 18:46:58
Hi and thanks for your inquiry.
Hi,
Great forum! The posts here are very informative.
Thanks! :-)
A bit of background on myself: I did the military reserves and college at the same time and ended up with about 3 years of active duty military experience (multiple deployments to the desert, extensive leadership experience) and a degree in business from a no-name state school (3.3 GPA). After that I left the military and I have been working at a small accounting firm for the past year as a CPA. I just took the GMAT and got a 700. The problem is its a 43q (65%) and 42v (95%) My questions are as follows:
- Do you think my low quant score hurts my chances of getting into a top 10 school? (my quant related undergrad grades are all over the place, As, Bs, and Cs)
I would strongly encourage you to consider retaking the GMAT if you are confident you can boost your score. You can peruse our free GMAT test prep section at www.admissionsconsultants.com/gmat and you can always call us at 703.242.5885 for impartial advice on test prep strategies.
- Can you think of any other obvious weaknesses in my application?
I don't have enough here to competently opine on your candidacy. Clearly, the extracurriculars and career goals will be of critical importance.
Thanks!
My pleasure!
Best of luck on your applications!
Sincerely,
David Petersam
President
AdmissionsConsultants, Inc.
DPetersam@admissionsconsultants.com
www.admissionsconsultants.com/mba/blog.aspx
LIMITED TIME SPECIAL! Order our new business school guide from Amazon.com and deduct $25 from any of our services!
AdmissionsConsultants
703.242.5885
Keep up with us on:
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| nic4747 |
Posted - 07/11/2010 : 02:46:21
Hi,
Great forum! The posts here are very informative.
A bit of background on myself: I did the military reserves and college at the same time and ended up with about 3 years of active duty military experience (multiple deployments to the desert, extensive leadership experience) and a degree in business from a no-name state school (3.3 GPA). After that I left the military and I have been working at a small accounting firm for the past year as a CPA. I just took the GMAT and got a 700. The problem is its a 43q (65%) and 42v (95%) My questions are as follows:
- Do you think my low quant score hurts my chances of getting into a top 10 school? (my quant related undergrad grades are all over the place, As, Bs, and Cs)
- Can you think of any other obvious weaknesses in my application?
Thanks!
|
| AdmissionsConsultants |
Posted - 07/07/2010 : 18:24:13
Hi Srikant and thanks for your follow-up inquiry.
Thanks a lot David..Just missed mentioning that during my under graduate course I successfully ran a handicraft manufacturing business and have even tought under grad students (including chartered accountants) for almost 4 years and currently am working on launch of a website along with a Mutal Fund house on investor education in country...all this is beside my curent role in bank.
taking gmat score by 30 point is surely possible, however am in fix whether i should devote time on these 30 points or the extra curriclar activity to strengthen my application.
Thanks for the additional information. These are impressive accomplishments indeed. You can call us if you would like to speak to a consultant and ensure you get your priorities optimized in terms of extracurriculars versus GMAT score enhancement.
regards,
Srikant
Best of luck on your applications!
Sincerely,
David Petersam
President
AdmissionsConsultants, Inc.
DPetersam@admissionsconsultants.com
www.admissionsconsultants.com/mba/blog.aspx
LIMITED TIME SPECIAL! Order our new business school guide from Amazon.com and deduct $25 from any of our services!
AdmissionsConsultants
703.242.5885
Keep up with us on:
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| ca.srikant |
Posted - 06/30/2010 : 13:44:18
Thanks a lot David..Just missed mentioning that during my under graduate course I successfully ran a handicraft manufacturing business and have even tought under grad students (including chartered accountants) for almost 4 years and currently am working on launch of a website along with a Mutal Fund house on investor education in country...all this is beside my curent role in bank.
taking gmat score by 30 point is surely possible, however am in fix whether i should devote time on these 30 points or the extra curriclar activity to strengthen my application.
regards,
Srikant |
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