Profile Eval - Thinking about studying for the Gmats

[joe360y]

I have been working in the Big 4 for two years now and I am part of the Transaction Services Group dealing primarily within the Capital Markets. I deal mostly with issues related to Spin-offs, Carve Outs, and S-1 Filings for IPO’s. I have my CPA and will be taking the level 1 CFA come December. I was thinking of either sticking it out and making the switch to M&A within the Big 4 in another year or maybe testing my luck at getting into a Top-10 MBA school. I feel as though with the proper allocation of time to studying I will obtain around 700-710 GMAT score. What are my chances of getting into a top 10 MBA with a Big 4 advisory background in transaction services?

Profile:
GMATS: 700-710
GPA: 3.58
Certifications: CPA, CFA level 1

[mbamissionjenK]

Hi there,

Thanks for your post. Certainly if you did score 700+ on the GMAT, with your work experience and your CPA/CFA you would have a lot of strengths in your profile in terms of your skillset and experience that is relevant for b-school. The one caveat is, there ARE a number of other similarly-qualified applicants out there too... so you would want to think about what makes YOU unique and stand out, and highlight that in your application. In other words, why should they accept YOU over others with similar profiles, and what will you contribute to the class. You'll also need to make a good case for what your post-MBA plans are and why you need the degree.

Sounds like you should continue to research your options and what difference the MBA would make in your career trajectory. It's certainly an amazing experience to learn from a wide variety of classmates and professors with interesting and diverse backgrounds, not to mention the classroom learning and networking opportunities. Good luck on your decisions !