Profile Evaluation, Please.

[s.chiliveru]

Name: Sneha
Age: 19 (Will be 21 when first going into MBA)
Gender: Female
Nationality: Indian
Current Status: Undergrad Junior at the University of North Florida.

I plan on applying to Business School next fall in 2010, hoping to attend starting Fall of 2011.

GMAT score: Have not taken an official GMAT, but it will be above 700. Already preparing - will be taking it summer of 2010.

GPA: 3.65 as of now. I am hoping to make it atleast a 3.8 by the time of graduation.

Future Goals: I'm very interested in using my leadership experience with my MBA to do charitable work and make a company in India or Africa which will allow many disadvantaged kids to have an education. Immidiately after graduation, I am looking to find a full time job and plan for a such company while working.

Leadership Experience -
Part of the National Leadership society which has given me tremendous insight and experience in how to become a leader.

Captain of Relay of Life team for 3 years.

Youth President/Coordinator for cultural organization

Coordinated multiple dances, and events.

Volunteer Experience -

Relay for life, On campus mentoring program, Clara White Mission, Dignity U Wear, Big brother Big sister, hometown library.

Work Experience -

This is the part I am worried about. By the time of graduation I will have 2 1/2 years of part-time experience as a Business Analyst at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida. I do realize that many top MBA programs look for solid work experience, but this job has given me a lot of insight into how a business works in various departments and projects. Being an intern, I have gotten a chance to work with many project managers with a great variation of projects - from health care to retail centers.

My question is.. how much will my lack of work experience hinder me from getting into a b-school if the rest of my application is in good standing? What are some realistic schools that I can aim for?

I really do want to go into my masters right after my graduation... what can I do to strengthen myself by that time and give me a better standing?

Any help would be great. Thanks!

[mbamission]

Thank you for your inquiry.

The vast majority of schools do look for work experience because they believe that at least a couple of years of experience positions you better to both absorb and contribute to the information taught on campus. That being said, you could look into programs like Harvard's 2+2, which admits students directly out of college but then defers them for 2 years while they gain that work experience. If you really want to start right away, then I would go through one of the websites that ranks schools, look for the data on "months of work experience" and identify those that indicate they accept students with 0 months of full time experience. That will narrow down your list.

For your essays, you'll want to make a very compelling case as to how the part time work let you develop and demonstrate leadership, initiative, results, and teamwork, and you should also make sure you have a very clearly articulated goal that clearly demonstrates why an MBA immediately is a better next step than some full time work experience.

Best of luck,

Jessica Shklar
mbaMission

www.mbamission.com

[s.chiliveru]

Thank you for your inquiry.

The vast majority of schools do look for work experience because they believe that at least a couple of years of experience positions you better to both absorb and contribute to the information taught on campus. That being said, you could look into programs like Harvard's 2+2, which admits students directly out of college but then defers them for 2 years while they gain that work experience. If you really want to start right away, then I would go through one of the websites that ranks schools, look for the data on "months of work experience" and identify those that indicate they accept students with 0 months of full time experience. That will narrow down your list.

For your essays, you'll want to make a very compelling case as to how the part time work let you develop and demonstrate leadership, initiative, results, and teamwork, and you should also make sure you have a very clearly articulated goal that clearly demonstrates why an MBA immediately is a better next step than some full time work experience.

Best of luck,

Jessica Shklar
mbaMission

http://www.mbamission.com

Thank you so much for the response! I did look into the Harvard 2+2 program and it seems like a great opportunity - Would you say that it's a realistic goal for me? With my current GPA and around a 700 GMAT?

[mbamission]

I think it's reasonable, although in my (admittedly limited) understanding, they primarily (but not exclusively) target students who would not otherwise be considering business careers - e.g. engineers. You don't state your major, but aside from that caveat I think you would be taken seriously as a candidate.

Good luck,

Jessica

[s.chiliveru]

I think it's reasonable, although in my (admittedly limited) understanding, they primarily (but not exclusively) target students who would not otherwise be considering business careers - e.g. engineers. You don't state your major, but aside from that caveat I think you would be taken seriously as a candidate.

Good luck,

Jessica

I did research on that aspect... but my major is Information Systems, which does have a minor in business... but it's mainly a software engineering type of major. Will that be a downfall to my application?

[mbamission]

Thanks for the follow up. I really can't say if it would be a downside - it's just one part of the picture. Your best strategy is just to research the program thoroughly and then make a compelling case as to why it's a good fit for you.

Good luck.

Jessica

[s.chiliveru]

Thanks for the follow up. I really can't say if it would be a downside - it's just one part of the picture. Your best strategy is just to research the program thoroughly and then make a compelling case as to why it's a good fit for you.

Good luck.

Jessica

Thanks very much for all the help =)