Handicapping Your Dream School Odds

Mr. Chemist

  • 760 GMAT (Q47, V47)
  • 3.5 GPA
  • Undergraduate degree in chemistry from the University of Oregon
  • Work experience includes three years as an R&D chemist for a chemical manufacturer, supervising and training more than 25 full-time plant operators; recently promoted to a hybrid business development/R&D role
  • Extracurricular involvement as an undergraduate research fellow in an academic research lab (research published); president of the ACS chemistry club, and played drums in a band (many house parties rocked!). Now volunteer for Children’s Cancer Society in their chemo pal program, working on publishing another research paper, and still play in the band.
  • Goal: To work in big pharma or biotech and help companies become/remain efficient and profitable.  Marketing, international business, and supply chain management are all possible areas of focus.  I’m interested in gaining a strong background in business to go with my technical experience that will allow me access to the world of pharma/biotech business.
  • 27-year-old white male

Odds of Success:

Berkeley: 60+%

Stanford: 30%

UCLA: 60+%

MIT: 60+%

Harvard: 40+%

Sandy’s Analysis: You’re the kind of kid from Oregon that HBS and Stanford likes, and I don’t mean the grunge (just guessing) house parties. I mean the chemistry major and the 760. And the escalating responsibilities in a solid but non-brand name company.  You could be the Kurt Cobain of the class, minus, we hope the addictions and suicide.

Dee Leopold at HBS loves stories like this—science background, real business experience, Jumbo GMAT, and some vague sense that you want to do Biotech–and your extras, which are above normal, are an added plus. Smells Like HBS Spirit.

“I supervise/train over 25 full-time plant operators.  Recently promoted to hybrid business development/R&D role.  Now do lots of travel for business development, and procurement (China).” BINGO, that is totally on the mark, and sure sounds like a future biotech leader.

Just the chorus here: Kids like you get into and dinged at HBS and Stanford depending on execution, recommendations, luck, and not blowing the (HBS) interview. All that said, you are on the glide path. Certainly at HBS.

At Stanford, you will need to figure out some pattern in this story for their What Matters Most Essay, but I predict that will not be hard. MIT takes anyone with a 760 GMAT and a pulse who is not on a terrorist watch list, and they have been known to waive the pulse part.

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