Assessing Your Odds Of Getting In

Ms. Social Entrepreneur

750 GMAT
3.9 GPA
Undergraduate degree in history and near east studies from a top 15 university
Work Experience includes three years at a non-profit that designs and evaluates social programs; working on a social entrepreneurship/juvenile justice project, but also do development and some budgeting/finance work
Extracurricular involvement as editor of a history journal; tutored low-income kids
Goal: To pursue a career in social entrepreneurship
“Potential weaknesses: Lack of quant background, on the young side. Do you think it would make a difference if I waited another year to apply? How about if I took some calc or stat classes?”
24-year-old white female

Odds of Success:

Stanford: 30%

Harvard: 30% to 50%

Northwestern: 50+%

Chicago: 50+%

Berkeley: 50+%

Sandy’s Analysis: As to your question, “How about if I took some calc or stat classes?” Here is my answer: What was your Q score part of that 750 GMAT? That would answer the question easily, although you might want to take calculus or stats anyway, for your own good, and just to shore this up. Often B-schools (HBS and Wharton, for example) put people like you into math boot camp after you’re admitted (summer before matriculation), so that is another option.

I don’t believe the lack of a quant background is going to impede your admission (not with a 3.9 and 750 GMAT). You are not applying to the Physics Department of Cal Tech. As to waiting another year, if I read this correctly, you will be applying from year four of your current job with “a non-profit that designs and evaluates social programs” where you “work on a social entrepreneurship/juvenile justice project” and do “development . . . and some budgeting/ finance work.”

Phew, I’d say four years of that is enough. If I misread this and you meant three years of work experience at matriculation, well, three years of that is also enough, especially since the job so clearly synchs with your goals. Bite the bullet sister, the time for you to apply is now.

Folks like you get admitted and dinged at H and S, depending on luck, execution, contacts, and not blowing interview at HBS. I’d say you’d make a strong candidate at other schools you mention with serviceable execution and some spit on the ball as to why you want to go there.

“Extracurricular involvement as editor of a history journal . . .” Phew, I’d go light on that one, your total story is teetering on misplaced academic (see first profile here, where that woman went all in, and see how happy she is) and that is not what schools are looking for, per se.

Handicapping Your MBA Odds–The Entire Series