Handicapping Your MBA Odds

Ms. Consulting

710 GMAT
3.55 GPA
Undergraduate degrees in finance, international business and Spanish from the University of Washington
Work Experience includes two and one-half years at Deloitte Consulting in the strategy practice, focused on healthcare and media clients. Major projects include Latin America entry strategy for one of the largest computer companies and several corporate restructuring projects, many with a global focus; selected for the graduate school sponsorship program
Extracurricular involvement as a Special Olympics coach for nine years (my sister has Down Syndrome and Autism and this is a passion of mine); volunteer in a Latino Community Center tutoring individuals on the U.S. citizenship process; mentor for a business consulting class that assisted minority businesses; vice president of the International Business program in undergrad and VP of marketing in my business fraternity
Goal: To return to Deloitte and grow the West Coast emerging markets practice (focusing on market entry to Latin America)
25-year-old female

Odds of Success:

Harvard: 40+%

Wharton: 50+%

Stanford: 30+%

Northwestern: 50+%

London: 60+%

Chicago: 50+%

Sandy’s Analysis: This is a real tight story with solid enough stats (3.5 and 710) and lots of powerful extras (Special Olympics, helping your sister, volunteer in Latino community) plus what seems like star performance at work. Kids like you get into and dinged at HBS depending on execution, recs, luck, and not screwing up the interview.

Deloitte kids get into HBS and get dinged, but you seem to be in the upper tiers of Deloitte applicants –which is basically what you have to be. It may be hard to present all this at any length on the new anorexic HBS application, but via the resume and Part One of the application (about extra currics and awards) you can list these accomplishments, which pretty much speak for themselves –even though most applicants do like to jaw on about it. Make sure your recommenders really do a good job at capturing and confirming all this.

You say as to goal, “To return to Deloitte and grow the West Coast emerging markets practice (focusing on market entry to Latin America).” Hmmmm, you are not getting any special points for returning, although seems like a required part their sponsorship, if I read that right. You said “Selected for the graduate school sponsorship program.” Does that mean they are paying for your MBA but you need to return?

Anyway, leave working for Deloitte an option as part of any long-term goal, and just put more stress on being a consultant with the emerging market practice of any leading shop. Schools don’t super feature being a two-year polishing program for consulting kids—even if it is often true, the schools like to think they transform you, and sometimes they do.

Your chances at Wharton, Kellogg, LBS, and Booth are real solid with serviceable execution. Stanford is always iffy, but they take kids like you, although they usually use Big Four legacy firms as a farm program for minorities, you might be get around that (assuming you are white) given your personal adversity stories and stellar record and the tight fit of your goals and experiences. Lots to like.

Handicapping Your MBA Odds–The Entire Series