Handicapping Your Shot At A Top School

Mr. Chemical Engineer

730 GMAT
3.17 GPA
Undergraduate degree in chemical engineering from Howard University
Work experience includes little over two years as a downstream business analyst for a top multinational oil company (Chevron/ExxonMobil/Shell)
Extracurricular involvement as a board member for the Boys and Girls club, focusing on club fundraising as well as programming and events for the children; also involved with the local section of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and have held leadership positions in employee affinity group
Goal: To transition to the alternative energy industry, first through consulting and then industry
25-year-old African-American male applying in fall of 2014

Odds of Success:

Harvard: 25% to 35%

Wharton: 30% to 45%

MIT: 40% to 50%

Northwestern: 40% to 50%

Dartmouth: 40% to 50%

Virginia: 50% to 60%

Michigan: 60% to 70%

Sandy’s Analysis: I’m liking this: African-American males with 730 GMATs and degrees in chemical engineering and work experience at oil majors are a rare-ish find, that plus some solid extracurrics, both with Boys and Girls Clubs 🙂 and at work, make this a very attractive profile.

Top schools may blink at the 3.17 because 1. They will, 2. You got a 730 GMAT, 3. Chemical Engineering is not a gut major. Your goal of transitioning (right idea, schools don’t like big career changes, their public PR notwithstanding) to alternative energy from energy major via consulting is right on the mark.

The best thing you can do until fall of 2014 is to keep doing great work at work and keep up leadership roles in your solid extras. If you want to walk the extra mile, take a course in stats or microeconomics or calculus (any one you goofed up as an undergrad or did not take), just to show them you are serious about this.

Try schmoozing with the Afro-American clubs at your target schools and get a feel for what males had in terms of stats, and see if any of them can give you a poke with admissions. As with profile above you, waiting until 2014 to apply versus round 1 in 2013 is not buying you anything. You are as good as you are going to get from the adcom’s POV. So bite the bullet and get this show on the road next year.

Take that course this summer. You already got the GMAT behind you, and well done with that 730. Throw one into Stanford as well, you got a chance there. HBS is real possible. Wharton may balk a bit more at the 3.17 but you are in the mix there. MIT does not like 3.17 but they DO LIKE A GREAT DEAL Afro-Am dudes with 730’s and will give you a real look.

Handicapping Your MBA Odds–The Entire Series