Rejected By HBS. Find Out Why

HARVARD UNDERGRAD WITH JUMBO GMAT AT A WELL-KNOWN PRIVATE EQUITY SHOP

Profile Basics:

• 770 GMAT
• 3.9 GPA
• Undergraduate degree from Harvard College
• Work experience includes two years at a top-four management consulting firm, one year of externships, one year in a fast-growing tech startup in a business operations role, another year in an early-stage venture capital firm, and currently at a well-known private equity shop
• Essay on his to start his own business that combines “the
  passion I gained my experiences in early-stage companies with the
  analytical skills I learned in PE / consulting”
• Post-MBA Goal: To found a startup business in male-skincare
• White Asian male

Sandy’s Assessment:

Dunno man, a 770 GMAT and 3.9 from Harvard College? As soon as the HBS adcom sees that, they are secretly hoping there is some reason to ding you, just so that they can say that they ding folks with a 770/3.9.

Did you give them that reason?

Dunno, but reason number one could be the fact you just had too many jobs.

You say your work Experience is 2 years at top 4 management consultant, followed by one
year of self-identified externships.

WTF does that mean?

Then, you did a year in a fast-growing tech startup in a business ops role, and one in an early stage VC. Currently at a well-known middle-market private equity shop.

Some of your outcome may well depend on what they think of the PE shop you’re currently at.

You are in the White/Asian male bucket, so where you work will really count.

You say your essay was about “my desire to start my own business to marry the
passion I gained my experiences in early-stage companies with the
analytical skills I learned in PE / consulting”

That is okay and certainly didn’t hurt you.

But I’m not so sure about your post-MBA goal to do a startup in male-skincare.

???????????????

Did you really say that. It just does not compute given your work history. That goal alone, without further explanation, along with the short time you spent with each of your many employers would have been enough to get you tossed in the ding pile.