MBA Handicapping: Will This Guy’s Fast Food Experience Get Him Blackballed At HBS Despite A 770 GMAT & 4.0 GPA? by: Sandy Kreisberg & John A. Byrne on August 21, 2020 | 11,224 Views August 21, 2020 Copy Link Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email Share on LinkedIn Share on WhatsApp Share on Reddit He may be all of 24 years of age but Tristan has put together a rather remarkable case for getting into one of the world’s most highly selective business schools. Let’s start with his 4.0 grade point average from the University of Georgia where he majored in marketing and political science. He has topped that off with a jumbo 770 GMAT score that puts him into the top 1% of test-takers in the world. For the past three years, he’s been the business development manager in the U.S. for a Canadian fast-food company. The sole U.S. employee, he has done everything from developing a U.S. expansion strategy that led to the opening of ten new locations to negotiated contracts with major companies, including Disney, for outlets in their entertainment. Despite his young age, he reports directly to the CEO of the company. Tristan also has done something rather unique: He has eaten at all of the U.S.ās 100 largest restaurant chains, including all of the top 25 in a single day.Ā His target MBA programs? Harvard Business School, Stanford Graduate School of Business, Wharton, UCLA Anderson and the University of Texas’ McCombs School of Business. In this episode of Friday’s With Sandy, HBSGuru.com founder Sandy Kreisberg assesses his chances of getting into an elite MBA program without having come from either a feeder undergraduate college or a feeder company. Will his jumbo stats and unusual work experience offset those parts of his application? Sandy weighs in and suggests how he should position himself in essays. If you would like to participate in a future Fridays With Sandy webinar, you can contact Sandy and P&Q Founder John A Byrne here. DONāT MISS PREVIOUS FRIDAYS WITH SANDY EPISODES CAN THIS BLACK FIRST-GEN ENGINEER GET INTO HARVARD OR STANFORD? GETTING INTO WHARTON & HARVARD WITH A 720 GMAT & A 3.6 GPAĀ WHAT ENGINEERS NEED TO DO TO GET IN HOW DOES AN INDIAN APPLICANT STAND OUT AT THE M7? CAN SHE TURN SILVER INTO GOLD FOR WHARTON & COLUMBIA? CAN THIS 32-YEAR-OLD FORMER PRO RUGBY PLAYER GET INTO H/S/W? AN HBS MOCK INTERVIEW WITH A UNICORN TECH GUY HARVARD/STANFORD/WHARTON FOR THIS SILVER, NOT GOLD RESUME? IS STANFORD AND HAAS A HAIL MARY FOR THIS 33-YEAR-OLD CANDIDATE? HOW DO HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL & STANFORD GSB VIEW HR TYPES? Ā IS THIS ENGINEER A FIT FOR BERKELEY HAAS & MIT SLOAN? IS 2+2 HBS POSSIBLE WITH A 680 GMAT HOW A WHITE MALE WITH LOWER STATS GETS INTO COLUMBIA & WHARTON CAN YOU GET INTO STANFORD FROM YOUR FOURTH JOB? WILL STANFORD & HARVARD BUY THIS STORY? FULLBRIGHT, FAMILY POULTRY BIZ, PAKISTAN + HBS? HOW TO EXPLAIN SIX JOBS IN FIVE YEARS TO A BUSINESS SCHOOL SHOULD SHE RUSH TO APPLY NOW OR WAIT FOR THE NEXT CYCLE? HOW TO GET INTO HBS WITH A 3.2 GPA WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT HARVARDāS 2+2 DEFERRED ADMISSIONS PROGRAM GETTING INTO KELLOGG & MCCOMBS FROM PLUTO (NOT THE PLANET) HOW DOES THIS MCKINSEY ANALYST NOT GET INTO HBS & STANFORD? A HIGHLY RANKED MBA FOR THIS CONCERT PIANIST? SWIMMER, TECH FOUNDER, BANKER, COMEDIAN TRIES FOR H/S/W BAINIE, BYU ATHLETE = H/S/W? INTERVIEW ADVICE FOR MILITARY CANDIDATES ā AND OTHERS Ā A 770 GMAT & A 4.O FROM LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS ā WHAT ELSE DO YOU NEED FOR HARVARDāS 2+2 FAANG APPLICANTS TO STANFORD & HBS ARE OFTEN SUCCESSFUL. THIS GUY SHOWS WHYĀ GROUPON TO HBS? THIS GUY MIGHT DO IT WHAT IT TAKES FOR A NON-IIT FROM INDIA TO GET INTO HBS 2+2 OLD, WHITE MALES WITH A CHANCE AT HBS? MBA MOCK INTERVIEW: A MORGAN STANLEY STAFFER GETS A DRILLING GRE FOR 2+2 SUPERSTARS: HOW LOW CAN IT GO?Ā SAY āYESā TO SILVER OR āHOLD OUTā FOR GOLD? WHEN WHITE MALES SHOULD RETAKE THE GMAT 3.4 GPA, 700 GMAT & HISPANIC: CAN HE GET INTO HARVARD, MIT, KELLOGG? CAN THIS LIFE SCIENCE CONSULTANT GET INTO COLUMBIA & KELLOGG?Ā DO FEMALE INDIAN TECHIES HAVE AN EASIER TIME WITH THE HBS ADCOM? Ā CAN THIS INDIAN IT MALE GET INTO HBS WITH A 3.4 GPA BUT A 750 GMAT? WHERE RETAIL BUYERS & BRAND SPECIALISTS GET MBAs CAN THIS EX-AIR FORCE OFFICER-TURNED-SOFTWARE-ENGINEER CRACK THE MBA CODE? CAN THIS TARGET STAFFER GET INTO HARVARD OR STANFORD? HOW PETRO ENGINEERS CAN GET INTO A TOP MBA PROGRAM LONG DISTANCE CALL: HOW DOES AN AUSSIE TELECOM GUY GET INTO STANFORD? IS THIS 30-YEAR-OLD ENERGY GUY HEADED FOR HBS? GETTING IN IF YOUR STATS ARE BELOW THE MEDIAN WHAT GMAT DOES THIS LATINA GOVERNMENT ANALYST NEED? REAL GOOD ODDS FOR THIS INDIAN DO-GOODER. HEREāS WHY MILITARY-BANKER-HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL? HOW TO AVOID LANDMINES IN YOUR 2+2 INTERVIEW THE REAL HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL 2+2 INTERVIEW