MBA Handicapping: 755 GMAT, First At Cambridge. What Could Go Wrong?

You couldn’t get a better set of circumstances for an admit to the most elite MBA programs in the world.

A first-generation college grad whose father works as an electrician, Ryan graduated from Cambridge University with a first in economics. He scored a 755 on his very first try taking the new GMAT Focus Edition. And he has a plum job in a rotational program at JP Morgan Chase as an analyst.

His extras are impressive as well. At Cambridge, he was a cricket and soccer captain, leading training sessions for the college women’s soccer team. Ryan also was treasurer of the more than 20 societies and sports teams of Peterhouse College at Cambridge, managing the budgets and finances of all those clubs. And he is the junior board chair for the Sikh Development Academy, a non-profit that helps minority ethnic youth in the United Kingdom.

He plans on applying to the MBA programs at Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, Yale, and UC-Berkeley, along with Oxford and his alma mater. What are his chances?

In this episode of Friday’s With Sandy, HBSGuru.com Founder Sandy Kreisberg assesses his odds at these very selective MBA programs and provides advice for Ryan to sharpen his candidacy. He clearly boasts the basic stats and background to gain an admit. The question is can he overcome the tough competition to get in?

If you would like to participate in a future Fridays With Sandy webinar, you can contact Sandy and Poets&Quants John here.