Mr. 1st Gen Engineer

Hi Mr. First Gen Engineer, thanks for writing in. This is a little tricky to assess: right away, I see that your GMAT score is strong, and I like your leadership in college. Your GPA is, however, low in undergrad. Generally it can be hard to break into top schools with a GPA under 3.4, and Yale does tend to focus on strong academic performance. I wonder if you have an upward trajectory that you might highlight in an optional essay; surely your first gen status is a mitigating factor and perhaps you were working at the same time (?) as many first gen students do. You also help your case with a stellar Master’s GPA; that will help, certainly (though it won’t completely erase the undergrad grades). If you can stand another round at the GMAT, boosting your score a little more might further help to provide a counterbalance to the undergrad GPA…something to consider anyway, depending on how recently/easily you achieved that 730. Beyond that I have a couple of other small hesitations…the first being timing: why is now the right time for you to get your MBA? It sounds like you haven’t been at your new firm long, and your overall experience is below the norm. My guess is that the adcom might wonder why you are applying so soon (assuming you have applied and are waiting to hear in R2; your chances improve if this is an early look at R1 next cycle)…so make sure you articulate why now is the right time, and demonstrate that you’ve acquired enough experience to make a strong contribution. My second hesitation is that your goals seem to be a little broad, so demonstrate good clarity on what problem exactly you want to solve and why that’s the right plan for you. Good luck with your application, and make sure to put your heart into your essays and apply to a range of reach, target and safety schools. I’m rooting for you! Warmly, Julie-Anne Heafey, mbaMission