
Candidate:
Mr. 1st Gen Grad
About Me:
From an extremely poor family, 1st gen grad; Applied to university just in order to live somewhere while earning money; Became the only consultant without a degree at BIG4 Firm at a local office (1,5yr audit, 2yr valuation); Now a strategy manager at top-5 Russian banks. Led several strategy projects as a project team leader.
Details:
Undergrad School: Moscow Polytechnic University (modest university)
Undergrad Major: Radiotechnic
GPA: 3.1
GMAT: 740
Age: 26, Ethnicity: White
Extracurriculars: 3 years of value investing on global stock markets, master of speed skating
Work History:
Title: Strategy Director
Industry: Banking & Finance
Company: Top Firm
Length of Employment: 5 yrs, 1 mos
Big Life Wins:
Twice a top 10% consultant at PwC; Changed “the rules” of our family and inspired my little brother to pursue a degree.
Post MBA Goal:
Position at a top US bank, lead digital transformation; BIG 3.
Schools:
Target School: Berkeley Haas
Considering: Columbia, Chicago Booth, London Business School, Harvard
Let me just say that as a first gen grad myself, I am a sucker for your story. I’m less concerned about your 3.1 GPA because your 740 GMAT makes it clear you can do the work. It’s not surprising that you would get a 3.1 as a first gen college student. Your work history is very impressive, particularly your consulting role at PwC when you didn’t even have a degree and the fact that you were in the top 10% of the staff and then your role in strategy at a top bank. It’s one thing to get these positions hwen you have connections; it’s another when you earn them through hard work and diligence. Your post-MBA goal lines up nicely with the work …