Mr. Army Aviator

Hi. Mr. Army Aviator, this is Kristen from MBA Prep School. First of all, thank you for your service. I’m very impressed by your academic performance in the Military Academy and your platoon and operations leadership will surely attract the attention of the Admissions Committees at your target schools. Your GRE is slightly below the average for Duke, but still within the ballpark. The most important thing for you to be thinking about here is telling a compelling story. Make those leadership accomplishments stand out by clearly illustrating the scope and scale of your work. Illustrate your style through actual scenarios. I often find it also can be hard to showcase outside-the-box problem solving or collaboration in a more lock-step military hierarchy, so any examples of respectfully stepping outside the status quo to solve a problem or building consensus rather than dictating would also display the kind of leadership that MBA programs value. Lastly, make a clear connection between your military work and your consulting goal. This is a pretty common career step for servicemen and women transitioning to civilian life via MBA, but the Admissions Committee will want to know your personal motivations behind it so that it isn’t just a default plan. I think you have the building blocks needed to put together a successful application; we’d be happy help you find a way to fit them together!

Hi, it’s Jennifer Jackson from Stratus Admissions. Your military experience is wonderful and will be appealing to ad-coms. Your high GPA from a military academy will serve you well but the GRE is a bit on the softer side. You might consider re-taking it. I like the family newspaper extracurricular you were involved in to show not only the ability to connect people but great communication skills. Be sure in your application to be very clear about why your goals are what they are. So many people go into consulting, particularly at MBB, so be explicit about why that experience will set you up to be a leader in industry in the longer term. You may consider other consulting firms as well since MBB will be looking for high GMATs and GREs. You can still get that great consulting experience at another firm. I think Duke will love your experience and especially if you can get that GRE raised you’ll have a good shot!