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I was raised in the circus, and got my first job as a gymnast before becoming a professional clown. After college, I’ve had a few positions in the performing arts, including as a writer and cast member for a major theater company. A year and a half ago, I started my own entertainment technology company. I’m going to do $3-4M in revenue in 2020.
Target School: Stanford GSB
Considering: USC Marshall, UCLA Anderson
See More Profiles For: Stanford GSB
Application Status: Open
Undergrad School: University of Chicago
Undergrad Major: Creative Writing
GPA: 3.85
GMAT: 740
Age: 29, Ethnicity: White
Extracurriculars: Fundraised for local schools / nonprofits (have raised over $100K)
Title: Founder
Industry: Entertainment
Company: Boutique Firm
Length of Employment: 1 yr, 6 mos
Title: Cast Memeber
Length of Employment: 3 yrs, 3 mos
Built my company from nothing into a $3.6M revenue (~37% EBITDA margin) business with 11 employees.
Develop core business skills I need to turn my $3.6M revenue company into a $360M revenue company.
Join in! Click here to assess the odds of Mr. Clown
What business school wouldn’t want a professional clown in their classroom? Seriously. There are, of course, plenty of non-traditional applicants who apply to elite MBA programs. But your profile really stands out among the unexpected candidates. It’s novel enough to make you a viable candidate at Stanford. Now that’s especially because you check the boxes on the fundamentals (which after all are not clown-like at all): a 740 GMAT and a 3.85 from the University of Chicago (isn’t that where fun goes to die?). And you are a successful entrepreneur, having created an entertainment technology company that will do $3 million to $4 million in revenue this year. And you have successfully raised more than $100,000 for local schools and nonprofits. So what would put …
What business school wouldn’t want a professional clown in their classroom? Seriously. There are, of course, plenty of non-traditional applicants who apply to elite MBA programs. But your profile really stands out among the unexpected candidates. It’s novel enough to make you a viable candidate at Stanford. Now that’s especially because you check the boxes on the fundamentals (which after all are not clown-like at all): a 740 GMAT and a 3.85 from the University of Chicago (isn’t that where fun goes to die?). And you are a successful entrepreneur, having created an entertainment technology company that will do $3 million to $4 million in revenue this year. And you have successfully raised more than $100,000 for local schools and nonprofits. So what would put you over? Obviously, you need to prove that you startup is meaningful and substantive. Was it bootstrapped? If so, that could be a negative. Did you attract angel investors or VCs? If so, that is third party endorsement of your idea and its potential. Obviously, that is a a big positive. Have you disrupted an incumbent player in the market? That also would be good. If you held a leadership position in fundraising for schools or nonprofits, that would be to your great benefit. Merely volunteering and raising money, as admirable as that is, isn’t as effective in applying to a business school, especially Stanford. Without knowing the answers to these questions, my guess at your odds at Stanford is a bit of a stab in the dark. Regardless, however, if I were an MBA student at Stanford, you are a person I would want in my class. Good luck to you.
Hi Mr. Clown, This is Debbie Choy, GSB alum and Senior Consultant at mbaMission. What an interesting and unique background! In my 8 years of advising applicants, I don’t see many candidates coming from the entertainment industry, so this alone is a non-traditional industry, which always helps you to stand out from the crowd. I also like that you have a robust academic track record (GPA, GMAT), solid community involvement, and importantly, strong work experience building your company. That said, be sure to reference in your apps who will be running your company during school. Schools don’t typically like students to be running businesses on the side. Apart from that, also ensure that you understand what gaps you need to fill to grow your company to …
Hi Mr. Clown, This is Debbie Choy, GSB alum and Senior Consultant at mbaMission. What an interesting and unique background! In my 8 years of advising applicants, I don’t see many candidates coming from the entertainment industry, so this alone is a non-traditional industry, which always helps you to stand out from the crowd. I also like that you have a robust academic track record (GPA, GMAT), solid community involvement, and importantly, strong work experience building your company. That said, be sure to reference in your apps who will be running your company during school. Schools don’t typically like students to be running businesses on the side. Apart from that, also ensure that you understand what gaps you need to fill to grow your company to a multi-million dollar business. Being specific will help, for example, do you need financial skills? Strategy skills? If you can hit all these points and tell your story compellingly, I think you’d have a strong shot at the GSB. Wishing you the best in your MBA journey!
Mr. Clown – Thanks for sharing your profile. Susan Cera Director of MBA Admissions at Stratus here. I’ve been reading MBA applications and helping young professionals with their applications for 15 years and don’t recall ever having seen someone from the circus! You most definitely will be remembered by admissions committee.
Congratulations on the success of your business to date. While you clearly have a passion for growing what you have started, your applications will need to showcase what, very specifically, you need to learn to move your business forward. Furthermore, what will happen with your business during the ~2 years you are in school? Are you able to lean on others on our leadership team to carry the torch in your absence? Admissions committee …
Congratulations on the success of your business to date. While you clearly have a passion for growing what you have started, your applications will need to showcase what, very specifically, you need to learn to move your business forward. Furthermore, what will happen with your business during the ~2 years you are in school? Are you able to lean on others on our leadership team to carry the torch in your absence? Admissions committee will want to know and understand.
Since UCLA is on your list (great entertainment resources!) you might want to take a look at FEMBA (fully employed MBA) which meets once a month. A program like this would allow you to bring challenges that you are facing in the business to class to get input from professors and peers. It would also give you the opportunity to test out your classroom learning in real time in your business.
Stanford looks for spikey candidates. You definitely have that! If you can convince them that you can balance work and school, you could find a seat in their class.
Wishing you all the best on your MBA application journey!
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