Mr. Construction Engineer

Not surprisingly, the sore thumb that sticks out in your profile is that undergraduate GPA at CU Boulder. You don’t provide a reason for why your grades were slightly less than 2.8 in a era of great grade inflation. Foster’s class average, by the way, is 3.3 to 3.4. Your 710 GMAT is in line and slightly above the class average of 695 but that may not be enough to completely offset your GPA. Afterall, four years of grades are a better indication of future performance than a three-and-one-half-hour test. Foster’s incoming class is on the smaller side: About 120 a year with an acceptance rate of 36% that is sure to shrink as more candidates apply as the recession takes hold.

Hi, it’s Nisha from mbaMission. You’ve clearly made a niche for yourself in Construction, and congrats on the manager role!

I’d like to understand your career goals a bit more – when you say you’d like to go into manufacturing with a focus on renewable tech, what type of role do you foresee yourself playing? Make sure to charter a clear career path that takes into account the transferrable skills you’ve developed in your career to date. Foster is excellent for candidates passionate about sustainability (one of my clients is headed there this fall to pursue a career in Clean Tech) . While I’m concerned about your GPA, your GMAT is above average for the program – do address the GPA in the optional essay in a way that reflects ownership and responsibility while highlighting any extenuating circumstances.

Finally, the strongest candidates I’ve worked with do have some sort of extracurricular involvement – do mention anything you were involved in college or any current hobbies you have, to present to the admissions committee as well-rounded of a view of yourself as possible.

Hope that helps!