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I am a recent college graduate pursuing a career in Real Estate Private Equity. I am looking to get 3 or so years of solid work experience in a major market before applying to business school. I come from a RE background with experience working in a family CRE investment firm.
Target School: Columbia
Considering: Wharton
See More Profiles For: Columbia
Application Status: Open
Undergrad School: Non-Target State School, think Bible Belt
Undergrad Major: Finance
GPA: 3.65
GMAT: 720
Age: 22, Ethnicity: White
Extracurriculars: USTA League Tennis
Title: Analyst
Industry: Consulting
Company: Top Firm
Length of Employment: 1 yr
Various undergrad honors societies and awards, independent studies thesis on Real Estate M&A. Broke out of my midwest roots early with a summer internship with a highly reputable hedge fund focusing on RE debt. Currently, I work for a top portfolio management/investment consulting firm performing research on RE fund managers and RE markets. Both jobs are located in major coastal cities.
To work for a RE PE firm in acquisitions, build a network that may one day allow me to open my own shop/expanding family business into new markets.
Join in! Click here to assess the odds of Mr. RE Dreamer
Mr. RE Dreamer: Emily here from The MBA Exchange. As a former Associate Director of Admissions at Columbia Business School, I think there are several parts of your candidacy that will appeal to CBS and a few things you will want to address. Your GPA and GMAT are very solid, though they will not be at the top of the CBS pool of applicants. I recommend retaking the GMAT to see if you can gain another 20 points or so in order to present the strongest possible candidacy. Certainly your work experience will make sense to the admissions committee as they assess your goals and how an MBA fits into your plans, but you want to work on a compelling story …
Mr. RE Dreamer: Emily here from The MBA Exchange. As a former Associate Director of Admissions at Columbia Business School, I think there are several parts of your candidacy that will appeal to CBS and a few things you will want to address. Your GPA and GMAT are very solid, though they will not be at the top of the CBS pool of applicants. I recommend retaking the GMAT to see if you can gain another 20 points or so in order to present the strongest possible candidacy. Certainly your work experience will make sense to the admissions committee as they assess your goals and how an MBA fits into your plans, but you want to work on a compelling story for your future. Where is the industry headed where you could be well positioned with an MBA to take advantage of the growth? Where could you possibly lead your family business in ways it cannot be lead now? Having a very specific vision of how you will lead in your industry of choice is key to the application process. You will also want to work on your profile outside of work and you may already have what you need, but just need some help presenting and polishing that part of your candidacy. I wish you the best of luck–CBS is a wonderful place. If you decide you want more guidance, feel free to reach out to us at emilyb@mbaexchange.com.
Hi Mr. RE Dreamer! This is Kate Richardson, Senior Admissions Consultant. Right off the bat, I’m impressed by how deeply you can explain your interest in RE, even for someone who has recently graduated college. That’s also great you’ve spread your wings and landed an internship and now full-time role at top firms. Keep it up! I agree with waiting until you have about 3 years experience under your belt, and hopefully a promotion and several strong leadership accomplishments. I also think you could beef up your leadership outside of work, as schools value participation, but also leadership and examples of making a difference in your community. That seems like the main area to improve, as you have a great GPA and solid GMAT. Over …
Hi Mr. RE Dreamer! This is Kate Richardson, Senior Admissions Consultant. Right off the bat, I’m impressed by how deeply you can explain your interest in RE, even for someone who has recently graduated college. That’s also great you’ve spread your wings and landed an internship and now full-time role at top firms. Keep it up! I agree with waiting until you have about 3 years experience under your belt, and hopefully a promotion and several strong leadership accomplishments. I also think you could beef up your leadership outside of work, as schools value participation, but also leadership and examples of making a difference in your community. That seems like the main area to improve, as you have a great GPA and solid GMAT. Over time, get to know the Columbia community well, as they have fabulous RE offerings and when it comes time to apply, consider their Early Decision option if it remains your top choice. Good luck!
Hi Mr. Real Estate Dreamer, this is Donna Bauman at Stratus Admissions and I am happy to provide some feedback. You have a great gpa and strong GMAT. I like that your consulting work does research related to RE given your desire to work in RE PE. The fact that you also have a family business connection could be helpful as well and I encourage you to look at MBA programs with strong family business programs. Lucky for you, CBS has a strong family business program and also the Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate. While I myself love a good game of tennis as well, I don’t think the USTA League Tennis is going to set you apart unless there is some big leadership …
Hi Mr. Real Estate Dreamer, this is Donna Bauman at Stratus Admissions and I am happy to provide some feedback. You have a great gpa and strong GMAT. I like that your consulting work does research related to RE given your desire to work in RE PE. The fact that you also have a family business connection could be helpful as well and I encourage you to look at MBA programs with strong family business programs. Lucky for you, CBS has a strong family business program and also the Paul Milstein Center for Real Estate. While I myself love a good game of tennis as well, I don’t think the USTA League Tennis is going to set you apart unless there is some big leadership in this you have noted, so use your time over the next few years to develop that leadership. I’m also going to suggest however, that in this crazy covid MBA market you may find that there are MBA programs looking to take high performers with potential—and that’s you—a little earlier than normal. Right now a lot of MBA programs – CBS among them—are looking to add some people to R3. I would encourage you to apply to CBS now and get started now on your MBA. You might find yourself sitting in a top program in September—maybe even CBS. Look also at Kellogg, Booth Wharton and for Real Estate consider adding UCLA and UNC Kenan-Flagler as both have excellent RE programs as well. You might even find yourself some funding. I know you only have one year of work but I think you have a shot now—and if you don’t get in this year you will have learned some things to help you be successful in this process when you are ready. If you want some further advice on how to approach putting together some quality applications in the next month or two, reach out for a free consult and I’ll give you some further advice.
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