Mr. Schoolmaster

Well, you’re certainly a non-traditional MBA applicant. There aren’t all that many chemistry teachers at boarding schools who apply to Harvard Business School. And there are even fewer teachers who are as deeply involved as you are in the lives of your students. To wit, you are a commissioned officer in the cadet forces, coach water polo, rugby and cricket, and provide admissions guidance to boys applying to Oxbridge and beyond. You are right to retake the GMAT and aim for a higher score, given the fact that your current score is 20 points below the class median. But ultimately that is not going to make as big a difference as your young age. You are a terrific candidate for an elite MBA education but you need a few more years of work experience. At the age of 24, you are at a distinct disadvantage in earning a place at HBS. I would urge you to cool your heels, gain more experience over the next year or two before applying. It could make a very big difference to your outcomes.

Hi, Mr. Schoolmaster, Julie-Anne Heafey from mbaMission. Well, I love a nontraditional applicant, but I agree with the other experts that you need more time and experience, particularly for Harvard. Because the case method is central to the HBS curriculum, students are selected, in part, for what they’ll add to the classroom–how their leadership and experiences in different industries can help them contribute to their classmates’ understanding of the case at hand. So, my advice is to consider how your experience will allow you to add to the class and translate to your future goals…and if it’s not an obvious argument, what steps can you take to position yourself better? Yes, you need more time, but beyond that you will need to be smart about what you do with that time…what leadership and business-adjacent experience can you get. Personally, goal-wise, I’d steer away from PE even as a LT goal – unless you’re planning a stopover in investment banking, and I’m not seeing that here. It’s pretty tough to get into PE from consulting. Consulting as your ST goal could work – especially if you show ability to problem solve, persuade and lead and you can articulate how your past experience connects. Generally, consulting firms will look for strong test scores, so you are wise to retake. Good luck!

Hi Mr. Schoolmaster, Melisa here from Stratus Admissions. To further on from John’s comments – and what you need to answer if you want to apply now is why is now the right time for you. A very compelling answer here might help your chances. The biggest challenge with fewer years of experience is being able to give evidence that 1 – you have enough leadership experience to add to classroom discussions and 2 – you have had enough time/experience to develop a path forward. You goals of consulting and PE could make logical sense, but what makes a compelling story is the why this is the right path for you. What experiences to date have led to this goal – on the limited information that you are able to provide, I am missing that connection. Just to throw an idea out there – nothing ventured, nothing gained. I have worked with many applicants who learned a lot about themselves (and the aspirations) in preparing through the application process. And work with a lot of re-applicants that learn that by telling the right and compelling story, you can overcome some obstacles. That said, you definitely would need to increase your GMAT score – especially with the fewer years of experience. To quote an HBS guru, Harvard will blink once, but not twice – so in order to be successful, you would need to make sure all aspects of your applications are stellar. Reach out if I can answer any other questions.