Mr. US Navy Intel Officer

Dear Mr. US Navy Intel Officer, first and foremost as someone who graduated from MIT (undergrad, under a NROTC (MO) scholarship) and MIT Sloan (MBA) and served on active duty with the United States Marine Corps for a decade in between, thank you for your service!

Despite your GPA and GMAT scores being a bit lower than average for MIT Sloan, I think it is way too preliminary to assess your probability of success as overly low. Your basic “stats” are high enough where it will be “Your Story” that determines your competitiveness. That story needs to be differentiated (as to who you will be compared to specifically), authentic, and compelling. With 6 years in the USN, you are most likely a Lieutenant. As an Intel Officer (I was a pilot, but had a collateral duty as the Squandron’s Intel Officer for one of my billets), you have the potential to have had some unique experiences that, if told well, could get you at least an interview. Please consider submitting a free evaluation request of your candidacy further here:

Please also feel free to put in the comments section something like, “please route to the CEO, Alex Min, the Marine Corps Veteran” for personal attention.

Hi, it’s Nisha at mbaMission. You have solid experience as an engineer and Navy officer, but I’d need to know a lot more about your progression and impact, especially in the military, to assess the professional part of your profile. Along with that, how confident are you about getting excellent recommendations that can attest to your potential, performance, and growth vs. peers?

MIT Sloan is big on stats, so I recommend retaking GMAT to get at least a 730, which is about the average score of applicants to that program.

Here are some schools I strongly recommend putting on your list that are very military-friendly: Darden, Tuck, Fuqua, Ross, and Cornell. From what I know about you now, I think they would be considerably more within reach.

Mr. US Naval Intel Officer – Thanks for posting your profile and thank you for your service. Susan Cera, Director of MBA Admissions, here.

I presume you may not be able to share much more about yourself due to confidentiality reasons. Your stats are within range but below average for MIT Sloan.

Your challenge will be to show MIT adcom that you have been successful in the past which is the best indicator to them that you can be successful both at MIT and beyond. MIT likes candidates who are all in for Sloan. What is it about their program that makes it the right fit for you? Funny that you have spent time in the Navy because when I visited MIT a few years back for the AIGAC (Association of International Graduate Admissions Consultants) annual conference, they spoke about how MIT Sloan students think differently than others – they are the ‘pirates’ who are innovative and creative compared to the ‘navy’ who do things by the book and follow the rules.
MIT recently put their class visits on hold due to coronoa virus. Look for other ways to get to know the program and how you might contribute. This will allow you to stand out at the school with one of the lowest admit rates (~12%).
My colleague, Lisa Cummings, spent ~14 years on MIT Sloan adcom. Consider reaching out for a consult and scheduling time to discuss your profile with Lisa.
All the best!