Ms. Aspiring Social Impact

Phew, 3.1 and 710 are both on low side for Columbia, esp. the 3.1 which really needs to be explained. Also, age 31, means you will be 33-34 when you graduate and start looking for a full-time job. With that as a base, the rest of this would really need to be super strong to get a Columbia admit. The rest is OK but I don’t think it will overcome your GPA, GMAT and age. Stern and Haas are maybes> I think the rest of your target schools are reaches.

Going from HR to the tech world is not a story I hear every day, so that could be an interesting combination. ‘Program design’ can mean a lot of different things, particularly at a startup, so not sure how technical your recent work has become, but in any case you can detail all of that thoroughly in your resume and explain your story in your essays and interviews. The concern for Columbia is your academic stats. GMAT & GPA are used as the indicators of your academic ability and to best predict your likelihood of success in your first year of b-school, and Columbia tends to emphasize these, in particular GMAT/test score, as a “necessary-but-not-sufficient” component of admitted candidates. It also sounds like you are later in your career than the typical applicant, so there could be additional pressure on you to explain WHY you feel this degree, at this point in your career, is right for you. All things considered I rated your chances at 15% for Columbia, just a touch below their typical acceptance rate, though if you apply ED that could always help a touch, and improving your GMAT may be the biggest boost you can do at this point. Stern, Tuck,and perhaps Haas should be more reasonable options for you, though still challenging, so you may want to include a safer option. Good luck!
– Jen Kedrowski from mbaMission

Hi Ms. Aspiring Social Impact, this is Melisa from Stratus Admissions. I am sorry to hear you were not admitted to Columbia. Not knowing where you stand with applications on any of the other schools you have listed here, I wanted to share some thoughts on potential next steps for you. If Columbia is your dream school, then apply again next year. Consider applying as early as you can or consider the January cohort. However, to gain a different result, you’ll want to have a friend or trusted advisor help look through your application to identify areas for improvement. In addition, to taking into account the great feedback already given, based on what you provided, you need to be more specific on your goals. Why social impact – the tie is not clear here. What type of role do you want to have post-MBA and think about example companies. Think of it as a gap analysis. In order to clearly articulate how an MBA is going to fill your gap, you need to clearly be able to define where you are going. If you are continuing with applications at some of your other schools, make sure to build your clear career goals into any interviews you have. If an MBA is still the right route and getting your GMAT score up continues to be a challenge, consider widening your school search. There are tons of great programs that help give you the skills you seek. Look for schools where your GMAT will be more of a competitive advantage with strong social impact programs – Fuqua and UNC jump to mind. If you are open to different types of programs, you could consider a Tech MBA or a part time program. Wishing your luck on your other schools.