Ms. Congress

Hello Ms. Congress! Krista Nannery from mbaMission here. Thanks for submitting your profile.
I’ve worked with a handful of government candidates and I love that your goals are so logical. Sometimes it can be hard for gov’t candidates to make the pitch for an MBA, but federal consulting makes a lot of sense and I bet you can tell some great stories about the areas you see for change/improvement.
While I’ve seen a number of candidates be successful at Tuck with sub-700 GMAT scores, it’s still not my favorite way to apply. If you have the time and the energy, I’d recommend trying the exam again and getting your score up over 700. You may also want to consider the GRE. You might find it’s a better fit for you.
More importantly though, I want to talk about your level of work experience. B-schools — and recruiters — will likely ask what you can contribute to the classroom. Have you seen enough? Do you have enough knowledge to share? I imagine that working for a high profile Senator in today’s world is a VERY interesting experience, so you’ll need to sell this, your depth of knowledge, and your maturity to the AdCom to be truly successful. I’m intrigued to see what happens with your application this year, but I think your chances will be higher in another two to three more years.

Hi Ms. Congress – Melisa here from Stratus Admissions. I think your political background will be very attractive to Tuck – especially with significant policy work. Based on what you’ve submitted, I’d want to understand your experience a bit more – right now I see a gap with 1-½ years of work experience at 28. This gap is something that business schools are going to want to understand. If your work experience is only 1-½ years, you should really look to get additional experience before applying. This would also give you time to take the GMAT (or try the GRE) again. If you believe now is the absolutely the right time, you will need to be crystal clear why that is and how you are ready to contribute to an MBA. Schools are looking for what you will bring to the program. I’ve rated your chances based on your current GMAT and 1-½ years of work experience – but think this can go up with either of these increasing. Also, a 1 school approach is always risky – other schools to consider: Duke, Darden, Georgetown, UNC.