Ms. Healthcare Tech

Hi Ms. Healthcare Tech! This is JP, Senior Consultant at The MBA Exchange. You’ve probably already been told that your GMAT score needs to be higher, that your GPA is a major constraint and that Rutgers isn’t Yale. While it all may be true, I believe that you can become a real contender at HBS and other top schools IF you develop an inspired, well-researched and genuine vision of your contribution to the world. It’s a big challenge, yes, but absolutely doable especially with the right guidance! Your combination of attributes – intellectual curiosity, a desire to give back, and sound family values – can provide a strong backdrop to your application. Then for the rest (GMAT, etc.) there are basic strategies to deal with it. If you want to explore this in more detail, just email me at jpo@mbaexchange.com. I’d be glad to have a chat and hear more about you!

Hi Ms. Healthcare Tech! This is Kate Richardson, Senior Admissions Consultant, weighing in on your profile. Right off the bat, I admire your dedication to the healthcare space and service orientation, especially during the current public health crisis. I always like to see when applicants have a strong sense of purpose in both their career and in their extracurricular activities, which you’ve shown through your tutoring. Beyond the value of serving others, I also think your mix of public/private sector experience will be attractive to schools, especially Georgetown with its Jesuit values and DC location. Your post-MBA goals also seem like a logical outgrowth of what you’ve done so far, and realistic too, as I’ve worked with other applicants who have targeted those exact types of roles. Make sure you discuss what kind of impact you’d like to have long-term too, as schools like to see that applicants are eager to solve bigger problems, take on bigger roles, etc. As others have pointed out, your stats are just below Georgetown’s averages (693 GMAT, 3.34 GPA). I don’t think that’ll be a major hurdle for you since your stats are in range and you have a strong profile otherwise, but you should be aware of that weakness. If you can take another supplemental course (and earn an A!) or retake the GMAT (if testing centers reopen in time, or they allow at home testing!), then those would be the best ways to improve that side of your profile. Good luck!

Hello, this is Lisa Cummings of Stratus Admissions, formerly an MIT Sloan Adcomm. I love your big life win and applaud your interest in helping others; that will strongly resonate with the Jesuit values of service to others at the McDonough School (and elsewhere too). I see some really good essay potential here that could make you stand out from the competition. Assuming you are planning to apply this fall, you have time and you can build out a solid, well thought out application. As your numbers stand now, you are within the range for Georgetown but slightly below their averages in terms of GMAT and GPA. There is nothing you can do now about the GPA but I see that you have taken an accounting course on line. Assuming you got a solid grade in that, that will help. So, I strongly suggest you do some studying and/or tutoring to bump that GMAT up so it is at or preferably above McDonough’s average. Given their values, Georgetown is a good fit and they are are a good choice career wise for you. By function, Marketing companies are among the top employers of McDonough grads. You will want to build out your list . Fordham has a solid marketing program and shares similar values with Georgetown. Ross, NYU and Duke stand out in that area as well. Please feel free to reach out to me if you’d like a consult to get your process started.