Ms. Media Entertainment

Hi there! It’s Stephanie Horn, Master Consultant with the MBA Exchange and recent Poets and Quants “Top 10 Admissions Consultants”. Ms. Media Entertainment, you have a lot going for you. You’re in a hot field, where you have done strategic work. Your recent promotion to manager is very encouraging. Your efforts to increase the diversity of your industry and improve the environmental impact shows your passion for improving the world around you. You have a solid GPA and a strong GMAT score. You will need to demonstrate on your essays and letters of recommendation what your leadership style is like, how you form strong, productive teams, and your ability to analyze and troubleshoot in changing situations. Your biggest challenge will be to stand out — top tier US schools usually only take about 35% of their classes from international applicants, and SE Asia is the most competitive cohort. For an MBA with a strong network in the entertainment industry, I recommend you also take a look at UCLA, Columbia, and Stern.

Hi, it’s Nisha from mbaMission. What an intriguing, strategic role you have in media & entertainment – a coveted field! And you’ve been promoted twice in a relatively short amount of time and sent abroad – that really speaks to the progress you’re making. Your academics are pretty solid, and you have substantive extracurricular involvement that reflects your passions as well.

So you’re certainly a well-rounded candidate – here is what I would focus on to maximize your odds at programs as fiercely competitive as HBS and GSB: 1. conveying your impact as well as your leadership/teamwork skills on your resume and in your application (and, making sure your recommenders can speak to your performance, potential, and growth, especially relative to peers), 2. clarifying your career goals – even given your industry experience, it can be tough to enter a role in media strategy immediately after MBA, so you might consider doing consulting first to get in-depth training on strategic frameworks and broaden your industry exposure and 3. Figure out the story you want to communicate to the admissions committee – ask yourself the following questions: How did I become so passionate about media and entertainment? What are the people, forces, and choices that have shaped me into who I am today? What’s truly important to me?

Also, I always recommend that candidates diversify their program portfolio. Given your interest in entertainment and media, I’d also look into UCLA Anderson and NYU Stern.
Hope that helps, and best of luck!

Hi, it’s Jennifer Jackson from Stratus Admissions. You have a lot to like in your profile! Living in several different parts of the world is always a plus, you’re coming from an industry that stands out more than a standard consultant or applicant in financial services. Your GMAT is very good although the GPA is a bit on the softer side. It’s great that you’ve been promoted twice and can boast experience at your organization that spans multiple lines of business. You’ll need to show WHY you need the MBA to get that content strategy/acquisition role you want post-MBA (i.e. what skills are you missing that prevent you from transferring internally now?). I’ve worked with applicants who likely COULD get that role now without an MBA, and in those cases they have to really be clear what their LT goals look like and how the MBA is the only way to prepare them for that. For example, if your LT goal was to be an entrepreneur in the entertainment/media space, those entrepreneurship skills can be learned and practiced in an MBA program. Your extracurriculars are impressive as well, so be sure to really highlight how they tie in to who you are and where you’re headed. I see you’re focusing on HBS and Stanford but don’t discount UCLA or USC for the entertainment space! I could see one or both of those schools offering you money — something to think about!