Candidate:

Ms. Second Chances

About Me:

In 5 years I moved from an assistant to an HR manager role, leading dept. hiring, developing policies and procedures and discussing strategy with department heads. Coming from a low-income background, I spent my undergrad leading access/retention efforts for minority students and attribute my success to a mentor giving me a chance at a full-time job.

Schools:

Target School: McCombs School of Business

Considering: IU Kelley, Duke Fuqua, Foster School of Business

See More Profiles For: McCombs School of Business

Application Status: Open

Details:

Undergrad School: UCLA

Undergrad Major: Sociology/Afro-American Studies

GPA: 2.5

GRE: 310

Age: 29, Ethnicity: Black or African American

Other Degree/Certification: Culinary and Food Nutrition Certificate

School Name: Bastyr University

Extracurriculars: Nutrition education for minority students at UCLA, Co-Founder of Women's Collective at UCLA, Led UCLA retention efforts for underserved communities.

Work History:

Title: Personnel/Payroll Analyst

Industry: Nonprofit / B-Corp

Company: University

Length of Employment: 2 yrs, 6 mos

Title: HR/Budget Specialist

Industry: Nonprofit / B-Corp

Company: University

Length of Employment: 2 yrs, 1 mos

Big Life Wins:

Transitioned dept. to a new payroll system in a short time frame, one of the few in which no one missed pay and other important functions continued as normal. Negotiated increased salary and re-class to manager title to better reflect the work in current role. Lost 100 pounds, now run half/full marathons, inspire others to run & teach healthy cooking.

Post MBA Goal:

To pivot from the university setting to human capital consulting, with a focus on managing employee experiences and diversity and inclusion.

Odds:

Join in! Click here to assess the odds of Ms. Second Chances

The Experts Rate The Odds At: 22%

See what the industry experts have to say:

Odds Assessment: 25%

Ms. Second Chances: Emily here, Master Consultant at The MBA Exchange. As someone who worked inside universities for many years, I did see colleagues move from university HR to for profit recruiting or diversity roles so I certainly think you have realistic goals. It will be important to talk specifically about why you need an MBA and what skills or perspectives you lack that an MBA can give you that will be pivotal to your future. I also think you want to be able to tell your compelling personal story as well as an aspirational future leadership story within the tight spaces provided in MBA admissions essays. I like your list of schools but wonder if you can explain the lower …

Ms. Second Chances: Emily here, Master Consultant at The MBA Exchange. As someone who worked inside universities for many years, I did see colleagues move from university HR to for profit recruiting or diversity roles so I certainly think you have realistic goals. It will be important to talk specifically about why you need an MBA and what skills or perspectives you lack that an MBA can give you that will be pivotal to your future. I also think you want to be able to tell your compelling personal story as well as an aspirational future leadership story within the tight spaces provided in MBA admissions essays. I like your list of schools but wonder if you can explain the lower GPA as that will be an issue for just about any MBA program? Have you considered taking a rigorous online quant based course to show you are ready for the rigor of an MBA? You have some great strengths as an MBA applicant but these are some ideas to strengthen your profile. Feel free to contact us (emilyb@mbaexchange.com) if you want more guidance and best of luck!

5 years ago Read the full review
mbaMission Odds Assessment: 20%

Hi Ms. Second Chances,
This is Debbie Choy, Senior Consultant at mbaMission. From reading your brief profile, I can already tell you have a fire in your belly! Your drive is impressive – moving from assistant to Manager in 5 years, implementing a new payroll system for your department, and losing 100 pounds. That said, I worry that these achievements could be overshadowed by your GPA and GRE scores. They are below the average at McCombs, and the Admissions Committee (AdCom) could be concerned about your academic capabilities. I recommend aiming to build what we call an “alternative transcript” to alleviate this concern. If you can take some rigorous online quant courses and do well in them, that can demonstrate to AdCom your ability to keep …

Hi Ms. Second Chances,
This is Debbie Choy, Senior Consultant at mbaMission. From reading your brief profile, I can already tell you have a fire in your belly! Your drive is impressive – moving from assistant to Manager in 5 years, implementing a new payroll system for your department, and losing 100 pounds. That said, I worry that these achievements could be overshadowed by your GPA and GRE scores. They are below the average at McCombs, and the Admissions Committee (AdCom) could be concerned about your academic capabilities. I recommend aiming to build what we call an “alternative transcript” to alleviate this concern. If you can take some rigorous online quant courses and do well in them, that can demonstrate to AdCom your ability to keep up with your classmates. Look for fundamental quant classes that b-school classes build on, such as Statistics and Calculus. Also look to take classes from reputable sources/programs, and which have a grade that you can report to AdCom. My estimate of your odds are lower than the average acceptance rate at McCombs (typically around 34%) because of this concern. But if you can boost your academic track record before you apply, that would really improve your odds. Best of luck and keep that fire burning!

5 years ago Read the full review

The Community Currently Rates The Odds At: 23%

15% | 5 years ago
20% | 5 years ago
5% | 5 years ago

way too low gpa and way too low gmat...would try for schools ranked 25-30

way too low gpa and way too low gmat…would try for schools ranked 25-30
75% | 5 years ago