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I graduated with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering before working as a software engineer in the consumer packaged goods industry for 3 years. During that time, I also worked part-time for an early-stage startup working on a digital marketplace. I later transitioned into a product manager role at the same CPG company.
Target School: Wharton
Considering: Stanford GSB
See More Profiles For: Wharton
Application Status: Open
Undergrad School: John Hopkins
Undergrad Major: Mechanical Engineering
GPA: 3.42
GMAT: 750
Age: 26, Ethnicity: Asian or Indian
Extracurriculars:
Title: Product Manager
Industry: CPG
Company: Fortune 500
Length of Employment: 1 yr
Title: Software Engineer
Length of Employment: 3 yrs
Lots of cross-functional collaboration with designers, engineers, and product folks. Wore many hats during part-time startup experience, including creating a product roadmap and conducting customer discovery. Responsible for a user-facing iOS app as part of my current product management duties, and gained experience with customer acquisition marketing.
As an engineer, I know I have a technical advantage as a product manager, but feel that I am lacking in general business knowledge which I hope to gain with an MBA. Post-MBA, I’d be interested in working for an early-stage startup or being a FAANG PM.
Join in! Click here to assess the odds of Ms. Type-A CPG PM
Hi, it’s Rachel Nelson from Gatehouse Admissions. I like your background in mechanical engineering and you have a nice career trajectory which seems to leverage your skills and strengths. Wharton will like your quantitative aptitude! I think your Why MBA rationale makes sense and I would look for you to clarify your longer term goals and then walk through how your MBA and short term career plan will help you get there. Why early stage start up / FAANG? Help the Adcom understand which part of it is your passion – the tech, the consumer/ customer, the startup experience (what specifically) so it doesn’t just seem like you are moving onto the next obvious thing on your path.
You have reasonably …
You have reasonably good stats (your GPA is ok considering the university and subject!). I would love to know more about the impact you have had – what does “Responsible for a user-facing app” mean? Make sure that the Adcom knows exactly what you did and the result / impact. Also any leadership experiences you have had at work or outside would be great to highlight – Wharton loves teamwork and presumably as a PM you have had lots of opportunities to lead with formal and informal authority.
You have a strong application but the programs you listed are incredibly competitive for absolutely everyone. I would work hard on your application(s) to put your best foot forward and if you absolutely want a seat a b school in a year I would consider adding more schools to your list. Good luck!
Hi, it’s Nisha with mbaMission. You’ve got a really intriguing trajectory as a software engineer –>PM at a CPG company, and on top of that some valuable part-time startup experience. Your post-MBA goal of PM at a FAANG or at a startup is logical, and I think these companies would greatly value your experience – you’ll just want to make it clear in your business school applications what motivates you to pursue this goal based on your experiences and observations to date.
These facets of your profile, along with your excellent academics, make you a viable candidate for a range of business schools. Given how competitive things have been over the past year (and the trend may continue into the next), I would …
These facets of your profile, along with your excellent academics, make you a viable candidate for a range of business schools. Given how competitive things have been over the past year (and the trend may continue into the next), I would expand your list of programs. Others I would consider based on their tech/startup connections: Kellogg, Ross, Haas, and Anderson. I hope that helps – please feel free to reach out for a free consultation if you would like to discuss in more detail. Best of luck!!
Ms. Type A CPG PM – Thanks for posting your profile. Susan Cera here from Stratus.
Your strong work experience and solid GMAT serve as the basis of a great profile for Wharton. Absent any mention of extracurriculars, you come across as somewhat one dimensional which doesn’t necessarily play well with admissions. Wharton is very much a student driven culture. Your success and the success of your peers depends on you stepping up to drive initiatives like a tech trek to the west coast or a tech conference with a panel on design thinking. Hopefully you have been engaged in communities previously and just didn’t include that information here.
Beyond that, take time to think about what impact you want to have as a product manager. Is …
Beyond that, take time to think about what impact you want to have as a product manager. Is there a problem that you are passionate about solving? Having a specific challenge that you want to address could allow you to present a more compelling narrative.
Wishing you all the best.
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