Hi Ava178,
Thanks for sharing your profile, and congrats on the 710 GMAT. You have a less traditional MBA applicant background, but that is not necessarily a drawback, as schools like to have a lot of diversity in their classes and a variety of experiences to draw from within class discussions. Being a Peruvian (female?? not sure), with a background in telecommunications as well as some exposure to the finance industry can set you up to get a closer look in the pool of applicants, so you'll just need to support that through strong, compelling application essays that detail your story-- what you will bring to the program, why you want the MBA, why NOW, and why each school works for you. Your interests and activities outside the work place, including your Kung Fu and your community involvements, are great to demonstrate that you are the type who will be involved in b-school as well and bring a lot of character to the program.
Your potential weaknesses are your GPA that you mentioned, though that can be mostly compensated for with the GMAT, and the fact that you had excellent academic success in the management program also makes the prior GPA less relevant. The other question that could come up is after you got the post-grad program, do you really NEED the MBA?? Just to ensure you aren't 'collecting degrees', so to speak, you'll need to adequately explain how your past fits together with the MBA which leads to your future goals.
In terms of schools, Stanford will be the most difficult as they have a smaller class than others on the list and are subsequently one of the most selective programs in the world. HBS and Wharton follow fairly closely behind. Your school list is quite competitive, I do believe with great essays and a good overall story you have a chance at many of these programs, but it's up to you-- if you wanted you could add a safety school in the 10-20 ranking just in case (but only if you'd be ok going there if you don't get in elsewhere). Also keep in mind that each application is VERY time consuming, and you don't want to sacrifice your application QUALITY for quantity... many applicants find that 3-5 schools is a good number, where you can still tailor each application to each school.
As for the GMAT, with a 710 you are at or near the average at the programs you listed, so generally that would mean your decision would be based on the other factors in your application. Certainly though if you're already planning a re-take and confident of a 730+ then by all means go for it, as schools take the highest score.
Keep us posted on your decisions and let us know what other questions you have ! Good luck!
Thanks for sharing your profile, and congrats on the 710 GMAT. You have a less traditional MBA applicant background, but that is not necessarily a drawback, as schools like to have a lot of diversity in their classes and a variety of experiences to draw from within class discussions. Being a Peruvian (female?? not sure), with a background in telecommunications as well as some exposure to the finance industry can set you up to get a closer look in the pool of applicants, so you'll just need to support that through strong, compelling application essays that detail your story-- what you will bring to the program, why you want the MBA, why NOW, and why each school works for you. Your interests and activities outside the work place, including your Kung Fu and your community involvements, are great to demonstrate that you are the type who will be involved in b-school as well and bring a lot of character to the program.
Your potential weaknesses are your GPA that you mentioned, though that can be mostly compensated for with the GMAT, and the fact that you had excellent academic success in the management program also makes the prior GPA less relevant. The other question that could come up is after you got the post-grad program, do you really NEED the MBA?? Just to ensure you aren't 'collecting degrees', so to speak, you'll need to adequately explain how your past fits together with the MBA which leads to your future goals.
In terms of schools, Stanford will be the most difficult as they have a smaller class than others on the list and are subsequently one of the most selective programs in the world. HBS and Wharton follow fairly closely behind. Your school list is quite competitive, I do believe with great essays and a good overall story you have a chance at many of these programs, but it's up to you-- if you wanted you could add a safety school in the 10-20 ranking just in case (but only if you'd be ok going there if you don't get in elsewhere). Also keep in mind that each application is VERY time consuming, and you don't want to sacrifice your application QUALITY for quantity... many applicants find that 3-5 schools is a good number, where you can still tailor each application to each school.
As for the GMAT, with a 710 you are at or near the average at the programs you listed, so generally that would mean your decision would be based on the other factors in your application. Certainly though if you're already planning a re-take and confident of a 730+ then by all means go for it, as schools take the highest score.
Keep us posted on your decisions and let us know what other questions you have ! Good luck!