Thank you for your posting.
To start off with, I think that you are being a bit too hard on yourself for some grades that happened almost a decade ago. The good news about this aspect of your application is that you rebounded well -- so this will diminish the impact of the low grades that happened in college. Also, admissions weighs your most recent academic experience most heavily - so your 3.7 GPA in your MSF program will count much more than your college grades. (However, saying this, your early grades have used up your entire margin of error in your application -- so everything else has to be top notch). As for your GMAT, try to get above a 700 and above 80th percentile on both the verbal and quant sections. A strong GMAT will support the claims that your earlier grades were a fluke.
The next issue that we have to address is your age - by the time you enroll you will be 30 years old and some schools just prefer younger candidates. This means that I would re-evalaute HBS -- as they do prefer candidates in the 24-27 age range -- with 30 being on the very upper end of what they usually consider.
As for all the other schools on your list, with a strong application, I believe that you can be a compelling candidate. I also think you chose the right portfolio of schools to apply to -- however, I would also recommend that you apply to Johnson (as a backup) -- as the finance program and placement is very strong.
Good luck.
Kimberly Plaga
Senior Admissions Consultant
Manhattan Review
Call for a free candidacy assessment.
To start off with, I think that you are being a bit too hard on yourself for some grades that happened almost a decade ago. The good news about this aspect of your application is that you rebounded well -- so this will diminish the impact of the low grades that happened in college. Also, admissions weighs your most recent academic experience most heavily - so your 3.7 GPA in your MSF program will count much more than your college grades. (However, saying this, your early grades have used up your entire margin of error in your application -- so everything else has to be top notch). As for your GMAT, try to get above a 700 and above 80th percentile on both the verbal and quant sections. A strong GMAT will support the claims that your earlier grades were a fluke.
The next issue that we have to address is your age - by the time you enroll you will be 30 years old and some schools just prefer younger candidates. This means that I would re-evalaute HBS -- as they do prefer candidates in the 24-27 age range -- with 30 being on the very upper end of what they usually consider.
As for all the other schools on your list, with a strong application, I believe that you can be a compelling candidate. I also think you chose the right portfolio of schools to apply to -- however, I would also recommend that you apply to Johnson (as a backup) -- as the finance program and placement is very strong.
Good luck.
Kimberly Plaga
Senior Admissions Consultant
Manhattan Review
Call for a free candidacy assessment.