Hi,

I have over 8 years experience in IT management and strategy. I have extensive line management experience. Currently I am freelance consultant specialising in improving IT quality of a global company. My GMAT score is 640. I am from the UK and have just started learning Spanish. I am really interested in the full time programme from IE. What are my chances? Thanks!

Regards
Pra

My knee-jerk reaction is that your GMAT will have to come up a bit, though your work experience sounds excellent.

@Repoman - Thanks but I do not intend to take the GMAT again and thats why I wonder if the score is enough.

Ah okay. Well, their average is 680. Would you consider taking IE's own alternative admissions test?

In any case I would say you should try to apply.

@Repoman - Thanks for the advise. Appreciated!

Why are you interested in IE? I am sure you are aware of the high unemployment and deep recession in Spain. Graduates from MBAs are Spain are earning low wages; it's only the wages of those who are returning to Latin America which keeps them up in the rankings.

@Duncan

That is an excellent question, Duncan! This has been particularly useful in questioning my expectations.

I expect to learn business and management from the best out there. Any good school will help one attain this. However IE will give me the further opportunity to progress the little Spanish that I have learned so far. Also I am expectant that the school's reputation will open doors both in the Spanish speaking as well as English speaking parts of the globe. Am I too naive to have this expectation?

Any accredited MBA will give you a good education, so that's not a reason to go to IE in particular.

Attending IE is the most expensive and ineffective way to improve your Spanish. You will be studying and working in English, and you won't have the time to really study Spanish. As a result, you will hard-wire the errors you already have in Spanish. Don't think you will casually pick up a language by osmosis when you will be doing all your group work in English. You would improve more in a one month intensive programme in Spanish than in a year of studying at IE.

IE has a great reputation in the Spanish speaking world. However, without really perfect Spanish it will be hard for you to find work there.

So, learn Spanish first if your focus is on working in Latin America - and go there to study. You will be very unlikely to find work in Spain.

IE will not open doors in the English-speaking world in the same way, because reputation is an expression of experience, and IE doesn't have many alumni making impressions in the English-speaking world. If you want to work there, then improve your GMAT and get into the best school you can. Plenty of time to take language classes before and after your MBA.

@Duncan

Very thought provoking, thanks again for your inputs! Really appreciated.

Why no look at the MBA schools that have a good alumni network inside the firm which is your main client? You should be able to work that out with LinkedIn. Perhaps some of them have exchange programmes with schools in Spanish-speaking schools? But Latin America is more promising professionally than Spain. You would also be a strong candidate for the Lisbon MIT programme.

For intensive Spanish look at Esade. It is the same price as the state universities and you will be studying alongside business people and MBAs.

Thanks Duncan. I will learn about ESADE and Lisbon MIT. I really appreciate all your advise. I particularly found your questions very beneficial. I will find out more info. and get back to you. Thanks again, Duncan.