Hi!

Thanks for taking the time to read this! First time poster... I obviously have never been through the MBA application process before, and I know it's still a ways off for me, but I was hoping to get some advice from people much more knowledgable about the process than I am as to how I can successfully prepare myself between now and then.

I just want to preface this by saying that Stanford has been my dream school for as long as I can remember. I was unfortunately rejected in my application as an undergrad, but that has not put a damper on my desire to go there for graduate school if possible. I am passionate about business, and, after working an awesome internship this past summer as a financial analyst for a startup educational technology company, I'm confident in my decision to pursue business as a career.

Background on me: I am currently an out-of-state first-semester Sophomore at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. My GPA is 3.90, I am a member of the honors college, and I have just been accepted early as a major to the Kenan-Flagler Undergraduate Business Program. I am currently planning to double major in Business Administration (with a concentration in Finance) and Economics. I am also doing a minor through the Duke-UNC Philosophy, Politics, and Economics program.

My career plan is to go into investment banking for 3-5 years after undergrad, get an MBA, and then pursue a career in corporate finance. As far as my summers go, I was planning to go on one of Kenan-Flagler's study abroad summer programs for the summer after my Sophomore year to acquire global business experience and then pursue a state-side internship with JP Morgan, GS, Merril Lynch, etc. for the summer after my junior year (and hopefully land a job with one of them after graduation).

I realize that Stanford is a longshot for any competitive applicant... It is far and away my first choice, but other top choices for MBA include HBS, Wharton, Berkeley Haas, UChicago Booth, and MIT Sloan. I was just wondering if any of you who have been through this process and are much more knowledgable than I could shed some light on how to make my application as competitive as possible in between now and when I apply and give me some advice on my current plan and if it needs adjusting to meet my goals. Thank you SO much!!!

There's a book-long answer for such broad questions. Just read some books on MBA admissions. Your campus library or careers service will have them.

[Edited by Duncan on Oct 28, 2016]

There's a book-long answer for such broad questions. Just read some books on MBA admissions. Your campus library or careers service will have them.

Can anybody comment on my chances to get into Stanford's MBA program? I'm about to pull the trigger on R2 but somehow I have second thoughts. Here is my profile:

American, male, 27
Work experience: 3.5 years as an IT project manager in a consulting firm, plus one year in administrative support for a law firm.
GMAT: 760
Undergraduate: 3.9 GPA, graduated with honors at a top-tier private school. My extracurricular activities included several clubs, plus I did some volunteer work at a local nonprofit.
Goal: to stay in the consulting industry but to transition into front office and probably switch firms.

Your stats look good, within range of who they generally accept.

At this level of school, though, there are many competitive candidates. It will come down to a couple of other things: how well they think you'll fit into the class, as well as how they feel about your essays/career goals, as well as what your recommenders say about you.

I'd say that you have a fair to good chance, but as you can see, it's going to be a judgement call by the adcomm, so, a bit of necessary uncertainty.