Age: 22

Education: Just graduated in May from Duke University with a major in Biomedical Engineering (graduated with Distinction) and a minor in Economics. Overall GPA of 3.6

GMAT: 760 (99%), 44V (97%), 49Q (89%), 6.0 AWA

Work Experience: In one month I will be starting work full time in Investment Banking at Goldman Sachs. For the previous two summers I have interned at Goldman; two summers ago I interned in Goldman's Asset Management/Hedge Fund arm, and the more recent summer I worked in Investment Banking.

I plan to work for two years at Goldman before going to business school. I have a few questions...

1) When should I apply to schools, considering that I would like to matriculate in 2010 or 2011? Is it best to apply after one year and defer admission? I ask this because generally recruitment for HF and PE firms begins after one year at the large banks; if I apply to BSchool after two years and get in, I most likely would have to renege on a commitment made to go to an employer after Goldman. It's an awkward timing problem, that I am sure others have encountered...

2) How difficult will it be for me to gain admission to Top 10 schools with only 2 years of full time work experience? I know it will depend on the school (for example, I know HBS is more open to accepting young candidates than other top schools). Any insight on this would be appreciated

3) Finally, I would like some advice on which of the Top 10 schools would best suit me. I am interested in transitioning to management of a corporation after business school, rather than staying in the pure finance (banking/HF/PE) world. From what I have heard, HBS focuses more on case studies and soft skills, which I believe is what I am searching for. Similarly, it seems that Wharton is very hardcore and quantitative, which would probably not suit me as well. Beyond that, I am fairly ignorant, and would appreciate some opinions on what would best fit with my ambitions.

Thank you again.

Congrats on graduating, and welcome to the real world!

To answer your questions:

(1) Don't count on deferring admission -- deferrals are traditionally given to college seniors (even before the HBS 2+2 program, HBS had given deferrals from time to time) and to regular applicants with circumstances that justify it (health or family-related). Apply when you're ready to matriculate that year, as opposed to applying to defer. I don't understand what you mean by reneging on the PE job, because the application deadlines are way in advance anyhow (i.e. you apply in Fall 2010 for Fall 2011 matriculation) - and most of the post-analyst jobs in PE or HF are one or two year gigs anyhow.

(2) You have the numbers (GPA/GMAT), the pedigree (school, employer), so it really comes down to how well you execute the application, coupled with being able to show that you're more than just a resume ho (i.e. there's a real person worth knowing about behind the resume).

(3) Honestly, any of the top schools will get you there -- remember that it's an MBA, and the schools more or less teach you the same thing. It's not like HBS and Wharton are offering different degree programs. Think Pepsi vs. Coke. In any case, no one can tell you what schools will suit you (and you may not know that just yet as you're a fresh grad, and it's a guarantee you will change quite a bit as a person in your next two years as you enter the workforce). You will have to do that research yourself - it's not like you're going through hundreds of schools. They're just 10 - you'll have plenty of time to bug your Goldman colleagues, many of whom have MBAs. Just focus on your job (and you won't have much time for anything else haha) for the time being.

Alex Chu
alex@mbaapply.com
www.mbaapply.com
http://mbaapply.blogspot.com