The Challenge
Betty was a great lady and tough as nails, but she was also very average (not in life of course, but as far as MBA applicants from China go). Her work experience was mediocre as were her GMAT and life experiences. It was tough to make Betty stand out from the crowd.
Possible Approaches
Betty had a very strong and beautiful connection to her family. We tried to leverage that, along with her experiences growing up in a rural Chinese village to help set her apart. She was interested in the healthcare industry and had a long family history of traditional Chinese medicine. We wanted to mine this history to breathe “color” into her application and help her stand out.
The Admissionado Approach
Betty was making a career switch from consulting and finance into healthcare. Her interest in the industry was valid due to her family history, but we had to help build that bridge. We leveraged her volunteer experience and work with family members in rural clinics to demonstrate her knowledge of the healthcare industry, convey what she was truly passionate about doing, and build a convincing argument in support of her career change.
The Result
Betty was dinged by several schools, but accepted into Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, which was one of her first choices. She’s a first-year student there now.
Personal Shoutout
Betty was tough! That came through in all of her life stories and subsequent essays. She was the type of person who refused to accept no for an answer. She got dinged during the first round, but refused to give up. She dug in even harder and we put together some great applications for year two. I was extremely proud of her when she was accepted at Duke, one of her first choices.