Hi!

I'm applying for the hBS 2+2 program. Veritas prep has an amazing business model and it's good to see you put theory into practice. I would greatly greatly appreciate your advice and thoughts - and any thoughts about increasing my chances.

Best,
Sony

Basic Stats:

* University of Southern California, B.A. Urban Studies. Cumulative GPA: 4.0. GRE (I'm worried about this - i froze on the math section): 1200 (690 verbal, 510 Math)
* I'm interested in HBS to gain unique perspectives uncommon in the nonprofit, policy, academic world in organizational management, strategy, and social entrepreneurship to create more innovative, sustainable, and just cities and communities. I tell stories about my experience in community and in leadership for my personal statements.
* Extracurriculars (see my resume or linkedin for more detail)
o Community Organizing around community/campus issues, urban policy, and enviro/social justice
+ started a coalition of 15 organizations pushing for responsible development around USC. Won a national award by Campus Progress and invited to several national and global conferences due to work - one of my biggest achievements was when leaders I nominated won delegations to awards and to these conferences.
+ Started a national-based youth alliance called Youth for the American Dream, incorporating online communities, social media, and digital storytelling to retell the American Dream around issues of community, sustainability, and social justice.
o Policy and Academic Research with Professors and USC Urban Institute
+ My thesis won several awards, including prizes at the USC undergraduate research symposium (out of 200 submissions); gained the Phi Beta Kappa Honor for the top 2 USC students in academic excellence; gained acceptances in urban studies to the American Sociology Association, Society for the Study of Social Problems, and International Sociological Association Conferences- the top three sociology conferences.
+ Selected for a variety of nationally competitive programs and fellowships, including HBS Summer Venture in Management Program, Public Policy and International Affairs, Harvard's Galbraith Inequality Scholars Program.

Hello,

I love your extracurricular involvement and the organizations that you have started. Assuming that you yourself did most of the work to make those things happen -- rather than you were just part of a group that started those groups -- I think you will have excellent experiences to talk about in your admissions essays and your interview.

As you may have read on our blog or in other places before, admissions officers really want to see what positive impact you've had on the community around you. While you may not have worked much in the "real world" yet, Harvard believes that by now you will start to exhibit real leadership traits if you have them. These stories will be great for you in this regard.

I do, however, worry about your GRE score. You were right to flag this as a weakness -- your quant score puts you at around the 30th percentile... That's going to make thing hard for you with the HBS 2+2 Program acceptance rate at 14% last year! While you have less than two weeks before the admissions 2+2 deadline, which makes it tough, I really wish you could take the GRE again (or take the GMAT) to bring that score up. Especially on the GRE, which many people believe to TOO easy on the quant side (making it tough for admissions officers to separate the really smart applicants from the rest of the pool), having that low of a score may be what keeps you out the the HBS 2+2 Program.

Good luck! I hope you're able to take the test again!

Scott