2018 PhD in Accounting Evaluation

[WZhao]

Hi there, this is my first post ever. I am hoping to get some feedbacks on my target schools and things that I can sell. Below is my brief intro.

 

Undergrad (major in accounting): GPA 3.78/4.0 from a Chinese college specialized in economics and business.

First grad degree (master in accounting): GPA 3.34/4.0 from a fairly prestigious US public university that does not have a PhD track in accounting.

Between my two grad degrees, I worked for a year in a middle-sized real estate company as a full-time accountant.

Second grad degree (master in statistics): GPA 3.46/4.0 from the same grad school mentioned above, not done yet. I am hoping to pump GPA up a little bit in the following two semesters.

I had a GMAT of 740 from five years ago, which expired already, so I am retaking it very soon and aim to get a 720 or higher.

In terms of research experience, I am working for a marketing professor right now, but mostly my tasks involve just very preliminary coding and questionnaire works rather than actual hard core research.

So for letters, I plan to invite my ex boss, the marketing professor that I am currently work with, and possibly either my ex director from the accounting program or my current director from the stats program to write my recommendation letters.

 

I would say I am just average, since I don't have long-term working experience or sophisticated research experience, I only have average GPA and GMAT scores (as an international applicant), and my recommenders may not be highly profiled in accounting academia. But the bonus I have is probably the stats degree that I am working on right now. I am thinking quantitative skill is probably something I want to sell to differentiate myself from other applicants.

 

My target schools are U of Florida, UT Dallas, UNC Chapel Hill, U of Houston, U of Pittsburgh, etc. I plan to apply for at least 15 schools so please bring up school if you believe would better fit me.

 

I am open to all your comments and I appreciate you take your time reading this in advance.