PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Military Academy, majored in Mech Engr & English
Undergrad GPA: 3.94
Type of Grad: MBA, top-5 resident program
Grad GPA: not calculated, finished program with Honors
GRE: 167Q/164V/5.0W
Math Courses (undergrad-level): Discrete Math (A-), Calc II (A+), Engineering Math (A+), Prob & Stats (A+)
Math Courses (grad-level): various MBA courses
Econ Courses (grad-level): various MBA courses, but managerial in nature
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Principles (A)
Letters of Recommendation: Very good. Experienced and respected economists who know me well.
Research Experience: 2 years at an Econ and manpower-oriented defense research agency.
Teaching Experience: 3 years (Principles, Intermediate Micro, Econometrics).
Research Interests: Applied Micro, esp. economics of education.
SOP: Very good.
Concerns: Military background and MBA are non-traditional, might or might not help my application outcomes.
Other: Geographical pref for East Coast or mid-Atlantic region.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Kentucky, Virginia, Notre Dame
Waitlists: none
Rejections: Harvard, MIT
Attending: will choose after completing my visits
Comments: I am thrilled with the UK, UVa, and ND acceptances. Harvard and MIT were longshots anyway, but especially so given my non-traditional background (older student, military experience, MBA).
What would you have done differently? I am pretty happy with these results. I applied to the correct number of schools given my geographical preferences and program interests. Best of luck to everyone out there; hope our paths cross down the road.