UMgirl,
Here is my PM to Jen. I didn't post it because it is so long....
Hope this helps you both and provides some inspiration.
Jen,
Chin up, girl! I just went through what you are going through.
I graduated four years ago and went right into working in Advertising. I had tons of student loans and tons of credit card debt.
Last year, I decided I was really unhappy with what I was doing in advertising and did a lot of soul searching.
I ended up deciding to pursue my Master's in Higher Ed with an emphasis in Student Affairs. It was my way of giving back while still being able to use my advertising/marketing background.
I was a little hesitant at first because my undergrad GPA is not stellar. I had an overall GPA of 2.68/4.0 and my last 60 hours was 3.0/4.0.
But never fear...what I did was talk to a lot faculty and staff in the programs that I was interested. It ended up that I scored really well on the GRE and since I had fours years of real world experience, they felt that maturity and experience far out weighed my undergrad GPA.
I was told by top instructors that GPA is becoming more and more a very small part of the admissions decision process. They really try to look at the whole picture. This is across the board...1st Tier schools, 2nd Tier, etc.
Here's what I would suggest to you.
1) Student Loans and debt
--- Yes, put a dent in them first. See about getting on income sensitive payment plan...not income contingent, but income sensitive. There is a difference between the two. I MIGHT HAVE THESE BACKWARDS, CHECK INTO THAT!!
Then pay down any credit cards you've got first. They carry the higher interest rate. Also, if your student loans are not consolidated, get them consolidated. I think you can do this through sallie Mae....not sure about the Canadian differences.
2) If an MBA is what you are after, then I suggest taking some math courses at a local community college or university. You will want to have a proficiency to the calculus and statistics level. Make sure you get "A's" in these classes.
3) When you've been out for two-three years, I would start the application process. Gather materials from the schools, determine which programs best meet your needs and then apply for say 3-5 schools. Apply to 1 or 2 that you think you have no shot at, apply to 1-2 that you'd be happy at and apply to 1-2 that you know you could get into, but are not maybe the most prominent of programs. Be picky, though, applying can be expensive.
4) Also, if an MBA is what you want, I would suggest from now until application time working for that accounting firm. It will show that you have good experience and hopefully progressively increased responsibility. Or, if not accounting, some other area of interest.
5) Other things that can help are volunteerism. You can volunteer to do the ledgers for a non-profit or just volunteer plain and simple.
6) Make sure you build your network of friends and colleagues. They will be important as references.
Another source for the MBA route is
www.businessweek.com. Look at the b-schools forum.
Feel free to e-mail me if you'd like to chat. I brought up MBA because I was very very close to pursuing my MBA before I decided to go into Student Affairs.
Just an FYI, it was about a 10 month process for me from decision to go, application, interviews, GRE, getting an assistantship and now ending my real job to go to school.
By the way, for my program I have a Graduate Assistantship in Greek Life. It pays ALL of my tuition plus a stipend of $12,000 USD and $500 professional development fund.
I was able to pay off my credit cards, but I will have in-school deferment on my student loans and I am taking out a little more to cover living expenses.
Take care and LiEP,
Keri
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