What’s good, y’all. I hope everyone had a nice Labor Day holiday weekend and didn’t have too hard of a time getting back into the groove of work. I know it’s hard to go from that day-off back to the regular grind, but at least the end of the week is a day closer when you start back at work, right?

Anyways, the entry below is from a prospective business school student who has a pretty interesting profile. I won’t recap it here because you’ll read it in her email below, but I know that she’ll be a unique case for the admissions officers to review. Her background is in oil & gas and her post-MBA aspiration is to transition into consulting, primarily for energy sector clients. She’s asked some questions related to how to plan out her path and, despite her focus on energy, my tips might be useful to people coming from other backgrounds too…I guess y’all will have to figure that out for yourselves though.

Before I close this out, I’ve got a request for readers who have blogs of their own and have posted links/references to this site. First of all, I’d like to thank you for thinking that this joint is worth linking to because it could be helpful to new audiences. But, going forward, if you link to this blog or a particular post, please don’t post my full government name when referencing it (i.e. first and last names). Recently, I found a couple of sites that did this and it really bothered me…I know I’ve put myself out there quite a bit on here, but I don’t even use my full gov’t name on here, only the first name. I won’t say anything more about it here, but I’ll just ask people to be mindful of it going forward. Thanks.

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AS wrote:

“Hi Marquis!
First of all, I know you get this a lot but thanks so much for dedicating so much of your time to us internet vagabonds out there in need of advice.
Like many people, I stumbled onto your blog and was fascinated by your entries… I’ve lost all contact with my peers at lunch breaks the last 2 weeks due to my obsession with all the past entries!
Now that they are all digested, was wondering if you could answer a question I have, no rush though..
I’m very interested in attending Stanford for my MBA in the next few years but unsure of when to apply.

First a bit about me:
24, UK/USA dual citizen. grew up in east coast (MD) and moved to England when i was 17. Got my undergrad and masters (combined 4 year course) in Engineering Science from Cambridge in 2006. Joined Shell as a mechanical engineer straight away into their grad program. Currently about to start my 3rd year with the company and really enjoying it. For the first 3 years we switch location and job once a year to obtain design, build, and operate experience. So far so good but now the problem!
I’m really interested in the business side of the energy industry and I think going to a top Business school would be a great transition. The question is: when?
I feel that the oil and gas industry is so complex and engineering oriented that a minimum of 3 years as an engineer is crucial experience wise. Especially as I’d ultimately like to get into a specialist strategy consulting role and really make a difference in the way companies and governments deal with the energy crisis in the next 40 years.

Sorry for the long email, I guess a list of questions now would suffice?

1/ Were there students from an oil and gas background in your class at Stanford? Is there any particular B-school that would specialize in energy for example?

2/I don’t want to sound presumptuous but with a good masters degree from Cambridge, 3-5 years of work with a multinational (Shell) doing interesting work and a good GMAT, is there any reason why I’d get blanket rejections from the top schools? Obviously I would put in TONS of hard work in the application process as well. YOU’VE TAUGHT ME WELL LOL!

3/Would 3 years as opposed to 5 years experience make any difference? I really want to get to B-School as soon as possible. The only thing keeping me is building up credibility in the indistry for my later career. There’s nothing more annoying than consultants coming in to you workplace who know nothing about the industry and try to implement ideas without having the context/experience that is required.

4/ Does [your employer] and the others all have specialist energy branches that I could get into? I’m really excited about the energy industry but don’t know much about the consulting side of it. any info on that would be great

Wow, a touch long but you’re the first person I’ve spoken to that’s gone to B-school about this and would love to hear from you!

Kindest Regards,
AS

p.s Haven’t been to SF yet but my best friend lives there and she absolutely loves it! currently in England and not the best weather!”
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My response:

AS,

Thanks for checking out my blog and for your nice comments about my entries. Also, it’s great to hear that you’re interested in the GSB as a B-school of choice. I’m sorry for taking so long to respond, but I’m sure you can imagine how many emails I get. It sounds like you’ve got an interesting profile, so I imagine that you’ll have a lot to write about once you start working on those application essays. Let’s jump right into your questions so you can get the insights you were seeking when you emailed me:

1/ Were there students from an oil and gas background in your class at Stanford? Is there any particular B-school that would specialize in energy for example?
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Yes, there were a couple of kids from oil and gas backgrounds at the GSB while I was there, including one from Schlumberger and one from Shell. It wouldn’t surprise me if there are more kids from energy backgrounds going to business schools now because, with the energy sector doing so well, kids have a tremendous opportunity for career growth with the addition of an MBA. I haven’t heard of any business schools that specialize in the energy industry, but there are likely some schools that might have some cool energy-related courses. You’ll have to do some surfing around on B-school websites to figure that one out though.
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2/I don’t want to sound presumptuous but with a good masters degree from Cambridge, 3-5 years of work with a multinational (Shell) doing interesting work and a good GMAT, is there any reason why I’d get blanket rejections from the top schools? Obviously I would put in TONS of hard work in the application process as well. YOU’VE TAUGHT ME WELL LOL!
—
You’re probably expecting me to say this, but this is REALLY a question that should be asked of an admissions person. I have never evaluated application packages before, so i don’t have the type of specific expertise that you may be looking for. Based on what you’ve told me, you appear to be a strong candidate for MBA admission, but, as I’ve said before, there are a lot of moving parts in an application. Some big unknowns based on your email are your undergrad and grad GPA’s, your extracurricular activities during school and post-graduation, the quality of your recommendations, and the strength of your application essays. The MBA application is a huge collection of components, so you’ve got to link them all together to tell a compelling story, so that’s where you’ll have to focus your “TONS of hard work in the application process”.

For now, put some thought into the following questions to improve your chances of putting together a strong application package:

- Why do you NEED an MBA and why do you NEED it now? (stressing the word “NEED” versus simply “wanting” it)
- How will you leverage the MBA to reach your short- and long-term career goals?
- What makes you unique and how will you make a unique contribution if admitted?
- What have you accomplished so far and what do you have the potential to accomplish in the future?

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3/Would 3 years as opposed to 5 years experience make any difference? I really want to get to B-School as soon as possible. The only thing keeping me is building up credibility in the indistry for my later career. There’s nothing more annoying than consultants coming in to you workplace who know nothing about the industry and try to implement ideas without having the context/experience that is required.
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This is a really good question and it really comes down to your motivation for staying the extra two years. It seems like a couple of motivations could be the following:

- Build up additional knowledge about your industry –> Well, there’s no guessing on this one because you stated it in your email. With the goal of becoming a consultant to the energy industry, you could significantly deepend your knowledgebase over an extra two years at Shell, which could benefit your future clients.

- Improve your chances of getting into B-school: The thinking here would be that you could accomplish more over an extra two years, which would make your work experience sparkle even more than it already does.

Based on what you’ve told me about your program, the first three years will provide a good rotational experience throughout Shell and will teach you a lot about the company and its business. Also, it sounds like your ultimate goals are to get into B-school as soon as possible and to transition into consulting immediately after the MBA. If I were in your shoes, I would probably go with three years of experience prior to matriculation because the extra two years might not get me appreciably further along given those goals. As you read this, please remember that this is what I would do…you need to think this out for yourself before making a final decision. You should talk to some other people in the energy industry and, if possible, some consultants to the industry to get their perspectives. Their insights about the value of those extra two years would likely be MUCH more valuable than my view. This is a huge decision that you’re facing, so be sure to gather as much information as possible before choosing what you’ll do.
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4/ Does [your employer] and the others all have specialist energy branches that I could get into? I’m really excited about the energy industry but don’t know much about the consulting side of it. any info on that would be great
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Yes, many consulting firms (including my employer) have specialized energy practices that you could join after business school. During the recruiting process, you should make your desire to enter this type of practice known and I’m sure that they’d connect you with the right people to give you information. In most cases, consultants to the energy sector will be providing high-level strategic guidance to client firms and your knowledge of the overall industry and the inner-workings of energy companies could be VERY valuable to them. Be aware that you might be guided toward certain office locations based on your desire to do energy work though (do to the prevalence of energy companies in certain locales).
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I hope these answers are along the line of what you were looking for. Good luck with your next couple of years of work and your eventual MBA applications. You seem to have a good starting background, so I hope you can leverage it to get into a good school. Take care.

-Marquis