Ask ISB-Hyderabad: Official Admission Query thread featuring ISB's Admission Director

[Apurv]

Thread Closed for the 2007 Admission Season. See you all in again 2008!

Hi everyone,

This thread records a Question and Answer session between the ISB Hyderabad Admission Director Mr Ranga Rao and users of PaGaLGuY.com during the 2007 Admission Season.

Mr Rao and his ISB Admissions Committee answered all queries related to admissions to ISB, Hyderabad or general MBA career related queries on this thread.

The thread now stands closed, but you may go through it to know an exhaustive knowledge base of ISB Admissions.

If you still think you have questions not asked in this thread, click here to go to the 2008 ISB Admissions Query thread.

[raks123]

Hi There
This is Rakesh Gupta having 3.5 year ex in IT industry.
Sir i want to know that am i eligible for ISB?
I got to know that only more than 5 years ex person is eligible for that.
Please clarify it.
Thanks
Rakesh

[suithink]

Hi,

First things first..I appreciate this effort..!!

My concern is regarding career prospects for an experienced candidate..

I am 32 yrs old and have 8 years of experience in Energy/Retail Sales with Fortune 500.As the average age and experience is skewed towards 'younger ' candidates at ISB,how a candidate with my exp expect a career progression post ISB...
(a) If I do not wish to change my vertical.
(b) If I decide to move towards IT industry/Management consulting .Does ISB support an industry change.

Also in general what are the career fit prospects considering my background.?

Sunil

[Sana4MBA]

Originally Posted by Apurv

Hi everyone,

We are proud to have on board Mr Ranga Rao, Director of Admissions and Financial Aid of the Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad.

Mr Rao and his ISB Admissions Committee team would be answering all your queries related to admissions to ISB, Hyderabad or general MBA career related queries on this thread.

You can post all your queries regarding ISB here, whether about admissions process, criteria, faculty, course content, placements and so on. You can also seek his advice on how to best plan your MBA career.

How does it work?

1. You post your questions about ISB Hyderabad or MBA careers here
2. Mr Rao and his team, who will watch this thread will answer all your queries on a regular basis.
3. So once you post your question, come back to this thread in a couple of days to find your answer or even better, Subscribe to this threa by clicking on the 'Thread tools' link on the top-right side at the top of the thread.

Mr Ranga's PG user-ID is Admissions@ISB

Good luck to Mr Ranga and all of you!

Cheers!

Hello,

I want to know what kind of roles can be looked at during recruitment process with the following profile:

• 12-13 years of work experience
• 9 years intl' experience
• senior consultant with renowned IT firm

1. Do such people get opportunities to aim middle management of senior management roles or remain at any disadvantage?

2. Is it advisable to apply with this profile?

[harshRambles]

Dear Mr. Ranga Rao,

Thanks for the opportunity to communicate with you on the forum.

I have a computer engineering bachelor's degree from University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) and I've been working for a Fortune 50 company in the US for two years. Since then, I have been growing in terms of both responsibility and reward - my base pay has risen more than 14%.

But I wish to leave my secure job and start something of my own in India. I am not interested in consulting or industry (except for short term experience).

Is ISB a good fit for me?
What does ISB offer in terms of entrepreneurial tools and guidance for people with such an inclination?
(I found WCED at ISB interesting, would like to know more.)

My academic credentials are strong, and the last 6 years in the US have been a constant learning experience in various multi-cultural environments.

Thank you!

Harsh

[kalika_jain]

hello sir,
i m kalika jain.....and i hav done my engineering this year only and have no work experience.......
i just wanted to know that does evry course in ISB requires work experience......
or does ISB has any course for freshers also........

Thank you

Kalika

[Admissions@ISB]

Hi

Greetings from all of us at ISB and I am delighted to have this opportunity to respond to your concerns and clarifications regarding doing an MBA program in general and the program at ISB in particular. How we take advantage of the ‘external empowerment’ that an MBA provides to educate and equip ourselves for the change and challenge of an increasingly globalised world economic order depends entirely on us! I look forward to participating in this very valuable interactive opportunity with all of you and wish you the very best in your business education and career choices. I'll start answering all your questions after this reply.

Cordially,

I V Ranga Rao
Director - Admissions & Financial Aid
Indian School of Business
ISB Campus, Gachibowli
Hyderabad 500 032
Ph # +91 40 23007026/ 23187400
Fax # +91 40 23187099
Full Time Post Graduate Programme in Management Indian School of Business (ISB)

[Admissions@ISB]

Originally Posted by raks123

Hi There
This is Rakesh Gupta having 3.5 year ex in IT industry.
Sir i want to know that am i eligible for ISB?
I got to know that only more than 5 years ex person is eligible for that.
Please clarify it.
Thanks
Rakesh

Dear Rakesh,

You are eligible to apply with a full-time work experience of 2 years or more. 5 years is the average work experience of the students in the current class. The range is from 2 to 21 years.

Ranga Rao

[Admissions@ISB]

Originally Posted by suithink

Hi,

First things first..I appreciate this effort..!!

My concern is regarding career prospects for an experienced candidate..

I am 32 yrs old and have 8 years of experience in Energy/Retail Sales with Fortune 500.As the average age and experience is skewed towards 'younger ' candidates at ISB,how a candidate with my exp expect a career progression post ISB...
(a) If I do not wish to change my vertical.
(b) If I decide to move towards IT industry/Management consulting .Does ISB support an industry change.

Also in general what are the career fit prospects considering my background.?

Sunil

Dear Sunil,

These kind of questions are the most difficult to answer. While I might not be able to satisfy your query fully, I shall try and explain the various factors which influence this.

The career prospects depend on various things like

1. The candidates skills - are they suitable to the career she/he wishes to choose? If not, then there will be no fit and hence no job offer.
2. Past work experience - recruiters would like to give preference to someone who can start performing from day one. Hence they would ideally like somebody with past work experience in that arena.
3. Job market at that point of time - since our students get lateral offers (not entry level) the number of positions are variable from year to year against the entry level positions like management trainees where companies have a set plan to hire a certain number every year.
4. Kind of shift - there are two primary areas which define your career choice - industry and function. It is relatively easier if you keep one constant and try to change the other. If you try and change both you are likely to face a greater challenge. So if you are working in an IT industry but in the finance function, post-ISB you may get into a finance role in another industry like retail banking, investment banking, corporate finance etc. However, if you wish to change to marketing of FMCG products then you have to understand why the recruiter should hire you over someone who has been in a similar role earlier. Similarly you may wish to retain your industry and change your function e.g. a software programmer may still work in the IT industry but go on to doing business development roles. Therefore, while changing both industry and function is not impossible, it is chalenging. Several of our students go in management consulting without any prior work experience in that field. They manage it by working harder than the others and proving their suitability for the job.
5. Finally, the job offer will also depend on your performance at the interview on 'that' day.

The short answer to your question is that it is possible for some students (with some hard work) and not possible for some.

Ranga Rao

[Admissions@ISB]

Originally Posted by Sana4MBA

Hello,

I want to know what kind of roles can be looked at during recruitment process with the following profile:

• 12-13 years of work experience
• 9 years intl' experience
• senior consultant with renowned IT firm

1. Do such people get opportunities to aim middle management of senior management roles or remain at any disadvantage?

2. Is it advisable to apply with this profile?

Dear Sana,

Roles offered to ISB students are lateral offers any where between junior to the senior management roles. We have 10% of the students with work experience matching your range. People with substantial work experience will have to focus on their network also to find a job matching their expactations. This is on top of the support from ISB which will work with you to identify the apropriate opportunities for you. You may wish to get in touch with some of our alumni with a similar profile and seek their view also - facility to do so is available via our website www.isb.edu/admissions

Students matching your profile have moved into Business Development kind of roles.

Ranga Rao