[ccmba]

Originally Posted by kaushik819

Hi,
Can anyone evaluate my resume and suggest me few good schools which i can have as a target and the areas i have to improve.

Profile:
10th-80.3%
12th-85.6%
B.E-80%
Masters in EE(did it in University of Southern Califonia)-GPA-3.36
GMAT-yet to giv(aiming for 700+)

Extra curricular activities-
Department secretary in undergrad for an year
Executive member in Lok satta party(a regional political party)O

Work exp-
Undertaking family construction bussiness(construction of National Highways).I will have 2 yrs exp by 2011 fall.

I have few schools on my mind ISB,USC,UCLA,Nanyang
please suggest me few schools in which i can make a cut.

Kaushik,

It's great that you're thinking about business school so early. However, if you're going to have 2 years of work experience by fall 2011, that means if you apply even next year, you would have just one year of work ex. While this is not necessarily a bad thing, do keep in mind that the average work ex. at most business schools is around 4 years. However, off the top of my head, some schools that do tend to take a number of younger applicants are Stanford, Tepper-Carnegie, Virginia-Darden, U of Illinois, and Purdue.

[ccmba]

Originally Posted by nikhilfotedar

Hey Umang

Congrats on the HBS admit, man! you have a killer profile!!!

Could you offer me some assistance by reviewing my profile?

Below are my stats

10th: 89%
12th: 87%
Engg(Mumbai university): 63%
GMAT:690(q47,v3 5.5

Have been working with HSBC for the past 2.5 years as a Software Engineer/Designer for their E-commerce arm and am the owner of a service currently used by 64,000 organisations as well as being the designer/owner of the billing architecture developed by HSBC to bill the 300,000 organisations using its services as well as am involved in certain secret yet soon to be declared projects but would be under a confidentiality agreement..so cant speak about that in the apps.

Extra curriculars are excellent during school :quizzing,debating, head boy,district level tennis(although have no certis to prove it..just some trophies)

College: have won a few inter collegiate management contests but not much to hark about

Office: have been involved in various Social service activities as well as organising events..but again no certis and no proof.


I have applied to ISB till now..currently writing the apps for IE,Nanyang,NUS

From US side thinking of targetting Mccombs,Thunderbird and prob Stern.

Safety schools are Syracuse and AIM Manila

What do you think? whether I should lower my sights and try to aim lower than the schools I am applying to?

Thanks in advance!!

Nikhil,

I think your target schools seem pretty much in line with your background and profile. However, since these applications tend to take quite a lot of your time (especially the US ones), I think you should prioritize and have a clear order of preference as to which college and country you prefer. For instance a school like NYU-Stern is known for finance, while Thunderbird is known for international management -- so it may be helpful to figure out what you want to concentrate on as well.

[kaushik819]

Originally Posted by ccmba

Kaushik,

It's great that you're thinking about business school so early. However, if you're going to have 2 years of work experience by fall 2011, that means if you apply even next year, you would have just one year of work ex. While this is not necessarily a bad thing, do keep in mind that the average work ex. at most business schools is around 4 years. However, off the top of my head, some schools that do tend to take a number of younger applicants are Stanford, Tepper-Carnegie, Virginia-Darden, U of Illinois, and Purdue.

So my experiance will be counted at the time of application?But i will hav 2 yrs of exp by the time of joining....they will not consider that?
Thanks

[ccmba]

Originally Posted by kaushik819

So my experiance will be counted at the time of application?But i will hav 2 yrs of exp by the time of joining....they will not consider that?
Thanks

They will consider that. I just meant that two years is still below the average -- so be careful where you apply. For instance, schools in UK and Europe often place more emphasis on work ex, so it might not be that sensible to apply to European MBA programs.

[manishkris]

Hey Umang,
Heard you were giving out some useful advice... so.. HELP!!

I wrote my GMAT on Sep 23rd - got a 780(/5).
I've been working in Software Product/IT consulting space for a year and a half now.
I am planning to app to some schools this year and hope it works out - worst case I could always apply next year.

10th - 86
12th - 94.6 CBSE
BTech Computer Science NIT, Trichy 2008
7.3 ( I know !)
Good ECs - tremendous breadth - not much depth.

Basically I'm trying to ask - Can I fancy my chances at Harvard? Also, could you suggest some schools that might have a propensity for admitting someone like me.

[ccmba]

Originally Posted by manishkris

Hey Umang,
Heard you were giving out some useful advice... so.. HELP!!

I wrote my GMAT on Sep 23rd - got a 780(/5).
I've been working in Software Product/IT consulting space for a year and a half now.
I am planning to app to some schools this year and hope it works out - worst case I could always apply next year.

10th - 86
12th - 94.6 CBSE
BTech Computer Science NIT, Trichy 2008
7.3 ( I know !)
Good ECs - tremendous breadth - not much depth.

Basically I'm trying to ask - Can I fancy my chances at Harvard? Also, could you suggest some schools that might have a propensity for admitting someone like me.

Hi Manish,

I see it's your first post, welcome to the forum. I'm glad you think I've been giving useful advice!

Your profile seems great to me - you're obviously a very bright guy, as indicated by your amazing GMAT score. There is no reason why you shouldn't apply to Harvard and other top b-schools. Taking into account that you will have 2.5 years of work ex by the time you start an MBA next year and come from an IT background, I would also suggest looking at Stanford (very, very competitive but take a lot of young people in the IT space) and Carnegie Mellon. That being said, every school admits a number of applicants just like you, so decide on colleges to apply to only after you take into account things like specializations, job placements, urban/rural setting etc.

Sidenote - through your essays try and show you're not just another 'IT' guy from India. Talk about projects that show leadership, commitment etc. Perhaps, write one of your essays about an EC at college/after college. Also, indicate a larger career vision (even if its in the technology sector) that clearly demands managerial skills - the ability to work and lead teams, understand various aspects of business, marketing etc.

I know my reply is somewhat vague, but I hope this helps!
umang

[manishkris]

I can't believe it's my first post here ! I've been here since 2k7 (so my pg stats say).
Thanks a lot for all the insights - especially the ones on setting myself apart from yet another IT guy. I'm glad I got the Stanford bit right - So Stanford,Harvard, Booth and Darden it is. At least for now.

[rajat15]

Hi umang,

First things first : kudos, man. you're a star! heh...

I graduated from the Delhi College of Engg last year, and joined Accenture as an Associate Software Engineer. I quit at the end of july (after a year of work) to take care of some urgent family matter. since then, i've been prepping for the usual battery of Indian MBA courses, but my aim was always to pursue an MBA in a top international bschool. i wanted to work for at least three years, and build up my profile, but that no longer applies.

my issue is that i'd like to apply for an international MBA, but my chances seem pretty slim. i just thought i'd ask you which colleges would be interested. I am prepared to wait before applying (and hence, working again), but i'm taking the GMAT on the 15th of october. I was thinking of applying to IE and the Queen's university. what do you say?

briefly, my acads are as follows :

10th - 87.8
12th - 87.4
BE - 72

ECs - LOADS in school (quizzes, community service, extempore, debates, compering, et al), but NONE in college.

[ccmba]

Originally Posted by rajat15

Hi umang,

First things first : kudos, man. you're a star! heh...

I graduated from the Delhi College of Engg last year, and joined Accenture as an Associate Software Engineer. I quit at the end of july (after a year of work) to take care of some urgent family matter. since then, i've been prepping for the usual battery of Indian MBA courses, but my aim was always to pursue an MBA in a top international bschool. i wanted to work for at least three years, and build up my profile, but that no longer applies.

my issue is that i'd like to apply for an international MBA, but my chances seem pretty slim. i just thought i'd ask you which colleges would be interested. I am prepared to wait before applying (and hence, working again), but i'm taking the GMAT on the 15th of october. I was thinking of applying to IE and the Queen's university. what do you say?

briefly, my acads are as follows :

10th - 87.8
12th - 87.4
BE - 72

ECs - LOADS in school (quizzes, community service, extempore, debates, compering, et al), but NONE in college.

Hi rajat,

First, by international MBA or do you actually mean doing an international MBA? At places like IE, I think you require at least three years of work ex to do a thirteen month international MBA. If it's the regular MBA, is there any particular reason why you've chosen IE and Queen's? From your limited profile, I'm not really sure what exactly you're looking for but as I posted somewhere before there are certain B-schools that are more prone to taking younger applicants than others (ranging from Stanford, to U of I, Purdue-Krannert etc). Since they vary in competitiveness, it might be useful to wait for your GMAT score before deciding on a final list of colleges to apply to. However, like you said, if you don't get into a b-school that you're keen to attend, you could always apply next year as a more competitive applicant.

[mitr333]

Hi,
I'm a female and I think d female species is quite rare in the gmat threads..!Ive jus graduated..wud work for 3yrs..plannin to take GMAT nxt yr...Wat does d adcomm look for??In xtra currics..academic achievements,etc..Do they require certificates..?I've been involved in ec's in school..(elocution,debates,head girl,chess etc..)I also am a trained bharatnatyam dancer..I need to build up a profile in these 3 yrs..pls help me out..shud I stick to d I.T job..(finished my B.E n placed in an MNC)..or change aftr a yr or so for another job profile?I hope u wil guide me..
Thanks...