Hey all!! A large proportion of Indians who aspire to do an MBA from the likes of wharton, NYU, harvard, kelloggs and chicago (my dream):- 1. work in the IT industry 2. have about 3 years experience 3. are male and thats what make…
Hey all!! A large proportion of Indians who aspire to do an MBA from the likes of wharton, NYU, harvard, kelloggs and chicago (my dream):-
1. work in the IT industry
2. have about 3 years experience
3. are male
and thats what makes any applicant from this pool is what people say 'demographically challenged'....and unless he has done something very exceptional, he can almost say bye bye to his dreams...
everything's clear till this part....but i dont have an idea about how exactly to go about doing such exceptional stuff....and what things exactly count as exceptional...yeah, i know things like those have to be natural...and its morally bad to do exceptional stuff just to get into a good b-school...
but honestly, i really don't care - as long as i get into the b-school that i want to...i've never done anything exceptional...my student life was quite ordinary - it's been just the one or two clubs and stuff like that....but if i had been wise enough i would've probably tried to be a part of every event happening around me!!!
yeah, past is past...and so i'd like to make the most of the time (about 3 years) to do something that'll make me stand out from the crowd....especially since i'm demographically challenged...
my gmat score's enough i guess...slightly above the average score of those schools...but that's it...nothing exceptional..
i'm sure there'll be atleast some others who're in a similar situation...or who've faced a similar situation..
so help us become exceptional!!!!! please make us different!!! give us some realistic ideas...starting clubs...or anything that'll help!! please!!
Very interesting... 😃 - ppl more often than not do give boost to their CVs after realising they are going to app :).
Some ways I can think of right now:
1. Involve yourself in some community service majory ( PG.com has a CS branch you can contribute to )
2. Take initiatives and contribute back to your grad-school as alumni.
3. Things like Mensa, Toastmasters look good on a CV. Once you are member of these elite clubs, you'll find lots of other options opening out.
4. Learn new things - language, sport, art - nything and add a non-bookish dimension to your personality
5. Have your "Why MBA" very clear - that takes a looooooot of time.
6. Start planning targets for your recos n work in that direction.
PS: I would appriciate criticism of these points
try to get involved in some CS within ur company or doing something for ur company that may bring abt a change/improve the bottom line.
This way u can get some recognition in ur company as well as what-else-than-job on ur CV...
i'm sure there r a lot of oppurtunities in infy to take initiatives...
very difficult question to answer. almost every top 5 or top 10 B-school student has this common thread of good community service, good academics, and quality work experience running through them . So, if you are not already exceptional, its going to be hard to get in. I think you meant "how do i make my application different ?"
I am not in a top b-school , but i hope the following makes sense from the little i know.
For that matter, MOST americans have the same background, thats finance/accounting. Demographically challenged is not the reason to go looking for ways to be different.
In my opinion, I dont think one should customize a resume to fit a B-School. It should be the other way around. You should KNOW what you want from a B-School and from your post MBA career. A B-school will absolutely love you for that. It is the same with recruiting. Companies love to hire execs who not only understand their business, but also bring unique experiences that will further the business. A B-school is part of your long term career, not a judgement of how you have done in your career so far. what after MBA? there is absolutely no guarantee for a job, stanford ,wharton or otherwise. Its your past experience, the goals that you have, you skills in teamwork and the leadership experience that you bring to your future employer that eventually matters in the job interview.
You will need to first try out different things in your industry or any other industry. As you move from role to role , to higher and higher responsiblities, there may come a point where it will make perfect sense to have an MBA, you can even list out ways it can help you. You know, thats how you show that you are different. thats how you will be able to answer " Why MBA?" You explore every possibility, get a lot of lateral and SOME leadership experience and then at one point, it will be clear to you why you need a higher education. Maybe you realise that you first love is entreprenuership and you definitely think an MBA will help you gain X Y and Z. From there, you go looking for schools that help you to fulfill the specific goals that you are looking for. Thats how one should shortlist schools.
If you do that, Not only will your MBA make a lot of sense to you, it will be for a purpose, a purpose aimed at a specific objective. 60-100 grand is a lot of money to spend on something one is not sure about.
B-Schools want you to be successful. you are their customers. they want to keep you happy. but if a customer does not have a good idea of what he/she wants , its kinda hard for a B-school to provide that service. ( in other words, admit the student and give him that MBA).
Its not easy, but it never was.
hope this helps.
Htown
EDIT: Thank you Deepti. I added "SOME" to leadership experience. as always, the quality of the experience rather than the number of years matters the most.
Hey all!! A large proportion of Indians who aspire to do an MBA from the likes of wharton, NYU, harvard, kelloggs and chicago (my dream):-
1. work in the IT industry
2. have about 3 years experience
3. are male
and thats what makes any applicant from this pool is what people say 'demographically challenged'....and unless he has done something very exceptional, he can almost say bye bye to his dreams...
everything's clear till this part....but i dont have an idea about how exactly to go about doing such exceptional stuff....and what things exactly count as exceptional...yeah, i know things like those have to be natural...and its morally bad to do exceptional stuff just to get into a good b-school...
but honestly, i really don't care - as long as i get into the b-school that i want to...i've never done anything exceptional...my student life was quite ordinary - it's been just the one or two clubs and stuff like that....but if i had been wise enough i would've probably tried to be a part of every event happening around me!!!
yeah, past is past...and so i'd like to make the most of the time (about 3 years) to do something that'll make me stand out from the crowd....especially since i'm demographically challenged...
my gmat score's enough i guess...slightly above the average score of those schools...but that's it...nothing exceptional..
i'm sure there'll be atleast some others who're in a similar situation...or who've faced a similar situation..
so help us become exceptional!!!!! please make us different!!! give us some realistic ideas...starting clubs...or anything that'll help!! please!!
Hey flyingkolors! Thanks for starting this thread. Was myself thinking on these lines of late, and was wondering how to better my profile. And unfortunately I suit the profile u listed to a T. :(
htowner has adequately covered the topic of Why MBA. 
I totally agree with Deepti that CS will add to the weight of ur app. And when u do CS, do it with all ur heart, not for the sake of it, otherwise it will show. And more over if u start on those line say 1 yr before ur adm, then again b-schools tend to discount it, as its quiet clear that the candidate is gng into it just for the sake of the adm.
I went to the Canadian Education Fair held here in Hyd. And surprising most of them were quiet impressed by my profile. 
And I had just told them abt my acad and professional back ground, which, btw r not so hot. Anyways, the only thing I was asking the counsellors there was how to better my profile, given the fact that I have 2 yrs to go before I wanna go for an MBA. One good thing that a counseller there told me is to try apping this yr to one or two univs. And c if I make it, and if i dont (which i know I wont ), get them to tell me how to better my profile. 
And it wont even cost much, say abt a few grands. And the currency being INR. I dont shelling that out if I can get one of the better schools to take me in when I app properly.
What say folks?
htowner @ Wed Sep 29, 2004 4:13 am SaysYou will need to first try out different things in your industry or any other industry. As you move from role to role , to higher and higher responsiblities, there may come a point where it will make perfect sense to have an MBA, you can even list out ways it can help you. You know, thats how you show that you are different. thats how you will be able to answer " Why MBA?"
Thats an awesome post htowner. 😁 😁 Karma + points for u...
Makes a lot of sense & yes, thats the way its got to be. I guess thats why the Bschool abroad means so much to me. There was some discussion on the ISB thread reg why GMAT etc etc... hope when they see the above statements, it becomes really clear!!!
Cheers
good post htowner..
just want to add here.. numerous ways of 'profile beautification' have been listed here...
Nothing wrong in adopting them. Coz these things can never harm you .. MBA or otherwise.
But my gut feel is ..
if one is not passionate about what one has projected .. chances of rejection (esp at schools of kind you are talking abt -- H,S,W, etc) are very high. Simply because adcoms can deconstruct the application very easily.
I believe that is the strength of this app process. There is no such thing as a right time for all to apply . You realised it now (say after 2 years of working) that you want to graduate from so n so schools. Take a reality check .. If you think you have realistic chances of making it to them .. App. Else put in some more years of work & start with the activities you think will interest you.
At the end of it .. you are gonna do your MBA from such schools only once. Make sure you are in right frame of mind.
Else as htowner pointed .. 60-100K will look really really huge money.
hth,
amit.
First time I donated some karma points
I was ruminating over how to form a proper response to the OP. I don't think I could have better expressed than what htowner has written. Excellent post.
Arun
Simba @ Wed Sep 29, 2004 1:09 pm SaysYou will need to first try out different things in your industry or any other industry. As you move from role to role , to higher and higher responsiblities, there may come a point where it will make perfect sense to have an MBA, you can even list out ways it can help you. You know, thats how you show that you are different. thats how you will be able to answer " Why MBA?"
Thats an awesome post htowner. 😁 😁 Karma + points for u...
Makes a lot of sense & yes, thats the way its got to be. I guess thats why the Bschool abroad means so much to me. There was some discussion on the ISB thread reg why GMAT etc etc... hope when they see the above statements, it becomes really clear!!!
Cheers
I m sorry but I dont see any relation to the post made by Htowner and GMAT.....
I totally agree with htowner.Simply Luved ur post man.
Cudnt have been more lucid.I believe everyone shud do wot u said...A person shud let himself evolve..Experience things....and then make the Big decision.Grt Post htowner.
But I cudnt see the connection between that and GMAT Simba.......
gr8 post htowner! - I've never seen a more convincing approach to "Why MBA?" - TnX for da post.
You explore every possibility, get a lot of lateral and leadership experience and then at one point, it will be clear to you why you need a higher education. Maybe you realise that you first love is entreprenuership and you definitely think an MBA will help you gain X Y and Z. From there, you go looking for schools that help you to fulfill the specific goals that you are looking for. Thats how one should shortlist schools.
This made too much sense the first time I read it. But then - What is a lot of leadership experience? Would it not take arnd 10-15 years to reach to a leadership position and obtain an experience of that kind? Does an MBA make too much sense after that?
Whats wrong with looking @ MBA for a lateral shift even before you reach a leadership-position - that is say arnd after 3-5 years of work-ex?
I'm not sure if these numbers I've assumed are right...
A karma + and 50,000 points coming ur way Htowner....thanx for the post again...Its a real Eye opener.
Murtuza
Whats wrong with looking @ MBA for a lateral shift even before you reach a leadership-position - that is say arnd after 3-5 years of work-ex?
I'm not sure if these numbers I've assumed are right...
Hey Deeps,
I dont think htowner actually talked about the no. of years. I guess, as capreal says, at some point, u sit back & see what all u have done (maybe after 2 or 5 or 10 yrs of work ex). Thats where an individual's dreams/ goals etc come into picture. U might not be a project manager or some kind of lead, but the kind of responsibilities u handle, the amount of people/ issues u are answerable to, things like that... Frankly, After 10 - 15 yrs, I would rather worry about my kid's term tests/ exams than my MBA.
So, MBA would atleast be apt for me now, with about 5 yrs + work ex. And murtuzaamin_13, if u didnt see the connection. just let it pass... 😃
Simba
Whats wrong with looking @ MBA for a lateral shift even before you reach a leadership-position - that is say arnd after 3-5 years of work-ex?
I'm not sure if these numbers I've assumed are right...
Hey Deeps,
I dont think htowner actually talked about the no. of years. I guess, as capreal says, at some point, u sit back & see what all u have done (maybe after 2 or 5 or 10 yrs of work ex). Thats where an individual's dreams/ goals etc come into picture. U might not be a project manager or some kind of lead, but the kind of responsibilities u handle, the amount of people/ issues u are answerable to, things like that... Frankly, After 10 - 15 yrs, I would rather worry about my kid's term tests/ exams than my MBA.
And murtuzaamin_13, if u didnt see the connection. just let it pass... 😃
Simba
Hey U can call me Murtuza....murtuzaamin_13 is a lil long
I really didnt mean it in any kinda bad taste Simba....I frankly cudnt see the connection there..........
Frankly, After 10 - 15 yrs, I would rather worry about my kid's term tests/ exams than my MBA.
Simba
LMOA !!
I don't know why but this thing made a *lot* of sense to me. I mean, career is just a part of life. I kinda get the creeps when I see the mails which say stuff like :
2005 : Pass Engg with good %age
2008 : Get 3years exp with TCS (onsite et all). Take CAT get 99.99%ile - All Calls.
2010 : Pass out of IIM-A with CR in top 10 and land job at Lehmann Brothers
2015 : Take GMAT, crack a 780 on that and apply to H/W/S
2017 : Come out and join Goldman Sachs in the investment banking division
Give me a break !!! 😛
Just to quote Lennon here "Life is what happens when you are busy making plans"
Arun
i was overwhelmed when i saw how many people have cared to help....thanks to all..
htowner, what you've said makes sense....and it felt great imagining myself after 7-8 years with a lot of experience, responsibility and maturity...and if such a position were possible in 7-8 years, it would make perfect sense to do an mba only after 8 years or so. but what if a person doesn't get such an opportunity unless he has an mba?? for example, i'm a finance graduate, and unfortunately i haven't been able to get a job in any financial services company(very few people know that there's an msc tech finance degree in bits pilani!!), and ended up in the software field...i have nothing against software field and i'm sure i'll get into a leader's role within 5-6 years..but that way i'd just be doing work with indifference..not out of love....and i thought that by then it'd be too late to come back to the field i want to really make my career in....of course as soon as out of this infy bond thing i'll be looking at a job in the finance industry....but i'm not sure if any good company would want to hire me when they can hire an iim fin graduate paying a little more...especially when they have much more practical knowledge of the work than i have...i was looking at mba as a way to get back to the industry where i want to be - so it does mean that mba for me is a part of my long term career, doesn't it?? but frankly i'm not sure if it is...and whether i'll be able to convince the b-schools about my purpose of doing an mba - (which is that i want mba to be a ticket to te financial industry.).especially since it doesn't look mature even to me....
and from what i've read in this thread i understood that i'm not really clear about why i want to do an mba (apart from my purpose i've just mentioned - which was immature anyways) (but yes, i'm really passionate about working with money and numbers) - so will it, atleast after 3-4 years, be clear to me why exactly i want to do an mba, especially since i want to do an mba in finance whereas i'm working in the IT field now??? and even if i'm able to make myself very clear about what i expect from an mba, will it really make me exceptional (like you said..) - i mean will they judge the applicant (and succeed at it) just on the basis of what he has written about himself?? don't i need to cite specific things about myself, about how i managed so many people, about how i was the founder of a community 2 years back which is running really great now?? and if a person has such achievements, does it mean he's passionate about an mba??? and if a person doesnt have such things to show, but deep inside him knows how badly he needs an mba, does it count??? in other words, isnt being honestly passionate about becoming a leader (managing things) enough??
(i have surely got carried away a little.excuse me..)
and hey deepti, i liked that point about mensa....which reminds me that i need to try that telephone number given in their site again, to find out if a 97% in gmat makes me eligible(i've read on the american mensa site that 95% in gmat makes a person eligible, so i wanted to know if that is applicable here too...does any PGite know??!!)
and if it doesnt, when is the next test happening in pune..
and learning a language looks like a feasible one too!!!!! but which one??!! - japanese, german, french or something else which counts even more (you can see here that i've become used to seeing things only in the b-school perspective!!)
yes ashish, i need to find that out abt infy..and see where exactly i can contribute!! but making changes to the infy bottomline looks huge!!!!!
thanks everyone and thank you simba!!!!! more ideas plz!!!
97% gmat wont make u eligible for mensa in india @ flyingkolours.
good to see a bitsian here. moi, 2001 passout.
if u take my advice, dont let b school be the goal of ur life. do what u want to do meanwhile, and go to b school only if it seems the next logical step. be proactive every day of ur life, and u will have enough stuff to write about in ur admissions essays.
but, speaking on a objective note, i wud have to agree with the points that deepthi makes, but u shudnt be doing them just because u want a story for ur essays.
i will just give u an example .. bits kids have just started this thing called CEL .. kinda of like an entrepreneurship club. they are looking for lots of alumni support - get involved with them.approach infy management - work out a deal with them where CEL sponsored bits students can do , for example, "shadowing" of some top ranked infy mgmt for a few days. this wud show that u wud probbly make a good alumnus for ur b school too, and also show ur initiative taking ability, and ur leadership traits
btw, do i know u ? my bitsian nick was subo.
Great thoughts !!!... thts why i love coming to PG again n again...
i think MBA is more of a how much u can contribute to ur fellow students in an MBA class & how much clear r u abt wht u want to get from them. If u think that u have enough exp to understand things, i think u shud go for it...
We do MBA to learn skills, to get networked & to gain from other's experience, which is not possible in our routine job. So if u know what u want from ur MBA & what u can give to others, go for an MBA...
regd planning for ur achievements... i don't think there's anything wrong if a person plan things that wud lead him to get the desired MBA. The planning alone shows that ur passionate about MBA. However, ur activities should be in sync with the overall goals that u want to achieve after ur MBA . In short, You should have a reason for ur activities/planning.
arboreal has already explained an excellent way to demonstrate ur leadership skills.
& just have a look arounf infy, its so huge now tht there wud be enough opputunities to streamline a process . In my company we have something called 6sigma drive & people really get a chance to improve or define processes. Try & find out where u can make a difference. I'm sure u r in a prj by now... understand the system for a month or two & see if u can streamline something there , discuss the same with ur client & then do it...
And so long to that... 😛 😛 Wanna do something, Get up & Do it!!! 😃
Hi deepti.
Sorry about that. I mean.. a lot of lateral experience , but yes, it does suggest a lot of leadership experience too. 
But nonetheless, it makes a lot of sense to have alteast some form of leadership experience.
Nothin wrong in looking for MBA before getting to leadership.. if you are clear about what you want from an MBA, go ahead.
Dont think of experience in years or months. Quality of experience matters most.
As a side note not related to your question, i am not really sure that one can be an effective leader without lateral experience. I guess thats why we have these rotation programs, alteast in the US.. where key employees work in all major business functions for an extended period of time.
Hope this helps
Htown
gr8 post htowner! - I've never seen a more convincing approach to "Why MBA?" - TnX for da post.
You explore every possibility, get a lot of lateral and leadership experience and then at one point, it will be clear to you why you need a higher education. Maybe you realise that you first love is entreprenuership and you definitely think an MBA will help you gain X Y and Z. From there, you go looking for schools that help you to fulfill the specific goals that you are looking for. Thats how one should shortlist schools.
This made too much sense the first time I read it. But then - What is a lot of leadership experience? Would it not take arnd 10-15 years to reach to a leadership position and obtain an experience of that kind? Does an MBA make too much sense after that?
Whats wrong with looking @ MBA for a lateral shift even before you reach a leadership-position - that is say arnd after 3-5 years of work-ex?
I'm not sure if these numbers I've assumed are right...