The Application Process

Hi all,
I am a telecom engineer from India with four years of experience and wants to go to Business Consulting post mba. I want to work as a business development consultant in the telecom sector. where I will develop business, strategic, marketing, and technological expertise.targeted companies are Delloite,AT&T,Verisign,Cognizant,Accenture etc.
GMAT:-730
TOEFL:-103


I applied in round 2 in following 10 mba schools.

UNIVERSITY ===> STATUS
SMU COX===> ADMIT WITH 40K
KENAN FLAGLER-UNC Chapel Hill===> WAITLISTED
Ohio State University===> WAITLISTED
MCDONOUGH,GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY===> INTERVIEW 12 FEB
USC MARSHALL===> YET TO BE INTERVIEWED
CARNEGIE MEIION UNIVERSITY, TEPPER===> YET TO BE INTERVIEWED
KELLEY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS-INDIANA===> YET TO BE INTERVIEWED
Georgia Institute of Technology===> YET TO BE INTERVIEWED
Emory University===> REJECTED
University of Minnesota===> REJECTED




Since chances of admission are getting low day by day. I want your opinion on whether I should I go and take admission in SMU or should wait for 1 more year and apply again and what additional should I do in this one year.

Hi Vikram,

I would suggest you to prepare well for your upcoming interview rather than worrying and predicting about your chances. Wish you all the best prepare with some professional help if required do as many mocks as possible. You have decent profile so I feel you should apply to better ranked schools than SMU Cox. It makes sense to wait for one more year, build your profile and then apply. Let me know if you have any questions.

Regards,
Manish

Hi svikram,

With your profile, I would say that SMU would be more of a safe option, and you should definitely be able to get better schools. Moreover since the results are not out yet, you still have good chance for UNC Chapel Hill and Georgetown. The best thing to do right now is to ask for a deferral for admission from SMU. If you get that, you can apply again next year to your dream schools knowing that you have a safe option already. In this one year you may work on your career progression, and try to take on some additional responsibilities and initiative. You might even try to add some international exposure related to your work profile which will work in favour of your application.

Let us know if you have any further queries.Wish you the best.
www.manyagroup.com

Hi Mentors,

I am into a similar position as that of svikram.

I am a software engineer from India with eight years of experience in multiple domains: telecom, supply chain and IT infrastructure. I want to work in a business consultant role in any good sector. My target companies are top consulting firms such as McKinsey, Boon, Bain, delloite, etc.

GMAT: 700

I have applied to various B schools (HBS, MIT, Tepper, Vanderbilt, ISB, Carlson and Tippie) but got offers from Carlson and Tippie with 50% and 96% tuition waiver respectively. However, because of financial constraints, I deferred Carlson and got Visa Stamping for Tippie. Now, after I researched about consulting placements at Tippie, the chances of getting into a consulting role are almost nill. Considering my current circumstances, should I wait for another year or go ahead with what I have?

Also, can you shed some light on career progression post MBA? I understand that Bschool's brand plays a vital role in determining salary figures post MBA. While Tippie's avg. hovers around 85k per annum and the roles I am targeting for have figures hovering around 120k. If I take Tippie this year, how logically can I move to the role I am looking for post MBA from Tippie?

Overall, is deferring MBA for one another year a good option? In this one year I plan to raise my GMAT score with another 50 points to reach 750 and get more engaged with client centric roles to make my profile stronger. Besides, there health issues from my Mother that are holding me too.

Please advise.

Hi Pranay,
This is a serious dilemma, but you should consider multiple factors: age, opportunity cost, and overall career growth.
To get into top consulting firms you have to be at the top 15-20 schools, and based on your application this year, you will need some significant improvement (GMAT, work experience, maybe also rec letters, interview and essays). You are never guaranteed a spot at any program and the fact you got scholarship this year doesn't mean they will be available next year.

Now, you have to figure it out - are you starting your journey to the US or are you waiting?

Also, while you will not be making the same salary, you are also not paying that much tuition - so everything has its price.

As an international student, the journey to the US is very difficult. The expectation about GMAT are higher - see my article https://admit1mba.com/2014/11/gmat-requi ... dents.html
and not all companies hire international students. Also, once you have a working visa it takes a lot of time to get a green card, especially for applicants from South Asia.

If you got an almost full-ride at a school, and you are confident you will like the program and can find a job that will be satisfying (even if it's your plan B and not consulting) I would take it and get started on this journey.

Even at top schools it is not easy to get into consulting - it is a very competitive field.

Having said all of the above, there's one more factor - family. wish your mother the best and I hope she feels better. Family is what matters most, so maybe in one year you will have more positive energies to focus on the MBA journey.

Best of luck,
Yael, Admit1MBA
www.admit1mba.com

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Admit1MBA wrote:Hi Pranay,
This is a serious dilemma, but you should consider multiple factors: age, opportunity cost, and overall career growth.
To get into top consulting firms you have to be at the top 15-20 schools, and based on your application this year, you will need some significant improvement (GMAT, work experience, maybe also rec letters, interview and essays). You are never guaranteed a spot at any program and the fact you got scholarship this year doesn't mean they will be available next year.

Now, you have to figure it out - are you starting your journey to the US or are you waiting?

Also, while you will not be making the same salary, you are also not paying that much tuition - so everything has its price.

As an international student, the journey to the US is very difficult. The expectation about GMAT are higher - see my article https://admit1mba.com/2014/11/gmat-requi ... dents.html
and not all companies hire international students. Also, once you have a working visa it takes a lot of time to get a green card, especially for applicants from South Asia.

If you got an almost full-ride at a school, and you are confident you will like the program and can find a job that will be satisfying (even if it's your plan B and not consulting) I would take it and get started on this journey.

Even at top schools it is not easy to get into consulting - it is a very competitive field.

Having said all of the above, there's one more factor - family. wish your mother the best and I hope she feels better. Family is what matters most, so maybe in one year you will have more positive energies to focus on the MBA journey.

Best of luck,
Yael, Admit1MBA
www.admit1mba.com

* If you found my response helpful please click the Thank button

Thanks Yael for your insights.

Since, I have already mentioned school name (Tippie) I think you can share few more insights about the program.

From my understanding,

MBA is more about experience than academics. Experience that comes from proffessors and peer learning. Tippie's class size is of 62 (you might be aware) and the placements (not into consulting) in supply chain domain appear not so good to me. I have graduated from a not so great school in India and know how much brand value matters in the corporate world to land into a respectable tier 1 firm, atleast in India and assume same is the case in US too. So, my worry is most of the firms aren't good at Tippie and I am afraid of landing into a position currently I am in: working but going no where! To fight that, I am trying to figure out the career progression post MBA from Tippie. I am trying to find out how logical is it to move to a tier 1 firm after being placed from Tippie?

Can you please advise?

My Mom is encouraging me to go ahead with the program but its me who is into dilemma .. I plan to defer the admission and during this one year plan to focus on GMAT to raise my score to 750. I think this increased score will make my profile competitive next year and help gain scholarship. Currently, I am in a mess!

Please advise.

Hi Pranay,
Did you talk with current students or alumni of the program? you have to gain a better understanding of what opportunities are available there for international students, and how much will depend on your own networking and legwork.
You are right - the MBA is also about the professional experience, the network, the brand - not just the education, because you are likely to get a strong education at many programs.
I think that if you can raise your GMAT score to 750 that would help you with better programs. And, if you are going to apply again next year, you have to do more research - don't waste your time applying to programs that you will not attend! You want to focus on schools that you will go if admitted. Think about it - you got almost a full scholarship and still don't want to go to that program - it is a strong indication of a lack of fit. Your time is important, so be wise with it.

If you're going to give it another year, I suggest you start working on your profile and application now. You have to identify schools that are within your reach and can give you the job options you want. You should also be ready to take out loans to pay for school if you want to go into a top 20 program. I've seen multiple students give up scholarships to go to a better ranking schools - so you are not alone. The hope is that the increase ROI and network will compensate for the increased costs.

Best,
Yael, Admit1MBA
www.admit1mba.com

Hi Yael,

Did you talk with current students or alumni of the program? you have to gain a better understanding of what opportunities are available there for international students, and how much will depend on your own networking and legwork.

I spoke with current students but could not get much information. Now I realize the value of opportunity one gets to personally visit the school, see a class in action and get a chance to talk to current students and professors. As far as alumni are concerned, I have tried to connect a few but no response! As far as placements are concerned, placements are obtained by visiting MBA career fairs, career services cell and student/Alumni facilitated.

if you are going to apply again next year, you have to do more research - don't waste your time applying to programs that you will not attend! You want to focus on schools that you will go if admitted. Think about it - you got almost a full scholarship and still don't want to go to that program - it is a strong indication of a lack of fit. Your time is important, so be wise with it.

I genuinely agree with this point that my research about the program and how I can leverage the program was not complete. I feel like I am in the race of blindly getting admitted into a program based on ranking and ROI, assuming that life becomes happier post MBA.

If you're going to give it another year, I suggest you start working on your profile and application now.

This is an area that I will have to focus on and build as much as I can! I will need your valuable advise to plan this year ahead. I was wondering if we could have a private chat/discussion on this sometime?

Hi Pranay,
Yes, the research part is super important and not just because it is important for the schools to see that you're committed to them - it's about your own future and career.

Sure, let's connect - feel free to visit my website and email me directly and we can take it from here - yael at admit1mba.com

Best,
Yael
www.admit1mba.com

Since SMU is based in Dallas, getting admission there should line up nicely with you goal of working at AT&T right? I say go for it especially since they are giving you such a generous scholarship. That will come with additional perks like more attention from faculty and administration who might have strong connections with AT&T.