Best 2nd rnd bets in US for 34 year old Indian IT applicant?

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Hi,
I have a GMAT Score of 710 (83 percentile in Quantitative and 84 percentile in Verbal section), TOEFL iBT score of 112 (26-Speaking, 28-Reading and 29 each in writing and listening).

The problem - I am already 34 years old with 11 years of full-time work experience and come from over-represented pool of Indian applicants with IT background.

Background -
I have been working in New York City, USA for last 7 years now out of which last 4 years have been as Technical Project Manager (on behalf of TCS) for client Merrill Lynch (Bank of America now).
I have recently completed a Certificate in Business program (on-campus, 12 credit points course) from Columbia University at New York.
Before that, I did under-grad in Electrical engineering (passed with a first class from a government college) in India.
I have done assignments such as a Technical Analyst and Module Lead for the Futures and Options Trading System at the National Stock Exchange of India, Mumbai, then as a Project Lead for a year for the Merrill Lynch Investment Managers at London, UK. There I was heading a team of 3 associates. Right now I am the designated on-site Project Manager for the client Bank of America Merrill Lynch here at New York. I manage global TCS teams which are located in Canada, Mexico, US and India. I have 12 on-site associates directly reporting to me and a 50 member team at offshore.

Why MBA -
After completing my MBA, my immediate goal is to work in a management consulting position for firms such as Accenture and IBM preferably in the area of IT strategy, business analytics and transformation for financial clients. I already have eleven years of extensive global experience in the field of IT consulting working for these clients and would like to leverage my expertise in providing technology-focused strategy consulting to these firms.

Question -
With the older age and the "Indian, IT Male" background, which top-ranked MBA programs in USA can you advise would be a safe bet for me in 2nd round? Please don't say there aren't any � as I already had a couple of dings in round 1 from top-15 US schools. Although, I have one admit from a top-ranked European school, but I am still very much inclined towards getting a US MBA rather. Right now, I am thinking of Darden, Goizueta and McCombs, but I am not sure if with my background they can be a safe bet...Please advise.
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by Yashveer » Wed Jan 02, 2013 1:10 am
Hi Ankur,

You should surely apply in your shortlisted b-schools. With the given profile you should also target b-schools like: Kellogg, Haas, Fuqua, Ross, Cornell and Tepper with good placement rate in consultancy post-MBA. To try your chances in b-schools, click https://www.general-ed.com/chances-of-bschool . As the avg. GMAT range of these schools fall between 630-740, you have fair chances of being accepted.

Having said this, application essays & interviews constitute essential elements in b-school application process. You need to skillfully work on them to convert your chances of being admitted. Simultaneously you need to proficiently prepare for questions like your underlying principle behind applying to a specific B-school and change from IT background to consulting.

Feel free to post any other concern you might have. You can PM me your number to have a detail discussion over your profile & selection of b-schools.

Best,
Yash

ankurjay wrote:Hi,
I have a GMAT Score of 710 (83 percentile in Quantitative and 84 percentile in Verbal section), TOEFL iBT score of 112 (26-Speaking, 28-Reading and 29 each in writing and listening).

The problem - I am already 34 years old with 11 years of full-time work experience and come from over-represented pool of Indian applicants with IT background.

Background -
I have been working in New York City, USA for last 7 years now out of which last 4 years have been as Technical Project Manager (on behalf of TCS) for client Merrill Lynch (Bank of America now).
I have recently completed a Certificate in Business program (on-campus, 12 credit points course) from Columbia University at New York.
Before that, I did under-grad in Electrical engineering (passed with a first class from a government college) in India.
I have done assignments such as a Technical Analyst and Module Lead for the Futures and Options Trading System at the National Stock Exchange of India, Mumbai, then as a Project Lead for a year for the Merrill Lynch Investment Managers at London, UK. There I was heading a team of 3 associates. Right now I am the designated on-site Project Manager for the client Bank of America Merrill Lynch here at New York. I manage global TCS teams which are located in Canada, Mexico, US and India. I have 12 on-site associates directly reporting to me and a 50 member team at offshore.

Why MBA -
After completing my MBA, my immediate goal is to work in a management consulting position for firms such as Accenture and IBM preferably in the area of IT strategy, business analytics and transformation for financial clients. I already have eleven years of extensive global experience in the field of IT consulting working for these clients and would like to leverage my expertise in providing technology-focused strategy consulting to these firms.

Question -
With the older age and the "Indian, IT Male" background, which top-ranked MBA programs in USA can you advise would be a safe bet for me in 2nd round? Please don't say there aren't any � as I already had a couple of dings in round 1 from top-15 US schools. Although, I have one admit from a top-ranked European school, but I am still very much inclined towards getting a US MBA rather. Right now, I am thinking of Darden, Goizueta and McCombs, but I am not sure if with my background they can be a safe bet...Please advise.