Ask an MBA Admissions Consultant

Hi Sameer,

here is a quick run down of my profile..

2007: Graduated from University of Mumbai with BE (Mechanical) 70% (final year).
I was recruited on campus by Godrej & Boyce for customer services and projects engineer trainee.
During my one year training I completed one pilot project of installing security systems at Hyderabad international airport ( project was worth 2.5 crores and I was supervising a team of 5 technicians).

2008: M.Sc in Financial Services from University of Ulster (UK).
I was offered part scholarship for the course and there was an integrated internship component to the degree offered by Citigroup. However, on the day of my first lecture lehman brothers went bust and things changed dramatically (The paid internship became a voluntary one ).

2009: I graduated with 66% from University of Ulster (UK). I also did a 6 month IB internship as a re-engineering analyst. While doing my internship I also did a dissertation for Pioneer Investments, Dublin to validate their macro investment strategy for Indian indices.

From April'2010 to Jan'12 I worked in following contract based assignments in London
April'10-Sep'10): Worked with Bank of America in derivative documentation..

Sept'10-Aug'11: Worked as a FX institutional sales analyst with Citi..

Sept'11'Jan'12: Worked as a Business associate at RBS group private wealth management..

I had to relocate to India for personal reasons in Feb'12.
Through my brief international stint I have realised the impact of the brand of school and alumni network have on the future prospects of the students. Right now I am working with Kotak Mahindra in Equity Sales but I would like to start preparing for 2014 intake and plan to take Gmat in Sep this year.
Can you please guide on what score should I target.. My focus is on Booth, Stern or Columbia..
Also, do the contract assignments in London put me at a disadvantage interms of the overall profile (I have achieved tangible results in these contracts)...

My EC's include the following:
1. Gold medal in 9th grade for my science project at district level (showed a mechanism to generate electricity through speed breakers)
2. Event organiser for inter college technical festival for my Bachelors Degree.
3. Team lead for stock market challenge in University of Ulster.
4. Designed and deployed a web forum for engineering students to share final year project problem & solutions.


Cheers!

Hello can GMAT prep be automated

Business networking tips: Take the relationship to the next level

Business networking in the corporate world is an important skill to pick up, if you want to go beyond your technical roots.

Ipseeta Aruni, an Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee graduate, started a series on soft skills in business. In the first post she wrote about how to network and build relationships for corporate success. Read that first to know who Mr. EasyConnect and Mr. PureBiz are. The second one in the series takes it to the next level...Read More

MBA essay writing tips for Indian MBA Applicants: Part 3

The best MBA essays aren't about showing off your technical skills. Most Indian MBA applicants (who are engineers or work in the software industry) aren't sure about what Admission Officers expect and they approach it like a job application.

Jon Frank, founder of Precision Essay, continues his guest series and shares some more MBA essay tips for Indian MBA applicants. This is the third in a 5-part series.

If you missed the earlier posts, here they are: Read More

Notre Dame MBA (Mendoza) and Olin MBA offer full scholarships to 750 GMAT scorer

Notre Dame University (Mendoza), Olin (St Louis) and Simon (Rochester) were three MBA programs (apart from the regular suspects Harvard, Wharton, Kellogg, Chicago Booth) where Sourya Biswas applied with a GMAT score of 750.

A high GMAT score doesn't guarantee anything. Neither do strong MBA essays or a good MBA resume, if you consider them in isolation. Sourya Biswas got the ingredients right and two bschools offered him a full-ride (100% scholarship).

But along the way, he had his share of highs and lows. Sourya persisted and did not give up on his ambition. He shares his MBA application strategy and success story...Read More

jayvardhan wrote:2007: Graduated from University of Mumbai with BE (Mechanical) 70% (final year).
I was recruited on campus by Godrej & Boyce for customer services and projects engineer trainee.
During my one year training I completed one pilot project of installing security systems at Hyderabad international airport ( project was worth 2.5 crores and I was supervising a team of 5 technicians).

Started off your career with a bang! Nice.

2009: I graduated with 66% from University of Ulster (UK). I also did a 6 month IB internship as a re-engineering analyst.

What did that re-engineering involve? Processes or technology or something else?

From April'2010 to Jan'12 I worked in following contract based assignments in London
April'10-Sep'10): Worked with Bank of America in derivative documentation..

Sept'10-Aug'11: Worked as a FX institutional sales analyst with Citi..

Sept'11'Jan'12: Worked as a Business associate at RBS group private wealth management..

Wow! Your career started with sales, moved to analysis, then documentation, sales analyst and finally back to (equity) 0 sales. A whole lot of functional transitions happening out there. Could get just a little difficult for the reviewer to connect the threads there. Make sure your essays manage to link it all well.

Can you please guide on what score should I target..

There are no target scores. Just try to get the best that you possibly can. If you go above the average scores for these schools (710-720), it'll be good. Think you could go higher, even better. But I don't think the GMAT will be your main hurdle.

Also, do the contract assignments in London put me at a disadvantage interms of the overall profile (I have achieved tangible results in these contracts)...

I don't think so. You might need to explain why contract and why not full-time job. But if you've done well in the contract role and gained valuable skills, I don't see that as a bottleneck.

The way forward? No more job hopping, if you can help it. Aim for stability, accomplishments and building some good skills.

Indian film industry (Bollywood) - Perspectives and outlook

The Indian film industry or Bollywood as the Hindi movie making machinery is popularly know, has been an interesting case study - not just for movie fans but also for the business-world. It has managed to transition across cultures and countries and reach almost every part of the world with very little formal (if any) marketing. Tejaswini Ganti, an Associate Professor of Anthropology at New York University, is an expert on the topic.

In this interview, Tejaswini shares insights about the Hindi film industry in India and why it is unique. She also has a few suggestions on how Bollywood can tackle some of the challenges it faces today. If you are interested in the business, commercial and operational aspects of the Indian film industry, this is a must read....More here

Thanks for the reply Sameer...

I actually was a process re-engineering intern. I had managed to reduce sttlement risk across the Belfast board by 86%..

I understand that you wont be able to give specific insights w/o a gmat score to comment on.....I am right now in the process of gathering as much info as I can regarding the application process and timeline.


On a personal note a great thanks to your team for helping out candidates in making their dreams real....

jayvardhan wrote:I actually was a process re-engineering intern. I had managed to reduce sttlement risk across the Belfast board by 86%..

Excellent, Jayvardhan. Build up on the rest of the story in the same way. Keep it specific and connected with the rest of the projects you've worked on.

I understand that you wont be able to give specific insights w/o a gmat score to comment on...I am right now in the process of gathering as much info as I can regarding the application process and timeline.

Like I was saying earlier, with your profile I don't think the GMAT will be the big factor (unless you score really low). The bigger challenge would be to connect (and justify) all the functional and industry jumps that have happened in such a short frame of time.

On a personal note a great thanks to your team for helping out candidates in making their dreams real....

We're just facilitating the process, bro. Ultimately, these are your dreams and your efforts. So never let anybody's feedback get you down.

Come back with further queries if you have any.

Thanks Sameer, my main cause of concern is my work ex. Superficially it may come across that there are no parallels to all these roles but if given a chance to explain and can correct this misconception (if explained in the right way). I will definitely need your professional help on the same....I will get back in touch with you as soon as I have joined the 700+ club.

Hi.. I am an MBA aspirant belonging to Indian IT. I am targeting 2013 admits. I have appeared for GMAT and scored 730. However my AWA score is just 4/6. I was expecting to do really well in TOEFL to negate the effects of my low AWA score. Unfortunately that could not happen. My TOEFL score is 107 on a scale of 120 with just 25 in the writing section and 26 in the speaking section. I am worried my low AWA score and low writing score in TOEFL might affect my chances of getting the desired admits.Since I still have enough time I am confused whether to appear for TOEFL again and try to obtain a higher score. I am confident if I prepare well I can get a better TOEFL score since my preparation last time was not up-to mark. Secondly I am not very clear on whether I have the option to send in any of my TOEFL scores or I can send only the latest one to the respective universities.

Hi Mr MBACrystalBall ,
I would like some guidance about my career and where i stand.

Profile : Indian Male IT
Age : 25years
Education : BE, with 58%( quite low ) from Mumbai University.

Work Ex: 3.5 years. (3 years in Infosys(campus placement) , 0.5 years with a branch of a german software company in bangalore).

At Infosys: Volunteered to work in the Education & Research Department as wanted to hone my speaking skills and leadership skills.
Spent 1.8 years taking sessions for trainees and handled a batch of 180 students.

After that moved to the Banking Domain and worked for approx 1 year.

Currently working in a german company subsidary in Bangalore.

Non-Profit/NGO Experience: None. I was never much into social work.

Currentlly I am earning a package of 6.75L. Targeting a Salary Range of 20L in the next 5-6 years.

I am interested in the business side of things.
My aim is to be in a position where I have skills to handle business on a large scale and when i am confident enough , would like to start my own venture.

I donot see that happening soon with my current skills and roles.

Extra Curricular Activities: Was an Active member of The toastmasters club of my previous company. After 1 year in the committee was elected as the president in which role i served for 6 months and later stepped down when i left the organization.

Business Experience:Recently helping a friend set up an online shopping business, not implemented yet.

I plan to give GMAT on : May 15, started studying.

I am looking for a relatively cheaper MBA option, which will give me a good exposure and knowledge to start off. I have heard that an MBA is a life changing experience.
My post MBA: Goals is to enter : General management or Operations or Enterpreneurship or Consulting. : Basically the the common line connecting all this.

I donot want to do a part time MBA, as i donot think it will give me a credible degree or a fresh perspective or opportunities.
I am aiming for the top collegues in India such as ISB or other relatively short and cheaper ones like Insead, LBS or Top ones such as Harward, Wharton , Stanford. i.e. If i can manage to balance between loans and scholarships to pay for them . :O.


Right now, my application looks scattered all over the place. But I am willing to wait if necessary for a year or even 2 to build a proper profile to get into one of the above mentioned MBA colleges.
Please guide me on where I stand and what step to take next.

- Thanks & Regards

MBA essay writing tips for Indian MBA Applicants: Part 4

Indian MBA applicants competing in the toughest applicant pool need to take extra effort to ensure that they stand out among the crowd. Jon Frank, founder of Precision Essay, has been sharing MBA essay tips for Indian applicants. Here's the fourth helping in a 5-part series.

Here's the full series:...Read More

jayvardhan wrote:I will get back in touch with you as soon as I have joined the 700+ club.

Good luck with the test, Jayvardhan. Get back and share your success story.

Teach for India: NGO Education jobs or MBA

Teach for India jobs through various NGO partners on the ground can provide an excellent exposure to the education sector for high-potential professionals.

Saloni Gupta might remind you of the naughtiest girl in your school who always got away scot-free because of her innocent looks. Several years after completing her undergrad, she was planning to become a full-time student once again.

But destiny had other plans for her. Rather than being an MBA student at one of the top bschools, she transitioned to the other side to become a teacher. Her life changed when she got the following email from Teach for India:...Read More