Hello Suraj,

Thank you for your post!
As you consider applying for an MBA, there will be a few things to consider.

First, as an Indian national with a degree from an Indian institution, you come from an oversubscribed pool of applicants. Many of your fellow country men and women with similar academic histories (if not professional experiences) are also targeting top programs, and that makes it even more difficult to truly stand out or differentiate yourself. This would make your GMAT score and GPA even more important factor in your candidacy. The adcom may be particularly concerned with your English language skills, considering that your Verbal raw score falls below 80%. The standards are simply higher, given the scale of the applicant pool from India; so, scoring higher on the GMAT would certainly help your chances. Moreover, engineers stereotypically lack interpersonal and leadership skills; you will need to show that these stereotypes do not apply to you by emphasizing your ability to communicate and persuade in the workplace as well as highlight your leadership, teamwork and interpersonal skills. Based on the information you've shared, it's hard to assess your leadership experience. You may want to consider how these skills come into play with your NGO work as well.

Given your interest in LBS, international experience should be a hallmark of your application. While you delivered a project for a "major European bank," without further detail, it's hard to tell how extensive your international exposure has been. LBS does have a more generous range of work experience (the average being 5.5 years), so you may want to postpone a year to try to build up your international exposure. You could also use the time to build out the extracurricular elements of your candidacy. Engaging your community, pursuing a longstanding interest and simply showcasing your other passions outside of work could help you show the adcom what kind of community member you would be on campus.

In terms of proceeding with the application process, I recommend defining your career goals and why you need an MBA. This could help you determine other programs to target for your MBA. Based on my comments above, you could be more competitive by acquiring international and leadership experience, and increasing your GMAT score. I hope this helps-if you'd like to discuss your candidacy further, please contact us directly at clearadmit.com/services/free-consultation/.