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Schools advice needed

by raisha16 » Thu Aug 01, 2013 10:22 pm
Hi Stacy,

I am 24/F from India. Need your guidance for selection of colleges. I just got done with my exam. Scores as below:
GMAT: 700 (49Q, 35V)
10th: 94%
12th: 85%
Undergrad (Bachelors in Chemistry) : 3.0 : passed out in 2010 (University of Delhi

For the last one and a half years I have been working for DE Shaw India. By Fall next year I it will be 2.5 years. Prior to that did an internship in AES corporation in a Finance domain and an year experience in a non-profit organisation post my undergrad.

ECs were decent:
-Was the school head girl during my school
-Actively involved in cultural events both in school and college
-A passionate dancer (learnt salsa, Indian classical and planning to take up jazz)
-Interested in travelling: Traveled across the country
-Yoga practitioner

Apart from the above I am a FRM level 2 candidate and have a few certifications from National Stock Exchange, India. I have sent my score to the below colleges:
-Darden
-Emory
-Tepper
-UCLA
-Ann-Arbor Michigan

Please let me know about my chances for the above and which other schools do you think suits my profile.
Post-MBA I am looking to get into consulting. Also, financial aid is a major concern while applying for colleges. A few colleges still on my list are Mc Combs, and UC-Berkeley, Wharton (quite a stretch).

Your help will be highly appreciated.

Thanks,
Raish
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by CriticalSquareMBA » Fri Aug 02, 2013 11:46 am
Hey there,

So here's how this breaks down. The top MBAs do not easily part with their scholarship funds. What you need to decide is what is of the utmost importance to you. Brand and ranking or debt? If it's the former, we can talk about your profile and which top schools might be a good fit. If it's the latter, then you're looking too high for almost all of those schools. The only schools you might have a shot at for financial aid are Tepper and UCLA and that's still a stretch. If you're looking for scholarships, you need to target the 20 - 30 ranked programs.

So - the question to you is what's the most important factor to you?

Bhavik
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by apphelp » Sat Aug 03, 2013 1:32 am
Hi Raisha,

With 700 on GMAT and close to 2 yrs of work experience, we find most schools on your list aspirational. Stuff like FRM might help but not if you want to write a consulting story.

Schools you have listed really dont offer a lot of scholarship. GMAT score is the most important aspect for getting a scholarship and you have an average one.

Realistically we just see chances at Mccombs,Emory and Tepper. Others are quite a stretch.

So, in case you want to target all these schools and get some aid as well, we recommend waiting for one more year. Strengthen your profile in that one year and retake GMAT to push your score to 730+ or so.

Feel free to contact us for any queries.

Apphelp Team
Apphelp : India's # 1 MBA admissions consultancy

Confused about schools? Need help with Essay Review? Need mock interviews?
All these questions have a single answer : APPHELP (apphelp.co.in)
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by raisha16 » Sat Aug 03, 2013 11:47 pm
Hi Bhavik,

Ignoring the scholarship issues, do you think the schools I have listed above are achievable?

Hi Apphelp,

Giving a GMAT again for me is not an option. I would rather work on building ECs rather than pushing the score more.

Thanks,
Raish
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by CriticalSquareMBA » Sun Aug 04, 2013 4:53 am
Hey Raish,

I think some of those schools are more achievable than others. For example, Tepper is more accepting of technical or engineering backgrounds which would help you. The same goes with Emory and McCombs (I agree with App Help here).

Ross will be a stretch - mainly because of your years of work experience. Even if you get into Ross, your profile doesn't exactly demand scholarships.

I know you said getting a higher GMAT score isn't an option but the majority of merit based scholarships are GMAT score driven, FYI. A 700 might warrant some assistance at a lower level school (20 - 30) but at the top 20 range, probably not.

Actually, let's take a step back. What do you DO for DE Shaw. At 1.5 years of work experience, your work experience would have to be pretty amazing to make an impact on the adcom.

I think if you apply this year you could probably convert at one of the programs you listed but Darden, Ross, and, to a certain extent, UCLA are pushing it. This, of course, is assuming you come back and tell us your work experience was at least above average if not exceptional. Where you are in your career, it really comes down to story - if that doesn't resonate why wouldn't they just skip over you and go for someone with a few more years of experience? It's really that simple.

I'm not saying you can't apply but just understand that you are really on the lower side when it comes to work exp.

Now, another option is to wait a year and push the rest of your profile. This is a personal decision and I'm not sure what's driving your decision making process.

Thoughts?

Bhavik
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by CriticalSquareMBA » Sun Aug 04, 2013 4:54 am
Oh, and FYI, the Emory start class is <150 - you need to really deserve a spot there or bring a unique perspective to the table. The others have larger entry classes.

I forgot to mention that so I figured I would add that.

Bhavik
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by raisha16 » Sun Aug 04, 2013 10:17 pm
Hi Bhavik,

I have been with DE shaw for the last 1.5 years. Prior to that I have worked for an Energy US firm (AES Corp). Also, I have some work ex for NGOs. I graduated in 2010. So, by fall next year, I would have 4 years of work-ex. I feel that is pretty enough. What do you think?

Thanks!
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by CriticalSquareMBA » Mon Aug 05, 2013 9:16 am
Hey there,

I'm sorry - I should have been more clear. My question was at DE Shaw, what do you do? What is your position? What leadership experiences do you have? Specifically, what would you write on your resume?

The same question would go for your NGO experience.

Thanks!

Bhavik
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