Which schools to apply to?

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Which schools to apply to?

by gujralvikas » Fri Aug 10, 2012 11:55 pm
Hi All,

I am planning to apply for the Fall 2013 intake and need help shortlisting schools. I am interested in building a career in Management consulting. For shortlisting US schools, I am only interested in schools which offer loans without any co-signer. Currently, I am looking at Kellogg, Booth, Tuck, Fuqua, Darden and Ross. Any thoughts/comments/help is appreciated.

Profile:

GMAT - 760 (V 41, Q 50, AWA 5.5, IR 6)
Undergrad - GPA of 8.16 out of 10 from a reputed college in India
Work Ex - 48 months (by Sep'13) in ZS Associates, a sales & marketing consulting firm

Academic Achievement -
Among the toppers in my High school (Full Scholarship during 2003-05)
Certificate of merit for excelling in Mathematics (100% marks in national level board exam)
Graduated with an honors degree
Participated in many business/technical competitions during college (Regional winner in Agilent Technology awards, Finalist in Schneider electric innovation challenge, Won 1st Al Gore sustainable technology venture competition, Participated in business venture competition at Tepper)

Extra curricular interests -
Regular member of High school's Kho-Kho (a south asian sport) team (Stood 3rd once at the zonal level)
Participated in many scouting camps during High-school
A travelling and adventure enthusiast (Just went to a 10-day motorbiking trip to Ladakh, Have tried river-rafting, para-gliding, Bungee jumping)
Organized a major 3-day business event (named Brand Equity) during college festival
Regular participant in dance and fashion competitions during college festival
Organized office outings at ZS
Source: — Ask Clear Admit |

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by Heidi Granner » Mon Aug 13, 2012 5:19 pm
Hi gujralvikas,

Thanks for your post.

Your academics and work experience are quite strong and will be advantageous in the applicant pool. The admissions committee will be looking for more extensive extracurricular involvement (leadership experiences in college, community service, hobbies continued since college) so you will need to balance this weakness with strengths in other areas. Also, I would not suggest including high school activities unless they are tied to continued passions or led to pinnacle moments in your life (so might mention in an essay).

Unfortunately, I cannot speak to which schools require co-signers for their loans. I recommend reviewing each school's financial aid section of their website. If you can't find the information there, then you should contact the schools.

I generally recommend applying to 4-5 schools and I like the set of schools you mention for your profile (mix of "top 5" and "top 10"). You should be competitive in the applicant pool and they will all provide opportunities in management consulting. I recommend therefore doing the additional research on the financial aid aspect to narrow down the list.

Please feel free to forward your resume to [email protected] for a detailed and free profile evaluation.

Best,
Heidi
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Heidi Granner
Clear Admit, LLC
[email protected]
215.568.2590

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