Profile for MBA (product development & innovation)

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Hello

Can you evaluate my chances for the following PART TIME programs

Entry: Fall 2010 (I will be 33/34)

GMAT: 640 (V35/74%, Q43/68%) AWA 5.0. Please evaluate me with 700, I know with this score, I am not going to be competitive. I WILL get 700

UG GPA: 3.3/3.4 from Ivy league engineering (not h/y/p)

Master of mechanical engineering from a top 20 private school with a full scholarship

WE: 10 years (Mechanical Engineer in telecomm, defense, and consumer electronics)

First generation immigrant and fluent in Mandarin

My post MBA goal is to stay in the engineering/technology sector. My short-term goal is to get into product management with the long term goal being in a leadership position responsible for new product development with emphasis on innovation.

I believe my background in design and manufacturing with electronics (either be military or consumer) will be important components with my goal

Part-Time program

NYU

Carnegie Mellon (The specialty track of innovation and product development)

Michigan

UCLA (decision, operation, technology management and/or high-technology management)

Berkeley (similar as above)

Kellog (technology industry management)

NYU because I am local and attending part time means I don't have to relocate. But I am willing to relocate and find a job where I get accepted (I believe my diverse engineering background should land me a job thru the part-time duration). I have already taken Booth off the list.

International experience wise, my latest company has manufacturing facilities in China and I work closely with them and have traveled there on multiple occasions to support production. And this is the main reason I am considering an MBA at this point. I believe my knowledge in manufacturing with my cultural/language advantage will supplement the whole innovation/development process very well.

I see several weaknesses

1. GMAT is horrible. It is funny for someone like me to get better grades on V than Q.

2. EC: weak/non-exist EC in college. Post-UG, I served a year on the board for my CO-OP building and to me it was actually a very good business experience

3. Flat career progress. The companies I have worked for all have very flat structures so I have not had many fancy title changes.

4. I am wondering if I should take Michigan off the list. It seems like it is a great school for operation and I don't want other school adcom to see this as a lack of focus? I believe I will be able to defend my decision of having NYU as an option.

Thanks....
Last edited by jzdchou on Thu Mar 18, 2010 8:09 am, edited 1 time in total.

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by Paxton Helms - Kaplan » Fri Jul 24, 2009 10:38 pm
Hi and thanks for your question. That is a lot of good meaty information for me to work with!

Before getting into specifics, you should know that most part-time programs are FEMBA (Fully-Employed MBA) programs that require company sponsorship. Please make sure that you check this out for the programs that you are talking about. Some, to be sure, have the option of working in a city other than the one in which you study but you need to get clear on this before you do anything else.

That said, a few thoughts:

- You are a bit on the high side for an MBA but not yet "out of range." Certainly on the north end of the age metric but not a deal breaker.

- I am not too worried about your "career progression." I think you can explain that in your essays and even turn it into a positive because of how you learned to work in teams.

- The GPA is a bit low (but engineering GPAs often are) and the GMAT is a bit worrisome. Of course, having an MME on a full fellowship helps erase any concerns on that front!!

- I know that you say that you WILL get a 700 but sometimes that is easier said than done. That said, a piece of advice: I have observed that many engineers are so advanced that they lose sight of the "basics" that you simply have to know to do well on the GMAT. So...re-learn (or remind yourself) of the stuff like triangle ratios, etc. Please understand: You simply have to know that stuff cold. The test makers ASSUME that you know it. This is the pitfall of many a test taker and it drives me nuts since it is so easy: just learn it. If you don't know it, don't take the test.

- You obviously have a very compelling life story. Well done. That should be advantageous both in terms of raw material for essays and just in terms of what you bring to the class.


In terms of schools, I think they sound about right. I would leave Michigan on the list smiply because they are so strong in engineering but that's your call (it is very cold up there!).

I might also add to your list:

MIT (they have a manufacturing track that is VERY quant heavy if that appeals to you)

Purdue

I don't know if they are part-time but are both good operations schools.
Keep me in the loop about your thinking and let me know if you have any more questions.

Paxton



Paxton Helms is an MBA admissions consultant for Kaplan Admissions Consulting. He earned his MBA from UCLA and specializes in helping clients that are applying to top twenty and "reach" programs. He can be reached directly at [email protected].

To begin working with Paxton immediately, follow this link and request him specifically: https://www.kaptest.com/GMAT/Admissions- ... lting.html

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by jzdchou » Mon Jul 27, 2009 5:53 am
Thanks for your valuable inputs

I already checked into the MIT manufacturing track (it is called LGO, leader of global operation) and it is a full-time program.

I think I will sell my soul to enroll in that program but there is not a chance in hell I will get admitted :)

I wonder if some of the Adcom would think if I am crazy or if my plan is "reckless" (relocating and finding a job in the school area after being admitted)?

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by Paxton Helms - Kaplan » Wed Aug 05, 2009 7:06 am
Oh, man, this forum doesn't make me laugh out very often but your saying that you would sell your soul to get into the MIT / LGO program is pretty damn funny. Everybody should laugh out loud at least once a day.

At any rate, if you get a 700 and given your background I don't think MIT should be off your radar screen.

As for moving to a city that has a program that you're not into yet...I cannot discourage you from doing that enough. The other point that I really want to make sure that you're clear on is that a lot of part-time (well, FEMBA) programs require you to be working and require you to have compoany sponsorship.

Please make sure that you have all of the mechanics worked out before you apply, much less move. I think you have great credentials and should have some very good options, especially with a 700 under your belt.
Keep me in the loop about your thinking and let me know if you have any more questions.

Paxton



Paxton Helms is an MBA admissions consultant for Kaplan Admissions Consulting. He earned his MBA from UCLA and specializes in helping clients that are applying to top twenty and "reach" programs. He can be reached directly at [email protected].

To begin working with Paxton immediately, follow this link and request him specifically: https://www.kaptest.com/GMAT/Admissions- ... lting.html

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by jzdchou » Tue Aug 11, 2009 1:49 pm
Thanks Paxton

I am seriously thinking about taking a shot at MIT/LGO but as you said I am probably a little too old for a full-time program like that.

And I am also very seriously thinking about applying to Kellog and the MMM program (MBA + Master in engineering management), but again this is also full-time and I might also be considered too old.

I think my list is coming down to this

1) will attend if offered admission no matter what
first choice MIT
second choice Kellogg

2) will attend these part-time programs if MIT + Kellogg don't work out
first choice NYU (reasons I have outlined before)
second choices Carnegie Mellon, Michigan, Berkley, UCLA

I am going to have to trim off some schools out of CMU/Ross/Hass/UCLA. It seems like my list is getting too big and I don't want to spread myself too thin....

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by Paxton Helms - Kaplan » Wed Aug 12, 2009 11:54 am
Sounds like a good plan. My only thought would be to make sure that you have at least some other options besides those two which are, of course, very tough to get into.
Keep me in the loop about your thinking and let me know if you have any more questions.

Paxton



Paxton Helms is an MBA admissions consultant for Kaplan Admissions Consulting. He earned his MBA from UCLA and specializes in helping clients that are applying to top twenty and "reach" programs. He can be reached directly at [email protected].

To begin working with Paxton immediately, follow this link and request him specifically: https://www.kaptest.com/GMAT/Admissions- ... lting.html

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by jzdchou » Sun Dec 13, 2009 8:32 pm
Paxton,

Just want to update you. I took the GMAT again this weekend and got a 690 (Q51 V31). Verbal decreased from 35 to 31 but I guess you can't always get everything.

I will be submitting for MIT/LGO deadline on 12/15 and then it is Kellogg MMM and Michigan Tauber. All these are full-time programs.

I need to decide if I want to apply to Haas part-time. I already applied to NYU part-time (wait-listed again but I applied with my old 640) and Cornell AMBA.

Can you give me your opinions given my new GMAT score?

Thanks

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by Paxton Helms - Kaplan » Sun Dec 20, 2009 6:23 pm
I think your GMAT score is a great improvement! Congratulations!
Keep me in the loop about your thinking and let me know if you have any more questions.

Paxton



Paxton Helms is an MBA admissions consultant for Kaplan Admissions Consulting. He earned his MBA from UCLA and specializes in helping clients that are applying to top twenty and "reach" programs. He can be reached directly at [email protected].

To begin working with Paxton immediately, follow this link and request him specifically: https://www.kaptest.com/GMAT/Admissions- ... lting.html

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by jzdchou » Thu Mar 18, 2010 8:07 am
...
Last edited by jzdchou on Tue May 11, 2010 6:13 am, edited 1 time in total.

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by jon82 » Thu Mar 18, 2010 8:26 pm
Congratulations JZD!

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by Taran » Thu May 15, 2014 4:20 am
Hi Paxton,

I'm going to try out my luck by writing my request for a profile evaluation in an old blog, hoping that my post reaches you and that you reply. Let me lay down my profile summary first.

- Male; 32 yrs old (Jan born); Indian.

Work Experience
- I'm a Mechanical Engineer by profession with an overall experience of 8 years.

My most recent job: I've been working in a fortune 500 company for past 5 years and am presently responsible for handling a major portion of an overall product development program. My work involves creating new components for the vehicle chassis. That means it requires lots of brainstorming in teams, calculations, analysis, and collaboration with people around the world.
- I do not have official direct reports, but few people report to me on the project, which means i am not directly responsible for their performance evaluation and career development. But i contribute my share through mentoring. Recently, a person mentored by me received 'employee of the year' award by his management.
- I plan and give trainings to lots of people in my area of work, at my team level, as well as department level (I have a certificate of appreciation by the managing director).
- I've also written technical documents that my team uses internally.

My earlier work experience: I used to work in a small modular furniture manufacturing company. I presumed diverse roles here depending on the business environment. For instance, i designed and developed lots of components for their products, but also led projects, worth millions of dollars, when it was required. During this time, i went beyond engineering and took responsibility of other operations too.

Academics & test results
- B.E in Mechanical Engineering (Scored 74/100) from India
- MS in Engineering Design (Scored 61/100) from United Kingdom (Cultural Exposure)
- GMAT (680, Quant 45, Verbal 38, AWA 5, and IR 5) - I'm preparing to take the GMAT again in August.

Extra-Curricular
- My wife and I teach around 10 students from our local communities. These children go to government schools, but usually require additional guidance. Sadly, government schools in India do not provide high quality education. This is where my wife and I pitch in. Most of these students are children to people who work as maids in our locality.
- I lead a group of fitness enthusiasts as well. We discuss the challenges that employed working class faces in living a healthy life. I am a big fitness fan, and so I treat the success of this group as my personal responsibility.

My Goals: My short term goal is to lead product development projects for my company, or one in similar industry. I believe that is how my experience will be useful for me post MBA. My long term goal is to obtain a leadership position where i handle my company's product management strategies.

Please ask me anything else of relevance and importance that I may have missed here. Thanks.