Ask Veritas Prep Admissions Consulting

Greetings from India. I am planning to apply for an international MBA next year, so want to start early. My target schools are Fuqua/Yale/Anderson/Johnson/Ross/Kenan-Flagler/Tepper/McCombs/INSEAD/LBS/IE/OxBridge/HKUST/NUS/CIEBS and Wharton/MIT (I know I have zero chances here but it's just that they have been my dream for so long. Atleast want to fill-up their form). With that in mind, I appeared for GMAT and scored a decent 750 (V40 Q51 AWA 5 IR 8), will reappear once more aiming for a higher score (since I have heard from seniors how most B-Schools are willing to look beyond your weakness if you have a jaw-dropping GMAT score like 780). Hopeful, I started reading up. However that hope was shortlived. Got to know from leading gmat-related websites like poets and quants etc that (i) US B-Schools don't usually prefer candidates in their early 30s (I will be 30 when I join, 31/32 when I pass-out, so I totally fall in this category) and (ii) the Indian + Male + IT professional is the most over-represented demographic in the applicant pool & that makes us undesirable. Took up a free consultation in a local center which advised me to focus on US B-Schools in the #30-40 range (in which I have no interest). That has left me demotivated & confused on what to do in the road ahead. Could really use some experienced advice to zero in on whether to march ahead or fall back.

My profile reads something like this-

ICSE (Our Standard-X Board Exams)- 92%
ISC (Our Standard-XII Board Exams)- 91.25%
B.Tech in Electronics & Communication - 81.3%
M.Tech in IT - 85% (one of the toppers)
Work Ex- 45 months (at the time of joining), in Tata Consultancy Services as a Software Engineer
ECs- above average, nothing jaw-dropping though.
Community Service- Have done my fair bit - from organizing blood donation camps TO distribution of blankets to the poor during winters TO taking over the education of an underprivileged child for 4 yrs.
Major hole in the CV- have a gap of 1 year before my M.Tech, when I was back-packing through certain parts of Africa (absolutely love wild-life. Don't really feel guilty about this break though, inspite of knowing that it will be a burden that I will have to bear for the next 5 yrs atleast)

Now I would really like a preliminary holistic analysis from an expert on where my profile stands in their esteemed estimate & whether such a profile can arrest the attention of ANY Adcom from my target schools. Going ahead will require an expenditure of 200,000 INR atleast. So, can really use an honest comprehensive analysis. Thanks in advance.

Actually, the backpacking trip through Africa could be the very thing which helps you stand out. I would say you have a shot at your target schools and some, such as Fuqua and Ross, have a good track record for recruiting seasoned candidates with 5 plus years of work experience. I myself was 31 when I went back to b-school, so can say firsthand there are folks who get in later in life. If I were you, I'd apply to my target list and then have as a backup plan EMBA programs where your experience would definitely be a good fit. I would be shocked, however if you don't get into at least one of the schools on your list based on what I see in your profile. I am assuming a thoughtfully presented case for admission, of course, with a compelling post MBA vision which leverages your past experience. Let us know if we can be helpful in crafting such.