interesting....

Dear NandanSingh,

Thanks for your post!

Here are my basic thoughts on your candidacy:

Pros
-Your work experience and leadership exposure is very strong - and somewhat rare in the applicant pool.
-Your niche focus on the metals sector is fairly unique.
-Your marks in engineering undergrad/4th rank in your class are strong.
-You seem to have a couple of dedicated interests that you've pursued outside of the classroom and outside the office (like football).

Cons
-As an Indian engineer (presumably male) you belong to one of the most over-subscribed groups in the applicant pool.
-While your academic results from ugrad are strong, they will be trumped by IIT grads with similar marks.
-Your GMAT score is below the average for the top schools on your list (710-715 these days). More importantly, it is well below the average for Indian engineers who are accepted at the top programs (since the bar seems to be a bit higher for this group due to the over-subscribed nature of this part of the applicant pool).
-Your outside activities, while decent, don't sound as substantial as they are with some applicants.
-You are a bit older than many candidates (this is more of a liability for schools like HBS and Stanford than it is for the other programs on your list).

As to your questions:

1) It's hard to rate your chances without seeing your essays, understanding your career goals and knowing your full history with the GMAT exam. Given the truly impressive leadership experiences you've had, I can see a scenario where a stellar application and strong interviews could put you over the top. I do have real concerns about the GMAT result - esp. if you've only taken the exam once.

2) I cannot suggest target schools without knowing what direction you are planning on taking with your career. Do you wish to work in India? The US? In the metals sector? A new sector? In what function?

3) Yes, despite the fact that you come from within a niche (metals) in the broader engineering group, there will be very stiff competition.

Best of luck,

Graham

Thanks for the response!
I have selected some schools as given below:

Very Tough - Tough
Harvard, Wharton, Kellogg,

Tough - Competetive
Duke, NYU, Darden, Cornell,

Competetive - Safety
UNC(Kenan Flagler), ISB

1. My GMAT day was very bad as my test started solid 3 hours behind schedule due to data encryption error in the system during the first candidate's login.

2. I think I can write reasonably good-fair essays.

3. I want to specialise in Operations/Marketing and then would like to join a Consulting firm or Industry in the same (metal/manufacturing) sector as a part of the Management.

4. I have got more extracurriculars than discussed above expressing great leadership skills.

Most important: I have to get into some or other B-School in this season.

Hence, please review again and suggest! (Especially on the pragmatic and safe sectors.

(I have applied to HBS because I have always dreamt of going there. Hence, I am not going all out for it.)