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by hagadre » Wed Oct 07, 2009 5:44 am
Hi,

Please provide your valuable tips on my candidacy to the following programs:

Univ of Chicago
Wharton
Columbia
Tuck
NYU

Indian Male, 28

Goal: Shor term: Work in the field of finance. Long term: Management position in Finance and would like to start my own education fund.

GMAT SCORES:

620 (Q45, V31) AWA 5.0 First Attempt
680 (Q49, V33) AWA 6.0 Second Attempt

Academics:
Bachelor's in Chemical Engineering
Master's in Chemical Engineering w 3.5 GPA from US
Certificate in Finance [NYIF]
Certificate in Portfolio Management [2 Courses pending; NYIF]

Experience:

Teaching Assistant - 6 months [Stevens Inst of Technology, New Jersey]
Research Assistant - 2 yrs [Stevens Inst of Tech]
Business Analyst - 6 months [Educational Testing Services]
Lead Business Analyst/Asst. Project Manager - 3 yrs [Educational Testing Services]

Although, I have been working in software development, I am not sure if my experience comes under the typical umbrella of quote n quote ''IT". My work has been mostly revolved aroung process improvement in software development and project management. I was promoted to lead the team and asst with project management activities within 6 months of joining. Also, the industry that i am working in i.e. Educational services [ETS; non-for-profit] should of some assistance in differentiating my profile, at least I hope.

Extra Curriculars:
Organized various religious gathering throughout my childhood.
Participated in raising money for charity throughout my school.
Have been the captain of cricket team
Also have tutored students in Mathematics

Please let me know if I am overshooting.
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by Stacey Oyler » Wed Oct 07, 2009 2:23 pm
Hi Hagadre,

Thanks for your post. Please see my comments below:

Indian Male, 28

Goal: Shor term: Work in the field of finance. Long term: Management position in Finance and would like to start my own education fund.

GMAT SCORES:

620 (Q45, V31) AWA 5.0 First Attempt
680 (Q49, V33) AWA 6.0 Second Attempt

Academics:
Bachelor's in Chemical Engineering
Master's in Chemical Engineering w 3.5 GPA from US
Certificate in Finance [NYIF]
Certificate in Portfolio Management [2 Courses pending; NYIF]

Your GMAT score is a bit low not only for the programs you are interested in applying, but also as compared to others with similar backgrounds/work experience in the applicant pool. I realize you have already taken the exam twice, but I would suggest you consider taking it for a 3rd time. A score of 700+ will certainly make you more competitive. While you have a solid GPA from your Masters program, you did not share your undergraduate GPA, therefore I can't fully evaluate this area of your profile.

Experience:

Teaching Assistant - 6 months [Stevens Inst of Technology, New Jersey]
Research Assistant - 2 yrs [Stevens Inst of Tech]
Business Analyst - 6 months [Educational Testing Services]
Lead Business Analyst/Asst. Project Manager - 3 yrs [Educational Testing Services]

Although, I have been working in software development, I am not sure if my experience comes under the typical umbrella of quote n quote ''IT". My work has been mostly revolved aroung process improvement in software development and project management. I was promoted to lead the team and asst with project management activities within 6 months of joining. Also, the industry that i am working in i.e. Educational services [ETS; non-for-profit] should of some assistance in differentiating my profile, at least I hope.

It's great that your work isn't typical IT. You will certainly want to emphasize this on your resume as well as in your application. It will certainly benefit you to differentiate yourself from others in the applicant pool.

Extra Curriculars:
Organized various religious gathering throughout my childhood.

Unfortunately the adcom isn't interested in knowing about your extracurricular activities prior to undergrad. An exception to this would be if this is something you still do on a regular basis. This would demonstrate a long term interest.

Participated in raising money for charity throughout my school.
Have been the captain of cricket team
Also have tutored students in Mathematics

It appears as though all of your activities took place while you were in college. Have you had a chance to participate in extracurricular activities or other personal hobbies since you graduated? Extracurricular activities not only demonstrate to bschool that you will likely be involved in the campus community, but that you are also a well rounded individual. They are also a great way to stand out amongst the crowded applicant pool.

The programs you've identified Univ of Chicago
Wharton,Columbia, Tuck, and NYU are all quite challenging. As I stated above, I strongly suggest you consider retaking the GMAT. A score of 700+ will certainly help your application. Additionally, all the schools you have selected value and thrive on student participation in their communities. It will be essential for you to demonstrate in your applications that you will contribute on campus. You'll want to research each of these programs and find out how you could become involved such as through joining or leading clubs, etc.

Please feel free to send your resume to [email protected] to speak with one of our consultants for a free assessment of your candidacy.

Best,

Stacey
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Stacey Oyler
Clear Admit, LLC
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215.568.2590

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by hagadre » Thu Oct 08, 2009 4:54 am
Hi Stacey,

Thanks a lot for your response. Your feedback has been very encouraging and I will definitely think about taking the GMAT a third time based on how my app process shapes up in the next couple of months.

I forgot to mention about my experinces in community service past graduation:

I have been involved in creating ww.math17.com. The goal of the web site is to deliver free math lessons from K-12. Currently, the web site is in its infancy state and we are supporting tutorial from K-4 grades. The ideal goal is to develop this further to support K-12 and beyond.

Another significant experience I have been involved is in the foundation of EpochTek LLC [www.epochtek.com, the site is down right now]. This is a consulting services company which was started by me and my cousin. We started with 0 employees and right now we have couple of people whom we could place. The company generated revenues of about 200,000$ last year.

Regarding my undergraduate GPA. We did not have the same GPA system, but I have always been among the toppers in my class. My percentile is 64% and the highest in my class was around 72% out of 100.

Hopefully, these experiences will add value to my profile.

It will be helpful if you could throw some light on these.

Thanks.
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by Stacey Oyler » Thu Oct 08, 2009 3:31 pm
It's great that you have so many extracurricular activities! The two that you mentioned sound like great examples to use in your essays. You should also be sure to try to include them on your resume as well as in the application forms.

Best,

Stacey
Sign up for my MBA admissions course, featuring me and other Clear Admit experts, by visiting: https://www.udemy.com/business-school

Stacey Oyler
Clear Admit, LLC
[email protected]
215.568.2590

Stay Informed with Clear Admit!
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Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts
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by hagadre » Sat Oct 10, 2009 3:46 pm
Hi Stacey,

A follow up question for you:

I have been organizing religious gatherings at my home regularly.

Would this experience add value to my extra curricular activities. Please let me know.

Thanks
Harish
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by Stacey Oyler » Thu Nov 05, 2009 8:46 pm
Hi Hagadre,

I have a few thoughts around your question:

I have been organizing religious gatherings at my home regularly. Would this experience add value to my extra curricular activities. Please let me know.

While I think it's fine to mention this, it's important to keep the focus on the leadership skills you are developing through organizing these activities and not put the emphasis on religion. Keep in mind that the adcom member who reads your application could be Mormon, Jewish, Agnostic, or Atheist and may have different opinions.

Best,

Stacey
Sign up for my MBA admissions course, featuring me and other Clear Admit experts, by visiting: https://www.udemy.com/business-school

Stacey Oyler
Clear Admit, LLC
[email protected]
215.568.2590

Stay Informed with Clear Admit!
Read our Blog for daily MBA admissions tips and updates.
Follow us on Twitter for breaking b-school news.
Download our Publications on MBA programs and admissions strategy.
Visit our MBA Admissions Wiki to read and share application insights.
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