Profile Evaluation Request

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Profile Evaluation Request

by swagatadhar » Mon Oct 04, 2010 7:28 am
Hello

Can you please evaluate my profile and assess my chances of getting admitted to one of the following B - schools?

First choices
HEC
Cranfield
RSM

Second choices
Warwick
ESADE

My profile is as follows:
Personal:
Indian, Male, 29 years, Married.
Current location - Europe

GMAT:
Score - 640
Quant - 47
Verb - 32

Educational background
10th and 12th grade - 87%, English medium schools.
UG - Bachelor of Engineering in Electronics and Communications with 65% from a Rank 30 University in India

Professional Exp:
Almost 6 years of experience as a software engineer in a Top tier firm in India. Experience in Banking and Financial services domain.

Some highlights of my career:
- 3.5 years of International experience, working onsite as a lead Software Engineer for a Swiss Bank
- promoted after first two years of my job, high chances of promotion in the next cycle
- awarded twice by my company. 'Kudos' award at offshore and 'Rising Star of the Quarter', Q3 2009 at onsite
- first onsite assigment as lead co-ordinator for a development project.
- trained and mentored more than 40 new associates while at offshore
- developed an e-learning site for our company's internal learning program

Extra- Curricular:
- I attended professional courses in painting and Indian music while at school
- District level swimmer
- Won prizes in sports(football) and other extra curriculars in UG college
- School captain for consecutive 4 years. Lead school to victory in inter-school parade
- Organized social events in my current company
- Member of Orator's Club
- Amateur photographer
- Taking foreign language classes(German)

Application Essays and Recommendations:
- I can get strong recommendations from my current client contacts/managers.

I had targetted a 700 in my GMAT, but the verbal section did not go well. Still waiting for my AWA scores. Hope it will be above 4.0.

I am interested in a career in Management Consulting post MBA. I have heard that Cranfield is famous for its focus in consulting and HEC for entrepreneurship. I still need to research on the full time programs for RSM and SDA Bocconi. I have also kept Warwick and ESADE as my backup schools, but considering the declining popularity of Warwick and economic conditions in Spain, i am a little apprehensive.

It would be of much help to me if someone can give some feedback on my admission chances to the schools mentioned - Competetive, Stretch.

Thanks in advance,
Swagata
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by Bryant@VeritasPrep » Thu Oct 07, 2010 6:12 pm
GMAT needs improvement, WE is good, but pretty common---not a deal breaker and you seem pretty involved. Your big hurdle is your applicant pool, which is deep and wide. You will need to focus on what sets you apart from other Indian applicants with IT backgrounds that have higher GPA and GMAT than you do. Also, your post-MBA vision and your case for why now is the right time to apply is critical. The schools you have chosen are selective, so it's wise to have backups or at least multiple targets, which you do. Consulting companies like engineers, because they know how to solve problems. Definitely go with full time MBa programs, as they are best for career switchers.
Bryant Michaels
MBA Admissions Consultant


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by swagatadhar » Thu Oct 07, 2010 10:02 pm
Hi Bryant

Thanks a lot for your reply.
I have recently been to the Zurich MBA fair and the 1 to 1 sessions with different schools organised by QS. It was a great experience. Some schools seem pretty interested in my profile themselves, like Ashridge, WHU Otto Beishem but I am not planning to apply to these schools. In the fair I also got a chance to speak to the representatives from IMD, ESADE, Cranfield and HEC. The Asst. Director of admissions from ESADE was quite enthusiastic and liked my profile. I will definitely give a shot for ESADE. Interaction with the faculty lady from Cranfield was also great. She gave us a nice and brief overview of Cranfield. I think IMD will be too far fetched for me at this stage. I have already started with my application for RSM and will need to complete it fast before the Nov deadlines. By the way, I received my AWA scores and got a 5. Not sure whether it will help me to compensate a bit for my low verbal. But I am not really counting on that. I also learnt of the fact that international experience does come in handy when it boils down to differentiating yourself from other applicants.
I may sit for another attempt at the GMAT before submitting applications for the UK schools.

Regards,
Swagata