Profile Evaluation: Please advice

[kewl5abi]

Hi Stacy,

I would appreciate the evaluation of my profile as an MBA applicant.
Profile:
Expected Entrance, Fall 2012

Personal:
Male/Indian
Age: 25(Current)

GMAT:
660(Q43 V38) AWA 4.0

Qualification:
Masters in Computer Applications in 2007(Aggregate 70%)

Work Experience:
3years (IT) Working as a Software engineer in a top MNC at Bangalore, India.
I am working on cutting edge technology in a challenging environment. And my current job profile reflects leadership, innovation, teamwork, analytical skills and other strong skills.

Extracurricular:
Many sports related achievement during high school.
I was high-school sports captain and represented my school at various inter-state tournaments in different sports.

Participated and organized various cultural and other activities in college.
Member of organizing committee of Inter College technical fest. Performed at various Inter college dance competition.

Community Service:
Member of an educational society, which runs a public school. My role is: taking guest lectures, conducting interviews of teachers, computer hardware purchase and monetary support.
Volunteer at many organization level events such as blood donation camp and tree planting event.
Volunteer at NGO organization which helps underprivileged students, by teaching them life skills, which includes imparting them computer education and other activities that can help them earn their livelihood.

Preferred business schools:
LBS, Oxford, Cambridge and IMD (Reason of interest: because most are one year MBA programs and I think a 2 year program will be more expensive)

Career Goals:
I don't want to waste my technical expertise and I would like to be a Technical Marketing guy or a specialist in IT Project management.

Other's:
I would like to come back to India not immediately after completing my MBA. But, down the line.

My questions for you are:

Am I targeting the right schools? Do you have any suggestions for other schools that I should consider within? Ideally which UK /Europe or any other Asian schools for whom I would be a strong candidate basically, which schools I should target with my current profile.

Do you have any suggestions that may help, Steps I should take to improve my profile? How can I become a stronger candidate in an already competitive Asian Information Technology applicant pool? How can I differentiate myself from the much represented Asian IT pool?


Currently, I am skeptical about pursuing my MBA within the United States from US Schools because of the large cost involved. I know there are plenty of finance options available but I feel that repaying all the loans (post-graduation) will keep me out of India. I am still however, very not very unsure about this. Can you please comment?




I am eager to hear back from you.

Thanks in advance.

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear kewl5abi,

I encourage you to visit our sticky on school selection for tips on identifying programs that are a good match for you. You want to be at the right program for your career goals and personal preferences. While length of program and cost are considerations, if the program does not offer the right coursework and you are not comfortable in the environment, you have wasted your time and money. To that end, you will want to spend time researching schools and talking with current students and alumni to get the insider perspective when possible. Your research should also give you insight into what more you should be doing with your profile beyond gaining quality work experience and participating in extracurricular activities. It is possible you will want to take the GMAT again as you will need a higher score for a school you feel is a good fit or to increase your chances of scholarship awards at another school. Remember, the MBA is not a cost, but an investment in your future. So while it is an expensive investment, when you do analyze different options in the US, EU and Asia, often times you find that a 2-year program in the US is really not more expensive than a 15-month option in the EU.

Good luck,
Lisa

[kewl5abi]

Hi Lisa,

Thank you for your time to evaluate my profile and for the valuable suggestions.

I will do the research on schools and will try to find the best fit for me in terms of the factors you have identified. Can you please share some information on scholarship criterias for different schools?Also, i would like to know that how being an international applicant will affect my admission chances at various schools?

Thanks a bunch.

[Lisa Anderson]

Scholarship criteria varies by school, as well as any specifications dictated by the donor of the funds. Generally speaking, scholarship recipients will be viewed as high achievers and applicants that the school definitely wants to have in its class.

International applicants are evaluated in the same way as domestic applicants at most schools. The only difference is that most schools do limit the number of international students in the class to a certain percentage. Thus it can often be harder to receive an offer of admission as an international applicant if you know the school limits the number AND receives a large number of international applicants. For example, if the school's total applicant pool of 1000 is 50% international and the school only wants the class of 250 to be 30% international students, then that means only 75 of the incoming students will be international. In essence, it just means you need to ensure your application will distinguish you from the other similar applicants and make sure you apply to the right mix of schools.

Regards,
Lisa

[kewl5abi]

Thanks Lisa.You made things very clear such as the various aspects I should focus in order to increase my admission chances. I appreciate all your help.