Profile Evaluation

[iamkapilhere]

Hi,

I took my GMAT yesterday and scored a 680(Q44, V40).

BG:
I currently (as of 9July) have four years of experience in IT and around three months in a call center in India(not sure if this would help me much). Of the four years in IT I have 18 moths years of exp in India with Infosys(an MNC listed in NASDAQ) and the rest in singapore. I have worked for an year in BArclays and currently working in CITI in multicultural teams.

I have good extracurriculars and can have decent recommendations for my social work from my home country(India).

QUERIES:
What sort of score is 680? (low, avg, above avg, good, very good)
My taget schools are:
INSEAD, Singapore
ISB, Hyderabad, India
NUS, Singapore
NTU, Singapore (basically i love Singapore)
and any of the top 20 b scholls in the US.

Since i have jumped so many jobs (one of my jumps was logical given that i got a 8 times increase in salary and the other was forced (my team relocated from singpaore)), will that count against me?

I have stayed in Singapore for two years but all my social work and extracurricular work are based in India. So recommendation letters for my work will also be from India. Is that a disadvantage?

And additional comments from the experts.

Thanks,
Kapil

[ThinkAdmit]

Hi,

I took my GMAT yesterday and scored a 680(Q44, V40).

BG:
I currently (as of 9July) have four years of experience in IT and around three months in a call center in India(not sure if this would help me much). Of the four years in IT I have 18 moths years of exp in India with Infosys(an MNC listed in NASDAQ) and the rest in singapore. I have worked for an year in BArclays and currently working in CITI in multicultural teams.

I have good extracurriculars and can have decent recommendations for my social work from my home country(India).

QUERIES:
What sort of score is 680? (low, avg, above avg, good, very good)
My taget schools are:
INSEAD, Singapore
ISB, Hyderabad, India
NUS, Singapore
NTU, Singapore (basically i love Singapore)
and any of the top 20 b scholls in the US.

Since i have jumped so many jobs (one of my jumps was logical given that i got a 8 times increase in salary and the other was forced (my team relocated from singpaore)), will that count against me?

I have stayed in Singapore for two years but all my social work and extracurricular work are based in India. So recommendation letters for my work will also be from India. Is that a disadvantage?

And additional comments from the experts.

Thanks,
Kapil

Hi Kapil,

Considering you are an Indian from IT background, you need a competitive GMAT score. But you will certain strong points to show from your international experience focusing on banking. You did not mention your career goals. Craft your career goals seamlessly into your story so that they form a coherent story when talked about with the skills acquired through your work experience.

About your number jobs, if you can justify the number of changes with proper reasoning and clear acceleration in your career, it should not be a problem. Make sure you show stability in thought when talking about a clear career path, so that professional maturity is displayed and the job changes are seen as calculated moves rather than reflexes.

If you have been in Singapore for more than two years and your social work experience is in India, does that mean you were not directly involved in any community work since the last two years? If that is true, there is an issue in continuity and you should stick to only those tasks that you are currently pursuing, either full time or part time.

[iamkapilhere]

Hi Nitin,

Thanks for your reply. Few more queries.

You need a completive GMAT score- how competitive is my gmat for the colleges i have listed.

And another question i missed asking: because most of my professional exp is in singapore-by the time i join(next sept)i will have 2.5 years in singapore and less than 2 years i india. Will i still be considered a part of the dreaded IT pool of India? I am here working for Singaporean company, not onsite placement and have clients in China, HK, AUS, and Taiwan.

Will me having a singaporean PR take me out of the competition with other indian candidates?

And finally i have a quant score of only 44(66th percentile), will that weigh against me?
I have a good verbal score (44, 89th percentile) and have a TOEFL score of 113. Considering my verbal and quant score would you call it balanced? (both theoretically and relative to other candidates).

Thanks again,
Kapil

PS: I understand my indian identity is fixed (and i am very proud of it), but GMAT admissions may warrant some polishing too....

[ThinkAdmit]

Hi Nitin,

Thanks for your reply. Few more queries.

You need a completive GMAT score- how competitive is my gmat for the colleges i have listed.

680 is a little on the lower side of the average of these schools. But it is not that low that you'll need to write it again. Looking at only the score alone, you have a shot at NUS, NTU but it'll be tough for ISB and INSEAD.

And another question i missed asking: because most of my professional exp is in singapore-by the time i join(next sept)i will have 2.5 years in singapore and less than 2 years i india. Will i still be considered a part of the dreaded IT pool of India? I am here working for Singaporean company, not onsite placement and have clients in China, HK, AUS, and Taiwan.

Will me having a singaporean PR take me out of the competition with other indian candidates?

Well, your Singapore PR will help a little in differentiating. It is not about the quantity rather the quality that you display in your application that help you in standing out. So if you really think that your Singapore experience is your differentiating factor, focus on what you did, and what is different about Singapore.

And finally i have a quant score of only 44(66th percentile), will that weigh against me?
I have a good verbal score (44, 89th percentile) and have a TOEFL score of 113. Considering my verbal and quant score would you call it balanced? (both theoretically and relative to other candidates).


PS: I understand my indian identity is fixed (and i am very proud of it), but GMAT admissions may warrant some polishing too....

Yes, quant score of 44 is low. 66 percentile and 89th percentile is not balanced. However, this score is very unlike Indian applicants who usually score high on quant. If your undergrad quant subject scores can compensate for your low GMAT quant, it would be good. Otherwise, be prepared to answer some questions on this imbalance in your interview.

[iamkapilhere]

Hi,

Finally after a few weeks of reaseach and deliberation, here is my final list of schools that i am applying to.

Ambitious:
Tepper
Emory university
Georgetown university
ASU(carey)
University of Toronto(Rotman school of business)
Michigan (broad)

50% shot:
NUS(s3 mba)
UIUC
Boston college.

Good chance:
Thunderbird
Wakeforest university.

I have decided not to apply for colleges in Europe. I am looking for only two year MBA programs. I will also be looking for scholarship/student loan from colleges to fund my studies.

Questions:
How good is my list? Any sugestions to modify/add and do i have a fair chance in all of them, esp ambitious ones?

Any info on Wake forest university? It is ranked, but all people I have spoken to have hardly heard of that university.

Thanks,
Kapil

PS: My score as given in the posts above is 680(V40, Q44) and a dismal 4.0 in AWA. - and no i am not taking my GMAT again.

[ThinkAdmit]

Hi,

Finally after a few weeks of reaseach and deliberation, here is my final list of schools that i am applying to.

Ambitious:
Tepper
Emory university
Georgetown university
ASU(carey)
University of Toronto(Rotman school of business)
Michigan (broad)

50% shot:
NUS(s3 mba)
UIUC
Boston college.

Good chance:
Thunderbird
Wakeforest university.

I have decided not to apply for colleges in Europe. I am looking for only two year MBA programs. I will also be looking for scholarship/student loan from colleges to fund my studies.

Questions:
How good is my list? Any sugestions to modify/add and do i have a fair chance in all of them, esp ambitious ones?

Any info on Wake forest university? It is ranked, but all people I have spoken to have hardly heard of that university.

Thanks,
Kapil

PS: My score as given in the posts above is 680(V40, Q44) and a dismal 4.0 in AWA. - and no i am not taking my GMAT again.

Hi Kapil,

Well, 680 is not bad a score for the schools you have shortlisted. The lit is long though and most of the schools are around the same ranking. Tepper might be a stretch but you can give it a shot. In Carey, Broad, UIUC, Thunderbird and Wakeforest you stand a good chance and are around the same rank. NUS app has not even opened yet so you can focus on these schools as of now. Now it depends on your career goals whether the schools meet your expectation or not.

I would suggest you add some medium ranked schools too in your list. Pick up the list from 15-25 rank and see which one meet your criteria. Or just call us and we can help you brainstorm.