Profile Evaluation and chances

[seeker21]

Hi All,

I have recently given GMAT a second time and I need some advice from the experts on the forum regarding applications and programs.

1st attempt : 680 (Q-44, V-40, AWA 3.5)
2nd attempt : 720 (Q-51, V-36, AWA 4.5)

Education:
- Bachelors in Information Technology from Indian Institute of Information Technology - Allahabad. [Institute ranks 9th in India ]
- GPA 7.5/10
- "A" in Business and Management Courses.


Leadership:
- Was Class representative at School.
- Career Expo (Placement) representative at Undergrad.
- Member and Secretary of the IIIT-A Program Management and Publicity Club.
- Member of the Innovation Accelerators group at Cisco.(To promote innovation, we successfully got a few ideas implemented.)
- Part of a team that was set up to suggest a new Rewards and Recognition framework at Cisco (in our Business Unit).

Work experience:
- 6 months with Motorola as an Intern at Applied Research and Technology Centre, Motorola India Research Labs.
- Have a patent application with US PTO for the research done at Motorola (Listed as the first inventor)
- 34 months working for Cisco. (Continuing now)
- Won 2 Cisco Star Awards (Best employee of the quarter)
- Got promoted in the 1st year of work at Cisco.


Others:
- Involved in various Social Initiatives at Cisco.
- Active participant in the School Adoption Program at Cisco. [ We developed the school with the help of funds received from colleagues and educate the kids]
- Was a member of Prayaas at college. [ Prayaas is a program we started to educate the uneducated kids in the slum near our college]

I am looking at programs with a smaller size and am interested in the following:
Haas, Tuck, Yale, Johnson, Stern, Ross, Tepper, Marshall, Kelley and McDonough.

Please let me know if there are any other good/better programs, I should be considering.

Also, please suggest some good programs being offered in Switzerland, Germany and Asia.

I have few questions as well:

1. Is giving GMAT twice going to hinder my prospects?
2. How much is my low GPA going to be a hindrance?
2. How is an international MBA different?
3. How good are the loan repayability prospects for European programs?

Thanks very much for all your guidance and help.

Sincerest Regards,

[Bryant@VeritasPrep]

Your target school list is a good one, although it it tough to say without knowing more about your post MBA plans. What you want to do after business school can not only help you pick a school, but also help you formulate a solid approach to the application. You mention Europe and Asian schools as well. There is a big difference in going to b-school in the US vs. in Europe or Asia. If your plans are to continue working for a US based company, you could probably do best in the long term by going to school in the US, however, if your plan is to begin working for a company based in Europe or Asia, you should look at schools like LBS, INSEAD, IE, Fundan or Korea University etc. Why? It's a lot to do with your network and the schools' regional reputations. The US schools are more impressive in Europe and Asia than the European and Asian schools are here.

Now as for your questions:

1. Is giving GMAT twice going to hinder my prospects? Absolutely not. no hindrance whatsoever.
2. How much is my low GPA going to be a hindrance? shouldn't be a problem because of your length of Work Experience coupled with your nice GMAT score.
2. How is an international MBA different? Business has its subtle differences in various regions, so It's generally best to do the MBA near where you will be working. The exception would be a solid global program in the US should go over fine in Europe and Asia. Haas, Duke and McDonough come to mind.
3. How good are the loan repayability prospects for European programs? Not sure what you mean by this, as the loan repayability is of course all about the post MBA trajectory, not the MBA programs. I reckon you could look at various school stats on salary data at the start and then 10 years out to see if there is a difference.

hope this helps.

[seeker21]

Hi Bryant,

Thanks very much for the prompt response.

After B-school, I would like to stay abroad for a few years (10-15) and then come back to India to start my own venture. I only mention European and Asian schools, because my mom is paranoid about sending me to the US (she thinks it is unsafe, with the killing of another Indian student last week in boston.) Also, should my plans of coming back to India not materialize, I would like to settle in either Germany or Switzerland. So, I wanted to check out a few schools and programs to get a feel for it. I could only find, St.Gallen in Switzerland. Apart from that, I don't know which are best schools in Germany and Switzerland. It would be really great, if you could list a few other programs here.

Could you also be kind enough to rate my chances at these schools:
Haas, Tuck, Yale, Johnson, Stern, Ross, Tepper, Marshall, Kelley and McDonough.

Thanks again,

[Bryant@VeritasPrep]

I see. Sounds to me like Europe would be a good bet for you if you remain there for the 10-15 years abroad that you mention. I may have put too much emphasis on staying "local" in your geographic b-school search,but I want to clarify. If you work in Europe, you'd do best by trying for one of the schools I already mentioned (LBS, INSEAD, IE) instead of trying to track down a school in Switzerland or Germany. The MBA from these internationally reputable schools would do you far better than a lesser school even if that school were right in the same city as your eventual employer. Your credentials and profile should afford you a shot at these schools and all the schools on your US list as well as long as your application is thoughtfully written and compelling. If you decide you need help with preparing your application and thinking through how to couch your experience in the most interesting and presentable way for adcoms, please let us know. We have specialists who can give you specific insight into all the schools you are targeting.

[belljason92]

I completely agree with Bryant, your best bet is to pursue the European business schools, unless you think you'd fare better living in America. With your work experience, I don't think you should have trouble finding a program that's right for you. I would lastly suggest looking into an executive education program to boost your resume/credentials.