Need Help in Profile Evaluation

[Nachiket]

Hey Experts,

Please evaluate my profile and suggest list of B-schools which you think are suitable for my profile :-

Below are the Highlights of my Profile:

Pool: Indian/Male/IT , Currently working as a Project Lead with Cognizant Technology Solutions in India

GMAT: 670, Q49, V 32, IR 5, AWA: 5

GPA: 7/10, Bachelors in Engineering from a reputed college in India.

Work Experience: Total 6.5 years of work ex in the IT industry. Have worked with IT giants such as Accenture, Amdocs and Cognizant.

Below are key highlights of my Work-Ex:

"¢ Have received timely promotions and top ratings at Cognizant and Accenture.
"¢ Possess expertise in Data Analytics, Data Migration and Reporting.
"¢ Gained exposure to various business domains such as Telecom, Travel & Life Sciences.
"¢ Received client appreciations at numerous instances.
"¢ Managing a team of more than 10 people and contributing heavily on the Project Delivery, Resource Management & Risk Management front.
"¢ Possess international client site experience of ensuring smooth delivery of the project for a period of 6 months.
"¢ Have received many rewards and recognition awards at each of the 3 organizations worked


Extra-Curricular activities:

"¢ Was part of a community (@Accenture) which works at providing assistance to the new joiners in the organization.
"¢ Contributing heavily in social work activities for underprivileged children as part of 'OutReach program' @ cognizant.
"¢ Organized events at the cultural fest in college and received recognition for the same.

Business skills :- I can lay emphasis on the business knowledge gained in various domains such as Telecom, Travel and Life Sciences during my 6.5 yrs of tenure in IT industry

Leadership & teamwork experience : I can showcase the leadership traits exhibited as a Project Lead cognizant ( my current organization) for 1.5 yrs which includes in areas such as :-

i) Project Management & Delivery
ii) Resource Management
iii) Risk Management
iv) Leading a team of more than 10 people for last 1.5 yrs

International exp : I have a limited 6 months of international experience at client location. Can bring out some positives out of that.

Career Goals: I want to pursue a career specifically in IT Business Consulting.

Pls. advise which all B-schools should I be targeting and have a good chance of admission considering my GMAT score and overall work experience profile ?

Regards,
Nachiket Gupta

[CriticalSquareMBA]

Hey there Nachiket,

Thanks for the post! There are definitely some things in your profile that are great such as your leadership experience and the fact that your career goals are aligned with what you're doing now. That said, to go from Accenture to IT Strategy Consulting isn't exactly MBA worthy so you'll have to explain to the adcoms why an MBA is necessary. The rest of your profile is ok, average academics, so-so GMAT, some level of involvement, etc. With the profile you've presented, I think you should look at a diversified set of 25 - 40 ranked programs. You can even throw in an application or two to the top 20 and, while those are going to be unrealistic stretches, the worst that can happen is they say no! So schools like Kelley, Scheller, UT Dallas, Rochester, Madison, etc. should be in your consideration set. Hope that helps and let me know if you have any other questions!

Bhavik