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- geronimoshere
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Profile Evaluation: Male/ Indian/ 28/ 740/ 6+ WE
<Edited/ Deleted post Mili's response>
Last edited by geronimoshere on Tue Oct 02, 2012 7:19 am, edited 2 times in total.
- mili
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Re: Profile Evaluation: Male/ Indian/ 28/ 740/ 6+ WE
Hello,
Lots of detail here! I managed to get through it, though :) Here are my thoughts:
Academics: You have a strong academic profile. Your undergrad and business scores are just slightly low but I don't think it's a big deal in light of your GMAT score.
Professional experience: Very strong. Seems like you'll have a lot of strong leadership stories to tell. You're also involved with your firm at many levels, including CSR and hiring, so that's great. Shows a strong commitment to improving your company.
ECs: most of these date back to college/MBA days, but I think that's ok given your entrepreneurial endeavor. The brand consultancy is great to include in your resume, and if you have a particularly strong story to tell from it, tell it. I wouldn't worry too much about the ethical issue there - - just make sure it sounds like a side project. It obviously makes sense to include it in your career narrative.
Community: If you can get to be part of that NGO that would be great. If you're applying this season though, not sure what kind of impact you could make on the organization in such short time. Either way, I think you can apply to your school choices.
Schools: As you know, HBS/Stanford are stretch programs for just about anyone. I still think you have a shot, but I might suggest only applying to one or the other and to swap the other one for something a little more realistic. I think Kellogg, Booth and Wharton are great targets for you -- might also consider UC Berkeley given the kind of environment you are looking for. Tuck would be worth looking at from that perspective as well.
Your biggest challenge: Making a strong case for why you need a second MBA. The fact that you already have an MBA is a disadvantage, and considering your career progress, it's going to be a tough case to make. I think you need to think your story through very carefully -- you already have experience in the marketing and advertising world and you're quite senior at your company... really seems like you could just start putting more energy into your current brand consultancy and transition overtime. Need to think of more specific reasons why you need an MBA from a top university.
Best of luck,
Mili
Mili Mittal
Senior Consultant
http://www.mbamission.com
Read the mbaMission Insider's Guides (16 individual school titles)
Download mbaMission’s Free Personal Statement Guide
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Lots of detail here! I managed to get through it, though :) Here are my thoughts:
Academics: You have a strong academic profile. Your undergrad and business scores are just slightly low but I don't think it's a big deal in light of your GMAT score.
Professional experience: Very strong. Seems like you'll have a lot of strong leadership stories to tell. You're also involved with your firm at many levels, including CSR and hiring, so that's great. Shows a strong commitment to improving your company.
ECs: most of these date back to college/MBA days, but I think that's ok given your entrepreneurial endeavor. The brand consultancy is great to include in your resume, and if you have a particularly strong story to tell from it, tell it. I wouldn't worry too much about the ethical issue there - - just make sure it sounds like a side project. It obviously makes sense to include it in your career narrative.
Community: If you can get to be part of that NGO that would be great. If you're applying this season though, not sure what kind of impact you could make on the organization in such short time. Either way, I think you can apply to your school choices.
Schools: As you know, HBS/Stanford are stretch programs for just about anyone. I still think you have a shot, but I might suggest only applying to one or the other and to swap the other one for something a little more realistic. I think Kellogg, Booth and Wharton are great targets for you -- might also consider UC Berkeley given the kind of environment you are looking for. Tuck would be worth looking at from that perspective as well.
Your biggest challenge: Making a strong case for why you need a second MBA. The fact that you already have an MBA is a disadvantage, and considering your career progress, it's going to be a tough case to make. I think you need to think your story through very carefully -- you already have experience in the marketing and advertising world and you're quite senior at your company... really seems like you could just start putting more energy into your current brand consultancy and transition overtime. Need to think of more specific reasons why you need an MBA from a top university.
Best of luck,
Mili
Mili Mittal
Senior Consultant
http://www.mbamission.com
Read the mbaMission Insider's Guides (16 individual school titles)
Download mbaMission’s Free Personal Statement Guide
Visit the mbaMission Blog
Follow mbaMission on Twitter
- geronimoshere
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Re: Profile Evaluation: Male/ Indian/ 28/ 740/ 6+ WE
Thanks for going through my incredibly long post Mili and your detailed response. Could you also help me with something else. I was recently on a free consultation call with a consultant from Stacy Blackman and she mentioned that WHU and Booth are finance oriented schools so I should drop them from my list. Is that something you would say as well? Most of what I've been reading seems contrary to that opinion.
Also, could you let me know (and I know this would seem really odd to ask you) - who would find it necessary to use an admissions consultant to craft a strong application? I wonder how one can afford USD 3000- USD 4000 for single school packages! This seems like such an I-banking/ MBB driven culture....but if that's what it really takes to create a stand-out application, I guess I'd be ready to make a massive dent in my (minuscule) savings.
Also, could you let me know (and I know this would seem really odd to ask you) - who would find it necessary to use an admissions consultant to craft a strong application? I wonder how one can afford USD 3000- USD 4000 for single school packages! This seems like such an I-banking/ MBB driven culture....but if that's what it really takes to create a stand-out application, I guess I'd be ready to make a massive dent in my (minuscule) savings.
- mili
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Re: Profile Evaluation: Male/ Indian/ 28/ 740/ 6+ WE
It's true that Chicago has a finance reputation, but that doesn't mean it's not a strong school for any other careers! No top tier program specializes only in one field/area, so don't be too quick to drop these programs from your list. Do your research, talk to current students/alums, visit the school, and see whether they have what you want. Only you can be the judge of that. Sorry - not sure which program you're referring to with WHU - can you clarify?
Admissions consultants are not for everyone, but it certainly helps to have one guiding you, as we know what the adcoms are looking for. It really depends on whether you feel you have a strong story crafted and can articulate that story in a compelling manner. Do you know what your differentiators are? Why you need an MBA? Are you confident that you are selecting the right stories for each essay? That you're getting recommendations from the right people? Do you feel that you are a strong writer/story teller?
If the answer to the questions above is 'no sweat,' then you're probably in great shape. But if you're not confident on the above, then you might consider a consultant. It's an expensive service, but can be well worth it if you don't necessarily have all the answers going into the process.
I can't decide for you, and I don't want to try to sell you -- I don't know you well enough to know whether you benefit from a consultant or not :) But, hopefully this helps you think it through a bit. If you want to talk it through more, you could sign up for a free consultation on our website: http://www.mbamission.com/consult.php.
Good luck!
Mili
Admissions consultants are not for everyone, but it certainly helps to have one guiding you, as we know what the adcoms are looking for. It really depends on whether you feel you have a strong story crafted and can articulate that story in a compelling manner. Do you know what your differentiators are? Why you need an MBA? Are you confident that you are selecting the right stories for each essay? That you're getting recommendations from the right people? Do you feel that you are a strong writer/story teller?
If the answer to the questions above is 'no sweat,' then you're probably in great shape. But if you're not confident on the above, then you might consider a consultant. It's an expensive service, but can be well worth it if you don't necessarily have all the answers going into the process.
I can't decide for you, and I don't want to try to sell you -- I don't know you well enough to know whether you benefit from a consultant or not :) But, hopefully this helps you think it through a bit. If you want to talk it through more, you could sign up for a free consultation on our website: http://www.mbamission.com/consult.php.
Good luck!
Mili
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