Good morning all, would you please take a look at my profile?
Background
Age: 25
Sex: Male
Nationality: Thai-Taiwanese
UG: Double Major in two engineering degrees from UC Berkeley (GPA 3.55)
GMAT: 690 (Q 48, V 37)
Work Experience
-3 Years, Process Integration Engineer at Top 10 semiconductor firm in Japan
-Support customers in process related issues during the development of computer chips
-Consult with fab (semiconductor factory) to decide on solutions/proposals and present them to customers
Extracurricular Activities/Leadership Experience
Undergrad
-Activities Officer for Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society
-Plan and organize over 50 events for TBP, including fun events, social networking, and professional workshops.
Post Undergrad
- Officer for Habitat for Humanity Japan
- Have been involved with Habitat for a long time (Went to Philippines twice to build houses back in high school, was president of community service club back then.)
- Continue participating in Habitat after arriving in Japan. I am in charge of running and planning the monthly meeting where we try to get more people involved in Habitat. I am also the official translator for Habitat in Japan. After my participation, the retention rate and participation rate in builds increased significantly.
Some Other Facts
-Lived in 4 different countries throughout career (Taiwan 12 years, Thailand 6 years, US 4 years, Japan 3 years)
-Able to speak quite a few languages. Mandarin (Native), English (Fluent), Japanese (Fluent), Thai (Basic), Taiwanese (Basic)
Weakness in Application
- Do not have a direct leadership role in work experience. I can talk about holding meetings and being influential to co-workers but do not have someone directly reporting to me.
- A slightly below average GMAT score for top schools
Post MBA
-Management position in semiconductor/consumer electronics industry (more specifically strategy) or management consulting
-Have a strong interest in working in Greater China region due to family and my language ability.
Target Schools
Columbia (Reach) ED/R1
Tuck (Reach) EA/R1
Duke (Competitive) ED/R1
Ross (Competitive) R2
HKUST (Competitive) R2
CUHK/CEBIS (Safety) R2
Other Schools in consideration: UCLA, NYU, Cornell
Questions
1.Can you please comment on my school selections? I am thinking about ED for either Duke or Columbia depending on whether I have a strong enough shot at Columbia ED. Perhaps a few safety/competitive schools to look at as well.
2.Is there anything that stands out from my application that you would suggest me to focus on? If leadership experience question comes along, should I focus on my Habitat role (where I made much greater impact) than my current job role?
3.I just realized that I can still apply to INSEAD Jan 11 Round 3. Do you think I have a shot at it or is it better to wait until next year round 1?
4.Asian schools reputation/info is quite hard to find. So far it seems HKUST is widely recognized in the Greater China Region. Do you have any insights on CUHK or CEIBS?
Thank you so much for your time. I really appreciate any comments/insights.
GMAT Forum
2 postsPage 1 of 1
- ntaksatorn
- Students
- Posts: 6
- Joined: Mon Mar 22, 2010 5:27 pm
- mbamission
- Students
- Posts: 1118
- Joined: Thu Mar 10, 2005 7:20 pm
Re: Profile Evaluation & Some Advices Please
Hi ntaksastorn,
To answer your questions directly,
1) For starters, you have some really interesting aspects to your profile and a strong college GPA, but there is a risk that you will be affiliated with all male engineer applicants due to your college majors and work experience.
Your overall GMAT score is within range for the U.S. schools, and you topped the 80% mark in both Verbal and Quant. Based on the information you provided, the storyline I would use (especially for the reach schools) is that you have a strong engineering background and want to switch to strategy in engineering, and you need the MBA to help you with that switch. This will help you differentiate you some; but if you say your goal is management consulting I think you lose that differentiation. You also have a rich international/multi-lingual aspect to your profile, which you should definitely highlight in your essays, especially as it relates to your post-MBA plans to work in China.
I tend to agree with your choice of Columbia and Tuck as your reach schools, and think you will likely be competitive at Duke. If you are committed to attending Columbia and have the means to do so, then ED may be a good route.
2) Your Habitat experience is a differentiating point and should definitely be mentioned in all applications, even if there is not a direct essay question on leadership. You have worked there for a while, which shows that you did not just volunteer to put it on your application, and as an officer for the group you should definitely have leadership experience to draw from. Even though you do not have any direct reports at work, you should not simply dismiss the stories you have about influencing coworkers and leading meetings, as they may give some insight into your management style and soft skills.
3) In regards to INSEAD, we always encourage candidates to submit their application when they think they have put together the best application possible, rather than race to meet a deadline and possibly not submit their best work. A strong Round 2 application will fare better than a mediocre Round 1 application. If you feel that you can put your best case together by INSEAD’s deadline, and that the school is a good fit for you, then go ahead and apply.
4) Unfortunately I don’t have any further insights on CUHK and CEIBS.
Daniel Richards
mbaMission
http://www.mbamission.com
Read the mbaMission Insider's Guides (14 individual school titles)
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To answer your questions directly,
1) For starters, you have some really interesting aspects to your profile and a strong college GPA, but there is a risk that you will be affiliated with all male engineer applicants due to your college majors and work experience.
Your overall GMAT score is within range for the U.S. schools, and you topped the 80% mark in both Verbal and Quant. Based on the information you provided, the storyline I would use (especially for the reach schools) is that you have a strong engineering background and want to switch to strategy in engineering, and you need the MBA to help you with that switch. This will help you differentiate you some; but if you say your goal is management consulting I think you lose that differentiation. You also have a rich international/multi-lingual aspect to your profile, which you should definitely highlight in your essays, especially as it relates to your post-MBA plans to work in China.
I tend to agree with your choice of Columbia and Tuck as your reach schools, and think you will likely be competitive at Duke. If you are committed to attending Columbia and have the means to do so, then ED may be a good route.
2) Your Habitat experience is a differentiating point and should definitely be mentioned in all applications, even if there is not a direct essay question on leadership. You have worked there for a while, which shows that you did not just volunteer to put it on your application, and as an officer for the group you should definitely have leadership experience to draw from. Even though you do not have any direct reports at work, you should not simply dismiss the stories you have about influencing coworkers and leading meetings, as they may give some insight into your management style and soft skills.
3) In regards to INSEAD, we always encourage candidates to submit their application when they think they have put together the best application possible, rather than race to meet a deadline and possibly not submit their best work. A strong Round 2 application will fare better than a mediocre Round 1 application. If you feel that you can put your best case together by INSEAD’s deadline, and that the school is a good fit for you, then go ahead and apply.
4) Unfortunately I don’t have any further insights on CUHK and CEIBS.
Daniel Richards
mbaMission
http://www.mbamission.com
Read the mbaMission Insider's Guides (14 individual school titles)
Visit the mbaMission Blog
Follow mbaMission on Twitter
Download the mbaMission Webinar, Demystifying the MBA Admissions Process
2 posts Page 1 of 1