Application Strategy
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12 Jun 2015, 02:51
Application Strategy
This strategy phase builds up on the good work you’ve done in the introspection phase to shortlist a list of b-schools that you should apply to. This is where you do two things,
1 Gather data on schools and their programs You can get plenty of data from official and unofficial sources: b-school websites, leading MBA rankings, current students and alumni, consultants and fellow applicants. Not all of them have the same level of credibility and not all the data might be directly relevant to your application. So use your judgement to challenge and validate anything that sounds too good to be true.
2. Filter the list of b-schools down to a handful that you think best fit your goals. Some filter criteria you can use are: the length of the program (2 years vs 1 year), geography (Asia, USA, Europe), speciality (strong in finance, marketing, consulting), program cost, application deadlines, class profile, recruiters and of course the overall ‘fit’. It might all seem a little overwhelming at first when you look at all the data there is to be collated, analysed and digested before you can confidently take the final decision. But take it slowly, start early and all the jigsaw pieces will start falling in place.
3 Application Execution
This is the part where you roll up your sleeves and start working on your MBA application for each school: essays, recommendations, resume and finally the interview. The original 3 questions that you spent so much time on in the introspection phase will come back now in the form of essay questions. They may be framed in different ways, but you are essentially tackling the exact same elements. In the MBA application, your main focus should be on structuring the brilliant rationale in your head into (3 or 4) 300- word essays.
Remember, you aren’t just competing with Indian applicants for an international b-school seat. Your competition is global. So, instead of concentrating only on the GMAT score, focus on building a strong and well-balanced profile will make it easier to package it all in a manner that convinces the admission officers that your presence in their classroom will benefit not only you, but your classmates and in the longer term, the b-school brand as well. The toughest part is to address the basic question – ‘Am I ready for an international MBA?’ So spend the maximum time tackling it. Once you’ve done that the rest of the process wouldn’t appear as intimidating.