Hi Folks,
Hope you are in good health & spirits. Wish you a Happy New Year! I am interested in Evening MBA programs at Chicago. I wrote GMAT a couple of weeks back and scored 660 (47Q/34V).

Need Advice – I am targeting Top Part-Time MBA programs. The short listed programs are as follows:

1. Kellogg school's part-time MBA program (The Managers' Program) Not sure if the score is competitive
2. University of Chicago’s Evening MBA program Not sure if the score is competitive
3. Georgia State University - Robinson College of Business school’s Flexible MBA Program Score is good enough. I am a Georgia resident and will qualify for in-state tuition fee.

Can you advice me if I need to make another attempt? I am disappointed with the score because the score does not reflect my true abilities. Shall I push my score 30-50 points up and achieve 700-740 with 4-6 weeks of intense preparation or shall I concentrate my energies on writing stellar essays, getting substantive recommendations and boosting other components of the application? I am in dilemma and need some solid advice to clear up my mind.

Profile - Indian male Software Engineer (age 28) with 6 yrs experience working as an IT consultant with E-Business Services division of a financial (credit card processor/online banking solutions) firm that processes international card payments. I graduated as an Electrical Engineer (GPA 3.20) from Delhi College of Engineering, India (One of the top engineering school). Joined a start-up software company and worked extensively with US clients on offshore-model. After the bubble bust, I joined another software venture initiated by an automotive giant in India. Lead member of Software Engineering Process Group (SEPG) to achieve quality standard SEI-CMM Level 3 for software development organizations. Additionally, I pursued M.S. (Software Systems) Program (GPA 3.25) from BITS, India to benefit the team to achieve quality milestones and to satisfy my own intellectual curiosity. Currently, my job profile at E-Business Services requires me to participate in requirements gathering, architecture definition, analysis, design, and implementation of online banking solutions. The role gives me an opportunity to lead a team, mentor junior staff and interface with clients. I have completed three pre-requisite MBA courses at Columbus State University (GPA 4.0), an experience that exposed me to a wealth of thought processes and provided the much needed foundational work of business methodology.

Extra Curricular – In engineering college, elected treasurer for the student chapter branches of IEEE & IEE (international engineering societies). I was part of executive council that organizes Cultural and Technical festivals. I am a volunteer at Columbus Public Library where I helped to implement RFID technology program and received Certificate of Appreciation in recognition of dedicated volunteer service at the library. I am a member of Indo-US Cultural Association and actively volunteer in community/charity events. Occasionally I help colleague’s kids with math and science courses. Hobbies include reading, running and listening to music.

Since I am working as an IT consultant at my current job, the prospects for getting into a management position are rather bleak, even though, I have made best efforts to communicate and discuss my aspirations and long term career goals with the current manager. My job responsibilities are leading me towards a unilateral technical growth that is insufficient for my aim to provide E-Business offerings designed to cover the entire range from business case formulation to technology implementation. Post MBA, I am looking at a management consultancy role (IT/Business Consulting sector) in which I intend to apply technology, finance and business strategies to improve business performance, promote organization effectiveness, drive innovation and create competitive advantage in global business environment.

I am sorry for writing a long post but I felt the need to communicate my thoughts. I will appreciate any input/feedback/suggestion/thoughts.

Thanks in advance!
VinKapoor

Hi Scott,

Thanks for the response. I am not in a hurry to apply by Jan. 20 for Kellogg/USB Chicago. I need to relocate to Chicago and find a decent job before starting the school (optimistically looking at Summer Quarter). I agree with you that essays, recommendation letters and personal interviews would be the differentiator factor for Indian male applicants with an IT background. I have started to spend some “freeâ€