You might remember that I had posted my profile (below) a long time back (say Feb-March) and had asked you for an evaluation. Now I believe that I am finally done with the school selection. The schools that I will be applying to are:
1. HBS
2. Wharton
3. Chicago
4. Kellogg
5. Darden
6. Michigan
All of these schools are within the top-15 and I strongly believe that given my profile, I am definitely competitive within the top 15. Do you think that I am being a little too ambitious putting all my eggs in one basket? Or should look a little lower in the rankings? Thank you for your views.
Hi Paul,
I am an Indian looking to start my MBA in fall, '08. Please give me an honest appraisal of my profile.
BackroundAge: 24 (will be 25 when I join)
Enthnicity: Indian
Background: IT (What else?!
)
AcademicsUndergrad:
B.E (Electronics) from an no-name institute. I don't know my GPA as we work on a percentage system. However, I scored in the highest possible class (distinction). I realised the importance of a good brand name a little too late. Well, I can't do much about that now, can I?!
GMAT:
760 (Q49, V46, AWA 4.5)
Work-ExperienceFull time: I. Right after graduating, I worked for a year in an Indian software services company. The highlights:
1. Within a few months, I was leading a team of 3 people. Two were freshers right out of college (like me). The third was an existing employee with 3 years of experience.
2. Collaborated closely with the Project Manager for resource allocation, scheduling, etc. (Normally people with 5+ years of experience get to do these things.)
3. Goes without saying that I got an 'Above Expectation' rating.
4. The
COO of the organization (one of the 20 most influential people in my country) intervened and attempted to keep me from leaving when I asked to leave the organization. We met up and spoke a number of times. I did a couple of odd jobs for him (eg. helped edit his book on Entrepreneurship published by Penguin India which is now available in bookstores ).Even though I ended up leaving the organization, I still maintain an excellent relationship with the man.
Why did I leave? The organization was not a good 'fit' for me. I felt very caged in the organization and I also felt that it was not appreciative of the fact that there is more to life than work. The COO perfectly understood my reasons for leaving and like I said, we still are in touch.
II. I joined a leading German software development firm and have been working here since. The highlights:
1. Leading a team of 3 members (all of whom are senior to me by atleast 1 year).
2. Excellent rapport with the project manager and the program director.
3. Goes without saying that I got an 'Above Expectation' rating.
4. Interact regularly with international colleagues and have also got appreciations from some of them.
5. Was a member of the seed team (8 people) for Knowledge Transfer certification process for our line of business (about 170 people)
Part time:I. Worked in a leading BPO during my final year in college. The highlights:
1. This is actually a full time job, not a part time one. I balanced a
full-time job, a full-time job and a project at college for almost 6 months. 2. I got the award for the most promising trainee and was a consistent high performer throughout my tenure there.
Why did I do it? I wanted to develop and enhance my communication skills and get a feel of what it is to actually interact with customers, solve problems, multi task and think on the fly. I believe I benefited immensely from the experience.
Extra-curriculars1. I play the drums. I played for a leading
professional rock band in Bangalore. The band included some of the most senior musicians from my city.
2. I am actively involved with the community service wing of my organization. No, I'm not just another volunteer. When I joined the organization, the community service team was practically dead. A couple of like minded volunteers and me swung in and now the team has really picked up. The size has grown from 5 to 50+. We also won accolades for our work from the MD for our organization in India.
3. Part of the founding team (6 people) for the
organization wide (4 countries - India, Germany, Israel and the USA) community service newsletter. I also sit on the editorial board for the same.
MBA concentration interests:I hope to concentrate in GM/Strategy as I wish to join a prestigous strategy consulting firm (read as McK, Bain and BCG) after my MBA.
Post-MBA short term goals:Join as an associate in a prestigous strategy consulting firm (read as McK, Bain and BCG) after my MBA.
Long-term career goals:I wish to work in the Strategy consulting industry for about 10-15 years and then transfer to an organization at a very
senior executive (say.... MD) level.
To achieve these goals, I hope/wish to do an MBA from a top 10 university (US-East coast
only). However, I do realize that the competition is fierce to say the least! So I would like you to recommend
5 universities (2 strech, 2 reach and 1 safe) based on the following criteria:
1. My profile
2. My interests (GM/Strategy)
3. My post-MBA short term goal: Management consulting
If you are still reading this(:-D ), thank you for taking the time to go through my post. I apologise for the rambling. But as you can see, this MBA is going to be a very important part of my life. So please bear with me. Thanks a ton for your time! I hope to hear from you soon.