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endlessfin1te
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Joined: 29 Jul 2011
Last visit: 21 Apr 2014
Posts: 11
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Location: United States
Concentration: Finance, International Business
Schools: HKUST (A) Johnson '14 (A) Anderson '16 (A) Stern '16 (D) Booth '16 (D) CBS '16 (D)
GMAT 1: 720 Q47 V42
GPA: 3.43
WE:Accounting (Media/Entertainment)
Schools: HKUST (A) Johnson '14 (A) Anderson '16 (A) Stern '16 (D) Booth '16 (D) CBS '16 (D)
GMAT 1: 720 Q47 V42
Posts: 11
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting 29 Jul 2011, 15:00
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Hi Gil and Brian,

Please take a look at my lackluster profile and comment if I have a decent chance for my target schools. I am targeting Yale, NYU, Columbia, Berkeley,UCLA,Cornell, possibly Wharton as a stretch. I live in Los Angeles so I am also pondering part-time for UCLA/USC, but I know doing PT will not help me job-wise. I want to focus on finance or corporate strategy and would only consider schools with strong name recognition in Asia. I hope to one day return to Taiwan and take a manager level job at an investment bank.

UCLA economics (2008), GPA 3.43 (combination of 3.7 in econ and finance classes, and 3.0 in accounting classes)

I am aiming at a 720+ GMAT, I am a beast of a test-taker. Will be taking it in October once i finish last portion of CPA.

I will be finishing my CPA certification and CFA charter by end of 2011. Doing both because I realized my lack of effort in college is hurting my career options. I wanted to be a securities analyst and an expert on anything money, that's why I'm pursuing both CPA (accounting/tax) & CFA (portfolio management/finance)...and now MBA(leadership/job placement/corporate strategy).

First generation immigrant from Taiwan, came to the US when I was 15. I speak,read and write fluent Chinese. Beginner Japanese (took 2 classes).

The only EC is I run a local basketball league.

Now here's the weakest part of my profile, job:

I am currently a staff accountant at a local theatre chain with 13 locations. The work is more challenging than the job title suggests.

Before this, I was an analyst/accountant for a private business management firm for Hollywood celebrities (2008-2010). We manage personal finances(budget, royalty tracking) and compile personal financial statements.

Do I have a decent shot to get into the schools I want? Ideally I want to apply for fall 2012, but I could wait 2 more years if there are things I can build on in 2 years to improve my profile.

Will taking finance/financial modeling classes at UCLA Extension help raise my GPA on the application? Will it help sell my case as a career-switcher?

Thank you for taking the time to respond.
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ankushjain01
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting 31 Jul 2011, 09:59
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Hi Gill
I really like the way you answer all our queries. Thanks man!!!
Can you please guide me as well for the MS program in UK or US.

Background.
23 years old; Indian; Male

Work- Ex
- 2.5 years total exp. as of now and would be 3.5 by the next august.
- Derivatives Trader for 2 years and now into Derivatives analyses.

GPA
X - 79%
XII - 75%
B Tech - 7.58 in computers from NIT,Jaipur, India
I know they are not excellent but may be decent enough for consideration.

GMAT: writing in this October.
CFA: Level 1 cleared

Extracurricular:
- Senior placement coordinator in college
- Secretary of the ITIKA society in college.
- president of the main technical fest in college
- Organised many events in College
- Actively participant in various activities in company

with this profile and my interest in derivatives I am looking for MS in Finance programs in UK can consider US too.
please help in selecting univ which offers this prog wid gus placements in ibanks front desk jobs.
I have tried to select few but may be i am missing out some gud ones.

LSE
LBS
Oxford
Oxbridge
HEC
IE
berkely
cmu
nyu
.....

Thanks in advance :)
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AringoConsultant
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Joined: 19 Jul 2011
Last visit: 13 Nov 2012
Posts: 117
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Status:Senior Consultant, Aringo
Concentration: Strategy, Marketing
Schools: Northwestern (Kellogg) - Class of 0
GPA: 3.92
WE:Management Consulting (Consulting)
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Schools: Northwestern (Kellogg) - Class of 0
Posts: 117
Kudos: 11
Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting Updated on: 06 Apr 2012, 19:39
Originally posted by AringoConsultant on 01 Aug 2011, 08:12.
Last edited by AringoConsultant on 06 Apr 2012, 19:39, edited 1 time in total.
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Quote:

Hi Gil and Brian,

Please take a look at my lackluster profile and comment if I have a decent chance for my target schools. I am targeting Yale, NYU, Columbia, Berkeley,UCLA,Cornell, possibly Wharton as a stretch. I live in Los Angeles so I am also pondering part-time for UCLA/USC, but I know doing PT will not help me job-wise. I want to focus on finance or corporate strategy and would only consider schools with strong name recognition in Asia. I hope to one day return to Taiwan and take a manager level job at an investment bank.

UCLA economics (2008), GPA 3.43 (combination of 3.7 in econ and finance classes, and 3.0 in accounting classes)

I am aiming at a 720+ GMAT, I am a beast of a test-taker. Will be taking it in October once i finish last portion of CPA.

I will be finishing my CPA certification and CFA charter by end of 2011. Doing both because I realized my lack of effort in college is hurting my career options. I wanted to be a securities analyst and an expert on anything money, that's why I'm pursuing both CPA (accounting/tax) & CFA (portfolio management/finance)...and now MBA(leadership/job placement/corporate strategy).

First generation immigrant from Taiwan, came to the US when I was 15. I speak,read and write fluent Chinese. Beginner Japanese (took 2 classes).

The only EC is I run a local basketball league.

Now here's the weakest part of my profile, job:

I am currently a staff accountant at a local theatre chain with 13 locations. The work is more challenging than the job title suggests.

Before this, I was an analyst/accountant for a private business management firm for Hollywood celebrities (2008-2010). We manage personal finances(budget, royalty tracking) and compile personal financial statements.

Do I have a decent shot to get into the schools I want? Ideally I want to apply for fall 2012, but I could wait 2 more years if there are things I can build on in 2 years to improve my profile.

Will taking finance/financial modeling classes at UCLA Extension help raise my GPA on the application? Will it help sell my case as a career-switcher?

Thank you for taking the time to respond.
Show more

Endlessfin1te,

Thank you for submitting your profile. On the basis of the information above, and under the assumption of strong essays and recommendations and a GMAT score of 720, our experience shows that you will be a stretch candidate at Wharton, Columbia, Haas, and Yale, between competitive and stretch (closer to stretch) at NYU Stern, and between competitive and stretch at UCLA Anderson and Cornell. Aringo specializes in helping candidates gain entry into full-time programs, so I cannot specifically address your candidacy at a part-time MBA program.

You ask a number of good questions, so let's look at your profile and go through it one part at a time:

Undergraduate:
- UCLA is a tough school and is recognized as a top 5 public institution in the US, so to have graduated with a 3.4 cumulative GPA is actually a solid profile. The average GPA of matriculating students at most top schools is beteen 3.6-3.7, so you are not too far below that average. However, I don't see any listings of extracurricular activities or leadership, which in our experience would hurt your profile.

Career to date:
- I'm somewhat confused as to why you took a position with an accounting role after you graduated, given that it was the lowest GPA in your academic profile.
- For your first job (accountant at private business management firm for celebrities), you should provide context on your resume and/or in the applications about this firm's position in that market. How much money is managed? How much money did you manage? What celebrities were under your or your firm's jurisdiction? It is ok to list "big names" here in your application so as to provide credibility for this firm.
- For your second job, it would benefit your profile to discuss further about why it's more challenging than the title suggests. In terms of whether you should apply now or consider waiting, in our experience, it would be beneficial to your candidacy if you could achieve at least one promotion with this company as well as take on leadership initiatives. If you are not able to do either one of these (or both) quite soon, I would encourage you to look for a company with a more recognizable name within the next year or two before applying.

Future career goals and aspirations:
- You say your lack of effort in college has hurt your career, but again a 3.4 from UCLA is not anything to be ashamed of, from our point of view. Related to this, you say you will have a CPA certification and a CFA charter by the end of 2011. If you've accomplished these, and you are now looking for an MBA, the admission committeess may start to question whether you have appropriate career focus. The fact that you have achieved (or will soon achieve) these certifications may help you with a job prior to the MBA, but what are you really looking to do long-term?
- Right now your MBA career goals are, in our judgment, too broad. Corporate strategy is fairly specific, but in what industry, for what type of firm? Meanwhile, keep in mind that "finance" encompasses everything including corporate finance, hedge funds, private equity, venture capital, investment banking, private wealth management, etc. I would encourage you to pick one between corporate strategy and finance in your essays.
- In terms of long-term goals, keep in mind that industries like consulting and investment banking are quite hard to enter outside of their two primary entry tracks: immediately post-undergrad and immediately post-MBA. Entering an investment bank (especially if you did not work in banking and were in a job like corporate finance or strategy) after 2-3+ years post-MBA is quite difficult.

Strengthening your profile and your future strategy:
- You ask whether you should take financial classes at UCLA. First, keep in mind that schools generally do not revise the GPA of a candidate after graduation. So, even if you took successive courses at the same school from which you graduated, that will not change your GPA (in the mind of an MBA program). Rather, what taking a course that is quantitative in nature typically makes up for is a weak GMAT and/or a weak GPA. However, you say you're a good test taker and expect a solid GMAT score, and you actually had very strong scores in school in economics (GPA 3.7). As such, in our experience, the admission committees do not need to see additional quantitative ability - especially given that you're going to have the 2 certifications as well. So, I would not encourage you to spend time on courses. Rather, what the adcom needs to see is additional leadership, initiative, and communication abilities.
- Keep a positive mindset during your MBA applications and interviews, whenever you apply. This is especially important in the MBA interview, where you will need to "sell" your profile to the interviewer.
- To the extent that you can achieve a GMAT score higher than 720, it would help your candidacy.
- Like I mentioned, either look for a promotion in your current position, take on leadership initiatives, and/or search for a position with a more well-known firm in the next year or so. Additionally, it would make sense for you to start to develop some extracurricular involvement in an area you're passionate about and to attain a leadership position or two there as well.
- Why do you want to return to Taiwan? Talk about the reasons why (eg. you have family there) and definitely talk about your fluency in Chinese and ability to speak some Japanese, as this helps to provide some credibility to these plans.

Best of luck,
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AringoConsultant
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MBA Admissions Consultant
Joined: 19 Jul 2011
Last visit: 13 Nov 2012
Posts: 117
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Status:Senior Consultant, Aringo
Concentration: Strategy, Marketing
Schools: Northwestern (Kellogg) - Class of 0
GPA: 3.92
WE:Management Consulting (Consulting)
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Posts: 117
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting Updated on: 06 Apr 2012, 19:40
Originally posted by AringoConsultant on 01 Aug 2011, 08:32.
Last edited by AringoConsultant on 06 Apr 2012, 19:40, edited 1 time in total.
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Quote:

Hi Gill
I really like the way you answer all our queries. Thanks man!!!
Can you please guide me as well for the MS program in UK or US.

Background.
23 years old; Indian; Male

Work- Ex
- 2.5 years total exp. as of now and would be 3.5 by the next august.
- Derivatives Trader for 2 years and now into Derivatives analyses.

GPA
X - 79%
XII - 75%
B Tech - 7.58 in computers from NIT,Jaipur, India
I know they are not excellent but may be decent enough for consideration.

GMAT: writing in this October.
CFA: Level 1 cleared

Extracurricular:
- Senior placement coordinator in college
- Secretary of the ITIKA society in college.
- president of the main technical fest in college
- Organised many events in College
- Actively participant in various activities in company

with this profile and my interest in derivatives I am looking for MS in Finance programs in UK can consider US too.
please help in selecting univ which offers this prog wid gus placements in ibanks front desk jobs.
I have tried to select few but may be i am missing out some gud ones.

LSE
LBS
Oxford
Oxbridge
HEC
IE
berkely
cmu
nyu
.....

Thanks in advance
Show more


ankushjain01,

Thank you for submitting your profile. Please keep in mind that Aringo specializes primarily in working with candidates who are applying to top-ranked, full-time MBA programs. Thus, we would unfortunately not be able to advise you on your profile with respect to obtaining an MS in finance or your chances to those programs.

In terms of your profile and candidacy relative to an MBA:

On the basis of the information above, and under the assumption of strong essays and recommendations and a GMAT score of 700, our experience shows that you would be between competitive and strong (closer to strong) at IE and HEC Paris, competitive at Carnegie Mellon Tepper, between competitive and stretch (closer to competitive) at Oxford, between competitive and stretch (closer to stretch) at LBS and Stern, and stretch at Berkeley (Haas).

Best of luck,
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sblax18
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting 01 Aug 2011, 09:07
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Undergrad: UCSB, BA Chemistry, BA Business Economics, 2007
Undergrad GPA: 3.3 for both majors (3.1 overall)
Grad: Boston University, MPH candidate May 2012, Pharmaceutical Assessment and Management (unique, only program in the country)
Grad GPA: 3.65
GMAT: 640 (43M, 35V, (4.5/5?) AWA) completed on 7/30/11
Work Experience: 3 years clinical research associate for large pharma company (lots of leadership responsibilities including lead reviser of study protocols, IRB coordinator, and trainer of new employees), 2 years analyst (and published researcher) for consulting firm researching drug development practices (i.e. business development, operations, etc.), 3 years part time consultant for small health outcomes firm
Professional Certification: Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT)
Extra Curricular: played 4 years of lacrosse in college (national champion 2003 and 2004), coached soccer and lacrosse over summer from 2004 to 2009, Medical Intern at UCSF Medical Center for the summers of 2004 and 2005
References: Strong, professor from BU (PhD) and senior partner at current job (MBA), can also ask my manager
Path After Business School: goal is to work in management within a pharmaceutical/biotech company in California, long term goal is pharmaceutical consultant
Full Time vs Part Time: Full Time
Years of experience: 5 years full-time work (+3 years part-time work)

Short List:
Boston University (Health Sector)
USC Marshall
UC Irvine
UCSD

Realistic list? Have been looking at schools that are strong in health sector management. Long-term, I really want to live in California, so looking at regionally strong schools... Any other suggestions? Is UCLA a complete reach?

Thanks in advance!
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AringoConsultant
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MBA Admissions Consultant
Joined: 19 Jul 2011
Last visit: 13 Nov 2012
Posts: 117
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Status:Senior Consultant, Aringo
Concentration: Strategy, Marketing
Schools: Northwestern (Kellogg) - Class of 0
GPA: 3.92
WE:Management Consulting (Consulting)
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Schools: Northwestern (Kellogg) - Class of 0
Posts: 117
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting Updated on: 06 Apr 2012, 19:41
Originally posted by AringoConsultant on 01 Aug 2011, 12:31.
Last edited by AringoConsultant on 06 Apr 2012, 19:41, edited 1 time in total.
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Quote:

Undergrad: UCSB, BA Chemistry, BA Business Economics, 2007
Undergrad GPA: 3.3 for both majors (3.1 overall)
Grad: Boston University, MPH candidate May 2012, Pharmaceutical Assessment and Management (unique, only program in the country)
Grad GPA: 3.65
GMAT: 640 (43M, 35V, (4.5/5?) AWA) completed on 7/30/11
Work Experience: 3 years clinical research associate for large pharma company (lots of leadership responsibilities including lead reviser of study protocols, IRB coordinator, and trainer of new employees), 2 years analyst (and published researcher) for consulting firm researching drug development practices (i.e. business development, operations, etc.), 3 years part time consultant for small health outcomes firm
Professional Certification: Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT)
Extra Curricular: played 4 years of lacrosse in college (national champion 2003 and 2004), coached soccer and lacrosse over summer from 2004 to 2009, Medical Intern at UCSF Medical Center for the summers of 2004 and 2005
References: Strong, professor from BU (PhD) and senior partner at current job (MBA), can also ask my manager
Path After Business School: goal is to work in management within a pharmaceutical/biotech company in California, long term goal is pharmaceutical consultant
Full Time vs Part Time: Full Time
Years of experience: 5 years full-time work (+3 years part-time work)

Short List:
Boston University (Health Sector)
USC Marshall
UC Irvine
UCSD

Realistic list? Have been looking at schools that are strong in health sector management. Long-term, I really want to live in California, so looking at regionally strong schools... Any other suggestions? Is UCLA a complete reach?

Thanks in advance!
Show more


sblax18,

Thank you for your profile submission. On the basis of the information above, and under the assumption of strong essays and recommendations and a GMAT score of 640, our experience shows that you will be a competitive candidate at Marshall, and between competitive and stretch (closer to stretch) at UCLA Anderson. Although Aringo specializes in working with applicants and providing feedback on profiles for those interested in the top 30 global programs, it is likely that you would be a strong candidate at Boston University, UC-Irvine, and UC-San Diego.

In terms of your profile:

- GMAT: If you are able to improve your score, it would improve your candidacy at both higher-ranked schools (improve admission chances) and more regional programs (improve scholarship chances). The challenge in your profile, based on our history with applicants, is that both your GMAT and undergraduate GPA are below the average level of matriculating students at top 15 (US-based) programs. Your GPA in graduate school partially, but not completely, makes up for your 3.1 cumulative undergraduate GPA.

- Career history and future goals:

One of the most critical aspects of your application will be to convince the admission committees that you need an MBA. With a master's degree in public health in pharmaceutical assessment and management, the "management" word in your MPH concentration starts to become a potential negative in your profile. You will need to convince the committees that you have other skills that you'd like to build upon while in business school, because certainly you have enough knowledge of the life sciences sector to credibly work in the space after graduation. For example, few people have experience in both the research and development side in addition to management/consulting within the sector - yet you are amongst this group.

More specifically, I would imagine that, based on your work history and network, you should be able to set up informational discussions with people at firms you'd like to work for in the life sciences sector and understand if you would need an MBA or not. Specifically, it starts to make more sense for you to attain an MBA if you want to work within strategy or finance. Conversely, if you want to work in operational or general management roles, I'm not sure you need to develop those skills much further - your MPH and work experience should suffice. It would help your candidacy if you can speak to both the industry (which you do in your profile) and the specific function where you would like to work. Specifically, in terms of your longer-term career goals, try to be a bit more specific than going into consulting. Is this consulting for a big firm, consulting on your own, etc.

In terms of describing your work experience, business schools respect applicants coming from top-tier big pharma firms such as Merck, Pfizer, Eli Lilly etc. or biotech firms like Genentech, so it would enhance your candidacy to mention both the selectivity of your firm as well as your performance ratings within them.

References: Based on our experience, we would recommend you have two professional recommenders, instead of the one professor and one business colleague strategy that you mentioned. With five years of full-time work experience plus some part-time engagements, it is expected that your network will allow you to have all professional recommenders.

Other programs to consider:
In terms of other schools with strong reputations that are based on the west coast, the University of Washington, Arizona State University, and UC-Davis are all top 50 US programs. However, following up on my recommendation to speak to employees at some of your prioritized target firms, ask them what MBA programs they recruit at and set your strategy based on those answers as well.

Best of luck,
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zhaoshating
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting 02 Aug 2011, 00:15
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Dear Gil or Brian,
I'm a Chinese, graduated from a 20 some university from China, majoring in media with a GPA of 3.35/4 scale.
I intend to be an entrepreneur for long term goal. But before that, hopefully I could work in management consulting firm for several years(For money and business experience accumulation).
I wish to get into MiM program of any school among LSE, LBS, HEC, DUke, although I know myself suffer from several weakness. So Imeprial collge and Warwick tier are bottom line for me. If I failed, I would retake GMAT, accumulate more experience and consider MBA. But MiM would be my priority.
Apart from what are said above, here's my details,
1. GMAT 710(V37,Q50)+5
2. IELTS 7.5
3. Graduated from college on Jun. last year. Currently working in PwC and the employment is within one year by this Sept.(Cuz LBS told me they would consider me to be eligible for MiM as long as PwC employment does not reach one year by this Sept.)
4. At college, head of campus broadcasting station, took leadership in some business planning competition and advertising competition.
5. At PwC, worked as an associate in tax department(jobs basically are bookkeepings), a volunteer at rural provinces and MC of PwC China annual dinner.
6.Run an online B2C business.
7. Have some clear thoughts about doing business in rural province in China(may be used in interview)

I think my serious weakness is my libral arts background, less competitive GPA---got no academic prize in college, no paper published on journals or any quantitative course, and less competitive GMAT(Since there are tons of Chinese who could get 750+).

Dear Gil/Brian, since I have strong interests in doing retailing or modern agriculture business in rural province of China and other Asian countries alike, I will elaborate more about such motivation when writing essays. But could you consult whether I have any chance to be accepted by MiM programs of top tier schools such as LBS LSE or Duke? Thanks!

Regards,
Jerry
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inspired
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting 02 Aug 2011, 10:37
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Hi Gil/Brian

Please evaluate my profile

Demographics:Indian/IT/Female
Age:23
gpa:8.81/10 from an Indian university, top 10 of my class
Xth:90.4%, top 10 of my school
XIIth:96%, 2nd in my school
gmat:720(q 49 v40)
WE:1 year in Asia's largest IT consultancy firm
- working in Oracle EBS, client is one of the largest corporations of US
- was identified as a key resource in the project
- primary point of contact for the clients for a particular module
- good ratings
- was class representative during a technical training program

EC:
- organized fests and cultural activities during school and college
- was class representative during college
- love photography
- charity events as part of company's charity organization
- love reading, so part of company's book club

Would it be worthwhile for me retake GMAT and try to increase my score(my practice test scores were above 750, but unfortunately, was sick during test day)?
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AringoConsultant
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting Updated on: 06 Apr 2012, 19:41
Originally posted by AringoConsultant on 03 Aug 2011, 13:38.
Last edited by AringoConsultant on 06 Apr 2012, 19:41, edited 1 time in total.
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Quote:

Dear Gil or Brian,
I'm a Chinese, graduated from a 20 some university from China, majoring in media with a GPA of 3.35/4 scale.
I intend to be an entrepreneur for long term goal. But before that, hopefully I could work in management consulting firm for several years(For money and business experience accumulation).
I wish to get into MiM program of any school among LSE, LBS, HEC, DUke, although I know myself suffer from several weakness. So Imeprial collge and Warwick tier are bottom line for me. If I failed, I would retake GMAT, accumulate more experience and consider MBA. But MiM would be my priority.
Apart from what are said above, here's my details,
1. GMAT 710(V37,Q50)+5
2. IELTS 7.5
3. Graduated from college on Jun. last year. Currently working in PwC and the employment is within one year by this Sept.(Cuz LBS told me they would consider me to be eligible for MiM as long as PwC employment does not reach one year by this Sept.)
4. At college, head of campus broadcasting station, took leadership in some business planning competition and advertising competition.
5. At PwC, worked as an associate in tax department(jobs basically are bookkeepings), a volunteer at rural provinces and MC of PwC China annual dinner.
6.Run an online B2C business.
7. Have some clear thoughts about doing business in rural province in China(may be used in interview)

I think my serious weakness is my libral arts background, less competitive GPA---got no academic prize in college, no paper published on journals or any quantitative course, and less competitive GMAT(Since there are tons of Chinese who could get 750+).

Dear Gil/Brian, since I have strong interests in doing retailing or modern agriculture business in rural province of China and other Asian countries alike, I will elaborate more about such motivation when writing essays. But could you consult whether I have any chance to be accepted by MiM programs of top tier schools such as LBS LSE or Duke? Thanks!

Regards,
Jerry
Show more


Jerry,

Thank you for submitting your profile. Please keep in mind that Aringo provides advisory for how to gain admission into the top 30 global, full-time MBA programs. As such, I would not be able to provide you insight into your candidacy or your chances for a MiM (master's in management) program. An MiM is quite different from an MBA, as you likely have researched. The MiM degree is generally geared towards recent graduates who have less than one year of full-time work experience and helps students to achieve better professional opportunities in entry-level positions than they could have otherwise secured. If you are looking to work in consulting immediately after an MiM, I would encourage you to research whether or not your target employers recruit from schools with MiM graduates.

With respect to your current candidacy for an MBA to matriculate in the fall of 2012:
On the basis of the information above, and under the assumption of strong essays and recommendations and a GMAT score of 710, our experience shows that you will be a stretch candidate at Fuqua (Duke), between competitive and stretch (closer to stretch) at Darden and Cornell, between competitive and stretch at Tepper (Carnegie Mellon), and competitive at IE, Kenan-Flagler (North Carolina), and Marshall (Southern California). Take a look at application tips and scholarship info for some of these schools here:School profiles

Discussion of your MBA candidacy:

Please keep in mind that one of the strongest parts of your profile is your affiliation with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and its strong brand as one of the Big 4 accounting firms worldwide. In our experience, entry into these jobs is quite competitive. At the same time, one of the major challenges in your profile for an MBA is that you would have just two years of work experience at matriculation. Of the students who enter top MBA programs with two years of work experience, we observe that many are investment bankers or management consultants. As such, to enhance your candidacy, it would make sense to consider applying in one or two years. This would enable you to achieve a promotion and you'll have more accomplishments to discuss.

The combination of your GMAT and undergraduate GPA could be enhanced by either retaking the GMAT to achieve a higher score (if feasible) and/or by taking a quantitative course and excelling in it.

Regarding short term career goals, I would encourage you to not include the detail in your essays about wanting to work in management consulting post-MBA because of its financial upside. The admission committees, in our experience, generally want to see candidates pursue careers that align with their passions. This does not mean to not write about consulting, but rather to frame your interest in it in a different way. Based on the extracurricular activities that you described, you could use the business competitions as examples of how you became introduced to case problems and that you became interested in solving complex issues quickly, for instance. To become more familiar with management consulting, you should also have access to colleagues in the consulting arm of PwC - set up informal, informational discussions with them to learn more about the field.

In terms of long term career goals, you could also mention lessons learned from your current B2C business that will help you in your entrepreneurship endeavors. With respect to your idea of providing modern agriculture to rural China, elaborate further whether this is a for-profit or non-profit concept and specifically what you would like to do. For reference, one of the more interesting and impressive stories in this field is a Kellogg MBA from the mid-2000s, Andrew Youn. His firm, One Acre Fund, is doing some truly inspirational work on the African continent. One Acre Fund

Best of luck,
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HI Gil/Brian
I really need your help in evaluating my profile. I was really disappointed with my GMAT score. I need to understand the level of B-schools I stand chance for.

Profile
Age- 26
Gender- Female
Nationality- Indian

Education
Bachelors in Electronics and Communication
Year- 2006
GPA- 7.2 on 10 point scale

Work Experience- Jan 2007 to September 2010
Years of experience- 3 Years and 8 months

Company- Accenture Services Pvt Ltd

1) My first project was for marketing department of a financial bank in US. My responsibility involved-

a) designing processes for analysis of data and compilation of huge data from database to be provided to the campaign management team,
b) understanding clients requirement creation of documentations and presentations.
c) creation of presentations on the project's progress over the quarters for the clients.
d) resolving technical issues
e) I also developed and improved processes(bugged or with errors) which saved clients costs.
I learned a lot about Business processes , financial markets of home loans and credit card services in this project.

2) In my second project with AAA I was the only one working with the business partners.

My responsibilities

a) Creation of time management and project progress reports and plans.
b) Requirement analysis and developing project.
c) working directly with the client on-site and understanding business requirements .

Extra-C at work

1) Besides handling my own responsibilities I assisted other teams of different skills and
trained them on database handling skills and also assisted them in there tasks in case of time and budget constrains.
2) I created webpage for handling PMO tasks of the project.
3) created plan and programs for inter-project training programs and trained people of different levels in the company.

Extra - Curriculum

1) I created presentations and organized fundraisers for VSO Tanzania 2009.
2) worked as volunteer for CRY on a project involving improvement of school structure and supplement meals provided to the female of a minority community. I was chosen to present memorandum to the Member of Legislative Assembly of the area to get more funds directed from center government to the particular area.
I was also involved in getting clearance for expansion on school building , which was constructed 3 months later.

3) Worked with Greenpeace as a volunteer for an awareness program on genetically modified products. I worked locally and organized assemblies in small area of my locality and in my company.

4) I participated in Creative writing, play writing, Play organization and also story writing with an Indian writer.

5) In my school and college I was active in competitions and discussion based mainly on political issues and foreign policies.

6) I worked with Bhutan government Hydroelectric project authority on analysis and study of a small project on communications for 2 months during my engineering.

7) I was active in organization and participation of various cultural and literary activities in my college and university.
8) I play violin .
9) Learning French

GMAT SCORE- 690 (Q48, V36)

MBA concentration- International Business
1) I have interest in business and politics,and this field requires not only aptitude to learn various export and import policies but also the political constrains and foreign policies of a country.

Post MBA

1) Work in shipping or export based company.
2) After 2 or 3 years, I am interested in studying Masters in foreign services/Phd and JD. and ultimately work for public services.

Thank you
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting Updated on: 06 Apr 2012, 19:42
Originally posted by AringoConsultant on 03 Aug 2011, 20:11.
Last edited by AringoConsultant on 06 Apr 2012, 19:42, edited 1 time in total.
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Quote:

Hi Gil/Brian

Please evaluate my profile

Demographics:Indian/IT/Female
Age:23
gpa:8.81/10 from an Indian university, top 10 of my class
Xth:90.4%, top 10 of my school
XIIth:96%, 2nd in my school
gmat:720(q 49 v40)
WE:1 year in Asia's largest IT consultancy firm
- working in Oracle EBS, client is one of the largest corporations of US
- was identified as a key resource in the project
- primary point of contact for the clients for a particular module
- good ratings
- was class representative during a technical training program

EC:
- organized fests and cultural activities during school and college
- was class representative during college
- love photography
- charity events as part of company's charity organization
- love reading, so part of company's book club

Would it be worthwhile for me retake GMAT and try to increase my score(my practice test scores were above 750, but unfortunately, was sick during test day)?
Show more


Inspired,

Thank you for submitting your profile. Since you did not list specific schools, I'll provide some guidance on a handful of programs for your reference. On the basis of the information above, and under the assumption of strong essays and recommendations and a GMAT score of 720, our experience shows that you will be a stretch at Harvard, between competitive and stretch (closer to stretch) at Kellogg, between competitive and stretch at INSEAD, competitive at Ross and Tuck, and between competitive and strong (closer to strong) at Darden and Cornell.

With respect to taking the GMAT again, based on the context you provided, I would say it would make sense for another attempt. First, you should feel good that you were able to score a 720 while less than 100% physically. If you consistently scored at or above 750 (30 points higher than your current score), it's reasonable to take it again. Keep in mind, though, that on a second attempt many students report similar (or even lower) GMAT scores so nothing is guaranteed. Your high school test marks are impressive but typically would be used, in our experience, to offset a lower than average GMAT or GPA. Your strength is in your statistics in both of these areas, and the high school test scores can't speak towards your leadership abilities, for example.

These remarks above regarding a retake of the GMAT are especially relevant for you, given a few opportunities in your profile. Let's go through these:

1) Why MBA and career goals
You did not elaborate on these. Given that you have one year of full-time work experience to date, it's important to spend time thinking about what you want out of an MBA and what you'd like to do in the short and long term. It's even more relevant as there are many applicants in the Indian IT background pool who apply each year, so your goals should be differentiated.

2) Leadership
Right now I see more participation in your activities, vs. leadership, at least in the way that I interpret your involvement at work and in extracurricular endeavors. For example, in the events you organized in college, it's important that you (hopefully) held a leadership position and title and organized events of large scale - elaborate on these in the CV.

3) Undergraduate school
Your GPA is outstanding but helps you less, in our experience, if it's from a university not near the top of the rankings of universities in India.

4) Work experience
With just one year of experience to date, and two years at matriculation, you will need to find good stories that elaborate on your specific accomplishments and leadership potential. Focus in particular on stories that talk about communication, persuasion, presentations with clients, etc. Why? With your (presumably) technical academic background and high GPA / GMAT, admission committees do not generally need to be presented with much more evidence of your analytical skills. Include a bit on this area in the essays, but I would not recommend that you spend the majority of the essays on this topic. Rather, from our client interactions, the adcoms need to be convinced that you'd contribute to team projects, class discussions, and be an influential alum of the program after graduation.

Best of luck,
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting Updated on: 06 Apr 2012, 19:44
Originally posted by AringoConsultant on 03 Aug 2011, 20:45.
Last edited by AringoConsultant on 06 Apr 2012, 19:44, edited 1 time in total.
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Quote:

HI Gil/Brian
I really need your help in evaluating my profile. I was really disappointed with my GMAT score. I need to understand the level of B-schools I stand chance for.

Profile
Age- 26
Gender- Female
Nationality- Indian

Education
Bachelors in Electronics and Communication
Year- 2006
GPA- 7.2 on 10 point scale

Work Experience- Jan 2007 to September 2010
Years of experience- 3 Years and 8 months

Company- Accenture Services Pvt Ltd

1) My first project was for marketing department of a financial bank in US. My responsibility involved-

a) designing processes for analysis of data and compilation of huge data from database to be provided to the campaign management team,
b) understanding clients requirement creation of documentations and presentations.
c) creation of presentations on the project's progress over the quarters for the clients.
d) resolving technical issues
e) I also developed and improved processes(bugged or with errors) which saved clients costs.
I learned a lot about Business processes , financial markets of home loans and credit card services in this project.

2) In my second project with AAA I was the only one working with the business partners.

My responsibilities

a) Creation of time management and project progress reports and plans.
b) Requirement analysis and developing project.
c) working directly with the client on-site and understanding business requirements .

Extra-C at work

1) Besides handling my own responsibilities I assisted other teams of different skills and
trained them on database handling skills and also assisted them in there tasks in case of time and budget constrains.
2) I created webpage for handling PMO tasks of the project.
3) created plan and programs for inter-project training programs and trained people of different levels in the company.

Extra - Curriculum

1) I created presentations and organized fundraisers for VSO Tanzania 2009.
2) worked as volunteer for CRY on a project involving improvement of school structure and supplement meals provided to the female of a minority community. I was chosen to present memorandum to the Member of Legislative Assembly of the area to get more funds directed from center government to the particular area.
I was also involved in getting clearance for expansion on school building , which was constructed 3 months later.

3) Worked with Greenpeace as a volunteer for an awareness program on genetically modified products. I worked locally and organized assemblies in small area of my locality and in my company.

4) I participated in Creative writing, play writing, Play organization and also story writing with an Indian writer.

5) In my school and college I was active in competitions and discussion based mainly on political issues and foreign policies.

6) I worked with Bhutan government Hydroelectric project authority on analysis and study of a small project on communications for 2 months during my engineering.

7) I was active in organization and participation of various cultural and literary activities in my college and university.
8) I play violin .
9) Learning French

GMAT SCORE- 690 (Q48, V36)

MBA concentration- International Business
1) I have interest in business and politics,and this field requires not only aptitude to learn various export and import policies but also the political constrains and foreign policies of a country.

Post MBA

1) Work in shipping or export based company.
2) After 2 or 3 years, I am interested in studying Masters in foreign services/Phd and JD. and ultimately work for public services.

Thank you
Show more


medha13,

Thank you for submitting your profile. Since you did not list specific schools, I'll provide some guidance on a handful of programs for your reference. On the basis of the information above, and under the assumption of strong essays and recommendations and a GMAT score of 690, our experience shows that you will be a stretch candidate at Harvard, Wharton, and Kellogg, between competitive and stretch (closer to stretch) at Ross and LBS, between competitive and stretch (closer to competitive) at Darden and Cornell, and between competitive and strong (closer to strong) at UNC Kenan-Flagler and Texas McCombs.

The strengths, as I see them, in your profile are your alignment to the Accenture brand and your impressive extracurricular involvement. That being said, a few areas to keep in mind:

1) Career goals
These are specific and interesting, and build on some prior experience - all great! You could potentially talk about your experience with Greenpeace and the Bhutan government as activities that inspired you to go into international business. Additionally, negotiations are critical in importing/exporting and international business. You could discuss improving in that subject (which has become much more scientific in the last 20 years, in part because of top business schools' research) as a reason to obtain an MBA. For your long term goal discussion in the essays, in our experience, you may consider listing fewer academic programs as possibilities. Do you need a masters, PhD, and JD for this field, or 2 of these 3? Talk to a few people in the sector and understand which one might be most useful. Otherwise, the admission committees may have the (incorrect) impression you did not research the field enough or that you are not focused enough.

2) Work experience
What is the gap after September 2010? Make sure that this is explained in your application. On a related note, if you were promoted at Accenture in your 3.5+ years there, mention it. Try to quantify your client results more on your CV, if you have not done so already. For instance, line item e) with the financial bank should be quantified in the CV. Make sure when you refer to work experience that there are no acronyms listed. Instead, spell out the words and provide a brief contextual introduction (eg. second-largest firm in XX industry in YY country).

3) Extracurriculars
This is a strength of yours, as I mentioned. However, based on our experience, you may consider focusing your attention in your CV and application more on activities that involved leadership, alignment with your future career goals, and/or the biggest impact with a "big name" organization. Otherwise, your accomplishments could get "lost" a bit as the adcoms read through everything that you have been involved with over the years.

You mention that you were not pleased with your GMAT score. In general, this Aringo video provides some general ideas and strategies for how to deal with a low GMAT score: Low GMAT Lecture

Best of luck,
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting 03 Aug 2011, 21:50
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Hi Brian,
I really appreciate your help.

I have selected couple colleges on the basis of programs.
Do you think I can get in to Boston or Georgetown ?
and I have studied few management subjects in my degree program such as
Group and Cooperative Processes
Human Resource Management
project management
Managerial Economics
Entrepreneurship
Financial management

Do you think if I highlight these it would help any better ?

Thanks for your help again.
Regards
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting Updated on: 04 Aug 2011, 09:52
Originally posted by inspired on 04 Aug 2011, 07:06.
Last edited by inspired on 04 Aug 2011, 09:52, edited 1 time in total.
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Thank you so much Brian for the detailed feedback. It was really helpful to know the points on which I can improve.

What do you think of my chances at Fuqua, Haas, Columbia, Sloan, Yale, LBS, Judge and Said?
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting Updated on: 05 Aug 2011, 08:03
Originally posted by kwoodmprior on 04 Aug 2011, 09:34.
Last edited by kwoodmprior on 05 Aug 2011, 08:03, edited 1 time in total.
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Hi Gil and Brian,

Thanks for these evaluations, reading through your analysis is very helpful. If you could provide me with some feedback, I would greatly appreciate it. I will try and keep my profile brief.

Profile : Male - American (Asian Decent)

Education : University of Illinois - Urbana Chamapaign. Bachelor of Science in Accountancy. 3.5GPA, Dean's list for some semesters. Licensed CPA.

GMAT: 700 (Q44 V 41)

Work Experience : 2 years in Big 4 audit, high performer, then transferred and have completed 2 years in the Transaction Services group specializing in Valuations.

EC : I have been an assistant coach for a little league baseball team for the past year. Additionally, I volunteer for the first tee organization to teach golf to underprivileged youth. I have a few students assigned to me who I coach and follow as they participate in tournaments etc. I also volunteer in Junior Achievement days of teaching where I teach underprivileged students a handful of times throughout the year.

Target Schools : Kellogg, Booth, Wharton, Harvard, Yale, Columbia

If you could provide me any feedback, that would be great. Thanks!
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting Updated on: 06 Apr 2012, 19:45
Originally posted by AringoConsultant on 04 Aug 2011, 21:07.
Last edited by AringoConsultant on 06 Apr 2012, 19:45, edited 1 time in total.
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Quote:

Hi Brian,
I really appreciate your help.

I have selected couple colleges on the basis of programs.
Do you think I can get in to Boston or Georgetown ?
and I have studied few management subjects in my degree program such as
Group and Cooperative Processes
Human Resource Management
project management
Managerial Economics
Entrepreneurship
Financial management

Do you think if I highlight these it would help any better ?

Thanks for your help again.
Regards
Show more

medha13,

Thank you for the follow-up questions - I'm glad the first response was helpful for you.

On the basis of the same information in your profile as originally reviewed, and under the assumption of strong essays and recommendations and a GMAT score of 690, our experience shows that you will be between competitive and strong (closer to strong, with potential for a significant scholarship) at Georgetown McDonough. When you refer to "Boston," I'm not sure if you are referring to Boston University or Boston College (two different institutions). Aringo's specialty is in assessing candidates for the top 30 global programs, and both BU and BC are generally characterized as outside that window. At the same time, it is likely that you would be a strong candidate for both of those programs.

Regarding the courses you mentioned that are aligned with a business orientation:
Your undergraduate major was in electronics and communications, so I am assuming that the majority of the courses you list were electives or perhaps classes taken recently outside of your undergraduate experience. In terms of whether or not you should highlight them in your application, the answer is "it depends."

Why?

First, keep in mind that business schools are trying to build a very diverse class of students, and many students with backgrounds in engineering or humanities have had literally no business coursework to date prior to starting an MBA. As such, do not think that you would be penalized if you do not have an undergraduate business degree when applying to business school.

In terms of courses or topics that are taught in top business schools that you list, such as entrepreneurship, managerial economics, finance, and HR management, it would not make sense for you to just list these in an essay. Rather, you could refer to one or two particular courses that inspired you to learn more about the subject, that were motivating factors for career choices to date (for example, your decision to join Accenture's consulting practice), or that are relevant for your future career goals you discuss. Additionally, keep in mind that topics such as entrepreneurship, finance, and economics are quite broad, and that top business schools have (depending on the size of the school) up to dozens of electives in each field. So, to refer to an entrepreneurship course, for example, you'd want to be specific about what exactly you learned or liked (business plan fundamentals? entrepreneurial finance/valuation? pitching to investors? venture capital?) from the experience.

Best of luck,
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting Updated on: 06 Apr 2012, 19:45
Originally posted by AringoConsultant on 04 Aug 2011, 21:20.
Last edited by AringoConsultant on 06 Apr 2012, 19:45, edited 1 time in total.
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Quote:

Thank you so much Brian for the detailed feedback. It was really helpful to know the points on which I can improve.

What do you think of my chances at Fuqua, Haas, Columbia, Sloan, Yale, LBS, Judge and Said?
Show more

inspired,

Thank you for the follow-up question. On the basis of the same information in your profile as originally reviewed, and under the assumption of strong essays and recommendations and a GMAT score of 720, our experience shows that you will be between competitive and stretch (closer to stretch) at Columbia, between competitive and stretch at MIT Sloan, between competitive and stretch (closer to competitive) at Yale SOM and Haas, competitive at LBS, between competitive and strong (closer to competitive) at Fuqua and Cambridge Judge, and between competitive and strong (closer to strong, with potential for a significant scholarship) at Oxford Said.

Best of luck,
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1) Work experience: 3.5 years at Accenture, India as a Software Engineer. Have got Accenture Celebrates Excellence Award. Have also recieved extremely good ratings.

2) 700 GMAT

3) X- 82.4%
XII - 80%
Undergrad: 3.4 CGPA from Manipal Institute of Technology, Manipal, India.

4) Extracurricular: Have been actively involved in several sports and extra curricular activities since school days.

School days - Badminton tea captain
Literary Club Head

College - Part of the College Badminton team, represented the college on several competitions and won several accolades for this.

Drama - Actively involved in the drama club, performed stage plays, and several short plays. Won several awards for this as well.

Dance - Part of the bhangra dance group in college.

Won the Miss CEO Award at the college fest.

5) Career Goals:

Entrepreneurship. To start something on my own. Currently, looking for a change in career though.

6)Personal: 24 yrs female, Indian.

7) I've started my own venture, which is not linked in any way to my current profession.

Please suggest which schools should I apply to?
I've only looked at ISB for now.

Please let me know whether my profile is suitable for ISB and for any other colleges?
and what else could I do to improve my application.

Thank you!
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting Updated on: 06 Apr 2012, 19:46
Originally posted by AringoConsultant on 08 Aug 2011, 15:35.
Last edited by AringoConsultant on 06 Apr 2012, 19:46, edited 1 time in total.
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Quote:

Hi Gil and Brian,

Thanks for these evaluations, reading through your analysis is very helpful. If you could provide me with some feedback, I would greatly appreciate it. I will try and keep my profile brief.

Profile : Male - American (Asian Decent)

Education : University of Illinois - Urbana Chamapaign. Bachelor of Science in Accountancy. 3.5GPA, Dean's list for some semesters. Licensed CPA.

GMAT: 700 (Q44 V 41)

Work Experience : 2 years in Big 4 audit, high performer, then transferred and have completed 2 years in the Transaction Services group specializing in Valuations.

EC : I have been an assistant coach for a little league baseball team for the past year. Additionally, I volunteer for the first tee organization to teach golf to underprivileged youth. I have a few students assigned to me who I coach and follow as they participate in tournaments etc. I also volunteer in Junior Achievement days of teaching where I teach underprivileged students a handful of times throughout the year.

Target Schools : Kellogg, Booth, Wharton, Harvard, Yale, Columbia

If you could provide me any feedback, that would be great. Thanks!
Show more

kwoodmprior,

Thank you for submitting your profile. On the basis of the information above, and under the assumption of strong essays and recommendations and a GMAT score of 700, our experience shows that you will be a stretch candidate at Kellogg, Booth, Wharton, Harvard, and Columbia, and between competitive and stretch (closer to stretch) at Yale SOM. You would be between competitive and stretch at Ross, competitive at Darden, and strong at Texas McCombs.

The strength of your profile, based on our experience, is your strong performance at the Big 4 firm.

Some items to consider in your profile:

Career performance and future goals
- Definitely highlight that you were a high performer, both in your CV and within your essays. As you know, Big 4 firms bring in a huge class of undergraduates each year, and MBA programs respect their ability to bring in and evaluate young talent.
- Discuss your transition to work in valuation, why you were interested in working there, etc. You do not mention future career goals or why you want an MBA. Depending on what these are, your background in valuation would be quite beneficial for a future in investment banking, for instance.

Extracurricular activities
- What about at the undergraduate level? Make sure to list leadership and involvement during your time at Illinois. Otherwise, your profile would have a weakness there.
- It sounds like you love athletics. Otherwise, you wouldn't have focused most of your extracurricular activities in this area (or at least those that you presented in your profile). If you can tie in your future goals with some kind of theme that links to your prior work experience or your involvement with underprivileged youth, it would be beneficial. Additionally, something to think about for your essays would be to say you'd continue with athletic involvement in an MBA program, as there are many intramural sports played and many opportunities to mentor youths in underprivileged school districts. This is especially true if the MBA programs you're applying to are near urban centers like Chicago or New York.

Overall, the main challenge in your profile is that both your GMAT and GPA are slightly below average for most top MBA programs. As such, you have to make up for this in other areas within your application. Depending on how many times you have taken the GMAT and what your practice results looked like, you may consider retaking the test to achieve a higher score to improve your chances.

Best of luck,
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Ask ARINGO MBA Admissions Consulting Updated on: 06 Apr 2012, 19:47
Originally posted by AringoConsultant on 08 Aug 2011, 21:22.
Last edited by AringoConsultant on 06 Apr 2012, 19:47, edited 1 time in total.
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Quote:

1) Work experience: 3.5 years at Accenture, India as a Software Engineer. Have got Accenture Celebrates Excellence Award. Have also recieved extremely good ratings.

2) 700 GMAT

3) X- 82.4%
XII - 80%
Undergrad: 3.4 CGPA from Manipal Institute of Technology, Manipal, India.

4) Extracurricular: Have been actively involved in several sports and extra curricular activities since school days.

School days - Badminton tea captain
Literary Club Head

College - Part of the College Badminton team, represented the college on several competitions and won several accolades for this.

Drama - Actively involved in the drama club, performed stage plays, and several short plays. Won several awards for this as well.

Dance - Part of the bhangra dance group in college.

Won the Miss CEO Award at the college fest.

5) Career Goals:

Entrepreneurship. To start something on my own. Currently, looking for a change in career though.

6)Personal: 24 yrs female, Indian.

7) I've started my own venture, which is not linked in any way to my current profession.

Please suggest which schools should I apply to?
I've only looked at ISB for now.

Please let me know whether my profile is suitable for ISB and for any other colleges?
and what else could I do to improve my application.

Thank you!
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avaniupta,

Thank you for submitting your profile. On the basis of the information as presented in your profile, and under the assumption of strong essays and recommendations and a GMAT score of 700, our experience shows that you will be a stretch at Booth and Kellogg, between competitive and stretch at Tuck, competitive at Fuqua, and strong at IESE. The evaluation of your chances at ISB, however, is slightly more challenging to evaluate - not because of you personally or your profile, but because of the improving shift in the school's profile as a younger MBA program that just passed its 10 year mark. A few years ago, it is likely that you would have been considered a strong candidate, but ranking improvements and our own interactions with applicants suggests you would now be in the 'competitive' to 'stretch' window.

In terms of your profile:

- Keep in mind my assumption is that the 3.4 GPA was calculated or translated from the 10 point scale used often in India on a class graduation percentile, rather than straight linear translation, methodology. This 3.4/4.0 level would place you below the top 1/3 of your classmates. If your GPA was instead 85% (which is 3.4 divided by 4.0), your profile is improved. Bottom line: Please do not assume a linear translation from the 10 point scale to the 4 point scale. In any event, this 3.4 GPA, plus a GMAT of 700, places you slightly below most top business schools' average scores of matriculating students.
- Since you were not in a client-facing role at Accenture (my assumption based on your description of responsibilities), it will be important to present evidence of your communication, presentation, and persuasion abilities in your essays.
- You will also need to elaborate further in the application about the competition levels for some of the awards you received, so as to provide context for the admission committees.
- Regarding selection and prioritization of schools, based on our experience with applicants, I would actually advise you to consider first thinking further about your career goals. To look for a change is ok, and is something many MBA applicants are aspiring for, yet I don't see (yet) in your description the outline of a specific, exciting, realistic career goal. Entrepreneurship is perhaps too broad - which industry? Where geographically? Why? The assumption of strong essays I mentioned initially about your candidacy is based, in part, on coherent and reasonable arguments about these types of issues.
- Similarly, it would help your candidacy to talk about the business venture you started and its relative success.

Generally speaking, these are things you can do to improve your candidacy prior to applications:
- To get promoted at work (preferably more than once); to accumulate impressive achievements at work (especially leadership-oriented); to try to get to a situation where you manage people - preferably regular direct reports (and if that's not possible, then on a project or in a matrix); to boost your community contribution (preferably in a leadership-oriented context); to consider initiating/co-founding/setting up a project/department/organization (either at work, or outside of work) and making it successful; to mark a few potential recommenders and deepen/strengthen your relationship with them; to consider whether it's possible for you to get an MS (or other degree) with distinction/excellence in order to counter your undergrad GPA (the contribution of such effort to your admission chances will be small to medium - consider if it's worth the investment of time and money); and to get in touch with Aringo or a similar company in order to start developing your strategy (this may help you make effective decisions, admission-chances-wise, from now on).

Best of luck,
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