Ask GyanOne MBA Admission Consultants - Top Bschool Applications

Aiming for Wharton, MIT, Kellogg, Yale, or INSEAD (or other top 30 global MBA programs) THIS YEAR?

Candidates applying to global top 30 B-schools, please feel free to post your queries here. Feel free to ask all your questions related to MBA applications process, interviews and profile evaluation. Please provide as much information as you can related to your profile and aspirations to help us answer your queries in detail.
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To begin with, keep these MBA Application tips in mind while putting your best application forward.

MBA Application Mistakes – 5 of the worst things to avoid

Some of the worst mistakes are unintentional ones. More so when one speaks of MBA Application mistakes. For sure, everyone wants to seem the best that they can on each MBA application. However, in trying to improve things, a lack of understanding can sometimes lead to worsening them. In our effort to help MBA applicants understand the applications landscape better, we present here a list of commonly made MBA application mistakes. This list is certainly not exhaustive, but these are some very common mistakes nevertheless, and also things that we regularly advise our clients against doing. The mistakes listed here are not in any order of importance – each is equally important to understand and avoid.

For more, MBA Application Mistakes.
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MBA for Business Research / KPO Professionals

Business professionals working at research organizations such as McKinsey Knowledge Center (McKC), Bain Capability Center (BCC), Boston Consulting Group Research (BCG Research), The Smart Cube, Analysys Mason, and Corporate Executive Board (CEB) often start to consider an MBA after 3-4 years in their roles. Many of them have met with strong success in the past, getting to top global programs like Wharton, Kellogg, and Tuck, while others have made it to top Asian and Indian schools like ISB, IIM Ahmedabad (PGPX), and NUS Singapore. What strengths can business professionals leverage?

MBA for Business Research
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MBA Scholarships at International MBA Programs

Almost every student (certainly most international students) applying for an international MBA program hopes to get MBA Scholarships in one form or the other. Yet, the criteria and the overall parameters used for awarding these scholarships remain less transparent than overall admissions criteria. Schools claim to offer scholarships to the most ‘meritorious’ of students without specifying exactly which factors go into constituting this merit. Sure, GPA and GMAT count, but not everyone with a high GMAT score or a great GPA gets a scholarship. How can people at the pre-application stage then try and maximize their chances for getting a scholarship? GyanOne offers a brief guide to the best practices.

MBA Scholarships at International MBA
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IIMC PGPEX Placements - Key Trends

IIM Calcutta or IIMC PGPEX placements are a key area of interest for many potential (and even current) students interested in looking at prospects after the program. The program itself is small – only 50 people in terms of batch size – so the opportunity to attract firms with widely varying roles and offers is anyway limited.

Lateral recruiting expected to dominate – and it does
With a batch strength of 50, and the average experience level hovering around 7.5 years, it is fairly clear that this is a group of experienced executives who are here to hone their skills rather than look for career switches. They will therefore be recruited by firms based on their prior experience and skills more than anything else. Yes, functional changes would happen (for example, people in IT delivery or software development roles might be able to move to business development or project management) but switches that involve both industry and function are expected to be rare.

IIMC PGPEX Placements
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Thinking about Quiting Your Job to Prepare for GMAT? Think Again!

Akshay Singh has five years of good professional experience behind him, and is doing well in his current job. Like many others in his position, Akshay feels that this is the right time for him to pursue an MBA, which will help him not only gain more skills but also seek wider positions within his industry. However, before he can apply to top MBA programs, Akshay needs a GMAT score. Preparing for the GMAT per se is not a problem, but Akshay has little time for the preparation. He often returns home from work well past 9pm, and has little energy left to study then. In the morning, he must leave home again at 8am. Weekends afford some time for studying, but work often spills over to at least a few hours even on weekends, and of course there are family commitments and domestic chores to take off. After accounting for all this, Akshay has very little time left over to devote to studies. He is therefore thinking of quitting his job to prepare for his GMAT.

Quit Job for GMAT
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Looking for an MBA from Canada? Here are the Top MBA Programs

An MBA in Canada is not something that has always been on the radar of top applicants looking for excellent MBA programs. Most applicants invariably consider excellent programs in Europe and the US, but not always in Canada. This is now starting to change. With the climbing reputation of schools such as Richard Ivey and Rotman (among others), a lot many more students are evaluating opportunities in Canada. The friendly immigration environment, the stable economy, and the excellence of Canadian MBA programs are all contributing to the allure of the MBA in Canada.

MBA in Canada
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Best MBA in Singapore - Detailed Analysis and Statistics

Which is the Best MBA in Singapore? Is it the prestigious INSEAD, the much-vaulted NUS, its perceived lesser cousin Nanyang (or NTU, as some refer to it), or the fast emerging SMU? For MBA applicants who would like to explore the potential of Asia, there are few programs that have the pan-Asian appeal of MBA programs in Singapore. The city itself is known as Asia’s hub for business, and almost every multi-national business organization that operates in Asia has an office (and in most cases, its regional HQ) in Singapore. Whether it is financial services, energy, FMCG, or consulting, you will find top employers from each sector based in Singapore. No wonder, then, that MBA aspirants look to the city, and its MBA programs, with much interest.

For more, Best MBA in Singapore
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Wondering How to Improve your Profile for Admissions This Year? Read Below.

Applying for MBA admissions soon? If you are aiming for top schools, though (from Wharton, Stanford, MIT, and Tuck to INSEAD, LBS, ISB, or HKUST), you need to start looking at your profile now. Applying to top programs is not just about filling in applications. It is also about addressing the gaps in your profile, so you can present the best ‘you’ to the admissions committees. By the time the deadlines are at striking distance, and you begin working on your applications, there will be no time for you to address these gaps. At that stage, the best you could do would be to prepare to explain the gaps well. Therefore, act now. Here are a few things you can do NOW to make yourself a much stronger MBA applicant this year.

How to Improve Profile for MBA Admissions
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Gear Up by Making a Focused Strategy for Your Applications This Year

A strategy on how to prepare MBA applications is very important for any applicant planning to apply to MBA programs in top schools around the world. While planning for some of the initial steps might seem trivial - creating an online account and entering basic details - as one starts to get deeper into the application, one realizes that there are many other factors to be taken care of. How to choose recommenders for an MBA application, how to tackle different questions asked as part of the MBA application essays, and which deadline to apply for are some of the questions that applicants must tackle. In fact, some of the questions begin much before a candidate formally starts thinking of when and how to prepare MBA applications. GyanOne presents a list of some Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) to help MBA applicants better prepare their MBA applications.

How to Prepare MBA Application
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Beware of Using MBA Essay Samples: Here's Why

Creating strong and compelling MBA essays that interest as well as impact MBA Admissions Committees is never an easy job. With multiple schools to apply to, and different essays for each, the pressure for putting in all the required elements and yet stick to the word limit can be immense. Of course, reviewing your essays multiple times and incorporating the feedback obtained from others also saps your energy. At this time, some applicants can feel fatigue and make the fatal mistake of looking for MBA essay samples online – some for outright usage, others for ‘inspiration’.

MBA Essay Samples
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How Balaji chose between INSEAD and HKUST MBA programs

Plenty of people from IT, Manufacturing, Banking, and Consulting may go the MBA way, but the Merchant Navy professionals still only trickle in. However, the tide is slowly turning. Some Merchant Navy professionals are now seeking better opportunities on shore. The sailing can get tiresome after a while, and staying away from one’s family for months together each year can make the entire experience taxing. And, above all, Merchant Navy professionals with advanced business education (read: MBA) behind them are in high demand on shore.

Top MBA Programs Cracked!
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India Dominates as the Destination for One Year MBA in Asia

One year MBA programs in Asia have had a strange history. At the turn of the century, such programs were virtually non-existent. Then the Indian School of Business (ISB) opened its doors in 2001, pioneering the concept of the one year program for experienced professionals in India. Till then, the flagship programs of the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), each of a two year duration, ruled the roost completely. Initially, the one year concept was met with skepticism, but ISB’s wild success in a short period forced even the IIMs to go for a rethink. At different points in the following years, the IIMs launched executive programs of their own, different from their flagship programs. Some other top Indian B-schools have followed.

Top One Year MBA in Asia
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Johnson Cornell MBA Admissions Team advice for Indian MBA Applicants

GyanOne interviewed Christine E. Sneva, Executive Director, Johnson Cornell MBA admissions, to help Indian applicants from the consulting and IT backgrounds understand the Johnson Cornell MBA application process better.

GyanOne: The Cornell MBA has fast been gaining a reputation as the program of choice for applicants looking at careers in Consulting. The Consulting Program at Johnson is the only offering of its kind among top schools, after all. Yet, many applicants who wish to get into consulting come from backgrounds in manufacturing, IT, operations, and marketing. How can applicants best prepare themselves in their applications when showcasing a career switch to consulting?

Christine: I am glad to hear about your enthusiasm for our approach to preparing our students for consulting careers. The consulting focus at Johnson is a comprehensive, structured program that we refer to as the “Consulting Passport.” Our students gain a better understanding of careers in consulting, extensive case interview preparation and we are dedicated to helping our students develop the skills and knowledge necessary for a successful transition or continuation in consulting. For those that wish to be successful at such a career switch and therefore in the admissions process, we hope you are able to exhibit the same qualities that employers in this industry are looking to see from the training in our MBA program. *Characteristics include: ability to work on a team, track record of success and initiative, and good business acumen.

Johnson Cornell MBA Admissions Team's Interview with GyanOne
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IMD Assessment Day: How to Crack the IMD MBA Interview Process

Forget 30 minute admissions interviews. The IMD assessment day is the king of the interview and assessment process. Over a full day, MBA applicants (assessment day participants) visit the IMD campus in Lausanne, Switzerland, and go through multiple stages of assessment. IMD was ranked no.1 among Forbes International business schools 2013 rankings. As we have detailed earlier in a post on one (successful) IMD MBA applicant’s experience, the process has a number of components, and each requires specific preparation to do well at. While a lot of it comes down to one’s natural ability to network, preparation definitely helps. We say this on two counts: people who went to the IMD assessment day with minimal preparation and were then surprised and felt under-prepared by the intensity of it, and people (including our clients) who prepared well and stated explicitly how they felt rewarded by it on IMD assessment day.

How to crack the IMD MBA Interview Process
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Darden MBA Admissions Team Advice for Indian Applicants

GyanOne Interviews Darden School of Business, University of Virginia, MBA Admissions team. In this interview, Sara Neher, Assistant Dean, MBA Admissions, talks about how Indian applicants can leverage their experience in tech-focussed job profiles, to strengthen their candidature at Darden.

GyanOne: The Darden MBA admissions process looks at experience, insight, a willingness to contribute, and a history of achievement as the minimum common denominators of the distinguished applicants who make it to the school every year. While academic and professional experience are easy to quantify and discuss, personal characteristics, which can often set outstanding candidates apart from others, are more difficult to explain. What are the key personal qualities that are key for applicants in their Darden MBA applications?

Sara Neher: We are looking for people of integrity with excellent communication skills. Communication skills are not just speaking, but also listening. In the case method at Darden, our students must be willing and able to share their ideas and opinions as well as listen to and learn from the ideas of their classmates.

GyanOne: A number of applicants, especially South Asians, work in technology-related areas, and therefore struggle to communicate direct business impact. How can these applicants (especially those from IT services firms) differentiate themselves in their Darden MBA applications?

Sara Neher: Applicants should not actually concern themselves with “differentiating” – that is the wrong way to approach an application. I would much rather they focus on presenting themselves authentically. You are naturally different, even if you are from the same job and work in cubicles next to each other – you had different families, different educational experiences, and different interests outside of work. Make sure that we know about these experiences and outside interests (in the activities sections during college and currently). IT backgrounds are very in demand by American companies like Amazon, Microsoft and Google (some of our biggest recruiters). It is a great background for an MBA.

Darden MBA Admissions Team Interviews
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How to Select the Right MBA Program: A Step by Step Guide

Ready to finally take the plunge and apply to B school? Deciding that you would like to seek business education at the master’s level is a key step in determining firmly the direction of your future career. At GyanOne, we believe that the next most critical step is determining the right B-school(s) to apply to. Here is our take on how one should approach the B school selection process:

Decide what is best for you: Unfortunately, a lot of people still pick schools as if they were dishes in a restaurant (“I’ll have what everyone’s having”). It is important to realize that B school selection does not subscribe to a ‘one size fits all’ formula. What is appropriate for your friend from college may not be appropriate for you. The two of you may have different achievements, grades, GMAT scores, and just plain preferences. Deciding to apply to schools based on others’ opinions is criminal. The only other people who you should perhaps bank on are admissions consultants (yes, I know we say this tongue in cheek, but it is also true). This is because they are professionals, and can help you identify the right schools based on your profile and preferences. Choosing the right admissions consultant is another matter, altogether, and in our blog we have noted some strategies that you can adopt in this regard.

GyanOne’s guide to MBA Rankings
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Hi,

I need a general profile evaluation on my chances for good US schools that I am listing here.

Profile details:
GMAT 720 (51q, 35v). Taken GMAT three times. Other scores were 650 and 690. Last score was 690.
GPA 77% from a non-IIT engineering college in India in Mumbai. Finished first class with distinction. Mechanical engineer with many good projects and internships done in the mechanical engineering field. In class 10 I was a very average student with just 71% marks but in 12th I did better and got 91%.

Work experience:
I started working for a manufacturing company called Denso and worked there for more than two years. The kind of projects I did there were very good, and I also worked in areas like finite element analysis which is considered cutting edge.
Won employee of the month award twice in my tenure. Did not get promoted. Left because I got a very good offer from TCS. After this I spent four more years working for TCS. I got a chance to go onsite, and I worked on TCS financial software. I did not work only on software development but also participated in many client presentations and bids for projects by providing technical inputs. I worked on many products for TCS Bancs (it is like TCS's version of Oracle, except for banks and insurance companies). Two promotions at TCS so far. I also have a chance to go onsite.

Extra curricular:
When I was working for DENSO, I volunteered for a local old age home in Delhi. I went there on most weekends. But I have now lost the certificate I got from there. After I left Delhi to work in TCS, I have been part of many CSR events at TCS but I have not been so regular in terms of NGO work. Other than NGO I play badminton and won some awards for it in college. I have also played chess and I have also won some local tournaments.

You can ask if you want more inputs. Now my questions are
1) I am planning to apply to Columbia, Stern, UCLA, Tepper, Rice Jones, Kelley, and Emory. Is this list ok
2) I am unable to convert my percentage from 77% to 4.0 GPA. How do I do this?
3) Of these MBA's which all will require tofel scores? I have not given toefl yet but if needed I can do it. Also will taking toefl increase my chances at these programs?
4) I switched from mechanical to computers after 3 years. Is this going to be a problem?
5) i have not done any NGO work for last 3-4 years except through csr at TCS. Is this a problem?
6) Should I go onsite now? If I get into a good MBA, I will have to resign. Is going onsite an advantage?
7) Also tell me if I can apply to ISB in India as backup

Thanks in advance.

GRE or GMAT? Which Exam is Preferred for MBA Admissions?

GMAT vs GRE – this is a conundrum that is not uncommon among MBA applicants today. This scenario has developed fairly recently, but it is here to stay. 2011 onwards, ETS (Education Testing Service, the people who conduct the GRE) started pushing for wider inclusion of the GRE among business schools. According to a US News report, more and more business schools are now also accepting the GRE for MBA admissions. Before we can get to the question on whether one should take the GRE or the GMAT for B-school admissions, we first need to compare the two tests to point out obvious differences.

Key Differences between GMAT and GRE
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So you did less than your best on the GMAT? Retaking? Read On

The GMAT can be brutal sometimes. After months of preparing week after week, day after day, sometimes the result comes out to be significantly below your expectation. This can mean not just frustration and disappointment at not being able to reach a target score, but also concern around being able to muster your strength for a second attempt and do better next time round. Retaking GMAT is not about being disappointed, but about analyzing what went wrong, and then fixing it.

Retaking GMAT is about smart planning
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