Ask MBA Crystal Ball

MBA Acceptance Rate: Round 1 vs Round 2 vs Round 3

With the new application season kicking off, we do a deep dive on the age-old question - do application rounds matter?

The article has data on how acceptance rates vary as well a some insights into actual admits per round for a few schools.

We also share an adcom's perspective on different application rounds.

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Other Selected articles:

Are MBA admission chances in Round 2 deadlines lesser than in Round 1?
Admissions chances for Round 3 deadlines and beyond
ISB Admissions Round 1 vs Round 2 deadlines

Why tech professionals are leaving IT companies for MBA

We've all witnessed the Great Resignation. While that phenomenon might be all but over, the demand for talent and its consequent shortage in the IT/technology industry continues unabated.

The need for Software Developers will overshoot a million in the next few years, as the US Bureau of Labor Statistics claims!

With an attractive compensation and career path, what makes IT professionals leave?

In this blog, we delve into several of these factors ranging from skill-gap, job satisfaction and more, together with insights from an international MBA school.

Want to know more?

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Other Selected articles:

15 Best Tech MBA programs for high-paying salaries and careers in technology, IT
Technology jobs and salaries in investment banking after MBA

Former McKinsey consultant shares MBA application tips for management consulting applicants

The MBBs are feeders to top bschools globally. In general too, management consultant grab a huge chunk of positions at most schools out there.

However, just being a top consultant isn't good enough, when it comes to the rarified leagues. You still need to differentiate against an equally competent and accomplished peer group.

So how can you do that?

That is exactly what we go into and list out several ways you can do that.

Want to know more?

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Other Selected articles:

Management consulting resume tips for McKinsey, Deloitte, BCG, Bain
Life after consulting: Exit options
Management consulting cover letter

MBA in USA vs Canada vs Europe vs Asia: Which is the best country for MBA abroad?

When it comes to deciding the geographical location for your MBA, the decision may not be easy.

In this blog, we present a basic primer on top destinations as a starting point for your research, including perspectives from HEC Paris Admissions team.

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MBA after physiotherapy: Doctors declared him unfit for education, but he proved them wrong

In this post, we present the story of Dr. Robert Sandeep. At 16, he had Epilepsy and had no future as per his doctors in terms of education.

His story is filled with grit and determination one where he earned his degree in physiotherapy, practiced it helping people like him (thus paying it forward), managing a rare switch into the managerial side of the industry and eventually successfully knocking at the doors of ISB!

Read his story here

MBA application tips for investment banking applicants

If you've managed to crack IB career after your undergrad, you are already on a steep career trajectory. What's more, it also puts you firmly on the path to top MBA schools since the profession is a big feeder.

However, when it comes to the like of M7 and top schools, just being a banker isn't good enough! You still need to differentiate against an equally competent and accomplished peer group. We had shared tips for differentiation for MBB consultants in an earlier post.

In this post, we give 5 tips to stand out for IB candidates.

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MBA after Marine Engineering from BITS Pilani with 650 GMAT score

Over the years, at MBA Crystal Ball, we've worked with a candidates with a wide variety of experiences and backgrounds.

One of the under-represented group is that of marine engineers, sometimes also referred to as those from merchant navy backgrounds.

Usually working under tough conditions, they build a lot of character and have unique experiences.

Sahil was one such candidate who we helped make it to a top Canadian MBA program.

Want to know more?

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Other Selected articles:

MBA after Merchant Navy with 660 GMAT
Merchant navy officer heads to B-school to explore shore jobs
MBA in Hong Kong: Mariner heads back to school

Is there a minimum age limit for MBA in India and abroad (USA, UK, Canada, Germany)?

Reading about the eligibility criteria of several top MBA programs can make one believe that there is no age/experience criteria.

Reality however may be far from that basic criteria. Sure, there are always exceptions but when in doubt, there is merit on erring on the side of being closer to the averages that schools publish rather than looking at minimum/maxium.

Of course, if you are an outlier candidate (on either ends), that doesn't mean it's the end of road. You have to be cautious, research more and tell your story in an even more compelling manner.

We look at some of these aspect as well as a case study in this post.

Want to know more?

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Other Selected articles:
Average Age and Work Experience at the Top MBA Programs
Will too much or too little work experience hurt your MBA admission chances?

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Common mistakes to avoid in MBA application essays

With the final round of applications approaching, many candidates are scrambling to complete their applications. Even if you are not in a hurry, it is common to find several mistakes and errors in the MBA applications.

With our decade long experience of helping candidates avoid these, we list down 10 most common mistakes and some thoughts on how to avoid those.

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Other Selected articles:
Improve your MBA reapplicant strategy by avoiding these common mistakes
5 most common GMAT mistakes and how to avoid them
Common Mistakes in Letters of Recommendations

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Tell me about yourself interview for experienced candidate & fresher | Best answer

How to stand out as an over-represented MBA applicant

Thoughts of race, ethnicity, and nationality are rampant when discussing over-represented groups. When it comes to an applicant pool, it’s more complicated than that. The Indian-IT-Male is one of the most common/big groups and if you are part of one such group, it gets harder for you to stand out and make sure the adcoms notice your profile.

In this article, we review 3 ways you can try to differentiate, including soundbytes from an adcom.

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Other Selected articles:
Indian IT Male Engineer MBA Success Stories: Competing in the toughest applicant pool in the world
How differentiating myself got me MBA admits in USA (full scholarship) and India
Differentiation: A big challenge for Indian MBA applicants

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MBA after 13 years of work experience: How I got into India’s top MBA for executives

Gaurav was not new to challenges. Raised by a single mother, he fought tough financial conditions early on, funded his education by scholarships and turned the tide. He had MBA admits in 2015 with scholarships but faced yet another hurdle of securing bank loans.

Finally, he decided to restart the journey in 2022 post Covid. GMAT proved to be another hurdle and after scoring 650 couple of times, he finally managed to secure 690.

From capturing his story, to covering his rationale for the choices he made, this blog can be a source of inspiration for many.

Want to know more?

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Other Selected articles:
Is a 323 GRE score good? Second MBA abroad with scholarship for happy IIT IIM grad
IIM vs Foreign MBA: Salary, placements, admissions, student life, pros & cons
MBA after CA: From IIM, ISB or abroad after 8 years of work experience

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MBA in India or abroad

Is it too late to apply for MBA with 7 years of experience ( I started working in 2016). What pros and cons one can expect.
Should I consider executive MBA?

Posted from my mobile device

AYUSH198 wrote:

Is it too late to apply for MBA with 7 years of experience ( I started working in 2016). What pros and cons one can expect.
Should I consider executive MBA?

AYUSH198, not quite. You'll be within the median 80% range for most schools.

That being said, being on the other side of the average does mean you'll have to face certain challenges for more experience. The blog outlines the pros and cons.

EMBAs are usually limited in terms of career change effectiveness; so it depends on what you are looking for from your MBA.

Do reach out to us directly for a more detailed profile evaluation but hope this helps.

My view on affordable MBA consultants in India changed after getting $100,000 in scholarships

Top MBA consultants are expensive. Apart from affordability issues, many candidates are skeptical of the quality and need for that kind of expenditure in an already expensive endeavor.

Not all candidates are equal. While there are those among us who are gifted, for many others, a good mentor can make a huge difference. Good and price tend to go a bit hand-in-hand in our industry.

That is what Sayamdeep realized after burning his fingers once.

Want to know more?

Read here

Other Selected articles:
MBA admissions consultants ranking factors
What does an admission consultant with Harvard & Stanford admits know that friends & family don’t
Top MBA admission consultants with pricing

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Unbalanced GMAT (low quantitative, high verbal) score? Kellogg MBA admit shares tips

This blog has Trisha's story who approached us a few years ago for her Schwarzman Scholarship application.

Even though she couldn't make it, the engagement helped her turn around her profile and aim for M7 MBAs a couple of years later.

Things didn't go well this time around either and she received dings from 2 of her 3 schools.

We continued supporting her and asked her to keep the faith. Lo and behold, she is now headed to Kellogg!

Want to see the story in her words?

Read here

Other Selected articles:
Profile building for second MBA after IIM: M7 (Kellogg) admit with scholarship
Kellogg MBA: International student experience, H1B, OPT and life after MBA
16 things every Kellogg MBA applicant should know

Latest Video Posts:
Why IT employees are resigning in India for MBA
McKinsey vs BCG vs Bain | Salary, Interview, Life | India USA UK

9 Top reasons why you got an MBA rejection letter (and what you can do about it)

As admission season cometh, we take a deep dive into what may not work in general or if you weren't successful last time around, what could have been the reason.

It is extremely hard to understand at times and many times, one can do a best-guess analysis only.

We explore 9 potential reasons for rejections and more importantly, what can one do to overcome/avoid them.

Interested?

Read here

Other Selected articles:
How to get into IIMA PGPX after being rejected: MBA after 35
Low GRE scorer gets MBA admit with full scholarship worth $125,000 after 15 rejections
MBA in Europe admits with low GMAT score after 4 rejections

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Best Resume Format & Structure for job, internship, MBA, MS, PhD | Download free CV template 2023

The cost of attending a regular top ranking MBA progrm can be prohibitive. The tuition fee is just the starting point. Additional expenses like travelling, food, accommodation can start piling up very quickly. Then there's also the lost salary for the entire duration of the MBA program. Or the opportunity cost as it is called.

This was the reason we created an mini MBA online program to offer MBA aspirants a quick tour of all the essential concepts that any elite business school in the world would cover.

For now, we've kept it free for the quick and lucky ones to try out. With the expectations that a few will share precious feedback with us on how to improve it.

It covers all the basic fundamentals of finance, economics, accounting, operations, strategy and more. In addition you will have access to our popular MBA simulation games. These will offer you hypothetical business problems to tackle and test your management acumen.

Sounds fun? Here's the link if you'd like to try it: Online Mini-MBA.

Do let us know what you feel about it.