Ask Personal MBA Coach

Hi team,

I am female lawyer from India looking to do an MBA from a T20 school in the USA. My goal is to work in the corporate sector in legal and compliance areas.
I am currently working in a mid-level firm helping their business clients comply with local laws. I also help them with some business deals (agreements). My goal with the MBA is to understand the business functions (marketing, finance, etc.). My questions are as follows:

Do you think my Post MBA goals are in achievable?

What schools should I aim for? I was looking into Yale, and Columbia. Are there others that I should look at?

I am aiming for a 730. Do you think that is enough?

How would my post MBA career look like – would I first work at a consulting company such as Deloitte or E&Y and the transition to corporate?

-Fatima

Hi Fatima (@fatsam0786)

Given you already have experience in compliance, making this transition into a corporate sector role sounds like it would be reasonable post-mba. Yale and Columbia are great programs. We would definitely need more information to confidently suggest schools such as years and strength of work experience and GMAT score. Ideally as an Indian applicant, you'll want to score around 750-760 to be very competitive in the application pool.

We would be happy to schedule a free consultation call where we can discuss your candidacy and possible target schools after reviewing your resume, gpa, etc. Feel free to send a note to scott@personalmbacoach.com or visit personalmbacoach.com to schedule a consultation. We regularly work with folks in India and can certainly help here!

Indian, Male, 24.
Commerce graduate,
gpa>3.6
gmat-- 650
Professional Experience-- 2 years, as an assistant accountant in an Indian FMCG firm, with 2 promotions,
Interned as a research associate for 4 months,
Volunteering as a teaching faculty in an NGO.(>1 year).

Target schools-- Tepper, Kelley, Desautels, Sauder, Schulich, kenan-flagler.
Applying in round2.

Hello nj97,

Thank you for sharing this information. Based on what you shared, there are two weaker points in your profile for the schools you've listed. For the GMAT score, as an overrepresented applicant (Indian M), you'll want to aim for 20-30 points greater than the school's average, therefore for many of the schools you listed ideally you'd apply with a 700+. You may also want to wait a couple of years to apply, given many of these schools have an average of 5-6 years of work experience going in, and being closer to that average will help make you a stronger candidate.

In addition to our consulting services, we have one-on-one tutoring to help improve your GMAT. Feel free to send a note to scott@personalmbacoach.com to further discuss your school selection and application strategy. We regularly work with folks in India and can certainly help here!

Hi,

Indian, Male, 27
Work ex - 4yr+ , will be close to 5 years by the time i join a college.
I work as a Developer in an US based Insurance project at Cognizant. I am currently a team lead, leading a team of 4.
Willing to go into Product management or Tech consulting post MBA.
Extracurriculars - I do have a few extra curricular achievements at office and also at Undergraduate level. Also, I am attached with a small NGO.
Certifications - Currently pursuing Project Management certification of Google via Coursera. Have LOMA 281 certification in the Insurance domain.
GRE - 311(158Q 153V)  Toefl, - 108

I had got into University of Pittsburgh (Katz) in Round 3  last year with a previous GRE score of 308. But did not go through with it because the scholarship provided was very less.

Target Colleges - Cox, Katz, Fisher
Should I apply to WP Carey as well? Their average GRE is 312 on their website. Do you think there are any chances of an interview call? Also, kindly suggest any other college I might apply to with this profile (only STEM).

Thanks in Advance!

Hi MayukhSinha,

Thanks for sharing these details! Overall, sounds like you have solid work experience for the programs listed, and if you have the time and means Carey could be a nice reach school. Congrats on the offer to Katz! Often one of the larger factors that plays a role in scholarships awarded is your GMAT score. If you haven't taken it too many time, it may be worth the time and effort to prep a bit more for the GRE and retake. It would make you more competitive for a program like Carey and would likely result in great scholarship awards.

Best of luck on your applications and please send a note to scott@personalmbacoach.com if you'd like to further discuss your school selection and application strategy. We regularly work with folks in India can certainly help here!

Hey! New to GMATclub and the GMAT/MBA journey. Untraditional background, so your feedback is hugely appreciated.

Dutch/Israeli (Born in The Netherlands, currently London-based), Female, 27

Work ex (full-time) - 2 yrs, currently Head of Ops at DTC high-growth start-up (Gen Z).

Prior experience (Digital) Retail Strategy, Brand Management, Non-Profit, Retail Design.

Majority work experience in early-stage start-ups, right hand of founder/CEO. Worked during a long lead of studies (internships, side jobs)

BSc. International (Fashion) Management, GPA 8.5/10 (Cum Laude, The Netherlands). Participated in 2 exchange programmes (London + Amsterdam). + 3yrs Interior Design degree major in Retail Design.

Personal: Breaking through lower social class, daughter of ex-veteran and immigrant. First woman in the family w/ university degree. View: Multifaceted career portfolio (creative, entrepreneurial, strategic/commercial, traditional vs. non-traditional).

Next steps (December 2021-September 2022) :

1. Exploring ‘minterships’ in consultancy, focus: apparel, consumer, retail. Transitioning from start-ups to corporate.
2. GMAT prep (aim to take test May 2022, score 730, (facing severe math anxiety).
3. September 2022 MBA early enrolment (LBS, INSEAD, HEC - currently exploring MBA and Scholarship options)

Hi

Appreciate your help !
Could you evaluate my profile for the Fall 2022/ Jan 2023 intake ?

Nationality :Indian
Gender : Female
GMAT : 730 (V41,Q49)
Undergraduate details : I have completed Btech. in Computer Science and Engineering in 2019 from a top 20 institute in India
GPA of 9.27/10 I was ranked 3rd in a class of 100
Extra curriculars at college:
1) Led the dramatics club at my college , performed award winning street-plays during this time
2) Organized a nation-wide event as a part of my college fest
3) I was involved in sports in college
4) I was also a part of the social justice club at college which basically focused on reducing inequalities among our community

Work Experience : 27 months at Fidelity Investments . I had one promotion till now. I work with United States counterparts. I was the only one responsible for an entire segment of my project from India. I am also involved in many cost cutting projects at this company.

Extracurriculars apart from work :
1) Apart from Work , I have started a small business from scratch for one of the poor family in India.
2) I also volunteered at an organization where we coached underprivileged youth for job interviews
3) I was also selected as one of the top 100 Youth Delegates at a global youth organization. As a Youth Delegate , I also helped organize and was a speaker at the 3 day Youth SDG summit during the United Nations Global goals week.
4) I am currently a Youth Delegate mentor at this organization mentoring 2-3 delegates of the current cohort of delegates.
5) I am also in the process of starting my own non-profit youth organization .We currently have 5 members on board.

My post MBA goals :
Short term goal : To gain enough knowledge and work as a product / project manager at A Tech Company
Long term goal : Start my own sustainable business focusing on social impact / Consulting startups focusing on social impact

I am looking at schools which accept a slightly lower work experience.
Schools which I was looking at :
1) Michigan Ross
2) UCLA
3) UC Berkeley
4) HEC Paris
5) Chicago Booth
6) Columbia Business School (I think this is too much of a stretch)
7) NUS
8) Northwestern kellog (I think this is too much of a stretch too)


Can you please evaluate my profile ?
Also I am not sure If I stand a chance at the schools I mentioned. I am not able to gauge my candidacy with respect to these schools. It would be very helpful if you could mention good schools in which I might have a ch

Hi ESTHERK,

Thank you for sharing these details. A 730 GMAT is a great target! Definitely something you should be focusing on now before applications open. Your work experience is on the lower end (most applicants have an average of 5 years, with typical range being 3-7 years of work exp.) so you will want to work on mitigating this in the application process, or perhaps waiting a year to apply.

You didn't mention your extracurriculars, but these will also be an important part of a well-rounded application. To strengthen your profile, I would consider enhancing your extracurricular profile. Are you involved in any volunteer work?

Feel free to send a note to scott@personalmbacoach.com to further discuss your school selection and application strategy. We also have personalized, one-on-one tutoring available. We regularly work with international folks targeting European schools and can certainly help here!

Hi SHRUJAL,

Thanks so much for this info. Sounds like you have strong undergraduate experience, which is a really great start. For the GMAT a 730 is good, score but you would be a much more competitive applicant for the schools you've listed if you were able to raise it 20-30 points (for overrepresented applicants, you'll usually want to aim for 20-30 points above the schools average), so if you're able to retake, that could be a great use of your time.

It' great that you've got some global experience in your role and you have a recognizable name like Fidelity. The duration of your work experience is a little low given most schools you've listed have an average of 5 years of work experience heading into the MBA. There are many ways to mitigate this when applying (such as more competitive GMAT), but you also may want to wait another year before applying to increase your chances (or you can always reapply if you're eager to apply this coming year and aren't offered a spot). It depends on your risk appetite.

Your extracurriculars good - great to start your own non-profit and bring in others that you can management - demonstrates leadership adcoms love to see.

Keep in touch and feel free to send a note to scott@personalmbacoach.com to further discuss your school selection and application strategy when you're ready. We have a lot of success with clients in India and could help you put together strong applications for your target schools.

Please help with my profile eval

Indian undergrad - 3.2/4
Masters in Computer science 3.7/4 - USA
Big 4 consulting experience - 7 years, total YOE - 12 - all in the US
Currently a Sr. Manager.
GMAT - 770
EMBA - Target Schools - Kellogg, Wharton, Sloan, Duke & Darden (everything on the east coast)
I worked in a few non-profits and assumed several roles such as President, Vice-President, Secretary, Cultural lead, etc. Some of the non-profits I associated with help poor kids with meals in less fortunate situations, help women in unsafe environments, etc. I always understand and believe in the cause before committing any time or $$. We did not have money to support ourselves, so I had to take a break during my undergrad, borrowed 1.5 lakhs from my uncle, started a wholesale stationery distribution company. Expanded my customer base from 125 stores to 400 stores in six months and increased the net capital to 4 lakhs within the first year. I was able to sell part of it for 4.5 lakhs and resume my undergrad. I had a full scholarship for a Master's with a TA starting on day 1.
For the last few years, I have been learning everything on the job, selling projects, strategizing the deals, large teams management, etc which is stressful. My goal is to continue in consulting and progress to the MD track. An MBA from an elite school will allow me to learn to develop and lead high-performing teams, create deeper/meaningful connections, expose me to the right network, and greatly benefit from the course/network.

Hi zoomer,

Thank you for sharing these details about your profile. Overall, from what you shared, your profile would be seen as strong for the target EMBA programs given your GMAT score and work experience. In terms of extracurriculars, it sounds like you have a good pool of volunteer experience to pull from.

We'd be excited to help you put together the best application possible for EMBA programs. One of our team members just recently left Columbia, where she oversaw recruitment strategy for their EMBA program and can advise here. Feel free to send a note to scott@personalmbacoach.com to further discuss your school selection and application strategy.

Also, tomorrow (Wednesday) evening, 8pm EST, we are hosting a free live webinar about considerations when applying to an EMBA program. You can register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/registe ... lonHTvJid7

I am a former med student who withdrew in good standing (in the first year) and have been interested in working in investment banking. I applied and was not selected for Equity Research Associate Biotechnology after an assignment. I think I can handle a career like this because I was straight-As in premed sciences and math.

I would like to get into a program right away to improve my career prospects. I don't qualify for a one year mba based on my short tenure at med school without being a degree- holder (I think) but I may be able to get a gmat waiver for a two year mba.

I am trying to decide between mba and law school.
Can you please help me weigh pros and cons or examine this.

If mba route I thought I would want to go into equity research but is it dull work? How hard is it to advance?

I seem to feel studying law in law school would be A LOT harder than the first year courses in mba school even finance related courses. I have taken since withdrawing from med school a mathematics for management course in which I received an "A".

Most importantly How hard is it to valuate companies, would I get stuck doing financial modeling forever and not advance , if I naively load up on finance courses for my mba will I have a hard time passing, etc? What are the career prospects for an honestly 30s female in equity research trying to make a mid course career correction?

And it's attractive to me to get the test waiver; however, I would still have to take lsat if I were to go that route


I would start by applying to one, MBA school in my area. I remember from the med school application that applying to just one is not great odds.

If you could also send advice for the GMAT waiver which is me expounding in an essay on how I can handle their rigors without taking the GMAT.

thanks!

I may as well add I worked as a research fellow for the NIH before attending medical school and since withdrawing from med school as an associate for a private equity firm mostly in new business development.

Hi mk0,

Thanks for reaching out! Have you considered a JD/MBA dual-degree? This would allow you to build your general management skills and legal expertise at once. A lot of the top schools offer these programs. That said, this will take longer to complete than the traditional 2-year full-time MBA program so that is something to consider.

Ultimately, I would think about what industry you really want to break into. Both law school and an MBA program will have a rigorous curriculum, so I would not base your decision on which will be harder.

As for a GMAT waiver, have you tried taking the exam? While of course waiving the test can be an option, securing a strong score can help you stand out from the applicant pool.

We would be happy to connect and learn more about your goals and personal/professional background. Personal MBA Coach regularly helps candidates choose the kind of program that best suits them through (school selection is a key component of our comprehensive support). Feel free to send a note to scott@personalmbacoach.com to further discuss your application strategy and learn how we can help set you up for success.

Best,
Personal MBA Coach

Hello Personal mba coach,

I would like to share a little bit about my journey,
I'm 33 yo, I have 8 years of experience in renewable energy in France.
I'm a non traditional undergrad, but I juste have finished a master degree with a top business school in France (Emlyon), in parallel with my work. I did that because I have planned to do an MBA in order to switch my career mainly in tech. Currently i work with my GMAT to get above 720.
Can I apply to a top MBA like HSW ? if not, What kind MBA will be the best fit for me.
But it's important for me to get a top MBA because, one day if I return in Europe I need that the MBA can help me outside of The US because of alumni network for example or other.

Thank you for your return .

We are excited to welcome back Personal MBA Coach at MBA Spotlight Fair. We will be conducting a chat session on Tuesday June 13th starting at 7 AM Pacific US Time for any Application or Profile questions. Please stop by this chat room: (just in case a link) mchat.php?room_id=50050363