Calling all INSEAD MBA Applicants: (January 2017 Intake) Class of 2017

We decided to analyse our accumulated forum data of INSEAD applicants to determine admission trends and acceptance chances of applicants. We have tried to determine acceptance chances by GMAT score, Intakes, industry, etc. and compare performance of GMAT Club applicants with overall applicant pool. The data used for this analysis is self-reported, so it's advised to use findings of this analysis only to get idea of admission scenario at INSEAD. Don't presume that these findings will hold true all the time.

We would welcome any comments, opinions, suggestions or anything else that you might have to say about the findings of this analysis.

INSEAD vs GMATClub Applicant Pool: YoY Comparison
	2012 Intake		2013 Intake		2014 Intake		2015 Intake		2016 Intake
	School	GMAT Club	School	GMAT Club	School	GMAT Club	School	GMAT Club	School	GMAT Club
Acceptance Rate	N/A	37%	N/A	27%	N/A	26%	N/A	25%	N/A	18%
Average GMAT	N/A	724	N/A	710	701	710	700	708	700	709
Average GPA	N/A	3.45	N/A	3.49	N/A	3.46	N/A	3.5	N/A	3.46
Avg Work Experience	60 - 72	67	60 - 72	71	72	68	66	66	72	64
Average Age	29	29	29	29	29	28	29	28	29	28

January and September Intakes: Applicants and Acceptance Rates

• Both the acceptance rate and number of applicants are higher for Sept intake.
  
• R2 and R3 have highest probability of acceptance than other rounds.
  
• R1 is greatest round in terms of number of applicants.

Sample Size: 1907 Applicants

Acceptance Rate by GMAT Score

• As expected, acceptance chances increase with higher GMAT scores; however, this holds true only upto 730 level, after which we can see some decrease in the acceptance chances of applicants with GMAT scores 740 and 750. We observed similar trend during the analysis of ISB applicants as well.

Sample Size: 838 Applicants

Acceptance Rates of Different Age Groups GMAT Score

• Greatest portion of INSEAD's applicant pool is coming from 28-30 age group and this group also has highest chance of admission. This is not very surprising because average age of INSEAD's incoming class has always stayed around 28 - 29.

Sample Size: 358 Applicants

Acceptance rates by Countries

• For this analysis, we have considered only those countries that have relatively higher number of INSEAD applicants on forum. We have not chosen the countries with less than 15 applicants.
  
• We have also shown the difference between average GMAT of overall applicant pool of a specific country and average GMAT of admitted students of that country.

Sample Size: 610 Applicants

Acceptance rates of applicants from various industries

• The first chart - line chart - shows acceptance rates of applicants from various industries and the pie chart next to it shows industri-wise allocation of applicants.

Sample Size: 784 Applicants

Incoming Class of INSEAD

• Here we have done industry-wise classification of students admitted between 2012 and 2016 to see representation of various industries in an average INSEAD MBA class.

Sample Size: 784 Applicants



As I said earlier, we welcome your views, counterviews, suggestions, etc on the analysis. Thank you!
_________________

Thank you for setting this up, Narenn. I'm applying for the Jan '17 intake and am looking forward to interacting with my fellow applicants!

Hi,

I'm looking forward to apply for R1. My GMAT is coming up (11-Jan) and I'm still deciding on a second reference. I'll be working on drafting the essays during the holidays when I'm in Colombia. I printed the questions a while back and was brainstorming couple of weeks ago.

These are exciting times

Any applicants from Canada?

Hello Guys,

I am applying for the class beginning Jan 2017. Indian working in Shanghai, China handling a Asia Pacific zone role comprising 14 countries. Working with a FMCG major. Around 5.5 years of WE by the time i apply. Mainly worked in Operations and Supply Chain.

GMAT score -690, GRE score 324.
3 promotions in my 4.5 years of work experience so far.

Hoping for the best.

Regards,

Hi ,

Can you let me know where can i find the essay questions ?

Thanks

Hello everybody,
Quick question: do full-time internships count as work experience? I did three 6-month internships in banks (M&A and Private Equity) and wondering whether to include those 1,5 years in the work experience.
Thanks for your replies!

Hi,

Google: INSEAD Application Download or start an online application and print it.

Good luck!

Hi, I would ask INSEAD's admissions team for clarification on critical questions.

This is a quote from mbamission website: "...if you are asked on an application how many months of work experience you will have prior to matriculating, you should simply answer honestly. If you have any gray areas or are unsure about any aspect of your professional experience as it pertains to your application, you can always call the admissions office for guidance. "

I know the R1 deadline is in March, but does it mean they only start conducting interviewing after R1 deadline?

Yes, from my understanding, schools only start interviews after the application deadline. My knowledge only extends as far north american schools but I believe other schools such as Insead and LBS also follow this protocol.

How is everyone else finding the questions? I'm having difficulty thinking of topics to write about in the cultural diversity section. I was born in India while living there I have also spent some time in Iraq. However, grade 5 and on I have been in Canada. I'm just really sure what to talk about? Any thoughts?

Hello! I hold BSc (hons) in Applied Accounting from Oxford Brookes University. I am an ACCA Affiliate. I was able t include my BSc (hons) in the application,however ACCA was not mentioned there. Could anyone please walk me through this and tell me how to mention ACCA there?


PS The equivalent (and parallel) bodies are mentioned there (such as CIMA etc.).

Hi all,

I was considering this intake, but I've heard INSEAD won't take older applicants. I'll be turning 33 by the time I start the program and I'm afraid that could be a reason for them to not accept me. Has anyone heard anything about age being a determining factor?

hugdor, from who did you hear such a thing?

Did you see the class age profile posted online? 15% over 31 years old.

Hey Guys,

In the process of applying, currently toiling away on my essays.

Here's my profile:
Data: 29, male, French
GMAT: 720 - 67% in Quant, 96% in verbal
TOEFL: Not received yet, should not be an issue
Previous Education: Masters in business from a top 10 French Business School (top 30% of the class, nothing impressive, must say grades weren't a big focus point for me at the time)
Work experience: 5-6 years in a global FMCG based in Cincinnati, in supply chains and operations, planning role in the first 4 years in both France and Geneva, and Warehouse leader in the past 1.5 year in Germany. Managing a team of 66 people. Promotion ahead of peer group, and included in high potential program.
Recommendation letter: Both should be very good, and coming from my former director and current plant manager.
International experience: Changed country every 3-4 years when growing up, notably spent 2 years in UK, and 4 years in the US. Worked in France, Switzerland, and Germany so far. Speak French/English fluently, German to a good working level, and Spanish at a decent level (Lived 3 months in Madrid and 3 months in Mexico DF).

I do have a question on the essays, after consulting with one of my old colleagues who did INSEAD (now mckinsey) he suggested I use a professional service to review and proofread the essays. Apparently it is something that is commonly done by applicants. Any suggestion on this one, seems expensive for a proofread, but if it really brings added value to the application then it is a small price to pay. Any recommended service to use?

cheers,

We are delighted to inform you that we have organized a chat session with Caroline Diarte Edwards, Director at Fortuna Admissions (former Director of Admissions at INSEAD) and Melissa Jones, Expert Admissions Coach at Fortuna Admissions (former Assistant Director at INSEAD).

Caroline and Melissa will dialogue with applicants in GMAT Club chat room on general admission questions and provide tips on getting into INSEAD. This is best opportunity for you all to learn about INSEAD's admission process from its former admission directors. So save this event to your Google Calendar and present in the chat room with your questions.

Date: February 11, 2016. Thursday
Time: 9 AM PST (5 PM GMT)
Place: GMAT Club Chat Room https://gmatclub.com/gchat/

_________________

hi kiura, you have a strong profile. I guess you're set for the three languages requirement

I am not sure where you're located, but I scoured some local classifieds such as craigslist or kijiji and I found tutors/professional essay writers that review and proofread essays. I never used their services, but definitely a low cost alternative.

Can't any of your Mckinsey colleagues proofread and gauge how well the topics are addressed?

Using a professional service is entirely up to you. I didn't use one and simply got family members to proofread and check that the essays did "sound like me" and I got accepted to INSEAD. INSEAD really wants to know who you are, whether you've really thought about your career and have a clear idea of where you want to go with an MBA (very important due to the short length of the program), and whether or not you'll fit with their culture. As long as your story comes through and you have a strong profile (which you do), using a professional service is entirely optional. Personally, I feel that professional services are usually more tailored towards American schools where they're looking for extra polish/marketing glean because everyone else is doing it (so you need to as well to keep up).

For European schools, I would use a professional service if a)you really don't have much of a story to tell b) you're in an over-represented group or c) if you're not very confident in your writing/story-telling abilities. In these 3 scenarios you'd probably find you'll get more of your money's worth.

Good luck!

I totally agree with xyeek.

I bought two books "Great Applications for Business School" and "The MBA Application roadmap". These books are okay but I think the focus is more on US people.
I didn't like the suggested application/essay/writing style because it is too dramatic, too shiny and not objective....from my (European) point of view.
But to get a first impression about the whole process they are absolutely ok and a good investment.

The authors of the books also provide consulting service. I think if I would had used them as consultants to write my application, my application wouldn't represent the real "me".
For me it is important that my application shows my person and my achievments. Similar to xyeek I talked to friends and colleagues to ask them about my failures, strenghts, etc. so that I had an outside opinion.

Hi,

I am applying for Jan 17 intake of INSEAD and looking forward to discuss the application process, etc with fellow candidates.
My GMAT score is 740 and am applying for 1-year MBAs only.

Interested to see what other options are being considered by others in score range 700-750 for 1-year MBA.

BTW I am an Indian working as a management consultant with a big consulting firm. 7 years of work exp. Other than India, I have worked in Singapore, Saudi Arabia, and Australia.