Can I use Travel Entrepreneurship as my long term goal?

Question

Hi All,

I am 24 M, Indian, and I have software engineering experience of 2 years. I am applying to T-15 schools for 2025 intake.
I have always been interested in travel business, and I want to be a tech-travel entrepreneur in the future.
Should I write that as a long term goal?

I have recently started a travel website (more like a blog currently) with a friend since about 6 months, and it has started to help some people who use it. It's not monetized yet, and I plan to monetize it once I get a healthy inflow of users.

I have a good undergrad, good GMAT and good quality of work experience.

What I have thought till now is:
Short term goal: Tech Consulting ; As this will help me learn the relevant business skills and WE out of school, and which I can use later in my venture. Tech specifically because it makes getting the job more realistic due to my prior WE. Consulting because it seems the most realistic option for a person with 3 YoE at matriculation. 
 
Some of my questions are: 
Does my tech experience and my travel website prove to the AdComs that this long term career vision is justified?
Will they have questions like:
1. This travel website is small, and as I dont have any travel industry experience, I wont be able to do it.
2. If I already have something started, why do you want to do an MBA? (To gain skills, to network and have business experience?)
3. Also, travel entrepreneurship doesn't logically flow from tech consulting, any way I can improve it?

Please suggest improvements to this story!

PS. Please don't say I should wait one more year before applying, I am not willing to wait 2 years till I start my MBA.

MBAandBeyond · Answer

Hello,  optimisticorm

With two years of software engineering experience, you have a solid foundation for your future goals. Though currently a blog, your travel website demonstrates initiative and passion for the travel industry. However, focus on its impact to strengthen your story for T-15 schools. Quantify user growth or positive feedback to showcase its value.

Your combined goals—short-term consulting for business skills and long-term travel entrepreneurship - present a clear career path. Addressing potential concerns, highlight transferable skills gained from your website, such as marketing or analytics. Explain how an MBA will provide the financial knowledge and leadership training needed to launch your travel business idea.

Bridge the gap between technology and travel. Show how your tech skills can improve travel experiences or streamline operations. Research trends and successful startups to demonstrate your travel industry knowledge.

By framing yourself as a tech-savvy individual with a vision for the travel industry and using data to quantify your accomplishments, you can create a compelling story for T-15 schools. Focus on the intersection of technology and travel throughout your application, showcasing your passion and research efforts. This will help you stand out as a strong candidate for their program this year.

Let's connect to have a detailed analysis of your profile   Click here to schedule a complimentary profile evaluations session with our experts  . We match you with the students and alums of top B-Schools according to your background and target schools.

MBAGuide · Answer

optimisticorm you dissuaded us from reminding you about your low experience but I cannot help doing just that because that is said for a reason (your username suits you, by the way

).Ok, so about the more serious things—The adcoms look at your past actions and hold them as proof of what you are likely to do in the future. For evaluating a very young candidate, just imagine the point of view the adcoms will be coming from. They will obviously think that the person is less experienced and therefore may have less clarity regarding long-term goals. A long-term goal in travel tech might seem alright if you talk very passionately about this new side project you have started. But the problem will come when you focus more on the "entrepreneurship" part than on elaborating on what kind of tech opportunities you would want to explore in the next 3-8 years in the USA and why. When you use the word entrepreneurship in the "travel" space, the word travel registers with the adcoms very quickly. Then they will start worrying about whether the school will be able to put you on the right path to success rather than saying, "Omg, I know exactly which of our partner recruiters would love to hire this person." You cannot expect the school to be okay with you saying, "Hey, I want to become a travel tech entrepreneur, but post-MBA I will just take any tech job that I can land." Your passion has to be more than that. Think, what companies can give you an opportunity in an area where you can gradually start to move toward your long-term goals. Also, explain why a company like that would need a person just like you. People who are struggling the most in finding post-MBA jobs are those who have generalist skills and no unique skill sets or vision that is of value to specific companies. Best wishes Aanchal Sahni (INSEAD MBA alumna, former INSEAD MBA admissions interviewer) Founder, MBAGuideConsulting LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/aanchal-sahni-83b00819/ |WEBSITE: https://mbaguideconsulting.com/ | Message(WA): +91 9971200927| email- mbaguideconsulting@gmail.com

optimisticorm · Answer

MBAGuide  thank you for talking realistically.

Some things I don't understand is:

1. If a candidate has 2 YoE at the time of application, they are termed as young and unfit to know their long term goals. But with 3 YoE, just one additional year, they are seemed fit to know their aspirations? I don't understand this discrepancy.

2. If I talk very enthusiastically about my project, like in terms that this is the only thing I want to do, don't I have the risk of putting the 'Why MBA' question in their minds? They will think, why does this candidate want to come to the USA and pursue an MBA, when they can simply have stuff done in India.

3. And in my goals, I never mentioned recruiting for the travel sector. I mentioned Tech consulting, not any tech related POST-MBA role. That is because, consulting gives you the business exposure in many different sectors, and tech consulting as it is easier for an engineer to recruit into, rather than general consulting.

Looking forward to your inputs.

MBAGuide · Answer

Great questions! 1. If a candidate has 2 YoE at the time of application, they are termed as young and unfit to know their long term goals. But with 3 YoE, just one additional year, they are seemed fit to know their aspirations? I don't understand this discrepancy. I do not know where you get the idea that adcoms consider people with 3 years of experience (at the time of application) to be experienced enough to have a mature perspective on their future plans. Just as the average GMAT of Indian applicants is probably the highest of all pools, the average experience also tends to be higher than that of the class as a whole. A candidate would have to do exceptionally well in all areas—academics and GMAT, co-curricular activities, community initiatives and career growth progression — to get through T15 USA with only three years of experience. As I have said many times on this platform, MBA cohorts are put together year after year on a bell curve. Adcom officers have a good idea of how many people at the lower end of the spectrum they can accommodate. In this case, expectations are naturally high. 2. If I talk very enthusiastically about my project, like in terms that this is the only thing I want to do, don't I have the risk of putting the 'Why MBA' question in their minds? They will think, why does this candidate want to come to the USA and pursue an MBA, when they can simply have stuff done in India. You are right. I have discouraged so many candidates this year from applying to US B schools because they wanted to become entrepreneurs soon after the MBA, some even right after the MBA. Some of them even had goals to set up companies in the Indian agri space, which we know is a highly nuanced area, so learning by doing things in India is a more obvious choice (even from the US adcoms' point of view unless you can convince them otherwise). What I am trying to say is that people should evaluate whether the US even makes sense for their goals. And if you don’t know what you want to do in the long term, that is alright too. If you only believe that you want to experience life in the US, then you can focus more on what kind of opportunities you will seek post-MBA and why (from a skill-building perspective), and refrain from putting emphasis on entrepreneurial dreams in whatever space if you cannot connect them well with the short-term trajectory post-MBA. Consulting is a broader area, so you are right. But again, consulting goals are so generic and everybody writes them that unless you dive deep into what kind of consulting projects (and why) you will do, you are unlikely to impress the adcoms. 3. And in my goals, I never mentioned recruiting for the travel sector. I mentioned Tech consulting, not any tech related POST-MBA role. That is because, consulting gives you the business exposure in many different sectors, and tech consulting as it is easier for an engineer to recruit into, rather than general consulting. Answered above Best wishes Aanchal Sahni (INSEAD MBA alumna, former INSEAD MBA admissions interviewer) Founder, MBAGuideConsulting LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/aanchal-sahni-83b00819/ |WEBSITE: https://mbaguideconsulting.com/ | Message(WA): +91 9971200927| email- mbaguideconsulting@gmail.com

TheRedPen · Answer

Hi  optimisticorm ,

The admissions committee looks for applicants with an average of 3-5 years of work experience as it helps them maintain diversity in their cohort. Having said that, you have quite a strong base with your undergraduate degree and work experience which might help you grow your venture.

To answer your questions, 
1) The admissions committee will look for strong work experience relevant to your short and long-term goals to showcase your knowledge, skills, and interest levels.

3) You can work your profile by upscaling, doing certifications, and so on, relevant to your industry. This will help Adcoms realize your growing interest in the field and eventually help secure a seat at your dream school.

You can  schedule a free cal l with our experts or connect over a call at +91 7780769732

Can I use Travel Entrepreneurship as my long term goal?

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