Hi Aseem, how did the INSEAD final decision turn out for you. I have a profile somewhat similar to you, so just curious.

Awesome! Congrats!

Totally understand your thinking. In terms of the MBA, there is a bit of chicken and the egg (i will get an MBA and then I will see what I can do or I kind of know what I can do but I can't do until I get an MBA) but it does have a very clear goal (the more specific the better) when you enter an MBA program.

The tricky part with the Flex program (any PT MBA) is that you have to work while studying/getting your MBA and while it is still awesome, you wear yourself out over 3 years and recruiting is not very structured, rather networking and applying off campus, talking to alums, etc. This is fine when you are with 5 years of work experience but as someone with 10+, and you want to change industries, you are starting lower in another industry which can be awkward so having a plan is a good thing.

Getting a plan should be easy if you get a conversation going with a few Alums (or current students) who have similar plans/goals. After 2 calls/coffees with them, you should be pretty clear about your prospects, ROI, and opportunities. You should also chat with alums who have jobs to get a sense of what they have to say in retrospect...

Good luck!
BB

Congrats on your current position and professional achievements you have accomplished!
I would add Darden to your list of programs. They do well in IB for admissions and placement. PE is generally hard and has to be networked. There are are not that many positions that get filled each year and many of them happen from HSW and Booth/Kellogg/Sloan. I feel a pedigree and reputation would be important unless you are able to network your way in with your existing network. I am not sure how many alums from Simon or Georgetown are in PE.

Hi and welcome. You mentioned 50% and 25% scholarships. Is that what you are hoping for or? You set your status as deferred, does it mean you are already admitted and you were deferred?

Wow. You have a very unique and interesting profile. I think you have a fantastic story!
The only recommendation would be to connect/demonstrate how MBA will enable you to achieve your goal with nuclear energy. Perhaps go as far as think about what consulting companies or what energy companies you would look to work with, etc. You want to make sure Admissions sees you succeeding easily rather than trying to break into a very narrow field, failing, and potentially then being unhappy in the end. In other words, you want to demonstrate that your goals are rather achievable, that it can be done, and preferably show that it has been done.

P.S. Congrats on your IMD Interview Invite!

Wow. Amazing accomplishments! Congrats. Any chance you can bump your score a tiny bit? I feel 314 is low-enough to keep you from places such as GSB and Haas potentially and that would be a shame if something as silly as one number slows you down... I know you are shooting for R1. I would say save at least 1 target school for R2 and perhaps try to improve the score. I guess they can WL you too if they like everything except the score... anyway, that's the biggest potential weakness at this time.

By the 2024 intake I will have completed more than 4 years of work in the industry. Out of which nearly 22 months would be in Product Management.

That's an awesome position to be in for Product Management. Though I have no idea how ISB placement is but PM roles have been very popular and having background will make you a desired candidate. MBA can definitely help get a better/stronger and must better paid role. The only other element that would help is having a brand name on your resume. A name such as Amazon or another well known locally name would make recruiting a breeze.

Hey Ayush,

Your academics are good, but you havent mentioned you GRE/GMAT score and your ECs. At a preliminary glance, your career progression has been strong moving from an Engineer to a PM, which shows that you would have done well in these. ISB can be a great domestic option for PM roles within India, in your case that will be pretty much the only option in the domestic market as the IIM PGPx programs required a minimum of 5 years of work experience. My only advice will be to hedge your bets with some other schools (maybe international) along with the ISB application in case you are heavily inclined to pursue your MBA this year. I have seen some really good candidates get rejects at ISB purely due to some circumstances that were out of their control, hence will be prudent to not put all eggs in one basket and apply to a portfolio of schools.

All the best! Drop us a mail at info@thembaedge.com if you have any further questions.

Hi, hope you are doing well

Moving into Product pre-MBA, you demonstrate a genuine interest in the field, as well as your desire to develop skills and gain knowledge. To bolster your application, reflect on challenges you faced early in your stint as a PM and outline how you overcame them. Business schools evaluate applicants objectively.

A key point to explain in your application is why you need an MBA at this time to advance your career in product management (many PMs on fast-track careers do not choose to pursue an MBA). Think about situations where your limited understanding of business dynamics as a PM has impacted your work or hindered your interactions with business stakeholders. By reflecting on these instances honestly and authentically, you can emphasize how important an MBA degree is for you to excel as a product leader and successfully establish product-market fit. An MBA degree will provide you with the necessary business knowledge and a deep understanding of the needs of the marketplace. ISB surely has strong positioning in India's tech industry, but as you have completed 4 years of work experience, you could also consider IIM A, which is perhaps a legacy brand in India.

No mention of your ECs but remember, demonstrating a balanced right brain thinking is also important for techies.

Feel free to connect for applications strategy.

Aanchal Sahni (INSEAD alum, ex admissions interviewer)
MBAGuideConsulting
LinkedIn |WEBSITE: https://mbaguideconsulting.com/ | Message: +91 9971200927| email- mbaguideconsulting@gmail.com

Several strong points in your profile, including a unique blend of legal expertise and business acumen can be of great value in a variety of industries and leadership positions. With experience across several industries, you can showcase thought leadership in your domain during post-MBA pursuits, enhanced by your understanding of regulatory and compliance aspects of business management in the global context.

However, as you plan to move to a new geography post-MBA, your understanding of the kind of strategy consulting roles (or any roles you have in mind) you can leverage will be of high importance. Make sure you don't leave out to research the prospects and opportunities before you sit down to write the goals essays. Ideally having a Plan A and a Plan B will demonstrate you are a conscientious when it comes to your career.

GMAT will be critical to your application since the schools you are looking at are some of the most competitive. ​I often advise applicants on this forum to look at GMAT scores with the quantitative and verbal sections individually. Admissions committees evaluate your performance along with that of your peers (from your population group). A Q49+ score (>75th percentile) is considered good for overrepresented demographic groups at top business schools. If your quantitative score is near this value or you have exceeded this threshold, the admissions committee is confident that you can handle the academically demanding curriculum.
Your verbal score is more of a reflection of your ability to participate in discussions in a truly global and diverse cohort during your MBA.

Feel free to reach out for further advice regarding top B School applications.

Aanchal Sahni (INSEAD alum, ex MBA admissions interviewer)
MBAGuideConsulting
LinkedIn |WEBSITE: https://mbaguideconsulting.com/ | Message: +91 9971200927| email- mbaguideconsulting@gmail.com

I would highly recommend Darden and as a safety perhaps UNC - they have decent MBB though while some schools have solid numbers, that's more reflection of the students than the school. It is not like you can mess up an interview and still get in, no matter the program.

Also, I have seen a number of law background folks succeed in Bschool and I feel they are very welcome because of the background so as long as you can pull off a decent GMAT Score, I think you can consider even higher ranked programs.

P.S. I would probably skip Rotman... https://gmatclub.com/reviews/business_school/rotman-43 though it does not hurt to have it in the options to consider since visa is so easy after graduation compared to the US but I feel you can hang out in the US for 3 years on STEM OPT and work at MBB and then transfer to another office from the US after making US Salary and you can move to Canada and start there if your H1B does not work out for some reason. Canada pay is not great unfortunately and scholarships are never more than 50%.

P.S. Keep my honest MBA Guide

Thank you for your feedback. Darden is certainly one of the schools I really wish to convert. Additionally, the research clearly highlights applying for top raked programs will help career switch. The issue is with respect to identifying a good fit.

Hi. Congrats on getting Big4 name/brand on the resume - that's really helpful in recruiting and admissions.

If you are thinking about Finance, I would also recommend Johnson and Simon as 2 finance schools with a large finance Alum network. At the same time you will face some headwinds with the Indian Male Tech background.

P.S. I saw you put all schools except Tuck for R1, Tuck has options to do an interview if you apply by a certain date. While that means rushing an application, at the same time, getting an interview and going through that experience is quite valuable.... yet of course your average GMAT is below their average and likely quite a bit below their Indian Male average.

Hi Sayan,

Thanks for sharing your profile and MBA aspirations. My name is Priyanka, Client Manager at ARINGO.

You have a very interesting profile! From what I can see:

Academics/GMAT – GPA looks fine. If your class percentile is good, we suggest adding that information to your CV. While 680 is ok, it is just that a higher GMAT is expected from the overrepresented pool of candidates (Indian, Male)

Work Experience – Good brand names on your CV adds more value to your profile. We would like to know more about the impact of your work, promotions, international exposure, etc.

Extracurricular activities/Volunteer Work – Mention your hobbies. Any volunteering work?

Your career goals – Your career goals look fine. Your essays should talk about your passion for the finance sector and what you have done so far in that direction.

School list – Your school list is quite balanced 😊.

All in all, sounds like you have a good profile! If you send me your CV and other info on PRIYANKAK@ARINGO.com, I would love to connect you with our CEO who will be happy to help further with a detailed review and perhaps work together on some amazing apps.

All the best.

Hey Sayan,

Unfortunately 680 wont make the cut for the schools that you have shortlisted for applications. Most of these schools would have a median GMAT ranging from 700-730 and being from an over represented pool the adcoms would expect that you have a higher GMAT. Additionally, just want to be a little realistic in terms of career aspirations, see after 7 years (which is on the higher side) industry pivots become increasingly more difficult and hence you will need to demonstrate a far superior level of research to convince potential recruiters to get you on board. I see that you really good tech experience (particularly on the Risk side which is not very common) so is there any particular reason that you want to change industries? Please don't follow the herd and go after the money as most fresh MBAs tend to leave I-banking jobs within 3 years due to the lifestyle and monotony.
Would recommend that you think harder and research more prior to taking a final call to apply, just FYI the reapplication will be much tougher to crack so take your time figure out your motivation and then maybe proceed with the applications.

Drop us a line at info@thembaedge.com if you want to have a more detailed conversation regarding your situation both from work and career standpoint.

Awesome profile and great goals! It is great you have been able to bounce back after setbacks with COVID, etc. This is a big welcome sign for the AdCom as they can see resilience and perseverance. These are very important at school where they are many setbacks, failed interviews, and opportunities.

I think the IMPACT investing is an awesome goal. At the same time, Impact PE and IB are very competitive fields. There are not many funds and the people who want to work there are often retired and very wealthy and so there is no lack of candidates and the number of MBA positions is scarce. I think this is a great long-term goal (and potentially even a goal right after bschool) but I would do your research among the Impact investment firms to make sure they are actually hiring, have positions, and they are feasible for someone graduating from Columbia, HEC, ISB, etc. You want to do that research in a few ways (e.g. just search for impact firms but better connect with a few students to see what they recommend. You can find an ambassador on their website and ping them). P.S. We did a Columbia application walkthrough session last week with a consultant and new student - highly recommend it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZHhfMEVZcc

-BB

Hi MPD_22,

Thanks for sharing your profile and MBA aspirations. My name is Priyanka, Client Manager at ARINGO.

You have a lot going on in your profile which makes it unique and interesting. Both your GPA and GMAT are strong- Good job!

Your career goals look fine as this is a logical extension of what you are doing presently. I think your current role and work experience are very relevant for an MBA. I would like to know more about your managerial experience, did you have any promotions and if you have any international exposure, but all in all your professional experience is good and relevant 😊.

I would like to know more about other factors like hobbies, community work experience, etc. I really feel that with your current profile and some kick-ass applications (we can help with that), you will get into one of the schools!

If you send me your CV and other info on PRIYANKAK@ARINGO.com, I would love to connect you with our CEO who will be happy to help further with a detailed review and perhaps work together on some amazing apps.

All the best

Hi MPD_22

you show signs of a true hustler. Very impressive indeed.

Impact investing can require significant effort to transition and may not be possible to attain immediately post-MBA, especially in a new geographic context since I see some American schools on your target list. It is important to be realistic about your goals and strategically communicate them to the admissions committee. You will have to tailor your goals depending on the school and geography, and how soon can you achieve them.

To further underscore your interest in impact consulting, you can demonstrate your motivation to grow by, for example, interning during 2 year MBA, participating in projects, or shadowing industry leaders in entry-level positions (having some prior experience adds a lot of value). Even if you don't have much experience in this area, showcasing your willingness to go the extra mile significantly bolsters the credibility of your aspirations.

At the same time, practicality is important. For example, it's imperative that you demonstrate your intimate knowledge of the current state of the impact investment industry in the geographic region you're targeting and, if applicable, present your network in this area. As a result, business schools expect a realistic assessment of how your background can strategically position you in the impact industry, specifically for a particular sector or region.

To be honest, given the current rigor in the impact investment space in India, I think it can be a very viable goal for applying to ISB or IIM A. However, for US schools you must research further.

Overall, I see much potential in your profile, but you must connect the dots to present a strong case to the top B Schools.

You are also a strong candidate for Top European/EU schools such as INSEAD , HEC and LBS.

Best wishes

Aanchal Sahni (INSEAD alum, ex INSEAD MBA admissions interviewer)
MBAGuideConsulting
LinkedIn |WEBSITE: https://mbaguideconsulting.com/ | Message: +91 9971200927| email- mbaguideconsulting@gmail.com

Hey MPD_22,

Hard luck with your entrepreneurial and consulting stint, rejection can be heart breaking but also an avenue to showcase your ability to bounce back and come out stronger. B schools love candidates who have gone through rejections / failures and have shown grit and determination to come out as better persons from these challenges. You have some great stories to talk about in your applications.

Coming to your profile, you have good academics and a decent GMAT score which will be a positive on the academic aptitude front. Your work ex also falls in the underrepresented industries so that will be a positive since you will be avoiding the overrepresented pools of the MBA applications. Your short term goals maybe your biggest challenge since in the US market there are handful of opportunities on the Investing side for international students leave alone Impact Investing will be a further niche within that broader bucket. Also, most of the firms that do Impact Investing will be on the smaller size and hence wont have the resources to sponsor international students and liase with US immigration to keep you in the country in the short term. Having said that you can think about Sustainability Consulting which is a new focus area for a lot of big and small consulting firm and they will definitely see your value add in their teams. We have worked with multiple clients who have gone down the route since its an expanding space within the broader consulting industry.

Outside the US, the EU will be a great fit from a career standpoint given their aggressive stance towards net Zero and furthering the ESG mandate within the EU countries. IMD, will probably be a really good bet from that standpoint along with LBS and INSEAD. But please remember that opportunities within EU will be fairly limited since its smaller market and that constrained by language issues, but you can definitely target some opportunities in UK, Middle East and more English speaking EU countries. Since the visa constrains are no that big of a hurdle in EU, you can even end up with some boutique and niche firms who are looking very seriously at Sustainability theme.

Hope that helps? In case you have any further questions, drop us a mail at info@thembaedge.com.

All the best for the upcoming application cycle.

Congrats on the profile. I think you have good profile and a good choice of schools. INSEAD also has a brand new MiM program but not MiF I believe and LSE potentially.

P.S. I would recommend sticking with the school close to the location you want to work in. E.g. If it is Paris then French and Paris-based programs would be best as they would have the strongest pull for your alum network and local jobs.

Good Luck!
BB

Hey, did you accept the offer?

Hi , what type of scholarship you got? Is it merit based or something else ? Thanks

You have got a solid profile with some really goo ECs. The experience scaling from 0 to 1 and eventually 100 will be really impressive from a business school point of view and thus you will be positioned quite well from a work experience point of view. The challenge with your profile will be the GMAT score which is below median for the Indian application pool, given your strong profile will advice you to retake the exam and target 40-50 points higher ideally above 740 to have a strong shot at these schools. The GMAT score may be the sole lacking aspect in your profile which can be worked upon.

Do you have a network or folks you know in Europe? Curious why you picked Europe? Will you hav a relationship or a partnership or connection for your own venture there down the road?

Not particularly; I did lead the market expansion of our products into the EU and the middle eastern zone (I know a good amount of people here), but that goes for US/Canada. The reason is personnel; I am married with visa restrictions in the US my partner will have a hard time. I have already connected with people from consulting; I understand the tradeoffs of working from a non-us consulting office.

And yes, I am writing the GMAT again targetting 750+

Since you are an early career candidate, all three career options look viable, will need a little more work ex details to figure the best fit your profile. 720 is a good GMAT for ISB and you should be in a good position from the application pool point of view. Put in a good application with clarity in your career goals and how ISB can help you achieve them.

All the best!

Most EMBA programs are part time where they require you to work along with attending classes either over the weekends or weekdays in the evening. Sadly the EMBAs dont tend to be full residential programs and hence arent able to sponsor visas for international students to attend them. You can look at other alternatives within the segment such as Stanford MSx, MIT Sloan Fellows (both would require above 10 years of work ex) or look at some European MBA options which tend to cater to a more senior cohort. Kellogg has a 1 year FT MBA which is targeted towards folks who have already completed their first MBA.

Your work ex looks good as ISB is known to recruit candidates with PSU experience and help them with private sector opportunities. Consulting will be a good bet post the ISB PGP since the program is known to be a feeder to top tier Consulting firms within India, alternatively you could also explore roles with top Indian Conglomerates as a part of their Leadership Development Program (think Adani, Mahindra, Aditya Birla etc.). Same will be true for IIMs as well although have seen fairly more robust recruitment for ISB from a Consulting standpoint.
Would suggest a threshold score of 720+ to have a competitive shot at these schools.