Hi @deadeyes01
Thanks for sharing your profile.

To put it quite honestly, you’re at the lower end of the typical work ex requirement, even though you have a good GPA and work background. At this point, only ISB will be a viable option but any other B-School will require more work ex. Would suggest you wait another year to apply. Till then, scale up the work you’re doing and continue working on global projects (helps a lot at INSEAD).

As for you’re score, you’re on a good track scoring in the 700s. A higher score helps a lot with scholarships as well.

We’d love to offer a free 1-on-1 profile evaluation to discuss how you can build your profile and any other queries you may have.

Feel free to reach out to us at the coordinates below!
Phone/WhatsApp No: +91 88502 49409
Website: https://thembaedge.com/

Warm regards,
The MBA Edge Team

You have a strong early-career profile. The challenge is timing rather than profile strength: with only ~2 years of work experience by the time you apply, INSEAD and LBS will see you on the younger side for the MBA, where the average is closer to 5–6 years, and they prefer applicants who already have significant leadership and ownership experience. ISB is the most realistic among your three targets because it is more open to younger candidates, especially from consulting and FS backgrounds, and a GMAT in the 700 range will put you in a competitive position there. If your long-term goal is venture capital, then you have two strategic paths:

(1) continue with the MBA and strengthen your story by getting deal exposure, startup evaluation, investment thesis work, or fundraising strategy experience over the next 12–18 months,

or (2) consider programmes that are better suited for earlier-career and VC-focused candidates such as the MiM / Masters in Finance / Masters in Financial Analysis at LBS, HEC, ESSEC, ESADE, or INSEAD MIM, where your profile would be very strong and placement into VC/startups is more structured. You don’t have to switch away from the MBA, but if you’re flexible, exploring specialised programs could make the path to VC smoother and reduce the pressure of competing with applicants who have 4–7 years of experience.

If the MBA remains your first choice, the best way to increase your odds over the next year is to build concrete, quantifiable leadership stories at the fintech startup and gain even small exposure to investment / startup evaluation, as these will help you present a clear and credible pivot story to admissions and to VC recruiters post-MBA. Overall, you’re off to a very strong start, you just need to be intentional about either positioning or program choice based on how soon you want to move into VC.