Columbia Profile Evaluation - Tools for B-School Profile Evaluation

Hi everyone.
I would love to get my profile evaluated.

Background:
IT Engineer Male Indian

Education
10th grade : 93%
12th grade: 94.75%
CGPA: 8.6 ( Manipal Institute of Technology)
GMAT: 700

Work Experience:
2 years in Cisco. Worked as a software developer/scrum master for an important Cisco service used in 180 countries and generating an annual revenue of 6 Billion.
3 month Internship in Istanbul: Was stuck there when the military coup took place. Lots of good stories around that.
Founder of a startup in college. Got multiple contracts from various hotels and universities.

Extra- Curricular Activities:
Cisco Intern Ambassador : Point of contact between 240+ Cisco Interns and the management. Worked with them to improve the internship experience.
Vice-President, Indian Society for Technical Education : Led a team of 200+ to organize events in college
Category Head,Technical Fest : Made improvements to the events to improve participation by 50% to 1200 people. Led a team of 100+.
Worked at an NGO (MAD) for 2+ years as a mentor training volunteers. Responsible for the curriculum planning of 14 teachers and overall study schedule of 60+children.
Various performance awards at work.
State-level Swimmer.
Vice-President of my school.

Post MBA goals

Product Management/ Consulting

Background and nationality:
Asian-American immigrant, underprivileged upbringing

Undergrad Information:
Non-Target undergrad (think Vanderbilt, Notre Dame, Boston College) 3.2 GPA, Finance

GMAT: 740 (Q49, V42)

Work experience and leadership:
1 year at a boutique recruitment firm as a headhunter (generated $145,000 in revenue)
2 years at Morgan Stanley (sales/operations), 3 years on enrollment
FINRA Series 7 & 66 Licenses

Community and others
Associate Board member of a Korean-American nonprofit foundation

Post MBA goals
Investment Banking - Financial Institutions

Story:
First story I can think of is moving to the US when I was 5 years old, and eating instant noodles off a cardboard box with my family. Saw the hardships that the immigrant community faces. Earned a degree in finance, with a below-average GPA of 3.2. Took a role in sales for the possibility of high compensation, found it extremely unrewarding but achieved good results. Leveraged those sales results and my Finance degree to land a position at Morgan Stanley in Wealth Management. Been here for 2 years supporting a team with $1B in AUM, mostly responsible for financial planning, relationship management, and operations. Volunteered with a Korean-American nonprofit for a year, then joined its Associate Board a year ago. Responsible for fundraising, recruitment, and promoting awareness; can speak to results.

Looking to obtain an MBA to pivot to investment banking, where I have the sales aptitude and the finance background to break in, if I can recruit at a top MBA.

Applying to the likes of CBS, Booth, Wharton, Stern, and Johnson.

Would love to hear some thoughts!

Hi dac217,

Your profile looks great. Though you have a lower GPA, you already have compensated for it through your GMAT, so it should not be a huge roadblock for you. Your work experience seems impactful in terms of quantifiables, but remember you will need to speak more than quantity as to how you have tackled this and this difficult situation and how it impacted the people in your organization. Your community experience does give an idea of a leader in you and your post-MBA goals seem relevant. Overall, your background story seems powerful, and provided that you present your story well-connected and impactful (will need to work harder on this to have a chance at Columbia), NYU and Johnson should be your safety schools. I think you should keep Columbia, Booth, and Wharton in the category of reach schools and decide some target schools as well. We are happy to discuss schools according to your profile and your chances at them and would love to hear your story . Feel free to book a free session with us as per your convenience.

Cheers!
Kashish Garg,
Community Manager, MBA and Beyond

On behalf of,
Shantanu Sharma,
Founder and Admissions Consultant, MBA and Beyond
Email: shantanu@mbaandbeyond.com
Linkedin

With more than 8 years of experience spanning across entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship, Shantanu has worked across the globe as a Procurement Manager, Product Manager (Marketing, Operations, Payments and Risk/ Fraud), Growth Consultant, eventually unraveling his love for helping candidates with their MBA application as a Coach. Shantanu started coaching applicants, with his team, right after he graduated from INSEAD in 2017.

Hi sbeborth,

Your undergrad GPA is slightly on the lower side but with a STEM background and a good GMAT, that should not pose a huge problem (assuming you present the strongest of your profile in your applications). For your decision of applying this year, I would need to know more about your work experience like what roles you undertook then about your promotions and if you have had any leadership experiences, or are there stories of impact in your work? All these things are greatly factored in while deciding your chances at a top program like Columbia. Your ECs seem decent and yes, here, if you wait for another year, you may have another plus in your profile for the growth of your own startup (assuming it grows). Your post-MBA goals are making sense and maybe if we have a discussion, I can frame a better picture of your goals. We are delighted to hear your story and would love to guide you. Feel free to book a free session with us as per your convenience.

Cheers!
Kashish Garg,
Community Manager, MBA and Beyond

On behalf of,
Shantanu Sharma,
Founder and Admissions Consultant, MBA and Beyond
Email: shantanu@mbaandbeyond.com
Linkedin

With more than 8 years of experience spanning across entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship, Shantanu has worked across the globe as a Procurement Manager, Product Manager (Marketing, Operations, Payments and Risk/ Fraud), Growth Consultant, eventually unraveling his love for helping candidates with their MBA application as a Coach. Shantanu started coaching applicants, with his team, right after he graduated from INSEAD in 2017. Have a look at his success stories and some real essays of his clients

Hi Everyone,

I am a 31 yr old Indian Male living in the US for past 9 years with 8+ years of industry experience.

GMAT 730 (Q49, V40, I7)

Education:
Bachelor of Engineering in Mechatronics from Manipal Institute of Technology (GPA 8.73/10.0) was second in my class.

Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering
Master of Science in Engineering & Technology Innovation Management
Both from Carnegie Mellon University (GPA 3.6/4.0)

Work Ex:
- Failed Edtech Startup Entrepreneur. Tried launching an Edtech platform that leverages AR Technology to aid classroom teaching and improve student engagement. Got great reviews on the prototype/ product but could not achieve scale.
- Launched 10+ successful products in a myriad of industries ranging from consumer kitchen appliances and medical devices to food automation and textiles.
- Worked in product design firms, startups and small companies in the US where it is hard to show career progression in form of promotions.

Extracurriculars:
- Helped improve rice harvest productivity in my family owned land at my ancestral village with a low cost portable automation system.
- Vice Captain of a minor league hard tennis ball Cricket Team.
-Have a lot more from college days but its been several years since I graduated from it and hence not mentioning it here.

Interests:
Sports – Watch and play most sports
Social Welfare Causes – especially Education and Animal Welfare


Post MBA Goals:
I would like to either join the social sector of consulting firms or the Social Impact group of companies like Google and Amazon to drive the strategy and implementation of solutions to social problems.

Thank you for your time.

Hello TravellingGunner,
Your GMAT score may be little low for Columbia, especially given you are from a competitive demographic.
I like the fact that you have been able to increase farm production at your ancestral village and you can definitely connect this to a broader theme of agricultural challenges in India, more so if you have been able to use your innovation to help people around your village too, or if it has generated a broader impact. Nonetheless, your achievement sounds great in itself, but has to be presented in a context, with impact.
In EC, being VC of a Cricket team can offer additional insights into your leadership skills.
With reference to your WE, you would need to stitch together your experiences to make a cohesive story showing impact and growth, which ultimately ties to your post-MBA goals. To me, even a failed ed-tech startup could provide valuable lessons in entrepreneurship, leadership. However, I am amused as to why you moved from an ed-tech startup to designing kitchen products and how it connects with your post-MBA goals. You may also want to research if companies of your interest higher for these categories.
Hope this helps.

Hi Everyone,

I am a 23 yr old Indian Male with 2 years of IB work experience (3 on matriculation)

GMAT 760 (Q51 V40)

Education:
Bachelor of Technology from IIT Bombay (GPA 7.7/10.0)


Work Ex:
-2 years of IB experience at a top bank (Barclays, DB comparable). Worked with clients across Europe, SEA, USA
-held mentorship roles for juniors and coordinated recruiting
- 1 promotion

Extracurriculars:
-Volunteer at a reputed NGO, leading a team of 20+ volunteers for a job search initiative for migrant workers
-Institute Secretary in college (awarded by Dean)

Interests:
Sports – Watch and play most sports
Social Welfare Causes – especially Education and Food safety


Post MBA Goals:
Move to management consulting

Thank you for your time.

Posted from my mobile device

Hello mbaaspirant29,
You have a very good profile on paper. Your GMAT is good for Columbia. Your desired switch from IB to MC explains your need for an MBA, but you will have to present this in a coherent story in your essays.
With respect to your EC, it is impressive to have self-definition outside of work, and I hope it has been consistent over a period of time. Since you are very young, you can also leverage any meaningful impact from college activities.
However, what concerns me is that your experience is little on the lower side. You can also wait this year. If you want to apply this year, make sure your essays present a very convincing argument, your leadership skills and impact you have created at work, and very strong reasons for pursuing MBA from Columbia for MC.

Hi Everyone,

I am a 26 yr old Japanese American (dual citizen) Male with 4 years of software engineer experience upon matriculation.

GMAT 770 (Q49 V45)

Education:
T20 US College (uGPA: 3.25)


WE:
- 2.5 years of enterprise software at midsized SaaS company with promotion
- .5 year in large bank

Extracurriculars:
- Karate Instructor
- Accappella group member
- Debating Society founder
- Nonprofit coordinator


Post MBA Goals:
Move to product management and/or Strategy and Operations. OR contemplate startup.

Thank you for your time.

Hi drewboo,

You have provided very less details of your work experience and so it's hard to assess your profile. With the details I can see, it looks good with a great GMAT score. Your work-ex definitely shows a good career trajectory but I would like to know the names of the companies you have worked for, if you have assumed any leadership positions and how your work impacted the organizations. Your ECs look rather great but bring the impact of your community service on the people and society in your applications. Also, I think you need to narrow down your post-MBA goals to two options and define those two plans comprehensively. Now for Columbia, your chances depend highly on the excellence of your work-ex. We would love to have a better picture of your profile to be able to guide you better. Feel free to book a free session with us as per your convenience.

Cheers!
Kashish Garg,
Community Manager, MBA and Beyond

On behalf of,
Shantanu Sharma,
Founder and Admissions Consultant, MBA and Beyond
Email: shantanu@mbaandbeyond.com
Linkedin

With more than 8 years of experience spanning across entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship, Shantanu has worked across the globe as a Procurement Manager, Product Manager, Growth Consultant, eventually unraveling his love for helping candidates with their MBA application as a Coach. Shantanu started coaching "UNCONVENTIONAL" applicants, with his team, right after he graduated from INSEAD in 2017. Have a look at his success stories and some real essays of his clients

- Indian Female (26)
Undergrad - Petroleum engineer (tier 1 Indian college) 7.9/10 GPA (how do i convert this to 4.0?? there are multiple scales)
GMAT - 720 (Q50/V38/IR7)
Work experience - total 5.2 years Till date
I started working as a drilling engineer in one of the biggest private Oil and Gas Operator in India. I was promoted to Sr. Drilling Engineer role. I have worked on field supervisory role on this position.
Through IJP process, i shifted from Engineer to Business Analyst role in CEO office. I currently work as Business analyst which offers me a surface level experience on lot of business related aspect - vendor engagement, contracting, Business plan, stakeholder management etc.

Community and others - I used to be associated with an NGO during undergrad. Now i do very little social work with a Samaj Madal. I do oil paintings as well - hobby

Post MBA goals - I want to work in energy sector - an analyst position.

Anything else?

I am interested in new technology industries and renewable energy sector - what should be the best way to steer my career in that pathway??

Thanks in advance!!

Hello Ksmew,
Your undergrad score of 7.9 is good from a tier I Indian college. You do not need to convert it, as AdCom is well versed with all schools and colleges and understands how score from each school compares with scores from other schools. However what worries me a little here is your GMAT score of 720. Your profile with petroleum engineer and experience is definitely a plus.
I do not have the breakup in terms of number of years of WE in each role for you. However, what will matter most is not your day to day work description, but the impact you have created in these roles with demonstrated leadership potential. That will also help to assess your candidacy better.
The biggest red flags I see in your profile are the dearth of post-undergrad ECs and unclear and unfocused post-MBA plans. Having said that, more often than not, I have found that applicants have better EC and Volunteering experience than they think they do. For example, you may have contributed to the community around you in some form at the time of the pandemic.
You need to be more focused about your post-MBA goals. “work in energy sector – analyst position” is too generic. From the title of it, again an analyst position looks like a beginner level, so why would you want to do that, unless you have a specific role in mind where Analyst is a position of more responsibility. Your transition to renewable energy sector may go well with your WE, but you will have to talk about your motivations here. To learn more on how to steer your career in this direction, you can connect with people who are doing what you want to do and understand how they used their MBA to reach their positions. LinkedIn and student ambassadors from schools may prove to be a good resource for this.
If you are interested in the renewable energy sector, you may also want to look at Texas A&M, McCombs, Kenan Flagler and Fuqua.
Hope this helps.

Hi RUCHIPCONSULTING
Thank you so much for your detailed response.. I will definitely introspect more on my post mba goals and ECs
Is it okay to write about EC if I don’t have any certifications or any documents??

As for my work ex, I worked 3 years as engineer and now 2+ years as business analyst. I have also received few awards from the company

Posted from my mobile device

Hello Ksmew,
It depends on the nature of your EC and Volunteering. For example, if you have been involved in teaching underprivileged kids around your locality without being formally associated with any organization, most likely you will not have any certificates.
To answer your question in general, it is ok to talk about activities and interests where you may not have certificate proofs.

Hi,

Pleaser review my profile for Columbia Business School.

Overview
After completing my under graduation, I was sure about pursuing a fulfilling career but did not know which direction to head. Going with the theme of my subjects, I started working with a Big 4- safe option but not satisfying despite the awards and accolades. Also, I did not want to pursue an ACCA or CPA, so I decided to venture into business.

In my next role of a Business Development Manager, I established the infrastructure development vertical and gained exposure to managerial responsibilities and expertise in sales strategy and developing partnerships.

Due to a family matter, I decided to move back to support my ailing grandparents. To cover for the gap in my professional portfolio, I interned with my current organisation, Pahal (NGO) for six months and fell in love with my job. It's been two years since, and I am sure that a career in the development sector is my way forward!

MBA Specialistion/Subjects/Interests- General Management/Public Policy/ Government/Social Impact

Immediate post MBA goal- Corporate social responsibility/Program management at nonprofit organsations

Long term goal- Social sector consulting

GMAT- 720 to 730
(expected according to mocks)

Undergrad- Bachelor of Commerce (Honours), Christ University
Christ University is a Tier 1 college in India ranked amongst the top 5 schools for Commerce/Business Management.
Major- Finance and Investment
CGPA- 3.26/4
Extracurricular Activities/ Leadership roles -
Christ University Commerce Association- President/ Student Coordinator
Christ University Festing Association- Co-founder and President
Department of Commerce, Christ University- Student Coordinator
Suyukti, Department of Commerce (Literary Club)- Founding Member
Finance Club, Department of Commerce-Member
Prayas 2014 Head- Operations and Events (Prayas is a national level business fest hosted by Department of Commerce, Christ University)

Total Work Experience- 6 years (by the time I join the course)

1. Pahal (NGO) (2 Years)
Supporting two projects: Special Training Centre under the National Child Labour Project (NCLP) and GOAL Program, a CSR initiative of Standard Chartered Bank. Leading a team of 10 member driving impact on the lives of adolescent girls and child labour victims
Program Officer (6 months)
Associate Program Officer (1 year)
Program Intern ( 6 months)

2.Business Development Manager at CSA Infraprojects (1 Year)
CSA Infraprojects is a real estate and an infrastructure firm. Handled new business acquisition and growth of existing business alongside leading corporate strategy, sales strategy, proposal process, and bid preparation. Established the infrastructure development vertical and managed a team of 4
Achievement - Project: Modern Bus Terminal on DBFOT (Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer) basis with State City Transport & Development Authority.

3. EY Global Delivery Services (2 years)
Aligned with the Assurance- Wealth and Asset Management team operating financial services clients in the Bahamas, Bermuda and Cayman Islands. Responsible for the external audit of four clients, each different- Hedge Funds, Fund of Funds, Private Equity and Service Organisations.
Associate Audit EY (11 months)
Advanced Associate Audit (1 year 3 months)
Achievements-
Awarded Extra Miler- Spot Award.
Awarded Exceptional Client Service Award

Volunteer experience:
1. Missionaries of Charity (1 year)
Mother Teresa Orphanage, run by Missionaries of Charity, looks after orphaned differently-abled children below 17 years.
2. Educator/Mentor with Simple Education Foundation (3 months)
GyanVahak program enables rural children of Gular village to keep learning despite all the odds of Covid-19

Certificates-
1. Design Thinking: From Insights to Viability- Stanford Graduate School of Business Executive Education

Other information:
Age- 26 years
Gender- Female
National- Indian

Hi, and thanks for writing - you have a fascinating background, with a blend of for-profit and non-profit experience. Since competition is heavy for Indian applicants, part of it will depend on GMAT score - for CBS, I've seen that a 740+ is essential, especially since your GPA seems to be on the lower side at least according to the conversion.

Regarding your career goals, I think program management at a nonprofit will be more realistic than a CSR position since availability of those are limited. In your applications, though, you'll want to make a strong case for why you need an MBA to attain this role - what are the skills/experiences you need to gain to transition from being a program officer to a program manager? The other option, through which you may be able to make a more compelling case for an MBA, is to enter strategy consulting in the short-term, and then longer term moving into strategy at a nonprofit organization. In any case, since CBS is HUGE on fit, you'll want to make it clear why this program is right for you based on its culture, location, and resources within and outside of the classroom (such as those of the Tamer Center for Social Enterprise).

Hope this helps a bit - best of luck!

Hello Experts,
Can someone please evaluate my profile:

27 yr Male, Indian. Online GMAT on 1st Oct but expecting 710-720

EDUCATION:
-Computer Engineer from Pune University: 3.2/4.0
-12th: 72.3%
-10th: 90%

WORK EXPERIENCE:

03/2020 – 07/2020
Product Manager at ValueFirst Digital Media, Gurgaon
-Managed a chatbot platform supporting clients in India, Middle East & South- east Asia with an annual revenue of around INR 8 Crore.

08/2019 – 02/2020
Product Manager at Aakash Digital, Delhi
-Managed 5 products responsible for firm's burgeoning digital arm's CRM, Customer Support & sale of Ed-Tech products for 3 Million users and annual revenue of around INR 40 Crore.
-Post firm's acquisition of an Ed-tech startup, managed system and secure data merger of legacy systems with new systems.

03/2017 – 07/2019
Product Manager at C1India, Gurgaon
-Developed, launched & managed a B2B e-marketplace for Food & Hotel Supplies in partnership with Claridges Hotels on-boarding 1000 suppliers.
-Recognized for being instrumental in company's CMMI level 5 certification
-Six Sigma Yellow belt Certified

06/2015 – 03/2017
Product Manager at Fizzible Tech, Pune
-Managed a bootstrapped consumer electronics startup, later raised a seed funding of USD 100,000 while growing the team from 4 to 15 employees in 1 year
-Represented India as a Product Evangelist in 2016 Venture Cup Copenhagen & 2016 GSEA Bangkok, both international startup competitions
-Contributed INR 8 Lakhs revenue from IoT workshops

08/2014 – 06/2015
Associate Software Engineer @ Accenture, Bangalore
-Liaison to 28 market heads of a European Pharma Co. for resolution of medium & high priority tickets
-Recognized for optimizing the intra-team daily reporting process and proactive issue identification & resolution


VOLUNTEERING:
- Founding Trustee of a Cancer NGO providing financial support to patients, kids of cancer patients and increasing cancer awareness among rural households through School and College painting & declamation competitions in Himachal Pradesh since 2017.


EXTRA-CURRICULAR:
- Delegate in 1st Youth Parliament held at the Parliament of India '18
- Represented India in Global Student Entrepreneurship Awards 2016, Bangkok and in Venture Cup 2016, Copenhagen and other national startup competitions.
- Ranked among top 50 in National Olympiads in 2007 & 2005