HEC Paris Profile Review

Question

Hi Kindly Review my profile,

Target: MIM (September 2023 intake)
Age: 23 Yr old Female (Indian)
Acads - 94% in 10th Grade, 93% in 12th Grade, 8.7 CGPA in Undergrad
Work experience: 1 year
GMAT: Not yet taken
Volunteering Experience: Yes
Extracurriculars: Was part of the choir and orchestra in school, have won various competitions. Was part of the cultural team in college, have various competitions.

Thank you.

jeffreyadcom · Answer

Given that It's the leading & highly selective Masters program in the world, you'd need 7XX+ GMAT scores and atleast 1 more year of good leadership or project management work experience.

Can you detail your work-ex so far. Where did you volunteer?

Admissionado · Answer

ManasiGMATPrep : There really isn't a ton for us to evaluate, so it's at best a high-level review. Your grades look great, which is very important for the MiM program. Can you tell us more about your work experience even if it's only for a year? That's an important piece. The same for your extracurricular and volunteer activities. Since admission to the MiM program is not based on work experience quite like the MBA program, those can be very important too. As noted by the previous post, a GMAT score of 700+ is pretty much a requirement for an Indian candidate applying to HEC Paris. Is that doable? If so, that'll give you a puncher's chance. If you think you might need help with your upcoming application, please reach out to us for a free consultation to discuss your background and plan of action further. https://admissionado.com/free-consultation/

aeydinath · Answer

Hi,
I am Adinath. I aspire to enrol for Masters in Management in HEC Paris

My CGPA is on a lower side (6.45/10) but throughout my college I have taken up electives and participated in competitions that would help me develop my skill set as an entrepreneur.

On practice tests, I am consistently getting 750-760 score. I am trying to improve. I will be writing my GMAT on 14th September 2022.

I graduated from  Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee  in 2021 with B Tech. in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering.

The summary of my work experience  is as follows (I have included the detailed version at the end):
1)  Product Manager  | ICICI Bank (one of the top Indian multinational bank and financial services company)
2)  Founder  | Tasveer8X10 (A startup I built that a platform for artists to monetise their art)
3)  Marketing Intern  | Dhanwantari Distributors Put. Ltd. (A B2C health product company)

My extra-curricular activities include :
1) I was a  member of National Service Scheme , a fraternity that aims to foster the feelings of social service among the youth and provide them with a platform where they can make a difference in society as social leaders & administrators. As a member I scouted potential NGOs for collaboration and work in nearby villages in order to generate self-employment opportunities, to provide basic education and collection drives to help the needy. Our team organised and promoted Blood Donation camp for 3 consecutive years in IIT Roorkee

2) I was the  deputy general secretary of Wellness Center , a student body that worked towards the goal to raise awareness about mental health among students and create a safe space where students felt safe to share their feelings. For doing so, me and my team organised workshops on peer counselling and emotional intelligence, devised and managed a series of events in mental health week. I managed the collaboration with YourDost, the overall Face-To-Face counselling, and e-counselling services and developed a system to validate the quality of services provided through student reviews.

3) I was the  Manager of Marketing and Promotions for National Social Summi t in 2019. The National Social Summit, organized by the National Service Scheme(NSS) IIT Roorkee was established in 2016. It is a platform to come together to address the socio-economic problems persisting in the country. It brings together the socially active groups present all across the country. This social-fest includes various events such as Panel Discussions, Case Studies, Social Drama, Workshops, Model United Nations and Cultural shows.

4) I was the  general secretary of Metallurgical Engineering Society . It is a student body of the Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, IIT Roorkee, established in 1967 and since then it acts as an interface between student and the faculty. I led a team of 24 students and our goal was to make sure that the student community came together for academic, social, cultural, and athletic development and bridge the gap, if any, between students and faculties. For achieving these goals me and my team organised numerous events that witnessed participation from both, the student body and the faculties in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering department.

5) I was a  member of Cinematic Section , a student body driven by their passion for film making. As a member I learnt the basics of film making and completed ‘Film appreciation course’ conducted by Film & Television Institute of India (FTII). I wrote screenplay for various videos like class song for the batch of 2019 and directed a short film, ‘Enunciator’.

6) I was a  founding member of Stand-up Club , and learnt the art of stand-up comedy and performed at various events throughout the college.

The detailed version of my work experience:

1) I did my  Marketing intern  (from May 2019 to July 2019) at Dhanwantari Distributors Pvt. Ltd., a B2C marketing company with a goal to build Healthy India by providing people with the most effective Herbo-Nutritional health supplement products in addition to Organic Agricultural & Animal Health products. Here I learnt the basics of pharmaceutical supply chain. I got exposure to marketing operations and strategies to improve the distribution network and thus overall multi-level marketing business model for my team.

2) I was selected for  Business Analyst internship  (planned from May 2020 to July 2020) in Udaan, a B2B company. Udaan aims to solve core trade problems faced by small and medium businesses, that are unique to India, through its unique India-fit low-cost business model by leveraging technology and bringing the benefits of eCommerce. Because of Covid-19 and the lockdown being imposed nation-wide, my internship offer was revoked. Before revoking my offer, Udaan had conducted a series of online meetings that helped me understand their revenue model.

3) With the learnings from my previous internships, and elective courses, I  founded Tasveer8X10 , an online start-up to promote Indian artisan growth and help the local artists generate a monetary value for their art. I drew inspiration from the idea to normalise becoming an artist as a career in India. I managed a team of 22 people including designers, web developers, content writers, marketing freelancers, etc. and conducted extensive interviews of 10 artists (hair sketch artist, chalk art artist amongst several others) and developed an algorithm for deciding the right cost for an artwork. My team and I executed social media marketing through campaigns and sold 20 art pieces for local artists.

4) After my Bachelor’s degree I worked as  Product Manager in ICICI Bank  (from July 2021 to July 2022), one of the top Indian multinational bank and financial services company. As a product manager, I Independently managing projects in the Current Account Product Team.

- My main responsibility was to handle digital products created for corporate current accounts. These products included Infinite India, Commercial Paper, Saral GST, DigiQ and Cash Pop-up. I also ideated and, with help from technical team of ICICI, developed Foreign Currency accounts for insurance and Re-insurance brokers and Agent accounts for agents in Business correspondent model.

- For Infinite India, a product stack developed to be one stop solution for all the requirements of foreign companies incorporating in India, I handled operations, partner onboarding, lead generation and lead management.

- I was also responsible for ICICI’s competitor analysis, insight generation, data management and strategy development for Commercial Paper product portfolio, which brought business of ₹ 391 million in FY22.

- For other products like Saral GST, DigiQ and Cash Pop-up, my main tasks were of maintenance of the product, analysis of profitability and of guiding pan-India retail branches.

- I also handled multiple foreign currency accounts and accounts specifically designed for MNC clients like Special non-resident rupee accounts, Liaison Office accounts, Branch Office accounts, Project Office accounts, Non-Resident Ordinary (NRO) Account, Special Foreign currency accounts and accounts for agents of airline and shipping companies.

- My work included researching RBI circulars, FIMMDA (Fixed Income Money Market and Derivatives Association of India) guidelines and internal ICICI Bank circulars to address client queries.

Admissionado · Answer

aeydinath : You are a competitive candidate for this program at HEC Paris. The most important x-factor is the GMAT. If you can duplicate your practice score on the real thing, you should be in really good shape. The GMAT is the best way to counter a low/below-average GPA. Other than that, you have good professional and extracurricular experience. The best way to showcase that is by putting together a strong CV/resume and writing excellent admissions essays. That's the other x-factor here for your candidacy. Where else are you applying? Are you considering other masters degree programs? Please reach out to us for a free consultation if you are seeking professional help. https://admissionado.com/free-consultation/

aeydinath · Answer

Admissionado

I aim to apply for Masters in Management in INSEAD, LBS and HEC Paris along with a few safe schools.

I will reach out to you after I have my final GMAT score (which I will have by 15th September)

jeffreyadcom · Answer

GPA 
Dismal compared to the IIT applicant pool at MBA/MIM schools. This'll be a drag.

WORK EX 
I don't see a coherent application pitch here. No work experience related to your undergrad major. 
It'll be difficult to explain the switch from Metallurgy to Finance.
Are the internships full time? along with B.Tech? Again unrelated to your undergrad.

GMAT 
The real test conditions are quite different compared to those of practise tests. 
Verbal, especially, can seriously trip non-native speakers.
Focus on Verbal. 
Pace yourself faster in the beginning.

Essays 
If you can clinch 750+ in the real test too, 60% of the work is done. 
You'd then need to develop coherent essays explaining the above work-ex incongruence, reasons for low GPA and your career aspirations. 
Why MIM? Why the shortlisted Schools? How will they help? Short term? Long term?

TheIvyLeagueEdge · Answer

Hi aeydinath/Adinath,
While your diverse/ unaligned experiences create a bit of a concern, a compelling story could align your story and your learnings well. 
A bigger concern for me is your CGPA, which you could compensate to a huge degree with a stellar GMAT.

Once you have your score, feel free to connect for a free one to one session to discuss your profile, and ask any questions directly. 
Best of luck for your GMAT

bb · Answer

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