vk1496 wrote:
After a busy application cycle, I am at a bittersweet point.
I got admitted into HEC Paris Sep'2023 intake (yay!), no scholarship. I had applied for MIT, INSEAD and HBS but got dinged there.
Quick Profile: 28 years, 6+ years work-ex in Technology, 750 GMAT, decent extracurriculars (non-profit co founder). Post MBA goal to move into Product Management
Should I accept HEC offer? Or try my luck again in the next cycle with better set of schools?
With my GMAT, and earlier profile evals, I was hoping to get a much better offer and some good scholarship amount. I went solo without an admissions consultant, so maybe my essays weren't perfect?
Congratulations on being admitted to HEC Paris - one of the most reputed Business Schools.
Experience & Age: Your age(28) and experience (6 years) lies well near the average age and experience, respectively, of target B-Schools. However, a work experience in IT may face competition from a huge applicant pool, while experience in less representative technology areas may give you the advantage of diversity. Moreover, evidences suggests, that work experience at a good brand employer may significantly increase the possibility of admit.
Academic: 750 GMAT is excellent (decent for an over-representative applicant pool such as Indian & Chinese). Undergrad university and grades also play a role - for example, it's good to be in the top 10% of students in the Universities or from a top-tier university in the country.
Extra-curricular: Non-profit cofounder is excellent. Furthermore, if you have been involved regularly in some kind of leadership extracurricular, you score well in this area.
Based on above factors, you may evaluate your profile. You may also evaluate your profile on the link below to get a rough idea about fit with B-Schools:
https://gmatclub.com/forum/what-are-my- ... l#p2397934Consider the following factors to decide whether to accept the HEC offer or to try for relatively better brand BSchools like HBS, MIT, and INSEAD:1) Uncertainty: Top B-Schools are highly competitive. HBS receives 10k applications every year with an acceptance rate of approximately 10%. According to the HBS admission committee, 50% of applicants are good enough to qualify for admission, yet because of the limitation of seats, only 10% get lucky.
2) Opportunity cost of delaying your MBA: Delaying your MBA will not only cause lower earnings for one year but will also delay your career progression by one year. However, in long run, this gap can be covered.
3) Utilisation of delayed year: For reapplicants, BSchools expect a significant improvement in the application. Adding something of higher value as compared to your current profile can increase your chances of admission, while a more or less similar application to the previous application is most probably liable to be dinged. (My advice: Add some leadership experience in alignment with your post-MBA goal. Excellent if a signicant international exposure can be gained, considering you don't already have one as you haven't mentioned.)
-Given you didn't take the help of a consultant, you may discuss with your friends, BSchool alums, or consultants to figure out whether there is something significant that you didn't highlight this time, but may be of high value to highlight.
4) Post MBA target country: MBA gives you the ease of entry to a country where the B-School is located. Visa policy may allow you to stay some time in the country to search job after your MBA.
PS: HEC Paris is a highly respected business school and has a strong reputation in Europe and beyond. MBA from HEC Paris is, for sure, an excellent choice for a great post-MBA career in Product Management.
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25 Feb 2023, 06:05
