Engineers - Is the free Vocaz Chances Indication accurate?

Exactly, you need to differentiate yourself from this large applicants pool and demonstrate as unique profile as possible. That way you are competing against a smaller pool of candidates and therefore have higher admission chances.

That makes a lot of sense. You just need to figure out what are the big groups/types of engineers, if you are in one of those you should think what makes you stand out.

I agree with all that has been posted here.

There is one thing that consultants and Ad com cannot tell you before they see the pool of applicants. How unique you are? How you standout is a direct proportion of the applicant pool. This factor is almost always discounted when you apply to top schools and especially when you ask Admission consultants.

So, if you are run off the mill types like Indian Engineer IT then you better get a high GMAT Score and apply.

If you have a unique profile like a Navy Engineer from Sri Lanka, then you might be a highly favoured candidate as long as the rest of the profile has no glaring areas.

I agree too, you can only estimate how big is the pool you are in. Having a unique background is great (Navy Engineer from Sri Lanka... i wish) but obviously it's not something you can change when you are already applying.

I think many Indian engineers have high GMAT, so it's probably not the right way to differentiate yourself, maybe you should even go for low GMAT just in order to stand out

Ha ha!
That's an interesting strategy, my friend. Try it and let us all know how it went

Does anyone knows which schools are "engineers friendly"? can one assume that schools that are ranked higher at categories like IT or information system are more engineers friendly?

MIT comes to mind, and also Tepper and McCombs, although I'm not sure it works that way. You can look at the class profile at each school to see the educational background of students.

Good idea, thanks! I'd also add Stanford to that list.

Stanford are not friendly to anyone
with 6% admission rate, it's like they have a big angry bouncer standing at the door...

You have a point, i was only referring to their links to tech firms of the Silicon Valley...

We'll never actually know if the tool is accurate. Someone who gets in but shows up as a long shot in the tool, could conceivably have gotten a hail mary pass from the adcom, deciding there was some little spark they liked. Getting in doesn't mean you were a shoe-in, it just means you got in.

On the other hand, the useful part of the tool is that it reminds you of the many different layers of the application. Promotions, GPA, recs, essays, etc. are all taken into consideration. The assigned values may be spot, but most likely they differ by school, so just make sure each piece of the puzzle you submit is as close to perfect as it can be.

Some of you may have wildly under-estimated yourselves as well. As an arrogant *complain*, I scored myself top marks in everything! hahaha.

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I'm new to this site and the interesting thing for me re: the application process, is all the talk about making yourself unique. No one's that unique in this process (except maybe a mature hopeful with a lot of work experience) and frankly I think uniqueness is the wrong angle. I would imagine adcoms want to hear why you want their school (why DO you want that school?) and would like to know how what their school has to offer fits in with your plans for the future (you DO have plans for the future?). Confidence, vision, that kind of thing. They already know you have stamina - let them know you hope to achieve something significant in life, with their help. That would almost be unique.

The application forms always have a place for extracurricular activities. I have to admit that I don't have much to report about that - some tutoring, my job experience is with an on-site supervision team for a construction company for three summers. My work was keeping my grades as good as possible. I know that for the top schools this is something important and I'm wondering, and worried, about how important it really is and whether it will affect my chances. I don't underestimate myself, but I'm sure this is the weakest link in my applications. Any suggestions, or advice?

I can't agree that the Vocaz test is a waste of time. People have put a lot of their personal, valuable experience in to composing it and even if it's not a reliable tool, which doesn't exist, it's an illuminating one. So what if these Application Consultants have made a business out of it? This is such an arduous process and I can't imagine anyone not wanting to know NOT where they stand, but on what aspects of their applications they need help. If you look at it as a tool and not a bona fide anything, it's an eye-opener. I wouldn't let it stop me from applying to the schools I want, or wish to attend, but there's an element of expertise with all competition and these guys have been through the acid test so why not check it out?

I scored 670 on my GMAT but did much better on the Quantitative section than on the Verbal. My math and problem solving skills are good. Same on the Vocaz test - weak in the essays. I wonder if this difference is as critical as I think it might be since an MBA grad is basically going for a managerial position rather than a research one, so there's a lot of writing involved. I'm determined to get an MBA from a top school but I feel like I'm at a disadvantage. I have lots of strengths - writing is just not one of them. Where does this put me for acceptance at Wharton or MIT?

I just found out how important this really is. Two friends from the same college, similar applications that they worked on together. One made a big point of catering to each university's strengths (or reputation) in his essays and the other did not, so much. Guess who got accepted to all three of his top choices? The other one got accepted to one, ergo that's the one he'll be going to. These schools have egos.