Need a Profile Evaluation - Fall 2020 Applicant

Question

Hello,

I'm looking for pointers to better help evaluate my chances of applying at B-Schools for Fall 2020 Admissions

About Me: 25 year old Indian Male working in the IT sector

Educational Background: Integrated BTech + MTech in Electronics Engineering from SASTRA University, India. Graduated with an 8.5/10 CGPA
Additional info: Studied in the Middle East till my 10th grade

Post MBA Goals: Start my own tech startup

Work experience:
I've been gearing up to pursue an MBA since my 12th grade, hence I've paced my Work Experience accordingly as:
2 years in an Avionics based MNC - In this 2 year period, I had traveled to Singapore for 6 months to interact with my counterparts and was also a key part of the design-develop-implement cycle. 
1 year in a Data Science and Analytics based Startup - My functions here are broadly as a process implementer and one of three key contributors for any design and development based decisions and implementations. I would have 2 years of experience here by the time I matriculate leading to a complete Work Experience of 4 years.
Additionally: In my 4th year, I had a 4 week internship at Macquarie University in Sydney as a Research Intern.

My thinking for pacing my work experience was to have 2 years of MNC experience and 2 years of Startup experience to understand how the dynamics of the two radically different places of work operate, so that I'd be better placed to apply these real world concepts to my Entrepreneurial goals. An MBA over this would help complement my practical experience with theoretical concepts and examples. This is my motivation for pursuing an MBA.

GMAT: 710 (Q51/V34/IR8/AWA5) - Only attempted it once, I feel I'd probably be able to better my score by 20-30 points but I'm unsure if it's worth it.
TOEFL: 116

Programs of Interest: 
 Cambridge Judge (ambitious/first choice)
INSEAD (ambitious)
Oxford Said (ambitious)
LBS (ambitious)
MIT Sloan (extremely ambitious)
HEC (safe)
NUS (safe)

I feel my weakest link is being part of a very competitive pool (Indian IT Male) and having a 710 GMAT score. Any pointers on what I could do to enhance my chances would be very helpful.

MG4MBACrystalBall · Answer

A few thoughts on your profile  anirudhb216 :
 
  The work profile looks quite interesting and not necessarily the usual IT pool. In the Avionics space for instance, you would be dealing with h/w product I presume? Plus, the international experience will come in quite handy overall. The two experiences however can appear extremely disjointed - so make sure you weave them in nicely together. 
  Entrepreneurship is a pretty risky post-MBA goal. Read  here  on why that could be the case. So unless you've thought it through and are confident of fielding said/unsaid questions of adcoms, think harder on your immediate goals after MBA. 
  For reasons mentioned  here , we do not speculate on school selection. That being said, following are the   top schools for entrepreneurship/startups  . 
  20-30 points can make a huge difference. If you think you can manage that, a bit of a no-brainer that you should definitely go for it. 
  I don't see anything on the ECs front. This is why   ECs matter in MBA applications  . Anything here?

Hope this helps some.

Cheers,

anirudhb216 · Answer

MG4MBACrystalBall

First, extremely grateful for your prompt response. Thank you for your valuable inputs and insights.

Here are my responses for your queries:

a. Yes I was dealing with h/w products whereas currently I'm in a purely s/w space. My functions in both places, though, have been largely s/w based. 
b. I'm completely in agreement that Entrepreneurship is a risky foray especially after enjoying a cushion being in the corporate space. Honestly, I've been bent upon starting up for a few years now with my drive not diminishing at all. I've been fortunate to have witnessed the startup bubble and how most startups fail early on as a spectator and hence have paced my work and career experiences such that there is maximum learning on how corporate setups tick and how they manage everything. It's one of the reasons for the balanced 2(MNC)+2(Startup) WE path I had chalked out for myself.
c. TBH, MBA Crystal Ball Blogs had been very helpful in helping me pick my schools. However, my intentions for requesting a profile eval have less to do with vetting my program choices and more to do with any pointers I can get to help me understand the validity of my career choices in the context of MBA applications and also stand out in an extremely competitive pool. It's more of a general 'what more do you think I can do to strengthen my profile'.
d. This is the part where I'm torn. I've read in quite a few places that breaching the 700 barrier renders a candidate capable of handling academic pressure of the MBA curriculum. But then again, 710 is probably a weaker score considering my candidate pool. Reading up about how GMAT is just one part of the application and colleges are more interested in the general overall story is what then made me feel if re-attempting to increase by 20-30 points is really worth it. 
e. Apologies for not mentioning any ECs. I was an active member of the music club (lead guitarist) at my university, winning multiple accolades across college fests in South India. I had also held a leadership post in my university's cultural committee in my 4th year. Additionally, I had been part of a couple of musical gigs post college.

MG4MBACrystalBall · Answer

I hear you  anirudhb216 . However, while you've developed your profile thus, do bear in mind that just be the sheer virtue of having worked in startups and MNC doesn't necessarily add much to the apntess of entrepreneurship as a goal you can defend.

In the time that remains, not a lot you can do to change/improve the profile frankly - the focus has to be on presenting it in the best possible manner. What you can do is one, redo the GMAT (yes I know you've read a lot, but then, that would be my advice still) and two, put a lot of effort in fine-tuning and honing the story you take to adcoms.

Hope this helps and feel free to reach out directly for more.

Cheers,

AugustAcademy · Answer

Hi Anirudh,

I'm copying and pasting your target schools here:

Cambridge Judge (ambitious/first choice)
INSEAD (ambitious)
Oxford Said (ambitious)
LBS (ambitious)
MIT Sloan (extremely ambitious)
HEC (safe)
NUS (safe)

Some comments:

1. You have clearly put some thought into your career journey so far. Congratulations on that.
2. Regarding the GMAT - you should retake it if you believe that you have scope for improvement. The GMAT started out as a tool that would help business schools understand if you would be able to handle the rigors of academia. But, at the top schools, a lot of people are applying who have more than the expected minimum of 700 - this, combined with the fact that there could be others from a similar background applying to the same school, turns it into a shooting match. So higher GMAT = better chances.
3. We would need to work on your school choice. I have concerns about a portfolio like this - which has schools that trend towards the extremely ambitious. I'm unable to comment on your candidature to HEC and NUS without understanding more about your background - but in general, these aren't schools I would classify as safes for the typical Indian male candidate who has a 710. (You could be different from this candidate, or it may be possible to express your differentiation clearly when we work together - we need to explore possibilities for this.)

Please reach out if you have further questions.

Best,
Karthik

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