thomfor wrote:
Hi team,
Looking to get my profile evaluated here. Aiming for Sep21 intake. Thanks in advance.
Australian Female 28
GMAT: 700 (Q50 V35 IR8)
GPA: 3.2 from top Australian university (major in actuarial science, it is a fairly hard degree)
Language: speak 2, learning the 3rd
WE: 4 years in big four advisory arm, specialised in technology and advanced analytics, manager
Contribution: mentoring for students on non-for-profit consulting cases; career mentor for international students (been doing this for nearly 3 years, helped more than 50 students)
International experience: Moved to Australia during high school and stay ever since; Travelled to 10+ country; Worked with multiple nationalities (due to the working environment in big 4); Worked on global initiatives and with teams overseas;
Leadership: lead project team and solution development; managing performance for juniors (2); lead firm level community initiatives.
Additional: CFA, certified translator (I passed the certification exam in Uni as a hobby but never really practiced)
I am planning to focus on my contribution in my essay as 1) I think mentoring experience shows my willingness to share my experience with others and inspire others, which is something Insead values 2) I think the leadership and international experience can be seen from CV and travel history. I am slightly worrying about my GMAT as it is not on the high end, not sure whether I should re-take. But at the same time, I have limited capacity to study on the exam due to the workload and the additional commitments to my mentees. Also 4 years of working experience might be too short but I made to managerial position after 3.5 years which is considered fast track in big 4.
Keen to hear your advice.
Hey
thomfor,
To start off with the strong suits in your profile, your GPA of 3.2/4 is very impressive and showcases your academic prowess. Also, having graduated from a top Australian University would work in your favour as schools tend to pick students from top schools of each country.
Another significant aspect that schools focus on is extracurricular activities as they are looking for a comprehensive profile. Hence, it is essential to shed some light on the endeavours taken up at any clubs, associations, sports, fest, or events you managed or participated in during your undergraduation. Volunteering initiatives, certifications, or internships undertaken during the course of your study would also count towards your extracurricular initiatives. That said, you have a good amount of extra-curricular activities. Mentoring students on non-profit consulting cases and being a career mentor for international students for nearly 3 years showcase your ability to empathize with people and your drive to spread knowledge by spearheading initiatives. These traits are most certainly perceived as great value addition not just to the adcom of INSEAD, but any and every b-school. You ought to elaborate on the exposure you received here and what were your major takeaways in order to portray a well-rounded profile.
With that you can also highlight recent certifications that you have taken up. If you haven’t, you can do so through Coursera, Udemy or EDx. The reason being, you need to showcase constant growth as you have graduated 4 years back.
Coming to the professional front, you hold 4 years of work experience at a Big 4 firm which in itself vouched for your capabilities. However in comparison to other candidates 4 years might fall short as you can expect to compete against candidates who have an average work experience of 5-6 years. In order to differentiate yourself, highlight why you chose this firm, what projects are done so far, how you have gone beyond the role, any initiatives you took, and any kind of impact created to establish a connection with your goals, and portray the knowledge gained from these experiences. Thus, you should focus on the quality of your work to outweigh years of experience under the belts of your competition. Explaining all this well can be a differentiator for you, and help you stand out in a crowd. You also hold a pretty holistic international experience. This works in your favour as it is highly valued by B-schools because it showcases you are adaptable and have a broadened perspective as well.
To boost your profile, you can further highlight CSR activities to showcase responsibilities taken up and the impacts created by you. This will help portray the socially responsible side of your personality and convince the adcoms of your abilities to be a great future leader. I’d suggest you begin working on this aspect if you lack experience in this sector.
Speaking of your GMAT score, 700 with Quant 50 and Verbal 35 opens the door for you to be eligible for most of the B-schools in the world. Addressing your concern, GMAT only holds a 15% chance of getting accepted in a school. So, in my opinion, a retake is not needed, rather use your time to focus more on the strong aspects of your profile and delve in other profile building activities.
Having said that, here are a few dream, competitive, and safe schools that you can be targeting:
DREAM: HEC, INSEAD, NYU, LBS
COMPETITIVE: ESSEC, ESCP, FSFM, WHU
SAFE: EDHEC, SKEMA, Grenoble
Lastly, while you have a good profile, you need to be aware that you will be facing competition from equally good or even better profiles, which is why, you need to compliment your profile with a strong application that includes essays, letter of recommendation, statement of purpose, and resume that highlights all your strong suits, gives reasoning for the weaknesses and displays how you’d be a good addition to the cohort. As a matter of fact, your application can boost your chances of acceptance by 3x!
On this note, if you have any further queries, I would suggest you take up our FREE consultation call where we can help you to figure out the best course of action for you to realize your goals.
Link for the FREE Consultation call-
https://www.mim-essay.com/book-an-appointment-form/
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04 Nov 2020, 04:25
