abisurd wrote:
I have taken GMAT a few days ago. I scored 750 (Scaled Scores Quant 50, Verbal 40).
Pool : Indian IT guy.
Undergrad Education: Bachelor of Technology from IIT Bombay. GPA, a poor 3.0, with very poor performances in the third year (down to 2.4 in the sixth semester).
Work Experience : 30 months with major IT Services and Products MNC in India, presently with a leading software products MNC for over 7 months. Both are shining brand names in the industry they represent. Have recently been promoted in my new company and have seen two salary increases.
Extra curricular: Next to nil. Something that happens with most of those who fall in this pool.
Recommendations: Two people from my previous employer are ready to sign the letters. They shall be giving very favorable recommendations.
Problems as I see them:
1. No leadership roles played. I have 'guided' a few people who joined in my team while I was in my previous company. Since that was a Software Services company, it was easy to have sub-teams where one could be in a 'leader's role' for some time. I have had a few of those experiences, but they have been rather short.
2. My present job has me as a pure team player. One specific set of tasks has been assigned to me and I am performing it with finesse. But it has very few opportunities for showing leadership skills, if any.
My strong points, as I see them:
1. Hard working guy. Given the challenge, I try to do my best.
2. Strong analytical skills. Good at problem solving.
Target: Good schools with good MIS courses/specialization. The reasons for choosing this field are the fact that I have worked in IT industry and I do not hate my job; and that I am not interested in Finance and Marketing. I could go for General Management and Consulting also, but have no solid work experience in those fields
Given this view of my profile, please answer some of my queries
1. Please point out the gaps in my profile that could hamper my application.
2. Please suggest what schools I should target.
3. Should I apply this year, or should I wait a year, try to build up on the short-comings of my application?
4. Is my choice of specialization, give the reasons, correct?
Thanks
You've analyzed your strengths and weaknesses well. Certainly your 750 is quite a strength. Congratulations!
YOur poor last year academic performance should be addressed. It is something the adcoms will wonder about. Say what caused it.
Schools you should consider MIT, CMU, UT, Berkeley, Duke, Michigan. If you wait until next year, you could add Wharton, Darden and Tuck.
Should you wait another year? Do you feel like you are learning a lot on the job and growing? Do you believe that you will have more leadership opportunities in the course of this year and that you will use this year to develop some community service interests? If you answered yes to these questions, then I would recommend waiting a year. If not, then apply this year and see how it goes.
Good luck!
Good luck!