siddharthkabra wrote:
Please help me evaluate my profile. I am an Indian applicant. Age : 25 years
Work description: I am an employee of a US based power management company. Currently, I am working on an innovative technical project which aims at reducing the electricity bills due to Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) equipment of the US households. I am involved in developing and refining the algorithm, data collection, building and installing the prototype and developing the system level architecture for the product.
Work Experience: 2 years as of 28th July, 2013
GMAT: 760 (51Q, 41V, 5.5 AWA, 8 IR)
College: Indian Institute of Technology Madras. CGPA - 8.1/10 Dual Degree (B. Tech + M. Tech) in Electrical Engineering with specialization in Communication Engineering.
Achievements:
- Selected as an Engineering and Technology Leadership Development Program (ETLP) Participant (2010) by the Company. It is a 2 year rotation based fast track program for grooming future leadership.
- Worked on "Enhancing learning culture within organization" and contributed to new initiatives in the organization to increase the knowledge sharing.(2012-13)
- Awarded with the Trade Secret by Patent Law Department, of the Company (2013)
- Awarded with the National Talent Search (NTS) Scholarship (2004), by the NCERT (State Rank 7)
- Organized a Goal Alignment Workshop for the group, consisting of about 40 members which included managers and technology leaders which helped in profit planning and goals formulation of the group. (2011-12)
- President, Junior Literary Society (JLS) at School
- National Sports Organization Candidate (Cricket) in College.
- Donated blood at various voluntary campaigns
- Won many prizes in singing competitions, musical instrument playing competitions, skit competitions, and debate competitions
Target programs ( I am confused as to which schools I should apply to. Below is an exhaustive list, out of which I will be applying to 4-5 schools):
HBS
Stanford
Chicago Booth
Wharton
Kellogg
UCB-HAAS
Tuck
INSEAD
Yale
Indian School of Business (ISB)
NUS
LBS
When do I want to apply:
Round 2 (Jan 2014) for all the schools except INSEAD. ISB and NUS
INSEAD - Round 2 (Nov 2013)
ISB - Round 2 (Nov, 2013)
NUS - Round 2 (Feb-March 2014)
Post MBA goal:
I have not yet put it concretely in my head as of now, but I would like to work for an organization such as World Bank or a country's economic body which formulates the economic policies and practices.
Thanks,
Sid
Hey there Sid,
You have a very nice profile. Fantastic GMAT, IIT with great grades, your leadership program which proves success and promise for the future. Really, everything is in place. I don't now so much about your extra-curricalrs and volunteer work, and something might be missing there, but it should not be too major. The one weakness in your profile is the short amount of work experience. This will be a bit less problematic at the US schools which tend to like younger candidates, but at a place like INSEAD, where the average age is 29-30, you will be at more of a disadvantage. I also am not sure about your goals, because it's a pretty massive 180 degree change for you, so you have to think about how you can make a convincing argument.
Otherwise regarding your school list, I hope that you have at least started working on your applications already!
Time flies by quickly, and these applications take a loooooot of time and effort, and you only have two and half months. First of all, I'd suggest delaying INSEAD until the applications for the Jan intake, so that you have more time to concentrate on US schools (plus you gain a summer for an Internship which can be helpful for career-changers). Which leaves you ISB + another four schools until the first or second week of Jan. Basically all the schools on your list are Top 10. As you know HBS and Stanford are the toughest to get into, and you can choose honestly whichever schools you like from the Top 10 (although if you REALLY want to go into economic bodies, HBS, Booth, Wharton, and maybe Columbia make the most sense (Georgetown too, even if their MBA is not a top 10 program)...) But this is a pretty tough list without any safe schools (which actually is fine, because if it doesn't work out, you can always moderate and try again, and young as you are, you are in no rush).
I hope all this makes sense, and if you have any follow-up questions, just drop a line dude,