PROFILE EVALUATION EUROPEAN BUSINESS SCHOOLS MSC FINANCE

Hey there good sir,
First of all with your 650 you CAN and SHOULD apply to HEC and St. Gallen, ESCP and ESSEC are also great choices for France as is EM Lyon (okay, it's not Paris, but still... ) Apply to all.
Best,
JF

Thanks a lot for your responses!!!

You got it dude.

Hi,

I am Ashwin from India .
Could you help evaluate my profile based on the following details for my target schools of HBS, LBS, Wharton, Booth, Kellogg (one year) and INSEAD in the first bucket.
IE Business School, IESE France and Indian School of Business (ISB) in the second bucket.

I am an Indian male 28 years old
GMAT- 670 ( q49, v33, IR7, AWA 4.5)
MBA-Finance(2011) : 2.96/4.0 ( From top 20 B-School in India)
B.E (IT)(2008) : 62%
XII (2004) : 70%
X (2002) : 77%
CFA Level-II Cleared and Level-III Candidate.

Work Experience:
1 Yr in a family Investment Real Estate trust with a mandate to invest in long term revenue generating assets in India
2 Yrs in leading Infrastructure Finance Company with a mandate to invest through Project Finance, Mezzanine and in the Energy Sector in India
2 Yrs in a leading Conglomerate with a focus on Merger & Acquisition, New Investment feasibility and Capital Budgeting in Qatar, Middle East.

Extra curriculum activities : Mountaineering, Field Sports (Played at University Level).
Community Contribution :
Have been involved with an NGO since 2005 as an volunteer , then as secretary from 2007-2009, then as board trustee form 2009-2011. The NGO is primarily into providing skill based employment oriented trainings and family upliftment programs. I was able to convince the board to start a free clinic along with other activities. The clinic was started in 2008 with the help of volunteer doctors, currently the clinic serves more than 100 patients/day with free consultation and medication. The family upliftment programs and skill based/employment oriented trainings at the NGO has positively impacted life of more than 1000 people in India since its inception in 2003.

Major Professional Contribution :
India : Have conducted due diligence for project with a combined investment potential of USD 5Bn and successfully invested USD 450Mn in the aforesaid projects.
Qatar : In view of bleak long term feasibility, strongly recommended winding down business operations in two countries, thus reducing the consolidated annual losses by 20%.
Further, in view of a major systemic risk of a government infrastructure project on the business operations of the conglomerate, reorganized and reallocated available resources to business division based on their contribution to the net profit. Thus reducing the impact of the Government Infrastructure project on the Net profit of the conglomerate from a reduction of 35% in annual net profits to a reduction of 20% in consolidated annual net profits.

Entrepreneurial Stint :
Co-Fonded a Technology outsourcing company in 2011, the company was primarily into recovering loans from USA clients. However, the company winded down operation after an year due to low profitability and other systemic risk.

Post Second MBA Motivation :
As mentioned above my 1st MBA is from one of the top 20 B-Schools in India, which invariably differs from a Global MBA program in terms of exposure and content. However, in line with my motivation to set up an private equity fund with a focus on social entrepreneurs in India requires global exposure and networking. Hence, this second MBA, from an elite B-School, shall be instrumental in building the requisite global skill set to raise a private equity fund for social investments in India.


Do you think i am strong candidate for these schools,given the fact this is my second MBA attempt within a total of 5 years of passing out from the first one. Or can u suggest a few B-Schools where I can have better chance of making it.
Also are these school mentioned above open to admit candidates with a prior MBA. How can I improve my profile ?
Would my failed entrepreneurial journey be negative for the adcoms of the schools mentioned above ?

Thanks
Ashwin

Hey Ashwin,
Okay dude, so you have some great stuff, and some less great stuff in your profile. Let's dig in and have a look.

STRENGTHS:
- International experience
- Excellent Volunteer Work (Board of NGO)
- Uncommon industry for Indian Candidates

WEAKNESSES:
- GPA
- GMAT
- Indian candidate
- 2nd MBA

So dude I really don't want to throw a damper on your parade, but HBS, Wharton, LBS and Booth probably won't even look at your application. Your GMAT is too low. So is your GPA. And with your first MBA, they are gonna give the place to others. INSEAD, IESE, ISB MIGHT be possible if you give them a fantastic, amazing killer application, but STILL will not be easy. The thing is they have enough 8.0+ 700+ candidates with no MBA from India, that unless they have a very good reason, they won't offer you a spot.

Buuuuuut, you DO have some pretty interesting and some pretty strong stuff in your profile. But it's just unlikely that Tier-1 schools will take you on. Even if you have a 720 with 8.0, a 2nd MBA is a hard sell. I've had a bunch of candidates do it, so it CAN happen, but it has to be good, and you will likely need to willing to compromise somewhat on the school.


If you have any other questions/comments/ideas drop a line,

Best,

PS… Next time, it's better if you start your own thread…