Hi Sashank,
You should apply to ISB even with your score of 680. I see a good chance for you to get an interview call since your profile is very different from many other applicants. I would also rank your profile higher than other applicants for your marketing experience (different from IT background), non-profit sector experience, co-founding a Non-profit org, authoring books and previous experience at ISB. However, a lot will ride on your application and how you present your unique story to the admission committee. Start working on your application and present a stellar application and you should get an interview call soon.
Regards,
Tridisha
sashankvissa wrote:
Hi all,
So here it goes -
Xth (CBSE) - 87%
XIIth (CBSE - Science stream) - 82%
B.Tech (Mechanical) from Amrita University - 7.66 CGPA
GMAT - 680
I worked in L&T as a Marketing Executive for 3 years.
The role encompasses Market research, competitor analysis, branding, communications and a little bit of corporate strategy as well).
Later, I switched over to the non-profit sector and did the 2-year fellowship program with Teach for India, where I taught children in a low-income community.
During the fellowship, I started an Ultimate Frisbee club, which later turned into a small non-profit organization by itself. The primary driving forces of this NPO are to promote gender equity in sports, to develop positive communication between children & all their stakeholder and to facilitate conflict resolution in the community where I worked. I also worked towards the rehabilitation of teenage drug-addicts. The NPO is supported by CSR of USHA International and the ultimate players association of India (UPAI), which is again recognized by WFDF (World flying disc federation).
While working on the NPO, I also worked as an Instructional Design Writer in an education firm based out of Boston. Though our working location was Hyderabad, the firm caters to low-income communities in Africa, India & China by providing them with affordable, quality education. My primary role was to author books on Quantitative Reasoning for grades 1 to 7. I authored 2 books and co-authered 3 books on QR and basic numeracy.
In between the fellowship, I also interned at ISB for 2 months in the SRITNE (Srini Raju Centre for IT & Networked Economy). I was directly working with the associate director and an ISB prof. It was mainly research oriented and we worked on some impact assessment studies of some government initiatives. Won't go into details since I signed an NDA with them.
In future, I would prefer to work in the development sector as a senior manager.
I know I have a low GMAT but I am not entirely sure if I can take the test again in the given time frame. However, most candidates applying to ISB have an average of 700 score.
Do I even stand a chance? If yes, how?
If no? What are my other options here? (I am open to b-schools outside of India as well).
Any help is appreciated.
Thanks in advance!
Note: A big shout out to GMAT CLUB moderators BB and Bunuel for helping me in my GMAT prep. I wouldn't have gotten this 680 score also, if not for them!
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Tridisha, IIM Bangalore
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