Profile evaluation for Top b-schools

Question

Hi guys!

Hows it going!

I am really looking into an evaluation of my profile from my peers.

Much apprecietad if you can share any of your thoughts of my background as an applicant from China and aiming for M7 bschools

Profile:

- ------------------------------------------

Born of Year : 1991

Educational Qualifications :

Major: Bachelors of Law,Sociology from Fudan University(Top 3 in China). GPA:2.9/4. Percentile:75%

Second Major: International Economics and Trade. GPA 2.7/4 Percentile:70%

Year of graduation : 2014

Location : Mainland China

GRE:334 (Verbal:164 Quant:170)

Work Experience

8 Years (By the time of 2023 R1 submitting) in 3 companies and 1 startup

Companies:

Plug and Play Tech Center China office(A VC accellerator headquartered in Silicon Vally), Fintech Vertical (Current)

- building from scratch of one of the largest Fintech startup-to-corporate platform in China as founding core team member,then promoted to veritcal leader
- 4 years. 8 major corporate partner,executive level. 600+ startup sourced. 150 leading fintech related early stage startup in batch. Generated 30+ proof-of-concepts, 18 million CNY revenue generated in lump sum,invest in 2 startups on angel series round.
- innovation consulting for globa fortune 500 in building proof-of-concept and accelerator platforms, design and implemented 0-to-1 process in building innovative products and gtm for leading Fortune 500 corporates(mainly financial service groups)

Finup Group(a series B round Fintech startup, main product is online line of credits)

- leader of a line of business, managing a team of 30+(PM, BA, Devs,Ops), overall management based on business analytical protocal.
- Fastest growing product among the company. 1% of total revenue to ~50%. line of credit:1 billion CNY

EY advisory (Financial service industry) (First job)

- Work directly with Leading partner on business development, presentation to client executive and won 1 million$ deal in first year. top consultant among tier(1/5)
- Mainly a foundation of my financial technology career path

Startup:

AIliving Technology ( a IoT startup design smart hardware and ERP for goverments, currently operating)

- Co-founded in 2018. Fundraising for angel round and 2 following rounds, raised 12 million CNY in total.
- Strategy advisory(not board member) on GTM strategy, BD opportunities.
- Team building and recruiting, grown from 4 people to 30 people in 2 years.

Goal:

short-term:

1. stay in US.
2. financial service industry consulting at Tier2 and above consulting firm(might including digital strategy, or operational strategy)
3. Tech PM form fintech related company(like stripe,etc)
4. tech investment banking at BB or boutique IB, serving asian startups on M&A, IPO related deminds(may be challenging

long-term: Venture capital in asia market, investing in financial technology and enterprise growth stage startups. (or dive in to start-up as CFO or CEO…)

Target :

Full time MBA 2 years at a M7

dream school: HBS, Stanford, Wharton.

My questions :

1. An honest opinion about where I am among my peers, especially among mainland china applicant.
2. How is adquateness of my target school setting..
3. my concers mainly about: Age, China profile, GPA(kinda below average, 2.9/4), seemingly nontypical career track
4. anything you have thought about feel free to share with me:)

Suraj0184 · Answer

With a high GRE score and wide experience, your Resume indeed stands apart from those of other applicants.

AdmitExpert · Answer

Ultrahenry Your background is strong, especially considering your experience in both startups and established companies in the financial technology industry. Your work accomplishments, such as leading the fastest growing product line at Finup Group and playing a key role in building the largest fintech platform at Plug and Play, stand out. You will have to showcase these and your entrepreneurship experience in your application submissions. Your target M7 schools are very competitive, but with 8 years of relevant work experience and solid credentials, you have a good chance of being considered by these top programs. Given the below average GPA, you might want to also consider some realistic and safe schools to apply to. Age is not typically a concern for MBA applicants, as long as they have sufficient work experience and can demonstrate leadership potential. It would make sense to choose schools that might have a slightly higher average work experience. And yes, the MBA applicant pool from Mainland China is very competitive. This can make it challenging to stand out, but a strong profile, including relevant work experience, leadership potential, and clear career goals, can increase your chances of being admitted to a top MBA program. Your GPA may be a concern for top schools, but your GRE score, work experience and accomplishments can make up for it. You could take up relevant certifications and courses to demonstrate strong academic (specifically analytical) ability. You should focus on highlighting your strengths and demonstrating why an MBA is necessary for your career goals in your applications. Overall, it would be best to highlight your experience and accomplishments in your MBA application, and to be clear about your goals and what you hope to gain from an MBA program. Consider reaching out to alumni from your target schools for additional advice and guidance. For a more detailed 1-1 strategy session and school selection, please write to contactus@admitexpert.com or fill the form at http://www.admitexpert.com Good luck!

MBAandBeyond · Answer

Hey Ultrahenry , Thanks for sharing your profile. To begin with, on the academic front, Your GRE score seems decent, however, your GPA for both bachelors and masters seems below average. You would need to demonstrate other academic accolades in order to compensate for the low score. Coming to your work experience, 8 years seem quite impressive, I can see amazing leadership roles in your work tenure. You have also mentioned your startup experience, which again falls in line. Startup experience is highly valued among the AdComs, try highlighting it, Also it is very important to adequately demonstrate your roles and responsibilities to the AdComs. To answer your question * Your work tenure makes your application stand out amidst the pool of applicants and thus it is very important to adequately highlight major learning from the same. Schools you are targeting can be a stretch. I would suggest you add safe schools as well to your list. We have recently helped an applicant from HongKong to get into INSEAD . She was having 10+ yrs of work experience. As already mentioned, you would need to display additional academic accolades to compensate for the score. * Your post- MBA goals seem relevant and are well divided into short and long term. You haven’t mentioned about your EC’s and LORs, they add diversity to your profile and help initiate interesting conversations with the AdComs. Since you have mentioned Venture capital in the long run, I suggest you go through our article on Venture Capital It will give you some insights! Overall your profile seems good, but we would like to know more to gauge your chances better. It all depends on how you connect the dots and create a compelling story around it. Hence, if you’d like, we are happy to get on a call with you to discuss your profile in length and further chances to the schools. Feel free to schedule a call with us at your convenience. Cheers! Neha Hadke Strategy Manager Testimonials Meet our Panel of Consultants. Email: neha@mbaandbeyond.com

MBAGuide · Answer

Ultrahenry  Hope this finds you well

1. An honest opinion about where I am among my peers, especially among mainland china applicant.

Impressive profile overall and I strongly feel you would be a tough competition to other applicants from your demographic. The admissions committees do place a premium on candidates who have extensive experience working for startups because it displays entrepreneurial drive, willingness to take risks and potential as a leader. While these are certainly among the criteria, it's also worth noting that other elements, such as academic performance, extracurricular involvement, and a general sense of fit with the HBS/S/W community and mission, will be taken into account.

2. How is adequateness of my target school setting.
 
Your school selection is on point. Maybe add 2 more schools as backup should you need them eventually. You would be a good fit for any of the M7s

3. My concern mainly about: Age, China profile, GPA(kinda below average, 2.9/4), seemingly nontypical career track

Candidates that don't fit the typical mold, either because of their unconventional histories, non-traditional career routes, or cultural backgrounds, have potential to enrich the MBA program with fresh perspectives. However, it's important to note that while diversity is valued, all applicants are still expected to meet the basic academic and professional requirements of the program. A strong application, with a clear focus on career goals, leadership potential, and a well-articulated fit with the program and its mission, will be key to standing out among the competitive pool of applicants.

You have compensated for your GPA adequately with your GRE score. As the next step focus on demonstrating the skills and qualities that these programs look for.

4. anything you have thought about feel free to share with me

Focus on a strengthening your long-term vision. What kind of ventures would you want to help scale in the long term in Asia and why? Make your goals aspirational but also inspirational. Focus on problem solving so that the admissions committee too would be rooting for your success. What are the gaps you may have observed in the industry through your experience that you wish to plug through your work? How would your immediate goals prepare you to take up bigger and more crucial responsibilities later.

Execute exceptional letters of recommendation with your recommenders. They will be as important as the essays.

Best wishes

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