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private0412
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MBAandBeyond
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Hi everyone.
I would love to get my profile evaluated.

Background:
IT Engineer Male Indian

Education
10th grade : 93%
12th grade: 94.75%
CGPA: 8.6 ( Manipal Institute of Technology)
GMAT: 700

Work Experience:
2 years in Cisco. Worked as a software developer/scrum master for an important Cisco service used in 180 countries and generating an annual revenue of 6 Billion.
3 month Internship in Istanbul: Was stuck there when the military coup took place. Lots of good stories around that.
Founder of a startup in college. Got multiple contracts from various hotels and universities.

Extra- Curricular Activities:
Cisco Intern Ambassador : Point of contact between 240+ Cisco Interns and the management. Worked with them to improve the internship experience.
Vice-President, Indian Society for Technical Education : Led a team of 200+ to organize events in college
Category Head,Technical Fest : Made improvements to the events to improve participation by 50% to 1200 people. Led a team of 100+.
Worked at an NGO (MAD) for 2+ years as a mentor training volunteers. Responsible for the curriculum planning of 14 teachers and overall study schedule of 60+children.
Various performance awards at work.
State-level Swimmer.
Vice-President of my school.

Post MBA goals

Product Management/ Consulting
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Hi AngadAhuja,

I just have evaluated your profile for Insead and would love to do it for HEC. I think I have already highlighted the key points in your profile. The only thing that I would want to add is to bring good international exposure if you have. I see your role at Cisco which has its services in 180 countries, so if you do have exposure to dealing with international experiences, bring it out. Otherwise, your story at Istanbul can also work if you are able to tell how an experience there has impacted your perspective, and what do you gain from that? You may bring it out better by understanding the importance of international experience. Rest, while crafting applications of business schools, take care of connecting the dots between your career and the school's values with thorough research. You are always welcome to hop on a call with us to brainstorm your chances together. Feel free to book a free session with us as per your convenience.

Cheers!
Kashish Garg
Community Manager, MBA and Beyond
Email: [email protected]
What s app: +65-97158525

AngadAhuja
Hi everyone.
I would love to get my profile evaluated.

Background:
IT Engineer Male Indian

Education
10th grade : 93%
12th grade: 94.75%
CGPA: 8.6 ( Manipal Institute of Technology)
GMAT: 700

Work Experience:
2 years in Cisco. Worked as a software developer/scrum master for an important Cisco service used in 180 countries and generating an annual revenue of 6 Billion.
3 month Internship in Istanbul: Was stuck there when the military coup took place. Lots of good stories around that.
Founder of a startup in college. Got multiple contracts from various hotels and universities.

Extra- Curricular Activities:
Cisco Intern Ambassador : Point of contact between 240+ Cisco Interns and the management. Worked with them to improve the internship experience.
Vice-President, Indian Society for Technical Education : Led a team of 200+ to organize events in college
Category Head,Technical Fest : Made improvements to the events to improve participation by 50% to 1200 people. Led a team of 100+.
Worked at an NGO (MAD) for 2+ years as a mentor training volunteers. Responsible for the curriculum planning of 14 teachers and overall study schedule of 60+children.
Various performance awards at work.
State-level Swimmer.
Vice-President of my school.

Post MBA goals

Product Management/ Consulting
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Russthemann
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Hey all, if I could get a profile review that would be greatly appreciated!

Background and nationality:
Canadian national, born and raised. Currently living in Montreal, native English speaker but also speak good French. Played Varisty rugby for 4 years for my university in the BC Premiership, would've played semi-professional after university (in France!) but my career was ended early due to having a back tumour (more on that below).

Undergrad Information: 3.1, Bachelor of Arts (History) with Minor in Business.
GMAT: 670 (Q 42, V 40).

Work experience and leadership: Will be matriculating with 4 years of experience, 3 of those years as a manager. After 10 months of my first job post-uni, I was promoted to our National Operations Manager, overseeing 16 staff across Canada & Hawaii (Beverage distribution organisation). Did that for a year, moved to Montreal, and I solely managed our Eastern Canada team. Huge reorganisation because of COVID, now I manage our supply chain network across Canada and relationships with our 3rd party distributors.

Community and others
After recovering from surgery, I started playing amateur rugby again. I also volunteer as a coach at our local club, but sadly due to COVID I wasnt able to do that.

Post MBA goals
Environmental/sustainability consulting. My current company is a B-Corp and is carbon negative, and are working with other companies on how they can lessen their carbon footprint. I'm very passionate about our environmental footprint in the world and want to help other companies lower their resource usage and make a large change on how the private business world affects our environment.

Anything else?: Low GPA for two reasons - first year I was in Astrophysics, and hated it. Didn't do well at all, around 2.5 GPA. Switched programs, really enjoyed my uni after and did well. Final semester of university, I was diagnosed with a benign tumour in my spinal cord which really through my studies up into the air! Should've deferred, but didn't. Finished final semester with a 3.4 average.
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MBAandBeyond
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Hi Russthemann,

I absolutely loved your post-MBA goals and your story, too, seems very strong. HEC Paris also provides a specialization in "Sustainable and Disruptive Innovation" which you can choose in the second phase of the curriculum. It perfectly suits your post-MBA goals.

Now, evaluating your profile, though I understand your reasons for a lower GPA, you can show your academic potential through a better gmat score. While all other aspects of your profile look good, a gmat of 690+ will make your profile stronger. Your work-ex seems great with good leadership experiences and great career trajectory. Through your ECs I can clearly see your passion for Rugby and yes, proficiency in French will surely help you if HEC Paris and France come into the larger picture of your goals. So, overall you seem to have a fair shot at HEC Paris. If you want to look into the HEC Paris community, its scholarships, application deadlines or any other details you can have a brief look here. Make sure you are connected with the school's values throughout your application.

Also, being a Canadian national and having a great experience there, you should also look into Rotman, Ivey, and other top colleges there. If you’d like, we are happy to hop on a call sometimes this week to discuss your chances in further detail.
Feel free to book a free session with us as per your convenience.

Cheers!
Kashish Garg,
Community Manager, MBA and Beyond

On behalf of,
Shantanu Sharma,
Founder and Admissions Consultant, MBA and Beyond
Email: [email protected]
Linkedin

Russthemann
Hey all, if I could get a profile review that would be greatly appreciated!

Background and nationality:
Canadian national, born and raised. Currently living in Montreal, native English speaker but also speak good French. Played Varisty rugby for 4 years for my university in the BC Premiership, would've played semi-professional after university (in France!) but my career was ended early due to having a back tumour (more on that below).

Undergrad Information: 3.1, Bachelor of Arts (History) with Minor in Business.
GMAT: 670 (Q 42, V 40).

Work experience and leadership: Will be matriculating with 4 years of experience, 3 of those years as a manager. After 10 months of my first job post-uni, I was promoted to our National Operations Manager, overseeing 16 staff across Canada & Hawaii (Beverage distribution organisation). Did that for a year, moved to Montreal, and I solely managed our Eastern Canada team. Huge reorganisation because of COVID, now I manage our supply chain network across Canada and relationships with our 3rd party distributors.

Community and others
After recovering from surgery, I started playing amateur rugby again. I also volunteer as a coach at our local club, but sadly due to COVID I wasnt able to do that.

Post MBA goals
Environmental/sustainability consulting. My current company is a B-Corp and is carbon negative, and are working with other companies on how they can lessen their carbon footprint. I'm very passionate about our environmental footprint in the world and want to help other companies lower their resource usage and make a large change on how the private business world affects our environment.

Anything else?: Low GPA for two reasons - first year I was in Astrophysics, and hated it. Didn't do well at all, around 2.5 GPA. Switched programs, really enjoyed my uni after and did well. Final semester of university, I was diagnosed with a benign tumour in my spinal cord which really through my studies up into the air! Should've deferred, but didn't. Finished final semester with a 3.4 average.
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Hi all, I would greatly appreciate a profile review for my application to HEC Paris.

Background and nationality:

I am an Indian, male, engineer. I did my UG from Singapore and moved back to India for work since then. I have a total work ex of 4 years, will be 5 by the time college starts. In india I worked with Voltas for 2 years where I can show substantial growth and contribution. Since then I have moved on to my family business in the manufacturing sector. Here I have shown even better career progression incuding launching new products for the first time in India. I have also contributed significantly to revenue growth. Currently 250 people across 4 locations pan India report to me. I have done part time work in 3 startups for experience and to broaden my network (not doing this anymore). I also run an event management company on the side and have hosted events of close to 3000 attendees multiple times.
I have significant international exposure with clients and vendors from EU, USA, China etc(around 20 countries) and have also travelled extensively to meet these vendors. I have diffrent experience in that I got to visit and study world class labs and facotries and implement global best practices in my business.

Education:

I did my UG in Singapore where unfortunately i did very badly. I have visible fail grades on my transcripts, however I can explain this by my involvement in college extra curriculars and extentive travel and participation in industry networks, workshops, fairs and seminars. GPA - 4/7
I have tried to offset this by completing the HBS Online CORe module, which I completed.
I have a GMAT of 690. I tried to better my score but after 3 tries that the best I could do so far.

Community service:
I have extensive community service on my resume. I work with local leaders to organise clean up drives every 6 months in my area. I built 2 community centers by collecting donations and provided employment local youngsters for the construction.i built walking gardens with my resident association when the local park was cut down. I also have many negotiates with local leaders to talk about. Also I Manufactured and donanted 800 face shields to hospital during covid.

Hobbies:
I like to read and read nearly 100 books a year..
Completed 8-10 cycling marathons.
Played tennis at state level in highschool
Trinity grade 2 certificate in playing piano.

Post MBA goals:

As I have been involved in supply chains throughout my career I want to work in SCM post MBA. I want to work in a large supply chain and use the experience to launch my own venture to make supply chains greener. I am already working on a product for tracking and tracing global supply chains with my parters using blockchain technology. Knowing where products are being sourced from can make supply chains more accessible and reduce unnecessary shipment through better planning. I have a product, but I don't have the knowledge or network to get this product to market. I want to do an MBA to gain better skills in SCM by working at my target companies and get a better network to launch my product in the next 5-7 years.
Delaying my MBA will give an opportunity for completion to arrive as SCM and blockchain are very widely studied today. To be a market mover I want to do my MBA now.


I feel that my grades and GMAT are a huge negative in my profile. Especially for an indian. However I think my overall profile is decent with different experiences and good trajectory of growth.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

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Hi akareez,

You have got one amazing profile. Starting with stats, yes, your undergrad GPA is very low but I think the other aspects of your profile compensates it more than enough. Also, you have relevant reasons for this low GPA, so I do not consider it a huge block. Now about your work-ex, this is really amazing. You do exhibit every quality be it impact, leadership, career trajectory (which is super fast), international exposure plus you have exhibited bold leadership in your event management company. The great part is you have visited different countries and learned from these experiences and implemented the best ones in yours. So, it clearly shows how you get the best out of your experiences, a quality quite uncommon. Now, talking about your ECs and community service, I can clearly see an empathetic person especially by your initiative in COVID. You have some great hobbies too. So, overall you have a great shot at HEC and some other top programs too and I think you may get some scholarships too.

Also, your post-MBA goals are very innovative and well-aligned with your overall story. I would say, have deep research into the HEC community and scholarships to connect your narrative and career vision to HEC's values and community. And remember it all boils down to a great story. You are welcome to hop on a call with us to discuss your chances to some good schools in detail. Feel free to book a free session with us as per your convenience.

Cheers!
Kashish Garg
Community Manager, MBA and Beyond

On behalf of
Shantanu Sharma,
Founder and Admissions Consultant, MBA and Beyond
Email: [email protected]
Linkedin
akareez
Hi all, I would greatly appreciate a profile review for my application to HEC Paris.

Background and nationality:

I am an Indian, male, engineer. I did my UG from Singapore and moved back to India for work since then. I have a total work ex of 4 years, will be 5 by the time college starts. In india I worked with Voltas for 2 years where I can show substantial growth and contribution. Since then I have moved on to my family business in the manufacturing sector. Here I have shown even better career progression incuding launching new products for the first time in India. I have also contributed significantly to revenue growth. Currently 250 people across 4 locations pan India report to me. I have done part time work in 3 startups for experience and to broaden my network (not doing this anymore). I also run an event management company on the side and have hosted events of close to 3000 attendees multiple times.
I have significant international exposure with clients and vendors from EU, USA, China etc(around 20 countries) and have also travelled extensively to meet these vendors. I have diffrent experience in that I got to visit and study world class labs and facotries and implement global best practices in my business.

Education:

I did my UG in Singapore where unfortunately i did very badly. I have visible fail grades on my transcripts, however I can explain this by my involvement in college extra curriculars and extentive travel and participation in industry networks, workshops, fairs and seminars. GPA - 4/7
I have tried to offset this by completing the HBS Online CORe module, which I completed.
I have a GMAT of 690. I tried to better my score but after 3 tries that the best I could do so far.

Community service:
I have extensive community service on my resume. I work with local leaders to organise clean up drives every 6 months in my area. I built 2 community centers by collecting donations and provided employment local youngsters for the construction.i built walking gardens with my resident association when the local park was cut down. I also have many negotiates with local leaders to talk about. Also I Manufactured and donanted 800 face shields to hospital during covid.

Hobbies:
I like to read and read nearly 100 books a year..
Completed 8-10 cycling marathons.
Played tennis at state level in highschool
Trinity grade 2 certificate in playing piano.

Post MBA goals:

As I have been involved in supply chains throughout my career I want to work in SCM post MBA. I want to work in a large supply chain and use the experience to launch my own venture to make supply chains greener. I am already working on a product for tracking and tracing global supply chains with my parters using blockchain technology. Knowing where products are being sourced from can make supply chains more accessible and reduce unnecessary shipment through better planning. I have a product, but I don't have the knowledge or network to get this product to market. I want to do an MBA to gain better skills in SCM by working at my target companies and get a better network to launch my product in the next 5-7 years.
Delaying my MBA will give an opportunity for completion to arrive as SCM and blockchain are very widely studied today. To be a market mover I want to do my MBA now.


I feel that my grades and GMAT are a huge negative in my profile. Especially for an indian. However I think my overall profile is decent with different experiences and good trajectory of growth.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Posted from my mobile device
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akareez
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Hi,

Thanks for the review. Hope I cam express the same well in my application.

MBAnBevaluations
Hi akareez,

You have got one amazing profile. Starting with stats, yes, your undergrad GPA is very low but I think the other aspects of your profile compensates it more than enough. Also, you have relevant reasons for this low GPA, so I do not consider it a huge block. Now about your work-ex, this is really amazing. You do exhibit every quality be it impact, leadership, career trajectory (which is super fast), international exposure plus you have exhibited bold leadership in your event management company. The great part is you have visited different countries and learned from these experiences and implemented the best ones in yours. So, it clearly shows how you get the best out of your experiences, a quality quite uncommon. Now, talking about your ECs and community service, I can clearly see an empathetic person especially by your initiative in COVID. You have some great hobbies too. So, overall you have a great shot at HEC and some other top programs too and I think you may get some scholarships too.

Also, your post-MBA goals are very innovative and well-aligned with your overall story. I would say, have deep research into the HEC community and scholarships to connect your narrative and career vision to HEC's values and community. And remember it all boils down to a great story. You are welcome to hop on a call with us to discuss your chances to some good schools in detail. Feel free to book a free session with us as per your convenience.

Cheers!
Kashish Garg
Community Manager, MBA and Beyond

On behalf of
Shantanu Sharma,
Founder and Admissions Consultant, MBA and Beyond
Email: [email protected]
Linkedin
akareez
Hi all, I would greatly appreciate a profile review for my application to HEC Paris.

Background and nationality:

I am an Indian, male, engineer. I did my UG from Singapore and moved back to India for work since then. I have a total work ex of 4 years, will be 5 by the time college starts. In india I worked with Voltas for 2 years where I can show substantial growth and contribution. Since then I have moved on to my family business in the manufacturing sector. Here I have shown even better career progression incuding launching new products for the first time in India. I have also contributed significantly to revenue growth. Currently 250 people across 4 locations pan India report to me. I have done part time work in 3 startups for experience and to broaden my network (not doing this anymore). I also run an event management company on the side and have hosted events of close to 3000 attendees multiple times.
I have significant international exposure with clients and vendors from EU, USA, China etc(around 20 countries) and have also travelled extensively to meet these vendors. I have diffrent experience in that I got to visit and study world class labs and facotries and implement global best practices in my business.

Education:

I did my UG in Singapore where unfortunately i did very badly. I have visible fail grades on my transcripts, however I can explain this by my involvement in college extra curriculars and extentive travel and participation in industry networks, workshops, fairs and seminars. GPA - 4/7
I have tried to offset this by completing the HBS Online CORe module, which I completed.
I have a GMAT of 690. I tried to better my score but after 3 tries that the best I could do so far.

Community service:
I have extensive community service on my resume. I work with local leaders to organise clean up drives every 6 months in my area. I built 2 community centers by collecting donations and provided employment local youngsters for the construction.i built walking gardens with my resident association when the local park was cut down. I also have many negotiates with local leaders to talk about. Also I Manufactured and donanted 800 face shields to hospital during covid.

Hobbies:
I like to read and read nearly 100 books a year..
Completed 8-10 cycling marathons.
Played tennis at state level in highschool
Trinity grade 2 certificate in playing piano.

Post MBA goals:

As I have been involved in supply chains throughout my career I want to work in SCM post MBA. I want to work in a large supply chain and use the experience to launch my own venture to make supply chains greener. I am already working on a product for tracking and tracing global supply chains with my parters using blockchain technology. Knowing where products are being sourced from can make supply chains more accessible and reduce unnecessary shipment through better planning. I have a product, but I don't have the knowledge or network to get this product to market. I want to do an MBA to gain better skills in SCM by working at my target companies and get a better network to launch my product in the next 5-7 years.
Delaying my MBA will give an opportunity for completion to arrive as SCM and blockchain are very widely studied today. To be a market mover I want to do my MBA now.


I feel that my grades and GMAT are a huge negative in my profile. Especially for an indian. However I think my overall profile is decent with different experiences and good trajectory of growth.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Posted from my mobile device
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kitty90
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Hi there, I'd like an honest opinion on my profile (HEC MiM)

Background - 21 year old male, Indian (born), Bachelors Econ from SciencesPo Paris (13.5/20 as 2 year GPA and 3.5/4 from Emory Exchange year with a 3.7/4 on my major related classes). I know the highest 2 year GPA is typically a 15/20 or 16/20 (just for reference), low GPA owing to serious health ailments which could be highlighted in my LORs

Internships/Work Exp : (please note that it's extremely uncommon to pursue non-NGO kind of internships in my program as professional internships are emphasized when people continue with their Masters)

1) 2 month business analyst stint at a tech startup in Madrid, Spain which resulted in notable impacts on their marketing campaign
2) 5 month Venture Capital internship (cut short thanks to Covid) in Argentina at a well-known VC firm
3) A 1 month project with a long/short hedge fund in Argentina (on Oil & Gas Equities listed in the U.S)
4) 4 month (As of now) work experience at a boutique investment management firm in India; currently employed

Extracurriculars :

1) President of the Finance and Investment Society at university (revived a 2 year long dormant club)
2) Managed and ran a CSR Campaign "Upskill Yourself!" at an industrial firm in India (2 months)
3) Brand Ambassador and Mentor of a firm oriented towards helping Indian students to pursue undergrad overseas (application process, school insights, etc.); also featured on their podcasts
4) Community Volunteer with a French NGO during my undergrad

Here are the not-so great things :

1) My offer at a French cybersecurity form for Business/Financial Analyst was rescinded thanks to Covid again
2) GRE, take 1 = 314 Composite with a ~70th percentile on Quant and Verbal

Brownie points I think :

1) Can get an LOR from director of SciencesPo who can vouch for me and my journey; successfully graduating despite my health
2) Could also get LORs from prominent people at the Euro Central Bank/ my Argentine VC firm
3) Got my current job in an extremely competitive Covid market (nothing short of a miracle I believe)

Post Master Goals : Impact/ESG/Tech Investing/Deal-Advisory

I put as much detail as I can publicly disclose; should I really retake the GRE? Is it worth the money and effort? Please be as brutal as one could be with this evaluation ;) Many thanks!
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Hello kitty90,
Your profile has all the good things to get you in a top MIM program, but for a low GRE and a low GPA as you have pointed out. Though you have contextualized your low GPA, I would want to see it i percentile terms. If it is not too low, I would not take too much space explaining it. I also would not worry too much about the lost internship due to Covid. If the lost internship opportunity does not match the role in your previous internship, I would also not think too much about mentioning it anywhere.
You have amazing internship experience and an international experience, and if you can get LORs from the people you have mentioned, it will really help your application. Based on your place of education, I am wondering if there any other languages you know. If you have an interesting story there, you can talk about it too.
Now let’s talk of the GRE. For the top category MIM program you wish to target, a 320-325+ score is deemed competitive. However, remember GRE is only 20% of the overall option (still sizeable), and the rest is your other parts of the application. It acts like a gatekeeper to get you in.
There are many instances where people with a lower score than the median GMAT/GRE score of a school, gain acceptance on the basis of their profile alone. If your GRE and GPA are both low and you think you can raise your GRE in another attempt, by all means go for it.
Else, apply to HEC, and some of the other safe schools.
kitty90
Hi there, I'd like an honest opinion on my profile (HEC MiM)

Background - 21 year old male, Indian (born), Bachelors Econ from SciencesPo Paris (13.5/20 as 2 year GPA and 3.5/4 from Emory Exchange year with a 3.7/4 on my major related classes). I know the highest 2 year GPA is typically a 15/20 or 16/20 (just for reference), low GPA owing to serious health ailments which could be highlighted in my LORs

Internships/Work Exp : (please note that it's extremely uncommon to pursue non-NGO kind of internships in my program as professional internships are emphasized when people continue with their Masters)

1) 2 month business analyst stint at a tech startup in Madrid, Spain which resulted in notable impacts on their marketing campaign
2) 5 month Venture Capital internship (cut short thanks to Covid) in Argentina at a well-known VC firm
3) A 1 month project with a long/short hedge fund in Argentina (on Oil & Gas Equities listed in the U.S)
4) 4 month (As of now) work experience at a boutique investment management firm in India; currently employed

Extracurriculars :

1) President of the Finance and Investment Society at university (revived a 2 year long dormant club)
2) Managed and ran a CSR Campaign "Upskill Yourself!" at an industrial firm in India (2 months)
3) Brand Ambassador and Mentor of a firm oriented towards helping Indian students to pursue undergrad overseas (application process, school insights, etc.); also featured on their podcasts
4) Community Volunteer with a French NGO during my undergrad

Here are the not-so great things :

1) My offer at a French cybersecurity form for Business/Financial Analyst was rescinded thanks to Covid again
2) GRE, take 1 = 314 Composite with a ~70th percentile on Quant and Verbal

Brownie points I think :

1) Can get an LOR from director of SciencesPo who can vouch for me and my journey; successfully graduating despite my health
2) Could also get LORs from prominent people at the Euro Central Bank/ my Argentine VC firm
3) Got my current job in an extremely competitive Covid market (nothing short of a miracle I believe)

Post Master Goals : Impact/ESG/Tech Investing/Deal-Advisory

I put as much detail as I can publicly disclose; should I really retake the GRE? Is it worth the money and effort? Please be as brutal as one could be with this evaluation ;) Many thanks!
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Hello everyone, I would greatly appreciate a profile review and any advice welcome, thank you very much for your help!

Objectif:
-HEC MiM intake sep 2021, R1 application

Background and nationality
-Male, was born in France and have French citizenship, Origin : Vietnamese, At the moment 24 year old

Undergrad Information:
-Université Pierre et Marie Curie(now Sorbonne Université, FR), BSc : mathematics, GPA: 2.7/4
-Erasmus 1year, University of Bristol(UK), BSc Pure mathematics, GPA: 2.7, Exchange program

PostGraduate Information:
-Université Pierre et Marie Curie(now Sorbonne Université, FR), MSc : mathematics, minor finance, GPA: 3/4

Extracurricular while at university
-Throughout uni I have been playing at the university club and competed against other French university
-Have been learning Japanese at the Institut Japonais de Paris (Able to sustain non professional conversation, reading and writing not at a descent level, 4years)
-Have been playing piano at a small conservatory in my town, passed first level piano (beginner,3years)

Online GMAT: 740
Quant : 48
Verbal : 44
IR : 6

Work experience and leadership
-End of study internship for my master (11months, trainee), Quantitative trading analyst within Risk department at a top French investment banking in London
Impact
-I have re-coded a pricing library (migration from vba to python) and automated the whole database, saving 5 hours/day
-Proceed statistical analysis and looking for tendency using time series analysis
-Explaining trading PnL on a daily basis and responding ton different demand on short time for senior management and audit

Community and others:
-Coronavirus food delivery volunteer for a local association in east London

Post MBA goals
-short term: Looking to gain more experience in front office within an investment banking and learn
-Long term: Start my own business, though I don't know if it will be in tech or in finance, but surely science/machine learning oriented

Anything else?
-TOEIC : 925/990(R & W), have not taken S & L
-TOEFL : Taken, waiting for result. Expecting 102/120

Currently doing
-Pursuing CFA lvl 1
-Pursuing Machine learning mooc on coursera in partenariat with Stanford University (though I don't know the value of this)
-Day trading for my own though oneline broker ( trading cross asset CFD) though it's not a large amount and don't know if there is any value
-Enrolled in volleyball and tennis club

Shady point
-Low GPA, knowing that each and everyone has their own difficult time, I was not able to get a top score at uni.
-LOR: HEC asks for an academic and a professional. I don't have any academic reference. On the professional side, I might have one from my manager and one from a senior team member. The fact is that I have not gotten any answer from them and might be the real issue.
-Leadership: I do not have any solid leadership role, more like an employee.
-The online GMAT does not have an AWA part and might be an issue for jury ?

Thank you everyone !
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Hello SenTh,
You have a very good GMAT score, which should in some way convince the AdCom about you being able to handle the academic rigor of the program. Use the optional essay to explain the reason for low GPA, if any. In your essays, focus on examples from your internship, which also align well with your post-MBA goals. Leadership is not only about leading teams, but being able to create impact, innovate, which I very clearly see you have demonstrated in your internship. I love the fact you are learning Japanese and have contributed to the community during the pandemic.
It will be desirable to have at least one academic reference. Professors are generally generous to write recommendations for students for higher studies. Is there any course or subject where you did well? You can reach out to that professor for a recommendation. Else, get one recommendation from someone who knows you well personally and can talk about (with examples) your qualities and how you will be a great asset to the program.
SenTh
Hello everyone, I would greatly appreciate a profile review and any advice welcome, thank you very much for your help!

Objectif:
-HEC MiM intake sep 2021, R1 application

Background and nationality
-Male, was born in France and have French citizenship, Origin : Vietnamese, At the moment 24 year old

Undergrad Information:
-Université Pierre et Marie Curie(now Sorbonne Université, FR), BSc : mathematics, GPA: 2.7/4
-Erasmus 1year, University of Bristol(UK), BSc Pure mathematics, GPA: 2.7, Exchange program

PostGraduate Information:
-Université Pierre et Marie Curie(now Sorbonne Université, FR), MSc : mathematics, minor finance, GPA: 3/4

Extracurricular while at university
-Throughout uni I have been playing at the university club and competed against other French university
-Have been learning Japanese at the Institut Japonais de Paris (Able to sustain non professional conversation, reading and writing not at a descent level, 4years)
-Have been playing piano at a small conservatory in my town, passed first level piano (beginner,3years)

Online GMAT: 740
Quant : 48
Verbal : 44
IR : 6

Work experience and leadership
-End of study internship for my master (11months, trainee), Quantitative trading analyst within Risk department at a top French investment banking in London
Impact
-I have re-coded a pricing library (migration from vba to python) and automated the whole database, saving 5 hours/day
-Proceed statistical analysis and looking for tendency using time series analysis
-Explaining trading PnL on a daily basis and responding ton different demand on short time for senior management and audit

Community and others:
-Coronavirus food delivery volunteer for a local association in east London

Post MBA goals
-short term: Looking to gain more experience in front office within an investment banking and learn
-Long term: Start my own business, though I don't know if it will be in tech or in finance, but surely science/machine learning oriented

Anything else?
-TOEIC : 925/990(R & W), have not taken S & L
-TOEFL : Taken, waiting for result. Expecting 102/120

Currently doing
-Pursuing CFA lvl 1
-Pursuing Machine learning mooc on coursera in partenariat with Stanford University (though I don't know the value of this)
-Day trading for my own though oneline broker ( trading cross asset CFD) though it's not a large amount and don't know if there is any value
-Enrolled in volleyball and tennis club

Shady point
-Low GPA, knowing that each and everyone has their own difficult time, I was not able to get a top score at uni.
-LOR: HEC asks for an academic and a professional. I don't have any academic reference. On the professional side, I might have one from my manager and one from a senior team member. The fact is that I have not gotten any answer from them and might be the real issue.
-Leadership: I do not have any solid leadership role, more like an employee.
-The online GMAT does not have an AWA part and might be an issue for jury ?

Thank you everyone !
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RUCHIPCONSULTING
Hello kitty90,
Your profile has all the good things to get you in a top MIM program, but for a low GRE and a low GPA as you have pointed out. Though you have contextualized your low GPA, I would want to see it i percentile terms. If it is not too low, I would not take too much space explaining it. I also would not worry too much about the lost internship due to Covid. If the lost internship opportunity does not match the role in your previous internship, I would also not think too much about mentioning it anywhere.
You have amazing internship experience and an international experience, and if you can get LORs from the people you have mentioned, it will really help your application. Based on your place of education, I am wondering if there any other languages you know. If you have an interesting story there, you can talk about it too.
Now let’s talk of the GRE. For the top category MIM program you wish to target, a 320-325+ score is deemed competitive. However, remember GRE is only 20% of the overall option (still sizeable), and the rest is your other parts of the application. It acts like a gatekeeper to get you in.
There are many instances where people with a lower score than the median GMAT/GRE score of a school, gain acceptance on the basis of their profile alone. If your GRE and GPA are both low and you think you can raise your GRE in another attempt, by all means go for it.
Else, apply to HEC, and some of the other safe schools.
kitty90
Hi there, I'd like an honest opinion on my profile (HEC MiM)

Background - 21 year old male, Indian (born), Bachelors Econ from SciencesPo Paris (13.5/20 as 2 year GPA and 3.5/4 from Emory Exchange year with a 3.7/4 on my major related classes). I know the highest 2 year GPA is typically a 15/20 or 16/20 (just for reference), low GPA owing to serious health ailments which could be highlighted in my LORs

Internships/Work Exp : (please note that it's extremely uncommon to pursue non-NGO kind of internships in my program as professional internships are emphasized when people continue with their Masters)

1) 2 month business analyst stint at a tech startup in Madrid, Spain which resulted in notable impacts on their marketing campaign
2) 5 month Venture Capital internship (cut short thanks to Covid) in Argentina at a well-known VC firm
3) A 1 month project with a long/short hedge fund in Argentina (on Oil & Gas Equities listed in the U.S)
4) 4 month (As of now) work experience at a boutique investment management firm in India; currently employed

Extracurriculars :

1) President of the Finance and Investment Society at university (revived a 2 year long dormant club)
2) Managed and ran a CSR Campaign "Upskill Yourself!" at an industrial firm in India (2 months)
3) Brand Ambassador and Mentor of a firm oriented towards helping Indian students to pursue undergrad overseas (application process, school insights, etc.); also featured on their podcasts
4) Community Volunteer with a French NGO during my undergrad

Here are the not-so great things :

1) My offer at a French cybersecurity form for Business/Financial Analyst was rescinded thanks to Covid again
2) GRE, take 1 = 314 Composite with a ~70th percentile on Quant and Verbal

Brownie points I think :

1) Can get an LOR from director of SciencesPo who can vouch for me and my journey; successfully graduating despite my health
2) Could also get LORs from prominent people at the Euro Central Bank/ my Argentine VC firm
3) Got my current job in an extremely competitive Covid market (nothing short of a miracle I believe)

Post Master Goals : Impact/ESG/Tech Investing/Deal-Advisory

I put as much detail as I can publicly disclose; should I really retake the GRE? Is it worth the money and effort? Please be as brutal as one could be with this evaluation ;) Many thanks!

Thanks a lot for your response! To answer your questions :

1. It's very difficult to assign percentiles for my undergrad since even if there were ~35-40 people in the Econ specialisation like me, all of us ended up picking different electives both for the third and fourth semester. The 1st and 2nd semester, yep it was roughly common for all the students in the cohort but I don't remember us being assigned class ranks/percentiles. So it would be very vague to come to such a 'rank' conclusion. My target school HEC knows this, I was at their Open Days and they told me a 14/20 GPA overall would be better (when I said I had a 13.5), not sure how much sense to make out of this. Again, this doesn't take into account my stellar performace in my 3rd year (5th & 6th semesters). But yes, I might benefit from explaining this low GPA (had to retake my econ exam) in my LORs/SOPs I feel, the overall isn't too low but more like slightly above average, if that makes sense?

2. Yes, I do speak French at an intermediate (B1) level (would almost be near 'work-place proficient' when I start my program next year), I do have some elementary Spanish proficiency as it was kind of important to understand the basic ideas during client meetings in Argentina! (a challenge I was encouraged to face by my boss!)

3. I come from an unconventional background (first in the family to study abroad, no-name town in a relatively unknown region in the country where core finance means nothing more than retail banking, etc. etc.). I think my journey could be somewhat encapsulated in my SOPs

P.S - Thinking about retaking since HEC replied they have a 325 median GRE. If I perform worse, I'll send in my current scores
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Hi Everyone,

I am trying to evaluate my chances of getting into either MIT Sloan, Harvard or Stanford here in the US and HEC Paris, LBS in Europe.

I am a 31 yr old Indian Male living in the US for past 9 years with 8+ years of industry experience.

GMAT 730 (Q49, V40, I7)

Education:
Bachelor of Engineering in Mechatronics from Manipal Institute of Technology (GPA 8.73/10.0) was second in my class.

Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering
Master of Science in Engineering & Technology Innovation Management
Both from Carnegie Mellon University (GPA 3.6/4.0)

Work Ex:
- Failed Edtech Startup Entrepreneur. Tried launching an Edtech platform that leverages AR Technology to aid classroom teaching and improve student engagement. Got great reviews on the prototype/ product but could not achieve scale.
- Launched 10+ successful products in a myriad of industries ranging from consumer kitchen appliances and medical devices to food automation and textiles.
- Worked in product design firms, startups and small companies in the US where it is hard to show career progression in form of promotions.

Extracurriculars:
- Helped improve rice harvest productivity in my family owned land at my ancestral village with a low cost portable automation system.
- Vice Captain of a minor league hard tennis ball Cricket Team.
-Have a lot more from college days but its been several years since I graduated from it and hence not mentioning it here.

Interests:
Sports – Watch and play most sports
Social Welfare Causes – especially Education and Animal Welfare


Post MBA Goals:
I would like to either join the social sector of consulting firms or the Social Impact group of companies like Google and Amazon to drive the strategy and implementation of solutions to social problems.

Thank you for your time.
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Hi TravellingGunner,

Your profile seems great. I would say, overall, considering your higher work-ex, you have a better chance in European schools, as you mentioned, HEC and LBS. Insead is also a great choice since it has a higher rate of candidates with high experience. Your GMAT seems great, at least, for HEC and LBS. For your work-ex, yes it is not very traditional or one-industry focused, but it does exhibit some great qualities, like leadership, innovation, experience in a range of industries, impact (as I am assuming with your many new products). I liked your ECs as well, some very different from the pool like in agri-tech space. Overall, I see you have a pretty fair shot at LBS, HEC. For US schools, I think, first, you are targeting M7 which can be a stretch for anyone, second, your work-ex may be a negative to your profile. But with a great, unique story, the outcome of many brainstorming sessions, you can hit the bullseye! We are delighted to hear your story and would love to guide you. Feel free to book a free session with us as per your convenience.

Cheers!
Kashish Garg,
Community Manager, MBA and Beyond

On behalf of,
Shantanu Sharma,
Founder and Admissions Consultant, MBA and Beyond
Email: [email protected]
Linkedin

With more than 8 years of experience spanning across entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship, Shantanu has worked across the globe as a Procurement Manager, Product Manager (Marketing, Operations, Payments and Risk/ Fraud), Growth Consultant, eventually unraveling his love for helping candidates with their MBA application as a Coach. Shantanu started coaching applicants, with his team, right after he graduated from INSEAD in 2017. Have a look at his success stories and some real essays of his clients
TravellingGunner
Hi Everyone,

I am trying to evaluate my chances of getting into either MIT Sloan, Harvard or Stanford here in the US and HEC Paris, LBS in Europe.

I am a 31 yr old Indian Male living in the US for past 9 years with 8+ years of industry experience.

GMAT 730 (Q49, V40, I7)

Education:
Bachelor of Engineering in Mechatronics from Manipal Institute of Technology (GPA 8.73/10.0) was second in my class.

Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering
Master of Science in Engineering & Technology Innovation Management
Both from Carnegie Mellon University (GPA 3.6/4.0)

Work Ex:
- Failed Edtech Startup Entrepreneur. Tried launching an Edtech platform that leverages AR Technology to aid classroom teaching and improve student engagement. Got great reviews on the prototype/ product but could not achieve scale.
- Launched 10+ successful products in a myriad of industries ranging from consumer kitchen appliances and medical devices to food automation and textiles.
- Worked in product design firms, startups and small companies in the US where it is hard to show career progression in form of promotions.

Extracurriculars:
- Helped improve rice harvest productivity in my family owned land at my ancestral village with a low cost portable automation system.
- Vice Captain of a minor league hard tennis ball Cricket Team.
-Have a lot more from college days but its been several years since I graduated from it and hence not mentioning it here.

Interests:
Sports – Watch and play most sports
Social Welfare Causes – especially Education and Animal Welfare


Post MBA Goals:
I would like to either join the social sector of consulting firms or the Social Impact group of companies like Google and Amazon to drive the strategy and implementation of solutions to social problems.

Thank you for your time.
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Hi ,
Please review my profile for HEC
X-75%
XII-79%
Graduation-3.6 GPA Staffordshire University
2 years of IT Experience
I have been in working in CRPF since last 6 years and have been posted in Kashmir for 3.5 years, where I led a team of 40 personnel. After that I have been working with the Technical Wing of CRPF since last 1.5 years.
I want to know what should be my GMAT score to get into HEC
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Hello KartikeyaRai,
Saw your profile post at a couple of places, so will respond here collectively. Though you haven't given much details around your WE, it is clear you have a pretty distinct profile. Were you ever in a combat role at CRPF? I am also missing your post-MBA goals.
Irrespective, you have a distinct profile, and if you can write a compelling application (stitching your story together about getting a degree from the UK, working in IT and then working for CRPF), your chances will be good. I think your CRPF experience will outshine most of your other experiences in the application, and working in a difficult region such as Kashmir, you would have many interesting experiences to share.
For both HEC and INSEAD, you should aim for at least the average GMAT score for both schools.
Hope this helps.

KartikeyaRai
Hi ,
Please review my profile for HEC
X-75%
XII-79%
Graduation-3.6 GPA Staffordshire University
2 years of IT Experience
I have been in working in CRPF since last 6 years and have been posted in Kashmir for 3.5 years, where I led a team of 40 personnel. After that I have been working with the Technical Wing of CRPF since last 1.5 years.
I want to know what should be my GMAT score to get into HEC
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Hello,

Could you please provide an evaluation of my profile. I plan to apply to September 2021 intake.

Background and nationality- Indian female working as a software engineer.

Undergrad Information
Btech in computer science - 80%
XII - 92%
X - 9.4/10

GMAT: retaking in late September. Expecting 700+.

Work experience and leadership
Community and others

I have a total work experience of 2 years and 2 months. At time of intake my workex would be 3 years. I have confirmed my eligibility from hec Paris.
I work as an SAP consultant/software engineer in SAP technology. My company is a european leader - sopra steria. I have worked for client airbus which is also a leader in aviation industry in france.

I would like to know would these experiences add a value to my profile?

Besides, I am scheduled to be designated as senior software engineer in january 2021. I also had a business trip to france which did get cancelled due to covid crises, but nevertheless I have had multiple interactions with my french colleagues on daily basis. So only technically I dont have an international experience.

As for other experiences, I have an NGO experience as a volunteer for distribution of mid day meals in schools. I have taught poor children maths and english for which I was appreciated by one of the top state universities in India. I have also been a rotractor and spread awareness about polio vaccinations among people.

I have also played table tennis throughout my school life. Currently I am a member of my company's sports club.

Post MBA goals
Would like to pursue a career in consulting. I would like to work in France post MBA.

Anything else?
Would anything less than 700 be a deterrant in my application? Keeping in mind thaf I have workex on the lower side ?
Also, in the international experience section of HEC application, am I only supposed to mention physical travels or my virtual international experience as well? Like my interactive sessions via video conferencing with my french colleagues?


Thanks for your time. I appreciate and thank you in advance.

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