Profile evaluation request

Hello puja priya

Congratulations on your GMAT. Past scores are decent too, so that takes care of the academic part.
Coming to work ex, Your profile looks interesting based on the 'quantitative' info that you have provided.
It will further help evaluate your chances if you can also display your career progression, key achievements and real business impact of your work. That is what will count more in your essays than number of years or role or industry. This will make the information more 'qualitative'.
Next is diversity and you will need to show your differentiating factors. In fact the very first essay this time asks for diversity. This can be displayed as Academic, Geographical, Professional, Industry, or Extracurricular diversity. You have mentioned a few extracurricular activities, but more than certificates, Long Term & Serious Involvement, A positive impact on your life or the life of others will make for a strong extracurricular.
Last and the most important piece of the admissions puzzle is Career Goals. What are your future plans and why is an MBA that too from ISB/IIM and absolute necessity to reach these goals? Without this info your application is incomplete.
ISB will look at your profile holistically on 6 factors mentioned here to evaluate your candidature.
Make sure you are highlighting your strengths in each of these and have a spike in at least 3 out of 6 admission factors to gain an admission.
The date is 15th September so you have just about enough time to build a strong application. A well written application takes 4-8 weeks from scratch (depends on the individual).
All the best. Do well.

Best
Varun Sharma
+919137133507
Free Profile Review
MBAkarma.com
GMAT Score Predictor
info@mbakarma.com

Hi Puja, with 7 years of work-experience, you indeed have a very decent chance at both, ISB and IIMs. A 720 on GMAT, definitely helps.

There are clearly many other things working for you:

i) Your current job-profile as a Data Analyst aligns with your undergrad discipline (IT)

ii) Academics also seem to be consistently good

iii) You seem to have participated in reasonable extra-curricular as well

Your have not mentioned your post-MBA goals; as long as the goals are aligned with your work-experience and as long as you are able to justify the need for MBA at this stage to accomplish those goals, you have a very decent chance of an interview call.

p.s. I really don't think you should worry about your IR score.

Hello puja priya,

Thanks for writing in.

Definitely, a lot working for you here Your GMAT score is a few points above the average at ISB, your academics look good, and you seem to have decent extra-curricular engagements, as well.

However, at this point, it is more important to focus on what needs to be done Frankly, five changes in seven years is a bit on the higher side and you may need to provide some explanation there. At the same time, seven years of experience is also on the higher side. However, this is not much reason to worry about especially if you can explain your need for an MBA, and link the same up with your future goals. Remember, your short-term and long-term goals should be logically tied not only with each other but also with your experience thus far At the same time, it is now the right time to focus on your essays and appropriately represent your skills and career progression through the same.

If you are able to take care of the above, you have a very strong chance of cracking ISB!

Please do reach out to us in case you have any follow-up questions.

All the best!

Thank you so muh Varun. I have noted down all the points an will work on them.Thanks again!

Thank you ISBeacon.
Your reply definitely motivates me more.
I will work on justification of getting an MBA at this stage.

Thank you Akanksha.
I will definitely reach you for my queries.
Have a good day!

Hi Guys!!

Thanks for starting this post.

I will be applying to ISB this time and below is my profile snapshot.

Just wanted to check with you, how does my profile looks from ISB standpoint, much appreciate your reply.

GMAT Score: 680 (Q50 V31 IR5 AW5)
Graduation: Engineering - 65.66%
XII: 80.83%
X: 80%

Total Years of WE: 6.1 Years

Work Experience Details:
1st Job: Manufacturing/Automobile
Duration: 2 Years
Role: Strategic Sourcing, Vendor Management, Post Merger Sourcing Management, Spend Analytics, Supply Chain Management etc.
Location: India

2nd Job: Banking Industry
Duration: 2 Years
Role: e-procurement, vendor management, supplier integration, supply chain management, MIS, etc.

3rd Job: Insurance Sector
Duration: 2 Years
Role: Business Transitions from US and Phillipines, Strategic Sourcing for - Claims, Business Services, Travel, Professional Services and Technology, Software Asset Management, Vendor Management, e-procurement, Category and Spend Analytics, etc.

International Experience: 1 Month (USA)

Community Collaboration:
1. Leading a chapter for food preservation and distribution to slums - Interviewed by HT and Business World Magazine for the same - Articles printed on their website.
2. Volunteered in XIX Commonwealth Games Delhi 2010
3. Student Head at university for Techincal fest - Managed a team of 300 people
4. Organiser for a TEDx event
5. Chairperson IEEE Student Chapter at college level

Do you think that my GMAT score is good enough to apply or I need to retake the same.

Thanks, ss1990

Hello ss1990,

Definitely, a lot working for you - professional achievements, international exposure, and extra-curricular activities!

The GMAT is only one component of the applications process and your chances will also depend on how well you are able to portray your story through your essays, as well as tie the same up with your need for an MBA and your future career goals. Remember, your short-term goals and long-term aspirations must not only sync with one another but also with the overall experience that you have garnered thus far.

Having said that, a GMAT re-take is strongly recommended for two reasons:
- To differentiate your profile, considering you are part of an over-represented pool of applicants applying to ISB.
- To make up for your average academic scores and convince the Admissions Committee of your academic abilities.

Hope this helped!

All the best!

Hi Akansha, Thanks for your feedback.

Wanted to check, should I apply in 1st deadline or the 2nd deadline.

Thanks, Sachit

B-schools don't really care about IR scores & you should definitely try to apply R1 if possible.

Hi ss1990,

ISB has almost an equal proportion of seats available in both rounds. Of course, the scholarship is only available for R1 applicants.

We would recommend that you apply when you feel most ready to do so i.e. when you feel you have the desired GMAT score and when you have been able to spend enough time on crafting your essays. Of course 'enough time' is a bit subjective to interpret. However, the idea is that you should not rush into applying. If you think you need more time for GMAT prep, consider applying in R2. If you can make it in R1, you will be able to make it in R2 as well

All the best!

Hi Puja

Thank you for posting. You certainly have a profile with a lot of potential. Congratulations on your hard work and achievements thus far.
- Your GMAT score of 720 will be quite competitive and your academics are quite strong. The fact that you are working for a very well-known firm (JP Morgan) gives your profile a bit more of an edge. Your current work in data analytics sounds quite interesting and will be a further asset in your candidature if you can use it in your essays.
- On the other hand, 5 job changes in 7 years is a bit much, and this is a key part of your profile that you will need to explain carefully, especially in ISB essay 2, which asks for the rationale behind your career choices so far. Do shed some more light on these - have they been within the same industry/similar functions?
- Your involvement in Dance and Theatre sounds great and will help you build strong relevance on the non-work side. However, the Robotics competitions and tech fests will carry only limited value.
- Apart from ISB, the IIM A/B/C PGPX/EPGP/PGPEX programs respectively sound like good targets for you. If looking at other schools in Asia beyond India, NUS and NTU could be potential targets for you.

Hope this helps. Feel free to come back with more queries as needed.

Hi ss1990

- This GMAT score could work, but given your average acads earlier, and the fact that there is still some time before the deadlines, you would serve yourself well with a retake. A 700+ will certainly help your candidature. However, in case you cannot/decide not to achieve it, you are not below contention with even a 680.
- You have some excellent work in global sourcing, vendor management, and SCM, across 3 sectors, and that really helps. Given your professional background, you would be an attractive candidate to ISB based on this front.
- ECA is quite good, and the month-long international experience adds a further small feather to your cap. You are a well-rounded candidate.
- Overall, if you can tie your future goals well with ISB, you should be a good candidate.

Hope this helps. Feel free to come back with more queries as needed.

Hi Experts,

I am planning to apply to ISB in round 1 and planning to give my GMAT on 25th July. My profile are as follows :

10th : 89.9%
12th : 93%
Graduation : 71%, Kirori Mal College, Delhi University, Math Hons

I have worked in ZS Associate for 1 year and am currently working in Grail Research as an Analyst. I have around 2 years of work experience.

I learnt bharatnatyam for 6 years, was a part of debating society in school and worked in NGO in college

I would like to know to do I stand to getting a call and what gmat score should I aim at?

Hello Hemangini

You seem to have a good academic background. Purely based on that a 720+ is recommended to keep yourself above an average applicant.
However, remember that GMAT is one part and ISB will evaluate your candidature based on all admission factors mentioned here.
Along with your academics, it will also help understand the nature of your work, career progress and achievements. ISB is more interested in the story behind your professional journey. Especially in your case since you have work ex slightly on the lower side, you should showcase more maturity and accomplishments at work to stand out.
Diversity is another factor- Bharatnatyam can be a strong differentiating factor if you can tell a story how it has added to your life and made you a better individual. The very first essay this year asks about your diversity.
Last but most important piece of the admission puzzle is Career Goals. What are your career goals and why is an MBA an absolute necessity to reach these goals? Without this piece meaningful feedback on your profile is difficult. You could supplement your research by reading this
Final outcome will depend on how well you tie in all of these in your written application.
Should you feel the need to discuss this further, feel free to reach out.
Best
Varun Sharma
+919137133507
Free Profile Review
MBAkarma.com
GMAT Score Predictor
info@mbakarma.com

Hi Hemangini

- Your academics are quite decent, and you have worked for top names in your industry. That will help you build a strong candidature, and you stand a good chance of getting through.
- As you are on the lower side of the experience spectrum, aim for a higher GMAT score - 700+, and if you can, 720+.

Hi Hemangini,

Your experience with a reputed company, as well as your diverse engagements, will definitely be advantageous to your case Of course, you will need to appropriately represent the same in your essays (particularly the bit on Bharatnatyam).

Having said the above, and considering your work experience is on the lower side for ISB, you must definitely aim for a 720+ (in any case 710 is just the average at ISB and a few points above will really help)

Besides the above, the presentation of your career goals will be immensely important as well. Remember, the short-term and long-term goals should seamlessly fit in with each other, and with your story

Should you feel the need for a detailed discussion, please do reach out to us.

All the best!