Profile Evaluation Request - for INSEAD

Question

Hi,
I would love to hear your opinion on my brief profile.

Targeting INSEAD Jan or Sept intake R1.

GMAT score: 730 (Q51, V36)

Demography: 25 years, Male Indian

Undergraduation: B.Tech from IIT Kharagpur (Top Engineering college)
CGPA: 8.91/10 (2nd rank in a class of 60)

Micro-Specialization in Engineering Systems
CGPA: 8.69/10 (Top rank in class)

Work experience (in brief):
Current total work experience of 4.3+ years:
• First 3 years at a top US based boutique management consulting firm - Worked with clients based all across the globe in countries such as USA, South Africa, Canada, Europe. Worked on 6 different engagements. Spent 1.5 years working at client headquarters in South Africa and USA. Brought saving of $150MM+ for the clients. Managed end-to-end project execution and delivery. Led meetings with stakeholders and top level executives at client offices which led to successful sign-off of multiples projects. Managed team of analysts and developers across all projects. 
• 1 year at a top Indian startup in business intelligence space - Led automation initiatives across different verticals of the company. Worked with heads of different business verticals to solve business problems using data-driven solutions.
• Currently working for 3+ months at a top London based global luxury fashion retail company - Leading multiple projects which will serve the entire organisation's data quality and business insights needs.

International exposure details:
• During my tenure at the management consulting firm, I worked in headquarters of multiple clients based in South Africa and USA for 1.5 years where I lead the projects right from the concept evaluation phase to the final project delivery. All clients were based out of foreign geographies and I had to regularly interact with them across the 3 years. 
• In my current job at the luxury fashion company, all my colleagues are based out of either New York, London or different offices in Portugal with whom I have to work and interact on a daily basis.
• Did 2 internships at universities in USA and Canada during college. Got selected for the prestigious Mitacs Globalink program to do research in Canada.

Extracurriculars:
• Actively involved with an NGO in India which works for the cause of women safety through the use of crowdsourced data and technology. I generate insights and information using publicly available data and the data collected from our own surveys to make Indian women more aware of their surroundings and make them feel more safe.
• I also worked with a doctor from Boston, USA to publish insights and information using data of Covid-19 pandemic from different counties to make people better informed of what's happening across the globe and give them a real picture of the present and future to help with their anxiety and mental health.
• Worked as a social volunteers in college for 2 years to teach village children and help fulfil basic needs of the people in villages
• Was the head of the department college fest, member of the placement committee, headed few other cultural activities. Won 3 medals in table-tennis competitions.

Future Goals: Want to work for a top management consulting firm where I work for clients all across the globe.

I'm really inclined towards doing my MBA from INSEAD because of its 10-12 month programme and highly global cohort and campuses, and I would like to live in Europe.

Would love to know my chances of getting an interview call from INSEAD and admit. Would also love to know between the January and September intake, which would be better for me. Also, other European or US schools that will be a good fit for me.

Looking forward to hearing your feedback,

Thanks much!

Mehakpreet · Answer

Hi. Please review my profile for Insead.

Age : 27
Gender : Female

Scores :
Class X - 90%
Class XII - 96.25%
Bcom (H) - 82%
GMAT - 710

Qualifications :
Bcom (H) from SRCC
Chartered Accountant
CFA Level 3 candidate

Work Experience : Total 3.5 years post Chartered Accountancy (6.5 years if articleship period is counted as a work-ex)
1 year : Grant Thornton (Audit)
1 year : EY (M&A Tax)
1.5 years : Investment Banking (Infra Sector) (Designation - Analyst)

Co-Curricular : Diverse, mostly surrounding public speaking. But no expertise per se.

According to me, the challenges with my profile are -
1. Changing work profiles
2. Low designation at work (will make it difficult for me to highlight my leadership skills)
3. Non-serious / strong co-curriculars

Would really appreciate if someone can evaluate my profile. This would give me good head-start for my applications.

Thanks.

MBAAppHelp · Answer

Your profile is OK  , but I can't really comment on the odds of your successful application until I learn more about what you would want to accomplish after your MBA - Think "Why MBA" and "Why INSEAD questions" in the application.

1. You worked in consulting; then you had a short stint in business intelligence start up, and now you are in the data analytics. Do you have a coherent story on what led you on this path, or did you gain some insights on what you want from your career?

2. You want to work for top Management Consulting firm - that makes sense to a somewhat informal settings, but it sounds pretty rudderless from an application standpoint. Besides, you have already worked with customers across the globe in your consulting role- so why do you need an MBA?

3. The extracurriculars you have listed seem more like "checking the box", and pretty much every candidate from IIT will have some version of that in their profile! May be list 1-2 EC items, but go in a bit of details on what made you take those up, mention any "extraordinary" accomplishments pursuing those activities.

Long story short, you profile is like any other candidate from IIT, who did well, academically. Now think how many of those candidates are applying for the same spot in the class, while the B-School will only pick 2-3 folks like yourself. You need to get your "Why MBA" and "Why XYZ MBA school" story strong. I am not attempting to make you feel miserable about yourself, but if you don't think through these questions, you might have a hard time landing top 10 schools.

MBAAppHelp · Answer

Female, Non Engineering background from India is a big advantage that you seem to underestimate  . 10th and 12th grades should not be even mentioned in these admission applications/essays, but I think your UG grades are solid - can you quantify your grades in terms of rank  xyz  out a class of  ABC .

To even be considered by a good school, you will need a good GPA, have majored in a relevant and rigorous field, have a good GMAT, have solid and relevant work experience, have been involved in the community, have a couple  interesting  extra-curricular activities, and  have demonstrated leadership and teamwork skills .  Then, in addition to that, you will need at least one big diversity point that will separate you from the other 500 applicants who fit the above criteria.

Regarding concerns with your profile:
1. Changing roles is OK, as long as you are able to articulate why you went down that path, and are able to show career progression. 
2. I haven't seen any comments on why you want to pursue an MBA - among other things, the top schools want to pick candidates who are somewhat clear in terms of what they want to accomplish after their MBA. You need to think through why you want to go for an MBA, and why INSEAD fits the bill for you. 
3. Extra Curriculars : This should be used to showcase leadership skills in case you aren't able to demonstrate at work.

If you are shooting for a top school, I suggest you spend more time on things that demonstrate leadership skills, both at work and outside. If you plan your application for say next year, you would not only be able to demonstrate your career progression in finance {from audit to IB}, but should have time to have something more substantive for your community work, that demonstrates your leadership.

P.S: my objective is to not demoralize candidates, but to help you provide a realistic assessment of your profile so that you complete the application when you are ready, and not waste time, energy, and money on rather suboptimal applications.

Profile Evaluation Request - for INSEAD

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