Profile Review and suggestion on business schools

Question

Hello Everyone, I am planning for am mba and require some assistance in Profile review and university suggestions. I have tried some universities shortlisting tools on internet they just show some God knows who universities and the agents are just trying to sell their programs which i have no interest of joining. I checked almost all the good universities and all of them are showing a gpa of 3 and above which i don't have so feels very confused

for the next steps. i would really appreciate if i can get some advice and university names that i can apply to considering my profile. I am open for countries like USA, Can and Germany. Below is my brief profile : UG: BE (ECE) Cgpa: 6.67 (I know its low and that haunts me. Had a medical condition in my first yr and then was doing part time job with a consulting firm for the rest 3 yrs to support my Education) Year graduated: 2015 Total full time Exp. after the UG: 6.6yrs Current Employer: Bank of America Previous Employers: Capgemini, Cedge(TCS and SBI joint venture) Roles that i have worked on: Quality Specialist (Current role), Sr. Analyst and Associate Consultant. LOR: Good Lor from my Current Employer Extracurricular: Have Fellowships, social Activities and sports. Gmat: 720 Toefl: 104 Thanks

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MBAGuide · Answer

Hi  iammak007  , hope you are doing well. Given that you have a genuine reason behind your low GPA, you should not think too much about it now and put your best foot forward for your B School applications. Highlight your academic achievements and accolades from school if you can to show academic inclination. Your GMAT score is decent and so you can request the schools to consider that as the correct measure of your academic capability.

You come from the overrepresented Indian IT pool with a long experience of ~7 years and therefore you would face stiff competition in the admissions process. To be able to shortlist B Schools for you, I must first know what would you like to do post-MBA and why. While from a first perspective your profile seems better suited for the Top 25-50 schools in the US, or top 10 Canadian B Schools. I must understand your work in detail and what you are seeking out of an MBA at this point to be able to suggest schools with better ROI.

Since you have switched three jobs in your career, do reflect on the learning and growth opportunities that came with each new role. Focus on highlighting your career progression over the years, leadership skills, and ability to resolve conflicts through multiple examples in the essays. Think through your post MBA goals and be conscientious so that your goals make sense for your career trajectory. Try to bring out the uniqueness in your profile as much as you can to improve the odds in your favor. Having interesting things to discuss outside of work such as community or diversity initiatives, sports and fellowships or even part time work to support education would definitely give you an edge.

If you wish to seek professional guidance on schools shortlisting or applications strategy do reach out.

Best wishes

iammak007 · Answer

Hi,

Thankyou for your response. Yes i have worked with 3 organizations and with different roles and usually worked in a total technical side of things. My reason for doing an MBA is to open pathways for my career that is not just narrowed to a technical role. I have faced the lack of business knowledge while planning for a product or when working with the clients for a change in application and i feel that an MBA can fill those business knowledge. As have mentioned that my roles are purely technical so i am not able to utilize all of my skills that i learned over the years like Managing teams, communication and Networking because of the technical roles that i am stuck with.

So to narrow down my post MBA plans.
I am looking forward to be in product management roles (where i can utilize my technical and interpersonal skills) and MBA seems to be a good option to Accelerate my career and provide me an opportunity for attaining these roles.

Admissionado · Answer

iammak007 : I wouldn't worry too, too much about your GPA. You have an excellent GMAT score and an overall strong profile. Plus, you can't do much to change your GPA and the fact that you have 6+ years of work experience means GPA will matter less for you compared to more recent graduates. I agree with the previous poster that US schools from 25-50 would be a great fit. In Canada, the top 15 are solid. The bigger question is what are you trying to optimize for in your list? Where do you want to be geographically, if you care? What about what you want to pursue post-graduation? Ranking/brand tends not to matter as much at that level of school, so it's all about trying to find schools that check several of your most important boxes. Feel free to write back here so we can all help you carve out a list. Alternatively, you can sign up for a free consultation with us if you want to dig deeper and talk about how we might be able to assist you in this process. https://admissionado.com/free-consultation/

MBAandBeyond · Answer

Hi iammak007 , Thank you for your post! First, I would like you to understand that it’s true GPA is an important factor, but it’s not everything. B-School doesn’t only focus on factual data; they are more interested in what you can contribute as an individual. Moreover, you have a decent GMAT score & a good amount of relevant work experience! Coming to your profile, I would suggest you draft compelling essays to explain your circumstances regarding your GPA that should handle it! Since your GPA is low, you need other insights to highlight your academic brilliance through accolades and achievements. Moreover, since you come from an overrepresented IT pool, you are bound to face stiff competition in the admissions process. Finally, highlight insights from your work experience, as you have worked in three companies in your career, reflect on the working environment, learning, different roles & responsibilities, and growth opportunities that came with each new role. Also, it would help if you focus on highlighting the leadership & relevant skills skill-set developed, challenges faced, and impact created during your extracurriculars and link them through multiple examples in the essays. Moreover, mention your post-MBA goals and why do you think it’s the perfect time for you to pursue an MBA. For product management UCLA, Haas and Kellogg are some good schools in US. You could refer to an article, MBA in Product Management , this would most certainly help provide insights about a career in product management post-MBA. If you'd like to get a detailed analysis of your profile regarding Top MBA programs suitable as per your profile, feel free to book a free session with us at your convenience. Cheers! Neha Hadke Profile Analyst & Channel Manager, MBA and Beyond Testimonials Email: neha@mbaandbeyond.com

ExpertsGlobal · Answer

Hello  iammak007 ,

Thanks for writing in.

While you have a low GPA, your GMAT score is pretty decent. Therefore, considering your overall profile and goals, you could look at targetting the US top ~5-top 20 schools, the Canadian top ~5 schools, and the top-notch German programs.

Of course, a lot will also depend on the narrative around your experience thus far and your post-MBA career goals as business schools evaluate applications in a holistic manner. Should you need help with this segment, please feel free to get in touch with us.

All the best!

bb · Answer

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