Profile fit for INSEAD Singapore campus

Question

Hi,

I'm an indian female with 4 years of experience in economic research and analysis in India.I have a Bachelor's degree in Economics(Honours) from Delhi University,and an MSc from the London School of Economics. I've been working for more than 2 years as a manager in the India office of one of the world's leading economic analysis firms.

I'm interested in pursuing an MBA from INSEAD Singapore,since I'm keen to gain international work experience,primarily in Asia.As far as career goals post-MBA are concerned,I'm not keen to shift careers,and move to consulting/wealth management etc.I would like to continue in the filed of economic analysis,but in leadership positions in the big rating agencies/investment banks,based in the APAC region(Singapore and HK).

How good a fit is my background with the INSEAD MBA?Do they admit students with such profiles?How effective would alumni networking/university careers services be for securing a job in HK/Singapore with my background?

I shall be grateful if someone could respond to this.

Thanks!

interviewbay22 · Answer

Hello Economist2015 You have quite an interesting profile, and being an applicant from India. I would say that your professional background will stand out in the sea of other Indian applicants. Applying to a top tier business school abroad, you will be judged on multiple parameters. As far as INSEAD is considered, getting in is extremely competitive. You will need an excellent GMAT score, somewhere around 720. How were your grades during under-graduation and then in graduate school? GPA is an important criterion. Tell me more about your work experience and extracurricular activities. What sort of leadership roles have you taken up while working as a manger in India? Any achievements? extracurricular activities during college or after college? Any other leadership roles that you have assumed outside of work? Writing good essays, takes a lot of time. So I would suggest you to begin by reading some of the success stories of applicants who made it. Go through their essays if possible as this would give you an idea of what business schools are looking for in an essay and what experiences of your life should you discuss. You can go through https://www.interviewbay.com/blog/insead ... t-analysis Please do get back to me

Economist2015 · Answer

Hi Intervewbay22,

Thanks for your help!

This is my profile in detail:

Female candidate,28 years
ACADEMICS:
XII,DPS RK Puram-Humanities,with Economics and Maths-89%-graduated with a gold medal for excellent academic performance for consecutively 8 years.
BA(Hons) Economics-Delhi University,High First division(equiv.of GPA 3.6-3.7)
MSc Economics with Econ History-London School of Economics(Econ History is not scoring,so average here)
GMAT-To take in June

WORK EXPERIENCE:I started working only after completing my postgrad from LSE.On completion of the postgrad,I had to come back to India since my visa expired.
First job:Consultant in PwC India-6 months.I didn't like the profile and also realized that I didn't enjoy consulting.
Second Job:Senior Research Analyst-Think tank of the Unitech Group-worked there for 1.10 years-undertook city research and analyst,index building etc.This was a new think tank started by the group,which unfortunately didn't take off.

Third Job-As an Economist and team manager with one of the world's leading economic analysis and forecasting companies,in its India office.This profile has been my real calling card.In addition to carrying out responsibilities of an economist,I have also been leading and managing a team of 2 junior economists.This involves recruitment,training and coaching, and conducting formal performance reviews.I have also been part of the company's formal global leadership and management programme,aimed specifically at managers.It's been more than 2 years for me in this role.

EXTRACURRICULARS:I'm afraid I don't have much to show on the extra-curricular front.I trained in classical dancing,but wasn't part of any clubs/groups in college and postgrad.I have lot of interests outside of work,but I haven't been part of any society/clubs etc. as a student.

Reasons to do an MBA-Want to expand my area of expertise and gain holistic knowledge of how organizations work.Want to specialize in Finance.Post-MBA,would like to continue as an economist,but in a senior position in a global rating agency/investment bank.

I'm not sure as to which schools would be a good fit for me.I want to work in Asia,and hence,looking at INSEAD Asia.

Thanks in advance !

interviewbay22 · Answer

Hello again I think your profile is quite impressive. Your GPA is very good. Your work experience is diverse and unlike many of the applicants from India. This will certainly make your application stand out. Compliment your profile with a great GMAT score. If you are looking to apply to INSEAD (which is one of the top 5 business schools of the world) I would suggest you to keep your target score above 750. I think that with this profile even if you get a 700 - 710 score, you will make it. It sounds like your work experience has given you several opportunities to assume leadership roles and this weighs heavily in b-school applications. It is alright if you do not have much extra-curricular experience as your work ex is quite solid. But I would advise you take up some volunteer work before you apply. If you could take up some projects as part of corporate social responsibility in your workplace, it would be excellent. Have you won any competitions or awards during the past few years? Your reasons for pursuing MBA are very convincing. Other than INSEAD, you could also look at NUS Business School, top business schools in China and Australia as well if you are keen on going to B-school in Asia (or Australia). Finding work visas is quite easier here as compared to Europe and US and networking opportunities are great. INSEAD Singapore is one the best schools in the world for MBA with a specialization in Finance. You can take a look at this article to know more about top business schools in Asia https://www.interviewbay.com/blog/top-bu ... ls-in-asia Hope this helps

gabbs · Answer

Hi,

I think you have a good fit in terms of your background in finance and Investment Banks ideally look for 4-5 yrs experience minimum for the Associate hiring they do on campus

i would say that INSEAD would look for either a promotion / international experience in their applications... your MSc from LSE is a great plus point for you both for insead as wel as for the Investment bank's hiring in Asia.

In terms of source of hiring the hiring would take totally on campus through the career services... Specifically for the Investment banks they hire mainly from their internship programs.. which purely entirely would happen through the career services (unless you have contacts in the industry)

I have gone through the process so happy to help if you need anything PM me..

Cheers

arjunantony · Answer

Hi,
Economist2015, I hope you don't mind me posting on your thread. I'm looking to apply for the full time MBA at INSEAD Singapore and I would like an opinion as to whether my profile will get noticed. Following is a brief:

I am an India, male, 24 years old.
12th grade: FIITJEE Junior College, Hyderabad (~83%, very good grades in math)
Under-grad: B.Tech, Mechanical Engineering from SRM University, Chennai (7.0 CGPA, again very high grades in math. Slightly lower CGPA was because I was into other extra-curricular organizations)
GMAT: 710 (V40 Q48, AWA-5)

Work Experience:
Completed 3 years of WE at Mu Sigma Business Solutions (campus placement) as of June 2015. Currently designated Senior Business Analyst. Over the three years I have worked on numerous projects related to market/customer segmentation, market studies, ROI analysis of marketing initiatives, product performance, fraud detection and even report development and automation under the pharma, telecom and insurance industries. A little over a year into the organization, I began managing small teams or 2-4 people, usually freshers. I am also part of the team that trains freshers, once they join the company, in different subjects like SAS, Excel and VBA. I have worked with clients from USA, Brazil and now Dubai and Egypt. My current assignment is as onsite in Egypt for a fraud detection project for one of the biggest insurance companies in the world. As part of my job, I work with stakeholders and clients from Cairo and Dubai to understand their requirement, business etc. and work and coordinate with my onsite team to develop a comprehensive insurance fraud detection model.

Extra-curricular: While in college I was part of AIESEC (Chennai chapter), an international student organization present in almost every country in the world. I was Vice President of AIESEC Chennai in 2011. While in AIESEC, I had the opportunity to handle multiple large teams of students, help organize events (both corporate events and events related to social causes) and interact with students from all walks of life (within India and abroad). As VP, my own team alone consisted of around 45 members from different colleges in Chennai, Trichy and Vellore. I am not getting into more details about it now.

My main concern is my low under-grad CGPA scores. Do you think the rest of my profile can sufficiently make up for that? Or are there holes in the rest of my profile too? 
I would really like an opinion from someone who has applied to and gotten into INSEAD. Thanks in advance for any advice or help!

Regards

Profile fit for INSEAD Singapore campus

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