Profile evaluation - Indian/690/Female

Question

I am a final year undergraduate student at a reputed University in India, looking to apply to Masters of Management and Masters of Finance programs directed towards undergrads. High on my priority list is the Duke MMS, MIT MSMS.
I was hoping to score an above 700 on my GMAT, but unfortunately ended up with a 690 (Q49, V34). 
I have pretty decent academic scores - i have almost a 90 % (89.9 to be exact) as a semester aggregate score at college up till now.
Other than that, I've passed two actuarial science papers from Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, United Kingdom. I'm also a classical Indian dancer, and have performed and won at several national and state platforms. I've been involved in many literary activities in college, as well.

I have two internships - but both are non-corporate. One was a research intern at UCLA, and the other at a prestigious business school in India.

Just looking at my chances? Do I need to retake the GMAT? Or should I just work on strengthening my essays and other components of the application?

VeritasPrepDozie · Answer

Thanks for sharing your profile. Average GMATs tend to be bit lower for these types of programs but the score is still important. You are coming from a competitive applicant pool but as a female applicant you a bit more diverse than the average applicant pool and your 690 does fall comfortably in most of the programs 80% range. I would focus on strengthening your essays and other components of the application at this point. These aspects will be critical to your admissions so make sure they get the attention they deserve.

hoodprincess · Answer

Thank you! I have another doubt, so I am an Indian female, and have received all education in India - but I'm a U.S. citizen. Would that mean that my applicant pool would be with the U.S.A. kids, or will I still be considered a part of the Indian applicant pool?

VeritasPrepDozie · Answer

Where have you spent most of your life? It appears most of your experiences were in India and are consistent with the typical Indian applicant. So they will most likely view within the category because your perspective in the classroom will be more consistent with and Indian applicant than an American applicant. This you cannot control so your approach to creating the best application possible is still relevant. One benefit of being an american applicant is the access to scholarships and grants if admitted so this is not all bad.

sejalvarshney · Answer

Hello hoodprincess , I have a profile a bit similar to yours. Can you please share where did you finally study and which course did you opt for?

Profile evaluation - Indian/690/Female

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