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ksan
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Short-term Career Goals for Non-Finance Background 06 Aug 2023, 20:44
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Hello,

I have 2 years of professional experience in the tech/data science space and have no finance background. Recently I have been reading a lot about how short-term career goals should be feasible/reasonable and how admissions officers really evaluate if you can in fact land a role in your expressed short-term position. However, I also know that many people apply to MBA programs to switch careers. I would like to break into investment banking/private equity/venture capital post-MBA, so would these short-term career goals in fact be unreasonable for me? For investment banking, I would like to focus on TMT and believe that I have transferrable skills, but would private equity or venture capital be too out of scope for me?

Any advice would be much appreciated, thank you!
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Short-term Career Goals for Non-Finance Background 07 Aug 2023, 00:14
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ksan
Hello,

I have 2 years of professional experience in the tech/data science space and have no finance background. Recently I have been reading a lot about how short-term career goals should be feasible/reasonable and how admissions officers really evaluate if you can in fact land a role in your expressed short-term position. However, I also know that many people apply to MBA programs to switch careers. I would like to break into investment banking/private equity/venture capital post-MBA, so would these short-term career goals in fact be unreasonable for me? For investment banking, I would like to focus on TMT and believe that I have transferrable skills, but would private equity or venture capital be too out of scope for me?

Any advice would be much appreciated, thank you!
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Hi ksan

I can tell you what B School adcoms dont like. They don't like that the applicant is treating the MBA as the first step in the direction of switching to an entirely new domain.

An MBA should not be the first attempt to improve one's skills or take advantage of learning opportunities. Most successful applicants to top MBA programs show the initiative to gain additional experience by taking on projects that take them out of their comfort zone.

Motivation to move into a new field and develop professionally can be demonstrated by examples such as seeking internships, projects, or shadowing industry leaders in entry-level jobs (in PE /VC). If a post-MBA goal is tied to evidence that you have gained relevant experience (even though it may not be thorough) and have gone the extra mile, the credibility of your goals increases significantly.

At the same time, you need to be pragmatic. Since you are targeting VC or PE let's say, you should demonstrate that you know the current state of the industry PE in the target region and, if applicable, that you have a network in this area. For example, the recent downturn in deal-making and fundraising caused by the rise in interest rates and inflation in the U.S., and exacerbated by the war in Ukraine, has had a significant impact on the PE industry, as well as on recruitment. The financing of leveraged transactions, which is an essential aspect of PE, has been affected as banks have had to withdraw their support. Therefore, business schools will expect you to realistically assess how you can use your background to gain a foothold in the PE industry in a particular field or region.

It goes without saying that thorough research and a solid plan for how you will achieve your goals will make all the difference.

Feel free to seek further advice.

Aanchal Sahni (INSEAD alum, ex INSEAD MBA admissions interviewer)
MBAGuideConsulting
LinkedIn |WEBSITE: https://mbaguideconsulting.com/ | Message: +91 9971200927| email- [email protected]
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Short-term Career Goals for Non-Finance Background 08 Aug 2023, 06:54
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ksan
Hello,

I have 2 years of professional experience in the tech/data science space and have no finance background. Recently I have been reading a lot about how short-term career goals should be feasible/reasonable and how admissions officers really evaluate if you can in fact land a role in your expressed short-term position. However, I also know that many people apply to MBA programs to switch careers. I would like to break into investment banking/private equity/venture capital post-MBA, so would these short-term career goals in fact be unreasonable for me? For investment banking, I would like to focus on TMT and believe that I have transferrable skills, but would private equity or venture capital be too out of scope for me?

Any advice would be much appreciated, thank you!
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Which industry are you working in? If you are in a tech/data role within the finance industry, say in IB back office, you can justify moving into front office IB after an MBA.
PE/ VC roles could be impossible to get - they are few roles and most certainly demand related work experience. So you should be very cautious about writing this path as a goal unless you have relevant experience.
IB- depends on what story you tell and how you can connect the dots.

Namita Garg
Founder, MBA Decoder
www.mbadecoder.com
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Short-term Career Goals for Non-Finance Background 24 Aug 2023, 05:01
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ksan
Hello,

I have 2 years of professional experience in the tech/data science space and have no finance background. Recently I have been reading a lot about how short-term career goals should be feasible/reasonable and how admissions officers really evaluate if you can in fact land a role in your expressed short-term position. However, I also know that many people apply to MBA programs to switch careers. I would like to break into investment banking/private equity/venture capital post-MBA, so would these short-term career goals in fact be unreasonable for me? For investment banking, I would like to focus on TMT and believe that I have transferrable skills, but would private equity or venture capital be too out of scope for me?

Any advice would be much appreciated, thank you!
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Hello ksan,

Thanks for writing in.

Yes, short-term goals definitely need to be feasible.

It will not be easy for you to break into investment banking and private equity without some relevant finance experience. Yes, shifts do happen but they are, generally, not very common.

Schools tend to appreciate stories that portray a logical trajectory; hence, your best chance always rests with goals that sync with your profile.

All the best!