Discussion for ISB 2026 applicants

Question

Can you evaluate my profile

class X-77.5% from UP board
CLASS XII-79.2% from UP board
GRADUATION-77.52% mechanical engineering
GMAT FOCUS  -655

Work ex- 6 years working as operations & maintenance engineer in ONGC

1-Served at various role for operations and maintenance on drilling rig.
2-Got recoginitions as best installations in all ONGC in terms of NPT.
2-Part of team to reduce transportation time from 2 months to 13 days ultimately reducing cost to company.
3-2nd rank in business simulation game organised by ONGC.
4-Organising secretary in Officers association.
5-Continuous improvement in process to reduce time for changing spares.

ISBeacon · Answer

You have not mentioned your grad college; also, did you give GATE, in order to get into ONGC?

Also, career goals are not coming thru; however, overall a very competitive profile (decent GMAT, great brand in terms of ONGC, and very decent career accomplishments).

All the best!
--
Ashish.

IVYCRACKERS.COM · Answer

Hey! Your acads and GMAT are pretty decent. Plus, you have a good work experience along with good extracurriculars. Now this is what we have seen with PSU applicants - adcom wants to be cautious and clearly understand what your post MBA goals are, how ISB/MBA will help you achieve those goals, and whether you're looking for a drastic career transition. You need to be extremely thorough with these questions and chart a plan about your career path. On the basis of our past experience with PSU aspirants, there are couple of things that would best serve the purpose but will have to understand your goals in detail before I share those.

We have 40+ mentors from ISB on our platform  IvyCrackers  and few of them are on ISB admissions interview panel. You can book a  complimentary 30-mins call  with us and one of the interview panelists will evaluate your profile in detail. In this call, we will delve deep into your profile, help you build an overall strategy for your ISB application, and answer any questions you have about ISB.

MBAGuide · Answer

vishujn2 hope you are doing great If I can be honest, you must try to increase your GMAT score. I have worked with many candidates from the public sector for ISB and IIMs, so I am happy to pitch in my suggestions. Unfortunately, schools are critical of candidates who have been in the public sector for a very long time and want an MBA as an exit option. There are many challenges with these profiles, such as a habit of working with a top-down approach, lack of experience with analytical thinking, and too much focus on day-to-day functional details without looking at the big picture. In addition to a solid GMAT score, you should bring out a really dynamic personality and a great understanding of how business fundamentals work. You need to show the transferable skills that will help you get closer to your dream job after the MBA. An FE of 655 is a risky score in my opinion. You should aim for an FE score of 695 if you want to be seriously considered by IIM A and ISB. I will be happy to explain my reasons if you connect with me. Do not let a GMAT score get you down. With Focus Edition, there is also less transparency about how a competitive school perceives respective scores versus what GMAC translates to. Over time, schools will gradually build a new FE database and we will know more, but for now, it's better to play it safe and aim higher. You may read further my writeup on Military/Navy Veterans, Engineers, SCM Mgrs, PSU Folks- Goals Strategy : Ross (gmatclub.com) Best wishes Aanchal Sahni (INSEAD MBA alumna, former INSEAD MBA admissions interviewer) Founder, MBAGuideConsulting LinkedIn |WEBSITE: https://mbaguideconsulting.com/ | Message(WA): +91 9971200927| email- mbaguideconsulting@gmail.com

CrackAdmission · Answer

Dear All,

A number of applicants with Indian Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) work experience such as IOCL, ONGC, REC, SAIL, SBI, RBI etc. have reached out to me over the last few weeks to understand their odds of getting a successful admission to Indian as well as Global MBA Programs.

Please find below link to our blog that captures the dos and don'ts while building the narrative of your work experience in the PSU, and the transferrable skillsets you need to demonstrate that will help you transition from a pre-MBA public sector to a post-MBA private sector role.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/cracking ... sion-adp0c

Hope this helps clear some of the doubts.

sm0909 · Answer

Can you evaluate my profile?

Class X: 8.2/10
Class XII: 90.8%
Undergrad - Economics Honours - 3.1/4
GMAT: 700 Q47 V40 (planning to retake in a month, targeting 695+)

Work Experience: 25 months at the time of applying (R1)

Big 4 Audit - 2 promotions in 2 years (along with some certificates for excellence)

No major ECs (I am not sure how to improve this area within a month)

ISBeacon · Answer

Which college?
 
700 is decent, but 665+ will do a lot of good to your candidature.
 
ISB looks at the amount of experience at the time of starting of the program. So, you would have nearly 3 years of experience by then.
 
Good progress.
 
 This article  may be of interest to you  sm0909 .

All the best!
--
Ashish.

Arnav69 · Answer

Hello all,

I had applied in the round 2 of EEO last year for ISB Co'26 with a GRE score of 321 (166 Q, 155 V, 4 AWA), and was rejected (not even an interview call)

So I have taken GRE again, and have scored 331 (170 Q, 161 V, AWA yet to be recieved)

I am planning to apply in the round 1 itself this year and hoping to join the ISB Co'26, by then I would have ~3 years of work experience

Current Work Experience: 2 Years of management consulting experience at Nomura Consulting (NRI), spanning themes across renewable energy, automotives (EVs and battery swapping), prestige cosmetics and data centers

Bachelors: B.Tech in Chemical Engineering from IIT Bombay (CGPA: 7.74/10 or 3.1/4)

Internships: IQVIA (Management Consulting Role), L&T Finance (Research Role), Aditya Birla Capital (Operations Role), Fi.Money (Strategy Role)

Positions of Responsibility: Was the E-Cell (Entrepreneurship Cell) Manager at IIT Bombay, one of the coveted pre-final year PORs at IITB. Along with this was English TA and Hostel Design Secretary

I also actively pursued design during my initial college days and have intermediate level proficiency in Adobe InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator (with 3 freelance projects)

Class XII: 81.56% (Is this a red flag? Maharashtra board is very random in grading and I was a victim)

Class X: 10 CGPA, 94.4%

Requesting you to please review my profile! Also is ISB re-applicant friendly, and how much will be taking GRE instead of GMAT affect my chances, even though I hope this 10 point boost compared to last year should improve my chances.

Thank you!

ISBeacon · Answer

You have done yourself a lot of favor, by managing his massive improvement in GRE. Congratulations  Arnav69 .
 
All good. IITB, Nomura, IQVIA, and Aditya Birla are brands that need no introduction.
 
Not really. It is well known that JEE candidates prefer JEE prep over board results.
 
For one thing, ISB is quite re-applicant friendly; moreover, I am reasonably sure that you would not be considered a re-applicant, since you applied to EEO the last time, while you are applying to PGP this year (do check this with ISB though).

As for GMAT Vs GRE,  this article  would be of interest to you.
--
Ashish.

admitStreet · Answer

@vishujn2 - some thoughts and clarifications: 1. The GPA seems alright. What was your undergrad pedigree (tier-1, tier-2, etc.)? To increase your odds given the competitive pool at ISB, I'd suggest aiming for a higher GMAT score, ideally 675+ GFE. Unless you feel the rest of your profile (points 2 & 3 below) has stellar spikes which can help compensate, in which case I'd like to hear details/ justifications. 2. The ONGC tag and mix of operations/ are good angles. One of the challenges (and opportunities) you'd have with a PSU background is demonstrating your 'business-mind' i.e. what were the tangible impact and achievements in your roles, what functional/ domain skill-sets did you pick up, any promotions(?), what are your career goals post MBA, how will ISB help, etc. Having a strong narrative here would be crucial. 3. Extracurriculars are another important angle. Recency and consistency are key here, to help present a holistic profile. Some tips and best practices on ISB's latest essays, check out my write-up here Regards, Arvind Founder, admitStreet | Request for a 1:1 chat W: https://admitstreet.com | E: consultingteam@admitstreet.com | LinkedIn

admitStreet · Answer

@sm0909 - The big-4 brand and promotions are strong angles. Some more details can help, such as your undergrad pedigree, domain/ sectors of work, post MBA goals etc. A 675+ GFE score can definitely help boost chances, compared to a 700 Classic score. Regarding EC's, I've noticed that many candidates overlook stuff that they've already been or can be involved in, whether it's through work-related or personal activities. Check out an example from one of my mentees here . Having said that, starting off a new EC two months prior to deadline isn't the best idea, as AdCom's can easily sense that. Introspection (or brainstorming) is key here to uncover and present the right ECs. Regards, Arvind Founder, admitStreet | Request for a 1:1 chat W: https://admitstreet.com | E: consultingteam@admitstreet.com | LinkedIn

MBAGuide · Answer

sm0909 Happy to do that. A GMAT retake is a good idea. This is not specific to ISB but good schools globally consider Q49 to be borderline elite for the Indian applicant pool. Your Verbal score is impressive; just try to bring up the quant percentile by a little bit on the focus edition. Work experience - Ok so you are going to be borderline eligible for the PGP application. For someone with just 2 years of experience, you should think about and develop your “ISB marketing handle,” your unique selling proposition that can get you over the finish line. Try to show how you are different from other similar applicants because you were promoted early on, have deep industry knowledge, have worked in project management and crisis management, and have a mature overall perspective. If you do not make it this year, improve your profile. This profile enhancement would need to show as a take-off point on your career graph, depending on your goals. For example, in a strategic role in a start-up or in consulting where you gain hands-on experience of the building blocks of business, negotiate an international assignment, or take on a starter role in an industry you want to enter post-MBA. I believe there will be no shortage of opportunities for young and ambitious people. I am not worried about the ECs for Indian B schools, but I am more worried that you probably do not understand what it takes for borderline eligible candidates to crack the ISB admit. I will do a detailed article on this soon. Feel free to speak for guidance. Best wishes Aanchal Sahni (INSEAD MBA alumna, former INSEAD MBA admissions interviewer) Founder, MBAGuideConsulting LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/aanchal-sahni-83b00819/ |WEBSITE: https://mbaguideconsulting.com/ | Message(WA): +91 9971200927| email- mbaguideconsulting@gmail.com

ExpertsGlobal · Answer

Hello  vishujn2 ,

Thanks for your details.

Good to see the stable career graph with ONGC as well as the recognitions you have received.

A detailed profile evaluation will require additional details pertaining to your career goals, leadership experience, extra-curricular activities and interests; however, to begin with, you must focus on improving your existing GMAT score in order to help you stand out in the applicant pool.

Hope this helps.

All the best!

MBAGuide · Answer

Arnav69 Fantastic improvement on the GRE. I love seeing perfect quantitative scores on the GRE/GMAT (and so do the adcoms). Plus points for having a top undergrad degree and a good employer brand association (for top b-schools). I can not say why you did not get a call for EEO, but it's very likely that the adcoms thought you could do better with preparation, and you do not disappoint. I can let you in on a little secret: For less experienced candidates, adcoms look for variety, i.e. having accomplished more in a short period of time. Consulting candidates are very well positioned to apply to B-Schools early on because they have actually worked on more projects than the average young applicant. If you strategically select multi-industry experiences that speak to your newly acquired subject matter expertise, your ability to think in first principles, and reflect on the lessons learned from a variety of cases you have worked on, you will be strongly considered. Where you are professionally in your career matters. What is your level of responsibility? Do you make an individual contribution or are you the leader of a team? Or are you in a position where you do not have direct control over human resources and need to exercise indirect control by using your powers of persuasion, which will naturally affect your leadership skills. I have worked with candidates and got them into ISB with borederline eligibility, so feel free to speak with me for further guidance. Best wishes Aanchal Sahni (INSEAD MBA alumna, former INSEAD MBA admissions interviewer) Founder, MBAGuideConsulting LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/aanchal-sahni-83b00819/ |WEBSITE: https://mbaguideconsulting.com/ | Message(WA): +91 9971200927| email- mbaguideconsulting@gmail.com

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