vappara 08-17-2006, 05:25 AM Hi,
Please evaluate my profile and let me know my chances of making it to the Top 50 Business Schools in US.
- 26 years/Male/Indian
- GMAT: I took GMAT a month ago and scored 650 (Quant-86% &
Verbal ?61%). Unfortunately, I could manage only 680 (Quant - 86% &
Verbal - 71%). I took GRE 5 years ago and scored (Verbal-600/800, Quant-
800/800). Can I talk about my GRE score in the essays to compensate for
low Verbal score in GMAT?
- UnderGraduation: BE in computer science with 79% from a premier
college in India (3rd year & 4th year scored over 82%). I was among top
5% in my class.
- Work experience: 4 years as a Software Engineer in India’s No.1
Software company. This includes the 1.5 year stint in Seattle, US. I got
promoted twice from a Team member to Module leader and to Project
leader. At present, I am leading a team of 8 members. I also won a small
project for my company and increased its strength from 1 to 8 in one year.
- Extra curricular activities:
a) Participated in Adult literacy program for couple of months in an NGO.
b) Volunteered to work as a teaching assistant in an open university to
improve my presentation skills.
c) Represented my college in Inter-college cricket tournaments for three
years. Part of a cricket club in Seattle which organized cricket
tournaments for charity.
- Reco letters: I will get decent reco letters from customers and
employer.
I want to pursue MBA in Finance/Investment banking and have been acquiring knowledge in finance from the last couple of years (attended few seminars and got some certificates). I have genuine interest in financial markets. I track over 100 companies in Indian stock market, read the balance sheets and research reports, acquired basic knowledge in various sectors. I thoroughly enjoy doing all the above stuff.
In my essays, I want to emphasize on my interest in financial markets. Is it going to send wrong signals to the admissions office?
With these credentials, do I have reasonably good chances of making it to the Top 50 Business schools in US? I have shortlisted the following schools:
1. Stern Business School
2. UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School
3. Tippie School of Management (Iowa)
4. Krannert School of Management (Purdue Univ)
5. Eli Broad College of Business (Michigan State Univ)
6. Mays Business School (Texas A&M)
Although most of these schools (except Stern) have an average GMAT score less than 680, being an IT professional from India, I am not sure whether 680 would be good enough or not. Do I need to lower my expectations and target further low ranked B-schools? OR Shall I target Top 20 schools with good essays?
Also, could you please provide me the list of B-Schools in US which are good for finance (top-30 will do). Most websites provide only the top 10 schools in any specialization.
Sorry for the very lengthy post....wanted to convey everything about me to get a clear picture.
Thanks in advance!
Venkat
Clear Admit 08-24-2006, 08:15 AM i was a little confused by your GMAT score, but assuming it is 680, you have decent experience, good XCs and community service, apply in round one, then applying to schools you list should be very realistic. obviously your essays will be important etc. now that I have said that, let me know specifically what else you need to know. cheers, alex
vappara 09-06-2006, 04:49 PM Hi Alex,
Thank you very much for your reply.
I am about to start my essays and have some concerns.
I have genuine interest in financial markets. I developed this interest by reading newspapers, books, research reports and by attending some seminars from the last 2 years. I have practical experience of trading in various products of stock market such as Futures and Options. Eventually I gained knowledge of different industries and now track large number of companies, read balance sheets and research reports. This is what has triggered my interest in Business and eventually decided to pursue MBA in finance. I want to become an Investment Analyst.
My interest is genuine but I don’t have anything substantial to prove my interest in Finance to the adcom. I didn’t work in teh financial domain and donot hold a degree/diploma in Finance. So, It would be very difficult to explain the career shift from IT professional to Investment Analyst. Even if I explain, I am afraid that it may not sound convincing. Therefore, in my essays, I was suggested to mention General Management as my specialization instead of Finance to make my essays stronger. Once I get admission, I can select finance as specialization in MBA 2nd year. Is it possible to do this or does this hurt in any way?
I want to apply to Kelley, Purdue, Tippie, Texas-Austin, Michigan State and GeorgiaTech. Do I have fair chance of getting admission in these schools?
Please let me know your views. Thanks in advance!
Venkat
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