Road to ISB..(and Carnegie Mellon)

Road to ISB..(and Carnegie Mellon)

Beyond the GMAT hype

                It’s interesting to think that I have come a long way in a year or so when I truly began my preparation for GMAT. Back then I used to think (as I am sure most of us think) that GMAT score is the road to a great school. Little did I realize that every step beyond the GMAT hype will be a challenge in itself. I mean, come to think of it. When you study for the GMAT, you are competing with yourself or, as I liked to think, trying to outsmart the famed GMAT algorithm. But once you are done with the GMAT, you compete with otherswho come with stellar profiles and very similar GMAT score. Just to make sure all of us are on the same page. You apply to schools after you have taken your  GMAT test. The schools may accept or reject your application. If accepted, you will be called for an interview. Post interview  you may be accepted or rejected. So what separates a good prospect from a great prospect for a school. Believe it or not the GMAT score is just a part of your entire profile that the school considers. There is a lot more to it. Your extracurricular participations, your on the job achievements, and your participation in the society really stands to differentiate you from a sea of applicants with similar profiles. If you have had a stellar career growth, your chances of being accepted increase. As I come from a PSU background, my chances of an extraordinary or even anything but ordinary was zero by hundred. So I had to perform well within my role to differentiate myself from others coming with a similar profile. The fact that my work involves not just a lot of mathematics but also decision making helped. You need to excel, or at least perform better than a rub of the mill guy(or girl), to carve out a space for yourself. This is especially true I believe for people coming from an IT background. Your engagement with society matters too in the eyes of Adcom and also for your overall development. While you are preparing for the test, don’t confine yourself to the luxury of the four walls of your room. Go out, get involved - An NGO or any other organization that appeals to you. Another piece of advice that I would like to give to those eying a seat at the most coveted colleges in the world is invest in yourself. Develop a personal brand that shows that you really takes yourself very seriously. For example, take the online courses from Coursera, Udemy, etc. to learn stuffs that you would want to do or are interested in. I took a few courses and they asked me about it during my interviews! It worked I guess. Most importantly get your basic application right. The essays, the goals, plan A and even plan B after an MBA. I was fortunate to work with some really good people in this regard. Perhaps the best help I received was prior to my interview at the Tepper School of Business from the guys at interviewbay. The mock interview with a Harvard graduate,Brad, was an eye opener in many ways. I did not have the luxury to invest in those big consultants that claim to virtually guarantee you a place in the schools, so I guess I had to play it smart. In the end, I was interviewed by the Tepper School of Business, ISB and IIM B. Not a bad return on investment I would say. I got into Tepper and ISB. I don’t know about IIM B. Probably they dinged me; I am not sure. And for very personal reasons I chose to attend ISB in 2016.

But having said all that, I will not like to take anything away from the importance of GMAT- especially for Indians because on an average we score quite high. So a fairly good GMAT score becomes a given for us. So for all those aspiring to be in that class of 20XX photograph in your dream school work on your profiles as well as GMAT. Best of luck.

Anyone who would like to reach out, I will be happy to help you until I begin the chapter 2 of my life. I can be reached on ranjan.rahul885@gmail.com.

Edit: It turns out that IIM didn't ding me after all! What an irony! I tried my hand at CAT a couple of times. Needless to say, i performed hopelessly. Probably I was under a lot of pressure to perform. And when I least needed it, they turn up with an offer- EPGP nonetheless.