With the tight competition for MBA admissions in India, sometimes just scoring great in the entrance exams is not enough. Especially, the top B-schools of the country like IIMs and ISB have lakhs of aspirants. Therefore, you need to prove your mettle, if you want to get an admission in one of these colleges.
Building a top b-school worthy application takes a lot of time, effort, planning, and skill. It might seem like a daunting task however, if you have a clear strategy and expert help, it is not that difficult too.
There are a few definite phases in developing an application for MBA admissions. If you understand these phases and get them right, you would have your MBA application ready. Let’s see how you can strategize and develop each aspect of the application:
- Impressive academics and CAT/GMAT scores:
- The primary focus of any good B-school is the CAT, GMAT, or any other relevant score for the admissions. These scores reveal your analytical, reasoning, English, grammar, and logical skills. All these skills are very crucial for you to survive the rigorous MBA program that you will undergo. Hence, a lot of weightage is given to these scores.
- IIMs have their percentile cut-offs and invite candidates to the next levels of admissions. On the other hand, ISB doesn’t have a standard cutoff, however, an average GMAT to safeguard a seat in ISB is considered 720+.
- Apart from the GMAT/CAT scores, B-schools also look at the complete academic track record of the candidates. They tend to incline towards candidates with a good and consistent academic record. However, you don’t need to stress too much over the academic track record if yours is not that great. You can always compensate it with an exceptional CAT/GMAT score or other career/personal achievements.
- Professional track record:
- Another very important aspect of your application which also carries a lot of weightage is your professional track record and the clarity you have on your career goals.
- You need to keep your professional achievements, success stories and lessons handy, as you definitely will have to recite some of these stories either in your essays or interviews.
- You need to have clear long term and short term career goals. You would have to explain how an MBA would help you achieve these goals and how an MBA at this point will help your career.
- How are you different?
- All the top B-schools care a lot about bringing diversity to the classroom. Hence, if you come from a diverse background, profession, academics or any special extra-curricular activities, it would be a big add-on for your admission. For example, Most of the students from the top Indian B-schools have an engineering academic background and a technical professional experience. Hence, if you have an arts, statistics or any other unconventional academic background. You might be given more preference when compared to an engineering background candidate at the same level as you in other aspects because you would bring diversity to the class.
- Diversity is becoming to be an important aspect of MBA admissions as it ensures an enriching learning experience which fosters diverse knowledge transfer among the students. Hence, if you have any kind of diversity in your profile; do highlight those aspects as they might turn out to your ticket to your dream B-school.
- How you tell your story matters:
- You might have all the winning qualities in your profile and personality. However, if you don’t alleviate these traits and achievements in the right way when given a chance then it would be an opportunity lost.
- Most of the premium B-schools would require you to write at least two essays. Generally, you are only given a 500 words word limit to say it all. No matter what the topic of your essay may be, ultimately, they are just trying to know you better and find out if you would fit their bill.
- These 500 odd words might not be enough to express everything you have achieved and want to achieve. Therefore, the trick here is to choose the right points to include in your essays. While you make sure to include the maximum points in the essays, it is also important to take care of the style, tone and grammar of your writing. You need to make it sound like an interesting, intelligent and light- read rather than a serious, stuffy, and document-like essay.
- You need to :
- Jot down all the points you want to express.
- Prioritize them in order of importance and relevance.
- Write the essay with a natural flow and flare.
- Proofread and review multiple times.
The way you build your application can make or break your chances to get a seat in your dream B-school.
All the best for your applications!