Way2Top

Tips on Applications [Raja Banerjee]:

Part - I
1. Please stick to one-page resume

2. Devote more space in resume to work experience than education.

3. Get recommendations preferably from work place, not educational institute. Also, request recommender to write more than just one sentence and to cite specific examples.

4. Think clearly why ISB and MBA are crucial at this stage for you. It should come out well in the Goals essay.

5. Use the essays to give us an insight into your professional life. A resume does not capture all the nuances of your daily work life, so the essays should give me an idea of how good you were at work, integrity issues, team work etc.

Part - II
1. When you say you ranked 20th, also mention out of how many. For example, ranked 20th in the entrance exam for Noname University. Now how do I know if 10,000 people apply there or 25?

2. If you say you got client satisfaction rating of 4/5, give me some context – it’s better to say: the only project in my division to receive CSS of 4/5 ; or, got a CSS of 4/5 – the highest for this account since it started. I need to know how unique it is to get 4/5, is it a big deal?

3. Mention dates in resume, and show progression in responsibilities. For example, if you were onsite for a year, mention that in a separate line in the resume so I know the length of time you worked there. Just saying that you worked in TCS from 1999-2004 and spent some time onsite doesn’t tell me for how long you were onsite.

4. Most recommenders are shying away from mentioning your weak areas. It would be good if you mention it yourself in the critical evaluation essay maybe.

5. Most resumes are strictly professional, and don’t give any insight into the person behind the resume. You might mention some personal interests, hobbies, sports etc at the bottom. For example, if you have been following the Yankees or the White Sox, or are particularly good at playing some sport, or have piloted a plane, or a Tintin comic book collector etc. I need to know if I want to sit next to you in class or not. If you have a well-rounded personality, you are an interesting person!

6. Do some homework to find out what is taught in an MBA program, and why it would help you. Why an MBA is needed in your career, and what an MBA can do for you.

Result of some free time today!! Comments on my story will be greatly appreciated

“It was a beautiful evening, with sun still shining, waiting to turn orange before being taken over by night. There  was a small pond in the middle, surrounded by dense colourful trees, still spellbound by Autumn. The entire place was filled with pleasing silence. The sounds of bird chirpping, fishes splashing in to the water, sound of leaves excited by the gentle breeze were the only things that challenged the silence.

Looking at the little boy in his eyes with a caring warmth, Grandpa said “Son, now tell me what did you learn from the story?”. Grandpa was expecting that the boy would say “Unity is strength”. The little boy thought for a while and started speaking “Grandpa, When the sticks were bundled together, it was impossible to break it. When the bundle was untied it lost its strength”. Grandpa was happy that the boy is going in the right direction and was listening. “So Grandpa, when the problem is difficult to solve, one should break it to smaller parts. The the problem can be solved easily”. Not expecting such a totally different perspective, Grandpa was stunned. He didn’t speak or move for a minute.
To be continued…”

Today I got a great news from my friend in UK.

“..The 2004 Budget announced a new provision for graduates of 50 top business schools to work in the UK for up to 12 months on completing their MBAs. This provision will form part of the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme (HSMP).

The HSMP is designed to attract highly skilled people to the UK to seek and take work. The MBA provision within this addresses the weakness in the UK economy in the quality of management by attracting highly qualified and talented managers to the UK. The Masters in Business Administration remains one of the most recognised and respected management qualifications

Who will be eligible?

Individuals who graduate from one of the eligible MBA programmes at the time it is on the list will be eligible to apply for the MBA provision. We have yet to finalise the other requirements of the provision. Successful applicants will be awarded the minimum number of points necessary to qualify under HSMP, but will still need to meet the remaining requirements of the programme.

When we have finalised the details of the provision, they will be published here.

When will it be launched?

We are looking to launch the MBA provision in April 2005…”

Details of the scheme
List of 50 top business schools identified

I am happy that CRANFIELD and OXFORD are in that list…More reasons for me to expedite the application process. Now that ISB interview dates are delayed and acceptance decision will not be announced before January 15, I will make use of this 40 odd days to send the apps.

IIM Ahmedabad announced it’s one year PGP programme for Executives [PGPX], which is scheduled to start on April 2, 2006. It’s in the lines of ISB. With it’s established brand, and a fees half of what ISB charges, no doubt this program will grab great attention. But as far as one year program in India is concerned, ISB is still the pioneer. Good to have competition. Will have to wait and see how ISB is going to react..

http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/latest/pgpxone.htm
http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/latest/faqs.htm

PGP for Executives:

Here are the basic criteria:
(a) Bachelor’s Degree in any discipline
(b) Minimum work experience of 7 years
(c) Minimum Age – 27 years on the first day of the course [born on or before March 31,1979 for batch starting on April 2, 2006]
(d) Upper age limit: None
(e) GMAT score obtained not earlier than 1-4-2002 for batch starting on 2-4-2006
(f) No relaxation in length of work experience requirement for those who hold Master’s Degree or any other advanced academic degree

Fees: 17,600 $ [Approx. 8,00,000.00 including tuition, library, IT, accomodation etc.,]

What degree is offered at the end of the programme?
On successful completion, participants will be given a Post Graduate Diploma in Management. This may be considered equivalent to the one-year management programmes offered by INSEAD (France), Indian School of Business (India), Asian Institute of Management (Philippines), University of Pittsburgh (USA), Cranfield (UK), etc.

I am having so many things to do at present and unable to focus on any one job. So finally decided to give importance to ISB Interview preparation than to anything else. I am reading the book “International Cash Management”, to help increase my knowledge in the domain I am working with. Also since I am alone, I am rehearsing my answers aloud, recording it in PC and reviewing it. Helps!

I must mention about a blog called “MadeForISB“. I came to know this person recently. He has maintained this blog beautifully from January. Recently he has opened his blog for public. Very Candid and honest. Worth looking. Also, he has compiled some good questions for MBA Interview.

In a way I have some similarities with him. Even I took the GMAT twice. It was very difficult to focus during the second attempt. Many of my friends said it’s a foolish decision to write a second time, as the score will be pretty much the same. Also, I was having a tough time with Verbal. After hardwork and efforts, I managed to get a score I was looking for. It was a moment of achievement!. It’s a great feeling when you put in efforts and you achieve something. Easily I could have got the same score, as during the practice tests there were indications for yet another low score. Of all the components in application, GMAT is a very unique one. It doesn’t have any value addition whatsoever, just a formality. On the other hand, that happens to be one component which you can control still.

I am chatting with quite a few prospective ISB applicants through Yahoo/MSN/mail. It’s good to hear different perspectives. Most of them have similar profiles. Am not sure how ISB is going to evaluate those. Tough time for ISB and tough time for applicants too (especially IT applicants).
11 more days to go..

I scanned the documents and sent it across to ISB Adcom..

“Dear,

Kindly Let me know if this fulfills all aspects of application including scholarship form. Expecting your confirmation at the earliest. Thanks.”

The response

“Dear Mr. XXXX,

Thank you for your email and the attachment. We will do the needful.”

The wait for interview call starts now for me!!

I was surprised and happy to see 250MB of storage space in one of my hotmail Ids(Yes, I have 4 Hotmail ids ). Right now, I have only 1% of my space filled. This is a welcome feature during this critical application period. No need to worry about cleaning up the space every week.

I guess Microsoft is rolling out the 250MB allocation in phased manner..I was lucky to get it now..Hope everyone else gets it soon..

Hotmail to offer 250MB of free storage
“The upgrade will increase Hotmail’s free e-mail storage limits from 2 megabytes to 250MB and its paid e-mail service, which costs $19.95 a year, from 10MB to 2 gigabytes. The changes will begin in early July.”

Today, Vasanth left Belgium. Yesterday was his last working day in Belgium. Now he will visit his brother in USA and then will head back to India, looking for fresh and challenging oppurtunities in Bangalore. 3 months back, another close friend Jeeva, left Belgium to pursue his studies in UK. I have known these two people for a very long time. We have been together throughout our career. But we have to part at some point of time…Looks like this year has been destined for that. I am pretty much sure that these two will be very very successful in their life…

All of a sudden, I feel like surrounded by stark loneliness. I am a person who prefers the company of family/friends/relative. If I didn’t had this MBA plan, I would have headed back to India 7 months back and started a fresh career in India. Because of my determination to pursue my MBA in any of the top colleges, I have stayed back. I have 4 or 8 months[depending on which college I get admission in] ahead of me before the MBA, which I have to spend in Belgium alone.

The current house that I am staying in, is a three bedroom apartment, quite big for a single person. So, keeping in mind the financial overhead, my boss has arranged for a new 2-bedroom apartment, 200meters down the road. In a way, I welcome this change. I have to start disposing old things, pack my stuff and be ready for relocation, which will happen anytime in the upcoming 15 days. I have to inform Postal department about my change of address, so that they will redirect my posts to the new address. Also the telephone connection and internet connection needs to be redirected. Apart from this I have quite a few formalities to fulfill like Updating the Residence card, informing the police etc.,

The Cranfield application is collecting dust for past 1 week. I will retake the responsibility this weekend. I am depressed now, so right now, I am seeking strength through spiritual path….In another 3-4 days I will recover and hit the road running.