Please evaluate my profile

[vm87]

23/Male/Indian
GMAT Score: 720(q 50 v 37)
Undergrad: 3.1/4 from top indian engineering college(IIT Bombay)
Job experience: 6 months

Job description: Currently working as a business analyst in a small oil & gas consulting company in India. Work primarily includes production/economic modeling and financial evaluation of oil & gas fields.

Extracurriculars: average at school/college, but playing a lead role in establishing recently started corporate social responsibility activities for the company.

post MBA goals: Move to Investment Banking

Target Schools: Harvard Business School, Tuck School of Business, Columbia Business School, Stern School of Business, Yale School of Management.

Dilemma: I plan to apply only after 2-3 yrs of experience. I am happy in my present job. Took initiatives which have been appreciated by my boss a well as clients. Hoping to get very good recommendation letters from my seniors and clients. Is the fact that my present company is little known come in the way of my dream Bschool?? Should I consider switching to a job with a more known firm?

[mbamission]

Hi Vikram,

Thanks for writing in. The low-profile of your firm should not be a huge concern -- schools want candidates from large name brand companies as well as smaller ventures.

You're clearly aiming high with your choices -- so you will need a clear story about your accomplishments to date and why you want to make the switch into banking. It sounds like your corporate social responsibility work could help differentiate you as well.

Good luck!
Daniel Richards
http://www.mbamission.com

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[vm87]

Thanks Daniel, I really appreciate your advice. It would be very helpful if you could rate my chances at the five schools(competitive, reach etc) i mentioned so that i can change my target schools accordingly.
Thanks once again.

[mbamission]

Hi again,

Well with only six months of experience I'd have to classify them all as "reaches." It is true that some schools are more open to younger candidates, but I think you have to look at your lack of experience as a weakness to overcome, rather than a non-starter with the schools. So I can't say you'd be "competitive" based on that fact.

And if you're planning to apply in 2-3 years, then what you do in your job and community service over these next few years will be critical in determining your competitiveness as these top schools. You have the GMATs to be competitive across the board, but the rest of your profile is unwritten at this point.