Success Story of our MBA candidate - Case Study

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Case Study of our latest client who fell in trap of pseudo consultant last year
Happy and elated Vishal called me in the middle of night to tell about his MBA admit in IE Spain(Ranked 13th Globally) with 20,000 Euros scholarship. This year under Skill Maestro consulting he selectively applied to 5 top ranked schools and got admit from IE. Rosy as it may seem now but Vishal’s journey to top ranked MBA program was fraught with plethora of hurdles. Even after having 8 years of work experience with a stellar 740 GMAT score, Vishal was not able to get single admits last year, not even from tier 2 ranked MBA programs. Vishal’s nightmare started after choosing a local consultant who touted himself to be best in trade and also claimed of handling several top B School applications. Our first meeting with Vishal was jaundiced with his cynicism stemming from his last bad experience with pseudo consultant. 

 Having burnt his pocket after spending Rs. 2.5 lakhs on consulting process last year, he had lost trust in the consulting process. He told us that “My last consultant was a complete scam. He was really money grubbing and his positioning did not help me get into any business school. He lacked the intellect and maturity to understand my profile. His essay answer inputs were verbose full of flowery language with minimal rationale. It was a waste of $4,000”

An unhappy customer, for sure Vishal worked with a major MBA admissions consultant and came away believing he was ripped off. He’s not alone. What complicates a good match between an applicant and a consultant is the fact that most of the consultants lack necessary knowledge and expertise to guide applicants. Most consultants out there aren’t qualified to give you advice about your career. A huge majority of the ‘advisors’ (read pseudo advisors) have never gone to a top school. Despite having good achievements and proven leadership skills, Vishal’s profile was wrongly projected to top ranked programs. The damage done last year was incorrigible as wrongly projected profile had jeopardized his chances for next year as well. 

This year when he took Skill Maestro consulting services we guided his application with our 10 step approach. The first step was to sit together and understand his profile, ambitions and story of why MBA? After attending first few sessions, Vishal not only realized his real rational for doing MBA but also regained his lost enthusiasm of pursuing MBA from a top notch schools. We put lot of emphasis on STAR method when it comes to writing essay answers. Within each essay response we cogently talked about situation, task, action and results. Rather than enlisting 20 different achievements we talked about two most important achievements, which were aligned with school’s program philosophy. The productive consulting sessions helped him to chart out long term ambitions, which are logically connected to his past work experience. The fool proof consulting landed him interview calls from all the targeted schools. 

Sandeep Panjwani, chief mentor and consultant at Skill Maestro, who has also been part of admission committee in past brings the first hand insights of what Adcom people are looking in candidates. He says that schools want to admit candidates who have great intellectual capacity, demonstrated impact, leadership capabilities, interpersonal skills, and other qualities shown in differing areas of his or her life. These dimensions are Professional, Community, and Personal. 

Selecting the right admission consulting firm and the right person isn’t easy. So what one should learn from Vishal’s experience. You should consider these questions before choosing a consultant. 
 

Are they providing superficial answers and MBA advice or do they immerse themselves into your world?
  • Are they doing by the book and giving your standard template answers or do they really know more than you do about the MBA industry and what Admission committees (Adcoms) are looking for? 
  • Have they been successful in the real world out there (academically and professionally) or is this just bookish knowledge that they are passing on to you?
  • Are their testimonials genuine and honest? Cooking up and pasting flattering feedback on websites is pretty easy.
  • How many of their candidates are willing to reveal their identities and not be ashamed of being associated with this team?
Trust your gut: the way the firm treats you as a prospect is indicative of how they will treat you as a client. Are they prompt, professional, empathetic, accessible, and responsive? Do they understand you and believe in your potential for admission?

Guiding principles for those in the hunt for a good consultant:

  • You should start by vetting the admissions consultant. Find out who started the company, what is his/her role, how are consultants hired, trained, and what is the background/experience of the consultants? 
  • Find out who you would be working with and what their success track record is.
  • Stay away from the “fly by night” entities that make outlandish promises or have ethical flags (writing application essays, recommendations, etc)
  • Research different consulting firms to see which ones would be the best fit. Every firm is different in its approach, culture, focus. Some focus on strategy, some on essay editing/writing and others on both. 
  • Have a preliminary call with the firms you are considering and assess the quality of the feedback they provide you (this can give you a clue to the quality of work they do)
  • Getting a referral from a friend or trusted colleague can be a good starting point so ask people in your network if they have any experience with the firms you are considering 
  • Be clear on what you need. Have a realistic picture of what kind of candidate you are.
About Skill Maestro
At Skill Maestro, We guide prospective students about the entire application process as well as suitable universities as per their profile/test scores. We have consulted dozens of prospective students for MIS across the globe. We have a physical presence in Indore where we also help students prepare for GRE, GMAT & SAT Follow Us  on Google+!
About the Author
Pankaj has been consulting on the MBA application process / Study abroad opportunities since 2009. He is chief mentor and consultant at Skill Maestro, a GMAT prep and MBA admissions consulting company launched in 2009 and has since helped thousands of clients gain admission to the most selective business schools in the world, many with merit scholarships. He has been conducting seminars and webinars for various professionals to help them realize their potential for Top B-Schools. Being 97 percentile scorer (Top 3%) in GMAT, Pankaj has strong grasp on the exam structure and his comprehensive study material has helped thousands of candidates to score high in GMAT. His expertise in delivering flawless, scholarship oriented essays makes him most sought after admission consultants in India Follow him  on Google+!

Management Information Systems, An overview

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As a Career Counselor, I have met a lot of students who want to pursue a career in IT after engineering. Many have asked about pursuing masters in Management Information Systems (MIS). They come up with so many queries as well as assumptions that we, at Skill Maestro decided to clear up the fog and write a detailed post on what MIS is all about. Who should pursue it and what can they expect after graduation.
What is Management Information Systems (MIS)?
In today’s age, organizations rely on computerized information for almost every aspect of their business. Businesses use information systems at all levels of setup to collect, process and store data. Senior management groups and circulates this data in the form of information needed to carry out the daily operations of business.

Management information systemsinvolves a wide range of computer courses, including programming languages, information technology security, and planning and integration of systems.



Why Management in Information Systems (MIS)?
Information systems is a field where demand is skyrocketing with projected annual growth rates of more than 25% – one of the fastest of any business discipline as per U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Some of the compelling reasons why one should go for an MS in MIS:
  • High employment rate
  • Job satisfaction
  • Better than average earnings
  • Challenging assignments
  • Hands-on problem solving
  • Global opportunities
  • Great opportunities for advancement
  • Opportunity to create an impact!
What you learn in MIS programs?
A major in MIS gives a solid foundation in all the major aspects of business management. You’ll learn to evaluate individual requirements, as well as the broader economic and social requirements of a company, so you can most effectively structure and consolidate its data. Since you’ll regularly be scheduling and problem-solving in groups, it’s important that you possess good communications skills and relish working with people as well. Some of the skills one can learn in an MIS program:
  • A comprehensive understanding of information technologies and how these are used in governmental organizations
  • A detailed understanding of the information systems life cycle
  • A comprehensive understanding of system requirements gathering, analysis, documentation, and validation
  • Project management skills
  • Ability to develop prototypes using various visual tools
  • Aptitude to identify organizational data, and design and manipulate databases
  • Capability to integrate technical skills with an understanding of business operations
  • Leadership skills
How it is different from a MS in Computer Science Degree
A significant share of the MIS degree put emphasis on data analytics, teamwork, project management, leadership, and underlying focus on business management. These course aspects are what set the MIS professional apart from a computer science expert. Programming is just a minor part of the MIS curriculum. While programming concepts denote some of the basic concepts and information systems development, implementation and use, a large number of jobs in MIS do not utilize programming at all.

Who should pursue it?
  • Are you a people’s person?
  • Do you relish the challenge to work on global problems with people from all over the world?
  • Do you enjoy analyzing and solving problems?
  • Do you want to create cutting-edge innovative technology solutions?
  • Are you curious enough to make business processes more efficient, effective and competitive?
If the answer to the above questions is yes, then this might be the course for you

Opportunities after the degree/Career Paths
Graduates can expect to work in both technical and managerial capacities on development of information technology projects for collecting, managing, analyzing, and acting on business data. A degree in Management Information Systems provides graduates the skills they need to work in both technical and managerial capacities. Graduates work on the development of information technology projects for collecting, managing, analyzing, and acting on business data. They can expect to work in industries, ranging from healthcare to consulting to banking. Some of the career options which you can pursue after an MS in management information systems are as follows:
  • Business Analyst
  • IT Consultant
  • Information Systems Manager
  • Business Intelligence Analyst
  • Applied Management Analyst
  • Risk Analyst
What do you do after MIS?
MIS professionals make information systems for data management which can include storing, searching and analyzing data. Additionally, they handle various information systems to cater to the requirements various stakeholders (i.e. managers, staff and customers). By working collaboratively with various group members, as well as with their clients, MIS professionals play a significant role in areas such as information security, integration and exchange.

About Skill Maestro
At Skill Maestro, We guide prospective students about the entire application process as well as suitable universities as per their profile/test scores. We have consulted dozens of prospective students for MIS across the globe. We have a physical presence in Indore where we also help students prepare for GRE, GMAT & SAT Follow Us  on Google+!
About the Author
Sandeep Panjwani has mentored more than 200 students to score full marks in Quant section of GRE/GMAT. He also brings his industry experience in providing right guidance to candidates for course selection. He has extraordinary insights about the US job market and has mentored several students in securing high paying jobs in Investment banks and financial institutions in USA. He loves to watch US sitcoms and is an ardent follower of Warren Buffett Follow him  on Google+!

Study Plan for GRE

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Students who are planning to apply for MS in USA for Fall 2015, can follow the below mentioned study plan.


About the Author
Skill Maestro offers comprehensive test preparation and study abroad counseling to students aspiring to go abroad for further studies. Skill Maestro trains for international tests like GRE, GMAT, SAT, TOEFL & IELTS required for study abroad. Our counselors and faculty believes in customized coaching for each candidate based on their requirement for the tests. The classes are conducted in various batches as per the convenience of the students. Follow us  on Google+!

Importance of SOP in the admission process for US universities

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So you have cleared your GRE/GMAT with stellar scores. What next? Is the question, which almost all applicants are pondering on.

SOP i.e. statement of Purpose is your one shot opportunity to convey the admission committee about your fit with the MS/MBA program. The SOP basically talks about your background, academic achievements, under graduation courses and how these factors have prepared you better for higher studies in US universities. An effective SOP should cogently convey the intent behind the MS/MBA program choices.

Standardized scores such as GRE/GMAT are just one parameter in application process, albeit very pivotal but are not the only determinants in final decision. What we say at Skill Maestro is clearing GRE/GMAT is half battle won and the other half is dependent on overall profile and SOP of a candidate. Importance of SOP cannot be negated in lieu of good scores and academics. At Skill Maestro, we have helped hundreds of students to get into top ranked US universities in spite of low scores in standardized test. Is that a magic wand? Answer is NO. It is pristine art of beautifully drafted SOP that coherently captures the rationale of pursuing higher studies. Every candidate has a unique story about his academic achievements, extracurricular activities, family upbringing, future goals and struggles in life. Admission committee is all ears about unique stories of candidates which gives them a distinct perspective about candidate’s potential. At Skill Maestro, we make it a point to craft unique SOPs which has essence of each of the above mentioned factors.

Plagiarized SOPs, what consultants won’t tell you:


Majority of admission committee across several universities are using plagiarism check software such as Turnitin.com to make sure that SOPs are not copy pasted from other sources. The biggest damage somebody could do to hurt his admit chances would be to use other candidate’s SOP therefore, at Skill Maestro, we highly recommend students to come up with unique plagiarism free SOP. We have broadly defined the major Do’s and Don’ts for SOP which will help all aspiring candidates to convey a unique story beautifully.


Dos
  • ·    Be specific and don’t use generalized statement to put forth the ideas. Use examples and instances to bolster your claims. Don’t simply write that pursuing MIS will help me attune to global needs and become CIO of a company. Be specific and realistic about how some particular coursework can fill in the skill gap. We have seen several rejected candidates using flowery language without an iota of relevance in SOPs. Refrain from this.
  •          Introspect yourself and brainstorm with your friends and professors to include:
  1. A summary of your accomplishments first
  2. Background information--people and events that influenced your decision
  3. Learning experience(s) that serve as a foundation for your choice of career
  4. Where you picked up first-hand information/experience about the field
  5. Your own appraisal of yourself (strengths, weaknesses, uniqueness)
  • Let your personality and individuality show. Give insight about your hopes, goals, motivations, and dedication. Be interesting and unique. Do not be afraid to let your passion and commitment to a career shine through. 
  • Keep a journal of your work and volunteer experience.
  • Get an early start. This cannot be stressed enough.
  • Be honest, consistent and straightforward.
  • Schools prefer unique essays, so avoid copying any others.
Don't
  • Don’t underestimate the importance of the essay (a very common mistake).
  • Don’t underestimate the length of time it will take to write your statement.
  • Don’t list everything you have ever done. There is usually a place on the application to list your activities.
  • Avoid giving unnecessary details. The statement should read smoothly.
  • Don’t mention your interest for one particular school in a general application that is being sent to many schools, and vice versa.
For free SOP evaluation, please send us your SOP on skillmaestro.in@gmail.com

To inquire about SOP packages call us on +919827777288, visit us on our facebook page

GRE Workshop - July 2014

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GRE Practice Tests: A Tactical Approach

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One of the most enticing aspects of taking practice tests for GREs is that they make you feel productive. They seem like they provide you an edge on “the real thing”. On top of that there’s always that secret anticipation that this time you’ll hit it out of the park and you can eventually stop cramming.

At SkillMaestro; we love the idea of taking a lot of practice tests. I love them as an instructor, as they assist me evaluate my students’ progress. And I am pretty sure our students love them too, because it helps them assess where they stand. We emphasize more and more on taking these tests productively.

However, many a times, I have seen students taking the practice tests in ways that are totally unproductive. Since your time is invaluable and you want to achieve the best possible results for whatever limited time you have to invest, I’d like to provide my $0.02 on using practice tests effectively.

Take a mock test before starting your preparation.

The first practice test which you should take is right before you start your preparation.  This is the most efficient and an insanely valuable task, which needs to be taken care of.  Apparently it’s the one test; students are most likely to skip. Most of the students avoid the practice test at the beginning of a test preparation because they are afraid of what the results will be (thinking that they haven’t prepared at all). Many other times, they know the result won’t be worthy enough for their school of choice, thereby taking the test pointless. I have also often heard my students saying that they don’t want to squander one of their practice tests until they have started studying in a serious manner.

I am very confident saying that, without any exception, these are all wrong reasons to miss the first practice test. It is very important to exactly know where you’re starting so that you can draw a clear roadmap for the kind of preparation you need to work on. Taking a practice test at the start of your preparation will provide you a starting point from which to measure your growth and a vital exposure to GRE to prepare a study plan for studying.

Take tests in a proper simulated environment

One of the major complaint I have heard from students is “I used to get XYZ on my practice tests, but…”. This implies that you have not utilized your practice tests as efficiently as you could have. Some of the DOS & DONTS you need to keep in mind while taking the practice tests:






DOs
·         Always take a TIMED practice test.
·         Always try to take it in a time slot when you are actually planning to take the real test
·         Always use authentic tests from reputable sources
·         Always take full test and not avoid the AWA section

DONTs
·         Don’t take an unusually long break in between your practice test or pause it many times.
·         Don’t take it when you are expecting a lot of interrupting phone calls, or you have a laptop that’s going to crash.
·         Don’t take it when you’re tired, or hung over, or sick or after a hectic day.

You get the notion? You would want to minimize any external mitigating environments that can possibly explain why your practice test score is lower or higher than it should be on the real test. I can understand that it is very difficult to avoid all interruptions during a practice test but you need to make your best efforts to make sure that the practice test reflects a true assessment of your abilities.  In order to make sure that you get the most out of a practice test, it needs to be in a perfectly simulated testing environment, which is the whole point of taking a practice test in the first place.

One of the most important things to remember is that practice tests are NOT learning tools but evaluation tools and should be used as such. Tests should be utilized to assess what you have learned and your capability to apply that learning under simulated conditions similar to the actual test as much as possible. In the broader perspective of your test preparation, you should take a practice test at the very beginning of your study preparations to establish it as a baseline and determine your strength and weakness areas. After that, it is advisable to wait for another practice test until you’ve had a chance to review some content and have taken some shorter tests focused on individual particular areas. Once you’ve gotten a sizable chunk of material and practice behind you, you should start including full-length practice tests into your study plan.

To summarize, here are three valid reasons to take a practice test:
·         To measure what you currently know
·         To practice your test-taking strategies (which also includes pacing your test and sometimes intelligent guessing)

·         To identify your weaknesses & key areas to study going forward.

A walk-through: US MBA application process

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Every year thousands of candidates from India apply to US B-Schools. These candidates are usually apprehensive about the admission process. One faces several questions before starting his application journey. This walkthrough will help candidates to understand and prepare themselves better for their B-School process.
The application process to a B-school is administered by the admissions committee (Ad Com). The committee consists of faculty members, industry practitioners, program Director and its composition varies with each school. A senior professor usually heads the chair of this committee. This blog gives an insight to step by step process of how application is reviewed by Ad Com.

The Arrival

Once the candidate’s application is received by B-School, it is usually sent to admission office and is checked by someone in operations. It is very important to ensure that all required documents are present in application packet. If something is missing (a transcript, GMAT score, essay, etc.), then the application is put on hold. Our advice is to triple check your application before submitting it. If you forget to include something, your application might not be looked at for several weeks by an admissions committee member. You’ll end up going back and forth with someone from operations for several days. It’s not a good first impression.

First Review

If all the information is in place, the application is independently reviewed by two members of the admissions committee. The goal is to get two separate, objective opinions on the strength of the application. Each reviewer fills out a one page summary form. The form has 5 parts: Grades, Essays, GMAT, Work Experience and References.
If you are applying to a top 10 MBA school, you should aim for a GMAT score of at least 700. With over 100,000 people applying to the top 10 MBA programs, it’s important to aim high. If a candidate has a score under 700, most committee’s look further into the application to see if the candidate took the GMAT at least twice. If you got a score below 700, take the GMAT again. Even if you don’t break 700 the second time around, it at least gives the committee a more favorable opinion of your determination. This is why we tell people to take the GMAT at least a year before you plan to apply. It gives you enough time to prepare and get a good score. If you don’t get a good score, you have a lot of time to try again.
While the GMAT score is a standardized way to compare different applicants, the admissions committee takes multiple factors into consideration when looking at your undergraduate grades. A 3.5 GPA in Engineering from IIT is quite different from a 3.5 in Economics from a State University. The better the school, the harder the major, and the higher the grades, the greater ranking you’ll be given by a reviewer.
Now, if you had bad grades in school, not all is lost. Many times candidates with poor undergraduate grades are admitted if they have shown significant accomplishments after school. However, it takes time to rack up these accomplishments. Most people accepted with poor undergraduate grades were older and had a few more years of work experience and proven leadership qualities.

Essays

The third part of the review is your essays. We would say that the essays are the most important part of the application. Admission committee essays on how clear you are about your goals, ambitions, and dreams. Most importantly, they want to know you as the person. Ad com wants to understand what things in your life have bought you to this point and what you plan to do with your MBA.
Regardless of the essay questions, your goal is to give the committee a good sense of where you came from, why you want an MBA, and how you will leverage that degree in pursuit of your future aspirations. The biggest mistake I see applicants make in the essays is to focus too much on work accomplishments. Especially amongst bankers and consultants. Over 25,000 bankers and consultants apply to MBA programs each year. If you want to separate yourself from the pack, don’t waste the essays on work topics.
Your essays should be genuine, honest and of your own voice. Many times, we have seen candidates that had below average grades and GMAT scores. However, the essays were so compelling that we just wanted to meet the applicant in person, and therefore moved the application to the interview stage. For example, one applicant had below average grades as an undergraduate, but she wrote a convincing essay on the various issues she was dealing with at that time. We were so impressed that we started to look at the fact that she was able to graduate with all those issues in her life as an achievement itself.

Work Experience

Work experience is a must for admission to a top MBA program. Only a very select few people go directly from undergrad to MBA. The average length of work experience is four years. For a while, some schools starting to consider five years of work experience the average. However, corporate recruiters complained to MBA programs that they did not want MBA graduates to be too old when they re-entered the work force.
The most important thing the committee wants to see in your work experience is how you have progressed within your field. Were you were promoted more often, and given more leadership responsibility than your peers? While many bankers and consultants apply for MBA programs, it is actually quite hard to get into one of the top MBA programs from these fields. With so many applicants within the same field, it’s tough for a candidate to separate themselves from the pack.
This is one of those times where working in a non- traditional field is an asset. Every MBA program wants a diverse class. The more unique your work experience, the better shot you have of getting accepted.

Letters of Recommendation

The final part of the first review is your reference letters. Many times, people get recommendations from people they think would impress the committee. We have gotten recommendations from senators, CEOs, and world leaders. Unless the applicant worked directly for the recommender, these letters of reference are usually very vague and un-insightful. It’s better to get a reference from someone who has had direct supervision responsibility over you and can talk about your accomplishments with firsthand knowledge.
Skill Maestro offers comprehensive test preparation and study abroad counseling to students aspiring to go abroad for further studies. Skill Maestro trains for international tests like GRE, GMAT, SAT, TOEFL & IELTS required for study abroad. Our counselors and faculty believes in customized coaching for each candidate based on their requirement for the tests. The classes are conducted in various batches as per the convenience of the students.




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