Here are some tips on how to start early and finish on time with the ISB application. In my experience over years of having seen various approaches followed by students while applying to the ISB, the most common mistake that is committed is equating GMAT exam to the entire ISB application. Most of the students wait until they have finished taking the GMAT (in most cases it is in the last week of the deadline) and then start on the application. It’s a sure shot way of failing overall, even if you score a great number in GMAT. Simply because, GMAT is a ‘part’ of our overall application process. There are a lot of other things which are equally if not more important than GMAT. So, here is my two cents on how to go about it.

• Get all your academic and work experience papers in place and have them scanned and uploaded at one go. This would ensure that you don’t miss out on any document. Any additional qualifications and certifications can also be uploaded.
• Writing essays would require significant time and effort. We recommend that you spend time in introspection and preparing drafts before you freeze on the word limit given. It would be good idea to get your essays evaluated by people who are close to you professionally and personally to get a second opinion.
• If you haven’t taken your GMAT and waiting for the GMAT score to be available before starting on the application, you might  get into a situation where essays and other details may not get the attention they deserve. Remember, GMAT is a part of our overall application process and is one of the many inputs which will help us shortlist you for the next round.
• While selecting evaluators, please ensure you share their official email IDs. If for some reason you cannot give the official mail id you have the option  to get an offline evaluation. You will have to give us the reason for making this choice. We will then send across the evaluation blank to the appraiser who can then fill them and courier it to us. Please send in the details early so that the evaluators have sufficient time to furnish the evaluations so that they reach us by the application deadline.

Given the fact that you would be busy in your professional commitments, we would like to remind you that the Cycle One deadline is on August 30, 2010.

Best wishes to you all!

GMAT scores are valid for up to 5 years and the ISB accepts scores which are in this limit and if a person has taken the test more than once we take the highest score. One of the golden rules for deciding when to take the GMAT is very simple – When you are ready. A lot of time, students do not take into account the time required to prepare for the test. Whether you are a working professional or a student you need to set aside preparation time for the test. You should take enough time to study for it, because there’s no point of taking the test without being prepared. Once the GMAT test is out of the way one can focus on the application process.

If you're fresh out of your college or in your final year of graduation, it may be a good idea for you to start preparing and take the exam right away. The score stays valid for 5 years and you can plan your MBA accordingly.

If you are a working professional, you should carefully plan the preparation time involved. There is no ideal time that you need to set out but our experience tell us that depending on the educational background, you would need anywhere between 6-8 weeks of preparation time. One advantage of taking the test early would also give you an option to retake the test, if you're not satisfied with your score. The round 1 application deadlines is August 30 and round two deadline is November 30.. Plan accordingly. What should not get missed is the time that you would require on the essays and other application requirements. More on that in the next blog.

The first step towards getting the Class of 2012 has now officially begun. The applications  for the One Year PGP for the Class of 2012 is now open with the application portal now LIVE. Here is the link for the same. http://pgpapp.isb.edu/user/default.aspx The application deadline dates have been revised for this year. Round one deadline would be on August 30, 2010. And round two deadline would be on November 30, 2010.   Like last year, I shall look forward to interacting with you on this platform. Please feel free to share your feedback here or write into us at pgpadmissions@isb.edu  should you need any help.  All the very best!  

 

The class of 2010 graduated on the 3^rd and as always with such occasions it was filled with a sense of purpose, joy and not the least a sense of fulfillment amongst the students. The campus in now getting ready to welcome the next batch the class of 2011 who will join ISB in less than a week’s time.  As the time for the next batch joining comes nearer we in the Admissions team are getting prepared with the process for admitting the next class that will join in April 2011.  

The online application will be open from the end of April and as usual we will have the two deadlines the first one being the 30^th of August 2010 and the second the 30^th of November 2010.

As always we are looking at the following attributes in prospective applicants:

1.       Good consistent academic record

2.       Clarity of thought in terms of career aspirations and goals

3.       People who have distinguished themselves at their respective work place. 

The essays, the academic record, the GMAT score, the achievements at the work place etc are all important and prospective applicants should give them the importance that they deserve while filling in the applications. 

It is always a good idea to have your essays looked at by some of your friends, mentors etc  to ensure you have covered all that you needed to cover in the essay but please do not get the essays written by someone else. The contents of the essay are yours and yours alone and therefore unless you write them yourself you will be unable to field questions on them during the interview and as anyone who has been through an ISB admissions interview will testify practically all the interviews are centered around the essays you have written or your accomplishments at the work place.

 I have given a broad description of what we look for in applicants. I do intend to write in more detail as we go into the admissions cycle. 

All the very best to prospective applicants.

We have completed the first cycle admissions and the admitletters for the same have been sent out. My first impressions has been that theapplicant pool is getting better each year and this year has been no exception.Having personally interviewed a large number of candidates and also reviewedmost of the applications it may be appropriate to put down some of myobservations here.

 

Practically every applicant had put down some form ofsocial service activity in one of the essays. For a very large number theactivity started around June this year. Fact is if everyone is talking about itthen social service ceases to be a differentiator. It is very obvious that someapplicants have put social service down because  some application helpwebsites said we look at such activity favourably and improves the chances of ashort list. When I did probe some of the applicants during the interview itbecame obvious that they had nothing what so ever to do with social service –you can guess what happened to the applicant. We certainly do appreciate socialservice but let it be serious work in that area. There a lots of ways toproject your uniqueness and in my opinion the best thing to project youruniqueness is to talk about some thing you have done professionally. That issome thing that can be easily defended in an interview and results in a farbetter interview performance.

 

The other common feature this year has been the longterm goal of entrepreneurship. For a large number the long term was really longterm and one in fact said he would start some ting in 20 years time. Noproblems if that is indeed your goal but then you also need to have a goodshort and medium term goal.  While one does not expect candidates to havea detailed business plan in place the least one can expect is some ideas onwhat kind of enterprise it is going to be. A response like “ I don’t have anidea at the moment but hope to get one once I am in ISB” I don’t thing willwash.

 

The second deadline is round the corner (Dec 1^st2009) and we do hope to get the quality of applications we got in the firstcycle.

 

All the best!

All interviews for the shortlisted candidates for round one got over last week. The final evaluation and compilation of the scores is currently on. The result for round one will announced as scheduled on the 25th November 2009.

Meanwhile,the deadline for round two applications is round the corner – December 1^st2009. Don’t wait till the last moment to send them in.

All the best!

We finished our Delhi leg of interviews day before yesterday. The applicants were truly diverse and competitive. It surely will be a herculean task for the Ad Com to pick the first among equals! The interview dates for other places are as follows:

• Candidates choosing Hyderabad as location: 19^th October onwards
• Candidates choosing Kolkata as location: 28^th and 29^th October
• International Candidates: 20^th October onwards.

As usual, when we finish our interviews, we eagerly look forward to popular blog sites where candidates post their experience for the ‘benefit’ of others. For us, it’s an amusing read to revisit it. But on a serious note, I think there is one important message which comes across - One cannot bluff his way through his application and subsequently through the interview.  Be genuine and honest in your application and in the interview.I will repeat what i said in my earlier blog - The interview format itself is designed in a manner to facilitate a discussion. The inputs for the interview are from the application itself.

And yes, the interview panel DOSEN”T have access to the candidates GMAT and Academic scores. They have access to the college/university from where you have graduated but not the scores.

 All the best and wish you all a Happy Diwali!

 We are now in the penultimate leg of going through the applications for short listing candidates from round 1. As posted yesterday, Interviews in Delhi are scheduled from 10^th October.   Candidates who have not opted for Delhi as an Interview location will get to know if they have been short listed from next week onwards. The announcements will be made in a phased manner.Watch this space for more details.  

The interviews for shortlisted candidates who applied in round 1 are round the corner. The Admission team has already sent out interview invitations to the shortlisted candidates from Delhi. Shortlisted candidates for the rest will be intimated shortly. This time apart from Delhi, Interviews are scheduled in Hyderabad and Kolkata. We kick off with the Delhi interviews which are scheduled from 10^thOctober to 14^th October 2009.

The interview panel will normally have 2-3 people representing Admissions, Alum and senior staff from the school. The interview would normally be of 20-30 minutes. Contrary to what others would make you believe, the ISB interview is not a stress interview. The interview format itself is designed in a manner to facilitate a discussion. The inputs for the interview are from the application itself. To ensure uniformity and remove any bias, the interview panel doesn’t have access to the candidate’s GMAT score.

So,all the best folks! 

The ISB is participating in the WMBA tour and if you are in any of the cities listed below between Sept 13 – 24 across US and Europe. We would be in the following cities - Paris, Milan, Frankfurt, Madrid, Dubai, London, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Washington and Singapore.

Those of you who are currently in these place can meet the ISB Admission officer and interact first hand. To register for the same, please log onto - http://www.isb.edu/pgp/InternationalLocations.Shtml