netip conference - seattle - gurome gmat, mba, career workshop slides

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GMAT, MBA, CAREERS

GMAT: Format and Scoring

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GMAT Structure

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Section Format and Timing

Analytical Writing Assessment

First section of the test Includes Analysis of an Issue and Analysis of an Argument Exactly 30 min. to complete each essay; no break in between

Optional 8-minute break (clock starts as soon as the previous section is done)

Quantitative 37 multiple choice questions; 75 minutes Two types of Q: Problem Solving (50%) & Data Sufficiency (50%) Topics: Arithmetic, Algebra, Geometry, Word Problems

Optional 8-minute break (clock starts as soon as the previous section is done)

Verbal 41 multiple choice questions; 75 minutes Three types of questions: Sentence Correction (SC; 33%); Critical

Reasoning (CR; 33%); Reading Comprehension (RC; 33%)


GMAT scores

Verbal and Quant “scaled scores”: 0-60 Verbal >44 and Quant >50 great scores Essays scored separately: 0-6 Total scores: 200-800 Two thirds score between 400 and 600

760-800: 99 percentile 700: 90 percentile 630: 75 percentile 550: 51 percentile 460: 25 percentile

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Adaptive scoring simplified

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200250300350400450500550600650700750800

0 10 20 30 40

Question Number

Score

GMAT Quant

• PS (Problem Solving) vs. DS (Data Sufficiency)• Problem Solving Questions need to be solved

for specific answer• DS questions are of two types

Yes/no Value

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GMAT Verbal

The Verbal Section is divided into 3 areas of focus

1. Sentence Correction 2. Critical Reasoning 3. Reading Comprehension

Analytical Writing is a separate section

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GMAT, MBA, Careers

MBA Application

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Is MBA right for you?

MBA is the new BA Opens multiple career options, ranging from

senior technical to business roles Widens perspectives and brings credibility with

business folks But…takes you a little farther from hands on

technical roles. Higher you go, bigger the fall Takes a lot of time, money, and effort

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When is MBA right for you?

Typically 3-7 years into your career for a FT MBA; 5-10 years for a PT MBA; 7-15 years for an EMBA.

FT MBA when you want to change the field or not sure which field to build your career in

PT MBA when you want to stay in the field and/or have financial/family constraints

EMBA when already in middle management and facing a glass ceiling

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What kind of MBA is right for you?

Depends on your experience level, cost and time constraints, and longer term career objectives

Program options include Full Time, Part Time (Weekend and Evening), Executive MBA, MS/MBA; MS in Finance or Info. Management.

School options include Top 10 (HBS, Wharton, Berkeley-Haas), Top 50 (UCLA, UW-Foster), Regional (WSU-Pullman, Seattle U.) Top MBA programs: $100K+ Middle tier MBAs: $50-75K Regional schools: $20-40K

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What do you need to get in?

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Top-10 schools Middle tier schools

Regional schools

700+ GMAT Good undergrad

grades Hot shot career Phenomenal

essays, reco. letters, interview


grades Good career Good essays,

reco. letters, interview


grades A career (optional) An essay and/or

reco. letters/ interview


How to enhance your candidacy?

Work on your grades. Get the best GMAT score you can get. Get noteworthy part-time experience. Nurture recommenders. Write differentiated, impressive essays. Craft the best Résumé you can.

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What goes inside the MBA Application Packet?

GMAT Scores Essays Recommendation Letters Short answers Résumé Official Transcripts

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Business School Application Essays: 4 Main Categories

Background Essays Career Goals Essays Values/Experiences Essays Optional Essays

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Background Essays: Strategy

As the name suggests, background essays offer the admissions committee an insight into “you” as a person; your family; factors/people that have had an impact in your life. This is your chance to tell them an engaging story.

Although this is not a career essay or a goals essay, it is important for you to subtly weave in what your motivation for an MBA is without specifically referring to the term “MBA”.

Interesting examples go a long way in making an important impression in these essays.

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Career Goals Essays: Strategy

Typically schools will ask you to present your short-term (3-5 years post MBA) and long-term goals (5+ yrs post MBA) in these essays.

In these essays, it is important to first lay out your goals and then talk about what steps you have taken to accomplish the goals.

Your long-term goals may change over the course of your MBA, but it is important to have at least some idea of how best you would want to leverage your MBA and your professional experience 5+ years from now.

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Values/Experiences Essays: Strategy

It is important to provide a backdrop before you start talking about what you accomplished.

Be it essays related to your professional life or your life outside of work, it is important to illustrate the impact your action has had on an organization/people. Provide examples/quote figures (e.g. percentage increase in revenue) to make the essays authentic and interesting.

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Optional Essays: Strategy

Attempt this essay only if you feel that you have not been able to discuss something that can add a new dimension to your application.

You can talk about a startup you are involved with, community service, or a passion/hobby.

If you have a low GPA or a GMAT or have missed a year in college, this is the essay where you can address those weaknesses.

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Letters of Recommendation: An Overview

Who can be a recommender?Anyone who is senior to you in job title and who has closely seen you work can be a recommender. Your recommender can be your boss, your professor, or a manager under whom you have completed your internship.

How many letters of recommendation are needed?Typically business schools ask for 2 letters of recommendation (your direct supervisor and someone senior in title but with whom you have worked closely). Some schools ask for a 3rd recommendation letter or a peer reference; this is normally written by your peer.

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Think, Write, Read, Iterate

MBA application essays cannot be written overnight. A good essay requires you to introspect, structure your thoughts coherently, read what you have written, and iterate till the day you hit the “submit” button.

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GMAT, MBA, CAREERS

CAREERS

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GMAT, MBA, CAREERS

Have you updated your résumé lately?

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Is your résumé suitably tailored for the audience?

One size does not fit all. It is critical to know the company’s culture.

The way an IBM thinks is different from the way a Google thinks and résumé must be modified to fit a different audience.

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How well do you know the company you are seeking a position in?

IBM asks 3 questions: 1. Are you a problem solver? 2. Are you a difference maker? 3. Are you ready to make our planet work smarter?

Let us assume you are applying for a position in IBM, would you not want to answer those questions through your résumé ?

Your résumé must answer a recruiter’s primary question: “What can you do for me?” If you know the organization well, you can mould your experience to fit their requirements.

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Key questions to keep in mind while writing a résumé

Does your résumé have a good structure? Does your résumé make an impressive introduction? Does your résumé convey your career story? Is your résumé well differentiated? Is your résumé suitably tailored to the audience? (e.g.,

how well do you know the company where you are seeking a position? )

Does your résumé look pleasing? Is it too long?

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Does your résumé make an impressive introduction?

Let us face the harsh realities of a résumé. If you have not caught the reader’s attention in the first 20 seconds, you have lost your audience.

The first 3-5 sentences should give the reviewer a brief but engaging summary of your accomplishments and also give her a sense of where you would want to see yourself in the organization/in future.

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Does your résumé convey your career story?

Human beings have an inherent love for story. Tell your recruiters a cogent story that captures relevant skills and industry specific knowledge. It is important to show a clear progression in career. If you are planning on a switch, focus more on the work you have done towards the switch than talk about your experience in an unrelated field.

It is important to connect the dots and show that you can work your way up through an organization, and that you can lead and be led.

If your résumé is for a business school, include your vision at the very beginning and illustrate the groundwork you have already done towards the vision.

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Is your résumé well differentiated?

The best way to differentiate your résumé is with accomplishments.

There will 200 candidates well versed in JAVA and SAP, but it is a sentence like this - Setup Walmart Proof-of-Concept Lab that was crucial to a sales deal of $7 million – that will set you apart. You should definitely list your technical expertise, but illustrate how it impacted a design/process.

Talk about your role in revenue saved/earned; increase in percentage sales; deals closed; teams led; people managed in digital figures. Numbers stand out.

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The length of a résumé

One page or at most two pages if you have extensive experience.

Make it easy for your employer to read your résumé. Too much detail puts off employers. Value their time.

A quick scan of about 20 seconds or less is what an employer takes on an average to decide whether he should spend more time on your résumé .

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Style

Make your résumé easy on the eye of the reader. Choose a warm font (calibri, cambria) unless specified otherwise. Select a font size that is not a strain on the eye (11 calibri) Do not mix fonts. Be consistent with the grammatical style. Use the same tense

throughout. Avoid repeating the same key phrases. Avoid underlines. They make the document look cluttered. Use boldface to indicate positions held and bullets to emphasize

your skills. Avoid superlatives such as excellent, outstanding, highly

motivated. Avoid making any spelling errors. Avoid inappropriate email IDs (such as [email protected])

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Stay Connected

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