GETTING INTO YOUR DREAM B-SCHOOL

Everybody has their own definition of “Dream School/University” and with that, comes changes in
perspectives while writing applications. If I had to talk about my view, I wanted a holistic experience that
would not just help me land a job but make me competent enough to take strides towards the career I am
passionate about with umpteen confidence.

Now, without further ado (hate how formal this sounds, ha-ha), let’s right dive into knowing everything it
takes to ace your applications at your dream B-school for ‘early career programmes’.

But first, what are the in-trend, famous early-career programmes:

1. Masters in Management
2. Masters in Finance
3. Masters in Marketing
4. Masters in Business Analytics
Well, I am sure, if you know which school you want to go to, you probably know which course you want to
pursue too. So, lets talk a little about CV now.

YOUR CV
Recruiters may spend 8-10 seconds scanning through the CV, but admissions committee conduct a
thorough perusal of every CV to gauge the candidate’s relativity to the programme they are applying for,
meaning, this is your “Experience Bio-data”, and that one piece of paper can really strengthen your
application to a great extent.
I have created an easy-to understand table that differentiates between what would enhance your CV and
what could really make you stand out.

GOOD STRENGTHENING POINTS STANDING OUT

Outstanding academic record-GPA/CGPA Receiving a scholarship, winning an
academic award, leading an academic
project, having other professional
certificates such as CFA.
Doing many internships/jobs Showing an increase in responsibility,
leadership position in one
(Quality>Quantity)
Being a part of a social service initiative Starting an initiative
 Part of an organizing committee of a Leading a department/event
college event
Having unique interests and hobbies Achievements in your hobbies
Working at some other company Starting something of your own (E.g.-small
business)
Taking part in fests +Academic competitions like case-study
competitions.

Bear in mind, the “standing out” points only hold true if you have the strengthening points on your CV first.
They are brownie points, and this table is an indicator that if you have any of these, you should highlight
them. Also, do not fake or bluff on your CV

RANKINGS AND TOP SCHOOLS

These are the most reliable lists you should check for school rankings for your respective courses:
1. QS World Rankings
2. FT rankings
3. Times Higher Education

APPLICATION PROCESS

Application Checklist:
1. Transcripts from undergraduate university
2. IELTS/TOEFL
3. GMAT/GRE Report (depends on course to course)
4. Letters of Recommendation
5. A good resume
6. Statement of Purpose
7. Degree
For starters, spend enough time doing the following:
1. SWOT Analysis of yourself: You need to self-introspect and pen down your strengths and
weaknesses mainly + how you are or plan to work on your weaknesses. This will help you while
answering essay questions and getting letters or recommendations made
2. What does your university want from a candidate: Knowing this will again help you in writing your
essays with a fresh perspective and highlighting your points that you think they would love to hear.
You can easily find this on their website.
3. LinkedIn: Keep your LinkedIn profile up to date, fill in all the details correctly, and make sure they
match with the things you’ve written in your application and resume. Admissions team members
have now started checking candidates LinkedIn profile to validate their information.
4. List of Schools: You may first want to apply to your dream school. However, for a safer side, apply
to some others. It should be divided as follows: 1 dream school + 2 “would not mind going” schools
+ 2 safe schools. Note that this bifurcation should be done based on your profile and interests and
you can apply to as many schools as you want.
 5. Application deadlines and rounds: Create a spreadsheet beforehand of the application deadlines
and rounds of these schools. Many schools will process applications on a rolling basis, meaning,
they have no rounds 1, 2, 3 =, etc. Instead, they consider applications as and when they receive. But
in such a scenario, I advise you to apply as early as possible.

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
Gosh, this guy is a GAME-CHANGER. If you know the correct strategy to approach this, it can help you get
closer to your dream school.

First things first, what do you need to portray through the SOP?

• That you are very passionate about your field of study

• A student who can withstand the academic workload alongside multiple other activities and
projects
• You are eager to network and build on skills
• You will be able to take on challenges at an international level
• You are capable of being an asset to the school by enhancing the school’s student community
• You are clear about your short-term and long-term goals
• You have potential of being a worthy alumnus who can take the school name forward

Additional Points to Remember:

• Write stories, not statement. Consider it to be a chapter of a book, not a reiteration of your CV
• There must be enough strong reason as to why you want to study in that universities. For e.g.: for
me, it was the opportunity of choosing from more than 300 student clubs, participating in
leadership programs that I personally liked, and studying modules that were very relevant in
current times.
• You need to keep the essay specific to you and show quantifiable achievements
• Customise the essay to school (This is super important; I have covered this in the latter part of the
SOP topic)
• Your SOP should preferably be of one page only

FORMAT (This is the format I followed; you can use this as reference):

• PARAGRAPH 1: What made you lean towards the field (any instance, series of events, etc) + your
undergrad degree and experience in short
• PARAGRAPH 2: Extra-curricular and professional experience (here, focus more on what you did & in
the CV, focus on achievements)
• PARAGRAPH 3: Why do you need the masters programme, how will it help you (modules and
projects), and what are your short-term and long-term goals
• PARAGRAPH 4: How will you contribute to the school (talk about being a part of clubs, unions, and
programmes)
• PARAGRAPH 5: Why this school? Why this country? & Conclusion
Things to research about the school and add in the SOP:
1. 2-3 modules you like
2. 1-2 projects you think will help you gain hands-on practice
3. 2-3 clubs you want to be a part of (1 academic and 2 extra-curricular)
4. Any leadership programmes
5. I went as far as asking a current student about who teaches a module I really liked and added the
name in my SOP. This shows I am so interested that I am taking an effort and asking current
students about their experience.

LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION

For everybody wondering, LOR’s are not written by you, but the people who can vet for your potential and
experience- teachers, principal, boss, manager, etc.
There are two types of LOR’s: Academic and Professional
The combination required maybe as follows:
1. A+P
2. A+A
3. 2A+P

POINTS TO REMEMBER:

• If you are asked for 2 academic LOR’s, preferably ask one from a teacher who has taught you a
subject relevant to the degree you are applying for and the other from somebody who can highlight
more on your extra-curricular activities
• If you are asked for a work LOR, take it from the company where you have worked in a department
relevant to the masters. If you are switching your career, take it from somebody who can very well
highlight your work ethics.
• Request whoever is writing your LOR to include your strengths, weaknesses and how they think you
are working on them, and some projects you have worked for.
• Support it with enough examples

ACING YOUR INTERVIEWS

Congratulations! You have been shortlisted by the school and you are now invited to interview with them.
Different schools have different structures and number of rounds for the interview. These are the different
types:
1. One-on-one interview (the classic type)
2. Kira Interview (I had this one)
I am sure you know what type 1 is. Part 2, Kira Talent is a platform that contains a set of pre recorded
questions by the school. When you start your interview, the recorded question plays, you then have a few
seconds to think about the answer and you then record yourself answering that question for a couple of
minutes. You get only one take, and your recorded answer automatically gets sent to the school.
There is another question in the Kira interview that you are maybe unfamiliar with- the written question.
You may get one written question where you would need to type out in a set time. These basically include
questions like, “write a letter to the HOD od a club you really want to be a part of”, “how would you
convince the school that you are a right fit for xyz leadership position”, so on and so forth.

TYPE OF QUESTION EXAMPLE

Profile Specific About yourself, work, experience, etc.
Goal Based Short-term/long-term goals, why masters,
why not continue in India, why not MBA,
etc
Competency Based Leadership, teamwork, stress situations, etc
(category that requires you think of most
examples)
Domain Based Related to your field of study
Current Affairs Based Any recent global news, news about UK,
etc.

POINTS TO REMEMBER:

• You need to think of a lot of personal incidents and examples. For example, if you get a question
related to leadership, you need to tell them about a scenario when you were a leader.
• You can think of answers to common questions. However, do not memorise, make it look candid.
• This is the biggest mistake most people make. Think from your own perspective when answering
the questions, not from the interviewer’s. Do not just give an answer because it may look good or
sound better.
• Give mocks with family or friends who would give you constructive feedback
• If it is a live interview, prepare 2-3 questions you can ask the interviewer at the end of the
interview.
• Lastly, understand why the interview is done.

SOME GENERAL POINTS TO KEEP IN MIND:

• If your course and school require GMAT/GRE, my suggestion is to aim to give it by August. God
forbidden, you need to re-attempt, you will then have enough time to give it before applications
start.
• Some schools will have multiple essay questions. Make sure to not overlap information and stick to
the point in such questions since they will in all probability have a character/word limit.
• If you wish to apply for scholarships, research about them well in advance since many scholarship
applications close applications early
 • Do not copy from any other previous applications. Universities have plagiarism trackers, and your
application could be considered null and void.

This is it from my end. Enjoy the process of applying as much as you would enjoy studying the course. The
pride, satisfaction, and happiness you experience after getting into your dream school is a feeling I cannot
put into words. I wish you all the best for your future endeavours.
THE END JUST THE BEGINNING