Beyond ISB....

I believe there are always options in life, for everything …and everything happens for a reason. There are some things that we really cant do much about but we definitely have an option to choose how to deal with it..to fret about something that was not meant to be OR to move ahead and make something else happen ! And all those fighters out there who unfortunately couldn’t make it to ISB – we believe that you all fall in the second category and wont give up.

So lets get into action and see what we can do now..
First lets take a step back and think..do you..

a. ..still want to get into a B-school. Was your aim to get an MBA from any good school or was ISB the school you wanted to go to
b. ..want to dump the idea of getting into B-school because there are many examples of people who have made it big in life without being an "embeeya" 

Well, both the options are fair. But in this article lets assume that you are the one who chooses option a, now again think over the following

1. An Indian B-school is where you want to go – Because of personal, financial reasons etc
2. You are open to any school worldwide

If you chose option 1, your choices could be:

Re-apply to ISB : Yes, there are re-applicants to ISB every year! And a good number of them do get into ISB. In this case make sure you get appropriate feedback from ISB this year so that you know what to work upon for the next year. ISB does give feedback, if only asked for


IIMA PGPEX – But remember applicants need to be of age 27 years or above at the start of the program. If you want to give this a decent shot -you need to get prepared soon as the application forms will be available from March 2007 (not much time left). Start you research asap..

IIMC PGPEX - Needs 5 year of work-ex. Application forms should be available in Jan ’07 – hmmmm…dude …no time left at all

Great Lakes Institute of Management, Chennai – A new kid in the block. This years admissions still going on - last date for submission of Applications: January 20th 2007. 2 years work-ex desired; also admits people with less work-ex. If you want to try this – HURRY UP!!!

SP Jain Dubai/Singapore (not exactly in India, but of Indian origin …) - Very focused specializations on offer (Wealth Management, Retail Management, etc.) So if you know what you want to specialize in, you can give this school a shot. A small percentage of the batch is reserved for those with a family business or who desire to become an entrepreneur

If you chose option 2, you might have to weigh the following factors before selecting the schools to apply for (since they charge in $$, it’s good to do your homework)

- Is your GMAT score good enuf? Do you have the will to better it or would you rather apply with the existing score.

- What is your budget like for MBA fees? Can you afford a US MBA (if you do not get loans) or would you rather stick closer home (Australia, Singapore, etc.) Are you willing to stay and work in the foreign country where you do your MBA, to pay back the loans, or would you rather be working in India? Alternately, for those who have their family businesses, you might want to come back to India to join your family business …

- How are you placed personally – For some people this is a huge constraint while moving out of the country.

- Since there are so many more schools there and if you apply to all you probably wont have any money left ! So choose your schools carefully – be practical and choose a school where you think you have a decent chance and match if against something that suits you (location, concentration, mode of education wise).

- Some schools in US and UK still have deadlines pending in the next few weeks (till mid jan). Give those a shot but don’t do it in a hurry – if you think you cannot do justice to them now – wait. Gather some more exp this year, better your profile and score if required and come back next year better prepared..and go for the kill !!!!

Now that we have given you a structure – work towards it..choose your options..move on..because there is always life beyond ………………