The application process for the next class starting April 2012 is now on and I thought it would be a good idea to start this year’s blog with a note on how to get started with the applications.
In my experience over years of having seen various approaches followed by students while applying to the ISB, the most common mistake, I have seen committed, is equating GMAT exam to the entire ISB application. Most of the students wait until they have finished taking the GMAT (in a large number of 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 get a great GMAT score. Simply because, GMAT is just one ‘part’ of our overall application evaluation 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. To write a good essay requires that you spend a considerable time thinking about what you want to cover in each essay. As a first step put down all the points you would like covered, then order the points in a logical sequence then elaborate each point into a well structured essay. It is always a good idea to first write the essay ignoring the word limit and then edit down to the required word limit. This ensures that you have covered all that you have intended to cover in the essay. Have the essays reviewed by friends and colleagues who know you well.
- 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.
The first cycle application deadline is 15th Sept 2011.