Updates
ISB interview calls for the Delhi candidates are out...
Many candidates have interviews starting tomorrow i.e. 12th Oct, 2009
We understand the anxiousness and level of preparation needed for the important day and have customized services that help you throughout the run-up to your interview date with dedicated set of advisors who understand in-depth your profile.
Leverage our services today!
Don't wait for the last moment to get that interview call and then start preparing.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Spelling and Grammar check Tools!
With the fast approaching 15th September deadline for ISB Round 1 applications, we at thinkisb.com have been extremely busy guiding a huge number of aspirants. We observed that due to a multitude of reasons, many instances were found where spelling or grammar mistakes passed unnoticed by the aspirant's eye in his/her application drafts. Our team thus prepared a good list of online grammar and spelling check tools available on the internet that aspirants can use to their rescue:
Note: Do not rely on MS-Word Spelling and Grammar check [Shortcut: Pressing F7 Key] only
(Read more about it here: http://www.uwec.edu/help/Word07/grmrchck.htm)
Tools on the internet:
- Spellchecker.net lets you copy and paste text into an online tool to quickly identify spelling and grammar errors. An online thesaurus is also available for your convenience.
- Language Tool free open source grammar checker to identify the most common grammatical mistakes in text. (Exact Link: http://community.languagetool.org/ )
Language errors in English are recognized but this does not contain a spell checking program.
- Grammar Slammer : (Download Link: http://www.englishplus.com/pub/gschkr42.zip )
Uses a taskbar and integrated search to help identify errors in a document and suggest corrected text. You can download a free 21 day trial of this program.
- AbiWord is a free open source word processing program that includes a grammar checker. It is supported on all of the most common operating systems, including Linux, Mac OS X (PowerPC), and Microsoft Windows. The interface is similar to Microsoft Word, making this program very easy to use.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Plan-Do-Check-Act
Dear all ISB aspirants for the Class of 2011 !
With around 32 days left in deadline for the submission of first round of ISB Application, we suggest all of you to get the act together and put in dedicated efforts towards bringing out the "real" you through your application
A simple methodology is Plan-Do-Check-Act that helps you remain on track to be able to do justice to your ISB Application.
Remember the following points
1. PLAN: you need to do planning at regular intervals, say for each week have a planned target. You can be more granular like plan for every 3 days output etc. depending on your workload and preparation level
2. DO: Most important is steps that you actually take daily to meet the plans. Buy sticky notes, have desktop notes applications remind you.
3. CHECK: Keep a check on your progress with regular frequency, adjust your direction if needed to re-align with goals. You can announce your goals to friends and family every day to help them remind you etc. and that might help you keep a check!
4. ACT: Act on the gaps you found to mitigate them, find out new an innovative ways to keep your motivation levels high while working towards your application each day!
Best of luck for your ISB Application !
PS : What's been keeping us busy?
A lot of dedicated ISB Aspirants like you who are taking help from our services and are benefiting from it
With around 32 days left in deadline for the submission of first round of ISB Application, we suggest all of you to get the act together and put in dedicated efforts towards bringing out the "real" you through your application
A simple methodology is Plan-Do-Check-Act that helps you remain on track to be able to do justice to your ISB Application.
Remember the following points
1. PLAN: you need to do planning at regular intervals, say for each week have a planned target. You can be more granular like plan for every 3 days output etc. depending on your workload and preparation level
2. DO: Most important is steps that you actually take daily to meet the plans. Buy sticky notes, have desktop notes applications remind you.
3. CHECK: Keep a check on your progress with regular frequency, adjust your direction if needed to re-align with goals. You can announce your goals to friends and family every day to help them remind you etc. and that might help you keep a check!
4. ACT: Act on the gaps you found to mitigate them, find out new an innovative ways to keep your motivation levels high while working towards your application each day!
Best of luck for your ISB Application !
PS : What's been keeping us busy?
A lot of dedicated ISB Aspirants like you who are taking help from our services and are benefiting from it
Monday, July 13, 2009
ISB Application Essays
The ISB Application for the class of 2011 is open now. You can access the application at http://pgpapp.isb.edu/user/default.aspx. ThinkISB advisors spend a good amount of time understanding the various aspects of the application and below you see an in depth analysis of the most important part of the application – the essays.
Give 3 reasons as to why you should be selected to the class of 2011. These reasons should ideally differentiate you from the applicant pool and should be backed with some data. (300 words max)
The purpose of this essay is to understand whether you’d be a value add to ISB. Please understand that you do not need to come across as exotic, rather you need to come across as someone who would be able to contribute to both in-class and outside class activities. While proven involvement in extracurricular activities can be a pointer – ensure that you are able to link your extracurricular activities to activities performed by student clubs at ISB. Case in point if you’re interested in quizzing and drama you could mention the manner in which you could contribute to the Quizzing and Theatre clubs at ISB. Do understand that merely mentioning participating in clubs will not make the cut. You have to ensure you mention your exact nature of contribution.
A second pointer could be learning that you’ve gained from your career progression so far. Make a mention of how you would be able to contribute to your study group and to specific courses as a result of your professional learnings so far. Understand that while a lot of applicants may have the same professional profile as you – what will differentiate you is the manner in which you apply these learnings to your curriculum.
A final pointer could be a synopsis of your personal strengths – backed by examples on how you’ve used these strengths in past – and how these strengths would enable you to enrich the classroom experience at ISB. An important pointer while writing this essay is not to be overwhelmed by the 300 word limit. In fact when you write the first draft – try not to be conscious of the word limit – describe as many distinguishing factors as you possibly can. We can then decide which to retain.
Describe a challenging assignment you have handled (at work or outside) to date. What were the challenges and how did you handle them. What were the personal learnings you derived from this assignment. (300 words max)
For this essay, it would be better if you chose a crisis situation or a near failure situation. The whole purpose of this essay is to gauge how well you can attend to situations that would test your mettle. The situation can be challenging because of a variety of factors – your inability to handle the pressure, demanding team-mates or your inability to comprehend the difficulty of the assignment. You have to describe specifically what made the situation challenging for you and how you dealt with the challenges. Do understand that your reaction to the challenge will also change – you would probably start with feeling overwhelmed and then create a plan of action on how to handle the challenge. You also have to explain how you’ve evolved as a person and a professional as a result of this assignment. Another point you need to consider is – you need to showcase this essay as a description of your leadership ability. At the end of the day you will need to showcase leadership – that makes you handle challenging situations with aplomb.
ISB Essay 3
Briefly assess your career progression till date along with your assessment of your future career goals. Discuss how your career goals will be met by the ISB’s one year program. (300 words max)
Start with explaining everything you have done in your career post your undergrad/grad degree. Be sure to include any awards or achievements garnered along the way. Then explain how you career progression links to (or has given rise to) your career goals. Mention what your short-term goal is – it has to be a specific profile/position you are targeting post the ISB PGP. Then trace a career progression from your short-term goal to your long-term goal. Do understand that for your short-term goal you will need to mention specific positions at specific companies – make sure to verify whether the companies come to ISB to recruit. Your long-term goal has to be a work position around ten to fifteen years down the line from your short-term goal. Explain how specific learnings from the ISB PGP will enable you to attain your goals – make a mention of specific courses, clubs etc at ISB. In case you have interacted with ISB alumni or attended ISB information sessions or scheduled an ISB visit – mention how your decision to apply to ISB has been influenced by these events.
ISB Optional Essay
Please provide additional information, if any, that will significantly affect the consideration of your application to the ISB. Please do not repeat information which has already been stated elsewhere in the application. You may use this to clarify any breaks in education/work, inform about any other item which you think has not been covered elsewhere etc. (300 words max) Optional
The topic here is self-explanatory. Unless you have any of the reasons mentioned above or any significant extracurricular that have not been covered anywhere else in the application, please leave this section blank.
Re-applicant Essay
As a re-applicant focus on the improvements you have made in your profile – both and work and outside work in the duration of this one year. If you have received a re-applicant feedback from ISB mention how you have taken specific steps to improve your profile according to the feedback that you have received.
Do let us know whether you found this post useful. Drop us an email at info@thinkISB.com to call us at 9010917222
Give 3 reasons as to why you should be selected to the class of 2011. These reasons should ideally differentiate you from the applicant pool and should be backed with some data. (300 words max)
The purpose of this essay is to understand whether you’d be a value add to ISB. Please understand that you do not need to come across as exotic, rather you need to come across as someone who would be able to contribute to both in-class and outside class activities. While proven involvement in extracurricular activities can be a pointer – ensure that you are able to link your extracurricular activities to activities performed by student clubs at ISB. Case in point if you’re interested in quizzing and drama you could mention the manner in which you could contribute to the Quizzing and Theatre clubs at ISB. Do understand that merely mentioning participating in clubs will not make the cut. You have to ensure you mention your exact nature of contribution.
A second pointer could be learning that you’ve gained from your career progression so far. Make a mention of how you would be able to contribute to your study group and to specific courses as a result of your professional learnings so far. Understand that while a lot of applicants may have the same professional profile as you – what will differentiate you is the manner in which you apply these learnings to your curriculum.
A final pointer could be a synopsis of your personal strengths – backed by examples on how you’ve used these strengths in past – and how these strengths would enable you to enrich the classroom experience at ISB. An important pointer while writing this essay is not to be overwhelmed by the 300 word limit. In fact when you write the first draft – try not to be conscious of the word limit – describe as many distinguishing factors as you possibly can. We can then decide which to retain.
Describe a challenging assignment you have handled (at work or outside) to date. What were the challenges and how did you handle them. What were the personal learnings you derived from this assignment. (300 words max)
For this essay, it would be better if you chose a crisis situation or a near failure situation. The whole purpose of this essay is to gauge how well you can attend to situations that would test your mettle. The situation can be challenging because of a variety of factors – your inability to handle the pressure, demanding team-mates or your inability to comprehend the difficulty of the assignment. You have to describe specifically what made the situation challenging for you and how you dealt with the challenges. Do understand that your reaction to the challenge will also change – you would probably start with feeling overwhelmed and then create a plan of action on how to handle the challenge. You also have to explain how you’ve evolved as a person and a professional as a result of this assignment. Another point you need to consider is – you need to showcase this essay as a description of your leadership ability. At the end of the day you will need to showcase leadership – that makes you handle challenging situations with aplomb.
ISB Essay 3
Briefly assess your career progression till date along with your assessment of your future career goals. Discuss how your career goals will be met by the ISB’s one year program. (300 words max)
Start with explaining everything you have done in your career post your undergrad/grad degree. Be sure to include any awards or achievements garnered along the way. Then explain how you career progression links to (or has given rise to) your career goals. Mention what your short-term goal is – it has to be a specific profile/position you are targeting post the ISB PGP. Then trace a career progression from your short-term goal to your long-term goal. Do understand that for your short-term goal you will need to mention specific positions at specific companies – make sure to verify whether the companies come to ISB to recruit. Your long-term goal has to be a work position around ten to fifteen years down the line from your short-term goal. Explain how specific learnings from the ISB PGP will enable you to attain your goals – make a mention of specific courses, clubs etc at ISB. In case you have interacted with ISB alumni or attended ISB information sessions or scheduled an ISB visit – mention how your decision to apply to ISB has been influenced by these events.
ISB Optional Essay
Please provide additional information, if any, that will significantly affect the consideration of your application to the ISB. Please do not repeat information which has already been stated elsewhere in the application. You may use this to clarify any breaks in education/work, inform about any other item which you think has not been covered elsewhere etc. (300 words max) Optional
The topic here is self-explanatory. Unless you have any of the reasons mentioned above or any significant extracurricular that have not been covered anywhere else in the application, please leave this section blank.
Re-applicant Essay
As a re-applicant focus on the improvements you have made in your profile – both and work and outside work in the duration of this one year. If you have received a re-applicant feedback from ISB mention how you have taken specific steps to improve your profile according to the feedback that you have received.
Do let us know whether you found this post useful. Drop us an email at info@thinkISB.com to call us at 9010917222
Friday, July 10, 2009
ISB and Younger Applicant
As a younger applicant (anywhere between 2 and 3 years of work experience), your application needs to demonstrate accelerated career progression, leadership and professional maturity. One method of demonstrating professional maturity is by showing very clear career goals – you have to convince the admissions committee that you are looking at pursuing a management education so early in your career – simply because your career goals require a thorough understanding of management concepts at this point. Accelerated career progression by highlighting participation in cross-functional activities and through awards and achievements that you’ve earned at work. Your recommenders will also need to play an important role in endorsing your career accomplishments. Leadership can be demonstrated by taking on initiatives at work and outside work – like perhaps starting a language club at work or creating a knowledge repository. Considering your relatively brief career span – participation in leadership activities at the undergraduate level will also be paramount.
For a detailed analysis on how to improve your candidacy as a younger applicant, please contact us on thinkisb@gmail.com or call us at 9010917222
For a detailed analysis on how to improve your candidacy as a younger applicant, please contact us on thinkisb@gmail.com or call us at 9010917222
ISB and Older Applicants
As a one-year full time management program, ISB is very attractive to older applicants. When I say older applicant, I mean someone at least a good three to four years older than the average age of the school. ISB’s 2008 average age was 28, so if you're 31 or older you would possibly fall into that category for ISB.
As an older applicant – one of the most important concerns you need to address will be the placement concern. In the current economic scenario, the admissions committee knows that it will be harder to place you than younger applicants – and this concern could be a possible reason for rejection. You will need to use your career goals essay to alleviate this concern. Your career goals will have to be extremely detailed, you will need to identify positions, companies and your areas of responsibility post ISB. You will also have to show that your reason for entering a management program is not simply because you have hit a plateau in your career.
Another potential area of concern will also be how well you fit in with the rest of the class. You need to demonstrate flexibility and adaptability in order to prove that you’d be an asset to your learning team and not just because of your work experience.
For in-depth advice on how to structure your application essays as an older applicant, please contact us on thinkisb@gmail.com or call us at 9010917222.
As an older applicant – one of the most important concerns you need to address will be the placement concern. In the current economic scenario, the admissions committee knows that it will be harder to place you than younger applicants – and this concern could be a possible reason for rejection. You will need to use your career goals essay to alleviate this concern. Your career goals will have to be extremely detailed, you will need to identify positions, companies and your areas of responsibility post ISB. You will also have to show that your reason for entering a management program is not simply because you have hit a plateau in your career.
Another potential area of concern will also be how well you fit in with the rest of the class. You need to demonstrate flexibility and adaptability in order to prove that you’d be an asset to your learning team and not just because of your work experience.
For in-depth advice on how to structure your application essays as an older applicant, please contact us on thinkisb@gmail.com or call us at 9010917222.
Monday, June 29, 2009
ISB Vs US Business Schools
In the last few weeks I have talked to more than 200+ GMAT takers at various coaching centers in Mumbai, Chennai and Hyderabad. One of the question that consistently popped in most of my discussions was why would someone choose a 1 Year program at ISB as compared to a 2 Year program in US or in Europe?
Now that we have understood the two dimensions in details – lets go back and look at whether 1 Yr program at ISB makes sense over a 2 Yr program in US and Europe.
On the cost front –
Pretty genuine question particularly if you consider our obsession with higher education in US and Europe. However if you look at the question more objectively and plug in data to answer (This is really what an MBA teaches you J) the same, it becomes obvious that most people should definitely go for ISB’s one year program. Here is an explanation:
When a candidate is shortlisting the schools to apply to what he is really doing is shopping for MBA program. And as with any rationale consumer what he should essentially look at are the dimensions of the cost that he is incurring and the dimension of value that he is extracting – and then possibly pick up one with the maximum consumer surplus (value – cost incurred).
If that was the case most applicants would pick schools in the second quadrant in the picture above (Low Cost and High Value) to get maximum consumer surplus. Now let us go to a finer level and see what really constitutes Cost and Value.
For most of the people I had a discussion the cost of an MBA program is the Application Fee. That really is not a fact – If you think about it for people who are attending an MBA at ISB and other US Business schools are also keeping themselves away from work during the prime of their career. Hence the cost is not only on the fee but also the opportunity cost of staying away from work.
Cost = Program Fee + Living Expenses + Opportunity Cost
Now that we have understood the two dimensions in details – lets go back and look at whether 1 Yr program at ISB makes sense over a 2 Yr program in US and Europe.
On the cost front –
- The program Fee at ISB is around USD 40,000 almost half as compared to schools in US and Europe
- With the 1 Yr program you save a precious year of your peak work life and hence opportunity cost wise ISB’s 1 Yr program is more economical
On the value front, ISB has been consistently ranked among the top business schools of the world. According to the latest Financial Times Ranking, ISB ranks 15th globally – this definitely speaks a lot of the value that students get from the school.
In conclusion if we go back to the picture above ISB clearly falls in the second quadrant – the most attractive for applicants. More and more people are subscribing to this view as represented by some of these cases http://in.news.yahoo.com/32/20090330/1053/tnl-it-s-harvard-v-hyderabad-now.html
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
welcome to thinkISB Blog
thinkISB.com, is an ISB alumni startup with a purpose to enable the aspirants to most effectively showcase their skills to the ISB Admissions committe. We engage aspirants at various touchpoints from application to interview stage with individualized need-redressal of fresh as well as reapplicants.
Our focused approach has three cornerstones
Engage
Majority of applicants who do not make it to ISB are lost as they don’t clearly understand why they failed - hence these applicants don’t reapply. We would engage with them by re-evaluating their application and explaining them why they might have missed out.The long drawn and involved process of ISB Application, compared to the process at other business schools in India, deters a lot of deserving candidates from applying to ISB. We plan to reach out to these candidates to make the experience less overwhelming for them.
Educate
ISB Admission criteria differs from admission criteria of other business schools in India. At ISB the holistic application matters rather than a single exam score – Applicants with 770+ GMAT have not made it to ISB while others with 640 GMAT have got admissions. We plan to educate the applicants what it takes to get into ISB
Enable
A number of deserving candidates don’t make it to ISB because they are not able to objectively project their credentials. We aim to enable such candidates to more effectively present their case.ISB prefers multi-dimensional candidates who are good in all dimensions. A lot of applicants while are excellent in some dimensions might not meet the bar in other dimensions. We would provide such applicants a development plan to further strengthen not so strong dimensions of their application.With a
- Multi-functional team consisting of ISB alumni with experience and support of ISB Admissions
- Well defined focus on ISB and in-depth understanding of the process
- Advanced mechanisms of performing objective and structured evaluations with process driven feedback
- Combined with a highly responsive service providing personalized attention and no cookie-cutter approach
It is our sincere effort to help the ISB Aspirants in converting their cherised dream to realityPlease visit our website (To be live on 15th June) to know which product suits your need. If you wish to discuss feel free to enter your name and number in the request form at :
www.thinkISB.com (To be live on 15th June)Wishing you a great journey on your way to ISB and beyond!
Cheers
thinkISB.com Team
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