Aug 22, 2012 – General musings and an interview with Accepted.com

I was fortunate to have had the chance to go through an admissions related book with accepted.com. It was a further boon when they requested me to have a kind of a discussion with them on their questions with regards to the B-School application and GMAT. I must confess that such events are truly wonderful in terms of boosting one’s confidence. So they sent me a set of questions and I responded back with my thoughts.

The entire interview can be reviewed at the below link on accepted.com.

http://blog.accepted.com/2012/08/17/mba-applicant-blogger-interview-anujans-journey/

On the preparation front there has been a real bad lull. I have been travelling and honestly it is close to 2 weeks since I have even touched the books again. I have decided to take the GMAT in September last week which roughly gives me 1 more month to prepare. I have completed out with the basics and now have to move with increasing my accuracy and more mock tests. I am slightly worried that these 2 weeks without any practice might really damage all the hard work I have been putting since the start. It is also about time that I start looking into the IR section. This is a new section and while I have attended a few sessions on IR by the premier coaching websites I have actually not tried my hand at any real practice. I am hoping that it is not going to be a real difficult task considering analytical and graphical analysis is something that is pretty much a parcel of daily work life.

I will be taking a break for 4-5 days starting this weekend. I am feeling a bit jaded and I decided that it is about time I took a break to recharge my sagging spirits and energy levels. I have been working for close to 6 months now without a break. This break should help me get back on track and I will also use the time away from normal life to work on the essay points.

July 31, 2012 – Review of the first mock test during this GMAT attempt

Before I move ahead, post introduction of the IR section, the official site now has the newer version of the GMATPrep tests. This version can co-exist with the older version (one having 2 essays). So effectively the students having both versions can avail of 4 mock tests.

I took the first mock test of the older GMAT Prep software yesterday. I did not attempt the essays and jumped straight away to the Quant section. The initial questions were a breeze and I was pretty much on time. However, around the 10 or 11^th question, I got stuck and took about 3.5 to 4 minutes for a question. This was still acceptable since I was ahead of time even at this point. Around the 18^th question and then the 22^nd question, I really got stuck up on a relatively easier problem. I say relatively because when I was reviewing the test questions, I was able to solve it within 2 minutes with a much better approach. Due to this I ended up having to really rush through the questions from 27^th to 31^st and missed all 5 of them. Yes, 5 in a row were wrong. L I just managed to finish off the quantitative section just in time but I have surely learnt my lesson. I have to take immense care that henceforth I do not get bogged down by the middle questions. It cost me time and indirectly my accuracy heavily. I am not revealing my overall score as yet since I intend to cover it later on when I mention my review analysis.

Moving on to the verbal, I felt I started strongly. The first 2 were sentence correction questions and I was able to narrow down to 2 choices and then went with my judgment to nail it down to one. The third question was a CR with the question type as a variant of strengthen the argument. I felt that I got this one correct as well. I then a RC passage at question 6 and then onwards more of SC. There were 3 more RC’s with the total RC’s encountered being 4. Since this is almost my 6 or 7^th attempt of this particular mock test, I had a feeling of having seen the questions. This mock was my first in over 8 months so chances of answering repeat questions based on my memory can be eliminated. I felt confident of my responses and that I had done well. So, with a calm mind I proceeded to the score. I felt I should be around 700 this time.

The overall score was 670 with Q 49 and V 32. Incidentally I had a total of 11 mistakes each on the quant and the verbal section. Disappointed a bit, I proceeded with the review of the performance.

1

          Quant Section --:

i. I started off really well. The first mistake was on the 9^th question and it was a DS. The next mistake was on the 13^th question. I had struggled on the 12^th question and fortunately it was correct. This might not necessarily happen always. The next time, I might get one wrong after spending 4 mins on it.

ii. I am not detailing my entire review (I already started with that, didn’t I?) considering it might be boring for the readers. I will just state the gist of my analysis.

iii. My mistakes were question numbers 9,13, 19,20, 25,26, 28,29,30,31 and 35. As mentioned before, I got stuck at the mid-level and that resulted in the mistakes onwards of 20. It really hurts badly if one makes consecutive mistakes as I have. I am actually surprised to see a score of Q 49 after seeing the layout of my mistakes.

iv. I can surely improve on this and try not to get stuck in my next mock test. I might have possibly got the question that I got stuck on wrong but then maybe I could have avoided 2-3 mistakes from question 25 to 31. When reviewing the solutions, I realized with another 30 seconds for each of those hurried questions I could have got them correct. Lesson learnt is “No matter how much you practice with moving on after 2 mins, on the test you tend to avoid guessing on time. This has hurt me and I will take a lot of care not to repeat this mistake.”

v. My biggest confidence booster is that despite making such consecutive mistakes I ended up with a score of Q 49. This does not prove nor disprove anything about the impact of getting the first questions right but I feel, personally, that the do matter. I say this because of my verbal performance review. If I avoid getting stuck, I might be possibly looking at Q 50 which will surely boost the chances of reaching the target score of 730+.

vi. I have improved leaps and bounds on my quant score and specifically D.S. I made 2 silly mistakes on the D.S. and I am pretty sure I need to avoid a recurrence of this theme.

2 

     Verbal Section --:

i. Contrary to my belief that I had started well, I started with a lot of mistakes. I missed the questions 1 and 2 which were both SC. The positive however is that I had correctly nailed down the actual correct OA and the one I chose. It was the final elimination that failed. I have not been working on SC so this is presently acceptable though not desirable. I firmly believe that with practice and SC review I will be able to improve my accuracy on SC.

ii. The third question was CR and this was correct. I missed the 4^th and the 6^th from the 4^th to the 6^th question which were all SC. So effectively I missed 4 of the first 6 questions.

iii. Hereafter I was pretty stable and my next mistakes were 19,20, 23,24, 29, 34 and 39. Getting consecutive questions wrong did not help my score in any way but I feel the damage was really done in those initial 4 questions.

iv. I am aiming for a score of V37+ and I need to work very hard on SC hendeforth. I missed 1 CR question and had 3 RC mistakes. I have been working on CR so I am pleased with my CR performance though I am sure my real test will come when I get the SC questions correct as well. The CR will then be of a level which tests my CR ability.

v. I have not started off with RC and I think I am taking RC lightly. I did this mistake in my previous 2 attempts and I intend to correct it this time.

Overall, the key learning’s are to start on SC now since my quant looks better. This does not mean that I overlook quant all together. There are 2-3 topics which seemed to appear as a pattern in my mistakes. I need to work on Simple Interest and Ratio & proportion word problems. The CR is looking better and I need to keep practicing to build on this. For RC I think it is time that I dedicated 3-4 days to learn the finer nuances and reduce the possibilities of any RC based mistakes. It is high time I took RC seriously.

I am planning of appearing for the GMAT in September first week. For that to happen I need to get my RC and SC sorted by the 10^th August. I will be taking my next mock on 12^th August and it will be with the IR one i.e the new mock test. I am thinking that I will then take the MGMAT on the 15^th Aug since the quant in MGMAT’s mock is slightly difficult than on the actual GMAT.

I am happy with my performance and my review makes me feel positive about being able to next leap and cross that 700 barrier which I have till now never crossed. If at all I can ever do it then it has to be in this attempt. I seriously dread the thought of having to go through this entire process of GMAT preparation again. L

July 07,2012 - Contemporary Musings wrt Work nature and Work Life

Precursory Warning : The entire following analogy is on a humorous note and a very amusing personal opinion! No offense is intended to anyone and so none should be taken. :) 

No matter what the work title says (viz. Analyst,Specialist,System/Application engineer,Tester etc.), the fact of the matter is we (people with such work titles) are all investigators / detectives. The fictional detectives investigated the cases and solved the crime by nailing the criminals and then their act culminated by handing over the criminals to the judicial systems for delivering the justice. We on the other hand, investigate and identify the cause of the issues (might be a cliche but stereo typically classified as bugs) and then culminate our act by handing it over to the R&D guys to deliver the justice to the issues. :D

Bottom line is we (people with above mentioned work titles) are all possible Sherlock Holmes characters in a very technical role :) This my dear Watson is elementary :D

July 05, 2012 – Thoughts rushing through a re-applicant’s mind

Being a re-applicant is not something that I say with pride. The fact of the matter however is that either that I made mistakes during the last application or that my application as a whole did not live up to the expectations of the admissions committee. What then am I supposed to do this time around to succeed is the main thought running through my mind rather than what wrong did I do?

I have been awaiting feedback and unfortunately I do not now see the point in getting the feedback since even if I am provided some genuine comments they would surely be generic in nature. So, I have decided to take my feedback into my own hands. Following are the points that I think are important from a re-applicant’s perspective.

i.                    GMAT

In my case, my GMAT score was really way below the average of the school. I took a chance with it and unfortunately it did not work out. So my task this time is pretty much set in terms of taking the GMAT. I know for sure that the feedback if at all officially provided will highlight this aspect. However the GMAT score for re-applicants with a score of ~700 can be a tricky aspect. A score in the range of 700 is really sufficient and I personally feel that putting in the efforts to raise the score from 700 to a 740 is going to be many times exponentially tough than raising it from 640 to 700. So then does a re-applicant retake the GMAT? While this can be a difficult question to answer, I personally feel there is no need for a retake. Putting in at least 1.5 to 2 months into the GMAT preparation again will be a daunting task in terms of the application. I believe this time can be better utilized in preparing the essays and building up the profile in terms of jotting down every small event / achievement that has happened in one’s career.

ii.                  Essays and Application

This is the biggest point where the hardest decisions have been made. So I applied after doing my research and by putting in my best foot forward. But it is pretty clear that it did not suffice. Now, do I approach someone professionally to help with my application and specifically my essays? This has been a dilemma for me. It is more to do with the fact that seeking help is sometimes looked upon by oneself rather than in view of others. What I personally need is someone to critically assess my essays and tell me bluntly where I am screwing up. If this can only be done by seeking professional guidance then so be it. After all there is no harm is asking to be directed properly if I do not know how to proceed ahead. This will always be a tough decision for any re-applicant and there is no easy answer to this. If you think it will help the application then do not think twice on it. Go for it. After all we are talking about precious time and years of one’s life. Research on the available help and I would personally advise that seek help from someone who is interested in knowing you and in helping you get to the dreams. As the famous dialogue from Jerry McGuire goes, you need to choose someone who says “help me help you” J

iii.                Recommenders

I have not researched a lot on what other schools do but the ISB allows carrying forward the recommendations from the previous application cycle provided one has applied in the immediate preceding cycle. The question then arises that should you retain the recommendations or seek new ones. Another toughie eh L Once again no correct answer to this one. I am 90% sure of getting in new recommenders this time, the reason being that they will bring in new information and a new perspective to me as an applicant. Also the previous recos will be with the school so they will surely review it when they review my application as a re-applicant. I have shifted jobs last June so ideally this is a good time to get in new recos from somebody I have worked with in the last one year. This will provide fresh insights into my new job related performance and achievements.

iv.                The re-applicant essay

The dreaded question of “how has your profile changed since the last application cycle?” Fortunately, I have had changes which are drastic in nature and on the better side. I have had almost a year of international exposure in 3 countries in 3 different continents since the last year. I have achieved a promotion and a title change in 6 months of joining my new job. Personally and professionally I very strongly feel I have grown by leaps and bounds as a person and my experiences have really been colourful and have helped me mature. Not everyone might have such drastic changes. It is then best to present whatever changes no matter small in the best artistic way possible. I specifically used the word artistic because it is all about presentation here. You might have only done one good project but then you need to show clearly that the project was effectively life-changing in terms of your betterment. You saw the entire thing through and had a 10/10 score. I hope I have conveyed my point.

v.                  Extra-Curricular

I have observed in a few forums that applicants tend to ask that how can the EC’s be improved. I feel 9 months since the last application is too short a time to work on this aspect and improve it. That said, I am sure each of us has EC’s. It is just that maybe we do not realize that it can be mentioned as an EC. So all I can say is introspect and find that 1 or 2 things that you think are great in you which you might have over-looked. All one needs to do here is introspect real hard thoroughly. I am sure something will come up as a EC that you simply missed the last time.

Right now these are the points that come to my mind. I will add and edit other points as and when I recall them. I hope my posts are at least informative and have been worthy of the 5-10 minutes that you have given to this blog. Please feel free to comment on the posts.

May 20, 2012 – The importance of time on a minute by minute basis

It has been quite some time, a month to be precise, since I last updated an entry here. The reason though was a valid one that being that I had a much needed vacation and got some time off. This was particularly needed to recharge the sagging batteries since the last unsuccessful admission application cycle which seemed to have sapped my energy. Hopefully this will refuel and fully recharge my batteries for this season.

I was fortunate to experience the transport services in the United Kingdom during my vacation. The most important takeaway from my experience there was the importance of time on a minute by minute basis. I missed a few trains and buses since I was late by a minute or two. That said, when I was before time the train / bus was running about 3-4 minutes late. An irony indeed :D !

It is not rocket science to link that the GMAT being an adaptive time based test makes one value the importance of time. That said, personally, I have experienced that though one does realize that one has only 75 minutes for the 37 Q / 41 V questions it is letting go that needs practice and more practice. Sometimes we just get stuck into a question for too long (too long can be anything from 4 minutes to 7 or 8 minutes). We feel like we might be able to solve the question but then it just does not happen. I recommend that if it is taking more than 3 minutes then it time to just make an educated guess and move on. It is better to guess on the DS than performing one on the PS.

What do I mean by letting go here exactly? So let me just explain it in a slightly more detailed manner. The 75 minutes are normally split into either a small question count or a minutes slot as per one’s convenience. I prefer splitting the number of questions to be completed / left corresponding to the minutes left on the test. For a tentative plan please find the illustration as below --:

Q.05 – 63 mins left

Q.10 – 52 mins left

Q. 20 – 33 mins left

Q. 30 – 14 mins left

Q. 35 – 4 mins left

I devised this during my first attempt since the time clock on the GMAT shows us the time remaining. I would advise you to devise your own strategy time clock for reference. I have observed that the question from 5 to 10 tend to be more intensive. My personal observation has been that the first 3-4 questions tend to be of Problem Solving and then the next 2-3 questions tend to be of Data Sufficiency. Also my own testing experience is that I tend to relax from questions 13 to 25 tending to miss the time and trying to increase my accuracy. I have decided that I have to consciously prevent this from happening again in my attempt this time. I will be taking care of this issue during my mocks as well.

I am working towards preparing a strategy for my preparation now. I know that I need to really work hard on my Quant side to push it to a score of 48 or 49 Q. The problem is that I know the basics but somehow am not efficient enough in the application.

I have a few things in mind for this issue. One is the concept of Ball-Parking. I attended the BeatTheGMAT webinar on the IR and during a session by the instructor from MasterGMAT he illustrated an example on this concept of Ball-Parking. I will try and understand more on this concept and provide an entry once I have a concise understanding of this interesting concept. Getting back to the table now to decide up on a good strategy to supplement and aid my preparation.

April 14, 2012 – Retrospective Introspection (Part 2 – Whether to re-apply)

Moving ahead, a very important question that has been troubling me is whether I re-apply immediately this year or wait for a year and then re-apply.

There a few things in this aspect as below --:

i. The Positives --:

The positives of re-applying after 1 more year are plenty, more significantly increased international exposure, reduced financial burden to pay the steep fees and increased clarity on future goals, etc. 

ii. The Negatives --:  

There are a few personal things that would make it difficult to push it ahead by another year. This is the prime most reason of my not wanting to push it ahead by a year.

iii. Changes since the last application --:

If I am to re-apply immediately this year then I will need to show the improvements from my last re-application. On this point I have a few positives. The biggest change is international exposure of almost 5-6 months at 2 client locations. One was a new customer for the company and I was designated to handle the first big revenue impacting event (i.e. the Christmas and New Year period) after the purchase of our product. I handled it pretty well and there were no issues/outages. This is a big achievement since I had just completed 6 months in the organization and had moved out from my comfort zone of my previous job in a different sub-vertical to a new sub-vertical in my existing job profile.

Second up, I was immediately sent for my present assignment for duration of almost 6 months. This customer is our biggest customer in terms of size of market, contribution to our revenue and in general the deciding account for the entire customer group clients. This customer had just upgraded to a new architecture and release and was not satisfied with the project results. My presence in this project was to support and to stabilize the upgrade and resolve any issues. So far it has been fantastic in terms of stability achieved and issues have almost become zero and the customer has also released the payments and has expressed satisfaction in the new product features.

Third, I have been given a promotion as well as a change of designation. This is relatively appreciable since as I have mentioned above I am only 6 months old in the organization.

These are the most important improvements in my profile since the last application. 

It is the negatives that I am considering and at this point I am pretty much convinced to re-apply immediately this year. 

My first blog on this journey -- Originally dated 24June 2010

The journey to the future is being contemplated...

Each one is born with his destiny is what I have heard but then it is also believed that each man for is own. Shawshank redemption has Tim Robbins famously quote that "you gotta get busy living, else get busy dying". The irony for me though is I am confused & struggling in making up my mind on which one to get busy with. :-)

The possibilities that I am presently faced with are all bright & good in their own sense which is precisely the reason for me to be absolutely confused in deciding what is that I should go after. As a prelude, I am about to complete 2 years on work. My work is dynamic & interesting & keep posing new challenges on a daily basis but somewhere down the line it is getting repetitive. There have been organizational changes which have resulted in structural changes within our team leaving the team unsettled slightly as everyone now wants to grab the attention of the new boss leading to a little messy atmosphere within the once harmonious team.

The fact that I am involved in a core technical job lets me have the liberty to think about the M.S. option which will help me delve further into the infinite technical possibilities that branch out from my basic knowledge right now. The lure is of the foreign shores, the educational model there which is like worlds apart from the book based model employed in India. Education abroad has always been more practical based, application of knowledge based whereas here in India it is more book based which as I will reveal further is causing me a huge dilemma. A M.S. will open up new avenues that seem highly lucrative on the knowledge front and also will give me chance to dive into things that till now I have only roughly known about & which interest me too. However the counter argument in this case is that as I am learning in my present job, that no matter how much satisfying & thirst quenching the technical part is, its a matter of time before the boredom sets into the picture. It is not the content that gets boring but it is the repetitiveness & the inability of the others to take it up at the same level despite proper documentation & sharing that sometimes becomes frustrating. Also the fact that an OPERATIONS job will always mean that its more inclined on implementation of something which is already planned out or that maintenance or support of something. So though I might have an increased understanding of the stuff, in a larger picture I will be doing the same work as I am right now.

The second choice that is emerging is that of continuing in my present job field & organization, where I am about to complete my first evaluation & might end up getting the top rating as I have slogged hard & given more than 200% & thereby some what taking the load & responsibilities of my reporting manager which has helped him relax over the tenure. The work is good & I can learn new things with time & with advent of many new things in my field almost on the verge of getting introduced, it is a prospect that I can't easily ignore. The counter argument in this case is however, as mentioned above there have been some changes which I do not have any control on but which are having a bearing on me. I cannot but resist the fact that they are affecting me more personally & to an extent professionally also. I have been restricted to explore the other avenues in my field which is making me feel bogged down & curtailed. Also if I shift jobs the opportunities & the scope of work in my present work are much vast than the one that I would be moving to. As an illustration let’s say I handle subject A,B,C and D right now and have sufficient understanding of A,B and C. It is subject D where I am being restricted from delving into presently. However in every other organization that I might apply to A,B,C & D are all different verticals. So I will have to possibly choose from one of them. It is no surprise then that my scope of learning will get curtailed.

Having contemplated the 2 possible options wrt the positives & negative, I moved to the next option that was open to me. A post-graduate degree i.e. a MBA. It was a dream/decision that was at the back of my mind that sooner or later I will be doing a MBA. It is more like the destiny thing that I mentioned above. It is like a culmination of what I want to do/be. My present job has exposed me to the world of the Marketing wherein I do end up doing a lot of analysis & stuff that ideally would fall under the Marketing profile. Then there are the avenues like Finance, HR, Business Intelligence. etc. Personally other than HR the others seem highly interesting, though I would concede, without any offense that HR is more like the debates that we had in college where you get to brain storm on innumerable things irrespective of whether they concern you or not. It is the prospect of the world of knowledge that beckons if a MBA is taken. It is the sheer magnamity of the ocean than is alluring to the soul. Also the fact that it is all an unknown entity as of now makes the situation more interesting.

So it would be safe to say as this stage that I am more inclined towards the MBA option which now throws up 2 sub-options from which one needs to b decided upon. The sub-options being an Indian MBA or a foreign MBA. The thought process by which I have contemplated these options is the style / pattern of course, faculty, approach to the subject, ROI and though I may not agree fully, geography / surroundings. I will take each one of them objectively, presenting both sides of the coin.

The first thing that comes to the mind is the finance. The best Indian MBA will approximately cost 20 lakhs or $ 40k while the average cost of an MBA in US in a school in the region of 25 to 100 best B-schools will cost around 40 lakhs or $80k. Try as I might I cannot undermine / miss this factor though after a lot of thought I think I might just somehow be able to afford the high costing US MBA if its good enough.

Moving on to the approach to education & the way that the course spans out is the most important point that needs discussion. Like I mentioned above, the Indian way is heavily inclined towards the book based approach whereas that abroad is more practical. Gradually Indian schools are moving towards the case study but then I ain't sure of how effective it is. A talk with my peers abroad in the B-Schools revealed the fact that there is an interesting mix of international students from varied backgrounds. This fact throws to light the different mindsets of thinking that are possible which I believe is a very interesting factor. Different thoughts will lead to an outlook that is way broader & considerate of all possible factors.

This brings to the ROI (Return On Investment) perspective. It is here that individuals differ & also there is a angle of what amount of risk is being considered. Whether to go for a 1 year course or a 2 year course. Its not just the fees that are involved but also the fact that the duration for which you study you are out of salary. So you may add up the compensation lost in the investment made. Also where an Indian MBA might fetch a return of around 10 lakhs per annum an US based job will return around $100k i.e. around 45 lakhs. Europe has many good colleges but with the a few economies going kaput recently it seems that recession is around the corner in Europe & finding a job will only get tougher with time. The USA on the other hand is just getting out of one & the future seems to be improving on the job front as well. India, meanwhile hasn't actually had a recession but only that the ever blossoming pay hikes have now taken a backseat & employees have had to make do with  a little less bonus.

 A factor in selection is also the geography. I like to roam around and explore, so the prospect that I might be able to explore a foreign land & specially as diverse as the USA or Europe is lucrative. I am not sure time would be there to indulge in this factor but then where there is a will, there is a way. I have heard a lot of the course abroad being exhaustive and very demanding which then means that free time is normally spent recuperating. Exploring will surely be enjoyable.

This is my perspective on what is & what can be. I might be a stereotype with regards to my dilemmas & what I am going through but then as I have been doing a little bit of research, I observed that there are many blogs, sites where people discuss the same & same over without referring or browsing through it. This is my attempt to put forth my side. I am trying to make it a practice to write more often & present my journey as it comes. I plan to take GMAT in around 3-4 months time and then start applying from November but before that I need to decide what to do. I hope I will be able to decide soon now & have a PLAN A & PLAN B ready.