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Indonesian female applicant with no international experience
Application Round: Round 2
The applicant, with six years of diverse experience across banking, technology, and venture capital. Her impressive career included two rapid promotions within a leading regional VC firm. Adriana approached us with the ambition of securing admission to a top MBA program, with Wharton as her dream school. She also considered leading international MBA programs like INSEAD and LBS.
Challenges
Despite her strong potential, she faced a number of challenges that could impact her MBA application success:
- Lack of International Exposure: She had never worked or studied outside her home country. This was a notable gap given the global emphasis of top MBA programs.
- Below-Average GMAT Score: Her GMAT score was around 60 points lower than the average typically accepted by elite MBA programs, placing her at a competitive disadvantage.
- Unclear Career Goals: Her career aspirations were not well-defined, which made it difficult to articulate a compelling narrative in her MBA applications.
- Tight Preparation Timeline: With only five weeks until the application deadlines, she was under significant pressure to refine her application materials, requiring intensive and focused preparation strategies to enhance her profile in a short period.
Strategic Approach
Recognizing the need to transform perceived weaknesses into strategic advantages, we developed a strategy that leveraged her unique background as a competitive edge. We advised her to highlight her distinct identity as a Muslim woman from a middle-class background, which provided a stark contrast to the typical profiles of top MBA applicants from Indonesia, who are generally overseas educated and from Chinese-Indonesian backgrounds. Within two weeks of our collaboration, we sculpted a compelling narrative that showcased her as a standout candidate for top-tier programs like HBS and Stanford GSB, and convinced her to aim higher than her initial choices. Ultimately, we decided to focus exclusively on Harvard, Stanford, and Wharton, dropping her safer options like INSEAD and LBS.
Vision Crafting
She spearheaded a pivotal investment for her firm, pioneering one of the earliest investments in an Indonesia-based fishery and marine platform, and had an unrivalled track record in investments that made sense for Indonesia’s middle-class, being able to relate to them effectively. We capitalized on her venture capital experience to define a long-term career vision centered on agritech innovations - crucial for Indonesia’s future development, showcasing her capacity to propel future industry breakthroughs.
Dedicated Support
She received round-the-clock access to her strategist, ensuring continuous guidance and instant responses to any queries or concerns, which was crucial given the tight application timeline. Within 3 weeks, we collaborated tirelessly with her to craft all the necessary materials, including her CV, impactful essays with over 15 revisions, and letters of recommendation.
Results
Our tailored application strategy led to an admission offer from HBS, and an interview invite from Wharton. Her successes not only marked significant achievements against the odds but also validated the feasibility of crafting a powerful application in a short time.
Conclusion
This case exemplifies how effectively understanding and strategically positioning an applicant's unique experiences and background can overcome substantial challenges in MBA admissions. Her story demonstrates our commitment to providing personalized strategies that not only address but capitalize on individual profiles to achieve exceptional results.
Words from Adriana:
“I talked to maybe 10 consultants or so but I really enjoyed my intro chat withJonathan and decided to work with him. I had a short deadline and he seemed to be very responsive and seemed to make the deadlines less impossible - which was proven to be true when I worked with him. On top of that, I appreciate his honesty which is balanced by strong constructive feedback. The most valuable advice from him was him encouraging me to apply to Harvard when I thought I shouldn't. BEST advice ever, I wouldn't even have applied,even more so gotten in without that push. He constantly sought the best in me!”
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