Hi

Kindly evaluate my profile. I am a final year college student applying for the Harvard 2+2 program.

Academics:
- B.Tech, Mechanical Engg, IIT Varanasi,India (GPA - 3.1, top 10% of class)
- Class topper throughout school. Studied abroad (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates)
- GMAT 740 (Quant-51, Verbal-38, AWA-4.5)

Work Exp:
- 2 month Internship in a Petroleum Construction company in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
- 2 month Internship at automobile manufacturing plant of Maruti Suzuki in India.

Extra Curricular:
- Represented college and country in numerous debates and quizzes at the national/international level.
- Received highest award of college for performance in extra-curriculars
-Regularly participate in Business plans, case study competitions
-Editor of college magazine.
-Member of MENSA (high IQ organization)
-Black belt in karate

Leadership:
-Assistant head boy in school
-In college: Secretary of Literary Club, Vice captain of swimming team, Class representative, lead student coordinator for Alumni organization.

Career goal: Fruitful career in the engineering sector. Want to establish my own company in the long run. Not sure what to highlight in the application essay. Ultimately, I wish to become a writer, but that’s something I wish to pursue alongside my primary career.

I have heard Harvard 2+2 was created esp. for engineering/science majors, so I am fancying my chances. I want to know the chinks in my profile. Is my profile sufficient for the Harvard 2+2 program?




Thanks
Aviral

Hi avirals,

Thanks for writing in. Your academics appear strong and competitive for HBS 2+2. According to the program, 60% of the 2+2 students for HBS class of 2015 came from engineering/natural sciences, so indeed you fall into a common category of applicant (though only 20% of the class is international -- these stats are available at http://www.hbs.edu/mba/perspectives/cla ... stics/2+2/).

Just like a regular MBA application, you need to clearly define your goals and differentiation points. It seems you do have those areas -- from your martial arts expertise to your college leadership experience. But I would focus more on defining your goals -- if writing is a primary goals, how will HBS help you achieve that? What will it take to have a "fruitful" career in engineering? And how will 2+2 help you achieve that?

If you can answer those questions clearly your profile should be competitive for 2+2, but do keep in mind that it is a very selective program.

Best of luck,

Daniel Richards
http://www.mbamission.com

Read the mbaMission Insider's Guides (14 individual school titles)

Visit the mbaMission Blog

Follow mbaMission on Twitter