Advice for Indian MBA applicants

I have a message for Indian applicants. That’s those folks applying from India to U.S. business schools. You are amongst one of the toughest peer groups, and I’m really sorry for that. When I worked in adcom, I read the India pool, and you have very fierce competition amongst you, but I have also, on the client side, as a consultant, worked with Indian applicants with sub-700 GMATs and we got into top programs. What is my advice for you? It’s to omit all of the technical. They know you’re coming in with strong stats and they know that you have a technical background. They know that you’re really good at those things. I would use the resume as a way to not propose those things to them as your strengths, but instead focus on your uniqueness and your strong interpersonal skills. Do you have global clients? And what does that look like? Can you negotiate and collaborate with people? Maybe you’re not overseeing people, but are you overseeing projects? How have you been able to go across departments to get things done? They’re curious to know how you work with others, and especially this peer group that’s coming in with really strong stats, but not necessarily the professional background that some other groups have. Focus on what makes you unique, not necessarily what makes you strong and all the awards you may have won. Take those out of the resume and instead, replace it with some of those non-technical aspects.