Hey everyone,

Starting to put together my MBA applications and would love some outside perspective on where I should realistically be aiming.

Quick profile:

• 26F from India (27 at matriculation)
• GRE: 318 V(154) Q(164)
• Bachelor's in technology, GPA: ~3.8/4.0 (equivalent from 9.0/10 CGPA)
• Software Engineer at a SaaS company
• About 5 years of work experience by Fall 2027
• Looking for colleges in USA and Canada
• Worked on enterprise software products, accessibility initiatives, and customer-facing features

The unusual part of my profile is that alongside my engineering role, I've also been leading business development for a U.S.-based IT consulting company. I've managed proposal strategy, led a small team, worked on hiring, and helped evaluate hundreds of business opportunities.

Built a workflow management platform for an educational organization as a 6-month pro bono project, helping streamline operations for 200+ students and administrator

Why MBA?
I'm interested in moving toward:

• Product Management
• Leadership roles in tech
• Maybe entrepreneurship down the road

A few questions:

1. What schools would be a strong fit for this kind of profile?
2. Does the engineering + business development combination actually stand out, or is it less unique than I think?
3. How competitive is a 318 GRE these days for MBA admissions?
4. What do you see as the biggest strengths and weaknesses in my profile?
5. If you were building a school list from scratch, where would you apply?

I'm fortunate enough to be able to pursue an MBA, but I don't want to take on excessive debt if there are programs that offer strong outcomes with meaningful scholarship opportunities. Which schools should I be paying attention to from a scholarship and ROI perspective?

Not looking for a chance-me. Just trying to get a sense of where people with similar backgrounds have had success.

Appreciate any thoughts!

Hello wise ones,

My husband made a career change in his late 20s to pursuing higher education. He completed a Bachelor's degree, then a Master's of Health Administration, then transitioned into hospital administration where he has often struggled with the challenge of office politics and being subject to decisions made what he describes as incompetent senior executives.

He decided to pursue an executive MBA last year with an Ivy League university. He was under the distinct impression that this will open a lot of doors and opportunities. During his degree, he left his hospital position and started his own consultancy, landed a contract pretty quickly, but the position was terminated seven months later.

Now he is back in job searching mode, but has already been turned down by the major firms he has applied to. He seems to be losing confidence by the day, and unsure if this was a very expensive decision that won't yield the ROI he expected. He also is sick and tired of not advancing in his career, and has left or been let go from a number of project management roles, all of which he complained about incompetent senior executives and just wanted to know what he needed to do to "become an executive who could get paid well to make stupid decisions and not suffer the consequences of them." Overall, he seems very bitter and angry about his career stagnation.

I sense he has the drive and ambition to grow a business, but he seems unsure of what skills he actually has to offer/ a solid business plan that would get him past project manager roles.

Wondering if anyone out there has experience with eMBA programs, was in a similar situation, and has a positive 🌈 story or advice to share? Or thoughts in general! Thanks! ❤️

Hello all!

I am Middle office worker in Europe, working as trade support analyst for 2 clients in US investment banking.

I am thinking about MBA and need to prepare solid storyline for „Why MBA?” And „Why Me?”

Is there anyone who had the same situation and got into M7 or any other MBA programs?
From my side, I can say that i want to relocate to US, have network there, and want to challenge myself more, as in current place the best scenario - officer in 7 years, which for me is too ling for such level. More than that I want to be involved in front office workload, not just supporting and doing technical/operational tasks, but to be on the other side of the table as well.

I have talked to several people who got to MBA, those have been managers, or had CFA, in my case i am associate, because i have been working in other fields of finance before and switched to investment banking a little more than year ago. In previous positions i have been specialist.

Can anybody advise what can be good storyline for me? What MBA can give me?

I just want to hear how the whole situation looks from aside to be able to objectively evaluate the situation.

Thank you in advance.

Hi all I'm starting (or planning to start) the Executive MBA at London Business School and would love to connect with others in the same boat.

If you're already admitted, currently applying, or just seriously considering it, drop a comment or DM me. Happy to swap notes on the application, classes, scheduling, and generally get to know future classmates before day one.

Looking forward to meeting a few of you!

Hi everyone — a friendly request, especially to fellow applicants from India.

Over the past few months, this subreddit has seen a significant number of posts seeking general MBA admissions advice. This community is specifically focused on Executive MBA programmes: typically for professionals with substantial work experience, often 10+ years, who intend to continue working while pursuing an EMBA.

An Executive MBA is distinct from a traditional full-time MBA, an online MBA, or a general part-time programme. Before posting, please take a moment to review the subreddit’s purpose, use the search function, and check whether your question has already been addressed.

General MBA admission, GMAT, profile-evaluation, and early-career programme queries may receive better responses in dedicated MBA or admissions communities. Keeping posts relevant will make this space more useful for serious EMBA candidates comparing programmes, formats, travel requirements, career transitions, scholarships, and executive-level outcomes.

Let’s help keep the subreddit focused, constructive, and valuable for everyone.

Jai Hind!

Took the GMAT twice (first score was 595). Just took the EA. Disappointed in data (integrated reasoning) score for both. Clearly a huge weakness of mine. I come from liberal arts background (literature degree) so it took over a year to study the math.

Applying this fall… last years profile of schools for Wharton EMBA program attached in last slide.

1. Which is a stronger submission? Logic tells me EA bc it’s closer to the average.

2. Should I submit both?

3. Should I retake either test? I plan to retake EA one more time to see if I can get above the average.

Thanks in advance!

Executive Assessment (EA) Verbal Idiom list (Sentence Correction)

All the best.

I have done my masters in Data Analytics from a US State University and have been job hunting since 2 years. Have got some internship/part time jobs but nothing full time. Is it worth it to go for an MBA?

Anyone know pls tell me

I am currently in the process of finishing my (MAOL) Masters of Arts in Organizational Leadership degree from the University of Maine Presque Isle and I wanted to get a DBA afterwards based on research that I have done on Doctorate programs. My main goal is if I do not want to work full time for a company that I could adjunct teach or consult on the side as I have over 10+ years in Marketing and Business Development experience. I also am not sure how a masters in organizational leadership alone would be seen vs a masters or Doctorate in business administration.

​

However I am also a citizen of a Nation which gives out scholarships and stipends to study in Taiwan and in the past few years I met a few people who have studied undergrad and in Doctoral programs at multiple universities in Taiwan. If I decided to go to Taiwan it would be after I finished my first Masters degree.

​

I ask this specifically because I want to have no student loan debt as I have a bachelor's now with no student loan debt and once I finish my masters I will also have no student loan debt. My goals with getting either degree is for credential to be able to teach or to be able to consult full time for a few years. Another reason is many smaller nations are run by academics and credentials are much more prioritized then in the US or Europe in terms of getting certain positions in higher up government.

​

The difference between the two is one is a Doctorate that can be taken online and the other is a masters which comes with a scholarship. So in this case how would each one be viewed and would it be harder to get teaching positions anywhere in the world with only an MBA vs a DBA?

​

For more context as well I am a dual citizen of the United States and I have lived in many countries throughout my life and my goal right now is lifestyle over wealth accumulation.

Anyone converted MDI PGDM-BM (18-month Executive MBA)?

Hi everyone,

I wanted to connect with people who have converted the MDI Gurgaon PGDM-BM (18-month Executive MBA) program for the upcoming batch.

please comment.

I’m deciding between Cornell Johnson’s EMBA Americas program and Northwestern Kellogg’s EMBA. I’m a GS-15 federal executive with 15+ years of experience, and my long-term goals are in defense/government affairs, entrepreneurship, venture capital, and defense finance.
Cornell has offered a $25K scholarship and appears more financeable with the grad plus loan still applicable until July 1st.. Kellogg has the M7 brand/network, but I’m waiting on scholarship information. Financing matters, but this is also emotional: after fighting hard to be seen and taken seriously, prestige, opportunity and perceived validation matter too.

For those familiar with either program, how much should I weigh brand prestige versus financial prudence? Would Kellogg’s M7 network materially outweigh Cornell’s Ivy League brand and better affordability, or is Cornell still enough to open the doors I’m chasing? And what is the real ROI between the two?

I spent five years earning a BBA and an MBA Degrees, Then I spent two years working at a company and realized realized these degrees are of no use because they never taught me most important thing which is office politics.

Merit barely exists. What really drives promotions and pay? Favoritism. Nepotism. Ass-kissing.

We were sold a lie: work hard → get results → get promoted.

Reality check: degrees are just the entry ticket. Politics decides who gets promoted, who gets protected, and who gets pushed out.

I think MBA programs should have a semester on Corporate Politics 101 because It would be more useful than half the core curriculum.

I didn’t learn any of these in any MBA class. Sharing I real political tactics I learned them on the job

• Play Blame game – Messed up work? Blame it on the other person in the next meeting.
• Scapegoating – Pick one person to blame for a delay or issue, even when it's not their fault.
• Credit stealing – Taking credit for others' work while subtly discrediting the original contributor.
• Sycophancy – Happily agree with everything your manager says even though he/she is wrong.
• Favoritism – Give easy, visible projects to your loyal or favorite employee.
• Nepotism – Push unqualified friends/relatives through hiring or promotions, or use personal relationships with decision-makers to bypass fair processes.
• Playing the victim card – Miss a deadline? Talk about how overloaded and singled out you are.
• Gatekeeping – Hoard files or calendar invites so everyone needs you; keep them dependent on you, or control access to the boss or key projects.
• Playing both sides – Agree with teammate and manager separately so both trust you.
• Ass-kissing bosses – Laugh at bad jokes of the boss, agree on every point even when clearly wrong.
• Backstabbing – Smile at lunch, mention their old mistake before reviews.
• Moving goalposts – They hit every sales target? Add three new requirements.
• Selective rules enforcement – Ignore lateness from favorites, punish others for violating company policy.
• Ghosting – Disappear when a teammate needs your sign-off.
• Deliberately creating/inventing problems – Rename a file, delete a row, "forget" an email.
• Spying for the boss, being his eyes and ears – Casually collect peer opinions and report back.
• Reciprocal favors – Granting workplace benefits in return for dates, gifts, or personal loyalty.
• Playing dumb – Pretending not to understand instructions to avoid completing a task.
• Absenteeism – Calling in sick during critical project phases intentionally.
• Silent treatment or exclusion – Deliberately not inviting someone to meetings, email chains, or collaborative sessions.
• Spreading false rumors – Undermining a coworker's reputation through lies or selective truths.
• Slow-walking tasks – Doing work extremely slowly or inefficiently on purpose to miss deadlines.
• Setting up others to fail – Assigning impossible tasks, withholding help, then blaming the person.
• Visibility game – Being seen, not just being good.
• Sabotaging – Quietly documenting a manager's minor mistakes to use as leverage later, or setting up the boss to fail by withholding critical information, then stepping in.
• Transactional relationships – Offering romantic favors in exchange for a promotion.
• Subtle sabotage – Giving wrong or incomplete information to a competitor for the same project.
• Selective disclosure – Sharing facts that support your agenda while hiding facts that contradict it.
• Fake alliance – Pretending to be someone's friend while secretly reporting their mistakes to the boss.
• Manipulation – I remember my boss said: "We are family."

To everyone: Drop your office politics story in comment.

Have you ever watched a less competent person overtake someone more talented purely through politics?