Hello All,

Brief summary about me: I'm 31 year old IT professional from India with 8 years of experience in the IT industry. My current role is into project management.

I'm looking to pursue MBA with specialization in Technology/Operations/Systems management so that it will be relevant to my field and at the same time give me a MBA degree.

My queries:
- I'm not aiming for top 10 universities but am hoping to get into top 25. I haven't appeared for gmat yet but am confident to score minimum score of 600 - 620. I had appeared for IELTS few years ago and was able to secure a band score of 8 out of 9. What are my chances of making into the top 25 universities?

- I would prefer to work in US for some years after the degree. What are my job prospects in US after the education? Do US employers hire international candidates or they need local work experience?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

TIA

Unless you have really unusual experience with a company that typically recruits from one of these schools, I don't think you will get into a top 50 programme with a GMAT of 620.

Take a look at Shortcut to find the best US MBA www.find-mba.com/board/36065

PS If you can get 700, then I'd try UTD, Indiana and Duke.

Thanks Duncan for the info...
I don't know much about gmat at this stage so can't really predict the score.

But do you have any idea on employment prospects in US after the degree? Do employers hire international candidates? I've heard in some countries like Canada or Australia, employers need 'local work experience'. Is this the case in US too?

Employment prospects are good for graduates of top MBA programmes from anywhere in the world, especially if they are able to get good summer internships during their programmes, which does give them local experience.

Most of the top programmes publish placement reports. Start with these schools to see what is possible: http://www.find-mba.com/specializations/38/strategy-business-development

Do what you can to get your GMAT up above 700. The three US schools on the list that Duncan pointed out (Harvard, Haas, Tuck) all have average GMAT scores in the 715-720 range.

FYI international students who do an MBA programs at one of these three schools usually have solid career placement success in the US.

Thanks Duncan & Ralph for sharing the info...

I've started preparing for gmat, hope i get a decent score, fingers crossed.

Good luck!