Hi
I am looking for some career advise and my situation is this :
I am a 27 year old Indian IT guy who did his bachelors from a lesser known college from India with solid GPA and top 5% in my class. Graduated in '06. Did pretty well after that and reached US via IT route and is currently hired by one of the largest health insurance companies in US amidst recession. Working 80 hours per week come naturally to me and I cleared by CFA level 1 this year. Never realized finance is something I'll love so much , I now wish to make a transition into i-banking As i read through hundreds of posts on this site , it looks like it cannot be done without an MBA and I am all for it ... I am sure I can crack a 750+ in GMAT. Due to financial and contractual constraints , I cannot leave my current job till end of 2012.
So , I am having the below options :
Full-Time MBA
Really work on my profile for applying till 2012 to apply for class of 2013 - take some additional courses , do some social work , take some more responsibility at work , prob give CFA exams and some healthcare exams I can come up with a nice story of someone from healthcare finance to break into MBA college.
The problem is my background - I really dont know what my competition is - Indian IT male is perhaps the biggest component of applications for a b-school.
My calculation is something like this :
Prob of getting into Tier 1 school : very low Prob of getting into Tier 2 school : low Prob of getting into IBD with no background : medium Prob of getting through Visa issue : high
Part-Time
Being close of NYC means that I can go for NYU part time MBA program. I know about the fact that its pretty much impossible to get into IBD from a part-time program but I did read about a few success stories. Plus if I start in 2012 spring , i should be done by 2014 summer. The catch is the Visa situation for international students.
Adv :
- Proximity to NYC , I pretty much party every weekend in NYC - so opportunity to network around is very high - plus I am giving myself 3 years - which is quite a lot
- NYU PT MBA is widely regarded as the Harvard of all PT MBA's
- For summer intern , I can a 3 month leave from current employer
Prob of getting into NYU PT MBA : medium to high Prob of getting into IBD from a PT : very low to zero Prob of getting stuck in Visa bullshit : high
What would be a better bet for me ? Pleas let me know your thoughts....
If you are able to get 750 on GMAT, you have a decent shot at Top 5 with 6 years work experience. That would give you the best chance to move into IB. With part-time MBA and 8 years IT experience, you can forget about IB. Visa problem for full-time MBA: H1-B 6 years will be over. You will have to switch to F-1 student visa. Then, after studies leave USA for 1 year because you have already used up 6 years of H1-B visa and then apply for job and fresh H1-B visa from India. Tough. Visa problems for part-time MBA: H1-B 6 years will be over. It takes 8-10 years to get the Green Card. Your company will have to keep filing H1-B extensions based on Green Card application. If you lose your job and visa status, you cannot switch to F-1 student visa. MBA dreams are finished even though you will be in the middle of your MBA program. You will have to stay in your current job for next 8-10 years until you get the Green Card. If you try to switch into IB after getting the MBA, Green Card application is immediately cancelled and they tell you to leave USA.
I'm not sure about the visa requirements for UK at all but if those are not an issue have you given thought to Oxbridge/LSE? This could give you the opportunity to complete your MBA at a top tier institution and keep IB very much within possibility... Of course I'm sure there are some complex student/work visa issues to think about were you to go to London, but its hard for me to picture someone with 6 years of exp, MBA, and presumably a CFA chart holder not being granted a shot... Keep working hard at it and continue reaching out to people to see what's possible. Tough situations often unlock hidden opportunities...
Healthcare IT won't qualify for the charter.
@TraderJoe : Thanks , you definitely seem to have an idea about my problem.
Full Time : After masters I can go on OPT for 23 months and my company can file a H1B under masters quota after that. This is pretty much the route every international student follows. 6 year limit on my H1+L1 would expire on Dec 2013 , so I get admission in class of 2013 , I can quit 6-8 months in advance and that will leave a room for 6 months in my next assignment ( I do need to talk to a lawyer on the exact law around it )
Part-Time : This was only a thougth for something to backup in case getting into IB fails. I think from your and other responses from this forum , it isnt worth to play both sides.
What would be your recommendation given my non-finance background ? Are there people in my position who get into IB ? Do you know anyone ?
@rufiolove : Thanks , but I am looking more into US Mba's. Also , I have 6 years of IT , non-IB non-finance experience. Dont know how much its valued on a resume for IB job
@Buyside CFA : Yes, but atleast I can clear the exams and put that on my resume to make up for non-finance background.
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