Press Release:: Demand for Premium MBA Consulting Services in India on the Upswing | MBA Crystal Ball

An increasing number of MBA applicants from India are reaching out for professional help to improve their odds of getting into their dream schools like Harvard, Stanford and many other elite universities across the globe.

MBA Crystal Ball (MCB), a leading player in the premium MBA admissions consulting space in India saw a steep rise in the number of applicants signing up for their services during this application season. This signals a changing trend in the way ambitious Indian candidates are approaching the highly competitive MBA admissions process adopted by the elite schools like Harvard, Stanford and the several other top business schools across the globe.

For several years, the MBA admissions consulting industry has been thriving in the US, the primary market for the MBA degree. In India, most applicants have conventionally preferred managing the entire application process on their own or at best reaching out to family and friends to review their application strategies. However, going by the experiences of MBA Crystal Ball, this approach seems to be changing fast as an increasing number of high-potential MBA applicants from India are reaching out to get professional help if it can help improve their admission chances to their dream schools.

When Sameer Kamat (Cambridge MBA graduate and the founder of MBA Crystal Ball) was working on his MBA application, he thought it was unfair that Indian MBA applicants, despite the potential, were not able to approach the extremely competitive international MBA admissions in the right manner, while others who were earning in Dollars, Pounds and Euros could engage international MBA admissions consulting firms and strengthen their application further.

That prompted Sameer to launch his initiative, MBA Crystal Ball, to make it a level playing field as far as possible for the applicants his team works with. He says, "Most of the candidates who come to MCB have excellent credentials, many are from IIT and most have some fantastic corporate experience to talk about. But they also have big question marks on the approach as they just don't know how and what to present in their applications. Our undergrad education doesn't train us to address the introspective (at times, almost philosophical) topics that business schools ask for."

Sameer's business partner MG pitches in, "For many candidates, the content is all there. It's a matter of making them aware of it, structuring their thoughts and helping them present it in the best possible manner." MG has worked with McKinsey & Co and has strong academic credentials (IIT topper, ISB Dean's list). It's not too difficult to believe MG when he says that as he's already helped several candidates (including re-applicants) get into one of the toughest schools in the world, the Indian School of Business (ISB).

The most popular product from the MCB shelves is the multi-school profile fitment simulator called the MBA Mock Application Process (more popularly known as the 'MBA MAP'). The cost of applying to each business school can be substantial. The MBA MAP simulates the candidate's application to close to 100 schools based on the strengths and weaknesses inherent in the profile. The candidate can then choose a mix of schools from the list to spread out the risk and maximise the chances of success.

The innovative MBA MAP might be the only 'Indian' product to have made a splash in the international MBA admissions field. It is being re-sold by MCB's partners in other countries (including the US and Russia) and other international consultants have expressed an interest in working together. MCB's unique business model allows it to explore collaboration options with other players in the field (GMAT test preparation companies, other admissions consultants) and the team is actively looking for new partnering opportunities.

The vision for MBA Crystal Ball is to create an ecosystem of services that will help many more deserving Indians get access to the opportunities that currently seem out of reach. Sameer says, "Indians have spent a very long time in technical roles within India and outside. It's time for us to start moving up the value chain - in business roles and in the board rooms. Deeper down, I also hope some of them will come back to India, if not immediately after graduation, then after a few years. It'll be good if they can divert some of the efforts to stimulate our own economy."

MBA Crystal Ball (www.mbacrystalball.com), an MBA admissions consulting team, provides business school application help to Indian candidates aiming for the top MBA programs. Their services include the MBA Mock Application Process, MBA essay editing and interview preparation for the top MBA programs.