GMAC, owner of the GMAT exams reportedly planning to sue (or sued) GMAT forum , accusing it of illegally obtaining copies of "live" test questions that they then use to help students practice GMAT tests. These are the cases of improperly using official GMAT materials.

This poses a risk to some students' scores and their careers though there is no fault of their own as they were allowed to practice on a test questions with other students in the forums. These kinds of actions of copyright infringement may divert all the attention to the growing GMAT test preparation online centers. This is a good move and I agree it gives some back door test preparers an unfair advantage on GMAT.

As a general thumb of rule If GMAT questions are from material approved by GMAC that's either in a book or some other form, then it's probably OK. Remember as a test taker one agrees that they will not disclose GMAT questions after the test. It's not a good idea to disclose questions from actual GMAT's and they may have some dire consequences.

One forum posted on this topic back in 2007 :

GMAC is also threatening to (a) find out who posted the live questions, ban them from taking the GMAT, AND reporting the names to b-schools, and (b) potentially finding out who looked at or discussed items labeled "live" (that is, people who knowingly looked at live questions) and doing the same to those users."

Here are some forms of GMAC copyrighted material reported in one test prep forum.

GMAT Sets these are upto 20 plus sets that seems to be having live test questions, Gmatter Software has software download that reportedly uses some "live" questions, 1000SC is related to sentence correction part of GMAT which is popular and heavily circulated over internet for practicing sentence correction part of GMAT. Similarly there are 1000RC - Reading Comprehension packages and finally Official Guide or OG is official GMAT tests and practice tests that is bit vaguely mention not to discuss or distribute such material.

GMAT official guide is available for purchase from popular book stores and is a must-have if you prepare for GMAT.

To Sumup all this information is from some forums and websites and though their validity is in question but every test taker signs an agreement not to post exam questions this is just not with GMAT tests but take for example Microsoft certification tests too.

sources:

Don't post copyright questions

Don't post scoretop questions

Labels: GMAT, GMAT TEST RESOURCES, MBA, OG

SCAMPER is an acronym for • Substitute • Combine • Adapt • Magnify • Modify • Put to another use • Eliminate • Rearrange • Reverse

SCAMPER: This tool helped me to think of changes I can make to an existing problem ( What to do with my MBA?) to create a new/modified one. I used these changes either as direct suggestions or as starting points for lateral thinking. Using SCAMPER here has helped me define new possible career paths. Many of the ideas may be impractical or may not suit the career in Entrepreneurship. However some of these ideas became good starting points for finding solution to my problem.
Demonstration of SCAMPER:
SCAMPER gave me this summary of good points:
• Substitute - use of internships, substitutes experience? Prior-Experience? Domain Knowledge?
• Combine - integrate MBA and previous technical degree? Career plus promotion (combining purposes)? New Business or Acquisitions? Assortment of Industries – Tech, Manufacturing and Banking?
• Adapt – Copy what other my school Entrepreneurs are doing? Is my company R&D best fir for my entrepreneurial career? Emulate Technological evangelists?
• Magnify – Become a CEO? Unique skills? Use MBA School’s rankings reputation card? Duplicate successful entrepreneurial CEO’s resumes?
• Modify – To fit my personality traits? Income stream from many sources? Convert passions into income?
• Put to another use – Copy one passion idea to other ideas? Name, Recognition, Create jobs for others?
• Eliminate - Eliminate the BIG ideas, start with small ideas? Simple ideas break it into small ideas?
• Rearrange – Get degree first and launch career later or vice versa? One idea implementation per day?
• Reverse – Positive – autonomy with ladder of success, Negative – Bankrupt, Stress and No life?

Labels: Entrepreneurship, MBA

I used Mind Mapping creativity tool to apply to the problem at hand -"How my MBA in Entrepreneurship/Change Management prepare me for a career in Entrepreneurship".
Reasons for choosing this creativity methods:
Mind Mapping - By using Mind Maps, I can quickly identify and understand the structure of a subject and the way that pieces of information fit together. Mind Maps also provide a structure which encourages creative problem solving, and they hold information in a format that my mind will find easy to remember and quick to review.
Also Mind Maps are more compact than conventional notes, often taking up one side of paper. This helps me to make associations easily. Also If I find out more information after I have drawn the main Mind Map, then I can easily integrate it with little disruption.
Mind Maps are also useful for:
* Summarizing information;
* Consolidating information from different research sources;
* Thinking through complex problems; and
* Presenting information in a format that shows the overall structure of my subject
Remembering the shape and structure of a Mind Map can give you the cues you need to remember the information within it. As such, they engage much more of your brain in the process of assimilating and connecting facts, compared with conventional notes.

Demonstration of Mind Mapping:


Hope this helps some one who is struggling to decide what to do with their MBA.

Labels: Entrepreneurship, MBA

What is the difficult and tedious process in writing school or professional papers ? Bibliography and generating the citations for all the referred sources in the paper.A bibliography is a list of the sources you have used and cited when writing your paper.Even a great written paper is nothing without a annotated bibliography.Sure writing an annotated bibliography for research paper requires great experience and professional advice.

PC Magazine selected EasyBib as site of the week in August'2007, EasyBib is a website dedicated to helping writers create bibliographies. Students provide the easybib.com site with information about sources, and with a couple of clicks, the site automatically creates a bibliography in the correct format and it quickly turns out accurate citation lists.It takes the info and puts it into MLA format for you? A huge help for students or researchers.Moreover Easy Bibliography is free and most used advanced bibliography maker on the Web.It cuts down bibliography creation time from one half to two thirds.All in all, Easy Bib is very useful, you can format any MLA bibliography, whenever you want for free.I was happy to come across Easybib Pro an internet based tool that will format my references, export them as a word document, and has a handy wizard to help with in text citation.

Other Free Bibliography products and info:

Bibliography info

BibMe is another web 2.0 style cool free bibliography generator, offering citations in MLA, APA, and Chicago styles.

Bibdesk: A free bibliography management application.

BibBuilder 1.3 (Free MLA-Style Bibliography Builder)

Labels: free, MBA

This post is all about clearly defining the problem statement for "Career in Entrepreneurship"

Problem or Opportunity Identification

Generic Problem Statement:“I wish I knew how my MBA in Entrepreneurship prepare me for a career in Entrepreneurship”
Now to choose Entrepreneurship career I may think I need to start my own business. The most significant reason I believe for considering a career in entrepreneurship is the personal satisfaction that often comes with owning your own company, right? Starting ones own business is how to start career in Entrepreneurship? Well, I think I better look a little more deeply at this problem before I instigate a huge effort requiring lots of resources to start a business because I’m going to be very disappointed if that’s not the solution.
Forming a Problem Statement:
Answering the following questions will help me look at my problem more deeply, and will probably help me get at the root causes.
Who? [People who currently are facing this problem or been in this situation before] – Those who wish to start a business and to implement decisions about their Entrepreneurship career. People who create new opportunities that generate benefits for the organization. Entrepreneurs who are likely to be involved in novel startups, and with fast-growing businesses. A student who wants to capitalize on their accumulated skills and experience. A hobby driven student: to enable them to keep doing the thing they enjoy most. A student who wishes to stay in a specific geographic area, or to have flexible hours. A person who organizes, operates, and assumes the risk for a business venture. Individuals who score highly on these measures - need for achievement, need for autonomy, drive and determination, creative tendency and risk taking.
When? [Timescales to start a career in Entrepreneurship] Start a business straight after graduating or later in the career when I have built up more knowledge, skills and credibility?
Where? [Where to start a career as Entrepreneur?] With Current or New employer, Self start or Franchise a business, Existing or in New technology, Targeting Niche or Industry wide markets, or in an early stage venture.
What? [What can I do with a degree in Entrepreneurship?]
Entrepreneurs recognize and evaluate opportunities and thus become venture capitalists, investors, attorneys and marketing specialists.
Why? [Why a career in Entrepreneurship?] Become part of the decision-making and empowerment, it's about following ones passion and doing something to make the world a better place, It is feeling of greatness to know that my contributions have a positive impact on the company.
The answers generated make me reconsider the problem. After I look more closely at the issue, it appears that just starting a business is not one of the main options for starting career in Entrepreneurship. This makes me think that starting own business and succeeding is not easy: Risk is bigger (about 70% of new businesses close down within 3 years. Risks are higher ). I think the problem can be found in the where and the why. Start off in employment to build experience. It is possible that one problem has multiple roots. Fortunately, I don’t have to make that decision just yet. The information gathered now will prepare me for applying creative tools later on.

New Problem Statement:

“I wish I knew how my MBA in Entrepreneurship prepare me for a career in Entrepreneurship” “I wish as an MBA student in Entrepreneurship I was more aware of the challenges in creating my own business to succeed , starting off in employment to build experience and networking to increase skills and knowledge, when combined may help me in preparing my career in Entrepreneurship” My new problem statement will help me come up with solutions that address the root of the cause not just the symptoms.

I'll discuss in future articles of how to apply creativity tools to this problem and solve the question in hand "How my MBA in Entrepreneurship can prepare me for a career in Entrepreneurship"

Labels: Entrepreneurship, MBA

No brainer if you are in school but out of school and if some one asks you this question, can you answer it?

Finding factors:{If you are preparing for GMAT this should give you a quick review of what factors are?}

One easy way is through prime numbers as they make it easy to find the factors of a number.

What is a prime number : A number is prime if it cannot be divided evenly by anything except itself and 1. For example, 5 is a
prime number, because the only factors of 5 are

1 * 5 = 5

Let's consider a number like 121:

how many factors does 121 have?

121 = 11 X 11, 11 is prime number

So prime factors of 121 are 1, 11 and 121

Let's consider a number like 72 that you want to find factors of It's even, so it's divisible by 2:

72 = 2 * 36

Now, what about 36? That's also even, so it's divisible by 2:

72 = 2 * 2 * 18

What about 18? That's divisible by 2:

72 = 2 * 2 * 2 * 9

What about 9? That's not divisible by 2, but it is divisible by 3:

72 = 2 * 2 * 2 * 3 * 3

And 3 is prime. So what we've done here is find the 'prime factors' of
the number 72.

How does this help us find all the factors of 72? Well, if a number
is a factor of 72, and it's not one of these prime factors, then it
must be a product of two or more prime factors. So we can find all the
factors of 72 by looking at all the ways we can group these prime
factors:

2 * 2 = 4 pairs
2 * 3 = 6
3 * 3 = 9

2 * 2 * 2 = 8
2 * 2 * 3 = 12 triplets
2 * 3 * 3 = 18

2 * 2 * 2 * 3 = 24 product of four prime factors
2 * 2* 3 * 3 = 36




So the factors of 72 are

1 A factor of everything.

2, 3 The distinct prime factors.

4, 6,9 Products of two prime factors.

8,12,18 Products of three prime factors.

24,36 Products of three prime factors.

72 Product of all the prime factors.

Now

1,2,3,4,6,8,9,12,18,24,36,72

Factors vs Multiples basics

Factors
Finite number of factors for any whole number
Most factors are smaller than number – largest is number itself

Multiples
Infinite number of multiples
Most multiples larger than number, smallest is number itself

Here are some online links you can use some of the Math formulas

Finding prime factors online

Online Math calculators - A very good resource for all math calculations online.

Labels: MBA

In the book ‘the myths of innovation’, Scott Berkun debunks common myths about innovation. This book opens with a chapter that talks about - "Is it really that Newton found 'laws of gravity' when he saw apple falling to the ground" - Author gives explanation of why this is a myth that sold very well for ages.These myths are mostly human short cuts or quick fixes our minds take to help to transmit (promote) the information to other people. Innovation is not something that can be processed and manufactured and I felt Berkun did a great job in describing these realities in the book.This book should not take you long and can be finished in one sitting of 3 to 4 hours. Myths of Innovation by Scott Berkun

Some of the Book’s key messages for managers:

Decision making: How does a manager know whether a hot new technology will succeed or fail? How managers commercialize an idea? These and other questions essential to producing thoughtful marketing/new product decisions and approaches are considered in the history of innovations and most importantly how they became successful. Examples come from the history of technology, business and the arts and tell how knowledge/ideas convert to commodities. Business managers will find this an important key to understanding and aids them in their decision making.
Collaboration: Good managers facilitate collaboration that has a huge impact on the success of innovation in the corporations. The best ideas derive from a mix of self-awareness and the ability to recognize and explore opportunities when they arise. Berkun talks about how good managers set up an environment which fosters creativity and innovation, how innovators are able to build off their prior experiences and a number of other critical factors. Political shielding: the appropriate role of managers in innovation; in the chapter #7, "Your boss knows more about innovation than you", Edison provided his team of researchers with the political shielding they needed in order to do their jobs to the best of their ability.

How does this can book help you plan or reconsider your own personal creative journey in your work or career?

Whether we work or not at creative companies like IDEO or Google, myths described in the Berkun’s book provides a set of practical insights that will help anyone come up with ideas or combination of ideas that can be applied to one’s own settings. I always thought creativity is something to be born with but Berkun has done a great job by debunking many of cherished myths that hold many people like me back from innovating. This book made me rethink and question the stories of innovation that have become part and parcel of our culture and society. Once we solve this riddle, then I believe it's possible to truly understand how innovation occurs, and how we all can play a part in that.

Two significant “take-aways” from the book.

Berkun captures thought provokingly the difference between what we've been led to believe about innovation as opposed to how it actually works. For each myth, Berkun uses the actual stories behind a variety of innovations, using innovations whose stories we think we know. The examples I took away from the book include the following:
Edison and the invention of the light bulb: Berkun uses Edison and the invention of the light bulb throughout the book to support several points. In the chapter #9, "Problems and solutions", Berkun points out that city had just invested millions of dollars in gas lighting. Realizing this, Edison did not frame his problem as "make a working light bulb," but "make an electricity system that cities can use to adopt my lights.” Framing the problem in this way properly identified the challenge that Edison needed to overcome to make the light bulb successful and that it's rarely a single person that is the source of innovation. In chapter#5 - "The lone inventor" Berkun points out that many inventions are created by different people relatively simultaneously. Edison was not, in fact, the first person to invent the light bulb. Two other lesser known inventors have that distinction.
Newton and his inventions in field of physics: Newton is credited for many advances in the field of physics. But he's as much a product of his location and time as he is of his studies. Born in a different country or 100 years earlier, Newton doesn't exist as the key figure. But that's not to say that his ideas would have never been uncovered. Others working in the same field with the same surroundings could likely have traveled the same path. Innovation is hard work, and it's a process, not a moment in time.

Summary:

Innovation is unpredictable. Berkun suggests ways that it might be cultivated. One should strive to define a problem precisely. Perhaps advantage is that no one else sees it as a problem or where it is believed that a solution exists for the problem. Then, try to tackle it. How some inventors got their ideas? As Berkun puts it, sometimes, clarifying a problem starts you on the road to innovation.


Click me Myths of innovation text book

Video: Book Author Berkun talks about his latest book

Much of what we know about innovation is wrong. That's the bet this talk takes, as it romps through the history of innovation, dispelling the mythologies we've constructed about how we got here. This talk, loosely based on the upcoming O'Reilly book (May 2007), will help you to recognize the myths, understand why they're popular (even if you don't believe in them), and how to use the truth to help you innovate today.

Labels: Creativity, Entrepreneurship, Innovation, MBA

Use these magazines to pick up all investing ideas and to increase business and finance knowledge. These are the 10 most popular magazines that you will find business grads reading.These business and finance magazines will keep you MBA focused, streamline your investments, and hopefully improves your entrepreneurial skills.

Here is top 10 best magazines:

1. Money

Description - Combines practical personal finance advice, calculators and investing tips with business news, stock quotes, and financial market coverage from the editors of CNN and Money Magazine. Website - money.cnn.com Alexa Rank: 84 (This is CNN rank)

2. The Economist

Description - Authoritative weekly newspaper focusing on international politics and business news and opinion. Website - economist.com Alexa Rank: 3668 Notes : Chicacgo Tribune says : The Economist - The no-nonsense font and rigid layout style make it look like a class handout on the first day of an MBA program, but don't be dismayed. This magazine features the most succinct, globe-encompassing wrap-ups of politics and economics on the market. Even often overlooked cultural features such as book reviews glisten with insight.

3. BusinessWeek

Description -A renowned business publication. Business news, trends and profiles of successful businesspeople. Website - BusinessWeek.com Alexa Rank: 1352 Notes : Business Week. Consistently the best business magazine, more timely than the biweeklies Forbes and Fortune. One strength is international reporting, as in the cover story on India and outsourcing. Click me for audio version of Business Week - Audio version I found useful in long commutes where all of BW can be downloaded to MP3 player.

4. Fortune

Fortune magazine's home page with current business and finance news. Website - Fortune.com Alexa Rank: 51815

5. Consumer Reports

Information, ratings, and advice on products, services, and decisions. Website - consumerreports.com Rank : 5329

6. Entrepreneur

Description - Online and print small business publication. Information to help start, grow or manage a small business. Web Site - Entrepreneur.com Rank : 3894 Notes: Check out top 10 colleges at http://www.entrepreneur.com/topcolleges/ It has much information for those looking to start their own business. Entrepreneur publishes the “Franchise 500”, which lists the top franchise opportunities for business people.Each issue offers numerous articles presenting the guidance you and your business need. Monthly columns in the technology department include “Digital Edge”, “Net Profit” and “Snapshot.” The financial section consists of columns including “Dollar Signs”, “Raising Money” and “Tax Talk.” Other regular features include “Sell”, which deals with marketing, and “Money”, which deals with financial management. Additional columns include “Breakthrough”, “Sales Force”, “Smart Moves”, “Insurance”, “Capitol Issues” and “Staff Smarts.”

7. Kiplinger's Personal Finance


8. Forbes

Notes : Information about companies and the people who run them. Forbes success lists including the Platinum 400 best-performing U.S. big companies, the Private 500 largest U.S. private firms, and the world's richest people. Website: Forbes.com Alexa Rank - 484

9. SmartMoney

Notes:Offers daily stock and mutual fund recommendations, hourly market updates, personal finance investing research tools and advice. Website : SmartMoney.com Alexa Rank - 15461

10. The Wall Street Journal

International and national news with a business and financial perspective. WallStreetJournal.com ALexaRank - 1096

Labels: Magazines, MBA

Kaplan's free online GMAT services
Click me for Free GMAT Practice test from Kaplan

Thank you for your interest in Kaplan's free online GMAT services.

To preview the online components of our GMAT classroom, premium online and private tutoring programs, including a free full-length GMAT practice test, get started here.

Simply purchase your free course (you will not be required to enter credit card information) by clicking on the "Sign up" button above and completing the registration and purchase process. After completion, the course and practice test will be accessible from the syllabus located on your own, personalized student home page.

Good luck!

Other GMAT test resources

Here are some other GMAT test resources I got it off internet that may help all GMAT test takers : (May not be free but are good GMAT test resources)

1. PowerPrep GMAT CAT
2. Ascent Education
3. Arco
4. Axxent
5. 800 Score
6. English Test
7. GMATBuster
8. GMAT Cram.com
9. GMATExams.com
10. GMAT Practice Tests
11. Gorilla Test Prep
12. Manhattan GMAT Tests
13. R&B Consulting Prep Software
14. Realtestquestions.com
15. ScoreTop Online Verbal-Quant Tests
16. TestMasters
17. TestPrep New York
18. Upstart Raising GMAT Simulator

Labels: free, GMAT, GMAT TEST RESOURCES, Kaplan, MBA

Shyam's style of work is different from Tom's.Style of work differs from person to person.One has to develop ones style of work out of his/her own experience to boost ones productivity.Is worship work? or Is work worship?
Shyam is sales executive.His boss appreciates him,the reason is his act of tactfully convincing the consumer.The consumer behavior is important.Some consumers says Shyam's approach is boring.Then he leaves them.He selects other consumers and spends his energy.Thus he earn profits for his/her boss.
Everyday Milk lesson : For instance milk is the product.Even though it is perishable it is the main food item to majority of the consumers.Suppose if a person does not like milk, Shyam leaves them.Only few persons are left out.He used to explain the quality of the product, date of expiry and the advantages in keeping ones good health.He suggests his boss about the title of his product in improving the quality with less cost and any other suggestions on the basis of his study of the consumer behavior.
Health is wealth lesson: Take another example , Tobacco products caution about health is essential.Reduces the span of your life, temporary joy leads to permanent damage - such cautions are necessary to protect the health of the consumer.Then the Shyam's consumer limits his consumption and ... the product.

In another case, Tom is a teaching professional.His style of work is different.He has to acquire adequate knowledge to teach his students. His area is limited to students only.He has to extract the best output from students to make them tomorrows leaders.The responsibility of profession is more as education is continuous process. Some students may like him.Some may not.He should not leave the students who do not like him.The professional has to concentrate more on them and has to analyze the reasons and has to change style of work to attract them.Then he earns name for his institution and thus he keeps cent percent students in his grip.In the process his boss appreciates him.
As such , the style of work plays vital role in development.It depends on the nature of work performed.The main ingredients of 'Style of Work' are

1. Choice of profession
2. Plan of action
3. Performance of tasks
   

Some of the tips to boost productivity with style of work.

1. Consume less time of your bosses - so that the precious time of boss is saved and he can utilize such time in concentrating other important aspects.
2. Do maximum work in minimum time.This depends on nature of work selected and experience gained out of it.

As education is continuous process style of work too continuous.There is no end. But every body has to recollect the saying 'work is worship'

Labels: MBA, Productivity, Work

“Why Study For Exams.... Are they not about what you know, not about how much you can cram into your head the night before?” - quote

Exams are life long villains (Pic to left - courtesy [jointtortfeasors]). When I took my bachelors finals I thought that was end to my academic exams but knowledge upgrade to new degrees and proving that knowledge in exams are lifelong never ending tasks.

The final exam day is usually a "happy experience"...at least until the grades are posted.

As common as it is tried diligently to make prof. give us open book or take home for accounting course and of course he did not buy our selling and the reasoning is quite interesting.Prof says" You are in a executive numbers meeting and your executive VP asks you to calculate some cost with some efficiency.Do you tell your VP you will get the book or open Google to search for the answer?"

Probably he is true , reality check - Are really open book/take home exams improve grade any better than traditional exams? Many myths that Open Book exams are a breeze that we don't have to study.Just copy straight from the book and the more materials the better the exam will go.The bottom line is we don't study if its a open book.



As the date for finals approached, One can easily see that stress levels are higher than usual.Some times positive, helping to stay motivated and focused. However, too much stress can be unhelpful, the side effects of feeling tired,broken sleep,overwhelmed and confused.And with recent other avagations like blogging, social networking sites there is a now a reason not to study and hang on those sticky sites further making oneself vulnerable to low grades.This is all self injected pain.

Do we know where we stand in exam ? Hell..yes..in most cases...public exams might be a bit different but for academic exams like MBA courses it is very well known where you stand and what grade you can get in finals.
Most part of academic exams is you study the line of thinking of prof and you know what you can expect in the test.Barring extremities they ask what they teach unless you get an outlier prof.This psychology reading should put you somewhere in B grade range.Basically we are training our self to the exam system to get grades of course with the course knowledge.It goes without saying if one puts decent extra effort one is in A-class pool.

Adding to these grade techniques are superfluous exam sentiments.

Exam sentiments ? Are there any ? I guess plenty..highly customized..totally differentiated unique in nature from one test taker to the other and got to appreciate that creative weird reasoning that we come up with sentiments to mask some of those grade pressures.

Common one is dress sentiment wearing the same dress (some people avoid black or red dress) for all exams.Probably this one starts when someone wore a dress that gave a good grade.Other Exam sentiments are a plenty, many being common to all like using 'lucky' pens, cap (wearing torn unwashed probably as Sa Re Ga Ma Pa fame Himesh Reshammiya does with his cap..As he says the cap has been lucky for him. All his success he owed to his torned cap, Reports says a blessing bestowed upon his by a deity which has promised him success as long as he wears it.) etc. etc. but this one made me laugh out.This friend he would not take 'good luck' exam wishes from his one close dear friend as he believes the last time around when checking in to the exam room this friend guy wished and hence he reasons his exam was ruined. As this blog says on 'Prayer Before An Exam' about an prayer card at university that has as a prayer on one side, and there’s a number two pencil taped to the back. Ad that reads

"Father, as I enter to take this exam, I ask You to help me. Grant me wisdom and show me how to take the test, so that I gain the most points and make the best grade I can make…"

Well .. If you have finished your exams..eNjoy and If you haven't good luck for your exams.you done it before and you will do fine this time.

Labels: Exams, MBA

"Bitterman! Do you want to double your salary?"
"Yes sir!"
"Then open that door!"
- From movie Arthur (1981)

This conversation on how to increase salaries talks about opening that door and the door in year 2007 very well can be an MBA door.
Imagine you completed your MBA and are out of that MBA door , Those MBA's looking to get into the high-salary world would definitely need to have a road map to do it.The first road map I believe to high MBA salary is Job categories.Most MBA's will go for a career change that lands them in different Job categories either passion wise or for monetary benefits or some thing else.Rather than passion if you want to jot down job category by salary here is the chart for median salary by Job categories for year 2007 from pay scale. If you analyze the pay by Job - 'finance' industry is a top payer."Make the numbers and get the numbers".

If a degree is from a top ranking school then that pays off way more than the industry average salaries. As Economic Times reports this year Wall Street took MBA pay to new heights - "Competition for MBAs from banks like New York-based Citigroup and Goldman Sachs may push starting-pay packages above last year, when graduates averaged a record $186,174 in total compensation at Harvard Business School and $183,000 at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business."
Executive Career Guide for MBAs
"Northwestern’s Kellogg School reported average total compensation of $150,942 for its graduates last year. The Wharton School reported $167,607, and Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business in New York, $169,194" .

With the strong job market that is adding more and more Jobs, Year 2007 seems to be rocking salary year for MBA graduates.

Labels: 2007, Job Growth, MBA, Salaries

Now that you know about MBA so how to get admission into a good MAB program in US.
The first stop is to know about GMAT and then MBA school rankings.

What is GMAT ?

The GMAT (Graduate Management Admission Test) is a 3-1/2 hour standardized exam designed to predict how test-takers will perform academically in MBA (Masters in Business Administration) programs. GMAT scores are used by graduate business schools to make admission decisions.

Do I need to take the GMAT for admission to an MBA program?

To gain admission to an MBA program, chances are you’ll need to take the GMAT. About two-thirds of the 1,300+ graduate business schools around the world require GMAT scores for admission. Schools that do not require GMAT scores nevertheless welcome GMAT scores to help access an applicant’s qualifications.

NOTE: Schools that do not require GMAT scores generally have relatively lenient admission standards and/or are located outside of the United States.

How important are GMAT scores in the B-school admissions process?

Each graduate business school develops and implements its own policy concerning the use of GMAT scores in making admissions decisions. Many schools screen applicants by combining GMAT scores and undergraduate GPA (each school determining for itself their relative weight), then ranking all applicants in their initial pool accordingly.

In addition — especially after the initial screening of applicants — admissions officials consider subjective factors such as work and other relevant experience, recommendation letters, application essays (personal statements), and reports of personal interviewers. In making difficult decisions between two or more similarly qualified candidates, admissions officials rely less on GMAT scores and GPA and far more on these other, more subjective factors.

What is GMAT's format?


GMAT tips :

About Essays:

Assuming a very good application aside from a sub-average GMAT score, great essays might carry your application

Practise and practise:

DO TONS OF PROBLEMS until you tend to recognize what they want quickly.
Practice catching your mind slowing down
ALWAYS keep your mind SHARP, especially in the Reading Comprehension sections

GMAT resources:

Offical Guides (OG) , Kaplan and Princeton books are preferred by many GMAT test takers.
I'll dedicate one post of all the resources that will be required to prepare for GMAT.

Labels: 700, GMAT, Kaplan, MBA, OG