Sandeep Kare

Q 1: Hey Sandeep, you have an interesting background, why don’t you tell us about that?

I have more than two decades of experience in financial services both as a corporate executive and as an entrepreneur, overseeing the Strategy execution and Change Management delivery for leading global financial institutions and market infrastructure providers, as well as vendor partners.

Q 2: After over 2 decades of work experience with some of the leading global banks, what prompted you to apply for an MBA?

As a next phase in my career either to successfully grow as an entrepreneur or to lead bigger teams and organizations, I wanted to enhance my leadership skills, strategic mindset and business acumen in an environment that is immersive, safe, competitive, global and inclusive. Having researched for few years, I was confident that LBS Sloan Programme will provide such required learning and transformative experience.

Q 3: How did you go about planning for your MBA? Any key factors that you had in mind given your unconventional background?

I would encapsulate it as 3P’s and 3C’s.

Patience, Preparation and Planning.

• Patience – To be able to rewrite and iterate your essays several times before a final version or fine tune other aspects of your application. On several occasions I seem to have hit a wall, but I patiently inched forward with hope and courage.
• Preparation – To be able to sit for long days and nights to study for your GMAT or EA. It feels daunting especially when the mock results are still not at par with the expectation. Yet again I marched ahead with my preparation by visualizing a bright light at the end of the tunnel.
• Planning – To be able to plan your day or upcoming week(s) is crucial during the application phase or the admission process. I ensured to plan my schedule for the most part and it helped in making any unwarranted  or uncalled for changes with less impact.

Courage, Confidence and Connections.

• Courage – To be able to muster all the courage to take a career break (your opportunity cost!), invest money, sacrifice family life, and prepare to be a student all over again after working for two decades is nothing less of a great stunt. It demands lot of courage personally and unwavering support from your FAMILY to be able to make such a decision. I had complete support from my family, and I feel truly gifted.
• Confidence – To be able to pull all these aspects require at most confidence on a personal level. My dream to pursue Masters from an elite school, together with my desire and goal, propelled my confidence.
• Connections – To be able to network and reach out to current students or alumni is essential when applying for a Master’s program. In hindsight you need to be clear with your story, so I did my groundwork extensively and reached out to my connections to get valuable insights.

Q4. Can you briefly talk about the application journey and what your experience was like going through the grind?

The entire application journey was strenuous with several hours spent each day writing essays, preparing for GMAT or EA, networking with alumni, attending virtual events, connecting with recruitment or admissions team and progressing with other requirements of the application.

Application is a sum of many diverse aspects of the candidate’s profile, so a great deal goes in fine tuning each section of the application. MBA Edge has been a great support in this journey and the advice provided has been bespoke, concise, relevant and timely.

Q5: What were the results like and where are you heading finally?

“A dream come true” I will be starting my LBS Sloan journey in 2026.

Q6: Any advice for those planning for their mid-career MBA?

Authenticity is your hallmark! – Do not write something to merely impress the readers. Always stick to your story and be genuine. Self-reflection is key.

Time is essence! – Always have ample time, with dedicated milestones, to work on every aspect of the application with equal importance. Everything is asked for a reason, so never undermine it.

Networking is vital! – Research to find out more about the university or program you plan to apply for by connecting with current students or alumni. Any insights gathered can be crucial decision drivers.