Full-time MBA Programme

Application Questions

Please provide your full name and email address for identification.

Name: Arindam Vatsa

Email: arindam.vatsa@gmail.com

Essay Question Instructions:

The Admissions Committee will carefully consider your answers to the following questions. Please
complete all of the essay questions beginning your answer below each question and giving word
counts for each answer. Once complete, please attach this document to your online application
following the instructions given on the web form.

You are required to add the word count at the end of each question.

Please do not write more than the specified word limit for each essay. Any extra words or
essays may be disregarded.

Candidates should not contact us to ask for advice on how to answer the essay questions.
We expect all candidates to interpret the questions as they see fit.

If you experience technical difficulties or have a question about the application process, please
email apply.mba@london.edu If your matter is urgent and you require immediate assistance
please telephone our Recruitment and Admissions Office on +44 (0)20 7000 7525 between 09.00
and17.00, Monday to Friday.

Page 1 of 2
MBA Application Questions

Question 1 (500 words)

What are your post-MBA goals and how will your prior experience and the London Business
School programme contribute towards these?

The need to evolve impels me now, as it has throughout my educational and professional history. With an
early need to develop a complex view of the world, even as an undergrad, I interned at diverse
organizations such as the ILO, and IPAC - a leading Indian public-sector consultancy. Making moves to
impact the rural population, I started the Green Gate Foundation to assist underprivileged children in
accessing basic education by helping them with the necessary funds, career guidance, and mentorship.
Seeing how inequities largely boiled down to finances or a lack thereof, I was uniquely interested in the
fields of finance and data science; this was possibly the earliest point that I can trace my career interest
back to! And so, in the final year of undergrad, I interned with Morningstar within their credit ratings
division, working on projects across finance, quantitative analysis, and programming. I also was able to
thus establish myself as thoroughly employable, and have spent the vast majority of my career thus far
with the firm, besides brief stints with Medium Healthcare Consulting and InMobi.

In my 5-years at Morningstar Credit Ratings, now DBRS Morningstar Credit Ratings, I have worked on
the entire spectrum of credit rating process of the structured securities market in both North American and
European economies. Starting as an Associate Analyst in 2017, I have secured three promotions since.
Having led the creation of the first Indian offshore credit quantitative modeling team, I currently oversee a
group of eight data scientists and quantitative analysts as Lead Quantitative Analyst – Credit Ratings
Quantitative Research. I have also worked on multiple models to rate the RMBS and ABS securities in the
US, Spanish, Italian, and British markets, thus securing in-depth knowledge of the securitization markets
of these geographies.
At this career stage, I possess considerable international exposure and insight, along with a nascent
leadership toolkit. Having built a whole new team from scratch, I am aware of how to unite resources
through a shared vision. Now, through the lessons of LBS’ globally-oriented MBA programme, I can step
into a Product Management role with a technology firm, preferably focusing on fintech products. Long-
term, I shall assume a Chief Product Officer’s role, developing cutting-edge technology products for the
larger population, I envision becoming a Thought Leader in the domain, writing journals, conducting
lectures, and addressing industry leaders on functional innovation. Buoyed by my current experience in
creating data-driven products and implementations for internal use, I will take from the LBS MBA and its
ability to induct students into the centre of global financial innovation. In electives such as Fin Tech, The
Data-Driven Organization, and Product Management, I will imbibe career-specific thought tools from
polished faculty. Leaning on introspection through Leadership Launch to assess my abilities as a
visionary, I will also benefit from the Global Business Experience, understanding how business gets done
as per cultural context. With an LBS-peer-augmented professional network and assistance from LBS
career services, I will set the stage for sustained managerial growth!

Word count:500

Page 2 of 2
MBA Application Questions

Question 2 (500 words)

(This question is optional)

Is there any other information you believe the Admissions Committee should know about you and
your application to London Business School?

Coming from a humble background, growing up in the relatively underdeveloped state of Bihar, I lived in
a 10-member joint family with my father as the sole bread-earner. He worked at Bharat Wagon and
Engineering Limited as a Personnel and HR manager until the firm laid him off in 2001. At the age of 44,
he went back to school to get an education in law while working odd jobs on the side. In watching him
work with people half his age and still excel at adapting to the struggle inculcated in me my father’s
“never say never” attitude. I could not let down his legacy of application, and so went on to complete
undergrad studies at BITS Pilani, a premier technical institute. My early stint with my father’s determined
nature instilled in me a determination to make most of resources and shine in darkness!

My first encounter with analytics was during my internship with the Indian Political Action Committee
(IPAC) wherein I worked on collecting, cleaning, and analyzing large sets of grassroots-level data to
capture issue-based segmentation across the voter demographic. I also contributed to the development of
electoral maps using Tableau to visualize the concentration of voters and their inclination towards the
different groups in different constituencies. I was fascinated by how computational modeling and data
visualization offered ways to capture and study election trends and to design and drive campaigns. This
fascination continues even today, although I have moved to studying financial trends instead.

In addition to my stint at Morningstar, I have dabbled in projects that required an expansive stakeholder-
spanning skillset. As a Senior Business Analyst at Medium Healthcare Consulting, for four months in
2016, I oversaw the performance transformation of a super-speciality hospital in Guwahati, India, and
delivered a variety of functions such as closing revenue leaks and setting up process maps in departments.
Working alongside medical and administrative staff alike, I enhanced the day-to-day operational
efficiency of the hospital. Thereafter, as a Campaign Manager at Inmobi, a leading ad tech firm, I
managed client portfolios worth USD four million over a span of seven months. Thus, in never fearing the
unknown and facing new challenges head-on with a healthy sense of confidence, I have forever proven my
professional mettle

Working towards building up a lasting intellectual pedigree, I have worked on and published multiple
research papers on the performance of US single-family rentals bonds in the markets. These reports are
used as a benchmark for investing by different pension funds and other investment bodies. Given the
impact, I am proud of this feat!

Word count:429

Page 3 of 2
MBA Application Questions

Page 4 of 2