Profile Building for College Admissions
What is profile building?
Profile building is the planned use of a student’s time outside the classroom (projects, research, internships, competitions, community work and summer programmes) so that by Grade 12 the college application shows real interests pursued in depth. At Global Careers in Surat, each student works with a mentor on a year-by-year plan, for admissions in India and abroad. College students get the same help when they plan a Master’s, an MBA or a PhD.
It is also the career exploration that should follow career counselling. Counselling shows where a student’s interests and strengths seem to lie. Profile building is where the student tries those fields and finds out which interests are real. That is why we recommend starting in Grade 9.
Universities abroad, and Indian universities such as Ashoka, FLAME and Krea, read the whole application and not only the marks. What counts is not the number of certificates. It is whether the activities fit together and fit the course the student is applying for.
Students guided by Global Careers have been admitted to universities including the University of Pennsylvania, Yale, Columbia, Cornell, LSE, LBS, NUS, NTU and SMU. For short programmes that can form part of a profile, see summer schools in India.
What admissions officers look for
Universities that read the whole application are trying to answer one question: what has this student done with the time and opportunities available to them? Four things carry weight.
- Depth. Two or three interests pursued seriously over several years count for more than a long list of certificates.
- Fit. The activities should make sense next to the course the student is applying for.
- Initiative. Something the student started or built says more than something they only attended.
- Continuity. A record that begins in Class 9 is more convincing than one assembled in the summer before the application.
A year-by-year plan for Classes 8 to 12
Each student’s plan is different, but the stages are the same. We take students from Class 9 onwards, and undergraduates.
College students planning a Master’s, an MBA or a PhD
The same thinking applies in college, with different material.
- First year: explore. Join one or two student bodies, try a research or community project, and find the area you want to go deeper in.
- Second year: a first internship or research assistantship, and one skill built properly.
- Third year: a substantial project, paper or position of responsibility, and preparation for the GRE, GMAT or IELTS where the programme asks for it.
- Final year: applications, statement of purpose, recommendations and scholarship forms.
How we work with each student
- A mentor and a written plan. The plan follows from the student’s interests and aptitude, measured with the Career Fit assessment where that has not been done.
- Regular reviews. We look at what the student has done, what they have learned from it, and what to drop.
- Help finding opportunities. We help students identify suitable internships, research projects, competitions and summer programmes, and prepare their applications for them.
- The work is the student’s own. We guide and question, and the student does the work. An admissions interview exposes anything else at once.
- Presentation. In Class 12 or the final year we help the student present the record in the application: the activity list, the essays and the résumé.
For schools and colleges: DISHA
DISHA is a career and higher education mentoring programme that Dr. Manish Mittal runs for schools and colleges. It gives an institution structured career guidance for its students without having to set up a counselling department of its own.
Heads of schools and colleges can contact our office to discuss DISHA with Dr. Mittal.
Classes 8 and 9
Explore widely: school clubs, short courses, competitions, a summer school. The aim is to find out what holds the student’s interest.
Class 10
Narrow down. Take responsibility in one or two activities, begin a project of your own, and use the summer before Class 11 well.
Class 11
Go deep: research, an internship or a substantial project in the chosen field, alongside preparation for the SAT or IELTS where needed.
Class 12
Present the record. Essays, the activity list, recommendations, scholarship forms and interviews.
Frequently asked questions
Universities abroad, and Indian universities such as Ashoka, FLAME and Krea, read the whole application and not only the marks. Among students with similar marks, the profile is what separates them.
Class 8 or 9. That leaves time to explore before narrowing down, and universities look at the record from Class 9 onwards.
No, but less can be done. In Class 12 we concentrate on presenting what the student has already done and adding one or two things that can be finished properly. Undergraduates have more room: see the plan above.
It depends on the route. Where admission is decided by an entrance-exam rank, as with JEE or NEET, the rank decides. Where the university reads the whole application, as at Ashoka, FLAME, Krea and O.P. Jindal, the profile matters a great deal. See Study in India.
The ones that fit the student and the course. For an engineering applicant that may be a robotics or coding project; for economics, a research paper or a small enterprise; for design, a portfolio; for medicine, hospital volunteering and a biology project. We choose them with the student.
At a test-optional university an application without the SAT is read on the rest of the record, so a strong profile helps. At a test-blind university scores are not looked at. Many universities have gone back to requiring a test, so check each one. Where a score is considered, we recommend taking the SAT.
Merit scholarships are awarded on the whole application, so it helps. No one can promise a scholarship, and we do not.
An introductory session with our team, in which we explain how our counselling works, is free. A consultation with Dr. Manish Mittal is paid and is by appointment only.
Call +91 99250 33239 or +91 95105 33239, or send a message from the contact page. Our office is at S-8, 3rd Floor, Central Plaza, opposite St. Thomas School, New Citylight, Surat 395007. Students outside Surat work with us online.
Great Stories Begin Here
Grateful to Dr. Manish Mittal & Global Careers for their expert guidance in career counseling, profile building, and study abroad consulting. Their support in selecting skill-building courses, impactful internships, and meaningful projects significantly strengthened my profile, ultimately helping me secure a scholarship.
Diya Panwala
BS Computer Science, University of Connecticut (USA) - SCHOLARSHIP
I am deeply grateful to Manish Sir and the Global Careers team for their unwavering support, guidance, and mentorship throughout my profile-building and study abroad journey. This achievement wouldn’t have been possible without your dedication and efforts. Thank you!
Nidheesh Vakharia
BS Computer Science, UC Riverside (USA) - SCHOLARSHIP
Thanks to Global Careers and Dr. Manish Mittal! From career counselling and profile building to essay guidance and the visa process, their support was truly a game-changer. If you’re seeking expert study abroad consulting, or SAT prep, I highly recommend them!
Swayam Shah
BS Economics, University of Texas at Austin (USA)
Behind every success story, there is a plan.
Let us help you create yours.
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