Indian IT professional? Here's how you begin

I sent a similar mail to some people who approached me for advice. Thought its better to put it on blog.

If you are reading this blog then you have already started doing the right thing.
First things first: Start reading blogs - they are amazing resources of first hand experience from fellow applicants and current students. People who have been there, done that.

Visit Clearadmit regularly. You get some useful info there. Read the blogs of all Best of Blogging nominees.

With blogs, you get a very good idea of the application process. There are some things that can help you in deciding upon which schools to apply. While going through these (and other) blogs, I would recommend that you be on the look out for the following things:
1) What schools are keen on Indian Students
2) What are the kind of profiles of Indian students getting into these schools
3) What differentiated them from others who were not successful
4) Which schools not to apply to. This is a critical question to address - there are some schools that entice you to apply based on their strengths, brand name, your gut feeling etc etc. However, do not get swayed by emotions - do your research well before you apply. It costs a substantial time and amount to apply to each school, not to mention the disappointment of not getting through. My earlier blog caters to this aspect. There are schools that simply are not too keen on my type of people and my educational interests also are not served as well by them. All applicants I talked to did not know anyone in India who got interviewed by MIT. Bottomline: Apply wherever you want to, but Be Aware!
5) A common thread you'll find across all successful 'Indian IT male' applicants in India (I am not sure of Indians who apply when they are working abroad) getting into the top 10 schools is a good GMAT score. No doubt the application consists of a lot of components, but for an Indian IT male, it takes a Herculean effort to sway a decision your way given a low GMAT score.
6) Do not hesitate to contact these bloggers - they are people like you and me, and after a looong application process, they are willing to share their thoughts with anyone who wants to listen.
7) You'll find a lot of comments on these blogs - check them out to find out about other bloggers.

Again, no matter what you do, do not compromise your GMAT preparation for anything. Aim for 800 :) It doesn't take hard work to score well - work smart!

All the Best