Pennsylvania Wharton MBA Deadlines Essay & analysis, 2010-2011

myice

June 4th, 2010
评论：沃顿选择这个日子发布，有什么深意吗？呵呵。

The Wharton Business School deadlines for the 2010-2011 admissions cycle have been announced.
The deadlines for the three rounds of the MBA program are as follows:MBA Program

        Application Deadline      Decision Release DateRound 1  
October 4, 2010           December 17, 2010Round 2
January 4, 2011           March 24, 2011Round 3
March 3, 2011             May 12, 2011
MBA/MA–Lauder Program

       Application Deadline      Decision Release DateRound 1
October 4, 2010           December 17, 2010Round 2  
January 4, 2011           March 24, 2011
All deadlines are 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST).

myice

Wharton Fall 2010 Essay Questions
The Admissions Committee is interested in getting to know you on both a professional and personal level. We encourage you to be introspective, candid, and succinct. Most importantly, we suggest you be yourself.
(http://www.wharton.upenn.edu/mba/admissions/apply-to-wharton.cfm).
Please note that these questions are different than the ones that Wharton briefly released and then retracted a few weeks ago, and you should be answering these questions instead of those ones.评论：千呼万唤始出来，这年头TOP们也跟风儿，已经发布essay题目的学校都进行了题目上的调整，Wharton估计得到风声了，不想成为另类。不过沃顿很有点“比学赶帮超”的味道，创意十足啊。

Required Question:
1）What are your professional objectives? (300 words)
评论：(750-1,000 words) As a leader in global business, Wharton is committed to sustaining "a truly global presence through its engagement in the world." What goals are you committed to and why? How do you envision the Wharton MBA contributing to the attainment of those goals?这是去年的第一题，今年不仅仅题目描述精简了，字数要求页大幅度下降，看来是在向某种趋势学习。据说，很多学生的professional objectives入学前所声称的与毕业后所选择的有差异，呵呵。看来，关注人——关注一个人能干什么比关注他若干年后想干什么要重要。

myice

Analysis from elite-essays
For more years than I can remember, Wharton’s Goals Essay was one of the longest (750-1000) and most standard around. Actually, with the exception of last year’s Adaptation essay, that goes for the rest of Wharton’s questions as well. Not any more. At 300 words, this is probably the shortest Goals essay you’ll find this year. Even HBS gives you 400, though it’s optional. That means just the lean muscle of your career ambitions, and little to no “Career Background”, “Why Now?” or “Why Wharton” (until recently a pro-forma question that more and more schools are, thankfully, eliminating). Instead of those components, I recommend choosing topics and examples from the questions below that can help reveal the source of your goals and your potential for achieving them.
Please see: The MBA Goals Essay.

myice

Respond to 3 of the following 4 questions:
1）Student and alumni engagement has at times led to the creation of innovative classes. For example, through extraordinary efforts, a small group of current students partnered with faculty to create a timely course entitled, “Disaster Response: Haiti and Beyond,” empowering students to leverage the talented Wharton community to improve the lives of the Haiti earthquake victims. Similarly, Wharton students and alumni helped to create the “Innovation and the Indian Healthcare Industry” which took students to India where they studied the full range of healthcare issues in India. If you were able to create a Wharton course on any topic, what would it be? (700 words)
评论：绝对的创新之举！有勇气的同志们可以尝试以“富士康N连跳”为题材展开。中国人关心中国事，应该的也是必须的！相关的素材，我认为足够展开的了。
（觉得我这个素材可以的同志们顶我一下，哈哈）
Analysis from elite-essays
This is a juicy, multi-dimensional question, offering a lot of potential to shine for those brave enough to tackle it. When formulating your answer, I would consider the following:
a) The course should be something you have a demonstrated interest in and/or a personal connection to, but not so much expertise in that an entire course would be redundant. Choosing a course related to your goals and supporting it with relevant experience makes good sense, especially if you can show leadership or initiative in your chosen field. At the same time, the course should appeal to a clear segment, if not all, of your Wharton classmates. After all, a course needs people to be a course. Otherwise, it’s self-study.
b) Once those things are established, I would turn to the course itself. How would you design it? Who would you ask to teach or guest lecture, or would it be a completely student-driven class? What teaching materials would you use? What resources do you have to contribute? Is there travel involved? If so, how would you fund it? Are there possibilities for corporate sponsorship or involvement? What is the ultimate goal/purpose/output of the course?

myice

2）Reflect on a time when you turned down an opportunity. What was the thought process behind your decision? Would you make the same decision today? (600 words)
评论：decision-making背后有很多旁观者说不清楚道不明白的东西，只有做决策的人才能够说清楚个中奥妙。不要把这个和failure混淆了是首先应该做到的。
Analysis from elite-essays
If you turned down an opportunity, your decision was either right or wrong; a 50/50 answer is unlikely to provide a clear enough picture of your values, morals, ambitions, risk-orientation, and decision-making process, some of the bigger ideas behind this question. If your decision was right, why was it right? What was the outcome? Perhaps the opportunity crossed ethical boundaries, and refusing it was clearly the right decision. Maybe it was a legitimate opportunity that just wasn’t right for you because of your personality or preparedness, or the sacrifices it entailed. Perhaps you would make the same decision, but just because it was right before, doesn’t mean you or your circumstances haven’t changed and that you would refuse the opportunity a second time. If that’s the case, explain what’s different the second time around.
If your original decision was wrong, why was it wrong? What happened? What were your original concerns and how did the experience affect you?

myice

3）Describe a failure that you have experienced. What role did you play, and what did you learn about yourself? How did this experience help to create your definition of failure? (600 words)
评论：这是去年的Essay 3: (500 words) Describe a failure that you have experienced. What role did you play, and what did you learn about yourself?同志们要留意了，多出了一个小问题，同时多给出了100字的空间哦。题目说得更加清楚明白了，我觉得这是好事情。
Analysis from elite-essays
Wharton’s only “typical” essay this year, with the added requirement of including your definition of failure. It’s an interesting addition, as it pushes for the same kind of self-awareness promoted in the Opportunity question above. Obviously, you should embrace the idea of failure in a measured way for the learning opportunity it is. Spend some time crafting your own definition and avoid cliché, since Wharton will likely be inundated with uniformly positive viewpoints.
Please see: The MBA Failure Essay

myice

4）Discuss a time when you navigated a challenging experience in either a personal or professional relationship. (600 words)
评论：这是去年的Essay 2: (750-1,000 words) Tell us about a time when you had to adapt by accepting/understanding the perspective of people different from yourself.本题应该就是去年Essay 2的变种，不过问得有些耐人寻味。
Analysis from elite-essays
Everyone experiences difficult relationships, caused by differences in standpoint, motivation or personality, and handling them effectively and productively is one of the most difficult of human endeavors. It takes insight, discipline, initiative and maturity to put the brakes on a deteriorating situation, especially one you are deeply involved in. Those with true interpersonal gifts can even sense potential conflict before it erupts and take steps to avoid or minimize it, while remaining true to themselves and getting the job done. I suggest writing in the context of a goal or endeavor, and don’t feel that ending up best friends with your former nemesis is obligatory. Success, however, is important as the ultimate measure of your ability to handle the interpersonal challenge.


Additional Joint Wharton MBA/MA–Lauder Applicant Essays
Required for all Lauder applicants in addition to the appropriate set of essay questions above.
1）Describe a cross-cultural experience in your adult life that was challenging to you. How did you meet this challenge and what did you learn from the experience? (1,000 words)
2）Please explain why you are currently applying to Lauder. How do you expect the Wharton/Lauder joint-degree experience to benefit you on both a professional and personal level? (1,000 words)