标题: MBA Essay Topics & Analysis 2021-2022 [打印本页] 作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 08:55 标题: MBA Essay Topics & Analysis 2021-2022
HBS
Essay 1
As we review your application, what more would you like us to know as we consider your candidacy for the Harvard Business School MBA program? (No word limit)
For several admissions seasons now, HBS has chosen an essay prompt that leaves applicants with a completely open field. You can start by considering who HBS states they are looking for: students with a habit of leadership, analytical aptitude and appetite, and engaged community citizenship. The first step is for you to assess how you best embody these qualities, and how you may elaborate on them outside of your other application materials, including your recommendations, test scores and undergraduate records.
Of these three categories, leadership should be a priority focus. When evaluating an applicant’s credentials, HBS has traditionally been very focused on leadership qualities as well as the impact that the applicant has had on a project, group, or company. Thus, as you brainstorm potential topics for this essay, it might be useful to think about any quantifiable positive change you’ve created that is not adequately described in your other materials. You might explain the magnitude of a professional or personal accomplishment noted on your résumé, for instance. You could also choose a particularly meaningful activity or project and share why it is important to you, especially given your personal or professional goals. Keep in mind, however, the only real directive from the committee: sharing “what more” you want the reader to know about your file. For this reason, applicants could do well to review the data fields in the online application, spend extra time fine-tuning their résumés and working with their recommenders in order to ensure that the essay topic does not overlap with anecdotes or qualities already covered in their other materials.
Given the open-ended length, it is possible to cover more than one meaningful activity, project or accomplishment. However, the fact that HBS consistently trimmed down its essay set prior to this single prompt likely indicates that a 1,000-word essay would be unwelcome. Moreover, it may be tempting to draft a lengthy essay on traditional subjects such as your career goals, greatest successes, and interest in the school; however, your need for an MBA or specific career goals may be adequately covered in your other materials. This should help to narrow your focus, select your topic and craft a succinct essay. You should take care to steer clear of simply “recycling” essays from HBS’s peer schools, such as Stanford or Wharton, as the adcom will probably spot such an essay based on the highly unfocused nature of the HBS prompt and will not respond positively.
Career Goals Short Answer Briefly tell us more about your career aspirations. (500 characters)
In the online application, there is a short section for your post-MBA goals. Applicants are asked to pick their industry group and function from a dropdown menu. There are 11 options in the industry group pick list, e.g. consulting, venture capital/private equity, and nearly 50 under function, e.g. business development, product management, etc. Then you will have 500 characters (about 80-85 words) to elaborate—albeit briefly.
When explaining your goals, make sure they are aspirational while also being realistic. You’ll want to include why they makes sense. Identify your goals and even name a company or two that you are targeting immediately post-MBA. Then, cover how the short term is a stepping stone to the long term. Highlight the impact you hope to make because of what you’ll be doing, too. Remember, leaders have vision—and HBS will be looking for higher-level plans here.
Post-Interview Reflection
Since the 2012-2013 season, applicants who are invited to interview have been asked to write a reflection about their interview experience.
Typically, this essay must be submitted within 24 hours of completing the interview. Additional instructions regarding the reflection will be sent to applicants who receive interview invitations. HBS will likely ask this of 2020-2021 candidates, so we are including this analysis.
To help draft this reflection, applicants would be wise to jot down some notes immediately after interviewing so that they can later refer to a clear record of what was discussed as well as what, if anything, they would have liked discuss, but did not get a chance to cover. When it comes time to write the essay, applicants should approach their response as if they are crafting a closing argument to their application.
You’ll want to take inventory of the message you’ve conveyed throughout your application materials (essay, résumé, data forms, etc.) and your interview, and then write your reflection with an eye towards emphasizing the key attributes of your candidacy. Lastly, the 24-hour turnaround means that this reflection will require a focused effort from applicants as well as some careful advance planning.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 08:58
Stanford GSB
Essay A. What matters most to you, and why? (Suggested Word Count: 650 words)
For this essay, we would like you to reflect deeply and write from the heart. Once you’ve identified what matters most to you, help us understand why. You might consider, for example, what makes this so important to you? What people, insights, or experiences have shaped your perspectives?
Stanford’s “What Matters Most” essay is one of the most challenging prompts from a top business school. An answer to this essay has the potential to be profound and reveal a side of an applicant that the admissions committee cannot find anywhere else in the application, which is why Stanford has asked this question for more than a dozen years. However, the question can be quite intimidating in the context of a strategic application.
Part of the reason that so many applicants struggle with this topic is because they opt to begin their brainstorming by searching for a direct answer to the question of “what matters most”–rifling through common themes like ‘helping others’, ‘the pursuit of knowledge’, ‘revolutionizing an industry’, and any number of textbook replies. With each passing idea, candidates find themselves losing steam and fearful of getting lost in the shuffle of applicants who espouse similar views. While starting with an answer to “what matters most” and working into the body of the essay does seem tempting (and even quite logical), our years of experience advising Stanford GSB candidates tell us that this is often a dead-end. The good news is that we have another approach that has been wildly successful for more than 10 years.
The advice we are about to offer here may seem counterintuitive, but we actually encourage applicants to ‘work backwards’ when crafting this essay via a simple exercise (outlined below). In short, since the purpose of this question is to let the admissions team get to know you better, you should start with who you are and all that you have experienced and accomplished, and then work backwards to find the overarching theme of “what matters most.” Keep in mind that your direct ‘answer’ to the question here is NOT what is going to make you stand out (it may even be somewhat pedestrian), rather it is the series of anecdotes and supporting evidence you provide around that theme that will help you convey your unique candidacy to the admissions team.
So in short, if you find yourself struggling with how to answer this question, try this simple exercise:
Write down the 15 to 20 most important events, accomplishments, interests, or experiences in your life. Include the good, the bad, the astounding, the ugly, etc. Also, remember that no time frame is off limits–think of events from your early childhood to the present day.
Look at the list you have generated and try to determine the themes that unify the important events, interests, and ideas in your life.
Select a small number of diverse items from the list that best support a given theme and use them to define your approach and kick off the drafting process for the essay.
This exercise of working backwards allows you to not only arrive at a “what matters most” theme that really resonates with you, but also helps you find specific examples and anecdotes to help you show how you have explored what matters most to you in your life.
Essay B. Why Stanford? (Suggested Word Count: 400 words)
Describe your aspirations and how your Stanford GSB experience will help you realize them. If you are applying to both the MBA and MSx programs, use Essay B to address your interest in both programs.
Stanford’s second essay steps away from the philosophical to focus on the candidate’s career goals and reasons for going to Stanford. Although this essay is more specific than Essay A, the “Why Stanford?” prompt is far less specific than the career goals questions of other top business schools. Instead of mapping out a specific career path in this essay, applicants should focus on defining the broad impact they hope to make on a service, a sector, or society at large through their chosen career. Essay B is strongest when it connects with Essay A. Essay A is your opportunity to lay out a philosophical explanation of what matters most to you, while Essay B gives you the opportunity to show how you would use your time at Stanford and your career to further what matters most to you. In this essay, you need to show the admissions committee that Stanford offers you benefits you can’t find at any other schools. Talk about specific classes, programs, collaboration with other parts of the school, dual degree offerings, clubs, conferences, or other offerings that set Stanford apart from other top business schools. Learning about the school’s curriculum, special programs and extracurricular activities–whether through an online event or conversation with alumni–will help you craft a response to Essay B that really stands out.
Optional Short-Answer Question A
In the Essays section of the application, we ask you to tell us about who you are and how you think Stanford will help you achieve your aspirations. We are also interested in learning about the things you have done that are most meaningful to you. If you would like to go beyond your resume to discuss some of your contributions more fully, you are welcome to share up to three examples (up to 1,200 characters, or approximately 200 words, for each example).
Question: Think about times you’ve created a positive impact, whether in professional, extracurricular, academic, or other settings. What was your impact? What made it significant to you or to others?
Unlike other optional essays, this Stanford GSB essay is clearly an opportunity to showcase your impact, and therefore should be completed. This question is a classic in terms of MBA essays; adcoms are interested in people who make an impact, whether at work, or in other avenues of their lives. They want to know you’ll make an impact while on campus at Stanford and as an alumni, as you pursue your career and life goals. That said, this is also an optional exercise. Stanford notes, “The two required essays shed light on who you are and how you imagine Stanford will help you achieve your aspirations. We are also interested in learning about the things you have done that are most meaningful to you. In this section, we provide an optional opportunity to go beyond your resume to discuss some of your contributions more fully.” So, you will want to be selective and ensure that you are adding meaningful content beyond that in your resume.
Whether you choose an example (or examples) from your professional or personal life, it’s important to share all the background a reader will need to appreciate the story before clearly outlining the actions you took and the results you achieved. The more detail you’re able to provide about your role in achieving a positive outcome, the easier it will be for you to accurately demonstrate your leadership skills. It would also be worth commenting on why the impact was meaningful to you or others, as this could help you show how you value Stanford’s mission statement of “Change lives. Change organizations. Change the world.” Perhaps you are lucky enough to have a strong example for each—live, organizations and world—but it would make sense to keep this mission statement in mind as you reflect on your impact.
Optional Short-Answer Question B We know that each person is more than a list of facts or pre-defined categories. We are interested in how your background may have influenced your life experiences. In answering this question, consider how your background, such as your work, education, skills, interests, culture, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, ethnicity, where/how you grew up, and/or other factors had an impact on your recent actions and choices (up to 1,200 characters, or approximately 200 words). Question: Tell us about a time within the last three years when your background influenced your participation in a situation, interaction, or project.
In reflecting on what to potentially share, consider what you were able to cover in the required essays. Truly effective applications will find a way to make this response work in conjunction with Essays 1 and 2, reinforcing themes, complementing the ideas already presented, and completing the picture of who you are. While there is no time limit on the source of your motivation, the situation, interaction or project needs to have taken place in the last three years. With a limit of 200 words, it would behoove applicants to be concise about their motivation, touching on the defining category that Stanford mentioned in the preamble. Then, connect this background information to the recent situation, interaction or project. Be explicit about how your background influenced your recent actions.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 09:05
Wharton
Essay 1
How do you plan to use the Wharton MBA program to help you achieve your future professional goals? You might consider your past experience, short and long-term goals, and resources available at Wharton. (500 words; Required)
This year’s career goals essay is a bit more focused than last season’s version of this prompt, asking candidates to articulate their post-MBA professional goals and providing some guidance as to the scope of candidate’s responses. Along with describing their immediate post-MBA career goals, applicants should explain their long-term career goals and the broad impact they hope to have on their industry, community, country or region. A brief career summary can naturally lead to the gaps in one’s professional skill set that the Wharton MBA would fill – and how.
While the new second essay is dedicated to how one may, in turn, contribute to the school, it is still important to balance a sense of gain with giving here. It will require that applicants be very thoughtful and as concise as possible. For instance, if you are interested in consumer goods, do not limit your exploration of the topic to the idea that you would acquire knowledge individually, e.g. in taking a particular course; instead, consider how you may get involved in organizing a conference or bringing a speaker to campus so that you may share this knowledge with fellow students. The key is to define what you need to learn, and integrating a sense of individual growth balanced with knowledge sharing, so that you may be seen as part of a community. Also consider what clubs and activities could help you grow on a professional level—e.g. how would you learn to motivate others by organizing a specific event?
Of course, to craft a truly compelling essay, applicants must also display a strong and specific understanding of how Wharton’s program would enable them to accomplish their goals. Taking the time to learn about the school’s curriculum, special programs and extracurricular activities—whether by seeking out alumni or current students to engage, or connecting with resources through the Wharton website—will pay dividends here.
Essay 2
Taking into consideration your background—personal, professional, and/or academic—how do you plan to make specific, meaningful contributions to the Wharton community? (400 words; Required)
When announcing this new essay for the 2020-2021 admissions season, Wharton Director of Admissions, Blair Mannix, said, “Our main goal is to get to know you the best that we can, and the change to our second prompt was largely motivated by that desire. We hope to give applicants room to reflect on their unique backgrounds and think about what their value-add will be to the Wharton community. Applicants should remember that the Admissions Committee is looking for candidates who will contribute to all aspects of Wharton life.”
With that in mind, applicants should aim to balance reflections on their past and connect their history with potential future contributions to Wharton. That said, this second question is another classic in terms of MBA essays; adcoms are interested in people who make an impact, whether at work, or in other avenues of their lives. They want to know you’ll make an impact while on campus at Wharton and then as an alum, as you pursue your career and life goals. Whether you choose to draw on your professional, personal or academic life, it’s important to create context before connecting to how you would contribute to Wharton.
As you approach the contributions, specifically, think about how you can translate your experience and related lessons into involvement on the Wharton campus. Creating a link between your past and your potential future at the program will enable you to present a consistent and clear picture of your candidacy, as well as your professional and personal interests. The more information you can provide about how exactly you would contribute (playing a certain role in organizing a particular annual event, for example), the more reason you’ll give the adcom to admit you.
Wharton MBA Reapplicant Essay
Please use this space to share with the Admissions Committee how you have reflected and grown since your previous application and discuss any relevant updates to your candidacy (e.g., changes in your professional life, additional coursework, and extracurricular/volunteer engagements). (250 words; required for reapplicants)
Given the narrow word limit for this response, reapplicants will want to offer a straightforward account of the specific steps they’ve taken to strengthen their applications since last applying to Wharton. Candidates should aim to be as exhaustive as possible as they cover improved quantitative records, enhanced professional qualifications, efforts to become more familiar with the Wharton MBA program, and other ways they’ve worked to become a stronger applicant this season.
Optional First-time Applicant Essay Please use this space to share any additional information about yourself that cannot be found elsewhere in your application and that you would like to share with the Admissions Committee. This space can also be used to address any extenuating circumstances (e.g., unexplained gaps in work experience, choice of recommenders, inconsistent or questionable academic performance, areas of weakness, etc.) that you would like the Admissions Committee to consider.
Consider these five questions before providing additional information (and extra reading) to the adcom. If you need to address glaring weaknesses or liabilities (as opposed to offering “bonus information” about one’s candidacy), keep responses brief and to-the-point. Offer explanations without making excuses and humbly bring mitigating factors to the reader’s attention.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 09:11
Kellogg
Kellogg MBA Essay 1
Kellogg’s purpose is to educate, equip & inspire brave leaders who create lasting value. Provide a recent example where you have demonstrated leadership and created lasting value. What challenges did you face, and what did you learn? (450 words)
This Kellogg MBA essay question asks the candidate to recount a leadership experience in which they had a substantial impact, and which also involved overcoming challenges and learning something that will continue to serve them in future situations. The word “brave” also stands out, likely a hint that Kellogg welcomes applicants who can demonstrate that they are willing to take calculated risks and look beyond how things have always been done in service of the larger mission or goal.
When Kate Smith, the Assistant Dean of Admissions & Financial Aid at Kellogg, first announced this essay question in the school blog, she also noted “We’re looking for those individuals who have found or plan to find unique ways to demonstrate the Kellogg purpose in their careers. As you consider leadership in particular, keep in mind that Kellogg was the school that pioneered the team-based learning model that is now ubiquitous among the top business schools. We want all of our students to be able to step up when their teams need them.” With that in mind, you’ll want to choose leadership examples that showcase not only your ability to rally others around you and guide them toward an objective, but also your ability to do so in an innovative way.
Regarding the sorts of recent examples that one might cover, the wording of this Kellogg MBA essay question is technically wide open to personal and professional experiences. Rather than gauging the significance of an experience solely in dollar amounts or percentages, we encourage applicants to attend to the follow up question about the challenges faced and lessons learned. Whether the challenge was logistical (like stretching yourself to coordinate across internal teams while managing a client’s expectations) or interpersonal (such as developing a good working relationship with an adversarial colleague), effective responses will highlight a transferable skill that was formed or strengthened during this process. Of course, the end result must be lasting and positive.
With respect to structure, we recommend a basic STAR approach for this response. Begin by describing the situation, the players, and stakeholders involved before moving into the task: what you needed to accomplish in your leadership goal. You should also lay the groundwork for the challenges you encountered, identifying the factors or relationships you would need to navigate to be successful. You should then move into the action, providing a chronological account of how you moved through the project or process. It would likely make narrative sense to introduce the challenges and how you overcame them as part of this narrative rather than addressing this in a separate section.
Finally, you should comment on the result — the outcome of your leadership efforts and the resolution of the story. Given the focus on “lasting value,” this will likely involve a comment on a positive impact and happy clients, customers, or stakeholders. The response should then conclude with a reflection on the lessons you learned, and perhaps a comment on how they have served you since and/or how they position you to add real value to the Kellogg community.
Kellogg MBA Essay 2
Values are what guide you in your life and work. What values are important to you, and how have they influenced you?
This second Kellogg MBA essay question makes another appearance in the Kellogg application. When first announcing the essay, Smith followed this question with the commentary, “Our goal … is to uncover what motivates and inspires you. What drives you? How will this make you a meaningful member of the Kellogg community?” This question reflects Kellogg’s interest in identifying students who are in a position to contribute meaningfully to the school’s community. Candidates will be well served by some deep reflection on this topic, with the ultimate goal of offering insight into how they have enacted—and will continue to enact—their defining values.
If you are struggling to determine your defining values, you may try to ‘work backwards’ when crafting this essay via a simple exercise.
If you find yourself struggling with how to answer this question, try this simple exercise:
Write down the 15 to 20 most important events, accomplishments, interests, or experiences in your life. Include the good, the bad, the astounding, the ugly, etc.
Look at the list you have generated and try to determine the values that unify the important events, interests, and ideas in your life.
Select a small number of diverse items from the list that best support a given value and use them to define your approach and kick off the drafting process for the essay.
In short, since the purpose of this Kellogg MBA essay question is to let the admissions team get to know you better, you might start with some notes about who you are and all that you have experienced and accomplished, and then work backwards to find the prevalent values. Keep in mind that your direct ‘answer’ to the question here is NOT what is going to make you stand out (it may even be somewhat pedestrian). Rather, it is the series of anecdotes and supporting evidence you provide in support of your values that will help you convey your unique candidacy to the admissions team. This exercise of working backwards allows you to not only distill the values that really resonate with you, but can also help you find specific examples and anecdotes that will help you show your values in action.
As the Assistant Dean of Admissions & Financial Aid mentioned, the adcom wants to know how your values will make you an asset to the Kellogg community. Therefore, it would make sense to wrap this essay up with connections to Kellogg’s offerings. Consider specific classes, programs, potential collaborations with other parts of the school, clubs, conferences, or other offerings that your involvement would enhance. Learning about the school’s curriculum, special programs and extracurricular activities–whether through a visit to campus or conversations with alumni–will help you craft a response that really stands out.
Re-applicant Essay
Since your previous application, what steps have you taken to strengthen your candidacy? (250 word limit)
The framing of this Kellogg MBA essay question suggests that the adcom is more interested in proactive steps toward material improvement of one’s candidacy, as opposed to a reflective discussion of personal growth (in fairness, the growth angle is well covered in the school’s required essays). Applicants should therefore focus on the specific ways they’ve worked to strengthen their candidacies over the past year (e.g. assuming more responsibility at work, attending conferences in line with your long-term professional goals, retaking the GMAT, or bolstering community involvement), and the reasons that they believe themselves to be a better applicant to Kellogg this time around.
Additional Information
If needed, use this section to briefly describe any extenuating circumstances (e.g. unexplained gaps in work experience, choice of recommenders, inconsistent or questionable academic performance, etc.).
The wording of this prompt signals that comments in this section should be limited to explaining potential liabilities or inconsistencies in one’s application. While applicants are free to write as much as they like here, we recommend a straightforward approach that uses as few words — and as little of the reader’s scarce time — as possible. Applicants who chose to respond to this essay should adopt a humble tone, acknowledge the issue without making excuses, and gently suggest other aspects of his or her candidacy that may help to compensate for this weakness.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 09:17
Chicago Booth
Booth MBA Essay 1
How will the Booth MBA help you achieve your immediate and long-term post-MBA career goals? (250-word minimum)
This Booth MBA essay is a fairly straightforward career goals essay. To address this question fully and in detail, candidates will want to identify the position that they hope to hold immediately after graduating from Booth, naming both a job title and 1-2 organizations for which they would most like to work. They will then want to discuss their longer-range 5-10 year plan, explaining not just what role they hope to occupy, but also commenting on the broader impact they hope to have in this position. It would then make sense to touch on the ways an MBA would facilitate progress toward these goals, and describe the factors that make Booth an especially good next step. To underscore this fit, name some curricular or programmatic offerings that are relevant to these objectives. Conducting thorough research on the program—whether by attending an info session, or speaking with students and alumni—will help you achieve maximum impact.
Given the open-ended length of this Booth MBA essay, it may be tempting to introduce accomplishments or details outside of the scope of the question, or include unnecessary details about your plans, but stay focused on the prompt! While the application says to “use your judgment,” you can take a hint on preferred length from the 300-word limit of the optional essay. Of course, you are welcome to exceed 300 words—just make sure they count. 400 words would be concise and pack a punch. If you must exceed 500 words, which is fairly standard, make sure every word is necessary to address the prompt. Finally, considering how many applications the adcom must go through, you’ll want to avoid bogging them down with a 1,000-word essay.
Booth MBA Essay 2
An MBA is as much about personal growth as it is about professional development. In addition to sharing your experience and goals in terms of career, we’d like to learn more about you outside of the office. Use this opportunity to tell us something about who you are… (250-word minimum)
Start by reflecting on your past experiences outside of the office and a broader theme that defines who you are. In other words, you do not need to discuss every time you volunteered in your community, but rather the most influential experience in this Booth MBA essay.
You might also try the following exercise to help you focus:
Write down the 10 to 15 most important events, accomplishments, interests, or experiences in your life. Include the good, the bad, the astounding, the ugly, etc.
Look at the list you have generated and try to determine the themes that unify the important events, interests, and ideas in your life. How have you dedicated your time? What values have you fought for? What appears to define who you are?
Select one or two items from the list that best support given strengths or values and use them to define your approach and kick off the drafting process for this Booth MBA essay.
Once you establish your values—based on your experiences, interests and passions—connect to what you will contribute to Booth. Ultimately, the adcom wants to see how you will fit with the community based on your attitudes and experiences.
Additional Information
Is there any unclear information in your application that needs further explanation? If so, please use this section to clarify. (300 words)
The response to this Booth MBA essay will be an appropriate place to address any elements of one’s application that need further explanation (e.g. recommender choice, low GMAT score, questionable undergraduate performance, expected promotions, etc.). The wording of this Booth MBA essay is fairly open and inviting, and so it might also be an appropriate place to share an additional anecdote or highlight an impressive accomplishment. Applicants should aim to demonstrate good judgment in deciding whether to respond to this prompt, and should take care not to introduce information that appears elsewhere in their materials or that could have been covered in response to one of the above essays or in the data form.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 09:28
Columbia Business School
Short Answer Question
What is your immediate post-MBA professional goal? (50 characters)
For the 11th year in a row on the CBS application form, this question asks applicants to speak directly about the job they wish to have upon graduating from business school. The adcom offers several sample answers to illustrate the sort of direct response they’re seeking. Given a short and strict limit of 50 characters, you’ll want to clearly and concisely describe your short-term goal, making sure that it aligns with what you write in
Columbia MBA Essay Question 1
Through your résumé and recommendations, we have a clear sense of your professional path to date. What are your career goals over the next 3-5 years and what, in your imagination, would be your long term dream job? (500 words)
Appearing for a fifth year in a row on the CBS application, this first essay prompts applicants to focus almost exclusively on their career goals. We say “almost” here because a bit of context will be important. For example, applicants might remark on how their professional experiences to date have informed their interest in their post-MBA path, and might also comment on transferable skills they’ve gained on the job that will apply to their future posts. In short, make sure that your comments build on rather than repeat material that the adcom can find in your recommendations or résumé. Also, the reference to a “dream job” stands out here. In light of this language, your long-term plans should be aspirational, as top programs want to admit folks who will make an impact in the world. That said, they should be realistic, based on your short-term aspirations, an MBA and career to-date.
Columbia MBA Essay Questions 2 and 3
Please respond to two (2) of the three (3) essay questions listed below:
Option 1: The Phillips Pathway for Inclusive Leadership (PPIL) is a new co-curricular program designed to ensure that every CBS student develops the skills to become an ethical and inclusive leader. Through PPIL, students attend programming focused on give essential diversity, equity, and inclusion skills: Creating an Inclusive Environment, Mitigating Bias, Communicating Across Identities, Addressing Systemic Inequality, and Managing Difficult Conversations. Tell us about a time you were challenged around one of these five skills. Describe the situation, the actions you took, and the outcome. (250 words)
New to the CBS application, this essay option asks applicants to reflect on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in their lives. As CBS will be introducing PPIL in spring 2021, all first-year MBA students will be required to attend at least one PPIL-approved session and submit a post-event reflection form. Before getting started with the essay, it could help to read through the PPIL website to get a greater sense of the school’s vision for the programming and more.
No matter the DEI skill selected, applicants should ensure they were active participants in achieving a positive outcome. When tackling this option, note that CBS offers a structure at the end of the prompt, akin to the STAR method:
Situation – Set the stage or identify the situation and related challenge.
Action – Describe the actions you took related to DEI, including how you communicated your solution.
Outcome – Summarize the (hopefully positive) result.
Indeed, this structure should help you convey your story concisely and directly.
The door is wide open for examples, but the key is to ensure you touch on each element of the prompt to show how you are an ethical and inclusive leader. It will be important to connect to how a situation has influenced you—ideally shown through some related actions—as the adcom will want to get to know you and how you think and evolve. Action would also strengthen a response here—think beyond comments or campaigns shared on Facebook, and reflect on advocating actively. This can be a lot of ground to cover in 250 words, but if you have room, concluding with a brief example of how you applied what you learned would show that you learned from the challenge.
Option 2: Why do you feel Columbia Business School is a good fit for you? (250 words)
Because people applying to Columbia are often also considering other leading schools like Wharton, Chicago Booth, and NYU Stern, it’s especially important for applicants to convince the Columbia adcom of their sincere interest in their program. To get as much mileage as possible out of this essay, you should aim to develop a very detailed response that explains how lessons from key classes and participation in certain student organizations will position you to accomplish your professional and/or personal objectives. The adcom will also be interested in hearing about how you see yourself contributing to the community and enhancing the experience of other students, so naming some events that you would like to help organize or a club you would hope to lead will also bolster your case. Also keep in mind that CBS sees New York City as an extension of their campus, so you’ll want to comment on why that is significant for 有.
Covering all of this ground within a 250-word essay is no easy task, so zeroing in on the aspects of the CBS MBA program that are most closely aligned with your goals will be important to developing an effective response; an in-depth review of the program website, conversations with current students and alumni, or admissions events, are all viable sources of the information you’ll need here.
Option 3: Tell us about your favorite book, movie or song and why it resonates with you. (250 words)
This prompt reflects a desire to get to know applicants on a more personal level. While applicants have a myriad of options in choosing a book, movie or song to discuss, the most important part of a candidate’s response will be to showcase their self-awareness by articulating why they connect with the content in just 250 words. It’s also worth noting that selecting an item that isn’t currently ubiquitous can help one stand out from other applicants and showcase a tendency to follow your own path. At the same time, selecting something that’s too obscure may create a missed opportunity to connect with the admissions reader over a shared favorite. We therefore recommend selecting a book, movie or song who several of your friends or family have at least heard of. (That said, if you believe that something by an unknown local artist is truly your best and most authentic answer to this question, we wouldn’t rule it out — and maybe you’ll win them a new fan in your admissions reader.) Given that CBS prides itself on its New York City location, you may immediately think of Frank Sinatra’s classic song, “New York, New York.” However, try to push past the obvious to ensure that you stand out in the admissions process.
No matter which you select, applicants should not presume that the admissions reader will be familiar with your choice. Effective responses to this question will highlight specific details about the selection and explain in detail why they resonate with one’s own character or personality. Remember that the selection is a vehicle for sharing information about yourself — and hinting at your fit with CBS — in this essay.
As a final note, applicants should review the entirety of the book, movie or song they choose to ensure that the message they want to convey is supported. It would also be wise to consider the entirety of a writer’s or creator’s oeuvre and public image, and to steer clear of the controversial or over-exposed.
Optional Essay
Is there any further information that you wish to provide the Admissions Committee? If so, use this space to provide an explanation of any areas of concern in your academic record or your personal history. This does not need to be a formal essay. You may submit bullet points. (Maximum 500 Words)
The admissions committee offers a rather direct prompt to address liabilities in one’s application, e.g. gaps in employment, a weak quantitative record, etc. In such cases, applicants should keep their responses brief and to-the-point, offering explanations without making excuses and humbly bringing mitigating factors to the reader’s attention. That said, it’s possible that there are other elements of one’s background that would be appropriate and not covered elsewhere in one’s application, for example an anticipated promotion or an element of one’s identity not covered in the program’s data forms. While applicants should make an effort to fully represent their candidacies within the required elements of the application, this leaves a bit of room for short exceptions.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 09:40
MIT Sloan作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 09:45
Berkeley Haas
Preamble
Within the application, Berkeley Haas has the following above the essays:
Essays help us learn about who you are as a person and how you will fit with our community. We seek candidates from a broad range of industries, backgrounds, and cultures. Our distinctive culture is defined by four key principles – Question the Status Quo, Confidence Without Attitude, Students Always, and Beyond Yourself. We encourage you to reflect on your experiences, values, and passions so that you may craft thoughtful and authentic responses that demonstrate your fit with our program – culturally, academically, and professionally.
Berkeley MBA Essay 1
What makes you feel alive when you are doing it, and why? (300 words maximum)
While an adrenaline-fueled answer like skydiving or race car driving may come to mind first, the response to this Berkeley MBA essay should be kept in the context of business school admissions. Essentially, the Haas adcom is asking what you are most passionate about and, ideally, you would ultimately connect to one of their defining principles. Though there are myriad potential topics to discuss here, applicants should consider the balance of subjects they cover across their essays and choose a topic that provides new insight into their overall candidacy. For example, if the majority of content in the next essay is focused on your professional life and accomplishments, this would be an opportunity to showcase and highlight your extracurricular passions or interests.
As you approach this Berkeley MBA essay, be sure to think broadly about themes in your background and the forces behind your decisions and involvements. This should allow you to arrive at a topic that is true to your passions and enables you to show the reader a side of yourself not covered in your other essays while tying your goals and/or previous experiences together to some extent.
Berkeley MBA Essay 2
The definition of successful leadership has evolved over the last decade and will continue to change. What do you need to develop to become a successful leader? (300 words max)
First, reflect on how the definition of successful leadership has evolved, over the last decade. The heart of this Berkeley MBA essay is to show Haas that you have the ability to lead others, as well as insight into your own leadership abilities and the motivation to improve these skills. This question calls for a careful balance between the individual and external, and can be seen as a “why MBA” question with the nuanced focus on adaptability.
Defining your leadership skills and then accounting for how you have demonstrated them with specific examples could make for a strong opening here. Then, you may touch on where you feel you have room for improvement before dedicating more space to how a Haas MBA would enable you to address these areas. Applicants will need to demonstrate knowledge of the Haas MBA program, as well as thoughtfulness about how their potential leadership roles and community contributions align with Berkeley’s values. Speaking with students and alumni or attending information sessions will prove helpful on this front.
Berkeley MBA Essay 3 (Optional)
We invite you to help us better understand the context of your opportunities and achievements.
1.What is the highest level of education completed by your parent(s) or guardian(s)?
Did not complete high school
High school diploma or equivalency (GED)
Associate’s degree (junior college) or vocational degree/license
Bachelor’s degree (BA, BS)
Master’s degree (MA, MS)
Doctorate or professional degree (MD, JD, DDS)
2.What is the most recent occupation of your parent(s) or guardian(s)?
Unemployed
Homemaker
Laborer
Skilled worker
Professional
3.If you were raised in one of the following household types, please indicate.
Raised by a single parent
Raised by an extended family member (grandparent, aunt/uncle, niece/nephew, cousin)
Raised in a multi-generational home
Raised in foster care
4.What was the primary language spoken in your childhood home?
If you have you ever been responsible for providing significant and continuing financial or supervisory support for someone else, please indicate.
Child
Spouse
Sibling
Parent
Extended family member (grandparent, aunt/uncle, niece/nephew, cousin)
Other
Please elaborate on any of your above responses. Alternatively, you may use this opportunity to expand on other hardships or unusual life circumstances that may help us understand the context of your opportunities, achievements, and impact.
(300 words maximum)
Overall, Haas is trying to get a better understanding of the context from which a candidate has evolved, both professionally, and personally. Moreover, these questions invite a sense of your attitude and resilience through adversity. While the opening five questions establish potential jumping off points, you are free to delve into another personal experience that defines you. The key to this essay is to quickly establish context and then elaborate on how you handled the situation and grew because of it. An important thing to keep in mind is to avoid a “blame game” and simply establish the circumstances that influenced you. Most importantly, you’ll want to account for your actions (to show) and briefly comment on why the situation was difficult for you. After all, resilience entails a struggle with an outcome of success.
Given the highly personal nature of the opening five questions, candidates should reflect more on circumstances that have informed their character, as opposed to digging into a setback at work in this Berkeley MBA essay. You may be able to incorporate how the lessons you learned from hardships and unusual circumstances have informed your approach to your career, but professional setbacks should not be the main focus of this essay. Also keep in mind that this Berkeley MBA essay is optional—do not feel pressure to make a mountain out of a molehill to deliver more content in your application. Take some time to reflect and tell the adcom how the circumstances from their queries or other situations influenced 有.
Berkeley MBA Essay 4 (Optional)
This section should only be used to convey relevant information not addressed elsewhere in your application. This may include explanation of employment gaps, academic aberrations, supplemental coursework, etc. You are encouraged to use bullet points where appropriate.
Applicants should exercise discretion when responding to this prompt, as providing an optional essay creates extra work for the admissions reader. This will be a good place to address extenuating circumstances that have influenced one’s academic or professional history, to address weaknesses in one’s application, or to explain an unusual choice of recommender. The wording of this question is open enough that applicants may also choose to discuss an element of their background that is not reflected in their other materials (including data forms and résumé), though they will need to demonstrate sound judgment in doing so – i.e. the nature of the content should be such that it makes a material difference to one’s application – and should summarize the information as concisely as possible.
Short Answer
The Berkeley Haas application has not been released as of June 14, 2021; however, in past applications, the following short answer has been required and we are including it here for reference.
Briefly describe your immediate post-MBA career goal. (150 words maximum)
Haas has moved this from the work experience section to the personal data II section within the application. Still, it is a fairly standard career goals essay, requesting one’s post-MBA plans. Applicants should open this essay by describing their plans upon graduating from Haas. Due to the short length, the response should be concise in covering the particular role and responsibilities you are interested in. Next, identify your long-term goal so that the adcom knows where you are heading from the start. Then, you can delve into material that bridges the two goals together. It would be wise to close your response by tying together the Haas principles with your plans, and end on a note of enthusiasm about the program.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 09:46
Dartmouth Tuck
Tuck MBA Essay 1
Tuck students can articulate how the distinctive Tuck MBA will advance their aspirations. Why are you pursuing an MBA and why Tuck? (300 words)
This Tuck MBA essay question is a fairly straightforward career goals essay, asking applicants to explain 1) their professional aspirations, 2) why they’re interested in pursuing an MBA, and 3) why they’d like to do so at Tuck in particular.
Given the tight word limit, applicants will need to address each of these three elements directly and concisely. For your career goals, be as grounded and direct as possible—identify a position and target industry, and explain what draws you to this role and how it connects with your previous experience. If you have space after drafting your response, you may also want to highlight the impact you hope to have through your work.
Then, consider first what skills you need from an MBA; this can inform what you need from Tuck and how this program will help you accomplish the growth you’re seeking. With respect to how the MBA would help you achieve your goals, it would make sense to briefly comment on your work experience to date in order to establish the skills you already possess; this helps to establish the gap in your skill set that a Tuck MBA would fill.
This phase of your discussion should establish the skills and knowledge you hope to gain from a Tuck MBA while integrating details about the program. Forging specific connections between the skills you hope to gain (whether in the classroom or through involvement in student clubs or other outlets) and your future plans will show the adcom that you’ve researched the program and have a sound understanding of how a Tuck MBA will prepare you for success. Finally, given Tuck’s remote location, you may wish to acknowledge in this section why getting an MBA away from the bustle of an urban environment is important to you.
Tuck MBA Essay 2
Tuck students recognize how their individuality adds to the fabric of Tuck. Tell us who you are. (300 words)
In this Tuck MBA essay, paint a clear picture of who you are, while considering the following. In the 2018-2019 admissions season, Tuck released new evaluation criteria for their admissions decisions. It would behoove applicants to review Tuck’s most sought after student attributes (smart, accomplished, aware and encouraging) to see what resonates and to reflect on how to demonstrate these qualities through this response. Reading through the evaluation criteria should give you a greater understanding of the program’s culture, help you determine your fit with Tuck, and kick start your brainstorming for this essay.
After reviewing these criteria, applicants may want to identify which elements of the student culture are already evident in their activities and accomplishments to date. It would be ideal to touch on one to two examples that illustrate one’s skills and potential to make a positive impact. Consider this in light of the idea that past behavior supports future success.
You might also try the following exercise to help you focus:
Write down the 10 to 15 most important events, accomplishments, interests, or experiences in your life. Include the good, the bad, the astounding, the ugly, etc.
Look at the list you have generated and try to determine the themes that unify the important events, interests, and ideas in your life. How have you dedicated your time? What values have you fought for? Considering your actions will help you connect to values outlined in Tuck’s evaluation criteria.
Select one or two items from the list that best support given strengths or values and use them to define your approach and kick off the drafting process for the essay.
Once you have established content exemplifying who you are, you should then consider forging (likely brief) connections to how your individuality would add to the unique Tuck culture and community. It will be important to develop a good sense of the opportunities available at Tuck; attending information sessions, or speaking with students and alumni would pay dividends here.
Tuck MBA Essay 3
Tuck students are encouraging, collaborative and empathetic, even when it is not convenient or easy. Describe a meaningful experience in which you exemplified one or more of these attributes. (300 words)
This prompt invites applicants to share challenging situations that align with Tuck’s evaluation criteria—in this case, being encouraging, collaborative and empathetic. Given that Tuck is seeking students who “actively celebrate and support others,” it would make sense to choose an example in which you directly engaged and supported someone (rather than, for example, helping an employer succeed by improving their bottom line). With this in mind, applicants may want to reflect on managerial or mentoring relationships that yielded positive results. You may even have a peer teamwork experience to discuss. No matter the nature of the relationship at the heart of the story, it will be important to discuss one’s actions, interactions, and results. What challenges did you face? How did you address them? How were you generous? What did success look like? What did you learn in the process? Perhaps you took time out of your day to mentor a new intern, who then moved on to a full-time position at your firm; perhaps a team member had a problem with time management, and you stayed late to help meet a deadline. Other examples may include investing in your local community in some way, like by joining the local Boys and Girls Club and working with youths. Once you dig into these details, conclude with a connection to how this experience could translate to your time at Tuck.
Optional Essay
Please provide any additional insight or information that you have not addressed elsewhere (e.g., atypical choice of evaluators, factors affecting academic performance, unexplained job gaps or changes). Complete this question only if you feel your candidacy is not fully represented by this application. (300 words)
The admissions committee provides some clear guidance about “allowable” topics for this Tuck MBA essay, indicating that it will be best used to address liabilities in one’s application. It’s possible that there are other elements of one’s background that would be appropriate and not covered elsewhere in one’s application—for example an anticipated promotion or an element of one’s identity not covered in the program’s data forms—though the wording of this prompt suggests that it should be used sparingly (i.e. that applicants should make an effort to fully represent their candidacies within the required elements of the application).
Reapplicant Essay
(To be completed by all reapplicants) How have you strengthened your candidacy since you last applied? Please reflect on how you have grown personally and professionally. (300 words)
This response asks repeat applicants to comment on the concrete steps they have taken to enhance their applications–for example, retaking the GMAT, taking on more responsibility at work, or stepping up their involvement in a community organization–while also providing some more introspective commentary on how they’ve grown since they first applied to Tuck. Reapplicants will, therefore, want to offer a balance of commentary in this essay, remarking on how they’ve proactively taken measures to become a stronger applicant, as well as on how their skills, career goals, and (if applicable) appreciation of the Tuck MBA have evolved in recent months.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 09:47
Yale SOM
Post-MBA Career Interests
How did you arrive at these career interests? How have you or how will you position yourself to pursue them? (250 words maximum)
Required Essay
Describe the biggest commitment you have ever made. (500 words maximum)
Optional Information
If any aspect of your candidacy needs further explanation (unexplained gaps in work experience, choice of recommenders, academic performance, promotions or recognition, etc.), please provide a brief description here. (200 words maximum)作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 09:52
Duke Fuqua
Required Short Answer Questions
Answer the following question in 500 characters only (the equivalent of about 100 words).
What are your post-MBA career goals? Share with us your first choice career plan and your alternate plan.
Duke Fuqua shortened this already short prompt for the last admissions season, cutting the first question about why applicants are pursuing an MBA now. Instead, applicants are only asked in this Duke MBA essay to concisely state their professional short- and long-term goals, and a back-up plan. Identify your goals and even name a company or two that you are targeting immediately post-MBA. Then, cover how the short term is a stepping stone to the long term. Highlight the impact you hope to make because of what you’ll be doing, too, if you have space. Although asking about career alternatives is a bit unusual as far as b-school applications go, applicants simply need to identify a second post-MBA position that would also lead them toward their stated long-term goals.
Duke MBA Essay 1 – 25 Random Things About Yourself
The ‘Team Fuqua’ spirit and community is one of the things that sets the MBA experience apart, and it is a concept that extends beyond the student body to include faculty, staff, and administration. Please share with us “25 Random Things” about you. The Admissions Committee wants to get to know YOU – beyond the professional and academic achievements listed in your resume and transcript. Share with us important life experiences, your hobbies, achievements, fun facts, or anything that helps us understand what makes you who you are.
Your list will be limited to 2 pages (750 words maximum). Please present your response in list form, numbered 1 to 25. Some points may be brief, while others may be longer.
This nontraditional MBA application essay has been a staple of the Duke application for several years running. This suggests that the format is working, i.e. that the adcom has been pleased with the information this exercise provides about candidates’ backgrounds and fit with Team Fuqua. This open-ended prompt allows applicants to showcase interesting and meaningful facts about themselves that they otherwise might not get a chance to share with the adcom. It also amounts to a test of the applicant’s creativity and judgment in arriving at a well-rounded set of admissions-appropriate tidbits.
So, in the spirit of the Duke MBA essay, here’s our list of ten not-so-random things to think about when developing your response to this prompt:
Keep it positive! Share happy memories, silly details, interesting talents, or (very short) stories of resilience and accomplishment. Steer clear of failure or disappointment (unless you can be light-hearted or self-effacing about it).
Aim to cover all domains of your life, including your interests outside of work and even important personal details and relationships. Writing about the reason you admired your grandmother growing up or what you learned during a long-distance phase in your relationship will help the adcom get to know you on a level beyond your resume.
Short list items are okay!
In fact, the most effective responses to this question will intersperse very brief items (of just a few words) with longer ones that might include several sentences, creating an almost poetic effect.
First-date and job-interview rules apply here — think twice before discussing religion or politics. If these areas are important enough to you to warrant mentioning, limit your comments to personal meaning and community aspects (i.e. don’t try to educate or persuade the reader).
Take a lifespan view. Sharing a few details from your childhood can give the admissions reader insight they won’t find anywhere else in your file. Meanwhile, covering present-day favorites (e.g. food, film, travel destination, place to visit in your city or town) can show the reader who you are today.
Brief anecdotes — for example, about learning something the hard way while traveling internationally or working hard to improve at a new hobby — can showcase both your interests as well as your process when faced with a challenge.
We recommend a maximum of 5 work-related list items (and suggest that you aim for even fewer). As the preamble hints, the adcom can read about your professional background elsewhere in your application.
Aim for balance in content throughout your list; rather than listing items chronologically or by domain (i.e. professional, personal, extracurricular), change things up throughout and keep your reader on her toes to make this truly “random.”
Show your draft to a close friend or relative to get feedback on how well you’re capturing your personality (and on whether you’re overlooking anything).
Duke MBA Essay 2: The Fuqua Community and You
Fuqua prides itself on cultivating a culture of engagement. Our students enjoy a wide range of student-led organizations that provide opportunities for leadership development and personal fulfillment, as well as an outlet for contributing to society. Our student-led government, clubs, centers, and events are an integral part of the student culture and to the development of leaders. Based on your understanding of the Fuqua culture, what are 3 ways you expect to contribute at Fuqua?
Your response will be limited to 1 page (300 words maximum)
Fuqua has presented a prompt about its student culture for many years, and this Duke MBA essay question is no exception. When highlighting the changes to this year’s application, Fuqua Assistant Dean of Admissions Allison Jamison said, “Our second essay will still ask you about how you plan to engage with the Fuqua community, but we would like you to limit it to the three most meaningful ways you expect to engage as a student. While there are so many opportunities available, one of the first skills you must develop as a student is how to prioritize what’s most important to you. There will also be a 300-word limit on this essay. Again, we hope this change helps you to focus on things that spark your interest, while also providing the Admissions Committee with helpful insights into the unique contributions you will bring to the class.”
Applicants may want to begin by thinking about an element or two of the student culture with which they find the greatest resonance, and should also consider which are already evident in their activities and accomplishments to date. In fact, one to two examples that illustrate their skills and potential to make a positive impact should be woven in to selected means of contributing. Consider this in light of the idea that past behavior supports future success.
Of course, the majority of this response should center on the applicant’s three planned activities and contributions as a Daytime MBA student. Given the adcom’s preamble about student-led government, clubs, centers and events, applicants will be expected to be fairly concrete in their comments about how they’ll engage in specific activities, to the point of discussing their behavior outside of the classroom and identifying specific student organizations in which they might take a leadership role.
While there is also a focus on personal development, applicants should also describe the impact they hope to make during their two years on campus—after all, this is also geared towards contributing to a community. Candidates should note that speaking convincingly about their ability to make a positive difference will likely require some informed sense of the areas of opportunity and need on campus. Conversations with students and alumni will be very important in producing the most effective essay possible.
Optional Essay
If you feel there are circumstances of which the admissions committee should be aware (such as unexplained gaps in work, choice of recommenders, inconsistent or questionable academic performance), please explain them in an optional essay.
Please do not upload additional essays or additional recommendations in this area of the application, and limit your response to one page.
This Duke MBA essay is a fairly narrow prompt, and applicants should only use this optional essay to address liabilities in their candidacies. While the adcom allows responses of up to one page, applicants should keep their responses as brief and direct as possible.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 09:55
Michigan Ross
Short Answer Questions
Select one prompt from each group of the two groups below. Respond to each selected prompt in 100 words or less (<100 words each; 200 words total). Every word counts here — the tight word count is intentional to force you to focus.
GROUP 1
I want people to know that I:
I made a difference when I:
I was aware that I was different when:
GROUP 2
I am out of my comfort zone when:
I was humbled when:
I was challenged when:
As an initial approach to these short answers, consider the broader themes across them—impact through action, attitude under adversity, or self-awareness amidst diversity—and ensure you have a balance of content across the set. By dividing the questions into groups, the adcom is sending a signal that they want to hear about different aspects of your candidacy. The Director of Admissions at Ross, Soojin Kwon, told Clear Admit, “The essays provide us with the ability to get a sense of who the applicants are, and the experiences that have shaped them. We approach the essay portion of the application looking to get a glimpse of who the applicants are–outside of what we see from their transcripts, test scores, and resume–and hear about their unique stories.” So, it would be prudent to highlight a range of experiences and characteristics as you choose your topics for each group.
Group 1 starts off with a very open-ended option allowing candidates to introduce a hobby or personal characteristic, then the second prompt focuses on impact. Last year, the lead about being different appeared in a separate group. With only 100 words, each sentence must move the story along by conveying some action or impact. It makes sense to ‘complete’ the selected prompt in the first sentence, and, ideally, this opening would include your impressive results. For instance, “I made a difference when I resolved X problem for my local YMCA, resulting in more after school programs” or “I want people to know that I value education. I launched X after school program, which helped dozens of underprivileged students gain access to Y opportunities.” For the third option, you can demonstrate self-awareness about something that sets you apart from others—whether it’s a value or personality trait. There is also the potential to showcase your ability to adapt through resilience and grit, or to highlight emotional intelligence and interpersonal skill in a story about bridging divides or navigating challenging interactions. The key to a strong response here will be establishing what was different, elaborating on your constructive response, and concluding with the positive results.
In regards to Group 2, the overall theme of attitude under adversity stands out. Humility is certainly a positive trait worth exploring. For instance, it would be appropriate to be humbled by how large a project team is, and how many colleagues contributed to its success; or one can be humbled when climbing a challenging peak or navigating a tropical storm in a small sailboat. Regarding being outside of one’s comfort zone, this is an ideal opportunity to introduce any international or cultural experiences you have had. You may also have a hobby that entails consistent growth and challenges; for instance, perhaps your quest for the next belt in your martial arts classes pushes you outside of your comfort zone. “Being challenged” opens up myriad settings for potential options. The key to this essay is to quickly provide the context that the reader needs to appreciate your story, and then elaborate on how you handled the situation and grew because of it.
Career Goal Essay
What is your short-term career goal and why? (200 words)
The Ross adcom has retained this career goals essay question for another admissions season. Briefly establishing where you are headed at the outset of the response can help create context for your short-term goals; hence, we’d recommend that applicants open with their five- to ten-year target position. Then, you can touch on the position you hope to obtain immediately after school — down to the job title and 2-3 dream employers. Be sure to address why this is your goal, whether for impact, skills, or as a stepping stone to your future.
Next, summarizing your skills/strengths based on your background—and explaining how they would enable or have inspired your career plans—will help to set up the gap in your skill set that an MBA would fill. Allot remaining space to addressing why the Ross MBA program and student community are a particularly strong fit with your objectives. If there’s a programmatic offering or elective course that seems particularly relevant to your professional plans, it could be worth mentioning to show the adcom how you see Michigan as an important part of your desired career path.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 09:58
UVA Darden
Short Answer 1: Learning Team
Learning Teams are an invaluable peer resource for Darden students as they navigate the core curriculum. Every student is assigned to a Learning Team consisting of 5-6 students from an array of backgrounds and perspectives, and this built-in support system serves as an important connection to the broader Darden community.
Tell us what you would want your Learning Team to know about you that is not on your resume. (150 words)
Given the narrow word limit, applicants will need to reflect carefully on the aspects of their backgrounds they most want to highlight. While a brief mention of your professional background and career goals may be appropriate for context, note that Darden is looking for material specifically outside of your resume. We encourage applicants to use this opportunity to showcase elements of their personalities and candidacies that they will not have the chance to address elsewehere. Perhaps you have a particularly interesting work or extra-curricular experience to share, or a personal accomplishment or aspect of your heritage of which you’re especially proud. By focusing on a range of qualities and characteristics, this essay will allow applicants to demonstrate the well-rounded nature of their candidacies even within the 150 word limit.
Short Answer 2: Choose One – Leadership and Impact
Darden strives to identify and cultivate responsible leaders who follow their purpose. Please respond to one of the following prompts (200 words)
Select the prompt to which you will respond.
Q1: Tell us about a time when you acted with a team to solve a problem or seize an opportunity. What role did you play? What did you learn from this experience?
Q2: Tell us about a time you acted to solve a problem for the greater good. What drew you to this issue? What did you learn from this experience?
These options are classic in terms of MBA essays; adcoms are interested in people who lead and make an impact, whether at work, or in other avenues of their lives. They want to know you’ll lead and make an impact while on campus at Darden and as an alumni, as you pursue your career and life goals.
Whether you choose an example from your professional or personal life, it’s important to share all the background a reader will need to appreciate the story before clearly outlining the actions you took and the results you achieved. For Option 1, this includes defining your team and the problem/opportunity. Then, walk the adcom through your actions. The more detail you’re able to provide about your role in achieving a positive outcome, the easier it will be for you to accurately demonstrate your leadership skills. For Option 2, it will be important to explain how the results impacted the greater good. You also need to cover why the situation was meaningful to you to provide some insight into your values.
For both, be sure to highlight what you learned—whether refining a skill or discovering a new purpose.
Short Answer 3: Choose One – Diversity and Inclusion
Diversity and inclusion are critical to our mission and they work best when they are an integral and celebrated part of our community. Review the University of Virginia’s Commitment to Diversity.
Diversity stands with ethics, integrity, and academic excellence, as a cornerstone of University culture. The University promotes an inclusive and welcoming environment that embraces the full spectrum of human attributes, perspectives, and disciplines. When people of different backgrounds come together, they exchange ideas, question assumptions (including their own), and broaden the horizons for us all. A University of Virginia community rich in diversity affords every member equal respect and provides a forum for understanding our differences as well as our commonalities.
The Darden School develops practices and cultivates a culture that reflects and incorporate the worldviews of its many community members. In this inclusive culture, the community learns important — and sometimes uncomfortable — lessons from one another, resulting in more conscientious global leaders and citizens. Please respond to one of the following prompts (200 words)
Select the prompt to which you will respond.
Q1: Share a time when you learned something related to diversity, equity or inclusion that was previously unknown to you? How did this experience impact your perspective?
Q2: Share a time when you advocated for a perspective, identity, or community different from your own. How did this experience impact your worldview?
For both options, there are three main elements to cover: defining your initial perspective/worldview (to set the stage for change), establishing the different perspective, identity, community or experience (so the adcom understands the catalyst for change), and explaining how the selected engagement changed your outlook. While Option 1 mentions simply “learning” something new, you should strive to share an example that incorporates action and engagement. For example, for Option 1, perhaps you worked on an international project recently and your engagement with different cultures altered your perspective on leadership, communication or another aspect. In such a case, it will be important to connect to how this has influenced you—ideally shown through some related actions—as the adcom will want to get to know you and how you think and evolve.
Action would also strengthen a response to Option 2—think beyond comments or campaigns shared on Facebook, and reflect on advocating actively. Option 2 can also be an event in which you had a hand, whether a personal or professional one. The door is wide open for examples, but the key is to ensure you touch on each element of the prompt to show how you would fit with the culture at Darden. This can be a lot of ground to cover in 200 words, but if you have room, concluding with a brief example of how you applied what you learned would show that your perspective changed.
Short Answer 4: Career Goal
Darden’s Career Center delivers personalized career searches, support and resources to empower students in their goals to create value as purpose-driven leaders. The team of dedicated, expert career coaches spans every major industry, function and geography and collectively represent over one hundred years of coaching experience. Coaches are prepared to support students wherever they are in their search, as career goals shift and evolve while pursuing an MBA.
Through a wide variety of career-related programming, students gain lifelong skills they will continue to leverage throughout their careers. And this support continues after graduation – All Darden graduates have access to complimentary career support for life through Darden’s Alumni Career Services.
What is your short-term, post-MBA goal and how does it align with the long-term vision you have for your career? (150 words)
This prompt is an abbreviated version of the typical career goals essay, focusing on applicants’ career plans immediately after graduation and connection to the long term. First, describe your ideal target employer(s) and job position for the short term, and then detail how this plan will lead to your long-term vision. Given Darden’s preamble about creating value and being a purpose-driven leader, it would behoove you to include the impact you hope to have throughout your career.
Short Answer 5: Darden Worldwide
The Batten Foundation Worldwide Scholarship provides all Darden students in our full-time MBA program with an opportunity to participate in a Darden Worldwide Course.
Darden has an incredible network of alumni and partners around the world, and, in a typical year, the School connects with over 80 countries. If you could choose any location in the world, where would you want to travel? (5 words) And why? (50 words)
This prompt invites more research into Darden’s international offerings. Applicants should start by reviewing the link provided in the prompt, Darden Worldwide Courses, to see what piques their interest. It would make sense for the choice to tie into one’s career goals, though the reasoning could favor the more personal side, e.g. wanting to show your classmates your home country. You won’t have much room to elaborate, so ensure what you do share reveals more about you, your values or interests.
Optional Essay
If there is further information you believe would be helpful to the Admission Committee, please provide it (250 words).
This optional essay comes at the very end of Darden’s online application. Based on the other sections of the application, this would be the ideal place to address liabilities, e.g. gaps in employment, a weak quantitative record, etc. In such cases, applicants should keep their responses brief and to-the-point, offering explanations without making excuses and humbly bringing mitigating factors to the reader’s attention. That said, it’s possible that there are other elements of one’s background that would be appropriate and not covered elsewhere, for example an anticipated promotion or an element of one’s identity not covered in the program’s data forms. While applicants should make an effort to fully represent their candidacies within the required elements of the application, this leaves a bit of room for short exceptions.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 09:59
NYU Stern
Short Answer: Professional Aspirations
What are your short-term career goals? (150 word maximum)
NYU has trimmed their career goals essay down to a focus on the short term only. Applicants should concisely describe their plans upon graduating from Stern, covering the particular role and responsibilities they are interested in. Name your target firms and skills that you hope to hone. Space permitting, you could lend meaning to your short-term plans by touching on your long-term goals and/or impact you ultimately wish to have. It can also behoove you to highlight how Stern is the ideal stepping stone to your short-term position. Before such additional information, ensure your short-term career goals are the priority and fully covered.
Essay 1: Change
Change: _________ it
In today’s global business environment, the only constant is change. Using NYU Stern’s brand call to action, we want to know how you view change. Change: _____ it. Fill in the blank with a word of your choice. Why does this word resonate with you? How will you embrace your own personal tagline while at Stern? Examples:
Change: Dare it.
Change: Dream it.
Change: Drive it.
Change: Empower it.
Change: Manifest it.
Change: [Any word of your choice.]
(350 word maximum)
Stern’s new prompt for the 2021-2022 admissions season reaches for applicants’ ability to adapt, to innovate and to engage in global business. To show how the word “resonates” with you invites anecdotal evidence of how you have lived the tagline. To brainstorm for this essay, consider your recent professional or personal achievements. Look at the list you have generated and try to determine which projects or achievements connect the most with a sense of change. Ideally, you would be the main driver in positive change (and therefore outcome). 350 words is not a lot of space, so identify the tagline you selected, set the stage with the major players and account for how you drove change and yielded positive results as concisely as possible.
Finally, highlight specific features of the Stern MBA program that will allow you to evolve during the program or affect positive change for fellow students. This can be club activities, in courses and more – speaking with alumni or attending admissions events can give you keen ideas on opportunities at Stern.
Essay 2: Personal Expression (a.k.a. “Pick Six”)
Describe yourself to the Admissions Committee and to your future classmates using six images and corresponding captions. Your uploaded PDF should contain all of the following elements:
A brief introduction or overview of your “Pick Six” (no more than 3 sentences).
Six images that help illustrate who you are.
A one-sentence caption for each of the six images that helps explain why they were selected and are significant to you.
Note: Your visuals may include photos, infographics, drawings, or any other images that best describe you. Your document must be uploaded as a single PDF. The essay cannot be sent in physical form or be linked to a website.
This is a chance to literally show the adcom who you are, where you come from, and what you care about. Candidates should consider what they would truly want their classmates to know about them, while also being mindful of the balance of content between the required essays. That is, because the first response asks about candidates’ career goals, and would necessarily include some commentary on work experience, it would make sense to focus the majority of one’s comments in this response on one’s life outside the workplace. Applicants will want to think reflectively about their values and personality, as well as strategically about what makes them unique with respect to other applicants. Naturally, you’ll also want to communicate your enthusiasm about meeting and working with your fellow students and comment on any ways you would engage with them that aren’t covered in your first essay. The goal will be to convey information about your interests, values, and personality in the context of this creative exercise.
This prompt invites interspersing text with photos and graphics. A captioned photo album of particularly proud moments or a decision-making flow chart visualizing how you decide to spend your free time could show your creativity and willingness to put special effort into your Stern application. Finally, no matter the balance of images and text, applicants should pay attention to tone and ensure that they’re coming across as sincere, collaborative, and excited about the prospect of joining the NYU community.
Optional Essay
Please provide any additional information that you would like to bring to the attention of the Admissions Committee. This may include current or past gaps in employment, further explanation of your undergraduate record or self-reported academic transcript(s), plans to retake the GMAT, GRE, Executive Assessment, IELTS or TOEFL, or any other relevant information. (250 words)
Given the scope of the required essays and the explicit guidelines provided for this essay, applicants would do best to address only the topics outlined by the admissions committee for this prompt.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 10:00
UCLA Anderson
Essay A
For the 2021-2022 application year, we have one essay question that is required for first-time applicants and optional for re-applicants: How have recent events influenced the impact you would like to make in your community, career, or both? (250 words maximum)
We welcome reflection on any events that influenced you in your personal or professional lives, or in society in general, and look forward to learning about specific ways you want to leave your mark.
Within the application, there are fields to define your career goals and address your interest in Anderson. Re-applicants will also have additional space to address improvements or changes in test scores, employment, activities, academics and other areas. This leaves this essay to really expound on the impact you hope to have in the future and how you have been inspired recently. A clear contender for topics would be the role the pandemic has played in your life, or perhaps you have become more involved in issues of social justice. You can certainly also reflect on something less prevalent, but keep in mind you will ultimately want to be able to tie your story back to your community and/or career.
In terms of structural approach to this short answer, you may try opening by fully defining the relevant events. Then, explain how these events have influenced you by describing actions you have taken or a related shift in your perspective. You can follow with describing how you plan to enact these given values or perspectives in the future. Remember that past behavior is often seen as a predictor of future success, so try to reflect on action-based changes in your life and how you could carry on to make direct impact in your future.
Optional Essay
No preference is given in the evaluation process to those who choose to respond to this optional essay, so please use your best judgment: Are there any extenuating circumstances in your profile about which the Admissions committee should be aware? (250 words maximum)
The narrow framing of this prompt — along with the additional suggestion that applicants exercise judgment in responding — suggests that this response will be best reserved to address glaring weaknesses or liabilities in one’s application (as opposed to offering “bonus information” about one’s candidacy). Applicants should keep their responses brief and to-the-point, offering explanations without making excuses and humbly bringing mitigating factors to the reader’s attention.
Re-applicants will have a chance to account for updates to their test scores, work experience, academics, activities and anything else they deem fit within the application data form. If you have refined your goals, for example, you can select “other” in the data form field and address those related improvements there. With all of this in mind, this prompt should be reserved for extenuating circumstances that happen to fall outside of these categories.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 10:03
Cornell
Short Answer
Use this short answer question to succinctly share your short and long term goals. If invited to interview, you will have the opportunity to elaborate further and should be prepared to connect your prior experience with your future aspirations.
A statement of your goals will begin a conversation that will last throughout the admissions process and guide your steps during the MBA program and experience. To the best of your understanding today, please share your short and long term goals by completing the following sentences and answering the enclosed short answer question (350 words maximum):
Immediately post-MBA, my goal is to work as a(n) ____[Role]____ at ___[Company]___within___[Industry]___.
Targeted Job Role:
Target Job Company:
Industry:
In 5 – 10 years post-MBA, my goal is to work as a(n) ____[Role]____ at ___[Company]___within___[Industry]___.
Targeted Job Role:
Target Job Company:
Industry:
How has your experience prepared and encouraged you to pursue these goals?
Applicants would be wise to simply fill in the blanks for the first section of the prompt. Past examples for the short answers have included:
Short Term Goal: Immediately post-MBA my goal is to work as a(n) Consultant at Accenture within Media and Technology.
Long Term Goal: In 5-10 years post-MBA my goal is to work as a(n) Founder and President within Nonprofit.
Like last year, candidates are expected to elaborate a bit on how their past has informed their planned future in this Cornell MBA essay question. This invites applicants to share their career history and how factors, such as industry exposure, client projects and more have influenced their decisions. This is an opportunity to establish one’s skills and set up the need for an MBA. You do not necessarily need to touch on each role you’ve held since graduation, but rather the most influential ones in preparing you for your future. If you are a career changer, you may touch on transferable skills or delve deeper into what really sparked your interest in and passion for your new direction. The key for the short answer is to make clear and concise connections to your vision and motivation.
Cornell MBA Essay Question 1: Impact Essay
This essay is designed to explore the intersection of engagement and community culture. Our students and alumni share a desire to positively impact the organizations and communities they serve. To help you explore your potential for impact, we encourage you to engage with our students, alumni, faculty, and professional staff before submitting your application. You may choose to connect with them via email or phone or in person during one of our on-campus or off-campus events. As you seek their input and insight, please be respectful of their time and prepare a few discussion points or questions in advance.
At Cornell, our students and alumni share a desire to positively impact the organizations and communities they serve. Taking into consideration your background, how do you intend to make a meaningful impact on an elite MBA community? (350 words maximum)
Given the adcom’s encouragement to engage the school community, applicants are likely expected to incorporate how they’ve had contact with Johnson alumni, faculty, staff or current students, and, in turn, how this informs their potential to positively impact the Johnson community. Based on these interactions, applicants may want to begin by thinking about an element or two of the Johnson community with which they find the greatest resonance, and should also consider which are already evident in their activities and accomplishments to date. In fact, one to two examples (100-150 words total) that illustrate their skills and potential to make a positive impact should be woven in to selected means of contributing. Consider this in light of the idea that past behavior supports future success.
Of course, the majority of this response should center on the applicant’s planned activities and impact as a Johnson MBA student. It would be wise to discuss their behavior outside of the classroom and identifying specific student organizations in which they might take a leadership role. Candidates should note that speaking convincingly about their ability to make a positive difference will likely require some informed sense of the areas of opportunity and need on campus. Conversations with students and alumni will be very important in producing the most effective essay possible.
The sense of community through Johnson does not end on graduation day, and the adcom may wish to understand the long-term impact a candidate envisions. With room permitting, it would be nice to end on a note of your post-MBA plans to have an impact on the community.
Optional Essay (Required for Reapplicants)
You may use this essay to call attention to items needing clarification and to add additional details to any aspects of your application that do not accurately reflect your potential for success at Johnson (350 words maximum).
If you are reapplying for admission, please use this essay to indicate how you have strengthened your application and candidacy since the last time you applied for admission. Please also review our Application Guide for additional information about reapplying (350 words maximum).
For first-time applicants, this optional essay should be reserved for addressing potential liabilities in one’s application. Such discussions should be direct and to the point, providing an explanation and pointing to mitigating factors without being defensive or making excuses.
Meanwhile, reapplicants should comment on how they have spent the past year, taking particular care to highlight improved quantitative records, new professional skills and responsibilities, progress toward their ultimate career goals, and/or increased community involvement.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 10:05
INSEAD作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 10:07
London Business School (LBS)
Required Essay
What are your post-MBA goals and how will your prior experience and the London Business School programme contribute towards these? (500 words)
This is a fairly standard career goals/why MBA essay, asking applicants to specify their post-MBA plans and to discuss the ways their work experience to date prepared them, as well as the ways they see an MBA from LBS fitting into this picture. Given the amount of ground that needs to be covered in this response, highlighting one or two major accomplishments should be appropriate, but it will be important to be prudent with the details. As this is the only required essay for LBS, it will be crucial to include some sense of impact, possibly as part of a discussion of how one’s work to date has prepared him or her for elements of the target post-MBA position.
Effective essays will provide all of the requested information in a straightforward manner, naming a job they wish to hold immediately after an MBA and perhaps alluding to the larger plan in which this position is a first step. Admissions Director David Simpson has commented that the adcom looks for applicants who have taken the time to learn about the program and who are genuinely excited about programmatic offerings that are unique to LBS, as well as the school’s highly diverse student community (in terms of nationality as well as professional background), and its location in a global financial capital. Applicants should therefore aim to demonstrate a high degree of thoughtfulness in discussing the ways their previous experience have provided skills and knowledge that will transfer to this new role and, of course, detailing specific elements of the LBS MBA program that will facilitate this transition.
As for the allocation of space in this 500-word response, we recommend providing a thorough but direct treatment of one’s goals, spending 100-200 words on this topic. We then recommend moving through one’s past work experience and past preparation fairly quickly (in another 100 or so words) in order to reserve ample space for a detailed discussion of the appeal of the LBS MBA. Applicants should aim to devote at least 200 words of their essay to the ways an LBS MBA would uniquely prepare them for future success. Rather than writing in generalities about the program, diving right into specific courses and clubs of interest will enable applicants to get as much mileage as possible out of their comments. Going beyond the program’s website and taking the time to learn about the program via information sessions or conversations with students and alumni will pay dividends here.
Optional Essay
Is there any other information you believe the Admissions Committee should know about you and your application to London Business School? (500 words)
LBS has asked these same two essay questions for several admissions cycles. When LBS first released these essays, we caught up with Admissions Director David Simpson about the noticeable reduction in topics. Simpson said, “Along with all the questions we ask in the application form, we believe that the [single required] essay gives us the information we need to make our initial admissions decision.” Hence, applicants should weigh the information they are tempted to share in the optional essay in line with the school’s view that the one required essay should be sufficient.
As applicants are provided fields in the online application to address any academic weaknesses, e.g. academic probation, class withdrawal, etc., this place may be used to address other weaknesses in their applications or anomalies in the professional backgrounds that may raise questions for the admissions committee. While it may also be possible to share more general information about accomplishments or interests, applicants should pay attention to the “should” signifier in the question–a more closed wording than that of schools asking if there’s anything the applicant “would like” the adcom to know. Any information shared here should therefore be of material importance to one’s candidacy (as opposed to details falling in the “nice but not necessary to know” category).作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 10:08
Cambridge / Judge
Essay 1
Please provide a personal statement. It should not exceed 500 words and must address the following questions:
What are your short and long term career objectives and what skills/characteristics do you already have that will help you achieve them?
What actions will you take before and during the MBA to contribute to your career outcome?
If you are unsure of your post-MBA career path, how will the MBA equip you for the future? (up to 500 words)
Cambridge once again includes a fairly standard career goals essay of the sort featured in many MBA programs’ applications. Applicants are asked to outline their immediate post-MBA professional objectives, as well as their longer-term plans. Meanwhile, the explicit request that applicants inventory the existing skills and characteristics that will help them along their chosen paths is a somewhat unusual one, so candidates will need to reflect on their qualifications and take care in addressing this element of the prompt. This can stem naturally from a brief career summary, as one would be able to point to one’s past actions as proof of their current skills/characteristics.
In regards to the second part of the prompt, discussing concrete efforts, such as additional projects at work, engaging Judge’s MBA Careers team or participating in an MBA career trek, would best support Judge’s request for actions. While the adcom does allow for some ambiguity in one’s career plans, keep in mind that leaders are expected to be decisive and have vision, so we strongly recommend having a clear career plan from the outset. Especially given Judge’s one-year program, it will also be best to hit the ground running in terms of pursuing a career. That said, the essay is not binding for one’s career upon admission and the school does anticipate that candidates are looking for a change, as 94% of the recent class changed country, function or industry sector. Should candidates still be at a loss for a specific career path, responses to the final question should be kept brief, with broad reflections on how the skills acquired during the MBA could apply to an industry in general.
As is the case with most schools, demonstrating an understanding of the unique merits of Judge’s program is crucial to an effective response to this question. Taking the time to learn about the school’s curriculum, special programs, and extracurricular activities—whether through an online admissions event, or conversations with alumni—will pay dividends here.
Essay 2
Describe a difficult decision that you had to make. What did you learn from this and how have you changed as a result? (up to 200 words)
Effective responses will provide the essential who, what, when, and where of the situation in just 1-2 sentences, establishing all of the relevant players and what was at stake for you (and other important stakeholders). You’ll then want to comment on your decision and the outcome with comparable brevity. Applicants should aim to spend at least one-third of the essay commenting on what the experience taught them and/or how they have grown as a result. And, space permitting, it would be a nice touch to end with a remark about how this experience has positioned them to make an impact on the Judge community and/or their chosen post-MBA industry or sector.
Essay 3
Describe a time where you worked with a team on a project. What did you learn from the experience and how might you approach it differently today? (up to 200 words)
It’s a good rule of thumb to avoid highlighting a failure unless specifically asked to do so; hence, candidates should be sure to choose a situation with successful results here. With such a tight word limit, context will have to be established concisely by defining one’s goal followed by the context of one’s team. Working with others can take on many forms—coordinating with teams overseas, collaborating directly with a colleague for a challenging consulting project. What’s important is the objective you faced and the challenges you overcame—together—to achieve it. Given the focus on teamwork, it would make sense for lessons to stem from communication, motivational or leadership skills.
Essay 4
If you could give one piece of advice to your 18-year-old self, what would it be? (up to 200 words)
Think about who you were at the time. You were likely just about to start college or perhaps even arrived on campus already. While many of us may have told ourselves to steer clear of a certain relationship or raucous outing, remember to keep this in the context of business school admissions. Whatever advice you may give yourself, it would be ideal if you ultimately followed it later in life or at least have a plan to follow it in the near future. It seems as though the adcom may be trying to coax out a weakness you had at the time, in which case you could follow up with how you have since addressed it to show that you can learn and grow. For instance, perhaps you would have told yourself to travel more, and have since engaged in international projects and purposefully planned trips. Maybe you got off on the wrong foot with your major and would have pursued another interest—and since then, you’ve pursued that interest outside of work. If you struggled during your undergraduate years, this could be a good place to discuss your increased discipline or better known style of learning since then.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 10:09
Oxford Saïd
Essay 1
Tell us something that is not covered in your application which you would like the Admissions Committee to know about you. (Maximum 250 words)
While this prompt sounds very similar to the optional essays posed by many MBA programs, this response is actually a required element of the Oxford MBA application. Candidates will therefore want to consider what sort of anecdote or information will add the greatest value to their applications beyond what’s already included in their CV and data form responses. Before you begin this essay, you’ll want to review what is covered in the application (Please note, the application will be live July 30, 2021; the following details are currently based on the 2020-21 application). There are several background questions, inquiring about family care, upbringing and more, which are simply “yes” or “no” questions. In regards to written content, the application affords 5,000 characters to describe one’s current role; candidates are also expected to submit a one-page CV summarizing and highlighting their work experience, education, interests, achievements, languages and nationality. Applicants are given more room in regards to their goals, as there are several fields that appear depending on an applicant’s career plans. Upon choosing a category that best describes your short-term goals (employment, entrepreneurship, other (including family business) or returning to current employer), a list of questions tailored to the selection appear. For example, if you select entrepreneurship for your short-term goal, you will then need to address, “Describe your business idea including details of your business plan and the steps you have taken so far to develop or launch your business idea.” Oxford is clearly seeking out candidates who know their plans, and have done some leg work to better understand how they’re going to achieve them.
With this in mind and once you’ve figured out what will be in the application, then you can determine what you wish you had room for or what feels like it may be missing. This could truly be anything: a favorite hobby or community involvement, a challenging work project that was ultimately successful, an aspect of your upbringing that’s had a lasting influence, an international or cross-cultural experience that prompted learning or growth, one’s plans for involvement in the Oxford community — all would be appropriate here. That said, the adcom has noted that, when reviewing your written statement and essays, they will be looking for evidence of communication skills, leadership potential, analytical skills, and fit within the Oxford MBA community, among other characteristics.
Candidates should consider the balance of content between this response and content in the application, and aim to highlight something new here that will show the adcom an additional side of their personalities and potential to contribute to the Saïd community. Given the narrow word limit, our sense is that the most effective responses to this question will fully develop a single topic (or introduce 2 examples with a common theme) rather than attempting to cover several disparate items.
That said, because Oxford does not pose an optional essay question, applicants who do have a liability in their candidacy may need to reserve this response to provide an explanation or point to a mitigating factor. Such candidates should aim to accomplish this as briefly as possible — ideally in 50-100 words — and then try to be creative in providing positive information under a singular umbrella. For instance, if you had a low GPA in college, you could talk about rediscovering a love of learning in more recent courses you’re taking to mitigate your undergraduate record.
Reapplicant Essay
What improvements have you made in your candidacy since you last applied to the Oxford MBA? (Maximum 250 words)
Given the narrow word limit for this response, reapplicants will want to offer a straightforward account of the specific steps they’ve taken to strengthen their applications since last applying to Oxford. Candidates should aim to be as exhaustive as possible as they cover improved quantitative records, enhanced professional qualifications, efforts to become more familiar with the Oxford MBA program, and other ways they’ve worked to become a stronger applicant this season.作者: myice 时间: 2021-6-30 10:11
UT Austin / McCombs
Essay 1
We will learn a lot about your professional background through your résumé and letter of recommendation. We want to get to know you further. Please introduce yourself. Select only one communication method you would like to use for your response.
Write an essay (250 words), OR
Share a video introduction (one minute)
This is the eighth year running that McCombs has asked applicants to introduce themselves in some context, as part of the essay section of the application, and the seventh year that they’ve offered the option of doing so via video profile. This would suggest that the adcom has been pleased with the information this prompt has yielded.
We’ll comment a bit more on format in a bit. In terms of content, this essay allows the adcom to assess how prospective students would present themselves, requiring applicants to reflect carefully on the aspects of their backgrounds that they consider most interesting and valuable. We also strongly encourage applicants to use this opportunity to showcase elements of their personalities and candidacies that they will not have the chance to address in their responses to the other application essay. Perhaps you have a particularly interesting accomplishment or hobby to share, or an aspect of your heritage or hometown of which you’re especially proud. Finally, it will be important to pay attention to the balance of content in your introduction. The most effective responses to this question will portray the applicant as sincere, well-rounded, likable, and excited about McCombs.
As for medium, the video option provides an opportunity to make a vivid impression through visual communication. It also shows the admissions committee that one is willing to invest the time and effort to create something just for the UT Austin application, underscoring one’s investment in gaining admission to McCombs. Applicants whose leisure activities or workplace roles lend themselves well to film might do well to consider the video option.
All of that said, while taking risks in the admissions process is often worthwhile, you don’t want to step so far out of your comfort zone that you ultimately don’t make a good impression (this seems especially possible for camera-shy applicants attempting the video option). Candidates choosing to submit an essay will want to use their 250 words wisely to give the reader a sense of who they are and how they would enhance the McCombs community (while avoiding overlap with Essay 2, which can deal with that theme as well).
Essay 2
Picture yourself at the completion of your MBA journey. Describe how you spent your time as a Texas McCombs MBA student to achieve your personal and professional goals. (500 words)
Despite the creative twist of picturing oneself at the completion of one’s MBA journey, this is a fairly straightforward career goals essay. Applicants should establish their post-MBA plans and motivation, and elaborate on how they were active during the Texas MBA to enable those goals. To tailor this to McCombs, it would be best to frame this briefly in the setting of being at graduation—perhaps you are sitting next to a cohort member, or listening to an address from a professor whose class you found particularly meaningful. Then, establishing one’s goals and motivation first will set the stage for the deeper dive into the value of the Texas MBA. Applicants will also want to weave in their personal goals, whether a broader social impact, some sense of ongoing personal growth, expanded community involvement or pursuing a passion outside of work.
In the course of discussing why the Texas MBA is your ideal program, briefly explain what you got out of the program; however, more of an emphasis should be on how you would have engaged the community and fellow students in the course of the MBA program. For example, rather than listing off courses whose content would help you advance your career, it would be more strategic to focus on your ability to contribute to class discussions in areas in which you already have some foundation. It would also make sense to comment on how you would participate—or assume leadership—in student organizations of interest, both those related to professional interests as well as more personal interests.
Prospective students should also note that the adcom is looking for applicants who feel very strongly about attending McCombs and are likely to have pride in the school. To write convincingly on this point, it will be necessary to conduct very thorough research on the school and student culture, and to identify programmatic elements that are unique to the UT Austin MBA. Taking the time to learn the ins and outs of the school’s special programs and extracurricular activities—whether through a virtual event, or conversations with students or alumni—will pay dividends here.
Optional Essay
Please provide any additional information you believe is important or address any areas of concern that you believe will be beneficial to MBA Admissions in considering your application. (e.g. gaps in work experience, choice of recommender, academic performance, or extenuating personal circumstances). (250 words)
Both the tone of this prompt and the examples of potential topics the candidate might address suggest that this essay will be best used to address liabilities or extenuating circumstances related to one’s application rather than to provide “bonus” information to the adcom. Candidates with questionable quantitative records, gaps in employment, or unusual recommenders should take advantage of this opportunity to offer explanations or outline plans to address potential issues. As is always the case with this sort of response, the comments in this essay should be straightforward and fact-focused, offering explanation without making excuses and humbly suggesting other areas of your candidacy that might compensate for identified weaknesses.作者: Fatify 时间: 2021-8-24 14:53
many thanks!作者: violetluo 时间: 2021-8-24 14:55
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谢谢楼主作者: chobitS若 时间: 2021-8-29 17:59
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many thanks!作者: girlself 时间: 2022-1-6 09:29
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many thanks作者: denessa 时间: 2022-2-21 14:37
many thanks!
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