HBS Admissions Consulting——Picking the right themes, Part 1
This post isn't just about picking the right essay questions to answer (believe me, there is a right and wrong answer). That's certainly a big decision and one that I'll write about in another post! But this post is about how to figure out what you want to write - a decision that will drive which essay questions you choose to answer.
First a little background. I was an engineering major in college. Held a few leadership positions in school. Went to work as an engineer for 3 years. Decided to apply to business school. My task was to frame my experience in a way that adequately covered the four areas the AdCom evaluates: Leadership, Teamwork, Aptitude, Personality.
These are the major buckets the AdCom looks for in an applicant. But each bucket's significance differs by applicant.
An example: For an applicant coming from the military, a Lieutenant who has led 9 people into battle, I (the AdCom) don't really care about your leadership skills. You're a leader in my book. You've got that automatically covered. You need to mention your leadership experience in one essay, but that's it - save the rest of your application for other themes.
In particular, as a military applicant, you will have to prove your Academic Aptitude. Your GMAT score will be super important. You should use your remaining essays to talk about analytical abilities even if the example you use is one from your experiences out in the field. That's OK as long as the theme is how you analyzed a situation, weighed the pros / cons, developed a strategy based on limited information, executed the strategy but maybe had to re-evaluate mid-stream, etc.
Another example: As an engineer, I did not have to prove my Academic Aptitude. That's my free ticket. Instead, I had to prove my Leadership and Teamwork skills. I decided those would be the major themes in my essays. I wrote about my experience leading a team of external consultants, about leading a group of cross-functional colleagues, about delivering a presentation at a major industry conference.
The AdCom looks for weaknesses in your application based on a quick read of your undergraduate school, major, GPA, resume, etc. and then looks to your essays to address those weaknesses. You had better know your weaknesses ahead of time! Reflect! Get someone to give you honest feedback! Your essay themes will need to address those weaknesses.
By now, you should already be working on some of HBS' predictable essay questions like, "3 accomplishments." That's a given, year after year even if it's phrased differently. |
