3 tips for your MBA application essay
In my previous newsletter, I wrote about making the decision to do an MBA. Whenever I discuss this topic, I get two main questions - how to choose the right school and how to approach writing the dreaded application essays.
Here, I want to discuss the latter, and share three tips for writing your MBA application essays. I also share my personal essays from the three schools I applied to and received offers with scholarships from - Oxford, LBS, and INSEAD. Link to access that at the end of the article.
Tip #1 - You need a plan, or the illusion of one
MBA schools are ultimately businesses themselves. To be successful, they need to bet on candidates that will be part of the X% of the class that will eventually go on to get an impressive job, found a company, etc. You need to convince them that you will be one of these people.
A common question you’ll have to answer is on what your post-MBA goals are, and this is where you need to show that you have a plan and how you will use the MBA to achieve them. You need to be as specific as possible - cite the exact skills gap that the MBA will fill for you or how participating in a certain club will give you access to potential employers.
The good thing is, no one is keeping you to this plan you’ve set out. And, funnily, once you start the program, no one expects you to have things figured out. So think of this more as an exercise in what your “ideal” plan is, rather than what you have to achieve.
For exmaple, in my LBS essay, I wrote about how I planned to get into investment banking as a route towards entering the investment industry. This didn’t even come close to happening 🤣.
Tip #2 - Every question is a chance to brag
This tip is more for the people that may look at a simple question like “what do you plan to do in the months before beginning the program”, and want to give an answer as simple as “take a sabbatical”.
This was a bit difficult for me to get my head around, but you have to look at every question as an opportunity to show why you are a great candidate. Essentially, every question is a chance for you to brag in some way.
For example, in one of my INSEAD essays I had to describe my extra-professional activities. It wasn’t enough to just say things like running and travel. I had to say I was working towards running a half marathon, and how travelling to 28+ countries has enriched my life by exposing me to new cultures.
Tip #3 - Don’t be afraid to show real weaknesses, but with growth
Remember that the essays aren’t made public, so you can share information that is a bit personal. There are parts of my essays that I won’t share publicly because they do cover real vulnerabilities, but I think this does help humanise you and connect you with the people reviewing the applications.
The flipside of this, though, is that weaknesses should be something you are actively learning and growing from. Going back to my first tip, the school is a business and they ultimately want people with their 💩 together. So if there is a clear weakness that may stop you from achieving your goals, they would like to know how you plan to mitigate it.
In one of my essays, I wrote about my introversion and shyness and how it had held me back professionally in some ways. But, I was able to show how I was already addressing it, and even how INSEAD in particular could help me further overcome it.
Bonus tip - Try not to use AI
When I was writing my essays back in 2023, ChatGPT was blowing up and of course I tried to use it to aid with the essays. However, I found that it really stripped a lot of my personal “flavour” from the essays. Plus, of course, it wasn’t that useful in coming up with what to actually write. No one knows your experiences more than you do, so having someone/something else frame your personal story for you isn’t actually helpful.
Like most people, I dreaded writing these essays because, before this, I literally had not written an essay in years! But if you try to engage with the process in good faith, it can be quite therapeutic and a good way to reflect on your professional (and personal) journey.
Plus nowadays, with watermarking, you’ll likely be found out anyway so not worth the risk!
🆓 Free Resource - My personal MBA essays
I’ve shared a few of my MBA application essays at the link below. The essays are, of course, personal to my journey and experiences, but I hope you can learn from them and they aid in writing your own.
