During that first, quick review of your file (transcripts, G.M.A.T. scores, application, recommendations, and essays), every admissions committee uses essentially the same questions:
-Will this person succeed academically at this school?
-Will he or she contribute and add diversity to the class?
-How does this person compare with the other applicants?
When they read your essays specifically, the committee members look for much more than this. The eight items unanimously cited as "most important in a successful essay" by our admissions advisors follow. Still, be careful how you implement this advice in your own essay. You must not lose sight of the ultimate goal of the essays: to convince the admissions committee that you belong at their business school.
1. Givens
No matter which specific question you are answering, you need to accomplish a few fundamental goals when you write. Admissions committees do not specifically look for these basics because they are expected and should be transparent in good writing. These include:
Have I answered the question asked?
Have I made clear, precise, understandable points?
Is my writing natural, concise, and error free?
When you have finished an essay set, or all the essays required for one school, step back and take a look at them as a whole. Make sure that you have done all of the following in at least one of the essays:
Demonstrated your motivation
Targeted the school
Expressed at least one to three qualities, strengths, or attributes that make you stand out from the crowd
Presented at least one solid and succinct argument for why the committee should accept you
2. Writing/Communication Skills
The essays also function to showcase your language abilities and writing skills. One of our admissions advisors noted,
Your essay doesn't need to peg you as a future author or scholar but as a future leader in management. That said, the ability to communicate ideas and to present them skillfully is essential to success in the business profession, and good writing stems from good overall communication skills.
Again, admissions committees seek good writing skills -- they expect them. A beautifully written set of essays will not get you admitted to business school, but a poorly written set could easily keep you out.
3. A Real Person
What the committee really seeks in the essays is simple. More than any specific background, characteristic, or skill, they want to see a person. Admissions staff are adamant about wanting to feel that they know the human being behind the numbers. One explained,
We are searching for some intangible quality in the application that no number could ever reveal. We hope to find it in the essay. Never squander the chance to tell us who you are in the essay. It helps us to reassure ourselves that the process is human and that what we do for a living matters to another human being.
Knowing this, it might not surprise you to learn that the number one piece of advice from admissions officers and business students regarding the essays is almost always the same. Although they expressed it in many different ways (be honest, be sincere, be unique, be personal, and so on) the advice is always the same-be yourself! An admissions officer explained,
Business applicants get so caught up in wanting to seem like something: a leader, mature, or, God forbid, "businesslike," that they forget to be something. We never get to know them.
4. A Personal Approach
The only way to let the admissions committee see you as an individual is to make your essays personal. When you do this, your essays will automatically be more interesting and engaging. They will help you to stand out from the hundreds of others the committee will be reviewing that week. One committee member said,
Personalize your essays as much as possible-generic essays are not only boring to read, they're a waste of time. They don't tell you anything about the applicant that helps you get to know that person better.
This Sloan applicant wrote an intensely personal essay and did it well. Nevertheless, a good personal essay does not have to be touchy feely as this applicant demonstrates.
5. Details, Details, Details
Each and every point that you make needs to be backed up by specific instances, examples, and scenarios from your experience. These details make your story special, unique, and interesting. Most of the sample essays in this course use detail sufficiently.
6. Something Different/Unique/Interesting/Funny
An admissions committee member explained,
Business applicants should not be afraid to go out on a limb and be themselves-even when that means incorporating humor or being a little bit controversial. They are so often concerned with making the correct impression that they edit out anything that would help their essay stand out. They submit a "safe" essay that is, in reality, sterile, monotonous, and deadly boring.
Still, what makes you different, should be your experiences and you should not take a gimmicky approach to your essays. In general, you should not attempt humor, but your essay should be interesting.
7. Honesty
Admissions officers will not tolerate hype. Do not try to create a larger-than-life impression of yourself or of someone you think the committee would accept. Let your stories relate your qualities.
Honesty can also help your personality to come through in your essay. For example, in this essay, the applicant admits that she was, "Never much of a student," and indulged in the "occasional prima donna fit." While we caution against this risky approach in general, this applicant did a decent job and was admitted to Sloan.
Drawing attention to negatives is not a requirement of truthfulness -- you can be honest and still be completely positive about yourself and your qualifications. If you do call attention-in any way-to your drawbacks, you must be confident that you have addressed these weaknesses with finesse and have not weakened your stance. In other words, those former weaknesses should now be strengths.
8. A Story
Admissions officers also look for essays they can enjoy reading. Some have explained,
Make sure that your essay is readable. Don't make us work. Give your essay momentum-make sure the parts work together and move to a point, carrying the reader along.
Humor is a powerful tool, so use it wisely. Gimmicks are a big mistake, and a sarcastic or flippant tone will often offend. Real humor, inventiveness, and dry wit, though, are always in good taste.
Ultimately, in all essays you are telling a story about an accomplishment, your reasons for attending business school, etc. You can go further by writing your entire essay in the form of a story as this Kellogg applicant did. This HBS applicant also relied heavily on story. Heavy reliance on story is a risky approach because most people are not good writers and because it can undermine the seriousness with which you approach the application. After all, you will not be admitted simply for being a good storyteller.
These risky essays are the exception: this applicant successfully used a more standard approach. If your essays flow well, follow an internal logic, and contain interesting experiences, they will be a success.
