Image the following hypothetical situation: You are in a selection process involving 10,000 candidates and only 10% will be accepted. In order to differentiate yourself from the other 9999 candidates, you begin collecting reports on them. After all if you have to market yourself and be viewed as unique you better know who your competition is.
Clearly this is absurd. Yet I think it reflects the actual mentality of many applicants who spend time worrying about their competition instead of simply focusing their time on writing the best essays they can. They buy into the myth that they are not unique just being themselves.
Like admissions officers, I share the assumption (One that is cultural, philosophical, or perhaps even theological) that each person is unique. Regardless of whether you are applying to an MBA, LL.M., Masters, or Ph.D. you need to able to express your best self through your application. Your best self is the distilled version of yourself that you communicate in the essays, resume, and other parts of the application. Hopefully it is also that part of you that your recommenders discuss.
MBA programs in particular make this assumption about you being unique in the very way they form questions. See below and my posts on NYU Stern, University of Chicago GSB, and on contribution questions at Kellogg, Duke, McCombs, Babson, and London Business School for my examination of some of the specific ways in which particular schools ask about this.
Some applicants become so concerned about appearing unique that it paralyzes them when they try to write. Other applicants have no problem writing, but what they write consists either of extreme exaggerations or outright lies. In either case, the root problem is often one or more of the following false assumptions:
1. I am not a superstar therefore I am not unique.
2. Compared to other people I am not unique.
3. My GPA/GMAT is/are not that high so I can I be concerned unique?
4. My work as a....is really routine and have no specifically great accomplishments.
5. I have no experience having formal management responsibility, so my leadership skills can't demonstrate why I am unique.
6. My hobbies are routine.
7. I have never done anything important.
The above are assumptions that I have encountered over the years from clients. In order to overcome these assumptions, I make the following argument:
"What makes someone unique is their own particular story. Your own particular experience and your ability to reflect upon it and identify specific ways you have demonstrated potential for success in your graduate program and afterwards is what is most important. Don't worry about being special, just tell your own story and in the process we will figure out how to effectively interpret that story for the admissions committee. The devil is always in the details initially. After that we work on branding."
Take it on faith that you will be unique if you tell your own story and also effectively analyze that story. For instance with MBA questions they are always asking "why" not just "what or how."
Sometimes this is stated very directly: INSEAD asks applicants to "Describe what you believe to be your two most substantial accomplishments to date, explaining why
you view them as such." In this essay as in the similar HBS question, the reason why you view the accomplishment as substantial is at least as important as what the accomplishment is. Accomplishments can be substantial for yourself and/or for others. Some of the most unique accomplishments will in fact be those that may have little significance for anyone but the applicant. In such circumstances the "why" part of the question is really critical in order to show why this accomplishment is a highpoint in the applicant's life.
Columbia Business School asks applicants to"Please tell us about what you feel most passionate in life. " This is really a great question because any applicant should be able to answer it (By the way, if you feel passionate about nothing, you don't need an MBA, you need mental counseling!). This question provides a great opportunity to help the admissions office under you as a person. While some good judgment is required here, talking about a hobby or activity or one's family would be quite appropriate. While good judgment is always required for selecting the topic, the important thing is not only the "what," but the "why."
So for those in the midst of this process, I say don't worry about the other applicants, just focus on yourself and reveal your best self through your applications.
Questions? Write comments or contact me directly at adammarkus@gmail.com. Please see my FAQ regarding the types of questions I will respond to.
-Adam Markus
アダム マーカス
MBA留学 LLM留学 大学院留学 ビジネススクール カウンセリング コンサルティング エッセイ
December 11, 2007
December 06, 2007
Myths of the Application Process: The Admissions Office
This is the first post in a series on myths of the application process.
I am tired. More specifically, I tired of hearing the same myths regarding the application process year after year. These myths misinform applicants, fill them with fear, contribute to some applicants not applying, and to others not trying to get into their dream school.
The myths surrounding the MBA application process are particularly pernicious, so in the series that I will be posting I will be referencing the MBA process for the most part.
Actually, since I started in 2001, I think it has all gotten worse in a way because the amount of noise out there only increases as more online venues exist for rumors and misinformation to circulate. In this post, I will address one of the most persistent rumors about the MBA application process, but first I would like to emphasize one thing:
IF YOU HAVE A SPECIFIC QUESTION REGARDING THE ADMISSIONS PROCESS AT A SCHOOL JUST ASK THE ADMISSIONS OFFICE!
Of course, if the answer can be found on their website, don't waste the admissions officers' time asking unnecessary questions. That said, any decent school will answer your questions about their internal processes. There is nothing mystical about these processes. Which leads to...
Myth Number One: The Admissions Office Has Secret Practices
Any accredited school's admissions office will be following a set of standardized practices for the handling of applications. These processes, like that of any bureaucratic organization, have to be sufficiently transparent to meet legal and regulatory requirements. While potentially subject to outside influence from professors, development offices, powerful alums, and other key stakeholders, admissions committees often pride themselves on being fair. They are not perfect because they are composed of individuals, but they are not secret cabals either. Like any organization, they will make exceptions to their general practices from to time to time, but only at the margins. Hence the websites, brochures, and other information they provide about their admissions processes is really quite accurate. Therefore if you want to know whether they will consider a GMAT submitted a week after the application was sent or any other such question, simply ask. Try finding the answer on the website first, but if that does not work, contact them. Part of their job is to answer your questions.
While schools vary greatly in their degree of openness and level of customer service, most will answer questions. And unless an inquirer is simply asking questions that can be easily answered through reviewing the admissions materials, it is safe to assume one will receive a response. If you don't receive a response by email, try calling. If you are treated rudely ask yourself whether you want to go to the school. I especially would be concerned about an MBA program that lacked the customer service skills to appropriately field the inquiries of potential students (customers).
While I have been very critical of less than transparent processes used by most Law Schools regarding Master of Law (LL.M.) admissions, especially when it comes to MBA and JD programs, admissions offices are very transparent. In fact those applying to other kinds of graduate programs (with the exception of healthcare degrees) are at a relative disadvantage compared to MBA and JD applicants in terms of the availability of good data upon which to make application decisions.
Finally, given that admissions offices may have very limited December and January schedules, I would try to get in all your questions either before or after the Winter holiday season.
-Adam Markus
アダム マーカス
MBA留学, LLM留学, 大学院留学
I am tired. More specifically, I tired of hearing the same myths regarding the application process year after year. These myths misinform applicants, fill them with fear, contribute to some applicants not applying, and to others not trying to get into their dream school.
The myths surrounding the MBA application process are particularly pernicious, so in the series that I will be posting I will be referencing the MBA process for the most part.
Actually, since I started in 2001, I think it has all gotten worse in a way because the amount of noise out there only increases as more online venues exist for rumors and misinformation to circulate. In this post, I will address one of the most persistent rumors about the MBA application process, but first I would like to emphasize one thing:
IF YOU HAVE A SPECIFIC QUESTION REGARDING THE ADMISSIONS PROCESS AT A SCHOOL JUST ASK THE ADMISSIONS OFFICE!
Of course, if the answer can be found on their website, don't waste the admissions officers' time asking unnecessary questions. That said, any decent school will answer your questions about their internal processes. There is nothing mystical about these processes. Which leads to...
Myth Number One: The Admissions Office Has Secret Practices
Any accredited school's admissions office will be following a set of standardized practices for the handling of applications. These processes, like that of any bureaucratic organization, have to be sufficiently transparent to meet legal and regulatory requirements. While potentially subject to outside influence from professors, development offices, powerful alums, and other key stakeholders, admissions committees often pride themselves on being fair. They are not perfect because they are composed of individuals, but they are not secret cabals either. Like any organization, they will make exceptions to their general practices from to time to time, but only at the margins. Hence the websites, brochures, and other information they provide about their admissions processes is really quite accurate. Therefore if you want to know whether they will consider a GMAT submitted a week after the application was sent or any other such question, simply ask. Try finding the answer on the website first, but if that does not work, contact them. Part of their job is to answer your questions.
While schools vary greatly in their degree of openness and level of customer service, most will answer questions. And unless an inquirer is simply asking questions that can be easily answered through reviewing the admissions materials, it is safe to assume one will receive a response. If you don't receive a response by email, try calling. If you are treated rudely ask yourself whether you want to go to the school. I especially would be concerned about an MBA program that lacked the customer service skills to appropriately field the inquiries of potential students (customers).
While I have been very critical of less than transparent processes used by most Law Schools regarding Master of Law (LL.M.) admissions, especially when it comes to MBA and JD programs, admissions offices are very transparent. In fact those applying to other kinds of graduate programs (with the exception of healthcare degrees) are at a relative disadvantage compared to MBA and JD applicants in terms of the availability of good data upon which to make application decisions.
Finally, given that admissions offices may have very limited December and January schedules, I would try to get in all your questions either before or after the Winter holiday season.
-Adam Markus
アダム マーカス
MBA留学, LLM留学, 大学院留学
November 21, 2007
RSM International Full-Time MBA Essay Questions for Fall 2008 Admission
This post analyzes the essay questions for Fall 2008 Admission to RSM Erasmus University's International Full-Time MBA Program. In doing so, I will make reference to the Information Session and Masterclass that I attended in Tokyo on November 13, 2007. Depending on what chart you look at RSM ranks 18th (Wall Street Journal Recruiter's Poll), 30th (Financial Times), and 46th (Economist Intelligence Unit), and receives an honorable mention, but is unranked in Businessweek (but they only rank the top ten internationally). You might ask why I am blogging about RSM's essays, when I have yet to cover higher ranked European Programs like INSEAD, IMD, SDA Bocconi, and London Business School. Actually, I have partially covered LBS already and will finish analyzing their questions, after I stop feeling like they are watching me :) , but there are a few reasons why I wanted to cover RSM.
First, I wanted to cover a mid-ranked program that has a very solid ROI. Consider this, the typical RSM graduate forgoes a mean of $39,031 and afterwards the mean base salary for most recent graduates is $114,480 (data taken from Businessweek). To me that signifies a serious improvement in one's career opportunities. Whatever one thinks of the Wall Street Journal's Recruiter's Poll, the very fact that RSM ranks 18th internationally (everywhere but US programs) is a good indicator of the market value of the degree.
Second, London Business School, INSEAD, HEC, Cambridge, RSM, Oxford, and SDA Bocconi are the European MBA Programs I have the most experience with (actually basically in that order). I have helped clients get into other programs in Europe, but those are the schools I know best. Therefore I think RSM is a good place to start.
Third, I attended the RSM Information Session last week, so I want to get my thoughts down before I forget them.
Let's take a look at RSM's essay questions. I took them from the online application:
Please respond fully but concisely to this question, ensuring it does NOT exceed 500 words. The essays form an integral role in the application and selection procedure. Before you begin preparing your essays, you are requested to conduct a thorough self-assessment. The essays are meant to present a unique picture of you. The Admissions Committee is interested to learn about you, what your values are and the distinctive qualities that make you an interesting candidate for our MBA Program.
REQUIRED ESSAY 1 How do you see your career developing and how will earning the RSM Erasmus University MBA help you achieve your goals?
REQUIRED ESSAY 2 At RSM we value total diversity. How does that apply to you?
REQUIRED ESSAY 3 Describe the most difficult decision you have made and its personal effect on you.
OPTIONAL ESSAY 4 Please feel free to supply any additional information that you believe would be helpful to the Admissions Committee in making the final decision on your application.
Based on the Information Session and Master Class I attended, I think it is particularly important to pay attention to the directions "to conduct a thorough self-assessment" because RSM is school where there is a great deal of attention paid to self-development. In fact, the Masterclass by Dr. Bill Collins (you can watch a video of him on the RSM website), focused on issues very much related to personal career development. His interactive presentation, "Finding a Fit: Psychological Contracts and Organization Fit," was actually about some ways of thinking about managing ones career. The presentation was actually an excerpt from RSM's First Term Core Course, "Organizational Behavior."
Another core part of the RSM curriculum that is focused on personal development is the Personal Leadership Development (PLD):
Our one-year Personal Leadership Development programme , which runs concurrent to the other courses in the programme, is designed to develop in you the skills necessary for effective leadership in international business.
At times confronting and demanding, this course demands you to engage in the intense process of personal behavioural change. Through workshops, group work, discussions and case studies, you will examine and reflect on both your ability to manage people, and your ability to manage yourself.
Given RSM's focus on self-development, it is clearly very important that your essays reveal your own openness to such an approach. If you are less interested in such an approach to management education, RSM is probably not a good choice for you.
REQUIRED ESSAY 1 How do you see your career developing and how will earning the RSM Erasmus University MBA help you achieve your goals?
This a standard goals essay. Obviously to discuss the development of your career, you need to discuss it up to this point, but given the length limits, you should emphasize why an MBA from RSM will contribute to your goals. Given that this does need to be a highly evaluative response, I suggest using my goals analysis table to clarify what your goals are and how an MBA from RSM will help you achieve them.
The emphasis of this essay is clearly on the future, so while you will certainly need to reference your past experience in order to explain how you see your career, you should focus your essay on your goals and how RSM will help you achieve them.
Finally, in her presentation, Dianne Bevelander, the Executive Director of MBA Programmes, specifically made the point that the mission of RSM is to educate business leaders who support sustainability, not people who simply want to make money. Actually I am not sure why she found this necessary to say or what it was supposed to be in contrast to because no ever I have worked with wrote in their application that their goal was to become rich. Anyway, given the strong way she phrased it, all applicants would do well to consider the relationship of their goals to sustainable enterprise. See RSM's "about us" statement.
REQUIRED ESSAY 2 At RSM we value total diversity. How does that apply to you?
It can't be emphasized enough that RSM does really value total diversity. Just look at the class profile. At the Tokyo event, Diane Bevelander also discussed that this diversity also extended to the faculty.
Clearly, you need to be a part of this diversity. In other words, you need to contribute to it. Which is to say, this is a contribution question. Please read my analysis of such questions, here.
I suggest focusing on some specific ways that you will contribute to RSM. In particular, think about what personal qualities and experiences that you have that are likely to be helpful to other students.
Finally, I think it is very important to understand the critical role diversity plays in the expected outcome of an RSM MBA education:
Students emerge from the programme with the personal skills to connect, inspire, motivate and leverage powerful networks across diversity – a defining quality of successful business leadership.
Therefore you want to think about how your personal skills will contribute to this educational outcome both for yourself and your fellow students.
REQUIRED ESSAY 3 Describe the most difficult decision you have made and its personal effect on you. According to the RSM ERASMUS UNIVERSITY INTERNATIONAL FULL-TIME MBA Brochure:
We recognize that there are three elements to successful management- first, the capacity to think critically, conceptually, and creatively: second, the ability to make informed decisions and third, the capacity to interact successfully with other people.
If you think about about the second element, it applies directly to this question. The structure of an essay like this is not actually very different from that of an ethical dilemma or failure or possibly a leadership essay:
1. Explain what the decision was and why it was the most difficult for you to make.
2. Explain what you did. Remember to analyze, not just describe what you did.
3. Explain its impact on you. Keep in mind the word "personal." Specifically, think how this decision effected your viewpoint and/or your life. What did you learn? How have you applied what you learned since that time?
OPTIONAL ESSAY 4 Please feel free to supply any additional information that you believe would be helpful to the Admissions Committee in making the final decision on your application.
This is not really optional from my perspective. Unlike school's that use the optional essay for only reporting on something that needs to be explained, this is a space for also talking about something positive. In fact, even if you have to talk about something negative, say GPA, you should most certainly use part of this space to discuss an aspect of who you are that you were unable to cover elsewhere.
A note of caution: Assuming you are applying to other programs, make certain that whatever you put here does not look like the obvious answer to a question posed by another school.
I always treat optional questions of this type as balance essays, that is to say, you should use the answer here to balance out what you covered elsewhere by emphasizing another aspect of who you are. This question is thus similar to HBS 3f. and Wharton 4.2.
Finally, as is generally the case, you should try to have a good balance of personal, academic, and professional content in your essays so that RSM admissions can understand who you are and ideally see why you fit at RSM.
Question? Comments? Email me at adammarkus@gmail.com
-Adam Markus
アダム マーカス
ビジネススクール カウンセリング コンサルティング MBA留学 面接
First, I wanted to cover a mid-ranked program that has a very solid ROI. Consider this, the typical RSM graduate forgoes a mean of $39,031 and afterwards the mean base salary for most recent graduates is $114,480 (data taken from Businessweek). To me that signifies a serious improvement in one's career opportunities. Whatever one thinks of the Wall Street Journal's Recruiter's Poll, the very fact that RSM ranks 18th internationally (everywhere but US programs) is a good indicator of the market value of the degree.
Second, London Business School, INSEAD, HEC, Cambridge, RSM, Oxford, and SDA Bocconi are the European MBA Programs I have the most experience with (actually basically in that order). I have helped clients get into other programs in Europe, but those are the schools I know best. Therefore I think RSM is a good place to start.
Third, I attended the RSM Information Session last week, so I want to get my thoughts down before I forget them.
Let's take a look at RSM's essay questions. I took them from the online application:
Please respond fully but concisely to this question, ensuring it does NOT exceed 500 words. The essays form an integral role in the application and selection procedure. Before you begin preparing your essays, you are requested to conduct a thorough self-assessment. The essays are meant to present a unique picture of you. The Admissions Committee is interested to learn about you, what your values are and the distinctive qualities that make you an interesting candidate for our MBA Program.
REQUIRED ESSAY 1 How do you see your career developing and how will earning the RSM Erasmus University MBA help you achieve your goals?
REQUIRED ESSAY 2 At RSM we value total diversity. How does that apply to you?
REQUIRED ESSAY 3 Describe the most difficult decision you have made and its personal effect on you.
OPTIONAL ESSAY 4 Please feel free to supply any additional information that you believe would be helpful to the Admissions Committee in making the final decision on your application.
Based on the Information Session and Master Class I attended, I think it is particularly important to pay attention to the directions "to conduct a thorough self-assessment" because RSM is school where there is a great deal of attention paid to self-development. In fact, the Masterclass by Dr. Bill Collins (you can watch a video of him on the RSM website), focused on issues very much related to personal career development. His interactive presentation, "Finding a Fit: Psychological Contracts and Organization Fit," was actually about some ways of thinking about managing ones career. The presentation was actually an excerpt from RSM's First Term Core Course, "Organizational Behavior."
Another core part of the RSM curriculum that is focused on personal development is the Personal Leadership Development (PLD):
Our one-year Personal Leadership Development programme , which runs concurrent to the other courses in the programme, is designed to develop in you the skills necessary for effective leadership in international business.
At times confronting and demanding, this course demands you to engage in the intense process of personal behavioural change. Through workshops, group work, discussions and case studies, you will examine and reflect on both your ability to manage people, and your ability to manage yourself.
Given RSM's focus on self-development, it is clearly very important that your essays reveal your own openness to such an approach. If you are less interested in such an approach to management education, RSM is probably not a good choice for you.
REQUIRED ESSAY 1 How do you see your career developing and how will earning the RSM Erasmus University MBA help you achieve your goals?
This a standard goals essay. Obviously to discuss the development of your career, you need to discuss it up to this point, but given the length limits, you should emphasize why an MBA from RSM will contribute to your goals. Given that this does need to be a highly evaluative response, I suggest using my goals analysis table to clarify what your goals are and how an MBA from RSM will help you achieve them.
The emphasis of this essay is clearly on the future, so while you will certainly need to reference your past experience in order to explain how you see your career, you should focus your essay on your goals and how RSM will help you achieve them.
Finally, in her presentation, Dianne Bevelander, the Executive Director of MBA Programmes, specifically made the point that the mission of RSM is to educate business leaders who support sustainability, not people who simply want to make money. Actually I am not sure why she found this necessary to say or what it was supposed to be in contrast to because no ever I have worked with wrote in their application that their goal was to become rich. Anyway, given the strong way she phrased it, all applicants would do well to consider the relationship of their goals to sustainable enterprise. See RSM's "about us" statement.
REQUIRED ESSAY 2 At RSM we value total diversity. How does that apply to you?
It can't be emphasized enough that RSM does really value total diversity. Just look at the class profile. At the Tokyo event, Diane Bevelander also discussed that this diversity also extended to the faculty.
Clearly, you need to be a part of this diversity. In other words, you need to contribute to it. Which is to say, this is a contribution question. Please read my analysis of such questions, here.
I suggest focusing on some specific ways that you will contribute to RSM. In particular, think about what personal qualities and experiences that you have that are likely to be helpful to other students.
Finally, I think it is very important to understand the critical role diversity plays in the expected outcome of an RSM MBA education:
Students emerge from the programme with the personal skills to connect, inspire, motivate and leverage powerful networks across diversity – a defining quality of successful business leadership.
Therefore you want to think about how your personal skills will contribute to this educational outcome both for yourself and your fellow students.
REQUIRED ESSAY 3 Describe the most difficult decision you have made and its personal effect on you. According to the RSM ERASMUS UNIVERSITY INTERNATIONAL FULL-TIME MBA Brochure:
We recognize that there are three elements to successful management- first, the capacity to think critically, conceptually, and creatively: second, the ability to make informed decisions and third, the capacity to interact successfully with other people.
If you think about about the second element, it applies directly to this question. The structure of an essay like this is not actually very different from that of an ethical dilemma or failure or possibly a leadership essay:
1. Explain what the decision was and why it was the most difficult for you to make.
2. Explain what you did. Remember to analyze, not just describe what you did.
3. Explain its impact on you. Keep in mind the word "personal." Specifically, think how this decision effected your viewpoint and/or your life. What did you learn? How have you applied what you learned since that time?
OPTIONAL ESSAY 4 Please feel free to supply any additional information that you believe would be helpful to the Admissions Committee in making the final decision on your application.
This is not really optional from my perspective. Unlike school's that use the optional essay for only reporting on something that needs to be explained, this is a space for also talking about something positive. In fact, even if you have to talk about something negative, say GPA, you should most certainly use part of this space to discuss an aspect of who you are that you were unable to cover elsewhere.
A note of caution: Assuming you are applying to other programs, make certain that whatever you put here does not look like the obvious answer to a question posed by another school.
I always treat optional questions of this type as balance essays, that is to say, you should use the answer here to balance out what you covered elsewhere by emphasizing another aspect of who you are. This question is thus similar to HBS 3f. and Wharton 4.2.
Finally, as is generally the case, you should try to have a good balance of personal, academic, and professional content in your essays so that RSM admissions can understand who you are and ideally see why you fit at RSM.
Question? Comments? Email me at adammarkus@gmail.com
-Adam Markus
アダム マーカス
ビジネススクール カウンセリング コンサルティング MBA留学 面接
November 14, 2007
LBS is monitoring who attends their events Part 2
As I reported in an earlier post, I had received an email on November 3rd from the London Business School Stating that I had not attended their event:
Dear Adam,
Thank you for your interest in the Full-time MBA Programme.
Our records show that you weren't able to attend our recent Information Session. We're sorry to have missed this opportunity to meet you....
This may made realize that LBS is watching who attends their events and using software to track it. It made me wonder whether they were factoring into their admissions decisions.
This was the email I sent to sent to LBS on November 3rd:
Dear Ms. Blundell,
In reference to your email, the only event I registered for was on October 9th in Tokyo. I attended that event and my name was properly checked-off at that time. What is the following in reference to? Will my supposed failure to attend your event (not sure which) be held against me? Do you take event attendance into account when reviewing applications?
Thank you for your attention to this matter:
Sincerely,
Adam Markus
I received the following reply on November 12th:
Dear Adam
Thank you for your confirmation that you attended the recent London Business School event. Please accept our apologies for the error that occurred in recording the attendance list. Please be assured that this error has now been amended and future follow ups will include you as having attended the session.
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you need further information.
Best regards
It was sent by Caroline Chukwuma, Information Officer from the MBAInfo@london.edu account. I replied on the 13th:
Dear Ms. Chukwuma,
Thank you for your correction. I was wondering whether you take such event attendance into account when making admissions decisions. Should I attend more events?
Sincerely,
Adam
Less than an hour later on the 14th, I received the following reply:
Dear Adam
Thank you for your email and for your interest in London Business School.
It will certainly not hurt your application if you visit the School on a few occasion to find more about the community.
Best regards,
You can draw your own conclusions from this response, but it seems to me if you really want to attend LBS, even if you are already really well informed about the school, you better attend their official admissions events and, if possible, visit the school. London Business School is Watching!
-Adam Markus
アダム マーカス
MBA留学
Dear Adam,
Thank you for your interest in the Full-time MBA Programme.
Our records show that you weren't able to attend our recent Information Session. We're sorry to have missed this opportunity to meet you....
This may made realize that LBS is watching who attends their events and using software to track it. It made me wonder whether they were factoring into their admissions decisions.
This was the email I sent to sent to LBS on November 3rd:
Dear Ms. Blundell,
In reference to your email, the only event I registered for was on October 9th in Tokyo. I attended that event and my name was properly checked-off at that time. What is the following in reference to? Will my supposed failure to attend your event (not sure which) be held against me? Do you take event attendance into account when reviewing applications?
Thank you for your attention to this matter:
Sincerely,
Adam Markus
I received the following reply on November 12th:
Dear Adam
Thank you for your confirmation that you attended the recent London Business School event. Please accept our apologies for the error that occurred in recording the attendance list. Please be assured that this error has now been amended and future follow ups will include you as having attended the session.
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you need further information.
Best regards
It was sent by Caroline Chukwuma, Information Officer from the MBAInfo@london.edu account. I replied on the 13th:
Dear Ms. Chukwuma,
Thank you for your correction. I was wondering whether you take such event attendance into account when making admissions decisions. Should I attend more events?
Sincerely,
Adam
Less than an hour later on the 14th, I received the following reply:
Dear Adam
Thank you for your email and for your interest in London Business School.
It will certainly not hurt your application if you visit the School on a few occasion to find more about the community.
Best regards,
You can draw your own conclusions from this response, but it seems to me if you really want to attend LBS, even if you are already really well informed about the school, you better attend their official admissions events and, if possible, visit the school. London Business School is Watching!
-Adam Markus
アダム マーカス
MBA留学
November 11, 2007
Duke Fuqua MBA Essays for Fall 2008 Entry
In this post, I will analyze Duke University 's Fuqua School of Business MBA Essays for Fall 2008 Entry.
Take a close look at the Fuqua's website including the video Higher and Higher which you can find here. The video will give a general sense what Fuqua takes pride in and an idea of some the core characteristics of the school that you need to understand. You should also look at the video Community Service Day because it relates directly to Fuqua's slogan "We Educate Thoughtful Business Leaders Worldwide." You want to show to Fuqua that you have the potential to be a thoughtful business leader.
First let's look at the essay topics as well as the complete instructions:
Two short essay answer questions and two long essays must be completed before submitting your application. Prepare your essays carefully. The Admissions Committee considers your responses to the following questions important in the selection process. Please respond fully and concisely using 1.5 line spacing.
Short Essay 1. Why are you interested in The Duke MBA and how will it help you achieve your goals? Please also discuss your career path, including your short and long-term professional goals. If you are interested in the Health Sector Management concentration or a joint degree program, please address in this essay.
You should at minimum provide a very direct answer to Duke's question:
1. Clearly state how a Duke MBA will help you achieve your short-term goal(s).
2. Clearly state how a Duke MBA will help you achieve your long-term goal(s).
3. Briefly discuss your career path, but given the length of this essay, don't overemphasize it. This essay should be focused on the future, not the past. Simply explain why now is the right time to pursue an MBA making brief analytical reference to to your career path.
Ideally you should really dig into the Duke MBA program to figure out what parts of it really attract you. They know you want an MBA, but why a Duke MBA? Convince them that your goals are best met by attending Fuqua.
Short Essay 2. How will your background, values, and non-work activities enhance the experience of other Duke MBA students and add value to Fuqua's diverse culture?
I have already analyzed this question in my previous post on contribution questions.
1. Please respond fully and concisely to one of the following three essay topics. Clearly identify which question you have selected
All three of these questions, each in their own way focus on the theme of leadership. Note the request to respond concisely, which means don't write much more than about 10% over the 750, they recommend as typical. Try to limit yourself to about 825 words maximum.
a.Describe an example of where you were challenged to lead in a team-oriented context. What was the challenge you faced, how did you address it, and what takeaways or lessons learned have you successfully applied in other leadership situations?
Please see my post about leadership questions because much of what I suggest there applies here, especially in terms of how to structure your essay. Also see my analysis of MIT's essay questions 1 and 2.
b. Describe a situation in which your ability to perform ethically was challenged. What was the issue, how did you handle it, and what did you learn from it?
The structure of this essay is actually stated in the question:
1. Clearly state what the ethical issue was. Provide sufficient context for doing so, but really begin with the issue so that your reader will understand it clearly. If you are having difficulty understanding what ethical issues are, I suggest taking a look at at the Institute for Global Ethics. Also see Business Ethics Research - Knowledge@Wharton.
Another good site to look at is CasePlace.org, which I discussed in an earlier post.
2. Describe how you handled it. You may want to structure your answer using the method I provide for answering leadership questions. By the way if you think, I am emphasizing the idea that this is a leadership question, you are right.
3. State what you learned. As with failure essays, the learning aspect is very important. The most concrete demonstration of learning is application to another situation, so if that is possible to include, I would do so.
Keep in mind that Fuqua itself experienced a scandal in 2007 involving 34 MBA students (all members of the Class of 2008) who cheated on an exam, the largest such episode ever in the history of Duke University. Therefore if you write on ethics, you should certainly show that you have achieved an understanding of ethical issues consistent with the Fuqua Honor Code.
C. Describe a significant leadership failure in your life. What did you learn from this failure? How has it impacted who you are today and the kind of leader you would like to be?
Beyond being about failure, this essay is about the development of your leadership skills and leadership self-image from the past to the future. That said, this is partially a standard failure question except that the failure must relate to your leadership. As with other failure questions what you learned is critical. Additionally, how you applied this lesson afterwards is something you should must certainly explain in detail. Beyond that lesson, think about the future and the kind of leader you want to be. I suggest reviewing my analysis of both leadership and failure questions.
2. How has your personal history and family background influenced your intellectual and personal development? What unique personal qualities or life experiences distinguish you from other applicants? Note: The goal of this essay is to get a sense of who you are, rather than what you have achieved professionally.
I have already analyzed this question in my previous post on contribution questions.
All applicants have the opportunity to submit an optional essay to explain any extenuating circumstances of which the Admissions Committee should be aware.
Extenuating circumstances would be things like not being able to use your direct supervisor as a recommender, gaps in your employment record, and/or a weak GPA, TOEFL, and/or GMAT. This essay is thus no different from Chicago GSB's Optional Essay.
Question? Comments? Email me at adammarkus@gmail.com
-Adam Markus
アダム マーカス
ビジネススクール カウンセリング コンサルティング MBA留学 インタビュー 面接
Take a close look at the Fuqua's website including the video Higher and Higher which you can find here. The video will give a general sense what Fuqua takes pride in and an idea of some the core characteristics of the school that you need to understand. You should also look at the video Community Service Day because it relates directly to Fuqua's slogan "We Educate Thoughtful Business Leaders Worldwide." You want to show to Fuqua that you have the potential to be a thoughtful business leader.
First let's look at the essay topics as well as the complete instructions:
Two short essay answer questions and two long essays must be completed before submitting your application. Prepare your essays carefully. The Admissions Committee considers your responses to the following questions important in the selection process. Please respond fully and concisely using 1.5 line spacing.
Applicant Essays
Short Essays - Answer both short essay questions.
- Why are you interested in The Duke MBA and how will it help you achieve your goals? Please also discuss your career path, including your short and long-term professional goals. If you are interested in the Health Sector Management concentration or a joint degree program, please address in this essay.
- How will your background, values, and non-work activities enhance the experience of other Duke MBA students and add value to Fuqua's diverse culture?
- Please respond fully and concisely to one of the following three essay topics. Clearly identify which question you have selected.
- Describe an example of where you were challenged to lead in a team-oriented context. What was the challenge you faced, how did you address it, and what takeaways or lessons learned have you successfully applied in other leadership situations?
- Describe a situation in which your ability to perform ethically was challenged. What was the issue, how did you handle it, and what did you learn from it?
- Describe a significant leadership failure in your life. What did you learn from this failure? How has it impacted who you are today and the kind of leader you would like to be?
- How has your personal history and family background influenced your intellectual and personal development? What unique personal qualities or life experiences distinguish you from other applicants? Note: The goal of this essay is to get a sense of who you are, rather than what you have achieved professionally.
Short Essay 1. Why are you interested in The Duke MBA and how will it help you achieve your goals? Please also discuss your career path, including your short and long-term professional goals. If you are interested in the Health Sector Management concentration or a joint degree program, please address in this essay.
You should at minimum provide a very direct answer to Duke's question:
1. Clearly state how a Duke MBA will help you achieve your short-term goal(s).
2. Clearly state how a Duke MBA will help you achieve your long-term goal(s).
3. Briefly discuss your career path, but given the length of this essay, don't overemphasize it. This essay should be focused on the future, not the past. Simply explain why now is the right time to pursue an MBA making brief analytical reference to to your career path.
Ideally you should really dig into the Duke MBA program to figure out what parts of it really attract you. They know you want an MBA, but why a Duke MBA? Convince them that your goals are best met by attending Fuqua.
Short Essay 2. How will your background, values, and non-work activities enhance the experience of other Duke MBA students and add value to Fuqua's diverse culture?
I have already analyzed this question in my previous post on contribution questions.
1. Please respond fully and concisely to one of the following three essay topics. Clearly identify which question you have selected
All three of these questions, each in their own way focus on the theme of leadership. Note the request to respond concisely, which means don't write much more than about 10% over the 750, they recommend as typical. Try to limit yourself to about 825 words maximum.
a.Describe an example of where you were challenged to lead in a team-oriented context. What was the challenge you faced, how did you address it, and what takeaways or lessons learned have you successfully applied in other leadership situations?
Please see my post about leadership questions because much of what I suggest there applies here, especially in terms of how to structure your essay. Also see my analysis of MIT's essay questions 1 and 2.
b. Describe a situation in which your ability to perform ethically was challenged. What was the issue, how did you handle it, and what did you learn from it?
The structure of this essay is actually stated in the question:
1. Clearly state what the ethical issue was. Provide sufficient context for doing so, but really begin with the issue so that your reader will understand it clearly. If you are having difficulty understanding what ethical issues are, I suggest taking a look at at the Institute for Global Ethics. Also see Business Ethics Research - Knowledge@Wharton.
Another good site to look at is CasePlace.org, which I discussed in an earlier post.
2. Describe how you handled it. You may want to structure your answer using the method I provide for answering leadership questions. By the way if you think, I am emphasizing the idea that this is a leadership question, you are right.
3. State what you learned. As with failure essays, the learning aspect is very important. The most concrete demonstration of learning is application to another situation, so if that is possible to include, I would do so.
Keep in mind that Fuqua itself experienced a scandal in 2007 involving 34 MBA students (all members of the Class of 2008) who cheated on an exam, the largest such episode ever in the history of Duke University. Therefore if you write on ethics, you should certainly show that you have achieved an understanding of ethical issues consistent with the Fuqua Honor Code.
C. Describe a significant leadership failure in your life. What did you learn from this failure? How has it impacted who you are today and the kind of leader you would like to be?
Beyond being about failure, this essay is about the development of your leadership skills and leadership self-image from the past to the future. That said, this is partially a standard failure question except that the failure must relate to your leadership. As with other failure questions what you learned is critical. Additionally, how you applied this lesson afterwards is something you should must certainly explain in detail. Beyond that lesson, think about the future and the kind of leader you want to be. I suggest reviewing my analysis of both leadership and failure questions.
2. How has your personal history and family background influenced your intellectual and personal development? What unique personal qualities or life experiences distinguish you from other applicants? Note: The goal of this essay is to get a sense of who you are, rather than what you have achieved professionally.
I have already analyzed this question in my previous post on contribution questions.
All applicants have the opportunity to submit an optional essay to explain any extenuating circumstances of which the Admissions Committee should be aware.
Extenuating circumstances would be things like not being able to use your direct supervisor as a recommender, gaps in your employment record, and/or a weak GPA, TOEFL, and/or GMAT. This essay is thus no different from Chicago GSB's Optional Essay.
Question? Comments? Email me at adammarkus@gmail.com
-Adam Markus
アダム マーカス
ビジネススクール カウンセリング コンサルティング MBA留学 インタビュー 面接
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