• Leadership-Focused Essay: What experiences have shaped how you invest in others and how you lead? (up to 250 words)
Background Information: The applicant's lack of access to digital infrastructure growing up, inspires him to lead a rural infrastructure project in South Africa.
• Leadership-Focused Essay: What experiences have shaped how you invest in others and how you lead? (up to 250 words)
Background Information: Through the changing economic and family dynamics of her father's mining business, the applicant finds her voice in a unique way, initially to find an audience for her underappreciated voice, and later as one of the youngest subject-matter experts in mining and commodities.
Leadership Traits: Resilience, Authenticity
• Leadership-Focused Essay: What experiences have shaped how you invest in others and how you lead? (up to 250 words)
Background Information: An applicant shares the burden of legacy as the son of an entrepreneur and how he has accumulated his father's leadership principles in his venture.
Leadership Traits: Customer-Centric, Authenticity
• Leadership-Focused Essay: What experiences have shaped how you invest in others and how you lead? (up to 250 words)
Background Information: From the privileges of a cocooned life, the applicant is displaced from Syria and forced to restart her life in the US.
Leadership Traits: Resilience
• Leadership-Focused Essay: What experiences have shaped how you invest in others and how you lead? (up to 250 words)
Background Information: The applicant navigates the horrors of war and finds his humanity by guiding underprivileged children build life and leadership skills.
Leadership Traits: Mentoring, Authenticity
Growth-Oriented Essay: Curiosity can be seen in many ways. Please share an example of how you have demonstrated curiosity and how that has influenced your growth. (up to 250 words)
Background Information: During a mission, an applicant is inspired by a doctor to find meaning outside combat.
Curiosity: Career Choice
Harvard Business School reported the employment outcomes for the Class of 2025. We at F1GMAT analyzed and found 7 interesting industry placement and salary trends.
2. Consulting - Long-term slowdown; Short-term A robust industry
• Leadership-Focused Essay: What experiences have shaped how you invest in others and how you lead? (up to 250 words)
Background Information: The applicant - a second-generation Asian American, reaffirms the values of fiscal conservatism, building relationships, and empowering the local community through a crisis.
Growth-Oriented Essay: Curiosity can be seen in many ways. Please share an example of how you have demonstrated curiosity and how that has influenced your growth. (up to 250 words)
Background Information: The applicant, an education major, recognizes that 70% of all students in Kenya don’t have a computer. The growth narrative is around the curiosity to overcome scarcity, which drives him to pivot from one solution to another.
Curiosity: Behavior
• Business-Minded Essay: Please reflect on how your choices have influenced your career path and aspirations. (up to 300 words)
Background Information: An applicant who has grown in her PE career is facing a dilemma: whether to continue in her finance career or pivot into her creative career, where she has over 50,000 loyal YouTube subscribers, and her videos have captured over 10 million views.
Theme: Passion, Talent
Growth-Oriented Essay: Curiosity can be seen in many ways. Please share an example of how you have demonstrated curiosity and how that has influenced your growth. (up to 250 words)
Background Information: The applicant – a design and music talent, shares her journey through several setbacks. She attributes curiosity to her growth.
Curiosity: Philosophy
Harvard, Stanford, and Wharton are often evaluated in the same breath, even though the schools are clearly diverging. For help choosing the right program, we at F1GMAT analyzed the 2025 Entering Class or the Class of 2027 (2027 graduating class).
We are evaluating the three programs on
In December 2025, Harvard Business School (HBS) will host 12 MBA events, comprising 9 virtual sessions and 3 in-person events, offering prospective students a mix of program insights, application guidance, and opportunities to engage directly with the HBS community.
This Strategy is not for those who are only targeting HSW schools. That is Harvard, Stanford, and Wharton. The Strategy applies to anyone who thinks that HSW schools are stretch schools and require considerable planning.
Let’s go back to the 2:3 or the 3:2 Strategy
Typically, applicants target 5 to 7 schools. Of the seven schools, 5 are schools in the top 10, with 2 or 3 from Harvard, Stanford, and Wharton. A big mistake that applicants make is to target Harvard and Stanford in one round itself.
In November 2025, Harvard Business School (HBS) will host a total of 39 events, including 24 in-person events and 15 virtual sessions, designed to engage prospective students worldwide. These events range from classroom experiences and open houses to regional information sessions and virtual chats that offer insights into life at HBS, the admissions process, and the distinctive Case Method learning approach.
In October 2025, Harvard Business School (HBS) is hosting a total of 29 MBA events, comprising 16 virtual events and 13 in-person events.
In September 2025, Harvard Business School (HBS) will host a total of 20 MBA events, comprising 7 virtual sessions and 13 in-person sessions across its campus and abroad.
The in-person events largely center on experiencing the HBS learning environment firsthand. Multiple Experience the HBS Case Method: Class Visits will take place on September 11, 12, 15, 18, 19, 22, 25, 26, and 29, where prospective students can sit in on a class session.
In August 2025, Harvard Business School (HBS) is hosting a total of 17 MBA-related events, comprising 10 virtual sessions and 7 in-person events across various locations.
We have collected the Essays of the Top 50 MBA programs for the 2026 Entering class. In this in-depth essay analysis of the top 50 MBA applications, we cover:
In July 2025, Harvard Business School (HBS) is scheduled to host a total of 18 MBA events, comprising 3 virtual events and 15 in-person events across various global locations. These events are designed to provide prospective students with comprehensive insights into the HBS MBA program, the admissions process, and the overall student experience.
In this in-depth Harvard MBA Essay Tips, we cover
As the program with the highest application volume, Harvard must differentiate between two applicants with similar scores (GMAT/GRE and GPA).
In your application (essay, resume, and recommendation letter), make sure that these 10 traits are highlighted.
2. Preparedness
3. Learning
In June 2025, Harvard Business School (HBS) will conduct a total of 16 MBA events, all of which are in-person engagements.
HBS will organize several Information Sessions, where prospective students can learn about the MBA program, hear an admissions presentation, and network with local alumni. These sessions will take place on the following dates and locations: June 2 in Baltimore, June 3 in Boston and Washington DC, June 10 in Miami, June 11 in Atlanta, June 23 in Frankfurt, June 24 in Berlin, June 26 in Istanbul, and June 28 in Tokyo.
For the Harvard MBA Essay 1 on Career Choice, Aspirations & IMPACT, we cover:
In May 2025, Harvard Business School will host a total of 12 MBA events, including 2 virtual events and 10 in-person events.