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How to improve believability of your post-MBA goals

When clients share their post-MBA goals, I first evaluate their resume, volunteering experience, motivation, and career progression. The combination of the evaluation factors almost always determines the feasibility of the goal.

The follow-up questions are primarily skewed towards understanding six factors:


1) Motivation for Post-MBA Goals


An MBA should not be the first attempt at upgrading your skills or experiencing cross-cultural learning opportunities. Most successful applicants demonstrate the initiative to gain additional experience by taking on projects that require them to come out of their comfort zone. Marketers and Finance professionals learning a new technology to complement their core skills is a typical but effective example. Technologists and consultants taking certification in Finance or Marketing courses to develop an in-depth understanding of Businesses and using the newly acquired knowledge in designing systems, software or campaigns are some of the other examples we have seen applicants leverage. Many, travel to client location, meet multiple stakeholders, develop the perspective on cultural and organizational challenges, integrate technology to overcome systemic inefficiency, and take the ‘extra’ effort to define the problem from multiple angles.  

When post-MBA goal is cited, with evidence of gaining cross-functional exposure and going the extra mile, the believability of the goals improves considerably. Anyone can cite ambitious or even outrageous post-MBA goals. It is not what you desire but what baby steps you have taken that would persuade the admission team that you have the work ethic and drive to achieve your goals.

2) Volunteering and Secondary Skill Development

Volunteering has become an integral part of admissions at the undergraduate and graduate level and for a good reason. Functional expertise and learning from books are essential but not the only criteria for achieving your post-MBA goals. Most of the skills for the future is heavily dependent on emotional intelligence. Without interacting with people from diverse cultures, hierarchy and motivation, understanding the ‘ground’ realities is an uphill task even with a complete understanding of management concepts. Since many of the MBA candidates would take on an advisory role, volunteering experience pre-MBA and during MBA is an essential part of recognizing the ‘human’ side of the problem.

Although top MBA programs are heavily concentrated in the US, the problems that affect the majority of the world population are not ‘first world’ in nature. Governments and non-profits are inefficient in tackling problems of such scale. The expertise of a professional, who has worked in a highly systemized and incentive-based environment could be effective in improving the efficiency of the non-profit’s operations. In addition to the altruistic nature of the engagement, social initiatives give MBA applicants, the exposure to adapt in a cross-cultural environment – a criterion quoted as the most vital part of excelling in an International Business.

3) Shadowing Projects and Sacrifice

Most applicants who seriously began contemplating an MBA had the ‘talk’ with the supervisor – the person up the hierarchy, on the ineffectiveness of persisting in the current role. Depending on the persuasion skills, the candidates take on roles that range from ‘shadowing’ a project to sacrificing seniority while joining as an ‘entry’ level professional in the new job function. Some realize that the Employer is not willing to take the big risk without the proof of an ‘MBA’. Others who work in the new job function finds out that there are skill gaps that no short courses can bridge.

Evidence of ‘Sacrifice’ is essential for career switchers to convey the message that they are willing to put in the hours for the internship opportunity and take full advantage of the curriculum’s customizability. A targeted list of electives mapping the post-MBA skills with the course curriculum is an exercise that applicants should perform to refine their goals.

4) Leadership = Bias Towards Action

Applicants with military background consistently outperform any other demographic in MBA application. The clearly defined command structure, respect of authority, focus on goals and mission, team above self, and integrity to remain unaltered by the politics of the organization, make military applicants a highly desired group. Finance and Consulting – two of the most common post-MBA functions require considerable sacrifice in personal time either in the form of travel or staying in the office till 2 am. Military personnel are used to such sacrifice on duty; while many attributes make them unique, the bias towards action is one ‘winning’ trait that gives them an edge over other candidates.

Post-MBA goals are often ambitious. Any plan to take on roles with considerable roadblocks require personalities that are not discouraged by setbacks. The experiences of persuading team members, motivating them after a setback, and demonstrable resilience are valued in MBA admissions.

5) Feasibility

What is the chance that a Marketing professional would successfully transition to investment banking?


Very low.

Historical data and trends should not discourage you from trying, but if a vast majority of applicants from your background have failed to transition into a role that you have defined as a post-MBA goal, it is time to pay closer attention to the statistics. Unfortunately, the mapping of pre-MBA to a post-MBA role is absent in the employment report. Networking with professionals from your background through LinkedIn, MBA Tours/Info Sessions and in your organization would expose you to the feasibility of the post-MBA goal.

A large percentage of MBA candidates change their goals after joining the program. It is essential to ask the Alumnus whether the role they choose is the one they mentioned in the essay.

Another quick way to measure the feasibility is to check the percentage of the previous class in the job function and industry. If both are in single-digit percentage, the chances to switch into the combination is low.

Example: For the latest Columbia MBA class, the percentage entering the Healthcare industry post-MBA is 2.8% and those who chose Marketing as a function is 8.1%. Marketing pharma products or medical devices as a post-MBA goal is not a feasible plan for a Columbia MBA graduate. Of course, there would be exceptions; mostly professionals who are going back to their employers. For career switchers, understanding the numbers is paramount for their application.

6) School Fit

The School’s fit is determined by the entry criteria, applicant’s work experience, culture and international factors (economy, competition – application volume and similar profile, immigration, and industry demand). Many applicants after numerous GMAT retake and falling short of the target school’s median score by over 30 points, begin to focus excessively on spinning the narrative. Although we recommend creating interesting narratives, understanding the lower limit of the entry criteria would help you reset the expectations.

For top 10 MBA programs, a GMAT 730+ score and GPA of 3.4 and above out of 4.0 is a winning combination. Unfortunately, a large percentage of applicants who have met the GMAT/GPA criteria are among the rejected applicants. Work experience becomes another critical piece of the puzzle. If the career progression is not clearly defined – associate to an analyst, associate to a project manager or similar jumps where you were among the top 20%, the admission team will seek reasons for your rejection. In start-ups where the organizational structure is flat, your contribution is mapped against the milestones the company has achieved.

International factors – the state of the economy, the application volume from international applicants and the subsequent competition from similar profiles, industry demand, and in some cases visa rules from a protectionist government can affect the admission team’s decision.

But the most important criterion in school fit is the culture. Some schools prefer all-rounders, some have a bent to accept entrepreneurial applicants with proven technological achievements while many don’t like Type A candidates.

Customizing your narrative according to the school’s culture is a strategy that would help the admission team look into your post-MBA goals seriously. Without the cultural and academic fit, your essays would barely receive the attention it deserves.


If you want us to evaluate your profile, help you define a believable post-MBA goal and customize it according to the school’s culture, subscribe to our Essay Review Service (Included – Free Resume Editing $499 + Winning MBA Essay Guide worth $99)


About the Author 

Atul Jose - Founding Consultant F1GMAT

I am Atul Jose - the Founding Consultant at F1GMAT.

Over the past 15 years, I have helped MBA applicants gain admissions to Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, MIT, Chicago Booth, Kellogg, Columbia, Haas, Yale, NYU Stern, Ross, Duke Fuqua, Darden, Tuck, IMD, London Business School, INSEAD, IE, IESE, HEC Paris, McCombs, Tepper, and schools in the top 30 global MBA ranking. 

I offer end-to-end Admissions Consulting and editing services – Career Planning, Application Essay Editing & Review, Recommendation Letter Editing, Interview Prep, assistance in finding funds and Scholarship Essay & Cover letter editing. See my Full Bio.

Contact me for support in school selection, career planning, essay strategy, narrative advice, essay editing, interview preparation, scholarship essay editing and guiding supervisors with recommendation letter guideline documents. 

I am also the Author of the Winning MBA Essay Guide, covering 16+ top MBA programs with 240+ Sample Essays that I have updated every year since 2013 (11+ years. Phew!!)

I am an Admissions consultant who writes and edits Essays every year. And it is not easy to write good essays. 

Contact me for any questions about MBA or Master's application. I would be happy to answer them all 

Winning MBA Essay Guide - A Complete Guide for M7 and Top 15 MBA Application Essays 


F1GMAT's Winning MBA Essay guide will teach you how to transform your essay into a life journey with trials and tribulations that will move the admission team.

+ Over 245 Sample Essays (Read Previews of F1GMAT's Winning MBA Essay Guide Sample Essays here)

+ Top 15 MBA Programs (Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, Columbia, Booth, MIT, Kellogg, Yale, Haas, Darden, INSEAD, LBS, NYU Stern, Tuck, Duke Fuqua, Ross)
+ The Art of Storytelling 
+ Leadership Narratives
+ Review Tips
+ Persuasion Strategies
+ The Secret to "unleashing" your unique voice
+ How to prepare and present for the Video Essay
+ How to write about your Strengths
+ How to write about your Weaknesses
 
 

Want to try the individual school Essay Guides before upgrading to the Winning MBA Essay Guide? Try below.

F1GMAT's Essay Guides

  • Harvard MBA Essay Guide (20 Sample Essays)

    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) 

    Example #1: Persistence Narrative 
    Background Information: The applicant – a design and music talent, shares her journey through several setbacks. She attributes curiosity to her growth.  
    Curiosity: Philosophy  
    Curiosity (Explained): Curiosity as a philosophy is tough to translate into a narrative unless you are from the creative industry or your contributions had an influence on a solution or an initiative.  
    MBA Essay Strategy: I wanted to capture the humanity of the applicant and her influence in music instead of just highlighting how she overcame multiple roadblocks to gain attention as a designer.  
    Theme: Persistence  
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – Life Starts at NO (Growth-Oriented HBS MBA Essay Example) 

    Example #2: International Community Building 
    Background Information: The applicant, a Machine Learning (ML) entrepreneur specializing in healthcare diagnostics, shares how his curiosity to learn other ML algorithms’ evolution in diagnosing Alzheimer’s, cancer, and heart disease transformed his platform into a global community. 
    MBA Essay Strategy: I wanted to show the applicant’s contributions in diagnostic from 2020 to 2024 by citing two events. Such examples build credibility instead of engagements that were recent. The evolution of the platform from an AI development community to a community for discussing the application of AI in diagnostics is captured through a ‘curiosity’ angle.
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – Growth through Collaboration (AI in Healthcare) (Growth-Oriented HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #3: Culture
    Background Information: The applicant, an Entrepreneur from India narrates his first entrepreneurial experience – facilitating exchange of stamps in the late 1990s.
    Theme: Culture
    MBA Essay Strategy:  Instead of addressing the biases in the investor community that could turn preachy, I wanted to focus on the applicant and his entrepreneurial journey by citing two entrepreneurial experiences – a platform(club) for stamp collection and his Grocery delivery App.
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – The American Dream (Growth-Oriented HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #4: Addiction
    Background Information: The applicant – a beneficiary of the foster home system, captures the sacrifice his adopted grandparents made to save him from a path of addiction. Paying it back through early intervention among teenagers and community engagement is the curiosity narrative.
    Theme: Addiction
    MBA Essay Strategy:  My strategy is to capture a gratitude narrative in the first one-third of the essay to demonstrate motivation for starting the venture and dedicate the latter part of the essay to the unique solution
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – Drug Addiction and Gaming (Growth-Oriented HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #5: Scarcity
    Background Information: The applicant, an education major, recognizes that 70% of all students in Kenya don’t have a computer. The curiosity that drives him to pivot from one solution to another is the growth narrative.
    Theme: Innovation
    MBA Essay Strategy:  Often, innovation is captured with a ‘hero’ narrative where the applicant is the sole originator of an idea. I wanted to break that cliché and include a person from whom the applicant learned to use a concept called ‘scaffolding.’
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – Scarcity (Growth-Oriented HBS Essay Example)

    Example #6: FinTech
    Background Information: The applicant captures a vulnerable moment of a beneficiary to compare his journey of side hustle before a technology giant noticed his talent. Although cryptocurrency is not a flavor for the year, capture niches where innovation is still happening. 
    Theme: Education, Child Welfare
    MBA Essay Strategy:  Empathizing with a techno solution is tough without a strong backstory around the beneficiary. For the essay, I wanted to clearly establish the beneficiary – Rami, before the applicant narrates the similarities to his journey and finally shares the solution that emerged from his curiosity.
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – FinTech as a Tool for Good (Growth-Oriented HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #7: Learning from the best
    Background Information: The applicant – a Remote Engineer in the Oil and Gas industry, reflects on a value that has helped her learn from the best regardless of her geographical limitations.
    Theme: Learning
    MBA Essay Strategy:  The effectiveness of the case-study method depends on the assumption that peers in a Harvard MBA class will help elevate your learning experience. For the essay, I have highlighted the applicant’s recognition of this value proposition with three examples.
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – Learning from the Best (Growth-Oriented HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #8: Military & Search for IMPACT
    Background Information: The most common narrative for US military applicants is to quote 9/11 and the reaction your immediate family had while watching the events unfold. The horrifying moment is captured as a motivation to join the Military. On digging deeper, most applicants would share that their motivations were diverse.
    Theme: Career Choice
    MBA Essay Strategy:  I wanted to quickly highlight that the applicant had the choice of entering any industry. One achievement to demonstrate his curiosity that I shared in the first half is the invention of a game. Since the game is mentioned in the resume and verifiable through search, I didn’t quote the name. By clearly highlighting the person’s curiosity and career options, the family legacy is used as a factor in joining the military.
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – Career Choice after a Military Career (Growth-Oriented HBS MBA Essay Example)
     
    Leadership-Focused Essay: What experiences have shaped who you are, how you invest in others, and what kind of leader you want to become? (up to 250 words)

    Example #9: Small Business Values
    Background Information: The applicant - a second-generation Asian American, is familiar with the values of fiscal conservatism, building relationships, and understanding the daily struggles of the community through his family’s department store.
    Theme: Customer-Centric
    MBA Essay Strategy:  The applicant’s role in developing an App for the store is highlighted in the essay at a crucial part of the narrative so that the essay is not all about his father. I have also humanized the journey – by sharing how upset the father was when the revenues fell by 40%. The essay is about the transformation in the applicant’s value from a person chasing productivity and optimization technique to someone who is truly thinking about the customers. 
    Read: Harvard MBA Leadership Essay – Small Business Values (Leadership-Focused HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #10: Breaking Away from Family Business
    Background Information: A unique challenge that applicants whose parents are public figures or CXOs of businesses or entrepreneurs are the pressure to live up to the parent’s standards or milestones. For the leadership narrative, the burden of legacy is established before the narrative addresses his leadership principles.
    Theme: Authenticity  
    MBA Essay Strategy:  For the essay, I want to capture an entrepreneur’s journey to rise above his entrepreneur father’s image. But I didn’t want to make the entire essay about this complex dynamics. The narrative is around the applicant’s focus on customers and surrounding with teams who keeps him grounded. 
    Read: Harvard MBA Leadership Essay – Breaking Away from Family Business(Leadership-Focused HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #11: Creativity and Communication 
    Background Information: When the overall percentage of users with internet access is 62% in South Africa and the inequality accentuated by the rural and urban divide, the applicant endured the lack of digital infrastructure, and spending close to 22% of the family income on gaining relevant information on schools, global exams, and financial assistance. 
    Theme: Creativity, Communication
    MBA Essay Strategy:  The strategy is to share why the applicant values no distraction in a child’s home for optimum education experience. Then I highlight the many roadblocks the applicant’s non-profit faced in receiving fee waiver for their cooperative run ISP.
    Read: Harvard MBA Leadership Essay – Non-Profit (Telecom) (Leadership-Focused HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #12: Mental Health
    Background Information: The applicant like most didn’t pay much attention to the mental health epidemic until tragedy hit home.
    Theme: Communication, Innovation
    MBA Essay Strategy:  A question we frequently get from applicants is whether they should cite tragedy in the family as a motivation for a venture or a non-profit initiative. As long as you don’t linger too much on the tragedy and offer a balanced narrative, there are no restrictions on leveraging unique stories from your life. 
    Read: Harvard MBA Leadership Essay – Mental Health (Leadership-Focused HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #13: Trauma, Healing & Finding Authentic Self
    Background Information: The applicant narrates the absurdity of war in the narrative about the duties in Kabul, and the trauma. Instead of wallowing in on the horror, the applicant takes what makes military applicants strong and guides unprivileged children build life and leadership skills.
    Theme: Resilience
    MBA Essay Strategy:  Capturing PTSD in an essay, the healing process, and the cues that helped the applicant are too sacred to be shared in a Harvard MBA application essay. However, with the right motivation and narrative arcs, you can capture the essence of your journey without sharing the darkest secrets. That is what I did by merging two stories – the horrors of the war with a non-profit engagement.
    Read: Harvard MBA Leadership Essay – Military & PTSD (Leadership-Focused HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #14: Addiction, Setback and Leadership Mantra
    Background Information: In this narrative, the applicant captures Peru’s Silver mining boom of 2006. The growth experienced in her father’s business shifted the family’s economic status to a new stratosphere. Through the changing economic and family dynamics, the applicant finds her voice in a unique way, initially to record her unheard voice but later as one of the youngest subject matter experts in mining and commodities.  
    Theme: Failure
    MBA Essay Strategy:  For the essay, the strategy is to show how life’s unpredictability is a blessing. By narrating two setback events, the essay demonstrates the applicant’s resilience and her acknowledgment of people who made a comeback possible.
    Read: Harvard MBA Leadership Essay – Addiction, Setback and Leadership Mantra (Leadership-Focused HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #15: War, Immigration and Starting Over Again
    Background Information: Despite a raging war in Syria, the family of the applicant was unblemished by the chaos. The strategic government assets near the applicant’s house would have made the region an easy target, but it was not. The calmness of her journey is shattered in one event. From the privileges of a cocooned life, the applicant is forced to think about survival, her sister’s future, and her future in the US. The second half of the narrative captures the change that was forced on her. 
    Theme: Gratitude, Resilience
    MBA Essay Strategy:  I consciously chose not to start the essay with a dialogue or trauma. Two lines are allocated to set up the narrative before the trauma event.
    Read: Harvard MBA Leadership Essay – War, Immigration and Starting Over Again (Leadership-Focused HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Harvard MBA Business-Minded Essay: Please reflect on how your experiences have influenced your career choices and aspirations and the impact you will have on the businesses, organizations, and communities you plan to serve. (up to 300 words)

    Example #16: Creative or Finance
    Background Information: The applicant starts the narrative with the origin of her talents. The unbridled enthusiasm receives a reality check when in high school, the applicant’s father has a conversation with her about academics. While the applicant picked up her quant skills, she was reaching over 50,000 loyal fans, and her videos captured 1 million views. 
    Theme: Passion, Talent
    MBA Essay Strategy:  Capturing vulnerability is the toughest part for Harvard MBA applicants. For this essay example, I have captured the applicant’s uncertainty about career choice throughout the essay. Here the goal is to show vulnerability in the career choice essay while for leadership and growth essay, I could capture one example each from creative and PE industry respectively to balance the narrative. So don’t follow this example without a strategy.  
    Read: Harvard MBA Business-Minded Essay – Creative or Finance (Business-Minded HBS MBA Essay Example)

  • Stanford MBA Essay Guide (24 Sample Essays)
  • Columbia MBA Essay Guide (21 Sample Essays)
  • Wharton MBA Essay Guide (15 Sample Essays)
  • INSEAD MBA Essay Guide (19 Sample Essays)
  • Darden MBA Essay Guide  (21 Sample Essays) 
  • Yale SOM MBA Essay Guide (15 Sample Essays)
  • Tuck MBA Essay Guide (15 Sample Essays)
  • Haas MBA Essay Guide (18 Sample Essays)
  • NYU Stern MBA Essay Guide (15 Sample Essays + 6 Examples - Visual Essay)
  • LBS MBA Essay Guide (6 Sample Essays)
  • MIT Sloan MBA Essay Guide (6 Sample Cover Letters + 3 Sample Video Statement Scripts + 3 Sample Optional Essays)
  • Kellogg MBA Essay Guide (11 Sample Essays)
  • Chicago Booth MBA Essay Guide (12 Sample Essays)
  • Ross MBA Essay Guide (31 Sample Essays)
  • Duke Fuqua MBA Essay Guide (10 Sample Essays + Two 25 Random Things Samples)
  • Cambridge MBA Essay Guide (12 Sample Essays)

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