It is easy to forget the horrors of war when one is in the comforts of an AC room with food on the plate and no worries about water, electricity, or the safety of your family. The narratives all look familiar - as if we have read them a million times. None of the sufferers feel Deja vu. They mask the horrors with the new American dream.
When I read Harvard MBA essays of those who faced the horrors of the war, it is tough not to feel what it is to lose one’s home, be plucked out of the safety of the culture, familiar landscape, and a language passed on from generations. Luckily, the new homeland, although imperfect, has all the ideals of a just and safe society.
While working with first-generation American applicants from war-torn countries, the memories they share are mostly from childhood. To create memorable Harvard MBA essays, follow these three strategies.
1) Capture the Details
This is perhaps the toughest part of the writing process. The first draft I received has a manicured version of the war. When I ask follow-up questions on when the attack began, the memories of bomb shelters, seeing loved ones injured or even worse, traveling to relative’s house at the middle of the night with whatever one can grab, and eventually to the States, details emerge that paints a whole picture of what it looks like to face shocks of this magnitude. As children our memories of suffering are exaggerated. The memories of war are catastrophic for many applicants. They are changed forever.
For the Harvard Sample Essay - War Immigration and Starting Over Again, I started with the family dynamics interplayed with the horrors of war. Often the details are only about the suffering without showing what it is like to be in your family. Capturing the scene and the characters is one way to elevate your MBA essays.
2) The Displacement
The shock of losing your ancestral home, status, money and a familiar neighborhood cannot be easily put into words. But all memorable Harvard MBA Essays I have read capture this Displacement in a poignant manner. The second paragraph is often when the displacement part of the narrative happens. Carefully transition to show the before (first paragraph) and after (second paragraph) to capture the admissions team’s attention. In a distracted and disconnected world with 1000s of virtual friends, connecting with another human being through genuine emotions put in words requires multiple iterations. Write, Rewrite and Read the essay for emotional connectors. Each sentence should delicately invite the reader to the feeling of loneliness. That is a theme in all War-affected narratives.
3) New World
The New Homeland needs special mention in the concluding paragraph of How the American Dream Gave You a Second Chance for Life, which is a cliche but effective narrative for the Harvard MBA Essay. Don’t reinvent the wheel. Use the same emotional theme to show gratitude for the new life in the US. End with your vision for what you would like to do for your adopted country or those who suffered as you did. A gratitude narrative rarely fails for Harvard MBA Essay.
Read Harvard MBA Sample Essay – War and Starting Over Again
