Technology as a lever is a common theme for applicants from developing economies. African applicants use this narrative to demonstrate the gaps in policy and infrastructure. Many such essays feel like the FIELD courses that Harvard Business School initiated for their MBA program. Some MBA admission consultants nudge clients to include the narrative to show fit with Harvard.  

One of the biggest challenges I found while editing essays for Consortium applicants is in differentiating the struggles. It is shocking but unsurprising to see how common the thread of the story is for each applicant who had to face the inter-generational consequences of racism.

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.

The exploratory narrative works in rare cases. It is even rarer to read this type of essay for a Harvard MBA.

Family Business dynamics can go either way.

One group of MBA applicants is eager to uphold the legacy of the parent’s business with innovation, technology, and a mindset fit for the AI and the Creator generation.

Before you create a narrative for the Harvard MBA open-ended essay with cliched accounts of the challenges of exploring in unforgiving terrains, and the roadblocks a manager faces working with rig workers of diverse motivations and cultures, you must learn about the historical perspective on where Harvard University stands on the fossil fuel industry.

A common but effective narrative to demonstrate an applicant’s resilience is the setback and comeback narrative. Unlike movies where the comebacks are spectacular, and the protagonist overcomes armies of antagonists without even a scratch, believable narratives in Harvard MBA essays will have comebacks that are not complete.

There is a chapter in all F1GMAT’s Essay guides where I go in detail about capturing the transformation matrix. Those who write and edit narratives for stories, essays, and even featured articles about a larger-than-life personality instinctively understand this secret. For Harvard MBA applicants – most of whom are from Finance, Technology, Healthcare, and Consulting, this might be a new insight.

6% of the Harvard MBA Class is from non-profit/government. A larger percentage of applicants from Finance and Consulting have some experience working with a non-profit in long-term collaborations.

Transitioning from the military to Harvard MBA is not a dream of many when there is close to 20% unemployment rate among American Military veterans.  Such ambitious goals are feasible only for a select few who have understood how to structure their Harvard MBA application, including essays and recommendation letters.

There is no harm in mentioning your entrepreneurial father/mother running the department store or small business. In the Harvard MBA Essay, one of the commonly cited narratives is around values that Asian parents pass on.

While editing Harvard MBA Essays, a common challenge I faced as an editor was the transition from the personal to the action part of the essay.

Schools have tried disrupting the application process with tweet essay, video essay, and image-based questions. From the many disruptions, the video essay has become a supplemental essay for many top MBA. Harvard Business School has continued with this one question: