According to the 2023 Employment Report, 25% of the graduating MBA class at Stanford were starting a new Business. This is a surprisingly large number for any Business School in the world. Not for Stanford though.
In today’s global business environment, the only constant is change. Using NYU Stern’s brand call to action, we want to know how you view change. Change: _____ it. Fill in the blank with a word of your choice. Why does this word resonate with you? How will you embrace your own personal tagline while at Stern? Examples:
Q) As the son of a diplomat, I did my schooling in four countries. My Engineering degree is from a tier-2 college in North India with a mediocre 61%. I was fascinated with the power of technology and ventured on my own in 2016, creating a FinTech product that was adopted by leading banks in India. The company was acquired by India’s leading payment service. As of now, I am in charge of the company’s growth strategy. I want to continue in Strategy or pivot into Consulting. Which school - Haas, Kellogg, Ross, or INSEAD is better suited for my profile?
Q) I am from India. Given the poor Entrepreneurial Ecosystem (bureaucracy, corruption, and societal pressure); I would like to immigrate to a country where I can pursue my Entrepreneurial dream. I also want to be in a country where I have the option of doing an MBA if things don’t work out.
First, you have to define what Entrepreneurship is for you. Once you have defined clearly what your start-up would be like, brainstorm, and find out whether you will go it alone or you will have a partner.
Read: Immigrate for Entrepreneurial success
Entrepreneurship is not something that can be taught in a classroom; however, what most Entrepreneurial MBA students want is to learn how to start, run and grow a business. MBA programs with focus on Entrepreneurship provide a wealth of knowledge that will help students understand how different parts of a business work and come together.
While many MBA students seek a steady job immediately after graduation, there is a rare but growing breed of aspirants who are choosing the entrepreneurial route. Find out the top 5 MBA Programs for Entrepreneurs + Bonus MBA Program Exclusively Designed for Entrepreneurs.
Software Engineers are an interesting breed. As Marc Anderson had famously said in a NY Times article, “When you’re dealing with machines or anything that you build, it either works or it doesn’t, no matter how good of a salesman you are.” Tech Engineers deal with machine more than they do with people. Machines don’t lie. A regular honest interaction with machines forces Engineers to focus on the solution rather than presentation.
Here is why Software Engineers Make Better Entrepreneurs
Over the past five years, the MBA curriculum in Business Schools has been customized to include Entrepreneurship as a specialization and in some cases an integral part of the learning process. But if you have read the latest MBA Employment trends, in top Entrepreneurial Business Schools like Stanford (13%) and MIT (8.2%), only a small section of the class actively pursued Entrepreneurship after MBA.
Find out why Fear of Failure is the biggest Deterrent
Business Schools have done an excellent job in integrating Entrepreneurship Centers with the MBA program. However, the question remains – do Entrepreneurs need an MBA? Unlike other specialization, Entrepreneurship has a broad definition.
Ask the following questions to define Entrepreneurship
The need for an MBA program or knowledge of management best practices are not mandatory qualities for Entrepreneurs.
In this article, we will evaluate five factors that have turned the tide against MBA Students pursuing Entrepreneurship.
MIT Sloan MBA Program is known to attract Entrepreneurial and talented Engineering Students. Although Stanford has a better record of students starting their own company post MBA, 18% against Sloan’s 8.2%, MIT often attracts students that have started Entrepreneurial ventures, before the MBA program. We had the chance to interview Pawan Gupta, MIT Sloan Class of 2015 student, and asked him about his Entrepreneurial experience.
If you had realized that the objective of joining an MBA program is to learn the management fundamentals that are required to start and build a business, then list out Business Schools that has the ecosystem, and support for Entrepreneurship, and pick the best. So what are the pros and cons of starting a Business while doing an MBA. Find out!
The latest program that the Canadian government has added to encourage Entrepreneurs is the ‘Startup Visa’ program. Canadian government owned Bank – BDC is inviting applications from Immigrant Entrepreneurs for Financing and consulting services
The selection process is rigorous, and BDC Venture Capital reviews over 1000 Business plans every year. Find out the criteria for selection.
When you consider the Top Entrepreneurial MBA Programs in Europe, IE Business School is consistently featured among them. The Entrepreneurial eco-system and curriculum have helped MBA students transform Business Ideas to new ventures, and raise capital for their initiative. Find out how IE Business School supports Entrepreneurship.
The University of Texas at Austin McCombs School of Business was ranked #5 in the Top 25 Graduate Entrepreneurial Colleges.
BYU’s MBA program provides the option to choose Entrepreneurship as a Major or a Minor/Certificate program. Students who are serious about starting or growing a new venture is advised to opt for the Major in Entrepreneurship. The Courses, Projects, Internships, Externships and Activities will be aligned towards starting a new venture or enabling intrapreneurship in a large organization.
Although Ross School of Business does not immediately come to our mind when we think of MBA programs with Entrepreneurial focus, it is ranked 2nd in the Top 25 Graduate Entrepreneurial Colleges for 2012 in Entrepreneur and Princeton Review annual rankings.
Samuel Zell & Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies – Ross School of Business
The San Francisco Bay Area or Silicon Valley has been a driving force in global entrepreneurship, and Berkeley-Haas is among the leading players for the education and launch of successful Entrepreneurs. The MBA program offers an ecosystem that nurtures young enterprises while also preparing students for careers as Venture Capitalists.
The MIT 100K Competition is among the world’s oldest competitions for entrepreneurs, and has now completed 22 years. In 1990, the MIT Entrepreneurs Club in collaboration with the Sloan New Ventures Association held the first competition that had 54 participating teams. The winner won $10K, with $3K and $2K for the 2 runners up. In 1996 it became the $50K, and in 2006 the competition evolved into the MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition.
Today, it is one of the worlds most anticipated competition. It is aimed at fostering the entrepreneurial spirit among MIT students and researchers, encouraging them to express their ideas, and providing the support required to bring them to fruition. The competition is a yearlong process that ropes in VCs, mentors and media, culminating in a giveaway of $350,000 in cash and prizes. The most prestigious of all is the $100k prize for the launch competition.
The Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship has announced a one-time award of $10,000 to each of the 2013 graduating MBA student who is committed in starting an entrepreneurial venture. This is a need-based award and is aimed at for-profit startup ventures. The winner will be decided by the Rock Center. In addition to the award, the student will be eligible for regular MBA Financial Aid.
Babson introduced entrepreneurship as a distinct discipline almost half a century ago. It is an intrinsic part of the Babson culture. As a result, among the class of 2012, 17% started their own business, while 7% went back to their family business. This is an extremely high rate of entrepreneurial commitment at a Business School, even beating Stanford's 16%.
Learn More about Entrepreneurship at Babson
Wharton is among the pioneers in entrepreneurial education, formulating the world’s first completely integrated curriculum for entrepreneurial studies all the way back in 1973. As a result, its trademark entrepreneurial support environment - Wharton Entrepreneurship is one of the top-rated Business schools for Entrepreneurs.
At Wharton, entrepreneurship is considered so important; it is one of 4 scholarship sub-fields under the ‘management’ discipline. Learn more about Entrepreneurship at Wharton.
MIT Sloan’s offers arguably the world’s 2nd best entrepreneur ecosystem after Stanford’s GSB. And just as GSB benefits from the Stanford University’s environment, the Sloan gains from being next door to MIT.
MIT nurtures 200+ companies every year. Students, alumni and faculty have founded 25,000+ firms that employ 3.3 million people. They include HP, Intel and Bose. Recent ventures include A123 Systems, Dropbox and Zipcar. The impact of entrepreneurs from this environment is said to be almost $2 trillion a year in revenues. MIT fosters cross-school collaboration with a wide range of courses, a varied class profile and team projects, all supported by some of the best infrastructure and support systems in the world.
Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship
The Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship was founded in 1958 and is one of 12 entrepreneurship centers. It provides immense support for budding entrepreneurs. Besides research support by faculty, here are some of the center’s features.
Entrepreneurs in Residence
MBA or no MBA, Entrepreneurs have innate qualities that you cannot miss. They are confident, persistent, creative problem solvers and don’t do well with authority. They also have a strong work ethic and are good at selling their idea to customers, partners and team members. We have created a list of top four Billionaire Entrepreneurs with an MBA.
Read More about these Billionaire Entrepreneurs>>>
Business incubators exist to help bring business ideas to life. Just as a baby requires maximum care just after it is born, startup ideas too need careful nurturing in the stages before and just after the launch. The best schools now provide specific facilities to encourage entrepreneurship on campus. It includes the required physical infrastructure to help launch a business, as well as the resources and intellectual capital required to gain traction.
While researching B-School incubators, there are a few factors that aspiring Entrepreneurs need to consider. The physical infrastructure is obviously important. But more important are the resources and support offered. Interaction with successful entrepreneurs and industry leaders is a must. Dedicated faculty support and student groups are necessary. Funding possibilities are critical. And exposure to a wide student body, as well as markets completes the list.
We have picked our top five Business Incubators or Innovation Lab for you.
Harvard Innovation Lab
Before selecting an Entrepreneurial MBA program, research thoroughly about the various courses available in the curriculum. Analyse how the curriculum can add value for your start-up. If you are planning to start a tech company, go through the courses that will provide a strong foundation for your entrepreneurial venture. A mix of Business Fundamentals, tips on managing teams, raising funds (VC) and the real-world experience that the instructor can offer is critical.
We hate to say this. But PHD’s and Academicians add very little value in an Entrepreneurial MBA program. Although they are excellent in interpreting trends and analysing Businesses Case Studies, the real-world experience is what adds value in an Entrepreneurial MBA course.
One course that has gained quite a lot of attention is the CS 182: Start-up course in Stanford MBA 2012 Spring Class.
Stanford is known to provide a great number of resources for entrepreneurs like the Entrepreneurship Corner that has over 2000 free videos and podcasts, featuring successful entrepreneurs like Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page and Reid Hoffman, to name a few.
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)
F1GMAT's Essay Guides
Harvard MBA Essay Guide (20 Sample Essays)
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)
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