At Berkeley Haas, we are redefining leadership. We value different opinions and perspectives, recognizing that we always have more to learn about others’ lived experiences and histories. We encourage speaking up and listening, and courageously use our power to address barriers and drive change for positive impact.

Tell us how a Berkeley Haas MBA would enhance your leadership profile, incorporating specific examples (300 words max)

We have captured three types of leadership in the essay guide – authoritative, delegative and democratic, with our preference for the delegative style of leadership, as it provides complete ownership to the team members and allows them to grow as an individual and leader through collaboration, failures, and new challenges.

However, for Berkeley-Haas, a theme consistent across the current class and alumni is a process of combining data-driven decision making with a practice of seeking insights from the entire team, before reaching a conclusion. For the ‘Haas enhance leadership profile’ essay, you must think about instances where a similar style of leadership bore fruit.

Before we go into the three types of democratic leadership, let us investigate the learning experiences at Haas that contribute directly in enhancing your Leadership profile. It is necessary that you quote at least one experience and demonstrate that your current democratic leadership would gain further refinement with the experience.

#1. General Management (curriculum)

Haas has an interesting mix of core courses and an elective – Applied Innovation elective in the first year. The traditional courses in data-driven decision making, finance, accounting, marketing, operations, and macroeconomics are complemented by four core courses on leadership – Leading People, Leadership Communication, Strategic Leadership, and Ethics & Responsibility in Business.

We have explained the relevant courses that add value to the General Management focus of the core in Haas MBA Essay Guide.

#2. Experiential Learning

The biggest leadership development that Haas students have acquired is through the experiential learning modules. Depending on your post-MBA goals and the values you would derive from a collaborative environment, quote the experiences accordingly.

We have summarized the value of each experience. Personalize the experience to your story.