Include Turning Point for an Impressive MBA Essay

MBA Admission committee (AdCom) analyzes essay for two things: how you see yourself, and how you see the world. For the applicant, the essay is his sales letter but for the Admission team the essay is just another attempt by the applicant to prove his fit for the school. With the acceptance rate in the range of 5-10%, AdCom is expecting a mediocre essay. Your job with the essay is to break the expectation. See how it's done.


Breaking Negative Expectation – Narratives

First step in breaking the expectation is through narratives where you follow unconventional sequences. A non-linear narrative is an interesting read but don’t annoy the essay reviewers with a maze of open-ended stories. What they expect is a clearly structured stories about your life and achievements. There is no room for abstraction.

The Turning Point

Another crucial element of an interesting MBA Application essay is the turning point. It is a point in your narrative that changes your behavior forever and affirms your values. Most experts argue against following any format, and let your creative spirit take the lead. Unfortunately, we have word limits in essays, and with words fluctuating every year, the need to follow a format has become even more prominent. Don’t blindly follow a format but remember to include a turning point at 3/4th of your essay.

First 1/4th Essay – Characters & Situation

Second 1/4th Essay – Challenges, Conflict or Dilemma

Third 1/4th Essay – Turning Point (A permanent Behavioral Change)

Last 1/4th Essay – Affirmation of your Values

Without conflict, there is no turning point, and most strong essays have a well-defined conflict.

Types of Conflicts

Conflicts in an organization can be broadly categorized under “Conflict from Ego” & “Conflict Resulting from Decisions.”

Conflict from Ego

Ego clashes happen when the power centers are polar opposite in style, or if the team members feel that the leader is not qualified to be in that position. When a project starts, the onus is on the leader to prove her worth but when she does not live up to the expectations, the authority over the team diminishes, leading to incoherent action and ineffective communication. If the conflict results from a mismatch between ‘leadership style’ and ‘team style,’ the conflicts are even more damaging. A classic example is the leader, who believes in a hands-on approach, leading a team that thrives under complete autonomy. 

Conflict from Decisions

Decisions taken with limited information are open to intense scrutiny as they are more likely to meet with failure. When the client defines the deadline, leaders have little option but to persist with such decisions. In addition to the risk of following a false path, the leader faces the risk of alienating the team as well; this becomes a perfect environment for conflict. Although Management Gurus profess to involve the team for all decisions, in the real world, decisions are not democratized.

Change in Behavior

Once you have decided whether to include Conflict from Ego or Conflict from Decision in the essay, there should be a mechanism to measure the change in behavior resulting from the turning point. You don’t have to be right in both the scenarios. The AdCom is looking for a change - something that is meaningful - an emotional trigger that changes you forever. For this to happen, the conflict should include:

a) A protagonist (You)

b) An antagonist (supervisor/team member with compromising morals or supervisor/ team member who had opposing ideas) OR a circumstance that you had to go through (challenging deadline/ pressure to perform or lose your title).

c) A face-off between the protagonist and the antagonist OR overcoming a challenging circumstance OR convincing someone with opposing ideas.

d) Clear victory for “You” and failure for the antagonist OR Clear victory for “You” by overcoming a challenging circumstance OR Realization about your mistakes and change in your values.

Learn how to capture turning point in Essays