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Sample MBA Essays and School Specific Tips

AI & Marine Life Conservation: Chicago Booth MBA Goals Essay Sample

Chicago Booth MBA Essay 1# How will the Booth MBA help you achieve your immediate and long-term post-MBA career goals? (250-word minimum)

Profile: Mr. V

Profile (Background): Mr. V, the creator of a tracker for conserving marine life, now seeks a holistic learning experience to bring multiple stakeholders from 100+ countries to his conservation efforts.

Essay Approach: “Why Chicago Booth MBA?”

Investment Banking to Venture Capital: Chicago Booth MBA Goals Essay Sample

Chicago Booth MBA Essay 1# How will the Booth MBA help you achieve your immediate and long-term post-MBA career goals? (250-word minimum)

Profile: Mr. J

Profile (Background): Mr. J wants to leverage the finance heritage of Chicago Booth and the VC community in the US to bring sustainability to African farms.

Essay Approach: “Why Chicago Booth MBA?”

Boutique PE to Large PE Deals: Chicago Booth MBA Goals Essay Sample

Chicago Booth MBA Essay 1# How will the Booth MBA help you achieve your immediate and long-term post-MBA career goals? (250-word minimum)

Profile: Miss. C 

Profile (Background): Miss C, with strength in deal origination and portfolio company management in Europe in the healthcare and IT industries wants to build her network in the US and Asia and facilitate deals in the Energy industry

Essay Approach: “Why Booth MBA?”

Growth through Collaboration - Harvard MBA Growth-Oriented Essay Sample

Growth-Oriented Essay: Curiosity can be seen in many ways. Please share an example of how you have demonstrated curiosity and how that has influenced your growth. (up to 250 words)

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. 

Curiosity: Machine Learning

Mental Health Awareness - Harvard MBA Leadership-Focused Essay Sample

• 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)

Background Information: The applicant, ambivalent to the mental health epidemic, facilitates one of the largest mental health awareness campaigns after tragedy hits home.

Leadership Traits: Openness, Communication

Rural Telecom Infrastructure - Harvard MBA Leadership-Focused Essay Sample

• Leadership-Focused Essay: What experiences have shaped how you invest in others and how you lead? (up to 250 words)

Background Information:  The applicant's lack of access to digital infrastructure growing up, inspires him to lead a rural infrastructure project in South Africa.

Addiction and Financial Setback - Harvard MBA Leadership-Focused Essay Sample

• Leadership-Focused Essay: What experiences have shaped how you invest in others and how you lead? (up to 250 words)

Background Information: Through the changing economic and family dynamics of her father's mining business, the applicant finds her voice in a unique way, initially to find an audience for her underappreciated voice, and later as one of the youngest subject-matter experts in mining and commodities.  

Leadership Traits: Resilience, Authenticity  

2nd Generation Entrepreneur & Legacy - Harvard MBA Leadership-Focused Essay Sample

• Leadership-Focused Essay: What experiences have shaped how you invest in others and how you lead? (up to 250 words)

Background Information: An applicant shares the burden of legacy as the son of an entrepreneur and how he has accumulated his father's leadership principles in his venture.

Leadership Traits: Customer-Centric, Authenticity  

War & Starting Over Again - Harvard MBA Leadership-Focused Essay Sample

• Leadership-Focused Essay: What experiences have shaped how you invest in others and how you lead? (up to 250 words)

Background Information: From the privileges of a cocooned life, the applicant is displaced from Syria and forced to restart her life in the US.

Leadership Traits: Resilience

War and Mentoring - Harvard MBA Leadership-Focused Essay Sample

• Leadership-Focused Essay: What experiences have shaped how you invest in others and how you lead? (up to 250 words)

Background Information: The applicant navigates the horrors of war and finds his humanity by guiding underprivileged children build life and leadership skills.

Leadership Traits: Mentoring, Authenticity