If you have watched stand-up comedians deliver their best performances, you will notice three things: a good set-up, an amusing punch line, and a unique delivery. So what can you learn from these comedians about MBA Application essays, especially with changing essay lengths and formats?
Set-up
Top performing standup comedians are good at giving an honest setup with the right information required for understanding the joke. They weed out unnecessary facts, and irrelevant background information to gain maximum attention. In essays, AdCom is your audience. They have read hundreds of essays. Now they are looking for the essay that would get their undivided attention for 15-30 minutes. If you start with how awesome you are, it is like delivering the punchline without any setup. You will be heckled in real life. Focus on the actions and the environment in which you have worked.
Edit! Edit and do more Editing!
Read the set-up and analyze each sentence. Do you need the sentence there to convey who you really are?
Punchline
Punchline works in a standup comedy because it is inherently funny but more importantly it surprises the audience. The element of SURPRISE is what makes a joke stand out. It is not just word play, but how they transport the set-up to a different situation that creates the SURPRISE. Unfortunately, in essays, applicants can infuse very little humor to surprise the Admission Committee, but applicants can offer subtle conclusions and standout from the rest of the crowd.
Situation
The best essay writers are good at transporting the AdCom to the situation. To do that - minimize complex jargons and write for a general public that understands common jargons in technology, management, and business. Do remember that AdCom members might be post-graduates or alumni who had exposure to management and business concepts. If you are from a tech or accounting background, explain the set-up in simple terms.
Delivery
The tone of the essay reveals a great deal about the applicants, whether they are humble, arrogant, fake or genuine. Once you have created a draft, count the adjectives, nouns, and pronouns.
1) Count the number of times that you have mentioned “I.” If it is present in every 2-3 sentences, you are overdoing it.
2) Count the number of times that you have mentioned “We.” If it is present in every five lines, it is a healthy mix.
3) Avoid excessive use of “awesome,” “amazing,” “great” or other adjectives in an essay.
4) Focus on the actions that you have taken. It reveals more about you than your intentions.
For More Essay Writing Tweaks, School Specific Essay Tips (11 Top MBA Programs), Storytelling Techniques and Sample Essays, Download Winning MBA Essay Guide
About the Author
I am Atul Jose - the Founding Consultant at F1GMAT.
Over the past 15 years, I have helped MBA applicants gain admissions to Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, MIT, Chicago Booth, Kellogg, Columbia, Haas, Yale, NYU Stern, Ross, Duke Fuqua, Darden, Tuck, IMD, London Business School, INSEAD, IE, IESE, HEC Paris, McCombs, Tepper, and schools in the top 30 global MBA ranking.
I offer end-to-end Admissions Consulting and editing services – Career Planning, Application Essay Editing & Review, Recommendation Letter Editing, Interview Prep, assistance in finding funds and Scholarship Essay & Cover letter editing. See my Full Bio.
I am also the Author of the Winning MBA Essay Guide, covering 16+ top MBA programs with 240+ Sample Essays that I have updated every year since 2013 (11+ years. Phew!!)
I am an Admissions consultant who writes and edits Essays every year. And it is not easy to write good essays.
Contact me for any questions about MBA or Master's application. I would be happy to answer them all