LBS MBA What Makes you Unique: Essay Tips

MBA Resume Mistake 1: Overdoing Unique Achievements

This is the #1 mistake I see while editing resumes of high-performing applicants. These are your typical Type A candidates who truly have achievements in the top 1 or top 5%, but they also have experiences as individual contributors that are not as significant. But it had a huge impact on the learning curve and their growth as a specialist.

I see 3 insecurities that are driving the exaggeration.

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MBA Application Strategy

MBA Application Recommendation Letter: Managing Supervisors (5 Best practices)

Over the past 10 years, I have seen so many interesting dynamics between supervisors and applicants from technology, military, investment banking, marketing, consulting, and engineering backgrounds. Each interaction I had as part of F1GMAT's Recommendation Letter Editing Service has given me insights into following certain best practices.

Keep these 5 best practices in mind

2:3 Strategy - How to Improve Admission Chances to Harvard and Stanford MBA

This Strategy is not for those who are only targeting HSW schools. That is Harvard, Stanford, and Wharton. The Strategy applies to anyone who thinks that HSW schools are stretch schools and require considerable planning.

Let’s go back to the 2:3 or the 3:2 Strategy

2:3 or 3: 2 Strategy

Typically, applicants target 5 to 7 schools. Of the seven schools, 5 are schools in the top 10, with 2 or 3 from Harvard, Stanford, and Wharton. A big mistake that applicants make is to target Harvard and Stanford in one round itself.

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5 Factors: Inspiring post-MBA Goals Essay

I was watching “The Man Who Would Be King,” where two earnest small-time charlatans planned to take over a distant kingdom and rule it in 19th-century India. The audacity of the goal made me laugh. But there was sincerity and preparation for achieving the goal that turned around my belief that maybe the two ordinary blokes could achieve this.

By the middle of the movie, I was guessing different paths by which they would be king.

And it took just one sequence – a journey through the Khyber Pass and a tough winter.

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MBA Essay First Draft - Target 2000 words

For anyone in Finance, Technology or Consulting, this exercise might seem counterintuitive but the best way to improve you chance of writing memorable essays is not to write less but write at least 2000 words even if the word count of your school essays is 250 to 500 words.

For applicants, consider these 3 factors:

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MBA Application

MBA Essay First Draft - 5 Reflection Tips

When I reach out to clients to check on the progress of their MBA essays, they often complain about the biggest obstacle – how should I reflect and capture the pivotal events in my life?

Before you trivialize or dramatize any event from your life, follow these 5 reflection tips:

1) Memory Trap

2) Detached Attention

3) The Conflict Conversation

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MBA Application

MBA Essay First Draft – Sad Moments

Capturing sad moments in MBA essays can seem manipulative. But when you write the first draft, don’t worry about censoring such thoughts.

Remember these 4 points while capturing sad moments:

1) Emotion vs. Mood

2) Personal Loss

3) Sad Moments and Identity

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MBA Application

Storytelling in MBA Essays

MBA Essay First Draft – Theme around Universal Values

Thinking about the structure while drafting MBA essays is not recommended but choosing themes that have universal appeal is essential to get the most out of the writing process.

Write freely, but use these three themes when you feel that you are getting lost in the writing process:

MBA Admissions

MBA Application

MBA Essay First Draft - Create Opening Line Variations

First drafts of essays are littered with phrases that look good on paper but don’t capture emotions to get attention or motivate the admission team to act.

The fear that most applicants have is that the opener will be clichéd or too fancy or wouldn’t get the attention of the admission team.

The fear is so strong that they stop writing or creating variations.

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MBA Application

MBA Resume Mistake: International Applicants

In the US, the immigrant population is still driving most of the startups in Silicon Valley. From an admissions perspective, schools must maintain diversity in nationality. The competition is between Permanent Residents vs. H1B visa holders, vs. International Entrepreneurs or startup candidates. And quite often, schools prefer those already in the US over someone from another country.

International entrepreneurial applicants and candidates with extensive startup experience understand this preference. They try to differentiate themselves and quite often make these two mistakes:

MBA Admissions

MBA Application

MBA Resume

LBS MBA What Makes you Unique: Essay Tips

Want to try the individual school Essay Guides before upgrading to the Winning MBA Essay Guide? Try below.

MBA Resume Mistake 1: Overdoing Unique Achievements

MBA Application Recommendation Letter: Managing Supervisors (5 Best practices)

2:3 Strategy - How to Improve Admission Chances to Harvard and Stanford MBA

2:3 or 3: 2 Strategy

5 Factors: Inspiring post-MBA Goals Essay

MBA Essay First Draft - Target 2000 words

MBA Essay First Draft - 5 Reflection Tips

MBA Essay First Draft – Sad Moments

MBA Essay First Draft – Theme around Universal Values

MBA Essay First Draft - Create Opening Line Variations

MBA Resume Mistake: International Applicants

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